Sites & Museums in Oaxaca

…Monte Alban
…One of the most important pre-Hispanic sites in all of
… Mexico. The most spectacular city with a magnificent
…view of the valley of Oaxaca. Do not miss it!
…Photograph ©Manu Bastien www.manuphotos.com

…El Yago (not sure of the spelling)
…A gallery/museum located across from Santo Domingo Church. Collections change often, and in the back there is a small store that sells beautiful paper goods; kites, jewelry, books, wrapping and writing paper. The products are made in nearby San Agustin where they work with local artists against the de-forestation of Oaxaca. Great place to buy gifts.

Botanical Garden
Located behind Santo Domingo Church, there are 4 tours a day in English and Spanish. Show up 10 minutes before and sign up. They do not allow guests to wander in alone as many of the species are endangered. It is a beautiful oasis, and one of the most important gardens in the world.
Do not miss it!

Manuel Alvarez Bravo Museum
A beautiful building that is worth seeing even if it was empty, they normally have interesting eclectic photography from young artists.

Stamp Museum
Owned by the Stamp family, another gorgeous building.

…Tlacolula
…A small village between Mitla and Teotitlan del Valle. Interesting
…to visit on Sunday (market day). There is a lot of a particularly
…beautiful red pottery sold at this market, and many of the local
…indigenous population are from the Mixteca (much more gypsy like
…people). You can also find beautiful artesanía from the Ithsmus.
© Photograph by Laurie Smith

…Quetzali Gallery
…To the right side of Santo Domingo Church, a beautiful art
…gallery specializing in photography, painting and sculpture.
…Lots of work from the famous local artist, Francisco Toledo can be
…viewed and purchased here.

Casa Oaxaca
The Restaurant is adjacent to it, and one of the best places to eat in Oaxaca.

MACO-Museum of Contemporary Art
located on main walking street (Alcala)-worth checking out because the building is so beautiful, but usually has some very far out exhibits (their permanent collection is interesting though).

Mitla
Another beautiful pre-Hispanic site located outside of the main city. Beautiful church built on the site. On the way back, a good place to stop for lunch is La Cupola in the village Teotitlan del Valle. It is located on the main road before town right after turning off the highway. The food is fantastic and they serve our favorite mescal, Del Maguey.

Teotitlan is a good place to buy rugs and see how the local people maintain the Zapotec traditions of weaving and coloring with natural dyes. There is also a very pretty church that is worth visiting. If you should decide to investigate the rugs, please visit our friends, Zoyla and Zenon Mendoza. They have a store in town called Casa Mendoza, Avenida Juarez #59.
Photograph ©Manu Bastien www.manuphotos.com

Tell them you are friends of Marissa and Zarela from New York and they will probably give you a discount if you decide to buy something. The rugs really are quite special.

Back to Travel with Z