Oaxaca

Notmuch has changed since we were in Oaxaca many many years ago. The buildings are still there, the great landmarks like the Santa Domingo Monasterio, the two Zócalos, the artesaniaia, the many galleries and yet....something has changed fundamentally in ways that one can’t always immediately discern.
There is much more of everything and that’s the problem. More art, more tours, more people trying to make a little living selling this and that, more street stalls, more expatriates roaming the streets, in short Oaxaca is losing a bit of its original charm.  If it’s not careful, and I don’t think it is, it is in danger of succumbing to the same problem that has afflicted many other too popular destinations.  Soon it will price itself out of the range of ordinary people if it hasn’t already.  Real estate agents or people with money are invetsting in apartment buildings to turn them into potential long term rentals for travelers or for Air B and B purposes.  A great money venture for some but for others it might mean moving out of the city altogether once it becomes no longer affordable.
It doesn’t make me feel any better, as a traveler, to notice the devastating impact this trend can have on local populations but there’s no stopping this.  People are on the move always eager to discover new places plus there is the definite appeal of the hot, predictably sunny weather, it’s manna for Canadians and Americans wanting to escape the cold, especially this year.
The city is incredibly lively, lots of street art, musicians, things to sample, eat and do.  The streets are vibrant with people.
Our hotel was in a bed and breakfast about a 10 minute walk from the hub. The walking was fine except when it got super hot even if it’s a dry heat it can really beat you down.
We took one tour  which lasted all day.  We saw El Tule the largest tweet in the world, magnificent.  I couldn’t take a good enough photo to render its size it was just too big to accommodate my screen.
The petrified waterfalls of Hierve El Agua , a freaky quirck of nature which allows the water loaded



with calcium carbonate and other intervals to be deposited much in the same way that waterfalls would look. It’s an impressive site indeed, not found anywhere else. We also visited the archeological site of Mitla, a series of courtyards and temples with four minor dwellings all bearing the original engravings. The toms were robbed many years ago of their more precious cargo but the etchings and carvings remains mysteriously seductive with their intricate symbolism.
Of course we also samples some Mezcal and were brought up to date on the ways in which this

essential alcohol is prepared.  Mezcal has gone up in price and popularity although still not as popular as Tequila but it does have its aficionados.  Personally not something I particularly enjoy although  some of it can be quite refined. The most expensive Mezcal was a relatively thin bottle made with wild agave can osting about 2,500 pesos which is about $172.00 Canadian.