Table of Contents
Oaxaca City
After an exhausting couple of flights we landed in this colourful lovely artistic city.
Whilst we didn’t get much sleep on the flight we got in the morning and immediately headed out to explore the city. First thing we noticed is that the morning is chilly but standing in the sun is incredibly hot! Two extremes that really surprised us.
Our Airbnb isn’t as nice as it appears and was a lot more….rustic than expected. No matter over the next few days we started to make it homely, new rug on the floor, candles for night lighting etc
Best thing is we had 6 days, which is ample time to unwind, explore and take hints easy – Mexican style! Losing our London rush (always difficult) and finding cafes that served amazing chocolate and coffees (all ‘deslactosada’ – lactose free! of course,) and shady spots in the Zocalo (main square) to watch pan pipers bust out tunes, be offered treats, jewellery and balloons.
Despite the tourism and colour of the city, Oaxaca stare is one of the poorest in Mexico which is evident once you take the collectives (share taxis) out of the city to smaller villagers, or even the famous Monte Alban. Metal shacks, dirty children and dusty yards with mud walled homes, all combine to paint a rather sad picture of what should be a thriving country. Especially with 1.6million tourists a year.
However despite his the Oaxacan people are incredibly kind, helpful and inquisitive. As I write this I’m sitting in the Zocalo and a little boy and his dad sit next to me, we’ve just spent he last 20min chatting and listening to the little boy get very excited over the men taking down the grande arbol (Big xmas tree in the square, they are using a cherry picker crane and he is loving it!). It seems every night there is a new festival in the Zocalo, last nigh there was a brass band and dancing, previously markets and fireworks, a wedding, and festivities.
Solo Adventures
As Greg got quite ill (stomache bug from london we think!) I found myself exploring without him and getting into all sorts of adventures, from chatting in broken Spanish to an old man on the collective who told me about Zapatos (native people) and what living in Oaxaca area was like.
Acting – I was also asked to act in a promo film for the tourism board & do a photo shoot promoting the artisanal market!
Haircut – As it was so hot I decided to get a haircut. Despite not speaking a word of spanish and my hairdresser not speaking english I was very pleased with the results……..and the cost? £6GBP / $7.50 USD!!!
Haircut for £6!? What do you think?? : )
Markets / Mercardos
Mercado Benito Juarez
named after the Oaxacan boy who overcame poverty to become Mexico’s president in 1867 and re-elected for four terms. This one has juice stores (expect huge servings), shoes, hats, bags, and of course fresh produce.
Mercado 20 noviembre
ahh our favourite for the aptly named ‘BBQ alley’. Meat, bbqs, smoke, and goodness . It can seem a bit daunting but dont worry this is how you do it
Meal for two is around $150 pesos including non alcoholic drinks (around £6 GBP). This was our fav dining, we came back several times during our time in Oaxaca!
La Merced
We recommend you check out this market if you can – its full of locals and no tourists. We went early for breakfast and had memelas (yum!) grilled corn cakes with meat, cheese and beans on top. I had a hot chocolate to drink with pan dolce (sweet bread) to dip. Yum!
Mercado Les Artenisias
this one is great for clothing, embroidered table cloths. I got some awesome hand embroidered cushion covers made by the sellers mother, they are gorgeous colourful depictions of imaginary animals similar to the alebrijes style.
And, of course I couldn’t resist an alebrijes pain stakingly painted by the store holders family. Hilariously mine resembles Stitch from the Disney film!
We also settled on a tablecloth that was so cheap I think it was machine made. This is a great market, however don’t go expecting to bargain, there was very little movement from the sellers, whether that’s because it’s a tourist city or because it’s their way, we’ve found this to be the case across our travels here in Oaxaca state.
Chocolate
while this isn’t a market per se, Oaxacan chocolate is a real specialty. The biggest store is Mayor Domo and they sell amazing malteda frio’s. Samples are regularly given out on the street to passers by if you want to try. Stepping into their store you get a sense of the chaos and the smells. The pics you see below are not coffee beans but chocolate beans & pasty chocolate being ground out.
Whilst the chocolate itself is sugary and a bit too sweet, do not eat it straight. Its made for hot or cold drinks. And tastes DELICIOUS!
Tlacolula markets, Mitla
FYI only on Sundays – this is worth the trip out. We managed to get a bus without trying. Standing on the wrong side of a busy road, a bus pulls up on the other side of the road and a man jumps off looks at us and yells out “Mitla!?”
Tlamanalli, Teotitlan
Then we visited some carpet stores to buy a hallway runner!
What to eat??
Food wise, Eat everything!! Oaxacans are most proud of their cheese (queso) & chocolate so they kinda go in everything. Greg wasn’t too impressed by the cheese, “doesn’t really taste like anything”. But here are the specialties. Remember most things are corn based!
Memelas – toasted masa cake with queso our fav snack!
Tetelas – tortilla triangle with cheese good for breakfast
Tlayuda – a pizza, order with whatever meat you prefer
Empanada – not what you’d think! It’s more like a lightly deep fried tortilla with things stuffed in it. Not as nice as the Bolivian empanadas or (saltenas)
Tamales – our other fav snack. Corn meal based snack steamed in banana leaves either by itself sweet or with pollo chicken and raisins, olives yum!
Tejate – cacao flower drink (no milk) made only with the white cacao bean flowers
Chocolate anything -of course this is the favourite! Now bear in mind his chocolate is actually cacao bean ground up with sugar. So the chocolate itself is quite earthy, nutty and paste-like. Not my taste. But once they add milk or water to it and make it. A drink! Wow! More like a hot cocoa. Keep an eye out for Major Domo stores that sell choco milk/malteda frio (cold chocolate shake). Or get it as a breakfast drink with Pan Dulce (sweet dry bread that you dip into the drink) or have it after dinner as your postres! With agua or leche.
Mezcal – try a cocktail, this is rough drink. Tougher than tequila which is refined but made the same way from the agave plant. See below for my amazing Marmalade Cocktail that I had at a new mezcal bar at Pal Dolor
MUST TRY FOOD
Mole -of course as any guidebook will tell you Mole is the main thing to try in Oaxaca. There are seven types here and to be honest I tried about 4 I think!
They were interesting and seemed to have a hell of a lot of work put into them to create but ultimately I wasn’t that impressed!
Lactose intolerant Tip: if you’re lactose intolerant like me the best news is deslactosada (non lactose milk) is everywhere!!! So just ask for “choclate con leche deslactosada”.
Restaurant & Bar Recommendations
- Mezcal Bar – Pal Dolor try the marmalade mezcal cocktail
- Restaurant Chilhaucle Rojo – owner comes out and tells you what he has available that is fresh that day and cooks to your tastes! SO much fun. Loved this restaurant.
- Pitiona – More refined restaurant, unfortunately due to time we didnt get to try but heard amazing things….
- Origen – Upper class restaurant. We had a booking we had to cancel, as Greg’s tummy prevented us from going but please let us know what you think!
- Fonda Florecita in Le Merced – good breakfast!
- El Son Istmeno – little known and off the beaten track but so good we went back twice for tlaydas and tamales
- Of course all market restaurants are GREAT.
Best Cafes in town
- Cafe Bre – Hands down the BEST COFFEE IN TOWN. Also good wifi – as good as it gets in Oaxaca.
- Cafe Brujula – cappucino frio please!
