Photos and First Impressions of Oaxaca, Mexico

I’m not gonna lie. After days of relaxing on the beaches of Huatulco, hanging out in the beautifully European city of Guanajuato, and being thoroughly accommodated by our Mexican friends, I was worried that Oaxaca might be a little more, I don’t know, rough. For Charlie, of course, not me. More than that, I thought we might get restless in the last destination of our trip. Aside from eating everything possible, we didn’t have very many plans in Oaxaca except taking a cooking class and checking out Día de los Muertos celebrations (posts on those to come, I swear).

I’d read and heard tales of jewelry snatching and pickpockets in the city, so I thought the feel of Oaxaca might be a little different than our thus far nothing-but-pleasant Mexican journey. Well, damn you TripAdvisor and those folks we met along the way, Oaxaca was almost exactly like that cheesy beautiful Visit Mexico commercial I fortuitously saw the night before we left North Carolina.

When we first arrived in Oaxaca, we were greeted by a non-negotiable overpriced taxi ride into the city that we split with some folks from our flight. Our cab driver wouldn’t agree to take both couples to their respective destinations (despite our attempts to persuade him in Spanish), so he dropped us all off on the cobblestone streets somewhere in between the two. No more than ten seconds after we started rolling our suitcases down the street toward our AirBnb home did we spot a bunch of elderly, white tourists speaking English and/or French. Some of them may have even been wearing fanny packs… though I could be exaggerating. Needless to say, this would become a common sighting during our visit to Oaxaca, especially given that visitors flock to Oaxaca for one of the biggest celebrations of Día de los Muertos in all of Mexico.

The buildings were colorful, the markets were vibrant, and the pedestrian streets were filled with wandering folks like us. Taking advantage of the touristy time, vendors set up on either side of the roads with ponchos, candies, rugs, straw figures, paintings, and bootleg DVD’s.

The Zócalo (the city center) was lined with more vendors of the same sort, plus food stalls. And then there were the ever-present protesting teachers set up in tents and tarps, almost ruining the picturesque quality of a lovely, bustling plaza, but at the same time reminding us that we were in a city with real issues just like any other.

And the tourists! Oaxaca was packed when we went, not only with non-Spanish speakers taking artsy shots with their nice dSLRs, but also with other Mexicans who were here to join in with the locals who were spontaneously celebrating Día de los Muertos at all hours of the day and night.

Many times we walked down the pedestrian street of Alcalá, which runs all the way from the Templo de Santo Domingo to the Zócalo. Along the way, you can find (mostly) handmade clothing, jewelry, and artwork… along with a ton of other junk you don’t really need. Don’t buy something the first time you see it, because chances are you will see it five times over.

I am still kind of pissed I didn’t buy those feather earrings though… (By the way, are feathers out? Is that over? I thought they might be, so I erred on the side of caution.)

We also headed south of the Zócalo to the Mercado 20 de Noviembre for an excellent lunch of grilled meats. There they also serve goat, menudo, mole, pan de muertos, hot chocolate (ready made or blocks of it to take home), and tons of pastries. Oh yeah, and likely any other Mexican meal you can think up. Don’t leave hungry.

Afterwards, we roamed through the Mercado de Benito Juarez for dessert. There are so many sweets, flowers, and lots of crafts, not to mention any of the potential decorative or spiritual items you may want to use for your Muertos celebration.

Seriously, what do you want to buy? Name it. You can find it in one of these markets.

Our time in Oaxaca was spent mostly wandering, eating, listening to the many errant fireworks, watching parades pop up at a second’s notice, and pushing through a mezcal-and-tequila-fueled hangover on our final day to visit the cemetery, get some culture, and haggle for a few trinkets that we thought we wanted. I’m sorry for any potential overuse of the word “vibrant,” but this city is truly fucking VIBRANT. Look at the colors! There’s so much stuff to photograph everywhere! 

[Thus the reason this Oaxaca will be milked for multiple posts. I have so many pictures and no ability to self-edit.]

If you like Mexico, you must go to this city. If you don’t like Mexico, you must go to this city. It will change your mind.

Our AirBnb stay (that’s the link for the actual room we stayed in) was perfectly situated on Pino Suarez between the happening streets near the Zócalo and the rowdy plazas, restaurants, and bars near Allende. Celebrations popped up all around and nothing was ever more than a convenient walk away. Our room was located next to a family-owned bar and within a compound consisting of the owner’s house and several other apartments with many dogs roaming in between. Please check out our palace…

The owner of this place and his son were incredibly kind. And we stayed here for $39 a night TOTAL. Most establishments, even AirBnb’ers, jack up their prices for Day of the Dead, but not this one. I was satisfied. And before we left, the owner told us, “This is your home in Oaxaca. Come back again.” He also just recently sent me a Christmas e-card. Mexicans are the best.

Sitting at a rooftop bar overlooking the brightly lit Templo de Santo Domingo our first night, sipping tequila and drinking Indio beers, listening to more random fireworks shoot into the air and watching people party in the street while setting off more fountains of sparks, I thought out loud, “You know, Guanajuato is a beautiful city in Mexico that really puts its best foot forward during special occasions [Festival de Cervantino]. But Oaxaca is a beautiful city in Mexico that just doesn’t give a fuck.”

Oaxaca, despite all the tourists it receives, retains its personality.

I mean, you guys, these people regularly packed the streets and lit shit on fire to celebrate.

From the architecture and cobblestones to the old ladies trying to force-feed passersby samples of their fried grasshoppers (chapulines) to the little boys wearing packets of loose cigarettes around their necks selling them for 5 pesos a piece (which includes a light, mind you), Oaxaca is at the same time ancient, artsy and totally nuts.

And I loved it.

Oaxaca is an easy, fun, cultural city for travelers to Mexico. It felt incredibly safe and at the same time amazingly lively. It’s a must-visit for people interested in eating a ton of authentic Mexican food (who isn’t? More food posts to come) with both street food options and lots of fine dining. The city is walkable, the people are friendly, there’s tons to buy, and it can be as cheap or expensive as you make it. They even have a nearby international airport (OAX).