Oaxaca Family Adventure: 4th of July

There are fireworks exploding while I write this making me think of celebrations across the US tonight. We have grown accustomed to the whistling and cracking of these fun explosives which are usually only detonated on weekend nights but are sold continuously on the street and in every market.

Today we explored the small towns south of the city. It was our first in this direction and so we had lots on our plate. We started in Ocotlan visiting yet another beautiful church and ex-convento. This one had been refurbished by a famous artist, Rodolfo Morales, who was from Ocotlan, and so the ex-convento now houses a collection of his work as well as whimsical ceramics from the Aguilar sisters and their families who are also from the same town. I wasn't supposed to take pictures, but I did. I loved the ceramics, and I'm so delighted that we were able to purchase one in the market (pictured below).

I always wondered what happens when it rains at a market. Today we got to experience just that. There was a startling duality as market goers suspended action as we sought cover and utter mobilization of vendors as they hoisted more tarps and covered goods with plastic sheeting. Women wrapped rebozos around their heads and shoulders and men slipped plastic, elasticized covers over their hats. We sipped two giant glasses of tejate and shivered. When the rain failed to cease, we decided to journey on to the next destination.

After circling the square a couple of times and getting absolutely drenched, we hopped on a bus to the next town which features back-strap loom weavers. We were hungry, but as this town goes to show, the smaller the town the fewer options for food and bathrooms. There is always some street food available, but we were looking for a warm place to get dry and hopefully use a bathroom. So we shopped quickly before hopping on a moto-taxi to the next town. This was our first time on one of these small motorcycle vehicles that has a spot in the back for passengers. It was a thrilling ride at 20 miles per hour dodging puddles and ruts in the dirt road.

The next town is one of two that specializes in wood carvings called alebrijes. When I say these towns make this or that, I mean the whole town makes these things, and their whole families are involved in the making. We shopped here as well, and when a taxi didn't come to carry our tired, hungry selves back to Oaxaca, we walked past farms, mooing at the cows, to the highway and boarded a passing bus. All of us passed out on the way home. Back in the traffic of Oaxaca and once again caught between meal times (we never seem to eat when Oaxacans eat), we picked up some food to go and devoured it shorty after in our apartment vying for turns in the bathroom.

It was a long day, but it was fun to shop at a variety of locations. We even opted to skip two towns--one that specializes in embroidery and wedding dresses and the other in black pottery. We couldn't force the kids into more buses/taxis/bathroom-less towns.