Oaxaca Te Amo – Dela Frijoles

We intended to spend 6 days in Oaxaca city and then head back to the coast, but plans sometimes change and we roll with it. As we now have to take flights out of this city, we decided to stay here instead of heading elsewhere as there are so many things to see and do in and around this area. So, we won’t say that we know this city well as it is HUGE, but we will say we are fairly familiar with the centro and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts (though stick us in a market, and we’ll STILL get lost trying to find the vendor we liked from the day before!)

Some basic facts about Oaxaca (both the state and the city) . . .

Oaxaca is the most ethnically and diverse state in Mexico (where indigenous groups maintain their language and traditions) with the Zapotec and Mixtec the most dominant in this area.
It is a state that has the most biodiversity in Mexico.
It is known as “The Land of Seven Moles”
Oaxaca city is the second biggest city in Mexico.
The city is surrounded by entire towns and villages that are dedicated to their own unique handicraft (eg. one town specializes in black pottery, another in rugs, another in alebrijes, etc.)

After being in the city for more than a week, the words that come to mind when I think about it are colour, art, food and diversity. There are so many markets, museums and art galleries here (many of which are free) that a lot of our time has simply been about walking around, getting lost, exploring and eating (but we already told you about that!)

One of the things I appreciate about Mexico is their bold use of colours. Ones that you might not expect to go together just do and the brighter the better!

Two things that you will see EVERYWHERE around the centre of the city (and maybe everywhere?) are churches and street art.

As informative as the tourist area is, one of our favourite parts is finding ourselves in areas where people are just living their lives or structures are simply there for practical purposes.

From the hustle and bustle of the city centre, to . . . . . .

. . . . one of the oldest neighbourhoods in the city who are discouraging the encroachment of tourism in their area (I think that is what the signs are about . . . . . Spanish speakers might want to help us out here), to . . . .

. . . . The Acueducto la Cascada which was replaced in 1940, but originally built between 1727 and 1751 to bring fresh water from the hillsides to downtown, to . . . . .

. . . . areas of the city where you can hear the clanking of looms coming from homes (if you look very closely, there’s a man on the second floor doing some creating), or . . . .

. . . . coming across weaving being prepared right on the street.

It was a bit of an adventure to go into the various buildings as you never quite knew what you’d find on the other side of the door. Structures that looked like not much turned into beautiful courtyards and amazing architecture.

So what were some things we got up to in our wanders?

B-Rod got his standard “overseas” haircut

We saw things from a different view on the double decker tourist bus (and took a much needed rest from walking)

We went to a city wide food fest . . . . . .

. . . . . where B-Rod secured a couple of the last garnaches for us.

We went to many art galleries and museums (which surprised me that I actually enjoyed). Also, ironically our favourite out of all of them was the Museo De La Filatelia which is a stamp museum that included a stamp beetle.

But by far our favourite was all of the festivities taking place that we got to witness. Lots of weddings and birthdays and our highlight was almost feeling like we were attending a quinceanera! The parade was so much fun and included candy being pelted at our heads which were quickly scooped up by the adults that were standing all around us.

And that is only what we did when we were IN the city! Some of my favourite things I did were OUTSIDE of the city!! Until then . . . . enjoy the quinceanera parade with us!