Go to Oaxaca

At least I will be traveling. School has once again turned out to be a bust. I was going to go to Oaxaca for Spring Break, but I am instead going home to Austin then back to Alaska for the summer. Hopefully I will get to go to Central America at the end of the work season in AK.

Well, instead of leaving the country I got back into college. I am considering putting together the resources to go for a short time during Winter Break, but as I now must relearn my French for school, Spanish may not be what I would hope before I can finally head south for a bit. I would like to go for at least a week, though, just to follow the backpacker’s trail, perhaps climb a few rocks.

I’ve had to readjust this goal a bit. Probably won’t be going for six weeks, but I will definitely be going for a little while. I am trying to find out about perhaps WWOOFing for part of the trip; that would simplify some things, I’d be in the area with room and board taken care of, so money would not be quite the issue it currently is.

I do need to start figuring out how to save up that extra money, since I quit that awful second job finally.

It’s all going to come down to being focused on a goal.

Stuff to do:

Research.
Figure out the budget and how much money I need.
Get into physical shape for the backpacking stuff.
Buy a plane ticket.

We just got back from Oaxaca, and it was excellent. A very beautiful city with good food and very friendly people. We stayed at a very nice B&B, took Spanish classes at a great school, visited Monte Alban, drank lots of Mezcal, and also took a Oaxacan cooking lesson. I tried the chipolines, and they weren’t bad.

No political trouble while we were there, at all, but you could still see some of the aftermath, and the riot police were hanging around the edges of the Zocalo (but appeared to be minding their own business).

My wife and I are planning to go this March and go to a language school. We’ve never been. Can anyone recommend things to see/do?

Both Oaxaca City and nearby Monte Alban have been declared historical landmarks and adopted by UNESCO as World Heritage for Humanity centers.

No other place I know of can boast all of the following: archeological sites, extreme colors, gastronomy (oh, the moles!), colonial buildings, cobblestone streets, gorgeous hand-made textiles, black clay, and simply the best town center (the Zocalo) in the world.

Go now… it’s changing quickly.

It’s a wonderful city with all sorts of things to do. You can take short inexpensive bus tours outside with guides who will tell you about the cultural and artistic history of the area. The zocalo (city center) is vibrant. There are very often professional musicians or school groups giving performances in the summer.

What a beautiful city! Teeming with history, art, cinematography, ancient ruins, and young lovers. Do NOT miss the opportunity to participate in a Temazcal—an ancient steam bath ritual. And if you have an extra week, try to catch a bus from Oaxaca to las Bahias de Huatulco. Take a lancha (small motorboat run by a local) to go snorkeling at Playa La India. Just like in ‘Y Tu Mama Tambien’.... ;)