The reality was quite different. Montecristi is rather drab. Nothing colorful about them. Dogs and idlers lounge in whatever shade they can find. Children play in the streets and open areas.
Pigs occasionally wander here and there.
There are no hotels. The town only has running water a couple of hours each morning. So, a little dismayed, I yielded to the tugging at my shirt sleeve and followed my guide up the hill. It was a fairly substantial two-story building made of square red brick. One man was working at finishing the weave on the edge of the brim of a hat, and a second was trimming the long ends of straws protruding from the inside of a hat.