San Sebastián del Oeste
It is an old mining town that conserves the architecture and the original trace of its streets and alleys.
An outstanding example of a traditional vernacular settlement in Latin America. It is inscribed in the indicative list of national heritage and is being promoted as an asset of the world heritage.
In search of the losted time…
San Sebastián del Oeste is part of a beach-mountain tourist corridor, given its proximity to the coast and in particular to Puerto Vallarta. In this place, perhaps like in no other, the value that the natural environment has in the conformation of the urban image of the rural populations is appreciated.
It is nestled between two mountain arms, in a harmonic game of waterfalls, streams, hills and forests of pines and oaks.
It is the head of the municipality that bears the same name. In the region the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Neovolcanic Axis intersect, very close to the north coast of Jalisco. The territory is characterized by the combination of temperate forests and tropical forests with a remarkable biodiversity in flora and fauna.
History
San Sebastián del Oeste is a colonial town, founded in the early 17th century (1605), as a result of the explorations of Francisco Cortés de San Buenaventura, nephew of Hernán Cortés, in western New Spain. With the passage of time, the wealth of the mineral extracted from the region justified that the Crown granted to the place the title of Real and Mines of San Sebastián.
In independent Mexico, since the middle of the nineteenth century, the mineral of San Sebastián experienced a great boom, attracting the foreign investment of French, English and North Americans.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, San Sebastián is the nucleus of an important center of population of the west of Mexico, calculated in more than 20 thousand inhabitants, with a significant economic activity.
However, following the aftermath of the revolutionary outbreak of 1910, the mines were abandoned and the territory was gradually depopulated. San Sebastian was isolated and languished throughout the twentieth century. In the year 2000 the census of population registered 6,577 inhabitants in the whole municipality. Currently in the town of San Sebastián, which is the municipal head, there are only about 700 inhabitants.
With the opening of the Mascota-Las Palmas-Puerto Vallarta road in 2005, San Sebastián del Oste became a popular tourist destination. In 2011 it was declared "magic town" and to date the tourist activity is undoubtedly the motor of the local economy.
Weather
San Sebastián enjoys an enviable temperature throughout the year: 18.7º C average annual temperature.
Humid climate, with dry winter and spring, without well defined winter thermal change.
The rainy season is intense and runs from June to October (1319 millimeters of average annual precipitation).
Dominant easterly winds (particularly intense between winter and spring).
There are fifteen days of frost on an annual average (between December and January).
It is recommended to bring sunscreen and mosquito repellent.
For specific days you can consult the website The Weather channel.
Gastronomy and Crafts
The most characteristic of San Sebastián are its coffee plantations and fruit orchards: lime, sour orange, myrtle, pheasant (gondo), tejocote, peach, quince, banana, guava, plum, apple, pitaya, mango, avocado, passionflower passion fruit).
Organic coffee is processed and marketed, and fruits, jams, jams, rolls, punches, atoles, biscuits and homemade bread are made with fruits.
Typical dishes: pozole, chopped gorditas, toasts, enchiladas de mole, tamales.
Another emblematic product and much demanded is the raicilla, which is distilled from a regional agave known as lechugilla.
Jewelery in silver, decorative art, handcrafted cigars, wood carving, frayed and embroidered by Soyatán are made.
Celebrations
January / Celebrations in honor of the patron saint San Sebastián Martir (January 20).
May / Coffee Festival and the Raicilla. Cultural Weekend. Fair of the Pitaya.
August / Festivities in honor of the Virgin of the Assumption (August 15). Expoventa Soyatán (yarns, fabrics, carvings and wooden furniture).
September / National holidays including a civic procession with burning ocotes, the traditional "shouting", fireworks, the Coronation of the Queen and five days of music, dances and popular events (14-18 September).
October / Festivals in honor of the Virgin of the Rosary (October 7). Elote Fair.
November / Day of the dead. Altars and offerings are installed and are made alleyways to the Ancient Pantheon (November 2).
December / Birthday parties of "Pueblo Magico".
