El Disfile de Las Delegaciones

Pam and Ruth had been waiting all week to see "El Disfile", The Parade of Delegations. We tried last weekend and the parade ended at the time of its published "start" time and we missed it. Luckily we had another opportunity as all of the Guelaguetza events were repeated the 2nd week and Robert arrived just in time to go with us. Once again we found a great location too see all-- from the terrace of a nice restaurant where we were able to enjoy some mescal, cervezes and a Caesar salad for Ruth and Robert and of course only chicken broth for Pam. At any rate it was a festive and fun parade and we've posted a short slideshow to share with you.

It's Pam's Turn

Well, Ruth had her time being sick and now Pam gets a turn, with an unrelated ailment. Each visit to Mexico brings her some minor stomach issue, which has never been much of an interference to her trip, but this time it landed her in some kind of "hospital" on Saturday night, which happened to be Robert's first day in Mexico joining her. Some "bug" decided to invade her on Thursday. She was hit hard on Thursday, but Friday, the day Robert arrived, she was much improved, enough to join Ruth and him into El Zócolo for a late night bite to eat, but Pam wasn't eating. Saturday morning arrived and Ruth and Pam began to show Robert the city, having a great time until lunch when everyone could eat, but Pam. She "hung in there" until after el desfile, the parade in which they'd been waiting to see, but shortly after, Pam found herself sick again at home. Luckily Robert and Sylvia insisted she go to "el medico" and after a few hours of an IV with fluids and a few prescriptions filled we all returned home for sleep at 2:00 am!

Her biggest complaint (now) is her 3-day VERY restricted diet of jello, pan tostado, apple juice and a variety of very specific other "not so fun" foods-- no picante, no carne, no mole, no alcohol. ¡Que lastima!

(Please know-- Pam is doing great now-- well on her way to recovery. Ruth has left for Cosumel to join her daughters for the week and Pam and Robert have moved into a lovely hotel.)

Ruth con Fiebre Terible

What happened to Rutita?
Saturday evening she was running all over town, waving to the governor of the state, making new friends - you know - the usual. And the very next day, she can't get out of bed due to a low grade fever! She scared the doo wop out of Pamela. Best we can figure out, this was a brief relapse of her Bronchitis which had her down but not out the week before leaving for Mexico. She was so busy with work and preparations, that she did not take the best care of herself and never slowed down. And one evening out in the cool air, past her bedtime, knocked her off her feet. Qué onda!

But alas, it only lasted for 24 hours, and all is well again in the world. But she did stay home from school on Monday to watch the Guelaguetza on TV for 3 hours, while Pam trudged to school to work doubly hard for both of them. A girl is never too old to play hookie from school.

La Guelaguetza- Oaxacan Festival

Did you know that we are visiting Oaxaca during one of their most important festivals? It's called La Guelaguetza. The word's orgins are zapoteco, and means offering, sharing or giving a gift. The festivities involve two weekends, starting this weekend and again next weekend, July 18 - 20 when Robert arrives to spend the week with Pam.

Here are a couple of links that you might enjoy visiting. The first one is a short video that shows what the Monday festivities include: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4ipj3_guelaguetza-oaxaca_shortfilms

This link shares a little of the history and more detail: http://www.oaxacainfo.com/guelaguetza-oaxaca.htm

La Guelaguetza 18-20 Julio and 24-27 Julio 2009
"A huge cultural event in the Mexican festival calendar, La Guelaguetza involves re-enactments of legends and celebrates traditional music, dance, costume, craft and gastronomy from the eight regions in the state of Oaxaca. The Auditorio Oaxaca is the main venue.

The origins of the festival go back to colonial times. It was not until 1932, with the fourth centenary of Oaxaca, that it was decided to combine two festivals which were previously held alongside each other: the Festival of the Virgin del Carmen Alto and Mondays on the Hill (Los Lunes del Cerro), and to give them the one name of La Guelaguetza. Attractions of the event include a pageant that re-enacts some of the ancient traditions performed at the original Lunes del Cerro ceremonies and dances, the election of the God Centéotl and a re-enactment of the legend of Princess Donají, daughter of the Zapotecan King Cosijoeza.

Visitors can't fail to appreciate the importance of this cornerstone of Mexican heritage and the sheer abundance of folkloric traditions still in existence today in this diverse and beautiful country.”

Information taken from: http://www.choicehotels.com/ires/en-US/html/ThingsToDoEvent?event_id=19404

Chapulines - "Grasshoppers"

A picture is worth a thousand words!
As hard as it is to imagine or believe-- grasshoppers are a great delicacy in Oaxaca con tortillas y limón y sal, like a taco. We had been looking forward to actually finding them and MAYBE eating some after fortifying ourselves with enough cervezas . . . . suddenly, while minding our own business in the market appeared a woman carrying a large basket of "something red" and asking us if we wanted to try it. As politely as possible we asked her, ¿Qué es?, and her response was "chapulines". "Ohhhhhh!" Although we tend not to eat from on the streets-- there we were trying chapulines without cervezas.

(fyi, they come in various sizes and we ate the tiny ones-- visible at the back of the photo. No amount of beer could have encouraged us to have eaten the large ones that actually look like creatures.)

¿Dónde está Oaxaca?

We've been asked, "Where is Oaxaca?"
So today's post is a map of Mexico . . . . see us there in the green?
There we are in the middle of the country-- in Oaxaca, Oaxaca!
(CLICK ON THE MAP)

¡Que bonita ciudad!

Oaxaca is Colonial City with beautiful cobblestone streets in the city core. We were not prepared for the array of colorful buildings.
On Sunday the streets were amazingly quiet, with few cars. The people were mostly congregated around the Zocolo, enjoying the band, the cafe scene and the people watching. We found out in class today, that fewer people actually live in the central city area today, as opposed to the past. Like most U.S. cities, families have migrated to the suburbs, leaving the city core full of mostly businesses. It was actually a bit sad to see this, as most Mexican cities we have visited had lively urban communities. Hopefully this trend will reverse soon, as is occurring in other metropolitan areas around the world. Our Oaxacan family actually lives very close to the central core, just outside of the major traffic loop that circles the city. Our house is a brisk 20 minute walk to the school and the Zocolo. At the rate we are enjoying Sylvia's cooking, it is a good thing we have a wee walk once or twice a day.

Sylvia y Juan Sanchez

We arrived in Oaxaca last night, Friday, July 10, and were picked up at the airport by Sylvia, and brought back to her lovely home to meet her husband, Juan Sanchez and their 19 year old son, Rodrigo. Juan Sanchez and Sylvia have 6 sons, but only the youngest, Rodrigo lives at home. We were shown to our rooms, two private rooms, outside of the main house-- very nice, comfortable and somewhat private from the rest of the house, where we can come and go without disturbing the family, but close enough to be part of the family. Sylvia made us a delicious breakfast with REAL coffee, starting with a fresh plate of perfect fruit, followed by eggs and salsa verde and black beans-- YUM! We spent the rest of our day walking around the town, getting to know the area, finding our school, and having a cappuccino in the lovely zocolo. We came home at 3pm for la comida-- Sylvia is a great cook; she prepared a delicious salad of greens, goat cheese and pecans, along with a roasted chicken in salsa rojo. We're looking forward to school starting on Monday and exploring more tomorrow.