We are in the heart of the town of Guanajuato, cultural capital of Mexico. Our experience begins as we contemplate the majestic, one-hundred-year-old theater Teatro Juarez. To our right is the Church of San Diego, and if we look in between the two landmarks, towards the traffic tunnels, we see the ruins of what was once the Convent of San Pedro. Here, in the middle of the town square Jardín de la Unión, with the monument dedicated to the legendary war hero El Pípila on a lookout high above our heads, is where our tour will begin.

We choose to go left, up the picturesque street Sopeña, passing charming balconies which grace strikingly handsome buildings. Our first stop comes as the street opens onto a quiet plaza. There are some interesting sights here including a life-like bronze effigy of the famous Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes. Cervantes was the author of Don Quixote, whose immortal hero has become Guanajuato's emblem. The sculpture stands in front of the Quixote Iconographic Museum, which houses the most important collection of art related to Don Quixote anywhere. This is one of the most surprising specialized museums on the planet, with grand sculptures alongside tiny pieces measuring just a few centimeters, as well as murals, paintings, and assorted curiosities donated by the illustrious Don Eulalio Ferrer.

Across from the Quixote Iconographic Museum, our attention is drawn to the Church of San Francisco, sober and simple, and continuing on to the left we come to the Holy House, an austere chapel which evokes visions of colonial times. To one side of this chapel, the narrow street called Campanero invites us to take a walk under its stone pedestrian bridge and emerge in the plaza where statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza keep vigil from their mounts, but we decide to make a left, heading towards another eye-catching plaza. This is the small square called El Ropero, open and natural like a sincere friend, with a circular fountain in the middle. At one corner, we can't help but notice the house which was the birthplace of famous Mexican singer Jorge Negrete. But let's take a few steps back now, and make another turn. Guanajuato is full of circular routes, as we will see as we walk down Cantarranas.

The street of Cantarranas, with its name alluding to singing frogs, will charm us with its first little square, a treed plaza that offers another adventure: if we head to the right, towards the back end of the square, and make a left onto a wide alleyway we come to the Plaza de Mexiamora. With its full ash and rubber trees, Mexiamora is like a private courtyard of times past. And now's a good time to sit down and take a break on a bench or on the bronze fountain with figures of fish twisting about on its base.

Now we have two choices: Across from where we entered the plaza, at the opposite end of the square and to the left, we could walk down the steps that pass the curious alleyway Callejón de las Ánimas which snakes behind the Teatro Principal. Or, we could continue straight ahead and down the winding alleyway Callejón de la Cabecita. In either case, we end up in the Plaza del Baratillo, a fine town square bustling with activity and where other streets and alleyways open outward in all directions like sun rays. In the plaza's center, there is a spectacular bronze fountain, its scalloped rim opening like a flower and its base adorned with fish figures. At the opposite corner of the plaza, almost hidden away, there is a short incline which will take us to the Church of San Jose. From there, we are privy to a side view of the imposing Church of La Compañía, or Society of Jesus, a grand, elaborate work of art and faith which we are now heading towards.

With its unique vaulted ceiling, its sonorous church bells, its well-endowed art gallery, and its harmonious atrium and interior spaces, the Church of La Compañía is a delight for the senses. It represents a period of splendorous architecture, and we can't help but be drawn in.

Leaving the church's shadow, we walk up the street Lascuráin de Retana. Here, adjacent to the church we have just left, we come to the main building of the University of Guanajuato. No visit is complete without seeing the University's amazingly long exterior staircase, which will surprise even the most experienced traveler. This is also were Guanajuato tests its visitors' endurance--the ones that dare climb it without taking a break.

We can't see everything in a day, of course, but downtown Guanajuato has a lot more to offer us. And so do the other parts of town, where we could see attractions of note such as: the reservoir Presa de la Olla, the ex-hacienda San Gabriel de Barrera, and the monument to El Pípila.

With renewed enthusiasm, we leave the University and walk down the pedestrian lane directly in front of us. It opens onto the Plaza de la Paz, which is lined with some of the most beautiful buildings in Mexico. The first thing that catches our eye is the Sculpture of Peace, by Jesus F. Contreras, which rests on a raised circular platform. Contreras was a student of the great French sculptor Rodin.

Many buildings along the plaza invite our contemplation of their majesty and balance, including the Basilica, where we can see Our Lady of Guanajuato with her glorious crown, and the Legislative Palace, official home of the State Congress and a fine example of the architectural style in vogue at the end of President Porfirio Diaz's multi-decade rule.

After so many marvelous sights, we have yet to visit the Mercado Hidalgo, the town's main market. Heading down the street, following the curves of Calle Juarez, we are faced with two choices once again. We could go straight towards Plaza de los Angeles, which is next to the legendary Alleyway of the Kiss; or we could take a shortcut. To our right is the Plaza de San Fernando, an open square with tall ash trees and an elegant fountain in the middle. And if we continue in that direction, we will come upon the Plaza de San Roque, stage of Cervantes's short plays called Entremeses, which thirty years ago were the beginnings of the famous International Cervantino Festival.

In San Roque, the fine church of the same name and the twisted lamp posts at either side of a cross are the main sights. And what is that? It's the gigantic laurel tree which tells us we are about to enter the Jardín Reforma, a quiet square full of dreamlike flora. Just a few steps more and we can make out the vaulted metal roof of the market, with a clock encrusted in its skyward-pointing needle.

We have seen a lot today, and we're happy to have had this chance to experience so much of the city, but there's still so much left to see: the historic Alhondiga de Granaditas, the museums that dot this town which is a living work of art in itself, the barrio of Noria Alta, the plaza Jardín del Cantador, and the amazing variety of narrow winding streets, churches, houses, colors and spaces.

There's enough city for many days, for many years, and as we begin this new period in history, we can confidently say that there's enough of Guanajuato for a millennium.