Oaxaca is a colonial city about an hour flight from Mexico City. It is still undiscovered by most tourists so it keeps its unique unspoiled magic to everyone who does get the great chance to come here. There is so much that this city and the towns around it have to offer. It is the real Mexico, where you can explore and feel that you have found a treasure (and yes you have found one). The name of Oaxaca might sound familar, it is famous for the Day of the Dead and the Festival of the Radish, which are unique festivals of this town. It is also famous for its great chocolate (mole), language schools, cooking schools and again for the the Day of the Dead. For those not familar with this festival it takes place on November 1st and 2nd around the Catholic All Souls Day Holy Day. It is a celebration that has been part of this culture for many years. In fact the preparation starts about 8 days before with the city markets selling the items to be put on the altars and in the homes and cemetery to celebrate the dead. There are parades with skulls but this is a celebration and tradition.

For anyone interested in archaeology there are the great ruins of Mitla and Monte Alban. The first thing you will notice is that there are not bus tours here. You might be the only person here speaking English, but this is not a problem since the people in these towns are friendly and helpful. Mitla has had a town surround its ruins, and you can see the main square and the church from its ruins. It is very compact and an older person or a person who is disabled can most likely get around the area. It does not have 100's of people wakling around the ruins so it is much more intimate than ruins like Tulum and Coba in the Yucatan. The other ruins, Monte Alban, are much larger and do require much walking but again there are not many people here. There is a museum which you should visit before you explore since it does have the history explained and also what was found in the tombs.

Getting away from the history, this area is a shoppers paradise. This is a town that specialize in black pottery, green pottery, hand made wooden animals, and rugs. The main market place sells beautiful local arts and crafts that are hand made. Everything you can buy in this area is self made, and it is wonderful to see these artists at work at the looms, making pottery and hand painting. These are arts that cannot be lost and are fully appreciated in this area. As I mentioned before Oaxaca is famous for its chocolate that is cooked with many dishes, great hot chocolate and also for its tequilla. Oaxaca is the true Mexico, unique, great people, culture and a world that still does exist in 2003. If you would like to know more about this then please contact me at Travants. After this article I will be focusing on romance and honeymoons. Oaxaca also has many romantic places to stay such as old convents converted into beuatiful luxury hotels, the best of both worlds and yet again keeping the history of this wonderful area. If you are on a budget there are also hotels of every price range that are unique and will make you happy.
Look for me again in 2 weeks when I will talk about romance and honeymoons on the high seas from the Caribbean to around the world

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