Virginia and I lived in Mexico for a year several decades ago and have visited the country
many times. Mexico is a great country to visit --- excellent beaches, beautiful colonial
towns and cities, fine museums, excellent music and dance presentations, pre-Columbian
archaeological sites, colorful cultural minorities, a varied climate and topography, a good
public transportation system, and an interesting history. The people generally are very
welcoming and kind to strangers. Both Virginia and I speak Spanish and thus have no
problem chatting with anyone we meet in Mexico. The country is conveniently close to our
home in the United States, inexpensive, and presents no jet-lag problems.
The Mexican journey described and illustrated in this travel journal was planned as a short
and easy trip to just two cities, Oaxaca and Puebla, both popular tourist destinations. We
had never been to Oaxaca, and were in Puebla very briefly many years ago.
Now let us get down to the specifics of this Mexican trip.
We found Oaxaca to be a very pleasant colonial city of about 300,000 with many tourist
attractions a short walk from the city center and frequent bus service to outlying towns,
villages, and archaeological sites.
Oaxaca's central park, the Zocalo, is surrounded by a pedestrian area closed to vehicles. In
addition there are several blocks of pedestrian streets in the central area. The six or seven
blocks between the Zocalo and the Santo Domingo Church complex is a pedestrian way.
The Zocalo, in the center of the city, is beautiful and quiet during the day --- but in the
evening comes very alive with several musical groups performing at the same time, vendors
selling a variety of handicrafts, women in traditional costumes, bar and restaurant
customers trying to communicate over the background noise.
The archaeological sites in the Oaxaca area are generally ruins with just a few structures
standing. But riding to those sites by public transportation provides opportunities to meet
normal (not in the tourist business) local people and expands the possibility of serendipitous
experiences.
Eating was something we really enjoyed in Oaxaca and Puebla. Restaurant meals were fresh
and prepared to order, and Mexican beer is excellent. We also enjoyed snacks served at
stands, usually near one of the markets. In the markets we enjoyed buying fruits and
snacks which we took to our hotel room for when we did not feel like going to a restaurant.
We travel with teabags instant coffee, a small pot, and an immersion heater.
While we were in Oaxaca there were political demonstrations in the Zocalo directed to the
Governor of the State of Oaxaca. The Governor is generally believed to have gotten into
office by questionable means, is accused of using public funds for private purposes, and is
considered very autocratic. He is especially disliked by teachers, other unionized workers,
and the poor. By 2006 demonstrators continually occupied the Zocalo and surrounding
area until removed by the military with the death of several resistors.
Mexico generally is a country populated mostly by poor farmers and manual workers. In the
cities and towns you also find a small but growing middle class consisting mostly of
shopkeepers and skilled employees. There also is a small but very wealthy group consisting
primarily of high government officials, the heads of large corporations, and some
professional people.
Puebla in many ways is similar to Oaxaca, but Puebla with a population of over a million gives
the impression of being better off and more sophisticated than Oaxaca.
This is the end of the journal of our July 2004 trip to Mexico. We hope you enjoyed it and
invite you to view pages describing and illustrating some of our other trips.