The uproar began Monday, when residents picked out the brilliant robes of the Mexican saint in the sticky swirls at the foot of a soda machine. Word moved over the region faster than a thundercloud. The supposed apparition has drawn between 500 and 800 onlookers from as far away as Miami, Seattle and Canada, Ms. Cervantes said. Some stay at the shrine all night long, absorbed in meditation. Clustered in the courtyard, old women bounce babies on their laps.
Fathers shush their children, teens move their lips in silent prayer.
A hand scrawled poster warns worshippers to lower their voices. In her office, Ms. Cervantes is beginning to wonder when it will end. Some of the faithful want the complex to construct a shrine on the site. This site is best viewed using Netscape 4.0 or IE 4.0.