A renovated 3-bedroom house just a couple of minutes walk from the heart of Guanajuato, with a complete kitchen, washer and dryer, fabulous rooftop terrace with a view of the entire city. Rooms and things in Casa San Cristobal (updated June 2023): An owners and property managers note: Please note that you must contact Sandra de la Soledad Sandoval Barajas, the local property manager, to arrange access to the house. We recommend you contact her when you have worked out your itinerary and know when you’ll be arriving in Guanajuato. She can also arrange transportation from the airport (for a fee comparable to the taxi charges) directly to the house. The house is thoroughly cleaned between guests, so you don’t need to do any comprehensive cleaning at the end of your visit. However, please do tidy up - put sheets and towels in the laundry area(s) – but don’t put blankets, bedspreads, and pillows in the laundry area. It’d be fine if you simply stripped the beds and left the sheets and pillowcases on the bed. Lastly, take the garbage out; there are municipal dumpsters down the street in the next alley on the right. We generally ask for typical check-in times (3pm or later) and check-out times (11am). It is difficult for Sandra to accommodate extremely early (before 6am) or late (after 11pm) arrivals. If the house is vacant at either end of your stay we are usually OK with earlier check-ins and later check-outs but do ask so we can plan accordingly with the local property manager and housecleaners. If there’s another party arriving on the day of your departure (we’ll tell you if that’s the case), we ask you allow the housekeeper access to start cleaning by 9am – you can keep your luggage in the house, and even sleep in, but they need the time to clean and to launder linens. One precaution: the glass cover on the range cooktop is purely cosmetic – it must be raised when cooking and shouldn’t be lowered onto a hot cooktop (we’ve had 2 groups renting the house who’ve managed to crack or shatter the glass cover). FIRST FLOOR (planta baja): The propane gas cylinders are in a ‘cabinet’ on the house façade outside and adjacent to the first floor entry door; there are two cylinders and each lasts about 2 weeks with a full house. If the propane runs dry please call Sandra Sandoval – she has the keys to the gas cylinder ‘cabinet’ and she will take care of it. La sala (living room – entry at street level): latch the interior wooden shutters (persianas) on the window and front door when you leave the house. We recommend leaving the exterior wrought-iron shutters closed on the first-floor windows. You can get air circulation in the living room and ground floor bedroom by opening the transom windows at the top of the exterior windows. The electrical breaker box is near the front door to the right behind a cut tin door. The wall cabinet near the breaker box contains candles (please use only tea candles in the metal tree sculpture in the living room), batteries, flashlight, matches, a wand lighter (shouldn’t be needed for the range or the water heater – both have built-in igniters), DVDs, TV and DVD player remote controls. The CD player/radio inside the TV cabinet also has a USB port for MP3 player hook-up. The TV is now a high definition “smart” screen and the remote control has the wi-fi capability to stream products like Netflix, etc. Recamara en planta baja (ground floor bedroom): like la sala, also has wrought-iron exterior shutters and interior wooden shutters – again, close both the exterior and interior shutters when out of the house. In the closet there’s extra linens and blankets for the bed, a space heater, and a fan. Cocina y comedor (kitchen and dining room): range is propane-powered and has built-in igniters (don’t need a match). See the precautions above about keeping the glass cover out of harm’s way. The table, chairs, and barstools in the kitchen/dining area are very heavy (they’re all made of mesquite – from the town of Adjuntas del Rio near Dolores Hidalgo). The high speed (300 Mbps) wi-fi hub is under the counter separating la sala y la cocina. The wireless network is named Infinitum 9D34 and the password is Vv7BUmU3ez. In the upper cabinets, starting from nearest the refrigerator, are: 1. glasses, wine glasses, coffee cups 2. plastic storage containers, colanders, serving bowls 3. salt, pepper, spices, sugar, Splenda, oil, vinegar: use what you need and please consider replacing anything that runs out. 4. plates and crockery 5. paper towels, napkins, plastic bags and wrap In the lower cabinets, starting from next the refrigerator, are: 1. cutlery and silverware; kitchen utensils; dishcloths; corkscrew 2. miscellaneous (under the sink) including dishwasher detergent 3. pots, pans, and cutting boards Across from the sink is a cabinet under the stairs where we keep the microwave and some small appliances and extra plates. Lavanderia y planta baja bano (laundry area and first-floor bathroom): washer and dryer are for your use – please replace detergent or softener if you use the last. Consider using the clotheslines on the rooftop terraza (they’re tied to the posts of the pavilion – we do have a dryer in the laundry area, but it does use a lot of propane). The first floor bathroom is very small – so much so that the sink is outside of the bathroom. Usually an extra 20 liter bottle of drinking water is stored underneath the portagarrafon that holds the water bottle in use. The portagarrafon is the drinking water dispenser mounted next to the sink; the plastic spout on the water bottle only fits the blue Ciel brand 20 liter bottles, and, from personal experience, will not fit the pink Bonafont brand 20 liter bottles. We try to keep 2 full bottles of drinking water in the house; if you go through these, either ask Sandra Sandoval for more, or buy another bottle (current cost is about 45 pesos) from the water salesman that come down the street in the early morning only on Wednesdays and Saturdays. If you run out of water when the water salesman aren’t due to come, you can buy water at the little tienda (store) at the bottom of our block – it’s the Verduras y Frutas San Cristobal tienda. They don’t have water every day and at every hour, but they can order bottles. You also can walk down to the Oxxo next to the Plaza de los Angeles to buy water bottles. Where ever you buy water, you’ll be expected to turn in an empty bottle when you purchase a full bottle. There’s a small wine rack and cabinet under the stairs. Usually some of the kitchen appliances end up in this cabinet tucked under the stairway. SECOND FLOOR (planta alta) from the back of the floor: Reading or sitting room: there are maps (please feel free to use them and also please leave the ones marked “house copy” here), business cards of local artisans, promotional brochures from adjacent cities, and other odds and ends and books that have found their way here. Feel free to add cards or brochures from businesses you find worthy. The large window on the back wall of the reading room slides completely open (the key is in the glass-fronted wood cabinet in the reading room) or you can open the casement windows built into it. There is a padlock you can use on the casement windows. The chest of drawers contains extra chair cushions for the seats on the rooftop terraza and extra rugs for the bathrooms. Middle bedroom: this room is in the middle of the second floor, right off the stairwell/atrium that separates it from the reading room and across the hall from the upstairs hall bathroom. Extra linens for the double bed, a fan, and a room heater are in the closet, as well as a comforter, sheets, and a pillow. The window facing the stairwell has casement windows built into it that can be opened. The curtains for that window are now ‘black-out’ curtains and do a very good job of keeping the room very dark. Upstairs hall bathroom: The tiled-in slot in the shower wall isn’t a soap dish for short people – it was designed so you can rest your foot in it while washing your legs. Master bedroom and ensuite bathroom: this bedroom has our only king-sized bed. The keys for all of the locking French doors are in the left hand drawer in the console table between the French doors in the bedroom - keys for the French doors opening onto the balconies in the master bedroom and bath. There are earplugs in the right hand drawer (Saturday nights can be loud). There’s wooden shutters in the balcony French door embrasures that significantly cut down on noise and light in the master bedroom. All the extra towels and bath mats are in the chest in the master bathroom. There’s a room heater in the righthand closet, where there’s also a fan. Extra linens, including extra sheets and blanket for the king-sized bed, and extra blankets, are in the left hand closets. We also use the lower drawers in the left hand closet as a catchall for household items, instruction booklets, etc, and the locked upper cabinets on the left to store our own personal items (mainly clothes). There’s a portable crib in the right hand (bigger) closet in this bedroom. The French doors open onto small balconies overlooking Callejon San Cristobal; there are plants in pots on the balconies that need watering once a week; there’s a green plastic watering can under the master bedroom sink. Rooftop terraces (terraza): be very careful when opening the door at the top of the stairs to the rooftop; in the mornings and evenings there’s frequently gusty winds that can snatch the door open and result in the glass breaking when the doorframe impacts the wrought-iron railing behind it. There’s a door bolt (technically, it’s a surface bolt) mounted on the inside of the door frame; it will safely keep the door open – but only once the bolt is extended into the hole in the roof-edge parapet – so you still need to keep a firm hand on the door when you open it, at least until you can secure the door bolt. There’s a rooftop pavilion on the upper terrace with a terracotta tile roof and open sides, with a wrought-iron table and chairs. The strings of lights in the pavilion are powered by solar panels and will turn on at dusk and stay on through most of the night. Plants on the upper terrace were chosen to withstand dry spells and should be watered once weekly. Please don’t overwater the bougainvilleas – they only need water every 2 weeks. There are also plants in pots along the back of the lower terrace that need watering about once a week. There are four 500 liter water tanks above the housing for the stairs to the terrace. The tankless hot water heater is mounted on the backside of the stairs to the roof; it is propane powered and has a built-in igniter that has to be manually reset if you totally run out of propane or if gusty winds blow out the pilot light. NUMBERS, etc. for Casa San Cristobal Street address: Callejon San Cristobal 49; also listed as Patrocinio San Cristobal 49 Colonia Centro Guanajuato, GTO C.P. 36000-CR-36001 Sandra de la Soledad Sandoval Barajas is our local property manager. Taxi phone numbers: 734-1026 and 732-9172 For emergencies: 066 – emergency 065 – ambulance 068 – fire Public security 732-0292 and 732-3972 here's the street directions: WARNING: CONSIDER CALLEJON SAN CRISTOBAL TO BE A ‘SUBURBAN-FREE ZONE’ – LARGE SUV-TYPE VEHICLES (LIKE CHEVY SUBURBANS) WILL HAVE GREAT DIFFICULTY NEGOTIATING THREE EXTREMELY NARROW POINTS ON THE STREET – AND IT’S STEEP, ONE-WAY, AND IMPOSSIBLE TO BACK UP OR TURN AROUND ONCE YOU’RE ON THE STREET!! The house address is Callejon San Cristobal #49 - most call it Callejon but it's also known as Patrocinio San Cristobal. The same street starts off the Panoramica as Calzado Pozuelos and changes names several times as it rolls downhill past our house: Penitas, San Cristobal, and then Callejon Venado just below our house and Calle Barranca nearest downtown. The simplest way to get to our house by taxi or car is to go to Plaza Pozuelos (it’s a shopping mall with a big La comer grocery – actually a decent place for groceries – and a La Marina department store); the street Calzado Pozuelos starts behind the mall and climbs the Cerro de Gallo; at the top you’ll come to an intersection with the Panoramica (that’s a street) and see a signs pointing to El Centro (to the left) and El Pipila (to the right). Don’t turn but rather cross the Panoramica, take the street directly across the intersection (look for the sign on the ‘SIX’ store – that’s the correct street) and continue down to our house. Again, this street is narrow, one-way, and downhill all the way to the house. Then it's literally all downhill about a mile or so to the house, on a road that's extremely narrow in at least 3 spots - it's on the left, it's orange, with 3 second storey balconies; there's sometimes street parking available within a block uphill or downhill. If you’re coming in Guanajuato through the Bajio International Airport (BJX) in Léon, the easiest way to the house is either in one of the airport concession taxis (flat fee about 500 pesos) or to have Sandra Sandoval arrange for one of her drivers to pick you up (same price, and they know exactly where the houses are). We usually don’t rent a car when spending time in GTO – too difficult to find parking and not much reason to drive in town. There are other ways to get to the house (though no other way to end up at the front door by car): 1. you can take a municipal bus (they have the destinations/routes written on the windshield) or taxi to the Plazuela de Los Angeles and walk through the plazuela and up the Callejon del Beso (which is such a tourist destination that anyone on the street could point you in the right direction) to our street, only a few yards from the Callejon del Beso. Our street is called Callejon Venado in that area - our house is to the right only a block uphill. 2. you can park in the Estationamiento Patrocinio (a municipal parking garage - the fees are over 20 pesos/hour) off the Subterraneo Miguel Hidalgo; on exiting the garage (on foot) turn right, walk through a short tunnel, then climb a set of steps starting on the right up to a small junction of callejones. Take the first callejon on the right up a short block to San Cristobal; turn right and the house is one block uphill on the right. 3. similarly, you can park a car in the tunnels or subterranean streets (for free), but most parking in the tunnels is a few hundred yards further than any of the other alternatives above. You can see a lot of the routes described above if you look at mapping apps; you'll probably get a bit frustrated as all the streets and landmarks named do not show up on these apps. Try using Patrocinio San Cristobal #49 if you’re using a mapping app. And, lastly, you will need to contact Sandra de la Soledad Sandoval Barajas to get a set of entry keys - she can make arrangements to meet you at the house, or to meet elsewhere and guide you to the house themselves. Feast of San Antonio de Padua – feast day is June 13, and the weekend during or after the feast day our street is barricaded off the Panoramica and inaccessible by car for a couple of days. There are community meals on the callejon and daily (very loud) parades by marching and dancing community groups – most in fairly unique costumes or uniforms ranging from Plains Indian buckskins and head-dresses to semi-Aztecan breechclouts with enormous feathered caps to semi-military garb for the trumpet and drum corps. Festival Cervantino – a cultural festival held for 3 weeks every October – brings at least 20,000 people into town. Our street stays open, but the general street noise (from pedestrians, not vehicles) is louder and continues later. There’s an incredible choice of theatre, opera, jazz, dance, classical music, and street performances; there are 8 or 9 big indoor venues and 5 or 6 outdoor venues, from Valenciana to Marfil. Most are within walking distance of the house in town. If you’re considering going, check the website, buy your tickets early, and be prepared for a tight room or house rental market – we charge an additional ~10% per night during the Cervantino for the house. We live a long ways from GTO (near Seattle), but have a local property manager and Emily's sister Ilda lives in GTO. Between them and the internet we can usually respond to renters' inquiries or needs in short order. the house is in El Centro - the center of the oldest part of the city. It's a minute or so walk from the Callejon del Beso, maybe another 1-2 minutes from the Plaza de los Angeles and the Plaza San Fernando, and perhaps another 5 minutes to the Mercado Hidalgo and the Plaza de la Paz and Jardin Union. Everything in el centro is within at most 10 minutes' walk from the house. Very limited parking on our street and in general in el centro.