Journal

Day 4 - Monday, January 31, 2005
by Nancy Clark and Jill Weber

A few of us took a walk with Mary at 6:30 a.m. to see more of the city of Oaxaca. Our destination was to see where Earl and Mary lived when they studied in Oacaxa in the 1990's.  The city was just waking up and the air was brisk.  Soon after leaving our hotel we came to a bakery that was open. 

We darted in to take a look at what was available. Mary said most of the items were from the day before and pointed out the sign for food safety precautions: Por hygiene tome el pan con las pinzas. This meant take a round tray, drop the crumbs off the top tray onto the next tray, use the tongs provided to make your selection, and put your bakery item in a plastic bag using the tongs. We saw brownies, supersize cookies, Hamburquesa (hamburger buns), etc.

We learned that restaurant owners came daily to the bakery to pick-up bread.  Two were at the bakery when we arrived.  They carried large plastic bags and went to a bin that was full of large freshly baked rolls. We observed the men carrying these large bags out of the bakery.  One man set two of these bags into the back of his blue pick up truck and then drove away. 

The sun was rising and provided a beautiful background behind a large church we were approaching. I believe the formal name is BASILICA OF NUESTRO SENORA DE LA SOLIDAD. It was constructed in the late 17 th century and is named after the patron saint of Oaxaca , Our Lady of Solitude. This patron saint is known for her healing powers. Near the church is the Universidad Benito Juarez De Oaxaca Escuela De Bellas Artes.

Mary told us about the distinctive bells in the city, used to alert residents of various goings on. They each had their peculiar sound and she would get good at listening for such rings as the garbage truck. As we were walking along Mary heard the bell of a garbage truck. And sure enough, people with their garbage met the truck. To me, it looked like nothing else could possibly be added as it was heaped pretty full.

Got back to our room about 7:30 a.m. We put our laundry in a pillow case and walked it to the laundry(lavetoria). The sign at the laundry said it opened at 8:00 a.m., but we waited until 8:10a.m. when a woman came to open the shop. We received a ticket for our wash and took note that it would be ready by 2:00 pm and the laundry closed at 8:00 pm. One load was 65 pesos or about $6.50 in American dollars. To make it easy, we figured 10 pesos to the American dollar. Instructions at the laundry were written in German, and several other languages which reflects the importance of tourism in Oaxaca.

After a hearty walk, we were ready for breakfast or desayuno. A generous glass of freshly squeezed orange juice was served with breakfast every morning. It was a treat for most of us. I became fond of the hot cakes which were served with syrup, or honey or strawberry jam. Fruta or fresh fruit was served with the hot cakes. Other choices included scambled eggs with ham or scambled eggs without ham, both accompanied by a serving of black beans. The coffee (café) is difficult to get use to – has a touch of sugar added to it. Mary said they call it “boiled coffee”. Fresh rolls were also served, crispy on the outside with a soft grain inside. Margarine or butter spread never seemed to be on the menu, but the marmalade was great. Of course, the white corn tortillas were also available.

At 9:00 a.m. we walked to the bus to head to the government sponsored day care center. Esther (the spunky red head with freckles) had been our tour guide and helped us find our bus. I asked how old she was and though she never did give a straight answer, 65 or so was mentioned. She truly had a lot of energy, no matter what the age!

It was about 9:30 a.m. when we got to the day care center. The door was locked (security measures) and a lady unlocked the door to let us in. We noted a sign in and out sheet for kids on the counter. We met the director, Marta, who spoke very little English. Carmen was our tour guide of the facility and is a psychologist. She told us they have room for 417 children, ranging in age from 2 months to 6 years. At present they have 350 children or about 300 families. They are open from 7 a.m to 3:15 p.m. (Moms work from 8 am until 2 pm) and employ 74 people. This facility is only for women who work for the government and is paid for by the government at a cost of about 1000 pesos/month. This was thought not to include salaries.

As we walked around the center I noticed how clean and well-maintained the rooms were.  The children were playing and happy.  We were welcomed graciously. 

Children wear uniforms to the day care (red skirt and pants and sweater), except on Mondays when they wear white for the flag raising ceremony. Since this was a Monday, we got to see the children practice for the ceremony and then the actual ceremony. The Mexican flag was carried by the children as three of them marched around the courtyard. The other children, most dressed in white, and the staff sang patriotic songs. We watched the flag ceremony while the children marched and sang.  As they marched, they said, “Uno, dos; Uno, dos; Uno, dos.”

The honor guard for the day practiced ahead of the ceremony, marching around the concrete outdoor play space being careful to stay within the blue painted lines; a not so easy task for the pre-school aged honor guard.  They were clearly pleased with their assignment for the day.  I marveled at the life lessons of patriotism, manners and respect these children were learning. 

Carmen said they are fed breakfast and lunch and have activities like a school. She said she has seen the second generation of babies. Most of the staff had worked there 20 years. The day care opened in 1982. While we were taking pictures of the delightful kids, a photographer was taking pictures also, for what we understood to be for the annual report of the day care center. One little girl, about kindergarten age, asked her teacher if we spoke English just like in the movies.

While waiting for our bus, we found an indoor market at the corner. Of note was the meat hanging out in the open and whole chickens sitting on the counter, along with chicken feet and gizzards. The women behind the counter seemed to be trimming the chicken to order. We were on the bus at 11:15 and back to the Casa de la Tia about 11:40.

Earl gave us each 70 pesos to purchase lunch from a Super Cocina. We were divided into groups and Earl took one group, while Mary took the other. We walked several blocks from the Casa de la Tia to find traditional Mexican food for our comida. Over the last few years, many women have entered the work force and don't have time to prepare the traditional meals. The menu was posted on a wall inside the eatery, which Earl helped us translate. The food was displayed behind glass and the person behind the display packaged the food items you pointed out. Along with the vegetable, soup and main dish they also included a drink (placed in a plastic bag) and gelatin. Some of us purchased “light” Coke. We paid for our meal, had some money left over, so bought bottled water next door. Then off we went with out plastic bag full of food down the street and back to the Casa de la Tia. We ate in the courtyard, and enjoyed seeing the various food choices. The biggest challenge for all of us was dumping the hot food into the bowls without spilling.  The food was excellent! 

The rest of the afternoon we had as free time, until 4:00 pm when we were to meet to walk to the Benito Juarez Market. We needed to pick up the laundry, but would we be able to find the laundry on our own? Some of us decided to go exploring and ended up at an indoor market a couple of blocks off the Zocolo. After a while it dawned on us that this was the Benito Juarez Market we would be visiting that afternoon. The market had many vendors and there seemed to be some order to the arrangement of the small stands as we made our way up and down the aisles. For instance, all of the hats seemed to be in one spot and garments in another area. Besides the traditional hand crafts, there were all kinds of fruits and vegetables and an array of peppers for sale. A lady near the entrance looked to be selling red peppers of sorts, but with a closer look discovered she was selling chapulines (grasshoppers).

We found we could negotiate fairly well with writing how much something cost on pad and paper. I felt pretty proud of myself that even though I could not speak Spanish, I could communicate with gestures. Finding only rectangular tablecloths, I made a circle to convey a round tablecloth and sure enough, from the back they pulled out a round tablecloth. Then it was the hand to nose method to determine the size of the tablecloth. Lastly, the vendor wrote down the cost and I could negotiate the pesos I had with me to pay her the correct amount and count my change back.

Bonita Juarez is a large market, enclosed with a roof and brick walls.  Inside we found hundreds of vendors selling their wares.  The market is where locals shop for all their needs.  Mary led the way, pointing out various areas we might consider for shopping. Several of us purchased Mexican vanilla at this market. 

Back at the Casa de la Tia, I remembered I had not picked up my laundry. It seemed like others needed to pick theirs up as well, and they helped me navigate the streets of Oaxaca and find the laundry. I gave the lady my ticket, she found my laundry and I put it in the newly acquired all-purpose bag I had purchased at the market. Everything was pressed and folded neatly into one tidy package.

This was also the afternoon we decided to check out the pastry shops and seek out Americano coffee. While on our trek to the Super Cocinas, we noted some pastry shops along the way and decided to check them out later that afternoon. We came to the conclusion that there are better pastries in the world, but we surely did enjoy the coffee!!

Later we ventured out to tour the zocola, which reminded me of a town square that comes alive every night.  After walking around the zocola we returned to the hotel and called it a day.

continue to day 5