SUMMER 2019, PART 2-A: OAXACA AND THE GUELAGUETZA FESTIVAL

After two weeks of intense heat and humidity in #Merida #Yucatan, Miguel and I finally arrive in #OAXACA just in time for the #GUELAGUETZA. The city received us with great weather and no humidity and lots and lots of music.

Here we are, at the airport, waiting for our luggage and taking opportunity of the giant posters on the airport's wall.

We are tired, our journey from Merida to Oaxaca started at 4AM. It is now four hours later.

Once we settled in our apartment, we found a place to eat.

Cheap food and made to order. I love going to street food markets.

After our early/late lunch we walked around town. Although we knew Oaxaca is a colorful city and its Guelaguetza Festival had began two days before we arrived, we had no idea what Oaxaca had in store for us.

Basically this happens Monday - Friday for the next two weeks:

Four different cultural presentations in four different spots of the city's downtown (Dance, Music, Theatre), starting at Noon and ending at six p. m. take place everyday.

Also, every day at 4 PM, different delegations (representing a Oaxaca Region/community) gather somewhere in the downtown area (mainly Santo Domingo area) where they dance and drink mezcal. Then, around 5 or so, the delegations walk down to El Zócalo. So while you may be following one delegation, on your way you may run into another delegation so those join in and so on until everyone converge at the main plaza. By the way, each delegation has its own traditional music band, playing music from the region they are representing. Some songs are the same for they are the traditional Guelaguetza songs, so while walking or watching the delegations go by (the Calenda), you may hear a lot of different type of music play by the different bands. The members of the delegations usually carry baskets with gifts that they throw to the onlookers, while others members give free mezcal shots as they pass by, if you carry your own small shot glass, for sure you will get mezcal from delegation members.

Besides these activities, there are also the expositions going on at the convention center: La Feria del Mezcal (Mezcal Fair), La Feria de las Artesanias (Arts and Crafts Fair), La Feria Infantil (Children's Fair), and La Feria de los Antojitos (Traditional Food Fair). These are open from 10 AM to 10 PM.

These expos are so good that so far, we have gone twice in one week.

Starting around 8PM, the afternoon delegations meet again and throw a big celebration in the zocalo (this goes until midnight), while in other parts of downtown there are free music concerts and dance parties.

There is also the paid music concerts given by famous music groups and artists, or the many paid cultural events such as DONAJI: THE LEGEND, the Official CALENDAS (happening only on Saturdays) and of course the main event LA GUELAGUETZA, which only happens FOUR TIMES, twice on the last two MONDAYS of July.

And let's not forget the many events hosted by different restaurants, the many street performers, and "private parties" taking place on the streets. (We witness a wedding taking place on the street and while the invited guest were inside eating, the dance took place on the street so everyone could enoy it.)

The point is that M-T from about 10AM to about 2 AM and Fridays and Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM, Oaxaca parties like no other city I have ever seen.

NEXT: HIERVE EL AGUA & MITLA!