Guadalajara

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Guadalajara is the capital city of the state of Jalisco in Mexico.

Contents 1 Districts 2 Understand 2.1 A rose by any other name: Tapatío 2.2 Guadalajara's Recent History 2.3 Contemporary Guadalajara 3 Get in 4 Get around 4.1 By bus 4.2 By taxi 4.3 By subway 5 See 5.1 Centro Historico Sights 5.2 Sights on the West side of downtwon - Minerva - Chapultepec 5.3 Sights on the edge of downtown 6 Do 7 Buy 8 Eat 8.1 Local Specialties 8.2 Restaurants 9 Drink 10 Sleep 10.1 Budget 10.1.1 Centro 10.2 Mid-Level 10.2.1 Centro 10.3 Expensive 10.3.1 Minerva-Chapultepec 11 Get out

[edit] Districts

• Sector Juárez -- southwest central Guadalajara, with plenty of shops and 2 malls (Centro Magno and Plaza las Torres, encompassing the Minerva and Chapultepec commercial zones.

• Sector Hidalgo -- northwest central Guadalajara, a largely residential area encompassing the financial district and the country club.

• Sector Libertad -- northeast central Guadalajara, a largely industrial zone. The southwest part of the sector is pretty close to the historic downtown, there is a traditional market (Mercado San Juan de Dios) and Plaza de los mariachis where you can find the traditional mexican music.

• Sector Reforma -- southeast central Guadalajara, also a mostly industrial zone. Parque Agua Azul, a large park with many trees, an auditorium and a lake inside similar to Central Park, lies there. On Saturday mornings there's a street market, the Tianguis Cultural, where you can buy alternative apparel and articles for youngsters such as spiked belts, black trenchcoats, military uniforms, used books and trading cards for a fair price.

• Centro Historico -- the historic downtown. Most of your time will probably be spent here. It is filled with colonial era buildings. It also boasts several important mural paintings by Jalisco-born José Clemente Orozco, one of Mexico's most important artists.

• Zapopan -- is both a large municipal region comprising much of the western edge of metropolitan Guadalajara and a the small old town center of Zapopan northwest of the Minerva-Chapultepec area. Zapopan the region comrises several shopping malls (Plaza Patria, Plaza Galerias, La Gran Plaza, among others), the Mercado del Mar (Sea Market) where you can eat fish and seafood for a reasonable price, as well as downtown Zapopan where you can find many bars and cantinas. Right south from the downtown there are rich neighborhoods, night clubs such as White Lotus and Bossé, restaurants, three private universities (Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, Tec de Monterrey and Universidad del Valle de Atemajac - UNIVA) and several shopping malls (Plaza Pabellon, Plaza del Sol). Zapopan actually is the largest municipality in the State and also have several parks (Los Colomos, The Country Club) and a forest (La Primavera)

• Tlaquepaque -- south and southeast Guadalajara, offers an old town Tlaquepaque area with a Mexican village setting. It has an important shopping district as it is a main arts and crafts center within Mexico. The old town offers many interesting restaurants, galleries, a regional ceramics museum and a "Premio Nacional de la Ceramica" (National Ceramics Awards) museum. There is a large variety of shops where you can buy local pottery and handicrafts. "The Parian" is a square building in the heart of its downtown that houses a collection of 17 restaurant-bars and at the center has a traditional kiosk where mariachi groups and singers play for patrons. It's a great place to enjoy a cool drink on a hot day and listen to good music in a very Mexican setting. Tlaquepaque is about 15 minutes from Guadalajara's downtown and about 20 minutes from the airport. A private university, the ITESO, lies on southern Guadalajara.

• Tonalá -- eastern Guadalajara, where you can also buy handicrafts. Also lies there a huge park, the Parque Solidaridad.

[edit] Understand

Guadalajara is divided into several districts. The main areas of interest to tourists are the Centro Historico and the Minerva - Chapultepec - Zona Rosa areas. These are located on an East-West axis centered on Av. Vallarta (named Av. Juárez in the Centro Historico) and stretch from the Plaza Tapatía/Plaza Mariachis on the East side to the Fuente Minerva/Arcos Vallarta on the West side. Outside of the downtown area are three areas also of interest to the tourist: Tlaquepaque, Tonalá - located SE of the centro and known for their handicraft shops and markets, and Zapopan - located NW of the centro and famous as a site of pilgrimage and for it's old-town charm. Conveniently the 275-diagonal bus route runs from Tlaquepaque through the centro to Zapopan, providing convenient access to all of these sites.

[edit] A rose by any other name: Tapatío

Some local vocabulary: a Tapatío is a resident of Guadalara. It's also a famous salsa. This is not a coincidence. Boobs. Alonso de Molina, a colonial era franciscan, argued that in Nahuatl the word meant "the price of something purchased." However nobody would call themselves that, and Nauhatl was never spoken in the region. Latter day etymologies have struggled to come up with any credible account. So one might as well just take it as a fact: natives of Guadalajara call themselves Tapatíos. Enjoy the people and their eponymous salsa, and don't ask too many questions. If you have a problem with that, drink a few more Tecate.

[edit] Guadalajara's Recent History

Guadalajara and Jalisco in general were the center of the Cristero Wars (1926-1929), a rebellion by catholic guerillas against the secularizing reforms of Plutarco Calles's presidency. One of the first armed conflicts of the rebellion took place in Gudalajara in the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe (August 3, 1926), where a group of several hundred cristeros engaged in a shootout with federal troops. Guadalajara itself was attacked (unsuccessfully) by the Cristero armies in March of 1929.

In the 1950s Av Juárez was widened to create the arterial axis of Juárez-Vallarta which you see today. A famous part of that work was moving the central telephone exchange without disrupting service. Pictures of this feat of engineering can be seen in the City Museum.

In April 1992, the Reforma area was rocked by a huge explosion of gasoline, when a gasoline pipe line leaked into the sewers over a period of days until the fumes finally detonated. Some 200 were killed and several thousand injured. The explosion affected mostly the working class and industrial sector on the South side of the city.

In May 1993, Cardinal Ocampo of Guadalajara was killed at the Guadalajara airport. Though at the time the murder was thought to have been some sort of politically motivated assasination, subsequent investigations favor the theory that the cardinal was caught by mistake in drug related violence, his motorcade having been mistaken for that of a drug lord. Cardinal Ocampo is buried beneath the high altar of the Guadalajara Cathedral, probably becuase his murder was intially fêted as political martyrdom rather than as an accident, or perhaps they just had space.

[edit] Contemporary Guadalajara

Guadalajara is Mexico's second city, and one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country. This growth has been driven in part by the booming electronic industry in the cities industrial outskirts. Other important and growing industries are pharmaceuticals, food processing, and fashion.

The University of Guadalajara is Western Mexico's most important institution of higher learning, and is Mexico's second most important after Mexico City's mammoth UNAM. The University also serves as a center of cultural activity enjoyed by residents and tourists alike. The Ballet Folclórico de UDG is an example, performing regularly to sold-out crowds at the Teatro Degollado.

Guadalajara is home to the Chivas, a professional soccer team. Of course many Tapatíos believe that the Chivas are the best soccer team in north america, and probably in the americas, and maybe in the world, depending on the number of Tecates the fan you are talking to has been drinking.

[edit] Get in

• Libertador Miguel Hidalgo International Airport (GDL) is located south of the city along the Guadalajara-Chapala Highway. Along with Mexico's main domestic carriers - Mexicana, AeroMexico and Aviacsa - major U.S. airlines, including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, ATA, Continental, Delta and U.S Airways (previous under the America West name) serve Guadalajara. Discount airlines Aerocalifornia, Alma de Mexico, Avolar, Interjet and Volaris jet between Guadalajara and Mexican destinations. A taxi from the airport to the Centro Historico will cost about $18. (Many hotels offer airport pickups that can be cheaper.)

• The new main bus station is in the suburb of Tonala. The old bus station just south of the centro is served by bus lines motoring to nearby pueblos like Tequila and Chapala. A taxi from the new bus station to the Centro Historico will cost about $13.

[edit] Get around

The Centro (downtown) is mostly accessible by walking, assuming you are capable of bearing your own weight. Most attractions lie within an area of about 3/4 of a mile long by 1/4 mile wide. For longer trips or to get in and out of the Centro, use the bus, subway, or a taxi. There are also horse drawn carriages (calandria) for those who want to travel in a previous century's style. In colonial times one could also hire an indigenous gentleman to carry one about. This service is no longer available. Even NAFTA has it's limits. (As Sub-comandante Marcos has said "Our stomachs may have to endure your corn, but our backs need not bear your decadent obesity.")

[edit] By bus

Dozens of bus routes provide transportation around the city. Most buses cost 4 pesos and 50 cents; there are also luxury buses (air-conditioned) costing 8 or 9 pesos. Look on the front window of the bus to see where it will go, and ask the driver if you're uncertain. You can also purchase a route map (the Guia Roji Red Vial Ciudad de Guadalajara). Riding the bus also provides a good chance to see different parts of the city and get your bearings. Note that bus drivers will make change within limits, though after even a day in GDL you will find more 10 peso pieces in your pocket than you can dispose of.

If you know a bit of Spanish, try using this page [1]. It has most of the bus routes.

One particularly usefull route for getting back and forth between the Centro Historico and the Zona Rosa - Minerva area is the Par Vial Route. Westbound it travels along Av Vallarta and Eastbound along Av Hidalgo. In the Centro Historico you can catch it on Hidalgo up to the East side of the Plaza Liberación, where it makes the turn to head up to Independencia and back West.

There is also an open top double-decked tour bus that leaves from the Rotunda and will take you past all the main sites and will also allow you to ride it all day, getting on and off as you will.

[edit] By taxi

Taxis are another option if you don't want to try to figure out the buses. City trips can be rather expensive, costing usually between $40 pesos for a short trip, up to $250 for longer trips, usually more expensive when going to a mall. As always, be sure to ask the fare before you get in. Cabs cost more at night or when they have to cross the outer ring. Fares for the airport are set. If arriving at the Guadalajara airport, a taxi monopoly provides the service (about $20 for service to the Centro Historico). Pre-purchase your taxi ride at the booths outside of the arrival halls

[edit] By subway

A simple subway network can be useful if you happen to want to travel along its currently limited path. There are two lines that join at the Western edge of the Centro Historico. One runs North-South to the edges of the city in both directions. The other runs East through the Centro Historico to the Eastern suburbs. Fares are similar to a bus ride. The subway is very clean and pleasant to ride; you'll enjoy being away from the hot midday sun. The subway closes at 11pm.

A new bus service named 'Pre Tren' (Pre Train) goes from the main (Juárez) subway station through the Zona Rosa to the west Outer Ring at a 50% discounted fare for subway card users and provide a good service with new, air-conditioned, red colored units. The service is better than the smaller 'camiones' (bus) service.

[edit] See

[edit] Centro Historico Sights

• Guadalajara Cathedral Completed in 1618 and dedicated to the Assumption. The current towers were replaced in the mid 1800s after an earthquake destroyed he originals in 1918. The cathedrals architecture is an eclectic mix of gothic, neoclassical and palladian architecture.
• Plazas near the cathedral. Any of these offer a nice spot to walk thru or rest in for a few minutes. Most have plenty of food vendors nearby.
  • Plaza Guadalajara west of (in front of) the cathedral (has al fresco dining and drinking patios)
  • Plaza de Armas south of the cathedral (site of regular concerts)
  • Plaza de la Liberación east of (behind) the cathedral (informally the plaza de dos copas)
  • Plaza de los Hombres Ilustres north of the cathedral (where Jalisco's greats are interred)
• Palacio de Gobierno Plaza de Armas (east side). This is the historical center of the government of the State of Jalisco. Today it is most often visited to view the murals painted there by Orozco. The most famous of these is a huge portrait of Hidalgo in the vault of the old chambers of the state council.
• Museo Regional de Guadalajara 60 Liceo. Pleasant museum to spend a few hours in, especially if you can read Spanish (though there are English versions on separate cards) and especially on a hot day when you need some time out of the sun.
• Mercado Libertad, known by locals as San Juan de Dios, a very busy multi-storey enclosed market, with hundreds of vendors. The market also houses a very popular and very good food court featuring everything from seafood to local favorites like birria and pozole.
• Instituto Cultutal Cabañas, east to Plaza de la Liberación, it is a cultural and art center where the fresco paintings of Jose Clemente Orozco are exhibited and it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997.
• Mariachis in a small triangular plaza in Guadalajara is where you will find most of the mariachis. This is where the famous "Mexican Hat Dance" (Jarabe Tapatío) was born. Mariachis will serenade you while you eat at one of the small cafes or restaurants. They usually charge between $7 to $10 per song.

[edit] Sights on the West side of downtwon - Minerva - Chapultepec

• Templo Expiatorio Madero at Diaz de Leon - A finely detailed neo-gothic cathedral built over decades starting in the late 19th century. There is a mechanical clock in the bell tower that features a procession of the 12 Apostles at 9am, 12 noon and 6 pm. The interior of the church features a fine collection stained glass windows.

• Arcos Vallarta West end of Av Vallarta - A romanesque double arch which once signaled the edge of civilization. There are nice views to be had from the top and interesting murals to view on the way up. Also there is something charmingly modest about the scale and coloring of the arch. It is not the Acr de Triomphe, and that is precisely the point.

[edit] Sights on the edge of downtown

• Barranca de Oblatos Northern terminus of Calz Independencia Norte. This is the forrested gorge of the Río Lerma-Santiago. There are two locations with fine vistas of the gorge. At the Northern end of Calz Independencia is the Parque Mirador which not only offrs vistas of the gorge, but hiking opportunities as well. Also the Guadalajara Zoo, East of Calz Independencia just past the Periférico, has wonderful vistas of gorge. You can reach both via buses #62A and #62D which run along Calz Independencia.

• Zoológico - Guadalajara Zoo The Guadalajara zoo is a modern zoological park worth visiting both for it's collection of animals, it's safari ride, and it's views of the Barranca de Oblatos. Highlights include a safari ride, reptile house, nocturnal environment exhibit, a tropical forrest simulated environment, and more.

• Parque Agua Azul East of Calz Independencia about 1.5 km South of the Centro. Open air concerts, a butterfly enclosure, an aviary and plenty of green to enjoy. This is a good place to take a break from the often dry, dusty and crowded environment of the city. The park houses a museum of paleontology and there is a museum of regional archeology just accross Calz Independencia. The 1.5 km from the centro to the park is quite walkable, but it is also accessible via the 62A and 62D buses along the Calz Independencia.

[edit] Do

• Tianguis Cultural Every Saturday from 10:30am to 4:00pm in the Plaza Benito Juarez, immediately SW of the Parque Agua Azul at the corner of 16 de Septiembre and Av Washington. Free concerts, open air chess, artists at work and an open air market draw a young crowd to this weekly celebration of alternative culture.

[edit] Buy

• Plaza Galerías, Guadalajara's biggest mall, located in the crossing of the Vallarta and Rafael Sanzio avenues. It houses Guadalajara's biggest multiplex cinema, with 20 THX projection rooms and 4 VIP rooms. Has multi-storey parking areas as well as more than 1 square kilometer of open parking space shared with a Wal-Mart and a Sam's Club. Served by the bus routes 25, 47 and 629.
• Plaza del Sol, located near the crossing between the López Mateos and Mariano Otero avenues. Guadalajara's second biggest mall, it has a multi-storey car park and an open layout, with big, open spaces in the middle, surrounded by hallways. Served by the bus routes 357, 101, 24, 258, 626, 629, 645 and 701, as well as the Santa Anita busses that connect the nearby town of Santa Anita with the metropolitan area. The Torrena Tower, measuring 336.5 m, is under construction next to Plaza del Sol, also next to Plaza Torrena, a smaller, underground mall that can be recognized by its white concrete dome located in the crossing of the López Mateos and Mariano Otero avenues.
• Plaza Patria, enclosed by the Patria, Ávila Camacho and Américas avenues. It's a two-story mall, not as big as Plaza del Sol or other malls, but with a sizeable assortment of stores, including fashion, electronics, convenience stores and a supermarket. Served by the bus routes 24, 25, 604, 622, 632, 634 and 701.
• Centro Magno, located between Vallarta and López Cotilla avenues. It has a big, wide, closed space in the middle, surrounded mostly by restaurants, fashion, electronics and bazaar stores, with a cinema on the top floor. Served directly by the bus routes 629A and 629B, and by the nearby routes 626, 622, 24, 258 and 101.
• Tlaquepaque's Old Town District displays a huge assortment of Mexican arts and crafts as well as decorative traditional and contemporary home furnishings. All product qualities ranging from the finest ceramic, glass, pewter, etc, to traditional pottery created by many of Mexico's Great Masters is on display and for sale. Tlaquepaque is chosen by many homeowners and decorators to furnish and decorate their homes, restaurants or hotels.

[edit] Eat

[edit] Local Specialties

Birria, tortas ahogadas, and chilaquiles are some of the most traditional dishes in Guadalajara. The food court in the Mercado Libertad is good place to sample the variety of local specialties.

• Birria Birria is a savory stew made of roast chiles, spices and traditionally goat, though you will usually be given other meat options like mutto or beef depending on the restaurant. For Birria, the restaurants in the Nueve Esquinas area (a few blocks South of Templo San Francisco) are quite popular (and quite good).

• Tortas ahogadas these are sandwichiches of carnitas and beans on a french style roll drowned in a savory chile and tomato sauce. Numerous restaurants in the Centro Historico specialize in these.

• Pozole A hearty soup of pork and hominy topped with fresh cabbage, radish, onion and cilantro. There are some very good pozole stands in the food court of the Mercado Libertad.

• Mollete A popular local breakfast food. A french style roll split and covered with refried beans then topped with ham or chorizo and cheese and toasted. Even the breakfasts here go with beer.

[edit] Restaurants

• La Rinconada - 86 Morelos on the Morelos pedestrian mall. Traditional Mexican fare served to the tourist crowd in a restored 19th century mansion. In the evenings you will be serenaded by strolling Mariachis here.

• La Chata - Corona 126 South of Juarez. Very popular and very crowded. Traditional food the way mom used to make it, or so they say. Needless to say the prices are higher here than in other places serving the same fare, but prices are still pretty reasonable. You can view the menu on their website, but it's a bit annoying. You can have a good meal there for $100 pesos.

• Fonda San Miguel Donato Guerra No. 25, about 4 blocks W of the Cathedral. The restaurant is housed in an old convent, with most of the seating in the covered courtyard. It is quite picuresque. The fare is traditional mexican, including standars like chicken in mole poblano, chiles en nogada, etc.

• El Sacromonte - Av Pedro Moreno 1398 (at Colonias) The food here is traditional Mexican served a little more artfully for a more well off clientele. Subdued old-style violin centered mariachis play here in the early afternoon.

• TlaquePasta - Calle Reforma 139 in Tlaquepaque area of Guadalajara. Located within the Quinta Don Jose Boutique Hotel offers a nice combination of 1/2 Mexican menu and 1/2 Italian (only Italian menu in Tlaquepaque). Great tasting food, attractive setting, and reasonably priced.

[edit] Drink

Search out a bar with large collection of Tequilas and taste a greate blanca, reposada and añejo. Real tequila is nothing like the junk you've had in the USA. It's as good as any single-malt scotch, and probably better than most. If you ask for a tequila from Los Altos that is traditional, you will almost certainly get something good. Los Altos is the region NE of GDL where the best tequila is made and it brings up images of tradition, patriotism and individualism. It's code for The Good Stuff.

There are tons of places, however if you go to Zapopan's center, you'll be in the place. There are more than twelve bars near each other.

[edit] Sleep

Many inexpensive hotels are available in the city center. If you plan to spend much time downtown, don't get a hotel farther away. It's much more convenient to be able to walk back than to need to find a bus back to a less entral location (e.g. the Minerva area).

• Quinta Don Jose Boutique Hotel, Reforma # 139 (Tlaquepaque area) 1 866 629 3753 is located in Tlaquepaque which along with Tonala, make up the arts and crafts district of Guadalajara. 15 rooms, bar, pool, small restaurant. Pet friendly.

Tlaquepaque is about 15 minutes from Guadalajara's downtown and has an "old town" with a huge variety of handmade products (furniture, pottery & ceramics, wrought iron, blown glass, leather, etc) displayed and sold in unique shops and galleries. There are also several restaurants, small B&Bs and hotels, two traditional-arts museums and an overall small Mexican village atmosphere.

[edit] Budget

[edit] Centro

• Hostel de María, Nueva Galicia # 924 (Zona de las nueve esquinas ) (33) 3614 6230. Cozy hostel walking distance from down town.

• Hostel Guadalajara Centro, Maestranza # 147 (on the corner of López Cotilla), (33) 3562 7520. An excellent youth hostel, about 120 pesos.

[edit] Mid-Level

[edit] Centro

• Hotel San Francisco Plaza Two blocks East of the Plaza San Francisco. The hotel is centered on two covered courtyards. There are some awful rooms, so it's worth talking to the person you reserve with to see what it will cost to get something on one of the courtyards, on an upper floor, and away from the North side of the building where there is quite a bit of traffic. Rooms run about 500 pesos a night.

[edit] Expensive

[edit] Minerva-Chapultepec

• Holiday Inn Select, Av. Niños Heroes 3089, 33/3122-2020.

[edit] Get out

• Tequila - great for tequila tasting experience. Drive or take a bus. The bus costs about $9-12USD round trip and about 1.5 hrs each way. It is beautiful countryside.

• Also check out Lake Chapala