Millennial Civilization, Biggest World Tree Day and they ate Grasshopper!

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Date: 17/12/2012 to 18/12/2012

Path: Almost always followed by Mexico 160 from Mexico City to Oaxaca.

We left the city of Mexico and continue to southeast peel Mexican Sierra Madre where he reached the state of Oaxaca. Situated in the middle of the central valleys that state, and bearing the same name, is the city of Oaxaca de Juárez (or simply known as Oaxaca). Despite the well-preserved architectural structure dating back to the period of Spanish domination, Oaxaca retains many traditions, costumes e, in particular, a culinary peculiar, remnants of its strong heritage of pre-Columbian civilizations that occupied the region for more than 2.000 years old.

The mountains of the Sierra Madre Mexican accompanied us most of the way to the state of Oaxaca.

It was almost late afternoon when we reached the center of Oaxaca. We walked through its historic streets and enjoy the late afternoon sitting on the stools Plaza Alameda de León, Appends Constiuición Square, or Zócalo. The Zocalo is the pleasure center of Oaxaca and there, e na Alameda de León, is the meeting point of the Oaxacan, getting crowded even during the weekdays: parents and children, students who have just left college, elderly, hawkers… Even a Congressman (little rascal) took advantage of the calm weather and family end of the year, to promote their image by distributing free popcorn (regardless of where the money came from to pay for the popcorn, the act is, no minimum, strange). But the queue for the popcorn, é clear, was huge! And although the square not maintain almost anything its colonial style (when he had no pavements or sidewalks) ela foi e muito bem na remodeled Alameda de León, is to discover majestosa Oaxaca Cathedral - Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption. The church that stands there today started construction in 1702 after being destroyed on two previous occasions by two earthquakes. The church has one of the nicest interiors of all Catholic churches we visited! With an interior in a beautiful neoclassical, what is most striking is the altar with the image of Our Lady of Assumption in bronze, commissioned in Italy.

That night we would still have our first contact with Oaxacan cuisine. After consulting our guide book (o Ralf) and observe the movement of restaurants, not decided to go to La Terraza restaurant will eat famous Tlayuda! The tlayuda tortilla itself is a pretty big, a bit more solid (without getting to be crunch) and tastier than traditional. It comes stuffed with black beans, lettuce, guacamole, Porco linguiça, typical base sauce of green peppers and red or a hearty steak!

The next day was the highlight of our visit to Oaxaca! Intense and culture, can visit the huge and ancient tree of Tule, the imposing ruin of Monte Alban and enjoy some of the traditional delicacies oaxaquenhas.

Early in the morning we set off for a stroll around the charming centrinho Santa Maria del Tule, onde fica located Tule Tree (Tule tree). Known as Ahuehuete in nahuatl (the predominant language in the Aztec empire that eventually gave name to many things in Mexico), tree 2.000 years is considered one of the largest trees in the world!!! But although many tourists imagine seeing a tall tree (as, for example, the Sequoias in North America) if the tree Tule, is not its height of 42m which impresses. Or title ela recebe, indeed, consists largely due to its total volume. After all, Have your huge amount of trunk diameter and 14m in circumference 58m (which equates to just over 30 people hugging the tree!).

We went from there to the archaeological site of Monte Alban, the ancient capital of the Zapotec. Socio political and economic center of the Zapotec by more than 1.000 years old! The Zapatecas were not fools, constructed their most important city on the 1,940 m of altitude is 400 meters above the central valley of Oaxaca! Had, thereby, an amazing and privileged view of the whole valley which gave them a great defensive advantage!

With the very dry climate (especially in the winter months - Nov. to Mar.) and very hot during the day, the site is large, plan (was flattened by the Zapotecs) and impressed by the incredible level of conservation of several buildings in this city that once had 35.000 inhabitants teve e seu trough between 500 a.C. and 800 d.C.

The site has a main square from where two corridors: one for north and one for south. Are arranged around several buildings where, probably, ficavam a elite Zapoteca, ceremonial and sacred buildings. But what most caught our attention was the huge field Ball game (ballgame), one of the most traditional sports played in several Mesoamerican civilizations since 1400 a.C. The exact rules of 'ball games' are unknown but, in general, the goal was to keep the ball in play. In its most classic versions, players should hit the ball using your hips, shoulders, knees or elbows and more interesting is that many of these games had ritual significance. What it means? The losers could be dead in offerings to the gods! (Now, imagine if our football was so, hein?! Hahahaha)

Several signs like carved figures on buildings, some ceramic pieces and other architectural decorations, reveal that the site probably was influenced by contact between its inhabitants and Olmec civilizations and Teotihuacan. Many of the remains were removed from the site and placed in a museum annex, where more details can be found in life Zapoteca, the excavations and studies done on site over the last few years. A curiosity about the site is that it is believed that only 20% its area has been excavated so far! Truly amazing!

We left hungry after all that walking and our last stop in Oaxaca would be in the traditional Mercado Benito Juarez Market, where we ate delicious sanduíche oaxaquenho and experience the traditional grasshoppers! Name chapuline not to sound very strange to many Brazilians, is not even? Anyone know where remember? For those who remembered, that's right: Mexican TV character who spent the decade of the SBT 90: or Chapolin Colorado! Grasshoppers are a type of grasshopper reddish and we never noticed those little antennas and elongated tails that the hero was actually Chapolin to represent that he was a grasshopper! hahahaha… The grasshoppers Oaxaca are fried and seasoned with salt and lemon. It tastes like a cone shrimp fritinha (but without the delicious shrimp meat inside, é clear! ) and the salt and lemon give an extra saborzinho. Who here would risk?! Well, The market also has several clothing and characteristic of the region. We left Dali and continue to Market 20 November, conhecido as food market, to enjoy the much talked Oaxacan chocolate. But actually we do not like as much as other delicacies.

Due to the proximity of Oaxaca archaeological site of Monte Alban, e A Cidade de Santa Maria del Tule, in just two days exploring the region and could "taste" some of their traditions. Unfortunately our time is short and we needed to follow the Southeast. Traditions, stories, culinary, archeological sites… an entire cultural wealth of other pre-Columbian peoples that still remains alive for Mexican lands were waiting. We needed to leave and the next stops would be nothing more, nothing less, independent of the state of Chiapas mystical Yucatan peninsula! Até breve!

To check out more photos from this experience, click here!