Jan. 8 – Day of rest

Getting woken up by church bells at 6:30am, while quite a pleasant sounds, really sucks. Especially when your alarm’s not set to go off until 9am. Although, being in a country that serves banana smoothies with chips and salsa for breakfast helps one ease into the morning.

Today is our last day in Oaxaca – while all vacations are great and I sort of wish they could go on forever, there’s always a moment when you’re ready to go home, to have the familiar, to have your own space, and to not live out of a suitcase.

So we made the most of today and went to visit the UNESCO World Heritage site at Monte Alban. Built around 500 B.C.E. but abandoned by around 500 C.E., Monte Alban was considered one of the earliest and largest (17,000 inhabitants at the time) Mesoamerican cities and the seat of Zapotec political and economic power for about 1000 years. Why it was abandoned was unclear, but our guide explained that it was replaced in later centuries by smaller political units and family groups, like what we saw in Mitla.

This complex was a lot bigger and extended across four hill tops. Much of the site had been restored and was off limits but they left a small portion covered in overgrowth, which was cool to see. The restoration team had excavated one portion of the stairs to show us the layer below. Our guide explained that over the course of 1000 years that Monte Alban thrived, there were five rebuildings of the structures. The first structures were small, solid, flat top pyramids. The second iteration added an additional layer of stone on top of the 1^st layer to make a wider, taller structure. Same with the third and so one up to the current fifth layer that we see now.

Ball court

Exposed layers of stairs

Observatory is the building on the right

We were able to walk around all of the structures and even climb up a few giant staircases to get a bird’s eye view of the complex, which was pretty impressive. In addition to the ritual ball court and tombs we’ve seen at other sites, Monte Alban also had an astrological observatory from where they tracked the sun’s position to keep track of the seasons. The best part for me was seeing the stone monoliths that still stood on the site. Not all of them had stood the test of time, but some you could still make out the figures and symbols carved into the rock. I have no idea what the story entails, but they were beautiful pieces of pre-historic design.

Nick and I split up for the remainder of the day, as he and Amir went off to check out some handicraft factories and I headed back to the hotel for some R&R and last minute souvenir shopping. We met up again for dinner in the hopes of having a nice "last supper" in Oaxaca. We chose a restaurant that served a variety of moles, with a rooftop terrace overlooking Plaza Santo Domingo. Had it not been freezing outside and had the food not taken over an hour to get to us, it might have been a picture perfect evening... As it was, the conversation waned, everyone got tired and the waiter received no tip. Ah well. At least my mole sauce was good. ;) 

Tomorrow we head back to L.A. and while I will definitely not miss the mosquito bites and the obscene amount of cheese in every meal, I will miss the color and culture of Oaxaca. It’s been an awesome trip and I really thank our friend Amir for inviting us to go with him and for Nick for all his amazing trip planning and driving skills ;)

Ugh, now to get ready for the new school semester and hopefully move into a new house soon… !

Adios Oaxaca!

Jan. 7 – Tomb raider

Civilization in Yagul began around 500 B.C.E. but the ruins that remain (and have since been restored) mostly date back from Pre-Hispanic times from 13^th-16^th century. Yagul has several claims to fame that make it a UNESCO World Heritage site. The most impressive of which is the I-shaped ball court, where the Mesoamerican ball game (a mix of basketball and soccer) was played. It’s reportedly one of the largest restored ball court in Mexico, second only to the one in Chichen Itza in the Yucatan.

Ball court

Other side of ball court

The walls of the multiple living quarters that remain are interlinked to form a sort of labyrinth that is very easy to get lost in…especially if you are under 5 feet and can’t see over the walls. The expanse of the labyrinth aren’t fully appreciated until you climb up to the “fortress” – a crumbling, walled outpost build into the cliffs just above the site that overlooks Yagul and the surrounding Oaxaca Valley.

Yagul landscape

The coolest parts, for me, of these Zapotec ruins are the underground tombs. Sadly, when you visit the ruins all that is left are the empty tunnels – the figurines and adornments having been excavated by tomb raiders or archeologists long ago (at least we got to see some of the preserved items at the museums in Oaxaca). But at Yagul there was a large (and time worn) frog statue that sat above a couple of the tombs at the site. One of the tombs not only still had some of the internal, carved mosaic wall intact, it also had two carved heads figures adorning the entrance. It was pretty cool – a very Indiana Jones/Tomb Raider kind of feel to it all.

Jan. 7 – Zapoteca in ruins

I have to admit, I’m very glad to be leaving Pueblos Mancomunados. After the cold and the altitude sickness (not to mention my spoiled desire for hot running water and non-vegetarian meals), I’m ready to head back to civilization. The scenery is beautiful, the hikes were awesome (although I’m still feeling the soreness in my legs several days later), and the people were very nice. I appreciate that these small farming communities have joined together to start an ecotourism business to preserve their land, and I hope they have great success, but the running of the co-op from Oaxaca seems a bit shady. After being overcharged, misquoted several different prices for services, and charged hidden, unexplained fees, I didn’t walk away with a very good impression of the organization. Nick thinks that the office in Oaxaca might be charging more and pocketing the profits, rather than sending all of the money back to the community. So not to dis on the people of Pueblos Mancomunados or the outdoor experience (it was great, we definitely recommend it), but if anyone’s interested in it, I suggest not booking anything ahead of time and paying for services as you go, rather than buying a packet ahead of your visit. But enough of that unpleasantness.

Upon descending the Sierras, we were able to (literally) breathe a little easier and shed multiple layers of clothing. It really did kind of feel like driving back down into present times. And yet, we headed to a place that would take us further back in time: the Zapotec ruins at Mitla – supposedly the religious center of Zapotec culture almost 1500 years ago, before it was conquered and taken over by the Mixtec about 1000 years ago. The Zapotecs considered death the second most significant life event (after birth) and built to connect/represent the pathway between life and death. How cool is that?!!

Our tour guide at Mitla turned out to be a 90 year old man who had lived for a time in L.A. (as have quite a few Mexicans that we’ve met down here, no surprise). He was very sweet but we started to question some of the historical “facts” he shared with us when they started to get a little contradictory and somewhat heavy on the Christian symbolism. But who knows, he said he had been a tour guide at Mitla for 30 years, so maybe he just likes fucking with tourists every now and then. ;P

Beautiful mesquite tree

Mitla was mostly destroyed by the Spanish in the 16^th century in an attempt to dismantle the Indigenous seat of local religious and political power (no surprise there). The crumbling stones were then used to build a Catholic church on the site, which still stands today – and is quite beautiful on the outside, due to the beautiful (plundered) pink stone work.

What is left of the original site are two courtyards, with a few palaces that have been restored. The one palace that had been fully restored had impressively steep stairs leading up to the entrance and a few standing columns that used to support a wooden roof. Inside the palace (which had amazingly low doorways, I was surprised that even I had to crouch to get in), is an inner courtyard surrounded by four rooms. Why this palace was let standing by the Spanish was unclear; according to our guide, it was because the Spanish saw symbols of the cross in some of the mosaics and thought it was divine intervention that these “savages” had used Christian symbols in their artwork. And no god-fearing Spaniard was going to destroy the symbol of Christ. But for whatever reason the palace was left mostly intact, I’m glad that it was. All of the other structures were partially collapsed piles of stone or just a foundation overgrown with time, so you couldn’t see the incredible architecture and mosaic sculptures that formed each wall of the building.

The people at Mitla didn’t use mortar for the outside of their walls, but rather pieces together specifically sized stones (like puzzle pieces), upon which they chiseled beautiful mosaics of continuing geometric patterns – very different from anything I’ve seen in the Yucatan or Peru. Our guide told us that different patterns represented different elements or animals, such as water, lighting, snakes, the universe. He tried to tell us that the lightening also somehow represented the decimal system but he totally lost me on that one…

Supposedly, the entire building was originally painted a deep red color, thanks to the iron oxide pigments in the local soil. The red walls used to be adorned with intricate frescoes and paintings, but none of that remained and what little patches of original stucco had been left were, sadly, completely graffitied or scratched out by decades (centuries?) of tourists.

Jan. 5-6 – Let the trekking begin

After another meal of potatoes and beans (not being fans of eggs and – as we would find out - not having many other options in the ecolodge dining halls), we made arrangements for the next 2 days of hiking from village to village. Day 1 = hike 16 km (or 6 hours) through cloud forest from Cuajimoloyas to Latuvi. Day 2 = hike 16 km through dry forest from Latuvi to Amatlan by way of Lachatao.

These GIANT agaves can live for a hundred years

In Cuaji (I’m shortening it because it took me three days to remember how to say it right and I will probably forget again soon after this trip), we met up with a lovely American-German woman who joined us for our first hike. And I have to say, after it just being the three of us for 10 days, it was so nice to have someone else to add to the mix! ;)

Pre-Columbian alter where farmers would pray for good harvests

Farmers will use agaves as fences

This Way

Trout aquaculture in the forest

To sum up, the hikes were BREATHTAKING! Literally and figuratively. Fortunately, we were descending in altitude for both hikes, so by the end of the 2^nd day, we were all feeling somewhat better. The first day through the cloud forest was intense – lots of uphill and downhill (my legs were so not ready for this) with cold, rainy weather – but the lush, green scenery was out of this world! Our guide explained traditional uses of plants along the hike and showed us how she weaves small figurines and jewelry out of pine needles!

It's called ghost forest for all the Spanish moss that waves in the wind

500 year old Spanish bridge

The intrepid hikers

Getting close to the end!

Lachatao

The second day’s hike was, thankfully, a lot easier – no steep hills to pass and through low-lying forests that were a lot warmer and dryer. The landscape was very different, as we hiked along rocky cliffs through what used to be mining areas. At the end of each six hour day, we felt great – intense hikes can be very euphoric because you feel you’ve really made an accomplishment – but after the second day’s hike, our bodies let us know it was time to call it quits. ;)

Our little cabins with LOTS of blankets

A well deserved rest

Sunset in Latuvi

Jan. 4 – They don’t call it “La Neveria” for nothing

This is the point on our trip where I realize I have not packed well. I have more than enough clothes for the beach – in fact, I hardly used most of what I brought – but I did not bring enough layers to comfortably survive the Sierra Norte. Rising over 10,000 feet above sea level, we drove into the mountains northeast of Oaxaca for a few days of hiking. The ride up through the cloud forest was of course beautiful, but none of us were quite prepared for the altitude sickness or the cold temperatures.

The villages of the Sierra Norte are referred to as Pueblos Mancomunados. They started out centuries ago as small mining centers and have since become farming towns. Most of them have joined together in an ecotourism co-op that raises money and awareness to preserve the unique forests and rivers of this region. It seemed like a great opportunity to hike through some amazing landscapes and give back to the local communities/ecosystems at the same time. (Plus our beach lounging, taco eating butts could use some exercise after the last week and a half).

We spent our first night in a very remote town called La Neveria (which I translate into “the really cold place”), and while our friend Amir went for an afternoon hike to a local waterfall, Nick and I collapsed fully clothed in bed, under 5 covers, in front of a fire, to take a nap and deal with the altitude sickness. Living in the desert at sea level has made us kind of wimpy. ;) 

Jan. 3 - Driving Part 2

Before returning to Oaxaca, we enjoyed some CRAZY good roadside tamales (clearly my hesitancy for street food didn’t last long) and headed to the town of Tule to see the widest tree in the world. Nick has been looking forward to this part for months! Tule is a small town, dating back to Pre-Hispanic times. They had a small but beautiful church built back in the 18^th century, next to which sits a Montezuma cypress tree that is estimated to be 2000 years old! So it was already established and growing when Pre-Columbian civilizations were thriving in Mexico – all of which are now in ruins, at yet the tree still grows. It was an impressive tree. 42 meters around, it is considered the world’s largest tree by girth. The town takes preservation of the tree very seriously and even had young kids act as tour guides to show us the different parts of the tree and point out shapes and figures that could be seen in the bark. Our tour guide was a young girl by the name of Michelle, who wanted to practice her English with us; she was ADORABLE.

Tule church and tree

Our tree tour guide

Beautiful braches

Monkey faces

Can't fit in all in the frame

The tree is "thiiiis big"

Once back in Oaxaca, we were determined to make the most of our time there. We had seen flyers for a late night bike ride through the city, so we rented bikes and checked it out. Starting at the Plaza de Santo Domingo around 9pm, we rode through the city for about an hour and a half. It was a great way to see the city at night – we cruised through back streets, plazas, and the out skirts of the city, which was mostly vacant of people at that late an hour. However, there were several restaurants and roadside food stands that were still crammed with people and families, which is something I don’t think I would ever see so late on a Sunday night in the US. The best part was that the organizer of the event, rode in front of the pack of about 100 or so cyclists, pedaling a large tricycle that carried a huge loud speaker. So we biked to music the entire time which brought out all of the dogs on every street we rode through – the neighbors must really “love” this event, which takes place every weekend during the high tourist season. ;P We stopped traffic and created a chorus of barking dogs – not back for a mismatched band of night riders. ;)

Biker Amir

Biker Nick