We will be in Oaxaca for a week in early November. (I have been to the city several times before, years ago, but partner had not been south of the border).

Planning visit to Tlacolula on Sunday, and would like to spend plenty of time in the markets within the city as well…Saturday at Abastos, tops the city list.

Just curious if anyone has hired a guide for Abastos and Tlacolula and if the guide added much to the experience. I have a strong interest in food so think I would learn more with a guide than on our own. So if you have someone you have hired, and liked a lot, I would appreciate the contact information. My hotel can help me with this but thought I would ask here for personal recommendations. If you recall the price, more or less, let me know as well. Guide must speak English, for my partner; food knowledge is a big plus, of course. Thanks!!

I have a short restaurant list but if you highly recommend a place, let me know, please.

Short list includes these possibilities:

Casa Oaxaca
La Teca
Origin
Pitiona (too fancy??)

La Capilla in Zaachila for bbq (??)

I went with my husband to the Tlacalula Sunday market last year. We tried a lot of different mezcals (lots of family stands set up and a few nice areas that sell many mezcals where you can get samples) and bought some, we had soup with tripe, tamales, lots of good food at the market throughout the day. and we bought food products, seasonings, some cooking equipment, etc.

We got there on a colectivo bus from Oaxaca City, next to the baseball stadium. You can also catch cabs in that spot to Tlacalula. I found directions to the colectivo/cab spot on youtube, there is a man who posts under Oaxaca Video Guide on youtube and he has a good video walking you through how to get to and from the Tlacalula market.

I emailed with him to use him as a guide but he was going to have someone else guides instead of him, so I didn't use his services. I used Linda Hanna as a guide for Oaxaca, she was very very good, but we went to the Tlacalula market by ourselves.

I have also been to Abastos on a Saturday on a different trip. I do not think you need a guide for it. Just give yourself a lot of time for it and be very careful about wearing any jewelry or having a camera around your neck. That is a place to use a Pacsafe purse at, IMO. It can get very crowded and my friend did have her thin gold bracelet snatched off her wrist while we were in the live turkey area.

Linda Hanna does folk art tours of the city and valley towns, but she would know who you can get for market tours, I am sure.

http://www.folkartfantasy.com/folkart.htm

Oaxaca Video guide's video on getting to Tlacalula Sunday market:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=I6lpOkxRkok

Ocotlan also has a really great market, esp for food, on Fridays.

http://oneforkonespoon.blogspot.com/...el-better.html

You've been incredibly helpful and I thank you. I just read that you own a house in Quintana Roo…superb! Will be sure to report back once I get home; might return here with further questions before we depart next week..very excited to be going back.

I know you will have a wonderful time, as I always do in Oaxaca.

So much to do, so little time. Just enjoy whatever you decide to do, and give yourself time to do the things you choose. ESP the markets, need lots of time for Tlacalula, all afternoon.

Btw, we took a cab back to Oaxaca from Tlacalula. We had to walk out to the highway from the market to get a cab at about 5:30 pm. We ended up in a very small cab with 4 other passengers, plus. Us two and the driver, in a car meant for at most 5 people. So if I was to go again, I would take a taxi there and arrange for the driver to pick us up where he dropped us off at a certain time.

Did you spend the entire day at Tlacolula market?

Good tip about the taxi, thank you!!!!!

We will also spend one morning at Monte Alban, as partner has never been. I see that there is a special (tourist?) bus leaving from a hotel..maybe hire guide at the site to add some depth, so I do not have to have nose in guidebook, readiing aloud to companion, as usually happens!

We got to Tlacalula market at about 11 a.m., and left at 5:30, so yes, better part of the day.

We enjoyed the church there too, it is surrounded by the market.

EMD3: Just back and wanted to update this thread; will write in depth in trip report to follow:

We decided to hire a taxi to take us to both the Sunday Tlacolula market and to Teotitlan. Had an absolutely smashing day! Arrived at Tlacolula market about 10am and was surprised at the relaxed and fairly uncrowded scene. Had expected lots of jostling and lots of gawking tourists, but encountered neither.

I invited our driver to walk around with us and, happily, he agreed. We certainly did not need a guide, as you had commented above. But it was fun to have him join us, as he was quite a pleasant guy and was able to answer a few of my questions while inside the market. The food stalls, and the entire market, looked very clean. We ate lunch at one of of the market fondas:
Shared a few tacos of goat and of lamb (both excellent; the goat is referred to as "barbecue") accompanied by fruit aguas.

From there, drove on to Teotitlan, where a visit to one of the weaver's houses, and an explanation of the carding, spinning, dyeing, and weaving processes ranked with the best experiences of the entire trip.

Will provide details of all this later, but in case anyone is thinking of hiring a taxi in Oaxaca, we learned that the going rate is 150MP per hour. Astoundingly reasonable, as this works out to under US$12 per hour. I speak Spanish, but our driver, and quite a few others in the city, spoke English well, having lived in California for a few years. I have his contact info, in case anyone is interested.

Oh, I have been waiting to hear from you about this trip! Thought of you around Dia de los Muertos. So looking forward to your report. I wonder if you bought any small batch mezcals at the Tlacalula market. And if you got the Abastos market. Etc. Glad the taxi driver worked out well for that day, that's how we will do it next time too.

Hi…meanwhile, before I get around to the report, did not buy any of the mezcals. Amazing how these have taken off….just about every place we ate had list of dozens of these.

Did go to Abastos and had a wonderful time there….again, was pleasantly surprised about how calm it was (arrived about 9:30am and stayed until about 12:30pm). Vendors extremely friendly, no pressure, willing to answer questions. I did go with a guide which was good in that he runs a cooking school with his mother and knew many of the vendors so they may have been even more willing to chat than if I had gone alone. But under no circumstances was this amrket at all intimidating, so guide is absolutely not essential, unless perhaps one speaks no Spanish and wants to ask questions. I would doubt if many vendors spoke English. Some older women seem to speak very little Spanish!



No mezcal purchases, but did buy several types of that orange-colored salt made from various worms. (Sal de Gusano, etc)

Already thinking of returning to Mexico!!

Our new Amigo Manuel a expert rug weaver who has a booth in the Artisan Market took us at no charge on a public bus to Sunday's Tlacalula Market adding IMO a great deal to our trip.
His stall is on the second aisle in. Look him up.

I like the guisano salt too! We were given several little burlap bags of it with the small bottles of mezcal we bought. My husband brought several small bottles, like 375 ml, home as gifts. Some of them are very intriguing, smokey flavors.

I am now kicking myself for not thinking of bringing those small bottles home as gifts! I bet they would be more appreciated than all the mole, and chocolate, and the worm salts!!

would be interested in contact info for the driver. looking forward to your TR.

YesTravel:

This is the driver we used for Monte Alban (he waited for us at the site; our visit took just under three hours) and for the trip to Tlacolula Sunday market followed by a visit to Teotitlan. Having lived in California for a few years, his English is good. I imagine that you could wait until you arrive in the city and then call him, or have your hotel call him.

Eric Diaz 951-157-4450.

I will write all this up in the next couple of weeks. Let me know ifi you need anything at all before then..when are you traveling?

Thanks so much. no rush for us, trip isn't until Feb.