Globe Corner Blogs

Woodcarvings in Oaxaca--photo by Lisa

Of of the major reasons I went to Oaxaca in Southern Mexico was that I had heard so much about the amazing craft markets and the many surrounding villages that are dedicated to the production of handicrafts. Most tourist agencies and hotels offer day tours to visit weavers in Teotitlan del Valle, potters in San Bartolo Coyotepec, and wood carvers in San Martin Tilcajete. It is also possible to go to all of these towns on your own, which would have been preferable so I could have spent more time exploring the shops, but I don’t really drive and I was a bit too lazy to figure out how to do it by myself on public transportation.

Woodcarving in Oaxaca--photo by Lisa

Every village also has a market day, and I happened to go to the Friday Market in Ocotlan. The Friday Market is one of the larger ones in the area and is an endless maze of rows offering anything that you might want to acquire: mountains of chilis, live turkeys (who may have also been shopping as they were wandering around quite a bit), fresh produce, handicrafts for the gringos, medicinal herbs, and tons of household goods.

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Playa Zicatela--photo by Lisa

Having endured several cold and harsh winters in Boston, I have begun to understand the appeal of heading south for the winter. After a particularly freezing walk home I booked my ticket to Oaxaca, Mexico. Oaxaca is a beautiful city in the southern part of Mexico and I have always wanted to go there. It is a well known culinary capital and is also home to lots of folk artists. After researching more about the region I decided that I also wanted to go to the coast for a couple of days and Puerto Escondido seemed like the perfect destination to soak up the sun and get away from it all. Puerto Escondido means “hidden port” in Spanish. These days, though, it is becoming more of a destination even though it can be kind of treacherous to get there.

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Liberacion de Tortugas--photo by Lisa

While walking along the main drag in Puerto Escondido in Southern Mexico, I started to see notices in a lot of the hotel windows proclaiming “Ahora Liberación de tortugas 5:45″.  I am not a Spanish speaker, but after reading this my imagination started to run wild. I pictured poor little turtles being held against their will in shackles by evil tyrants. They are actually being “liberated” by an organization called Fundación Selva Negra that is dedicated to helping protect the survival of three types of turtles: Tortuga Golfina, Tortuga Laud, and Tortuga Prieta. Continue Reading »