Linn Myrick
On Monday, May 11, sixteen members of Let’s Travel Club beat the heat and participated in a “Murals of Tucson Walking Tour.” We started our adventure by carpooling to the Mercado San Agustin, then taking the streetcar to meet our tour guide. On this custom, private, guided 90-minute walking tour, Mauro Trejo, founder of Trejo’s Walking Tours: The Real History of Tucson, walked us through some of the most iconic murals in downtown Tucson. We discussed the artists who made them and the stories behind them.
Four local artists whom Mauro was eager to show off were: Ignacio Garcia, Camila Ibarra, Pen Macias, and Joe Pagac. Rio Nuevo commissioned them to paint murals in celebration of Tucson’s 250th anniversary (August 20, 2025). For this year-long celebration, the murals all needed to incorporate the mayor’s 250 logo and honor the linguistic evolution of our city’s name (S-cukSon to Tucsôn to Tucson). Another local artist, Bill Singleton, has several murals around town. Mauro showed us his beautifully detailed 1,000-square-foot mural honoring the Southern Pacific Railroad’s arrival in Tucson. Whether you explore on foot or by streetcar, each mural offers a unique perspective on what makes Tucson extraordinary.
At the end of our tour, we had a delicious lunch at El Charro Cafe Downtown. It is the nation’s oldest Mexican restaurant in continuous operation by the same family!