Thursday, October 25, 2007

Oaxaca, briefly

- the grasshoppers are caught in nets, sorted and roasted in a variety of ways with varying spices, giving them unique colours and flavours
- the outdoor market is amazing - row upon row of fruits, vegetables, meats, grasshoppers, chiles, arts and crafts, clothes... - I am hoping that I will work up the nerve to ask the people selling their wares if I may take some photos... wouldn't you like to see a whole stand of dried Mexican chiles or mounds of grasshoppers ready for snacking? I just don't want to offend anyone.
- tequila is made from the blue agave plant, mezcal from any type of agave and is the local drink of choice
- mezcal has the same smoky aftertaste as scotch
- having a siesta after lunch is awesome
- eating vegetarian is basically impossible - I gave up on trying to sort out the menu at lunch yesterday and just ordered something from the "local Oaxaca" section. When my meal came I gulped... a tortilla baked with a layer of black beans and local cheese, topped with avocado and tomato... ok so far so good, but then on top of all that there was a thinly pounded piece of what I can only guess was pork - deliciously seasoned, but also nearly bigger than the whole tortilla itself. I ate about a quarter of it and then shared the rest with the others at the table. I love trying all this local food but I'm really surprised by the lack of vegetables! My spanish isn't nearly good enough to order a custom meal... and I kind of enjoy exposing myself to the local culinary delights.
- Oaxaca is surrounded by mountains and nestlend in at the intersection of 3 valleys
- Oaxaca is a mountain town with an elevation of over 1500m (5000ft)
- this means it's a bit colder than what I would have expected of Mexico... although yesterday mid-morning the sun finally came out and it's been wonderfully warm since with a slight breeze carrying along all sorts of delicious smells
- this also means that climbing up the hill from the town to our hotel leaves me breathing heavily. We've done this ~30 minute walk several times now and after spending all day wandering around the streets in town I am more than ready for the afternoon siesta.
- margaritas in Oaxaca taste better than margaritas I've had anywhere else
- being redheaded and fair-skinned makes me stand out like a sore thumb. Doesn't help that I've usually got a camera hanging around my neck either.
- children on the streets trying to sell you candy won't give up or let go of your shirt even after you've walked into a restaurant and sat down
- La Carrera Panamericana is a car race that starts today or tomorrow in Oaxaca. It goes ~3000 miles and ends somewhere in Texas. There are a lot of racers staying at our hotel and their fancy cars are parked in the lot. Apparently only 25% of cars actually finish the race.
- yoga in our villa in the morning is wonderful
- not sure how I'm going to get my training runs done, but I am sure that I'm nearly walking the equivalent of what I need to run each day
- successfully made my first transaction in the local farmacia... 4 pesos for 4 bandaids (that's about 40 cents - 10 pesos to the dollar)

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Arriving in Oaxaca (Wa-ha-ka)

Luke arrived this morning at 9am and checked into our hotel - the lovely Hotel Victoria which sits up on a hill and overlooks the city. I left Vancouver last night at 11pm and flew to Toronto. Left Toronto this morning at 9am and arrived in Mexico City just after noon. Had a lengthy stay in the airport where I was able to dig into a new book (more about that later) and finally left for my last leg to Oaxaca at 5:45pm. Got to the aiport where I was hoping to see Luke, but unfortunately he had mixed up his time zones. Oops! I was able to get myself a taxi and 30 minutes later I was relieved to be showering off the travel grime in our lovely villa.

Had an absolutely wonderful night. 4 of us went for a walk down to the Zocalo (literally "town square"), which is where everyone seems to congregate. The city streets are beautiful and the churches amazing. I'm really looking forward to spending some time walking around and exploring. We met up with a friend of the retreat organizer who has been living here for many years and had a wonderful dinner and fantastic conversation. We started off with the mezcal blanco and some grasshoppers. For dinner I had prawns with mole and Luke had the tuna special. Enjoyed a 2nd type of mezcal, some more exciting discourse and then onto dessert... coconut flan and "chocolate" (hot chocolate, Oaxacan style). Amazing. Wish I had brought my camera but I'm sure there will be more opportunities.

Off to bed for now. Got a bunch of sleep to catch up on. Buenas noches!

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Warm inside

I am sitting on the couch watching the tree outside the window twist and turn in the wind. Slowly our patio is being covered by leaves. I can hear the rain and the busy traffic and yet inside it is warm, dry and quiet. I have so much to be thankful for; good health, happy and inspiring relationships, a wonderful family, the freedom to do and say as I please... I am very fortunate. I look forward to finding more ways to use my unique talents to help those around me and to share the love I have within. Happy Thanksgiving!