Oaxaca de Juarez (Oaxaca City)

“Entre los individuos, como entre las naciones, el respeto al derecho ajeno es la paz -- Among individuals, as among nations, respect for the rights of others is peace.” ― Benito Juárez

I visited Oaxaca right after Christmas last year. I didn't really have any particular plans for the Christmas-New Year holiday break and ended up in the South rather by accident, when I accepted an invitation from my friend Guillermo to join him and his father on a small adventure. As I was already going to Puebla first (see my previous post for some information about that), I took a bus from there, which broke up the normally long journey (6-7 hours) a bit and made it easier to digest. If you are planning such a trip, you might want to consider getting your bus tickets online, because there aren't so many connections on this route and at peak holiday times the buses are often full. 

Oaxaca is a state in the South of Mexico, which borders with Puebla and Veracruz to the North, with Guerrero to the West and Chiapas to the East. To the South, there is the Pacific coast with its beautiful beaches. People speaking about visiting Oaxaca usually mean either the capital city (Oaxaca de Juarez) or the coast. The landscape throughout is mountenous with rich jungle vegetation and so, when driving from Oaxaca city to the coast, expect hours of breathtaking views. You might consider flying instead, however, because it is quite a drive! 

Oaxaca de Juarez 

Apart from the stunning nature, the state is known for it's indigenous cultures, beautiful handicrafts and incredible food. The center of Oaxaca de Juarez (also called Oaxaca city) boasts colonial buildings (often made of green volcanic stone), among them the Baroque Catedral de Oaxaca in El Zocalo (main square) and the Church of Santo Domingo the Guzman. Other notable buildings include the magnifficent Teatro Macedonio Alcala (1903-1909) and the IAGO (Instituto de Artes Graficas de Oaxaca or the Graphic Arts Institute of Oaxaca), an art school founded by the artist Francisco Toledo, hosting one of the most beautiful libraries I have ever seen, as well as a collection of Latin American artworks. 

Church of Santo Domingo de Guzman in Oaxaca City. As much, as the Cathedral is beautiful, I found the Church of Santo Domingo more striking, with its incredibly rich interior. 

The ceiling of the Church of Santo Domingo

The cafe and reading room/networking space of the IAGO in Oaxaca de Juarez

The patio between two sections of the library, IAGO

Oaxaca is also known for it's indigenous or pre-Hispanic cultures - that of the Mixtecs and the Zapotecs - and archeological sites, including Mitla, Yagul and the famous Zapotec capital, Monte Alban, dating to around 500 B.C. The archeological museum located right next to the Church of Santo Domingo, houses a collection of artefacts related to the native peoples of this area and is probably worth taking a look. There is also a botanical garden adjacent to the museum. Due to a shortage of time, I was not able to visit any of the archeological sites during my first trip to the city and I am planning to see them on my next trip. 

The building of the archeological museum, adjacent to the Church of Santo Domingo, overlooks the botanical garden

While in the city, you probably shouldn't miss Mercado 20 Noviembre, selling everything, but especially famous for food, in particular meats freshly grilled in front of the customer. Speaking of food, local specialties include drinks, particularly mezcal (a strong alcoholic beverage made from the agave cactus, similar to Tequila) and hot chococolate, and dishes, such as tamales (the famous tamales oaxaquenos, advertised all over CDMX) and tlayudas (a type of tortilla, topped with beans and other tasty ingredients of choice). There are plenty of restaurants (in all price ranges), as well as street vendors, and all the food is very tasty. 

Mezcal in Oaxaca is typically served with orange wedges and chile powder

The Coast

We also visited the coast: Huatulco and Mazunte. We drove down south from Oaxaca City, through the mountains. We also ate an incredible seafood lunch on the way, in an amazing tiny local cafeteria by the side of the road. My seafood soup was truly exquisite. If you are planning such a trip, make sure to set out early, as the way is long and the road winding through mountains. The views certainly make it worthwhile, though. 

Huatulco is a larger city, more crowded, with discotecs and resort-style facilities. From one of the main beaches we took a small speedboat to one of the "secret" beaches, part of the protected area. There, the sand is white and the water clear enough to snorkle. As the climate in Oaxaca is largely tropical, you have jungle-covered mountains all around. The "secret" beach was wonderful, but overall, we definitly liked Mazunte more, with it's setting closer to nature, smaller cafes and modest "family" style hotels, often run by foreigners. Mazunte is also cheaper than Huatulco and the food is better.

In general, Mazunte reminded me of Egypt's Dahab somewhat, with that "hippy" relaxed feel, an international community and a slower pace. Huatulco was more like Marsa Matrouh - attracting a local crowd and loads of it.

I took a flight back to Mexico City from Huatulco airport. There are flights almost every 15 minutes and the prices can be quite reasonable, especially if you book early. The bus costs basically the same but takes 17 hours!

The view from our hotel in Huatulco was breathtaking but the city center was a bit disappointing

Huatulco free from straws. Plastic pollution is a huge problem in Mexico, which works hard to help preserve sea turtles

*****

Oaxaca was hit by a 7.2 magnitute earthquake yesterday. I don't have much information about what happened, but it seems that luckily the damage has not been too severe in this beautful state.