Joanne & Friends in Oaxaca, Mexico: Mom arrived, we did stuff, I got super sick... didn't die, did some more stuff.

Sorry for the delay. I have received a couple of emails asking if I was dead since it has been several days since I last posted. Not dead (anymore).

Mom arrived on Tuesday around 1:30 in the afternoon. I wanted to go meet her at the airport and I reckoned I could figure out how to get there on the bus. I asked La Nina (or Maria?) if the bus ran along the major road just to the west of us. Yes, but I would have to walk a kilometer. No problem.

But because the bus doesn't actually stop at the airport, none of the bus signs say 'airport'. I will refrain from a rant about cities that don't provide public transportation to and from their airport, giving the taxi industry a monopoly (yes, I'm looking at you too Victoria!). When we first arrived in Oaxaca so long ago, we had to buy a ticket for a ride into town, either a collectivo (group bus) or a private van. I had no idea how to catch one back to the airport from the centro so I went with the city bus with a drop off a km away.

So, there I am on the side of the road, no idea which bus to take. Eventually I asked a bus driver who answered with so many incomprehensible words! But then a bus came by with one of those words painted on the window so I got on. Eight pesos! What a deal. I said to the drive I wanted to go to the airport. He sort of grunted, what I assumed was assent, or at least understanding. We drove and drove, I knew we were close because we went by the park where I had gone with Sunday Bird Group and they had said it was close to the airport.

So many times before, I have asked a bus driver to indicate when to get off and can never quite tell if they will or won't. But they ALWAYS do, so I was working on the assumption it would work this time too. That is, until we parked in a dusty parking lot at the end of nowhere! I asked, where's the airport? And he responded, oh we passed that way back. Gracias for Nada! (Thanks for Nothing!).

End of the line, everybody off

So there I am, but no idea where I am, and no idea where the airport is. Fortunately, I had left with plenty of time so I wasn't in a panic to be there on time (yet). I saw some buildings up the dirt road so I stormed off in a huff toward those. Eventually, a Mexican tuktuk (Moto-taxi) came by and the nice driver said that I had to go back to the 'rotunda' which I think means round-about and then take some sort of (incomprehensible) form of transport. She could take me to the rotunda. Since she was the only person/vehicle on the road, I was in no position to say no. So, we get to the rotunda and she says she can take me all of the way to the airport. YES, let's do that!

At which point, she starts heading down a dirt track, through farm fields, past crops and animals. I'm pretty sure at this point that this is not the normal route to the airport. Bumpity, bumpity bump down the road. Those three wheelers are not made for off-roading.

We get past the farms and into a little village and then she starts asking random pedestrians how to get to the airport. No, I'm not worried! It is now getting to the point, where I might be late for mom's plane.

The road (to the airport) less travelled

Bumpy road, turn onto another bumpy road, ask for directions, repeat several times and there we were at the entrance of the airport. Yea!! How much? 130 pesos!!! So, 8 pesos + 130 pesos = 138 pesos. A taxi would have cost 150 pesos. So a grand savings of 12 pesos and a lose of two hours. But I made it in time and a much better story than a taxi. After that experience, we just took the collectivo back to town. Turns out it isn't a bad deal. 85 pesos ($6 ish) each and they delivered us to our door.

That night, I think we walked down Alcala to the Zocalo but I didn't take my camera so I can't be sure, that was days ago. Mom hadn't slept on her overnight flight so we didn't stay out long.

Next day, we went to Chedraui. This time I knew how to get there! I didn't get lost once!

Then we decided to check out the Pre-hispanic Museum of Rufino Tamayo . He was a local artist who collected pre-hispanic art and donated it to the city (state? country?). This was a beautiful museum, even if you have no interest in the art pieces. Each room, corresponding to various eras or regions (I wasn't really paying attention), is a different colour. Just the ceiling and the display cases but, as a total, it makes for a stunning walk through.

One of these heads does not belong on a wall.

After the museum we went to the 20th of November market to have mole #4. Pollo con Mole Negro y arroz. And some aqua fresa with unknown fruit which was quite tasty. I should have been suspicious that there was no one else at the counter, street food rule #1, eat at the busy stalls. I should have been even more wary when the cook picked up the chicken leg off a plate on the counter, unrefridgerated, out in the open. But nope, I have a stomach of steel I said (or would have if I had been suspicious or wary in any way). Anyway, here is my Mole Negro. Mom had Mole Rojo.

J'Accuse!

Probably avoid Comedor Cuquita, even if the aqua is good.
I just now noticing the brown fluid running down the wall, hmm,
another warning sign perhaps?

Thanks for taking our picture and poisoning me...

That night we stayed in. I was feeling pretty tired and sore but I didn't think anything of it. But that night, I had the sweats and couldn't sleep and was sore all over. By morning, it was like I had been hit by a Mack truck, I could barely move. Poor mom, I would wake up with her hovering over me like the spectre of death, she thought she was peering at actual death. I think she went out for a while. I'm glad I had spent the first two days pointing out major streets and routes home, to the zocalo etc. She found her way home.

I think I got out of bed around 2pm and googled flu vs food poisoning. The internet said it is hard to say, it depends on how long it lasts. I was already feeling slightly better so diagnosed myself with food poisoning and blamed the chicken mole (even though mom wasn't sick). By 4pm when I was up but not great and the 'mexican situation' was not abating, I broke down and finally took my Ciprofloxacin (antibiotics for traveler's diarrhea is literally on the label). I have been carrying that around since 2009. I renewed my prescription in 2014. So, five years old. Sure, why not. Ingesting random past due things hadn't gotten me into trouble before (at least before the day before, DIARRHEA FREE FOR ~~3640~~ 1 DAYS).

Either the antibiotic or time worked fairly quickly. I was still not feeling 100% so I stayed home the next day too, leaving mom to her own devices. She went on a city bus tour, in Spanish, in some sketchy part of the city. She made it home again.

Next morning was Saturday. I was up and ready to go, cured of all ills. So, not the flu.

The previous Saturday, I had tried to go to what I thought was a lecture on Archeology and Pre-hispanic music. If you remember, it didn't seem to be happening so that is how I ended up at the church service. Oh, that reminds me, I asked someone why everyone was holding a baby Jesus that day. Apparently, the beginning of February is when the infant Jesus becomes the baby Jesus (?) and he can sit up. So, if I had been paying attention, I would have noticed that all of the Jesuses were in little chairs. Oh, well that makes sense then...

Anyway, back to Saturday of this week. This time I realized that it wasn't a lecture, it was an exhibition. At the Stamp Museum. I'm not really a stamp guy but when travelling, one should be open to whatever, so I convinced mom this should be good.

Here's the poster

Well, another excellent museum! Lots of stamps, lots of stamp based-art, all beautifully displayed. And a welcoming courtyard with a little coffee shop, and a great gift shop too (where I bought nothing!).

Mural in the courtyard

Stamp Art

Frida letter and stamps

Drawers after drawers of stamps, by category

Another mural in another courtyard

Stamp Display (can't remember of what)

Finally the Archaeology and Pre-hispanic Music display

The Stamp Biblioteca

Stamp Guitar

Stamp Art on a Stamp wall in a Stamp Room in a Stamp Museum

As it happened, we were leaving the stamp museum just as the English tour of the Botanical Garden was starting, just down the block. So we headed over so mom could see it. My last guide was good and so was this one. But this one was a) very handsome and b) showed us different stuff. Guide 1 was a retired white women from the US, Guide 2, this guy, is a young local - somewhat different perspectives.

This time we got to go to the greenhouse. It has won awards for 'green' architecture, no pun intended. It is run on solar and geothermal energy. It is actually a cool house, not a hot house. The air is cooled by running underground to cool it and when it hits the hot air in the greenhouse, it condenses and waters the plants. Neat!

We got to go on top but not in.

The stairs to the top where we could walk around the edges

Reflection of the sky on the roof, looking down

He also gave more info on the history of Oaxaca. Cochineal are a parasite that live on cactus plants. They look white but when you crush them. they turn bright red. The colonizing Spaniards, finding little of the gold they came for, realized this was the real prize. The red is used to dye clothing, food, pretty much anything, including apparently the Starbucks unicorn drink.

The Dominican monks dug their first well, not for drinking water, not for any of the other basics of life. They built it for a lime kiln so they could make cement to start building. Those 16th century monks were very single minded. Anyway, oldest intact lime kiln in Mexico.

Well

Kiln

Here are some more random shots from the garden

The mirror pool

Cactus selfie!

Another excellent trip to the garden. I am considering going for a third time with Shirley.

Then, another half block and we came upon another wedding coming out of the Santo Domingo church. We caught them before they were on the move so even better shots this time.

Next stop, Artisan's Market. Mom bought a hand embroidered blouse. I bought nothing. I did get a bit lost but only because both mom and I forgot both of our maps (not only don't we have any sense of direction, we forget we don't have any sense of direction and don't prepare for the inevitable).

Apparently, I only took one picture for the rest of the day:

Next day, Sunday, today, is bird group day. We went to Monte Alban. I won't inundate you with more Monte Alban shots since we have already been there and I will go again with mom and Shirley. The group was there to bird, not waste time on those bird view blocking ruins!

Sunday Bird Group, doing what bird group does

Lizard (not a bird)

We did not see the coveted Oscillated Thrasher. But I did well enough that one of the ladies joked that I have moved up to second tier. Good spotting can get you far. I can't ID to save my life but I can spot and usually identify at least family group.

It was kind of hard to get a taxi at the top of the hill so some of us decided to walk down!. There is a lovely trail called the Ecological Route.

Who wouldn't follow this directional sign

I got home just in time for Shirley to arrive. Chat, chat chat, catch up on all of Shirley's travels. Then we went for a nice walk and had tortas (hot sandwiches for dinner) and a walk down the Alcala.

I didn't take any pictures after Monte Alban, so let's finish up with some street art