Our second apartment in Oaxaca

Several of you have asked for pictures of our new digs, so here they are.

The first is the part of the large garden that we see from our windows. I look out on bougainvillea, hybiscus (not in bloom here), banana trees with and without young bananas, agave, and across the street you can just make out a gorgeous red blossom at the top of the tree. I don't know what it is, but it's extraodinarily lovely. There are many plants I don't know, but the permanent residents here and the landlady seem fond of plants and are always adding things. It is tranquillo.

Our car hides just inside the gate behind the shrubs. The building you see is workrooms and it fronts the street just behind the our gate, which appeared in a previous blog. Our only complaint about this complex is that it's fairly far from the Zocolo where all the action is--about 15 longish blocks. We were so close in Merida that we got spoiled. I knew how far we'd be when I rented the place so I have no one to blame but myself. The distance would be no problem for most, but I find between the altitude and having been sick that I am too breathless to make the trek as often as I'd like. We're trying to learn the buses, but so far haven't had great success.

Below is the entrace to our apartment--into the kitchen. It's one in a duplex. There are five of these two story apartments, four in duplexes. Two are lived in by permanent residents-one an American artist and his wife, both of retirement age, but active and an Italian, of whom we see very little. In addition there is a four-plex studio building where our first apartment was and then a small room and bath connected to the main house where the landlords live. The tenants vary from retirees on vacation--like us and students. The people who had our apartment before were an artist and her husband, an archeologist who was on a dig not too far from Mitla and their large, wooly dog. Another, a young Englishman is writing a book on the drug business in Mexico, Central and South America. One woman taught an intensive Teaching English as a Second Language Course at the University. She's from the States, but her home is now in Croatia. Another is an American girl who teaches English at the University. It's a nice group and we often get together when someone leaves or just for drinks at someone's patio. The landlords are very pleasant.

Note the hot water heater. There is hot water at every sink and shower, something new for us in Mexico, and it's fast. We do try to conserve on water. This is the dry season and water is at a premium.

Our living room window and the door and balcony in our bedroom on the second floor. We also have a little patio with chairs just outside our kitchen door.

Kent reading in the living room.

The other side of the living room. We haven't tried the TV. We had one in the other apartment and never turned it on.

The kitchen and my office. I can just pick up the wireless signal here at the eating bar--at least most of the time. Kitchens in Mexico are often rudimentary, but this is quite convenient with cupboards under the stairs and the fridge--a nice large one with freezer--hiding to the right of the bathroom sink.

Upstairs. Bedroom closet and looking toward the hall with the stairs and the upstairs bathroom. There are balconies on two sides of the bedroom.

Bed and other balcony door.

Upstairs bathroom. Actually, it's two compartments, one for the toilet and one for the shower. The sink is in the hall.

For those of you curious about costs: This apartment, which could sleep four, is 5200 pesos/month--just about US$500. The studio is 3000 pesos/month. You get weekly maid service and towels and sheets laundered plus all the utilities paid for that. Our apartment in Merida cost us 3500 pesos/month and we added another 300 peso for parking the car, plus we had to pay for all our utilites except water. A little surprise at the end, although we only had to come up with 450 pesos for three months of gas and electricity. For internet in Merida I paid part of a neighbor's internet bill (pesos 100/month) because it got to be a hassle to connect for myself. Here internet is free if you have your own computer and and a wireless connection, but you have to go outside to pick it up, except in Apt 1. The places are available on a day or weekly basis and I assume that would cost more, but I'm not sure how that works. A big Chedraui supermarket is only a couple of blocks away and there are locals markets near as well.

This place is light, airy, very clean and the whole place is well run and the landlord on site almost always and willing to help.

Final photos from Museo Rufino Tamayo

The Third from Museo Rufino Tamayo

I apologize for the poor quality of the images. This was a no flash museum, but then a flash wouldn't have worked anyway as everything is under glass. Still I want to include them as they give an idea of something other than what most of us think as Mexican art.




Finally, something Mayan (note the flattened forehead), from the Yucatan, which makes me feel more at home.



And a Mayan stele.

More from Rufino Tamayo

I hestitate, in my ignorance to make any comment about these pictures. I was grateful that the originators of the museum wanted to think of them as art objects independent of their times or uses. And then, I didn't take any notes as we passed through, so I can't make any intelligent comments. I simply find their variety wonderfully interesting.








The head below is of unbaked clay. It's amazing that it has survived.








These dogs were bred for eating. Nice that they commemorated them with statuary.

Rufino Tamayo Museum

I've been a bit under the weather with a flu bug, but before I got lazy, we had gone to the Rufino Tamayo Museum. Rufino Tamayo is a famous Mexican artist who lived from 1899 to 1991 in Mexico, New York and Paris. He was a native Oaxacan. The museum that we went to doesn't have his paintings, but his collection of pre-Colombian, Mexican art, which he has given to the Mexican people. The whole idea of the museum was to keep these pieces in Mexico and not allow foreign buyers to take them out of the country, as well as to treat the objects as art rather than historical or religious artifacts. He and his wife even restored the building in which the works are housed. It's a great place and as I began to snap odd pictures of the figures in the cases I began to think of the remarkable variety of faces. It's always fascinating to see how men view themselves and their gods.


The first picture is of the courtyard in the museum. Display rooms open off it. I'll keep adding pictures as I prepare them . These are from all over Mexico, not just Oaxaca.

Teotitlan del Valle and The Tule Tree

After our vist to the market we came closer home and went to the rug weaving village. A clean, prosperous looking place, but quiet on a Sunday. We looked at rugs and got a demonstration of how to dye wool. Kent and I will think about going back to buy another day.

I got to thinking that I hadn't included a bird of paradise plant yet. It's got to be de rigeur with blogs from the tropics.




We took these new streets as another indication of prosperity.


Very close to Oaxaca is the oldest tree in the world--or at least that is what is claimed. The sign at the foot says that it is over 2000 years old. It is an amazing tree.




And inside the church at the tree in Tule. Churches are more lavishly decorated than they were in the Yucatan. This one is quite modest compared to the Cathedral downtown and Santo Domingo.