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Guachimontones launches new theme & guidebook in English

Archaeologist Ericka Blanco, director of the Centro Interpretativo Guachimontones Phil Weigand (CIG), told me a year ago that many foreign visitors – out of the 150,000 in total annually – ask for a booklet to take back to their home countries.

 She acknowledged they were disappointed to find that everything the museum has is in Spanish.

 “Could you write a little guide book for us in English?” asked the director, adding that, unfortunately, the center had no budget for new publications.

I put the question to Alfredo Gutierrez, head of Editorial Acento, a Guadalajara publishing house dedicated to cultural themes and famed for excellent work.  

Gutierrez consulted with Mónica Baeza of Hacienda del Carmen, and it was decided to produce the booklet both in English and Spanish, with the translation into Spanish coming from nine bilingual volunteers.

The result is “A Guide to West Mexico’s Guachimontones and Surrounding Area, The Lost Civilization of Teuchitlán” (“Guía a los Guachimontones, La Civilización Perdida de Teuchitlán.”) 

At 68 pages and boasting 87 color pictures, the booklet also includes six maps and sketches. It describes the curious people who dominated western Mexico 2,000 years ago, the only people in history who made their pyramids round, surrounded by a flat ring for dancing and making merry.

The new guidebook, which will sell for 130 pesos, not only tells the story of the Teuchitlán civilization and the excavations of its ruins, but also describes nearby attractions such as El Rincón Waterpark, the Teuchitlán River, El Pedernal obsidian deposit, the Palace of Ocomo at Oconahua and the Tala Museum, with directions for getting to all of them. In addition, there is information on unforgettable places to spend the night, such as beautiful Hacienda del Carmen Hotel-Restaurant-Spa.

If you’ve already visited the Guachimontones Interpretive Center, be warned: You haven’t really seen it – simply because every six months it changes.

“We’re not an ordinary museum,” says guide Marcelo Aguirre. “Our aim is to make archaeological data easy to understand through interactive displays. Twice a year we invite a different municipality to cooperate with us on a new subject. For example, we worked with Cocula to present the evolution of music from prehistoric times through the pre-Hispanic period and the colonial era, right up to modern music, including, of course, the mariachi.”

The center’s latest theme is pottery and their guest municipality is San Marcos, famous for its ceramics. “We show how they did it in the past and how they do it today,” says Aguirre.

In fact, the huge ceramics display is about as interactive as it can be because visitors are invited to sit down at a potter’s wheel and hand-craft their own creation out of clay, or they can learn how to make a pot from a mold.

So, no matter how many times you have been to the Guachimontones, you are guaranteed to find something new. And your visit to the ruins may also take on a new light if you first sit down and read my” Guide to the Guachis,” which is now available at Sandi Bookstore and Librerías Gonvill in Guadalajara and expected to be on sale in Ajijic at Diane Pearl and Sol Mexicano as of September 22. If you have any trouble finding it or want a copy by mail, just email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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