Crafts, culture, and dancing...

10.30.09

(Lots of writing and lots of pictures!!!)

Today was a very good day…quite busy, but very fulfilled. We started off with a good Mexican breakfast at the hotel. This will help keep us moving all day…except the 1^st 30 minutes when the food coma sets in. We first decided to take a walk down Calle de Alcala where the local kids were putting up altars for Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). This was very cool. The kids were running around and all working together to get the altars built down the entire block. It felt very festive and fun. From there, we continued down to the Zòcalo (town square). There were more altars going up around the Santa Domingo Cathedral. We went inside to see the ornamentation in the church. Although it was under restoration, it was still very grand and beautiful.

After strolling back to the hotel, we discovered that we missed the tours going out to San Bartolo Coyotepec, Santo Thomas Jalieza, & San Martin Tilcajete. We decided to hire a private taxi to take us out there. The towns are about 13-15 miles outside the center of Oaxaca. Well worth the money…still less than a cab ride home from the airport in Portland. We had an awesome taxi driver that pointed out all sorts of local interests on the way out there and back. San Bartolo Coyotepec is where Dona Rosa became famous for her black pottery in the 50s. Her son, now in his 60s, carries on her tradition of black pottery making. We loved this place. The pottery is so beautiful. Eventhough the pottery is black, there is such depth and character to the richness of it. It’s the natural color of the clay when fired at a specific temperature and time. Any shorter or longer, and the color is lost. Santo Thomas Jalieza is a small town that is known for their weaving and cotton textiles. The colors of the textiles were so bright and vibrant. San Martin Tilcajete is a town known for carving very intricate small animals out of Guayabo or Copal wood and painting them very bright colors with all sorts of designs. These animals are called Alebrijes. These were so cool and intricate. The painting of these things were crazy. Some were so detailed that a lady was using a syringe to apply the paint.

After arriving back to the hotel we sat by the pool, had a margarita, reminisced about our day, and had a small taste of food. We then got ready to go to the Guelaguetza. This is a celebration usually performed in July. Our hotel offers the performance every Friday night in their ballroom, formerly the chapel. This performance highlights the traditional ceremonial dances of the eight regions of Oaxaca. We had a nice dinner, and then the performance started. Guelaguetza is the Zapoteca word that means the “act of giving.” Of the eight regions our favorite was the Coastal region – where the women fight to conquer their loved ones, drawing on mezcal for strength (or just to lower his defenses)!