Mitla

We had an hour-long bus ride out of Oaxaca this morning to the village of Mitla, the site of a pre-colonial Zapotec city. The Zapotecs were a tribe under the domination of the Aztecs. We were led by a local guide.

Much of the complex was destroyed by the Spaniards and a church was built atop the rubble. But some of the buildings were converted into barns, stables, and warehouses, and thus preserved.

A unique feature of these ruins is the geometric patterns in the walls. Archaeologists agree that these have symbolic religious meaning, but disagree on the precise interpretation of each.

One thing on which they agree is that a major deity worshipped here was a god of earthquakes -- significant in this seismically active area.

Also significant is that these buildings have survived here for more than a thousand years, while the church and other buildings constructed by the Spaniards have had to be rebuilt several times due to earthquake damage.

The geometric patterns are not simply carved into the stone (which would have been difficult enough for a culture without metal tools). Instead, smaller stones were carefully shaped and put together like an enormous jigsaw puzzle to create the patterns.

After our visit to the ruins, we drove a short distance to a restaurant for a really excellent all-you-can-eat buffet lunch, featuring several kinds of mole sauces.

After returning to Oaxaca, we embarked on a walking tour of the mercado (market). As markets in developing countries go, this one was pretty clean, though the aisles were narrow and cramped.

Grasshoppers seem to be a favorite snack food or dietary supplement here, and they were in abundance in the market.

There was a bit of everything in the market (even religious shrines), but among the crafts Oaxaca is known for is leather goods. I bargained for a leather belt and got a pretty good deal. Mary looked briefly for a purse, but didn't find one that tripped her trigger.

The local guide continued our walking tour through the old city center, past the cathedral, and eventually back to Santo Domingo church, which we had walked by last night.

This time, we got to go inside. The baroque decor and extensive use of gold leaf were stunning. However, it was very dark inside, so the photos don't do it justice.

Dinner was to be on our own, but we were too full from lunch to want anything more than a snack.