Trees of Oaxaca (Part 2)

As I understand it, here in Oaxaca plants under stress for lack of water flower in a desperate attempt to reproduce. If they can't survive, at least their offspring might. For the plants, that seems kind of sad. But for us humans, this makes for a colorful show of flowers just as the grasses are turning brown. So, many of the trees that were of little notice when we arrived back in October (at the end of the rainy season) are now blazing with color and attracting my attention, for one. If you are here for the the "Mystery Tree" contest, read on...


Jacaranda Tree-
This shaggy-looking legume (above left) is everywhere in Oaxaca. Since we arrived it has had hard, rounded bean pods. Here (above right) is what it looks like in February!


Framboya (Delonix regia) - in Spanish, "Framboyan"- one of several trees known as the "flame tree". It is so beautiful in bloom (below left) that it's hard to find pictures of it NOT in bloom (below right).

Primavera (Spanish for the season, "Spring") or Trumpet tree (genus Tabebuia),  - explodes in yellow flowers early February. This time, NO photos of this tree before it bloomed!

Plumeria - planted as propped up sticks in the ground (below left), grow in all kinds of tough urban settings, and bloom beautifully (below right).

You may recall this scene from
a previous post ("What could go Wrong?"),
before these Plumerias were "planted" 

Orchid Tree (genus Bauhinia, species ???) - I swear there is an Orchid Tree in Llano park that has been blooming the whole time we have been here. The flowers on this tree are lovely, and of varied colors, the leaves look like little green butterflies, and it also produces nice light green bean pods.

Montezuma cypress (Taxodium mucronatum) -"The Tree of Tule" (TUH-lee).

Tule Tree from under the canopy

This specimen is a massive 2,000 year old tree with a 46 foot diameter (they say it's the biggest diameter of any tree in the world), on the grounds of an old church in the town of Tule, a pleasant day trip by bus from Oaxaca City. Not sure if/when it flowers, but I did hear that it is dying. In any case, it demands one's attention with or without flowers!

Tule Tree Dwarfing the church

Mystery Tree: identify the tree below, post your answer on the blog as a comment, and you will be eligible for valuable prizes*.

Name that tree!   

I Get Around

I do get around here in Oaxaca, but it's not always easy!

Let's start with the street names and I don't mean the actual names, which can be for Nauhatl gods and have 4-5 consonants strung together. I'm talking about the system. The two major streets are Independencia, which runs east-west, and Alcalá, which runs north-south. These two streets maintain their names all through town. All the other streets have one name until they intersect with either of those main streets, then they change to a different name. For example, Pino Suarez north of Independencia becomes Xicotencatl to the south, and (one of my favorites) the exotic-sounding Cosijopii turns into the pedestrian Humboldt once it crosses Alcalá. So, basically, there is a different set of street names in each quadrant of the city. Some people think it makes things easier to find and I would agree with that, EXCEPT-

Despite the inconsistent street names, I do appreciate that the city is -for the most part -laid out in a tidy grid.

Certain street names are used more than once, in completely different parts of the city. We have a Porfirio Diaz running through El Centro (until it becomes 20 de Noviembre) and another that cuts through the Reforma neighborhood (and of course, Reforma is not only the name of a "colonia" or neighborhood, it is also a street in El Centro (until it becomes Fiallo). So basically, you have continuous streets that change names and names that change streets. In order for any of this to be helpful you have to know 2 things about your destination. One is which colonia it's in. The OTHER-

This driver was great. Once we told him the cross-streets
he was happy to stick our 2-by-4 through his window.

Okay, this segues into taxis. It's pretty easy to walk just about anywhere in this town but now and then we need to hail a cab. They're ubiquitous and cheap but we found there is another price to be paid if you don't know the protocol. First, you tell the driver the colonia of your destination, like Reforma, and you verify how much it will cost (you will only forget that step once). Once you are en route, you tell him the cross-streets of your destination, for example Cosijopii and Xicotencatl (although this would not be an actual destination because, well, the quadrants don't match). Do NOT tell the driver the address of the place you're going. If you do, he will again ask for the cross-street. Addresses have little-to-no-significance here. But cross-streets are indispensible. If you do not know the cross-street the driver will start talking ridiculously fast in Spanish and the only thing you will understand is that he is shaming you for only knowing the address. And you will certainly not reach your destination. If you are just going around town, do not mistake a TAXI for a COLECTIVO-

Unbelievably, our entire family of 6 "fit" in a colectivo for
the hour-long drive out to Mitla. It helps if you all know and
love each other.

This is a close cousin that looks like a taxi (except it's maroon) but functions like a bus. They go to specific pueblos which are advertised on the windshield and pick up passengers along the way. They stop (or slow down) at certain spots and the driver hollers out the window at the people waiting and holds up the number of fingers that corresponds with the number of available "seats." A word of advice here: do not sit in the front seat. Sure, it looks more comfortable than cramming in the back with a couple of strangers but only until passenger #5 gets in down the road. Then whoever was enjoying that spacious front seat has to scoot over and pretty much sit on the stick shift. And there is usually a fifth passenger. This is when you wish you'd taken a different OPTION -

Fringe, fur-framed mirrors and rosaries decorate the windshield
of any serious bus driver. I just noticed the shoes while posting
this...original touch.

The bus. We've wondered why all the busses look different and there doesn't really seem to be any schedules. We just found out that private individuals pay ~400 pesos a day to rent a bus, then they keep all the proceeds. So I guess you get whatever bus you can and then drive it...whenever. All the busses are different structurally but they all have shrines on the windowshields and dashboards, usually to the Virgin of Juquila. And they all have music playing full-blast. I kind of enjoy this when it's traditional Mexican music but ocassionally you get a driver with a love of heavy-metal. Makes for a long ride. But you know what I love about the busses? If you are in the middle of a block and the bus is coming you just step out into the street and raise your hand and the bus stops for you. Not like in the U.S. where you get punished for not being at the authorized stop and the driver scowls at you as he speeds by. It's not all benevolent, though; the driver makes his money per passenger, so of course he'll accomodate you. But there is really only one way to be on your own SCHEDULE-

Signing up for the rental bikes in Mexico City, aka D.F.

I've always been skeptical of renting a bike in a strange city (like Nice Ride or City Bike) because I think it looks dangerous to be in traffic, looking around, wondering where you're going, without some metal between you and whatever may hit you. And I have not yet riden a bike in Oaxaca. But, for some reason, we thought this would be a good idea while in Mexico City (pop. 28,000,000, every resident with a car). We had a few people honk at us, but we got so comfortable we were even biking at night.

There are several other transportation options here, like moto-taxis and vans - all of which seemed confusing and foreign to us at first but now are just other ways I Get Around.

I met Martina on an En Vía tour. We ran into each other
several times in Oaxaca, but running into each other in
D.F. made us think it is our fate to stay in touch!

What $100/month gets you in Oaxaca

Meet John, your host. 

Meet my new friend, John Schuler. He has been living in various parts of Mexico for a few years now, in Oaxaca for a few months. He recently offered to show Sarah and me the apartment he rents, so we can see "what $100/month gets you in Oaxaca". He even said it would be alright to take pictures and post about it on our blog. So come on in!

Actually, his rent of 1,000 Mexican pesos per month, at 14 pesos to the dollar, comes to $71.43 US. That's right. John pays $71.43 per month in rent. And that includes trash service and hot water (which are not always included here in Mexico). And Wifi.

In addition to his low rent, prices for domestic goods are generally really low. Bus fare is about $.43 US. A cab fare from and to anywhere in the Centro is about $2.86 US. But with the Centro only a couple of miles square, it's a walking city. The three course lunch "menu" at restaurants runs as low as $2.50 US.

From the window, if you listen carefully, you can hear the water flowing from the water utility plant out to the neighborhoods. It sounded to me like a creek running, very pleasant.

The view of the city is somewhat obstructed by tall trees, but they lend a touch of natural beauty to this urban location. 

There is ample space to loft the bed, but then John would lose his view of the sun rising on the mountains every morning. And that, he says, would not be worth the extra space.

The kitchen consists of a hot plate
in the open pantry. 

Hot water is included in the rent,
not always the case here in Mexico.

The bathroom sink is outside the bathroom,
which is a common arrangement. 

John says the heavy summer rains can make quite a racket
but he's gotten to where he sleeps through it.

John would like to get a wardrobe,
one of his future remodeling plans

One of the improvements John plans to make is to buy a stand alone wardrobe, since the apartment didn't come with a closet. Meanwhile, he hangs his shirts and coats on a curtain rod (lower left).

As soon as the construction below is completed,
John plans to move his kitchen outdoors
to the patio. 

Hanging out on the patio which
will soon become the outdoor kitchen. 

Climbing these stairs every time you want to go somewhere
gets old, according to John, so he plans to buy a motor scooter. 

Some people say "live simply that others may simply live".

Some people dream of freedom from mortgages, car payments, and the addiction of consumerism, but they can't bring themselves to shake loose - so in reality their possessions own them.

Some people wouldn't know what to do with the luxury of all that free time.

But for John, there is no place like home.