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In Oaxaca de Juárez, tradition dances in the streets. In the cathedral square, it is common to encounter a “calenda,” a celebration to announce a Oaxacan festivity. Seven-foot-tall papier-mâché puppets, monos de calenda, dance in rhythm with the live band, weaving among the enormous twirling ball and red paper hearts. The oversized members of the calenda bounce and spin at the end of long poles set into a strap worn around the waist of the dancers below. Folklórico dancers, women in traditional style bright skirts, swirl their colorful hemlines in unison while balancing baskets atop their heads. Men dressed in rainbow rags, Tiliches, jump in wide circles, a reminder that Mexicans don't need riches to celebrate. After the party winds down, the beauty, tradition and art of Oaxaca remains. 

(Calenda announcing a wedding)

Oaxaca de Juárez is the capital city of the state of Oaxaca, frequently considered the artistic heart of Mexico. Graphic art and street murals are thick on building walls, galleries and museums can be found on nearly every corner and art markets line its many side streets. 

Nearly every “must do in Oaxaca” list includes the cathedral, its accompanying museum and the botanical garden. These three make the lists for a simple reason: they are worth it. The cathedral is magnificent. Its architecture, art and gorgeous gold embossed ceiling with impossibly painted  portraits impress. The next door museum holds cool stone room after cool stone room of prehistoric treasures. Behind the cathedral and the museum, the botanical garden of native plants and reflecting pools rounds off the trio of the central square sites. 

(cactus plant at the botanical garden)

Less visited but extremely welcoming on a hot Oaxaca afternoon are the smaller libraries around the city. Centro Fotográfico Alvarez Bravo is donation based. Oversized monstera leaves shade the arched entry into the central courtyard, which has a shallow reflecting pool and a few peaceful tables. Quiet high ceiling rooms offer a place for students and community members to borrow and read the many books. During our visit, the library offered a small exhibition of photography, including the work of a Danish artist who had captured early 1980’s country life in Chiapas. A similar library can be found at Biblioteca Andres Henestrosa, which hosted a tattoo art exhibition with three artists live inking visitors. 

(A Student Reads at Centro Fotográfico Alvarez Bravo)

Easily some of the most exquisite art in El Centro is plastered on the city’s streets. Wall after wall offers up intricate woodcut or lino cut prints that reflect the city’s ongoing political, social and cultural conversation. A four foot flowered uterus declares  “YO DECIDO” (I decide) in block capital letters, a young man, fist in the air, warns of revolution or fascism and an entire wall of indigenous figures engages in acts of traditional living. To truly appreciate the complexity of the woodcut art and to buy work from an ethical source, visit the Subterráneos gallery, workshop and school.  

(Subterráneos artwork)

Oaxacan cuisine certainly qualifies as art. Learn about its tradition, its spices and its “sazón” by taking a cooking class from Etnofood, a food lab that seeks to promote the spread of food heritage. The tour includes a visit to a local market and an explanation of the different fruits, vegetables and spices unique to the region. If you'd rather leave the cooking to someone else, try Restaurante Coronita, a classy, romantic spot where a seven mole tasting plate is expertly explained by the waiter in Spanish or English. The markets, such as Mercado 20 de Noviembre, have row after row of fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and champiñones (crickets). Crammed in the middle are restaurants where guests sit pressed against each other in rows of tables eating enchiladas, tacos, and tlayudas, huge toasted tortillas topped with all manner of deliciousness. Open until three in the morning, street food carts let customers sit on benches slurping up tostadas and pozole. A modern city, Oaxaca has plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. Aguacate Oaxaca has a varied menu and a comfortable warm ambiance. For desert, try a hot, made on the spot Marquesita, a crepe filled with your choice of fruit, chocolate and cream made to order by street vendors. 

(Chef Victor Ramirez at EthnoFood)

Art, culture and the warmth of its people make Oaxaca de Juárez a city to fall in love with. It’s a place where every corner offers something new to discover, and no amount of time feels like enough. Chances are, you’ll find yourself planning your return before you catch your flight home. 

 

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