Taxco; with its vibrant gardens, pure white and powder pink stucco structures, red tiled roofs and balconies that display a variety of colorful flowers; meanders up and down the hills of the southern Sierra Madre. Here we see a city truly capturing the colonial charm of the Mexican peoples. The city seems to represent both past and the present, with its Indian and European cultures mixing to create a uniquely attractive city.

Within the city is the magnificent cathedral Santa Prisca, built by Jose de la Borda, a Spaniard of French ancestry, who came to Taxco in 1716. He was credited with "re-discovering" silver there. I believe that the town was, during this time changed from Tlachco "place where the ball is played" to "Taxco"

All of Taxco sparkles with silver. Cobblestone streets carried us endlessly from one silversmith shop to another. Lured by the glitter of unusual silver jewelry and coaxed by vendors, we entered one store after another to see the establishments best hand crafts and artistic designs in silver. One of our stops took us inside a door that became a front to a long since abandoned silver mine. We were treated to a tour of its caves revealing a variety of mineral samples along the way.

Our midday meal was served in a multi-level structure where one could meander numerous surfaces; some rooftops, others balconies viewing court yards and scenic views of buildings below. After lunch I explored a building built as a Church but, more recently, converted to a hotel. Not the Hilton, its charm alone would entice me to stay there for a night sometime. The city itself surely coaxes my return.