Who Is Who On Our Streets: The Boleros Of San Miguel

By Natalie Taylor

In Latin America men who shine shoes are called limpiabotas or lustrabotas—boot cleaner or boot shiner, respectively. But in Mexico they have a more colorful name: boleros, and it has nothing to do with the romantic musical rhythms. The shoe shine trade began in Victorian England, where many wealthy families had a shoe-shine boy as part of the household staff. During the 1930s many immigrants came to Mexico in search of work, including those from the British Isles, and the locals learned the trade from them. Those who specialized in shining shoes carried balls of grease which they called bolas (balls), and called out to prospective clients: “Bolas? Bolas? Le damos bolas a tus zapatos?”—“Balls, balls, shall we give balls to your shoes?” That is how they came to be called boleros!

In San Miguel de Allende we have a number of boleros in the city center—Plaza Principal, the jardin of San Francisco church, and the Jardin Principal. I had the pleasure of speaking to one who, along with four others, shines shoes in the Jardin Principal. Juan Martin has been doing the same work, in the same location for over forty five years.

Juan arrives every morning at about 8:30 a.m. and takes his post on one of the benches facing the Tourism offices. I watched as he set up his station, making an orderly arrangement of all his tools and supplies: a box with different colored dyes, soaps, grease, and brushes in various sizes and shapes. The metal stand on which clients sit, perched high on a cushion, was already in place. He took the pair of black man’s shoes I had brought, and began to work as we chatted.

First he lathered them with a soap I had never heard of: jabón de calabaza, or pumpkin soap. It seems that soap made from pumpkin has moisturizing oils that nourish and soften leather, bringing back its natural qualities. With his fingers he doled out a generous amount on the shoes, sprinkled some water, spread it around, and cleaned it all off with a cloth. Next he took a brush from his arsenal, and spread a dark liquid along the entire shoe surface, buffed it with a large brush, applied grease over it all, and did the final buffing with a cloth. Honestly, the shoes looked like new!

Juan Martin is a Sanmiguelense, born here to a family that has resided in the city for generations. He has two brothers, one of whom works in a corner of the Jardin selling raspados—ice shavings; the other, like many other members of the family, including Juan’s wife, is part of a hotel cleaning staff. Juan only completed the third grade, and when he quit school, his father, a bricklayer, insisted he must go to work. So at around the age of ten he began working for a living. First, helping his father in construction, until he became interested in the work of boleros in the jardin, watched their work attentively, and eventually chose this as his trade.

He begins work at nine in the morning, as he has for so many years, every day except Sunday. When he was younger he worked until eight at night, but now finishes at four in the afternoon. From his post he has watched the city change over the decades. The Posada San Francisco turned from a one story to a three story building, the grackles no longer squawk in the treetops, the tramway is gone, and so are the old courting rituals of young people. In his day, the boys came to the Jardin with chocolate and flowers for the girls they fancied, and gave them out in exchange for a kiss on the cheek. That is how he met his wife Norma.

Prices have changed as well. When he began, he charged 2.50 pesos for a shine, and now it’s 40. Juan is an affable man and he genuinely likes people, particularly his regular clients who share personal stories and even ask his advice about life. His five children are all adults with their own lives, but there are no grandchildren yet. He has no plans to retire, and says he will continue to work “until my body gives out.”

Next time you are in the Jardin you can visit with Juan; have your shoes properly shined, and perhaps get a bit of advice about your personal problems.