Villages Day 8

Today we are going to 3 villages around the city of Oaxaca.  Each one specializes in a certain craft.   Atzompa is famous for green pottery, San Antonio for the fanciful, colorful wooden figures and San Bartolo Coyotepec for black pottery. 

In Atzompa we visit a cooperative where many people from the village bring their work and each has their own little stall.  They are doing road repair in front of the cooperative so it was a little challenge to get there.  We enjoyed talking with the people running the shop.  We did help to support the local economy. 

Rather than going through the city of Oaxaca to get to the next town, we cut across country.  The countryside is beautiful with lots of small, family farms.  Turkeys, goats, lambs, cows.  Perhaps the most surprising was when we got off the dirt road and the driver said we were following the dry riverbed.  Can’t go that way in the rainy season!

We visited one of the many houses in San Antonio making the  alebrijes.  Generally, the men cut, carve, sand the figures and the women paint them.  There is a great variety in size and complexity of the work.  They are breaking out of only painting wood and are painting shoes and purses also.  Again supported the local economy. 

Last stop of the day is San Bartolo Coyotepec.  One woman, Dona Rosa, is famous for reviving the black pottery.  Many famous people have come to see her and honor her work.  She died in 1980 at the age of 79.  There is a picture of her with the Carters.  We were fortunate enough to see a demonstration by her grandson of the typical manner of making the basic pottery.  A little more local support of the economy. 

Since we are going to dinner and a folklore show, we wanted a light lunch to carry us over.  When we got back to the hotel, we walked a block to a little place that specializes in hot chocolate.  Oh, this is heaven.  We had hot chocolate with almonds and ordered croissants filled with apples, black berries, nutella, chocolate, spinach and cheese to dip.  Yummy! 

The women did a bit of shopping before returning to the hotel. 

Ended the day with dinner and a folkdance show at an old convent that is now a hotel.  The buffet was great with 3 different kinds of mole, tacos, soup, beautiful, luscious desserts.   The guitarists and singers that entertained us during dinner were delightful.  The dancing was colorful with dances from all over Oaxaca.