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Thursday, June 16, 2016

Buenos Días, Oaxaca!

Today was a busy day of meetings in Oaxaca as are going to be the next two and a half days, but nonetheless, there was a lot to be seen and observed on the streets of this interesting city. 


The rolling green hills and mountains of the Sierra Madre range surround Oaxaca City...


The city has quite a green cover around it...


But it has its share of bad traffic...


Sculpture made of scrap metal showing a traditional Zapotec man with a plume...


Charming streets and alleyways along the Héroes de Chapultepec, a major road. The road is named after six Mexican teenage military cadets who died defending Mexico City's Chapultepec Castle (which was then the Mexican army's military academy) from invading American forces in 1847 Battle of Chapultepec, during the Mexican-American War...


I enjoyed walking here - there was a different vibe to the place...



The Volkswagen Beetle is quite a popular car here in Mexico, in fact it is still manufactured here...


The Beetle is a car I would love to have some day!


An all-terrain vehicle...


Street art in Oaxaca...



A lovely neighbourhood - Diaz Quintas...


Some more Beetles - I love this car and would love to have one, someday...



Some more street art...


Way back in 500 BC, the region in and around Oaxaca was mostly inhabited by the Zapotecs, with the Mixtecs on the western side. These two Mesoamerican groups were often in conflict throughout the pre-Hispanic period.
The Zapotecs gained dominance over the central valleys region and established their capital, on Monte Albán, which overlooks the modern city of Oaxaca. Monte Albán flourished for nearly 1200 years - from 500 BC until AD 750. 
Monte Albán was conquered by the Mixtecs in 1325. Despite their victory, the Mixtecs remained scattered around the area instead of settling down on the  Monte Albán. The Zapotecs however occupied a large region from central valleys region, The Zapotec settlements remained scattered and no major city state on the scale of Monte Albán was developed again.
The first Aztecs arrived in the regions surrounding Oaxaca in 1250, and by the 1400s, they established a permanent military base at Huaxyacac, which is modern day Oaxaca city. In 1486 the Aztecs established a fort on the hill of Huaxyácac, which is now called El Fortín, overlooking the present city of Oaxaca. This was the major Aztec military base charged with the enforcement of tribute collection and control of trade routes. However, Aztec rule in Oaxaca would last only a little more than thirty years. What happened after that is a sad fact of history - the Spaniards conquered the place in a quest for gold and then what followed was a tragic carnage...

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