Lance Motta-Vilensky
Most people take Exit 155 on I-10 to get to 21st Century Tempe. On the other side of Baseline Road just south of the bustling Arizona Mills Mall, Priest Drive becomes S. Avenida del Yaqui. Journey a short distance on this road and be transported back a hundred years. No, you’re not in a small village in Mexico but right here in Arizona. From S. Avenida del Yaqui, turn right onto E. Calle San Angelo and prepare to have your breath taken away. On a 40 acre site referred to by locals as La Cuarenta, you’ll find the simple and splendid churches of Santa Lucia and Our Lady of Guadalupe. These stunningly beautiful churches are the heart of a place where the Yaqui, Spanish and Mexican cultures blend; the unique American city of Guadalupe. Santa Lucia and Our Lady of Guadalupe are secrets of a time-gone-by hiding in plain sight right here in the middle of the teeming metropolis of greater Phoenix. Don’t miss them!