Birthday Mirador-Ing in Ixtlan de Juarez

We have really enjoyed getting lifts into Paz with Sergio and Citiali and their super family, Amber and Estefan. It’s been lovely getting to know them and learn about Oaxaca. We went for a day trip with them to Ixtlan which is a couple of hours away. Citiali used to work there and this year they have just opened a Mirador viewpoint that looks out across Ixtlan. It was also my birthday so the whole day was a treat for me too. To be honest, the mirador itself was not quite my cup of tea. I hate heights and the viewpoint walks out on a see through floor. However I managed to walk on a bit and the views were stunning. Sergio even got a live band to sing happy birthday to me. On the way to Ixtlan we stopped for tasty breakfast in a lovely restaurant, then we went to a fish restaurant on the way home where they breed the fish next to the restaurant. We were able to feed the fish after they had fed us (washed down with a few mezcals)! All in all it was a lovely birthday thanks to Sergio and Citiali driving us all day, knowing the best places to go and being great company. 

Foodie tour in Oaxaca

We started our last proper touristy weekend with a really interesting (and tasty) food walking tour with Carlos. We met in the lovely Centro area in a super looking restaurant and set off walking. We hadn’t realised but the tour was actually of Abastos market in neighbouring Centrale. We have heard about the market and it has a reputation for being dangerous and Centrale has a bad reputation. Carlos was telling us how careful we need to be and to stick closely with him as he knows the safe bits to go to. He said the market is massive and in some bits you can buy guns and exotic animals. He also told us some different tales including one of his mates getting robbed and stripped and having to get home basically naked! Ok then! Literally as we crossed the border from Centro to Centrale there was a long line of Ladies of the Night and as we walked into the market it stunk and there were piles of rubbish. But once through that the market was super fun. Everything was way cheaper than in Centro and the food was great. We had all sorts: tacos, quesadillas, holy eggs (fried egg on avocado leaf), goat BBQ wraps, plus tejate, mezcals and pulque (a sour 10% drink which I loved). We wouldn’t go back without Carlos but it was super fun.

Rollerblading!

There’s a place near Llano Park that you can hire roller blades and all the gear. Olive really wanted to do it so we had a go with her. It went so well that we booked a class with a teacher called Osvaldo, which again went so well that I decided to have a go as well. So me and Olive took some classes and I surprised myself with how well I could pick it up! I normally have a terrible sense of balance. Love this photo!

Black pottery

The next day we took a couple of buses across to San Bartolo. The place is famous for black pottery which looks really striking. We all took a workshop in the back of someone’s house where they live and work making the pottery. Not a word of English was spoken so we battled through with our disjointed Spanish. One of the family played with Boo so we could get stuck into modelling little mountains as Olive called them and sticking them to a cup. We also made some flower patterns using really simple things like pen tops and lids and a metal tool to make a shiny surface. Great fun. 

Afterwards we went across to a restaurant called Alfonsina. It is in the top 50 restaurants in the world. You can experience the chefs masterwork at great expense in the evening or go for lunch when his Mum cooks for a fraction of the cost. You can guess which we did. We had five courses of classic mexican food, including mole, tostada and tomales. 

Monte Alban Ruins at last

Everyone has told us to go and see Monte Alban. It’s only taken 3 months! Monte Alban is the old capital of the Zapotec. 40,000 people lived there in terraces surrounding a temple site high up in the mountains. There were remains of a market, ball game court, observatory, hospital, tombs and temples. The guide told us that the stone carvings depict the outcome of incest at the time. But that contradicts some of the other stuff we have read! Due to Covid they only allow 400 people in each day which meant the place was pretty much empty for whole chunks. Awesome!

Cooking with Norma

When we first moved in, we hired the cleaner who has been cleaning the apartment for donkeys years to come each week and tidy the place. She is a really great person and fun to chat to. Early on we were chatting about cooking and ended up getting her to come round once a week to show us how to cook a classic Mexican dish. We go back and forth beforehand by whatsapp to agree a dish and what ingredients I need to buy before. We have made all sorts during our time in Oaxaca; mole, soup, tacos, chilaquiles, consommé, tomales, enchiladas, pozole and my favourite chilli rellenos (stuffed chillies). We have learnt all sorts of different cooking techniques such as frying pasta and rice before boiling; boiling tomatoes then blending and sieving it; using a comal to warm tortillas and washing chicken then boiling it. I’m looking forward to buying a comal when back in England. 

Spanish with Thomas

Back at the start of December we were at a friends house and met a guy called Thomas who was a retired Spanish teacher. I chatted to him for ages about travelling and we ended up agreeing for him to come round to our place each week to learn Spanish.  We’ve had great fun learning all sorts, going for the grammar approach, so learning different tenses, verbs and sentence structures. Our Spanish has improved a lot, ready for South America. 

Great weekend

We started the weekend with all of us in the local teaching pool at different times. Olive had a great class which we celebrated with my favourite “authentic” chicken Wings then churros on our bus Ruta Una home.

The next day we went on a tour from dawn till dusk. We started at a rug weaving factory in Teotitlclan which olive loved. We did carding that she had learnt at school and learnt about the different dye colours. We had a look round the museum, grabbed a coffee then headed to Hievre el Agua - one of only two petrified waterfalls in the world, the minerals create a solid waterfall. We loved swimming in the pools with sources from hot springs, although the pools were cold!! We got warmed up though on the way home by sampling a lot of different Mezcals- Hic!!

Then on Sunday we went to Hya-apam lakes with a friend. Ace place for a Sunday chill. Thanks Ksenia. 

Talacalula Sunday market

We’ve got a month left in Oaxaca before we fly on to Columbia and Peru. We’ve planned to try and get out of Oaxaca each of our remaining weekends. First stop - the Sunday market in Talacalula. We’ve been told it is fun. It was basically a massive covered street market mainly running along one road. There were so many stalls selling all sorts of fruits, veg, food, drinks, toys, diy stuff and clothes. We walked along for ages, sampling mango, coconut water, Jamaica juice, tejate (yuck!), banana crisps, goat curry, ice cream, so much to eat. There was a large indoor market at the end with all different meats and foods. We had some barbecue meat, but it wasn’t a patch on the Mercado 20th November in town! We also bought a squishy toy that lasted a whole day before exploding and clay cups made from barra for each of us. The cups are famous here for being good at extreme temperatures and they are unglazed so your coffee sort of slowly leaks out the bottom!