From beach to mountain top in the blink of an eye

After we left Acapulco to head east on the coastline, we were itching for some more beach time but this time rather in a smaller more intimate setting. We had heard that along the Oaxaca coast, there were some beautiful secluded beaches. We found our dream spot in Zumante, which was truly perfection and our new favorite spot: crystal clear shallow water with waves to play in, fine yellow sand, fishermen boats on the beach and the shade of tall palm trees. As we enjoyed a beer on the beach, we felt we were actually living the Corona commercial! A cold beer with lime on a warm sunny beach, relaxed in our wooden chair facing the ocean. It was so nice and relaxing that we decided to stay three days at the beach before heading north inland.

Our first ruins in Mexico
Well relaxed after our beach time and a little more tanned, we jump back on our bikes to cross the mountains and reach the great city of Oaxaca. After just 20 minutes, we were deep and high into the mountains. The beach had vanished and we were now in a tropical forest, high in the cooler peaks surrounded by clouds. It was a misty jungle with many small villages selling local art. For the first time since we entered Mexico, we had to ride with our fleece. What a change from the morning when we were sizzling on the beach.

After four hours of tiring but fun mountain roads, we reached Oaxaca. We were told it was such an exciting city, beautiful, very secure, with tons of attractions in the area and one of the best food in the entire country. Nothing was exaggerated and all promises were true as we wandered through the streets of the city that night. The next morning, we left for the close by Zapotec ruins of Monte Alban. It is a very ancient city that has shapped the history of the central valleys of Oaxaca for thousands of years. The city was very powerful and home to an elite that held power over the surrounding villages. Since we went right after the rainy season, the green grass was a nice contrast to the stones of the pyramids. Since Monte Alban was build on a mountain top, you aslo have an amazing 360 view of the three valleys that surround the city of Oaxaca. After the ruins, we drove to Cuilapan to visit the Santiago Apóstol Dominican Monastery. The very unique feature about it is that there is an unfinished church in front of it: it was build in the 15th century and was never finished. Like 600 years ago, the walls are standing strong but there is no roof to cover the church. It was so remarkable to take picture of the unfinished inside of a church with the beautiful blue sky as the background. The monastery itself was also a fine piece of architecture that we enjoyed visiting.

Eating chocolate, cheese and grasshoppers
As we were back in Oaxaca for another night, we walked in the streets again and had a fine dinner on the Zacola (main square) and enjoyed the local Mole Negro con Pollo, chicken in a rich chocolate based sauce, not really sweet and a little spicy. We promised ourselves to explore the city further the next day. For now, in the early evening, you could feel the bustling activity in town, getting ready for the big celebration of the day of the dead, a huge celebration in Mexico on the 2nd of November, similar to our Halloween.

We started our city discovery by entering one of the local markets: our mission was to sample as much local delicacies as we could. The indoor market was well organized: all the same kind of stands were next to each other. We first passed the meat stands (quite a strong meat smell that even Caroline had a hard time standing) with rows of Chorizo, meat, pork feet and tripe, then the fishermen followed by the florists and so forth and so on. We headed towards the chocolate section: Oaxaca is well known for the quality of its chocolate. We sampled a few and finally bought one with coco and almonds pieces. After that the cheese area where the local Quesillo is king: it is sort of a string cheese that we learned would keep unrefrigerated for a week. It looks like a mozzarella ball but breaks into long strings when you eat it, especially when melted. Incredible in quesadillas!

Sunddely we heard a woman shouting “Chapulines, chapulines...”. We followed the voice and discovered an unexpected food item: fried grasshoppers (see picture above, feel free to zoom in). They come in different sizes and flavors, such as salt, chili or lime. After looking at each other, we decided to be brave and try some. Very discusting to look at but they actually were quite tasty: crunchy and then the flavor would be realeased. Nothing liquidy or weird inside and on the smaller ones, you coudl not even feel the legs or antenas;) We actually liked it so much (we are serious!) that we decided to buy a little bag for the next day as our snack. They say that if you eat chapulines, you will return to Oaxaca. I guess we have just earned our return ticket!

The state of Oaxaca was definitively our favorite so far, with its still untouched beaches, wild and foggy, jungle covered mountains and the picturesque capital city of Oaxaca. We also loved the food, both the fresh seafood we enjoyed at the beach and all the other specialties and odd things you can find in the capital city. There is also fine local art like pottery, weaving and sculpting, each cillage having its own unique specialty. And as an added bonus, you can see beautiful ruins and architecture at the doorsteps of the city. We wished we could have stayed another few days to experience the full blown celebration of the day of the dead, which are said to be incredible in Oaxaca city, but rather than wait another 3 days, we wanted to continue our journey. If you are looking for a place to go in Mexico, Oaxaca has it all.