Amazing Oaxaca

Located in a high valley of the Sierra Madre mountains, just a hour by air from Mexico City,  Oaxaca is the quintessential traditional Mexican city. A combination of history, culture and food mixes together to create a wonderful small city, full of museums, amazing restaurants and cafes and shops full of crafts and art from Oaxaca state and beyond.

We always had an interest in this city, primarily because it was the source of many of the crafts we had previously bought while travelling in Mexico. The wooden alebrijes, those wonderful brightly painted, fantastic creatures carved from wood, the Oaxacan woven rugs and tapestries from the Teotitlan del Valle area, are some of our favourites. But there is so much more to see in the city and surrounding valleys. Santa Maria del Tule, has the famous Tule tree located in the  main square of the town. Considered the largest tree in the Americas, it is an enormous presence in the square and well worth the visit. Monte Alban just outside the city is the original home of the Zapotec culture and is a beautifully preserved archeological site on top of a hill. It is huge, amazing and popular location for many visitors.

Looking across the main square in Oaxaca, hot and hazy and usually packed with people

The Templo de Santa Domingo, one of the most beautifully preserved Catholic churches in Oaxaca. Rivaling some of the beautiful churches of Rome it is located in the central area of the city, an area identified and protected by UNESCO as a world heritage site.  

The interior of the Templo de Santo Domingo

There are so many amazing small museums in the city that are all worth a visit. The Textile Museum, the Museum of Oaxacan Painters, the Museum of Contemporary Arts [MOCA], the  Graphic Arts Institute of Oaxaca, the Oaxaca Photographic Centre, the Pre-Hispanic Art Museum Rufino, Museo de Filatelia de Oaxaca, and many others. Just wandering around is the best way to see the place.

The courtyard of the Rufino Tamayo Pre-Hispanic Art Museum, [www.rufinotamayo.org.mx] this is an amazing collection of artifacts and artwork collected by  Rufino Tamayo, and donated back to the city. All housed within his former residence. One of the nicest displays of artwork in the city.

This is El Arbol del Tule a 2000 year old Montezuma cypress tree which is considered one of the oldest, largest and widest trees in the world. It's located in the town's centre growing in the plaza and the atrium of the church Santa Maria de la Asuncion which is to the left of the image. The main road was reconstructed around the square as there were concerns that pollution and vibrations from the traffic might damage the tree.

We stayed at a a small hotel/bed and breakfast in the centre of the city. Casa de las Bugambilias, located on Avenida Reforma, is a small eight room casa that is run by the mother of the chef, Pilar Cabrera, who has La Olla Cafe [laolla.com.mx]downstairs. The hotel is delightful, perfectly located and has an amazing breakfast served daily. The staff are all excellent and helpful. La Olla has excellent food next door and also offers cooking classes for those that want to get a sense of Oaxacan cuisine.

Roof top at Cafe Olla

The courtyard of Casa de Las Bugambilias

Looking towards the Templo de Santa Maria and the mountainside convert venue in the distance. View from Cafe Olla

One of the pools at Hierve el Aqua, Oaxaca State, Mexico

The cascading frozen waterfalls of Hierve el Aqua, which is actually solid deposits of limestone that have trickled down over many many years. There are only two sites in the world that have this unique geological formation, the other is in Turkey. Very dry mountain forests everywhere, all the way down to the Pacific.

Monte Alban, the site of the Zapotec hilltop town dating back almost 1200 years, looking down into the valley with Oaxaca city below. There is a very nice museum, cafe and shop at the entrance to the archeological site itself. There's no need to go on an organized tour here, you can easily take a taxi from the city and walk about yourself. There are also guides for hire at the site, if you need one. It's very hot and dry here by the afternoon when it starts to get very crowded.