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When living in Mexico, everyone tells you that you should visit Oaxaca when asking locals for some piece of travel inspiration. People start getting enthusiastic when speaking about this city in the southern part of Mexico as it is THE destination for all kinds of handicrafts and artesanias you could think of, and home of the famous – although very special – mezcal (which tastes really like, well, a mixture of motor oil and spiritus haha, but goes well in a cocktail, though). Beside, the city is rich in history and culture, famous for its cuisine – including coffee and chocolate - as well as for its archeological sites and beautiful historic center. The colonial architecture is prevalent, with lovely restored colorful buildings and cobblestone streets.
Dreaming of beautiful artesanias and already decorating my home in my mind’s eye with them, the next destination to spend a weekend was definitely set (of course, my plus one agreed on that, too).
Stay
When browsing the internet for accommodations, I immediately knew that Casa Bonita Hotel Boutique was exactly what I was looking for – small, with a sense for details and – yes, a (small, though) pool. When arriving there, they would give us an upgrade straight away, now how cool is that?
By the way, I really have to mention the stunning ride through mountains and awesome, very diverse landscape with palms, cactuses and all kinds of other plants lining the roads. Surrounded by such a beautiful panorama, the 4.5 hour ride by car from Puebla passed even faster.
Do
The first thing you realize when arriving in Oaxaca is – the heat. In April, we had 34 degrees celsius, which makes it really easy to decide that you’re not going to explore the city at noon but rather relax at the hotel pool first.
After a taxi ride to the Zocalo in the early evening (no, sadly there’s no Uber in Oaxaca), we finally stepped into the streets of the colorful city.
We were lucky to visit a market that offered all kinds of handicrafts from Oaxaca’s surrounding villages, one day before it ended. Many of the villages outside the city specialize in a particular craft – such as ceramics (the Oaxaca black clay is very famous), textiles, hand-braded baskets or bags or hand-woven carpets. The list is endless and it’s so impressive to watch the people craft these products. Sadly, we didn’t make it to the villages, but hey, this market brought everything together in one place which was just perfect.
Here’s what I got:
The label Truss from New York sells handbags similar to those, but with a slightly difference in price. While in Oaxaca, one of those bags costs around 200 to 250 pesos (10-15 dollars), you'll have to spend 195 dollars for one of Truss (plastic!) handbags (you can buy them on net-a-porter.com, too)...I first saw them in Miami in a shop and loved the design, but I knew from Sincerely Jules' blog post about Oaxaca I could get my bag much cheaper there.
With both of us being coffee junkies, we definitely wanted to buy local coffee beans there, too. Brújula is a local coffee roaster with several cafés in the city, so we could try a delicious latte before getting a few pounds of their coffee.
If you have a little more time to spend, visit Monte Alban, the famous archaeological site and UNESCO world heritage or take a trip to Hierve el Agua, a crazy-fascinating natural spectacle 70 km outside the city of Oaxaca. Here, natural mineral springs have created massive waterfalls – not of water, but frozen in stone! Check out this post by Sincerelyjules.com to get some more impressions. As soon as I had read this blog post, I wanted to visit Hierve el Agua, but unfortunately we were running out of time...
Eat
We had a lovely Mexican dinner at restaurant Los Danzantes, which belongs to Slow Food, an international organization dedicated to regional, conscious and healthy food opposing the fast food trend.
Beside their restaurants (in Mexico city they have one, too) they are a well-known mezcal distillery in Mexico, too. It’s a cool place with an open roof – we could even watch a firework while eating which was somewhat special.
Visiting Oaxaca was really worth the ride - it’s always so interesting to find out about new places and how they are different to your place of residence. Whether it’s the culture, the people or the nature - always a lot of new things to learn about a country.
What about you? What are your favorite cities and places off the beaten path? I’d be curious to find out.