de dos días

Or Day Two!
Wednesday, June 15



For starters, this is part of the view from our balcony.

That dome is used only two times a year for a celebration of the people of Oaxaca, the tribes indigenous to the area. You can read a bit about it here.

 Traffic was awful, and sometimes extremely noisy. I always forget that the US is a country that is quieter than most because we don't use our horns like they do elsewhere. Any hesitation at a green light or someone blocking right turn on red elicited honking and that led to EVERYONE honking!

The mountains off in the distance were very pretty. I felt right at home. Scott and I talked about how much this area reminds us of New Mexico.

Next we took a chartered bus to Connie's parents' home. The bus had to stop at the bottom of the hill because of the narrow street, so we walked about a block up the hill.









Along the walk we stopped to meet the ladies who were making tamales for our dinner and to watch them work for a short time.










Up the hill, we could see "our" house. See the green awning? We're going to be under that in a few minutes, enjoying lots of delicious snacks and drinks, as well as wonderful company. The palm leaves you see are growing in the courtyard in the center of the house.

Here is the courtyard from inside on the lower level. It's also a fruit garden with a banana tree and several other fruit trees, I think a mango and a papaya, among others.

A walkway through the courtyard leads to two bedrooms and a bathroom.

So we hung out and visited for a while under that green awning ....














Under the red tile is the kitchen.










After we rested a short while, we set out for an archeological site, one I was avid about seeing, one of the Aztec pyramids named Monte Alban. Some walked from the house, but I chose to be shuttled in a car along with two others who had reasons to not make the rather long hike. It was supposed to be 45 minutes walk, but the "experts" (Scott and Connie) were dead wrong!! It took the group twice that long! Later, of course, they both blamed the other for the misinformation or miscalculation! Hee hee! I'm so glad I didn't try to hike up the mountain, although I'm sure it was a beautiful tour. I would have been "ruint" for the duration of my visit!

And we were there! The first view was breathtaking, but it got better and better!

Lexie and Philip immediately took off to climb the stairs, of course!

Oh, to be so young and energetic again!

 I've posted a ton of pictures of the pyramid here. Please check it out, as it is truly astoundingly beautiful.

But I have to show you a few things ....

This wall is mostly all original. How do I know? Well, look at the next one down the page.

See the small stones in the mortar? That is how they have denoted rebuilt walls! How cleaver and honest is that? So a wall like the one above, without the little stones in the mortar, is an original from centuries ago. I love how honest the archeologists have been with this.








Here is another that you need to be able to click and enlarge. It will give you the amazing size of the site.

And this one .... I want you to know I climbed these monsters! Each step is about 18" high, a major stretch!

And to prove I was at the top, here is a photo looking down that looooong slope. That's Brooke sitting a the bottom.  Chuckle! This ol' 67 year old made it up the steps, but the 21 year old sat it out!!

After the tour of the pyramid grounds, we returned to Connie's parents home where we were joined by the 'tamale ladies" who shared a touch of mezcal with us!

We had a great meal! A vat of guacamole, chips, Mexican cheeses, salsa, black beans, and four kinds of tamales: chicken molé, vegetable, black bean, and a sweet one with pineapple and some other fruits in it! Yummmmmmmmmmmmm!! And of course, all was accompanied by various drinks: mezcal, Mexican beers, horchata (if you haven't tried it, it may sound strange, but is is scrumptious; in Oaxaca, they also add small chunks of cantaloupe, mango and pecans, making it even more wonderful), and some others that I'm blanking on. Can you understand how it begins to blur?

It rained in the early evening, as it did every day while we were there. Being under the awning or the tin/tile roof over the kitchen was so neat! I was glad to have the rebozo (the shawl Mexican women carry their babies in), gift from Connie and Scott to us all, as the rain cooled the air a lot. In fact, evenings were quite cool, in general.

I discovered I like mezcal. I really like mezcal! I don't know that I've ever tried it before, as I remember the worm grossing me out when I was younger, then just ignored it since then. But I really, really like mezcal!! And, to answer your question, no, I did not get loaded just enjoyed a half dozen shots through the evening. Well, OK, and several more over the subsequent days!! Nor did I eat the worm. It's alright to have it in the bottle, but I'll leave it there, thank you very much.

The bus returned for us around 8:30, and we went back to the hotel to collapse in bed. It was a good night's sleep.