Double Deluxe

Here are the two newest members of our little family...Joey and Sammy. Sammy is the bigger darker one, and Joey is the little one happily eating the couch below. We got them in Alameda on Feb. 11th as a Valentine to each other (ahhhh....). They aren't as outgoing as our first rattie Dino, but it's nice to have them around to liven up the scene. Joey has already escaped twice and we had to do surgery on our sofa to get him out of it.

They love none of the food that Dino loved. They spit out yogies and turn their noses up at pizza unless it is very fresh. These guys must have been born next to Chez Panisse or something. They deigned to eat a bit of lampchop with cranberry and pecans the other night.

More Oaxaca--from November

My seasonal affective disorder is in full rage this week, so I thought I'd post a bulk of pix from Oaxaca to cheer me up. Amazingly, I have still more, but I think I've been at this enough today. My wrists are tired. Have a nice weekend.

MPK 

Monte Alban Part One

The first tour we took was to Monte Alban, which is a huge archeological site on a hill outside the city proper. Here is a good overview. It's hard to photograph all of the aspects of this site. I climbed two of the platforms to get some pictures. My thighs for three days afterward were totally destroyed. I had to hang on to the railing of our hotel stairs to get down them. Flat walking was better, but just climbing onto a sidewalk was a challenge there for awhile.

The majesty of the site is marred somewhat by hawking vendors of some of the worst tripe I've ever seen. But they leave you alone after awhile.

Wikipedia has some good info on the site.

I really liked the museum too. The artifacts reminded me somewhat of those found in the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum.

MPK

This is a bas relief map of the site as seen from above. I climbed the big shape on the right, and halfway up the even bigger platform on the left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monte Alban Part Two

Here are some artifacts from the Monte Alban site. Most are burial relics.

MPK

Some early examples of brain surgery.  

Skeletal remains found in the tombs of Monte Alban. 

 

The remains of a two year old entombed in the jar. This is a ver rare find. 

 

 

Friday Tour of Coyotepec, Jalietza & Ocotlan

Friday was a tour of the major artisan villages. The highlight (for me anyway) was the potters village where they specialize in making a highly burnished "Barro Negro"-- black pit-fired ware. The demonstration is done by Valente Real, the son of Dona Rosa, who is credited with inventing this special pottery. There is another link here that validates my impression that this is done with simple techniques that are easy to reproduce, but the village is proud of its heritage and I was more polite than the author of the given website than to ask all the nosy questions ;)

The trick is the quality of the clay, which is sturdy, but obviously very free of impurities to burnish so well. After forming, the pottery is allowed to set up for nearly a month until it is very nearly green. Then it is burnished to a fine shine, perhaps with oils. It is fired lower than other indiginous pottery in good reduction, which gives it the deep nocturnal black of the finished ware.

I didn't think Valente looked bored at all, but he is very quick! Some of my shots were too blurry to post, but he forms the raw pot in about 5 minutes, talking up a storm the whole way. I caught some phrases that I understood: that he was forming the pot using the traditional manner, not like in the "escueles des artes!" Yah, we all know about those art school types.

Once he's done decorating the pot, he picks up the one that that's been setting up all month, so you can see him burnish it. It gets a lovely gloss. The picture with the bouganvillea is a shot of the studio and gallery. It is a family run co-op.

The weaver's village is also a collective. It was a little more touristy, with all the vendors whispering "buy, buy, buy..." I got a great table runner for mom there. We went into one of the little side shops and I got an embroidered shirt like one of the ones in the final picture below.