3 pairs of eyes wander around Oaxaca

[bixaorellana]

Sometimes the most far-fetched plans materialize. Who would have thought that both Htmb in Florida, and Kerouac2 in France would make it to my little home in Mexico this year for Day of the Dead? Although I know the area, it seemed fresh when seen through the eyes of my enthusiastic friends who were eager to see and record everything. Of course we enjoyed the Muertos celebrations, but also walked all over the city and visited outlying areas.

I had my camera, too ~

[bixaorellana]

[htmb]

Not only is Bixa a most genial hostess, but her home is located in a central part of Oaxaca with unlimited photo opportunities on every street. These next few photos were all taken within a few blocks of her home.

[htmb]

       

[bixaorellana]

Inside Santo Domingo church ~

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Tourists buy the strangest things.

[htmb]

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[fumobici]

My gosh, these photos are spell binding. Oaxaca cannot be as beautiful as this report makes it appear. No place can be!

[htmb]

It's true, Fumobici!

[bixaorellana]

Ha ha ~ you have to come see for yourself, Fumobici!

The next day was Thursday, market day in Zaachila, so off we went.

Under the arches of the municipal building, hair cuts were in progress ~

Off we went to the inside market, known for excellent meat ~

There was still a lot of day of the dead bread around ~

[bixaorellana]

I thought about getting a new pair of shoes, but something about this brand just stopped me ~

We wandered around in the outside part of the market, but had to quickly duck into the church when it started to rain ~

When the shower stopped, we set off for Cuilapam and its atmospheric abandoned monastery ~

[htmb]

[htmb]

[bjd]

This thread is great. I admit that I have rather overdosed on the Day of the Dead stuff, but these pictures of the streets, especially with the mountains in the background with colourful flowers and painted houses are really my favourites. As are the pictures of the market. Only in Mexico would El Gordito (the fat one) be considered a good name for a butcher's stand!

[Deleted]

It's time for me to run and catch up after the photo upload problems of recent days.





I noticed that the churches of Oaxaca did not attract as many non-stop worshipers as in Mexico City or Puebla.

[Deleted]

Even when you feel that you have seen an excess of churches, there is always the fear that you will miss something if you do not go in the next one.

[htmb]

We were happy to be inside the covered market when the heavy rain shower passed through the area.




This pup had stollen a bag of food and was working to get inside.




There were numerous stalls outside the covered market, too.










This part of the market is not an every day event.















We could have taken one of these tut-tuts...




But instead hopped on this large bus to head to the next stop.

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Meanwhile back in town (as they said in the old westerns)...











I'm sure you'll agree that's enough of churches for the time being. Last one.



And we're out. Whew!

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There's always something about a solitary palm tree that makes you stare. Was it always alone? Did its fellow palms abandon it?





















An effort is made for the disabled in the city, even if the execution is a bit rough.



Just like in France, I like to look and see what is in private courtyards.



Mexico does not seem to have a building code that applies to private residences.

[Deleted]

I have noticed that taxis here often don't really take you exactly where you want to go. They take you not too far away and then vaguely indicate the direction to walk. That's pretty much what happened at the Zaachila market in the suburbs. It wasn't even crowded because it was a very slow day right after the Day of the Dead, but clearly the taxi had something better to do. No matter -- we always discover things along the way.

This place sold industrial size cooking pots.



The market building and square eventually came into view.















I used to seek out post offices everywhere I went. These days, not so much.

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You can always hope.









Even if we hadn't found the covered market interesting, we would have stayed inside.







If we got tired, this armchair offered its good vibrations for a mere 10 pesos.

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For some reason, the layout of the market reminded me of the huge open space office in Jaques Tati's film Play Time.









From what I have seen a lot of the meat sold in the markets is totally flattened and cooked on la plancha that way.

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Some customers require larger quantities of meat than others.









After the rain stopped, we were back outside.



The municipal building towered over the market square.



The clock is currently out of order.



These figurines might rotate on the hour when the clock is working.

[Deleted]

As it began to sprinkle again, the little church of Zaachila called out to us, just a few steps away from the market.



The décor was refreshingly simple.











The shower ended and we went back outside.





Puddles did not stop the important commercial transactions.







Next we got on the bus to the ex-monastery of Santiago Apóstol, whose construction was abandoned in the 1570's for unknown reasons.





I look at everything a bus passes, no matter what.















And then we bade our bus farewell.

[htmb]

I really loved visiting the former monastery of Santiago Apóstol located in the little town of Cuilapan de Guerrero.








Situated high on a hill, the surrounding views were delightful, especially with the constantly changing clouds dipping over the mountains.
















Since the school day had just ended, a few students from a nearby institution crossed the grounds on their way home.







The color of the leaves complemented the hint of green in the stone walls.

[htmb]

[htmb]

Down below, students could be seen out on the soccer field.










While, up above, the mountains were just gorgeous.






















For a small fee, we entered the main part of the building.

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What struck me about the wandering after school students was that even though the weather was not sweltering, it seemed too warm to be wearing those jumpers.







The setting between the nearby mountains was indeed impressive.

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Some of the students were engaged in sporting activities at the nearby field while others watched.







As you all know, poinsetties are indigenous to Mexico.



The real flower at the centre is much more complex than most people notice.