Marvilous Mexico City and Oaxaca

We are now back from another wonderful trip.  Maybe the fact that I didn't post while we were there is a testament to how much fun we had and how busy we were.  We were a small group of 5.  Three of them were youth (ages 12,14 and 16).  Their energy, curiosity and enthusiasm was fun.

We left Atlanta in the morning and by early afternoon, we were engulfed in the ambiance of the zocolo in Mexico City.  Our hotel was located behind the cathedral so we were able to walk to all of the main sites of the historical district.  As is so common now, one end of the zocolo was occupied by demonstrators in colorful tents.  Because of the protestors, the governor's palace with the murals of Diego Rivera was closed.  This gave us more time to spend at the ruins and museum of Tenochitlan, the main city of the Aztecs.  Mexico City was built on top of the Aztec city so the ruins are right in the middle of the historic district, under the zocolo and cathedral. Juan's expert commentary helped to put the pieces together and give us a good base for other places we would be visiting.
After visiting the ruins, we enjoyed a refreshing drink and botanas (appetizers) on the roof of the Hotel Magestica over looking the zocolo, one of my favorite places in Mexico City.

Juan's son, Pablo got married in the main cathedral in January to Maribel.  Maribel studied art restoration and worked in the cathedral.  Therefore, she was able to arrange to get married there.  It was fun to hear the personal account and imagine being married in such a historic and impressive place. Pablo and Maribel joined us for dinner at Azucena, a restaurant in an elegant old home.  While walking to dinner, we stopped to watch a couple of street clowns who gathered quite a crowd.  As soon as we walked up, they chose to include the tall, blond into the banter.  No matter how long I'm there, I just can't blend in 

After a great buffet breakfast with fresh fruit, omelets to order, chiliquilles, refried beans and more, we met our driver for the next several days.  Christian was a great combination of aggressive but still safe.  Seems that to drive in Mexico City, nerves of steel are needed.

Basilica to Guadelupe

Our first stop was the Basilica de Guadelupe.  There are small, old chapels, to a large old basilica to a huge, modern one that was built in the 1970's after the old one was heavily damaged in an earthquake. Many Mexicans make pilgrimages to the site.  Even though it was a weekday morning, a mass was going on and the church was packed. (It seats 10,000!)  We enjoyed the gardens and climbed the steps to the chapel on the top of the hill with a nice view.

Teotihuacan

Pyramid of the Sun

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Pyramid to Quetzacoatl

Our next stop is Teotihuacan, ancient ruins.  The main features are pyramids to the sun and moon, the avenue of the dead,  and pyramid to Quetzalcoatl (feathered serpent).  These ruins date back to around 100BC to 250AD.  One of the palaces has many colorful murals that are still visible.  We climbed everything that was climbable.  Well, Juan, Paul and I waited in the shade of a tree while the others climbed the biggest pyramid, Pyramid to the Sun.  I found a pottery shard while I was sitting there!  We took a break for a relaxing lunch.  While there we learned about making mescal, weaving and carving onyx.

Relaxing lunch

We return to our hotel for some down time before meeting with Pablo and Maribel for dinner at Cafe Tacuba which is another old house converted to a restaurant.  This one has a story of a ghost of a young woman who died in a fire in the building.  Maribel asked the head waiter if we could see the upstairs private rooms.  We got a private tour!  They were beautiful with amazing art work. 

The next morning after another great breakfast  (this time complete with hot chocolate and sweet bread for dunking.) we headed off for a full day of activity.  We drove past the home of the president of Mexico and then stopped at a fountain made by Diego Rivera.  It was inspired by one of the large carvings found at the Templo Mayor. 

The next stop was the world famous Museo de Antropologia. You could easily spend a day or two here but Juan showed us the highlights and the areas of places that we had seen or were going to be seeing.  The huge stone Aztec calendar dominates one of the salons.  The building itself was inspired by Maya ruins in Yucatan with a large fountain in the middle representing the sacred Ceiba tree.

Coyocan

After a full morning in the museum we headed off to Coyocan, a small town that has been swallowed up by Mexico City but retains the peaceful, traditional atmosphere.  We met Pablo and Maribel for lunch at one of their favorite places on the square.  We tried ant eggs!  Anything is good with butter, garlic and lemon. 
Coyocan is the town where Frida Kahlo grew up and she and Diego Rivera hosted Leon Trotsky. cWe visited her home which is now a museum.  Several rooms displayed some of her paintings and others were arranged with her furniture.  The gardens were cool and peaceful.  We were lucky enough to also catch a special exhibit of designer clothes that were inspired by Frida's colorful, unique style.

Xochimilco
The day isn't over yet.  We go to Xochimilco which are the remnants of the floating gardens of Aztec times.  Now it is a popular place for Mexicans to go for a relaxing boat ride and fiesta. 

Mariachi bands come by on boats to serenade. On a weekday afternoon, you don't get the top tier players but it was still fun to have them play a song for us.  There are also boats with people selling food and drink.  Jewelery hockers jump from boat to boat with their case of shiny objects. Oh, an unusual thing about this spot.... If you need to use the restroom, there is a charge of a few pesos.  That isn't unusual but here you get an official looking receipt!  Better claim that one going back through customs.

Cuernavaca
Our time in Mexico City is over and we drive about an hour to Cuernavaca, our base for the next couple of days.  Our hotel has beautiful grounds and swimming pool.  The kids don't waste any time trying it out.  It got an enthusiastic thumbs up.  Cortez spent quite a bit of time in Cuernavaca and had a home there which is now a museum with one of Diego Rivera's murals. 

Xochicalco
 

  

 Xochicalco was at its height about 100AD to 250 BC and rivaled Teotihuacan.  Being on top of a leveled off mountain, the views are impressive. There are carvings of the feathered serpent similar to the ones at Teotihuacan but also influences from the Maya.  There is a cave with a shaft for light to help track the equinox and solstice.  We were lead into the cave with flashlights.  When they were turned off, it was pitch black except for the stream of light. Since we were there close to the solstice, it was nearly a perfect circle. We talked with a group of school children on a field trip.  They were anxious to have their picture taken with the Gringos.  One of the older students spoke English without an accent.  She lived in the states from about the age of 2 to 11.  She is trying to get back to the States and I imagine if she were still in the States, she would be eligible for Dreamer status.  We talked to several people who didn't openly say they had been deported but their stories seemed like it was likely.  I don't know if I'm more tuned into this type of thing or if it is really more common now.

 

Vista Hermosa 
 We went to Vista Hermosa, a hacienda of Cortez for lunch.  The grounds are impressive! We saw the chapel and rodeo coral.  The restaurant was in the area that had been part of the sugar cane processing area.  It had large brick domes.  One of our waiters was a charming gentleman who grew up on the hacienda and has worked in the restaurant for decades.  He had several bit parts in different movies that were filmed on site.  He delighted us with singing and his amiable personality.  After lunch, we ventured into the prison area located under the ground.  Imaginations ran wild and we all jumped  when a bat flew over our head!

 Tepoztlan

The next day we headed off for the small town of Tepoztlan and the ruins of Tepozteco on top of the mountain.  The ruins are to the pulque(fermentation) god. The climb up is challenging.  Sometimes there were regular steps. Sometimes, rocks vaguely in the form of steps.  Sometimes, just rocks. But always up. The last bit was a narrow metal staircase.  It took me over an hour but Juan and the boys went up much faster. My hiking shoes took a real beating.  The sole of one came off when I got to the top and was flapping in the breeze.  Someone with some twine, artfully tied it up for me.  The other sole gave out about ¾ of the way down. To be fair to my hiking shoes, they were about 10 years old and had seen many trails. I felt like a clown walking down. 

  The ruins at the top are small but the view and hike are what it is really all about.  A friendly group of coati (a long-nosed raccoon type with a long tail) were quite entertaining.

 

Oaxaca

From Tepoztlan, we returned to Mexico City to the airport where we caught a plane to Oaxaca. After a short flight we landed in Oaxaca about 6PM.  After getting settled in our hotel we headed to the zocolo for dinner.  Oaxaca is one of my favorite places in Mexico.  It is located in the mountains so the weather is always cool and comfortable.  But even more than that, the relaxed, family atmosphere is refreshing.  The arts are rich and varied.  Some of the most impressive churches in the Americas. 

Our hotel was conveniently located a block behind the church of Santa Domingo and a short walk down a pedestrian street to the zocolo.  We ate on the balcony of a restaurant overlooking the zocolo.  We were serenaded by a variety of musicians.  Most of them quite good.  Grasshoppers are a local delicacy so of course, we tried them.  A little crunchy but great protein.  Juan suggested that we take the legs off first as they can get caught in your teeth.  Good advice!

  Monte Alban

The next day we went to the ruins of Monte Alban, one of my all-time favorites.  When I took Mayan Art and Architecture in college, the professor showed us a slide of Monte Alban.  At that time, I thought, “Someday, I want to go there!”  Now, whenever I go to Monte Alban I bask in the location of that photo and marvel at actually being there.

There are always unexpected, interesting things to watch.  Today it was ants cleaning out their nest/hive.  The ants came out of a crack in the wall of some ruins carrying bundles of something.  They crawled down the side until they got to a ledge where they heaved their load over the side.  There was quite a pile of refuse below. 

There was time for rest and relaxation too.  On the top of one of the pyramids, there was a nice grassy area with some shade.  Some little kids were doing head stands and somersaults.  I got the urge to do a cartwheel.  I went over to a secluded corner to give it a try since I hadn’t done one for almost a year.  Even though, I was away from the group, they still saw me and wanted a repeat because they hadn’t all seen it.  I obliged and we moved on.  They came running after me asking me to do another one because the video hadn’t turned out.  I doubt that it will go viral on U-Tube.  

Enjoying some watermelon juice.

 

Atzompa

Our next stop was a first.  The ruins, Atzompa, opened to the public in September. We were able to accompany Juan on his first visit to them!  That doesn’t happen often.  The ruins are a bit of a sister city to Monte Alban. The site was apparently a place where artisans worked as they found a kiln which is similar to the ones used by potters in the area today.  Archaeologists are still working in the site. After going to the site, we visited an artisans  coop where they were selling the green pottery that the village is known for.  Mexico was playing in the soccer tournament and the game was on TV.  Everyone was huddled around the TV to watch.  The non-shoppers joined in.  I had been wanting a pitcher for some time and bought one here.  It was a bit of a challenge to get home but it arrived safely and I'm enjoying it. 

Documentation of our first visit to Atzompa

For dinner we went to a little place with good typical food.  For me, though, the high point of it was the cerveza artisanal (microbrewery beer).

Hieve el Agua

Another full day……..

We start with a drive to Hierve el Agua, one of the most unusual natural formations I have ever seen.  For thousands of years mineral springs have been bubbling up and leaving mineral deposits which have left what appears to be a waterfall but it is all stone.  Natural pools have formed at the top with cool, refreshing water.  Swimming in them is a lifetime joyful memory. And, we were the only ones there!  When school is out, it is a bit more popular but I have never seen it crowded.

 Mitla

More to see and do so we pull ourselves away after some final photos.  Our next stop is Mitla, a small town with a church built on top of ruins and surrounded by them.  Mitla was a thriving place when the Spaniards arrived.  The stone work is beautiful and classic.  Sometimes the design is carved into one large piece of stone and sometimes it is separate pieces of stone all fit together perfectly.  There are several small tombs that we went down in.  The palaces have tunnel like entrances so only one person can go in or out at a time.  This made a nice defense.   There were very few visitors at the site while we were there.  The last time I was at this site, the market area outside the ruins was thriving. This time we were the only people and we weren’t doing much shopping.

For lunch we went to a mescal hacienda with a pleasant outdoor restaurant.  While we were waiting for our food, we learned about the  mescal making process and had some samples. Maybe my friend had too much mescal. 

Teotitlan del Valle 
 After lunch we went to Teotitlan Del Valle which is famous for rug making.  We went to the home of Isaac Vazquez who is one of the most famous of the weavers.  He has had his work displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art  in NYC.  He and his sister gave us a demonstration of how they prepare the wool and mix the natural dyes.  Isaac also showed us an amazing commission piece that he is working on.

Tule Tree
We ended with a stop at the Tule tree. It is about 2000 years old and over 119' in circumference.   It is amazing how many birds live in this one tree and it is fun to find different animal images in its branches. When school is out, kids practice their English giving tours of the tree and pointing out the animal shapes.  

Oaxaca Zocolo
We enjoyed spending time in the zocolo watching people, listening to music, playing with balloons, dancing.

We visited two villages.  One, San Bartolo Coyotepec, is famous for black pottery. We went to the home of Dona Rosa who figured out how to make the finish shiny by  polishing it with quartz.  The pottery became much more popular after her discovery.  Dona Rosa died in 1980 but her family is carrying on the tradition. 

Arrazola is the second village we went to. It is where the carved brightly painted fantastical animals,  called alebrijes, were originally conceived.  We were able to see the men carving the animals and the women painting them.  It is a cottage industry with many families having outlets in their homes to sell what they make. 

Everyone was glad to have a free day to enjoy the museums, market and shopping before leaving early the next morning for a flight down to Puerto Escondido on the Pacific coast.

  Puerto Escondido
We took a small single prop plane (seating 15) to the coast.  It was about a 25 minute flight and would have been about a 7 hour drive of curvy mountain roads. 

We were met at the airport by a driver from Vivo Resorts.  We stopped at a grocery store to load up on food since we would be staying outside of town in a condo.  We were delighted with our accommodations and the friends staff. Since it is off season, there were only a few other people at the resort.

Art made us a wonderful breakfast that we enjoyed on the ocean front deck.

The ocean is very strong here so we were careful to not go in very far.  We enjoyed the infinity pool and walking along the beautiful, deserted beach. 

We had dinner served to us by the pool and then enjoyed a beautiful sunset.

The next day we went into town and hired a boat to take us out to see more of the wild life and take us to a swimming beach.  I left my memory card in my computer so all the shots I thought I was taking do not exist.  Our boat driver  found a big sea turtle and brought it on board for us to see it up close and personally.  He also put out a fishing line.  In the short time we were out, we caught 2 big fish.  The most unusual was seeing 2 sea turtles having sex.  We were told that they stay hooked together for 10 days!  Whew!
The ocean was a little rough so several of us were feeling a little woozy.  We went into land but had to time our getting off the boat to the waves.  We got off with minimal difficult.  One person did a face plant when unexpectedly hit by a wave but was okay.  We enjoyed fresh coconut milk right out of the coconut.  Huge shrimp cocktails were a hit too.
We climbed up the cliff behind us and caught a taxi back to the condo.  We were just in time as it started raining soon after we got back.  Seeing the beach in different weather patterns is nice.  We took advantage of the inside time to watch the video of my son's Shinto wedding in Japan.
We had arranged to have dinner at the resort again.  Since it was raining, they said we would need to eat inside instead of by the pool.  We thought it would be in a dining room by the kitchen.  At the appointed time, we headed down and were met by the staff bringing the dinner up for us to eat in the condo!  After setting the table, they said they would be back in 10 minutes with our dessert!  What wonderful service and a great way to relax and end a great trip!

The next morning we went to the small airport to catch our flight to Mexico City to return home.  Oh dear, the plane is going to delayed 40 minutes.  That will make the connection a bit tight.  Oh no, the flight has been canceled! They flew in another plane and we ended up getting to Mexico City about 6PM. The people at Aeromar were great and got everyone on the first flight out of Mexico City in the morning, rooms at the Hilton in the airport and dinner vouchers.  So an extra night in Mexico.....

Juan and I planned another day in Mexico City so we could spend more time with his son and Maribel. We all hugged and said our good byes at the airport.  What a great trip!!!!!

The next day we explored deeper in the historic district. Maribel recommended one of the government buildings that has portraits of the kings of New Espana and the legislative hall.  The docent gave lots of info on each person.  I was pleased with how much of it I was able to follow.

We visited an old market with murals of Diego Rivera's students, museum on art restoration, museum of modern art, photography show, lunch overlooking the zocolo.

 Juan left to return to Merida and I still had one more day.  There were a few specific gifts that I wanted to buy and Maribel is well versed on shopping in Mexico City.  She and Pablo picked me up in the morning and took me to a great market place with arts and crafts from all parts of Mexico.  Maribel inquired about things that I wanted so I didn't have to pay the Gringo tax. I bought big items so Maribel also helped me buy a cheap bag to carry them back in.  After a nice lunch of squash flower quesadillas, Pablo and Maribel took me to the airport to catch my flight home. 

This trip, I was dubbed "La Reina". (The Queen)  Gee, I kinda like it.