OK, so what, you may be thinking, of cassowaries and car parks?
Well, about 10 years ago, when we were travelling around Australia in a camper van, we went to the rainforest in search of a weird looking flightless bird, called a cassowary. We don't have photos to show just how weird it is, but there are loads of pics on line...
So... we spent hours trekking though dense jungle, spotting rock and tree wallabies, crabs, mud skippers and who knows what else!?!? But no cassowaries.
Happy with the things we had seen, we trekked back to the van, and there in the car park were two adult and one juvenile cassowary! So, finding cassowaries in the car park has become our reminder that every step whilst travelling is part of the journey, and that sometimes the big stuff happens when and where you least expect it.
Images of Oaxaca
Alan wondering whether to take part in a recycling workshop for kids at Pochote Market
Useful plastic objects!
Amazing wall art enjoyed on our daily commute to school
More wall art, near the organic Pochote Market, in Xochimilco barrio (the red Beetle is real)
Alan with his maestro, proudly holding his wallet fashioned from a recycled tetrapak (yep, he went for the workshop para ninos!)
Gorgeous ceramics and hot chocolate stirrers!
For love of art and beautiful flowers, que lindo...
Wandering through the streets of Xochimilco the sound of people working at weaving looms fills the air - this man, a weaver since he was a boy and very proud of this, invited us in. A lovely man and a real character! His son (left) continues the trade.
View from the street into the weavers' home and workshop
Oaxaca's disused railway station, now a small museum
A beautifully painted disused railway carriage
Hey, muchachos - strolling through town on a Saturday morning we came upon this Danzon (elegant, slow Cuban dance) festival, with dancers of all ages, from 8 to 80 taking part
We had a chat and a laugh with this woman asking for a pesito (a 'little peso') and she happily agreed to a photo
Colourful casa
We loved the wall art, as you can tell!
We joined a small group tour of the Ethnobotanical Gardens, adjoining Santo Domingo Church. The gardens are not open to the public except those taking part in a tour. Our guide was a fantastically knowledgeable volunteer ex-pat from the US, who told us about the history of the garden, the politics and the medicinal and practical uses of the flora. The 2 hour tour was a delight. Oaxaca state, we learned, is the most biodiverse in Mexico. We saw the cochineal beetle, which lives on a certain type of cactus and, when squished, (and processed) produces an intense red dye, used in textile production, and on which Oaxaca made its fortune in the past.
The ethnobotanical gardens
A squished cochineal beetle, used for centuries to dye fabric shades of red
The best fragrance in the world, in our humble opinion, the flor de Mayo (or frangipani)
Walt, who was on our ethnobotanical garden tour, modelling flores de Mayo (well, it was his birthday!)
One of very many good restaurants in Oaxaca (they serve a mean Mezcal margarita)
In La Biznaga's foyer..... Well, they do advertise it as 'very slow food'!
One Saturday night, Tonita strolled into the apartment, as usual, looking huge. She managed to haul herself up into the bedside shelf unit, and sat among our underwear. It seemed as if she was nesting, and therefore very close to giving birth, we thought.
Tonita, 'como un globo' (like a balloon), as the workmen helpfully observed
She went out when we went to bed, as usual. Next morning, she was nowhere to be seen... very unusual. We suspected that she'd had the kittens, so searched La Calera, peering into every nook and cranny, but no sign. Eventually, we had to leave for Tlacolula, a village market some 30km from Oaxaca City, where Alan had been told that there were handmade traditional sandals or huaraches.
The market was fantastic.... a feast for the senses, with stalls selling every kind of fruit, veg, snack, handicraft, plastic object, medicinal herb or preparation, mezcal, flower, traditional and modern clothing, etc etc. There were also for sale chicks, goats, turkeys and chickens, for the pot, for milk and as mascotes (pets).
We soon found a stall selling huaraches, but, as we'd suspected, none of them were big enough. The local people, very interested that a tourist was serious about buying the sandals traditionally worn by campesinos, gathered around and remarked on the size of Alan's feet 'muy grande' (very big) and one or two 'grandisimos' (enormous). The lovely woman on the stall measured Alan's feet and declared that he was a Mexican 9 and the biggest they had was 8. She promised to have a pair for him the next Sunday, at a cost of 190 pesos (about 7 pounds 50 pence), for a pair of handmade, bespoke leather sandals.
Hungry from our huarache hunting and sheer sensory overload, we headed off in search of sustenance. We opted for the most appetising looking tlayudas, in our favourite blue corn, topped with quesillo (Oaxacan string cheese), salad, mole and aguacate (avocado) all washed down with the best Mexican fizzy lemon drink, (not made by Coca Cola - hooray)- called Squirt! Delicious. We sat among indigenous people, who chatted to us as we all ate our lunch. One older man asked where we were from. how long it took us to reach Mexico, and, if we had come by boat how long it would have taken, and. finally, what language do we speak? 'Ingles' (English), we replied. He asked if that was the same as American. to which we replied: 'Mas o menos' (More or less!).....
Images of Tlacoloula Market
Huaraches (campesino sandals).... the ripe, leathery smell will wear off eventually, won't it? Please....
Rambutan fruits - delicious and fragrant smelling
Mamey fruits - pretty, sweet, and also delicious
A traditional drink, tejate, is made from the seeds and flowers of the mamey, plus corn, cacao and cinammon, all ground together with a little water. It looks a bit like runny porridge. The women serve it in the markets from big decorative bowls made from gourds, stirring it frequently, their arms in the tejate up to their elbows. It's a lovely, subtly flavoured drink and tastes as if it would do you good. It also comes in packet form, lest the mamey flowers or stirring technique prove elusive!
Just add water.....The decorated gourd from which the tejate is served is illustrated on the packet
Our delicious blue corn tlayuda, made fresh before our hungry eyes
Lunch with the people from the local villages
More useful plastic objects
Vendedoras (women sellers) seliing and wearing regional traje (costume)
Flowers abound in Oaxaca
Flowers, fresh herbs (the basil tastes fantastic, but is mostly used for spiritual cleansing of people and houses)
Local honey
Yep, that's all she sells, but don't they look good?
Everything you need to make salsa
We'll pass on the barbie, gracias!
This market seemed to sell anything and everything. However, when we asked around for chaya, a spinach-like leaf with which to make jugos verdes (literally green juice) which we had enjoyed in the Yucatan, it was nowhere to be seen. As usual when we asked stallholders for something, they tried to help and word spread that these crazy tourists were asking for chaya. Eventually, a man came up to us and asked us if we were looking for hojas de chaya (chaya leaves). He said that it was not on sale in the market, because everyone grows it for themselves, for medicinal purposes, and that he could go and harvest some from his garden if we wanted to wait. He returned with a big bagful and charged us a few pesos. We love this place.
Go Guerreros!
Back on the bus to Oaxaca city and a cup of coffee before meeting our new friend, Margaret, from Georgia, at the baseball stadium. She was keen that we experience beisbol, Oaxaca style. We had never been to a baseball game before and Margaret is a keen supporter of the local team, the Guerreros, and when in Oaxaca she goes to every game she can, knows all the players, all the songs and was a great person to introduce us to the game. It was an incredibly fun experience. The mascot, Tato, is hilarious, we got to know who were the best players, that each player had their own tune, which was played as they came to bat or pitch, that each position had their own coach. We stood for the Oaxaca state anthem and the national anthem, gawped in amazement as the cheerleaders, wearing very little and looking exceedingly bored, danced for just a couple of minutes, one or two of them returning to their children as play resumed, and laughed as bursts of music comically punctuated what was happening on the pitch. We were schooled in which snacks to buy and which to avoid (Death on a Plate, for example, named for its lethal chilli content). Alan's addiction to the red potato crisps, sold in long transparent plastic bags and doused with chilli sauce and lime juice, began here. We bought our drinks from Margaret's favourite seller, who she knows by name and knows her family. A family Margaret has known for years turned up to watch the game; three brothers and a sister, all in their twenties. They live outside Oaxaca, with another brother and their parents, in a village near Etla and they greeted us like old friends, adding to the overall fun experience. Our ribs ached from laughing by the end of the evening, although unfortunately the Guerreros lost. Boo.
A long, very enjoyable day. We arrived back at the apartment and Tonita greeted us, looking very slim and very hungry, but no sign of kittens. She looked well, but was covered in powdery white lime. We hunted everywhere, but no sign or sound of kittens. We followed Tonita, but she didn't lead us to her kits. They were obviously very well hidden and we just hoped that they were ok, especially as their mother is so young.
Next blog: our final week in Oaxaca.... will we find Tonita's kittens? And.... GUELAGUETZA!
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