Nov 1 Monte Alban,
Alebrijes and black pottery in San Bartolo
Mexico is really serious about COVID and taking precautions. I’m not sure how sound some of the precautions are but many things are handled differently now and we have to adapt. One of them is that at Monte Alban, they let 400 people in at a time and then wait for the next group. Cars start lining up hours before the site opens at 10:00. Since this is the Dia de Los Muertos, there are even more people than usual lining up. You have to stay in your vehicle and can’t walk up to the window from your car. We had hoped to leave at 8:00 but got out about 8:10. Those 10 minutes made quite a difference and we were late in the line. We did get out of the car and stretch a bit and walked up to the front to confirm that we had to be in our vehicle.
Luckily, we got in about 11:00. They close the gates at noon and don’t let anyone else in. To me this does not make sense Covid prevention wise. This admits people in clumps. The ticket line, the restrooms all get jammed for a short period and then are empty. But, they didn’t ask me and we got in, so let’s proceed.
The musem is closed but they do have some nice Dia de los Muertos art on the way to the restrooms.
I think these guys stayed at the site a little too
long.
The alter at Monte Alban.
After looking at the 3D model of the site, we proceed towards the highest level which is
palaces. From this vantage point, one
can see the 3 valleys coming together as well as the length of the site to the
pyramid temple at the far end. The site
was built by the Zapotecs but the Mixtecs came later and buried their elite
there to help claim a right to rule.
Juan points out how the small towns in the valleys have dirt
roads. Oaxaca is one of the poorest
states in Mexico and the government does not help the people in the
villages. This is the root of much of
the unrest in Oaxaca.
From this vantage point, we go down to the next level where
we can see the courtyards. Average
people would not have ever seen these levels from below. But we're not average people and we have the photo to prove it.
We wait while Laura climbs the pyramid. I do a cartwheel as that now almost seems to be a tradition for me to do a cartwheel at Monte Alban. From there, we walk past the small ball court and back to the van.
Next stop is for the alebrijes. Our driver first takes us to a popular large place teeming with tourists. I can’t handle it so we get back in the van and go to a much smaller one. Since it was a holiday, they had a skeleton crew and no one was carving or painting. They were selling and we supported the economy. They are all so colorful and playful. I bought a couple of small humming birds that can be hung on a holiday tree.
We go to Zaquilla for lunch.
The place is a huge family place that specializes in traditional
foods. It is designed for families to
spend the day relaxing and enjoying each other. Lots of cool little places with interesting plants, carvings.... The musicians were really good. The singer reminded me of Maria Dolores
Pradera – a rich, throaty alto.
From there we went through the countryside to San Bartolo
where black pottery is made. We got a demonstration
of how they make the basic pots. Again,
we supported the local economy. Oh, it seems I didn't take any pictures here. I think my phone battery was really low by that time.
When we got back to the hotel, people seemed to be looking for different things for dinner, so I gave everyone 200 pesos, walked with them to the zocolo, pointed out some choices and set them free. Juan and I walked towards the church of Santa Domingo and stopped at a little place we’ve been before and each had a pasta dish.
Everyone made it back to Hotel Xtilu.
The tortoise is scary!!
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