5 Days in Oaxaca - Day Three

Oaxaca Diary by Renée Netzel

The day of the Guelaguetza has arrived! We have waited for over a year to attend this festival and we were excited to finally have the opportunity to experience it.

The Guelaguetza, also called the Lunes del Cerro, or "Mondays on the Hill," is celebrated in the city of Oaxaca on the last two Mondays of July, except when one of these falls on July 18th (which is the anniversary of the death of Benito Juárez), in which case it takes place later...as was the case this year as the festival was held on July 25 and August 1. Additionally, there are two showings each Monday, at 10 am and at 5 pm. We chose the later time...so we eased our way into the day, ate a delicious breakfast at our B&B (Casa de Las Bugambilias) and generally just wandered around town until it was time to go.

5 Days in Oaxaca - Day Two (Part II)

Oaxaca Diary by Renée Netzel

After finishing the enlightening tour with Benito at Monte Albán, we were handed off to his lovely wife, Suzanne (a fellow Canadian), and we headed towards another famous landmark in the Oaxaca area - The Tule Tree. I have to admit...I wasn't really convinced it would be worth the drive. After all, it was just a tree. However as we drove into the small town of Santa María del Tule, located about 10 kms west of Oaxaca City, we were soon impressed by what we saw.

It may not be the largest, or the oldest, tree in the world but it has no contenders for widest. The Tule Tree dwarfs the town's church (located right beside it) and with a circumference of 54 m (164 ft) it boasts the largest girth of any tree on the planet. Furthermore, the tree is more than 2,000 years old. Imagine... this tree was a sapling at the time when the Zapotec civilization at Monte Albán was flourishing!

5 Days in Oaxaca - Day Two (Part I)

Oaxaca Diary by Renée Netzel

As the church bells rang at 8 am, we lazily rolled out of our comfortable bed to have some breakfast and greet the day. Our second day in Oaxaca would take us out of the city to see Monte Albán, the Tule tree, and the Sunday market in Tlacochahuaya (try saying that one fast!).

We had booked a private guided tour with Discover Oaxaca Tours and we were excited to begin our adventure. Benito Hernández, our guide, is of Zapotec descent and has lived most of his life in Oaxaca City. As a result, he is very knowledgeable about the history, culture, and traditions of the area...especially Monte Alban, which was the first stop of the day.

5 Days in Oaxaca - Day One

Oaxaca City Diary by Renée Netzel

We have just returned from spending five days in Oaxaca City...what a great place!  How Oaxaca has stayed below the travel radar is beyond me.

Picture a flight on a little 13-seat airplane climbing over the Sierra Madre del Sur mountains with layer upon layer of green slopes and billowy clouds nestled between them.  Now imagine cresting those jungle covered peaks only to reveal an expansive fertile valley dropped between these large mountains flanking the perimeter.  Somehow, you can imagine what it must have been like thousands of years ago when the great ruin of Monte Albán marked the first true city of Mesoamerica.

Oaxaca is arguably the most colonial of all of Mexico's cities and certainly the main centre of Oaxaca is representative of this.  Sitting at 1,550 m above sea level, the climate of Oaxaca is very envious indeed.  Warm sunny days with little humidity give way to cooler evenings providing a very comfortable environment.

10 Myths About Mexico

There are many myths, misconceptions, or stereotypes about Mexico.  Let's have a closer look at a few of these.

The Lizard Who Adopted Us

Today's post is by Renée Netzel

It was late in the morning when we first spotted him...a little brown lizard, crouching near our patio doors and trying to hide from our dog, Monte, in the curtains.  He was pretty cute and he was pretty scared as he laid there as still as possible.  I tried to coax him into moving but he was frozen in place.  I even tried feeding him little morsels of food but there was nothing that was going to make him move.  So, I finally worked up the courage to pick him up by the tail and send him on his way out the front door.  He was free!

Mexican Wine?

Like anything in life, what you don't know or don't understand, will always surprise you.  We all know that Mexico is famous for its beer and  Tequila, and now Mezcal is becoming more popular and more understood.

What about Mexican Wine?

Mexican wine making actually began in the 16th century with the arrival of the Spanish and Hernán Cortés. The legends says that Hernán and his troops arrived in what was to become New Spain (Mexico) and they brought with them loads of wine that were quickly depleted.  But as part of his agenda when he became the governor, was to plant new vines and produce wine.  Vines were brought over from Europe and flourished in the states of Puebla, Coahuila, and Zacatecas.  It was these vines that would later be sent to Napa Valley and South America.