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Sunday, January 30, 2011
Juana
When I went to Teotitlán de Valle I bought a rug that was woven by Juana Chavez. Juana was gracious enough to pose with the rug that I have placed at the foot of the bed in the apartment. It is made of wool that was carded and spun by hand, then dyed with natural carmine from cochineal, and woven by Juana. The designs are Zapotecan, the largest indigenous group in Oaxaca, and Juana's ancestry. 
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Ways to go!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Lunch Isthmus-style
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The main course was poblano chile filled with fish, carrots and potatoes. The taste was so fresh, with the coating crisp and light.
This was served with a drink of jamaica flavored with ginger and cinnamon.
A great food memory!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Rugs from Teotitlán de Valle
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The village of Teotitlán de Valle, located about 30 miles east of Oaxaca, is famous for handwoven wool rugs. The rugs are irresistable for their patterns and colors!
In this home, the family cleans, spins, dyes and weaves the wool themselves. For color they use natural materials such as insects, seeds, flowers, herbs, fruits and so on.
Here, you can see cochineal, from a dried scale insect that lives on cactus, being ground into powder. When the powder is added to water, carmine red dye is obtained. When lime juice is added, the color changes to orange. By adding more cochineal, you obtain magenta. They say that cochineal can be manipulated to obtain 50 different colors.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
La Quinceañera
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Someone was holding a bouquet of flowers to present to Itzel, la quinceañera after church.
This day is the first time of her life that she receives a bouquet.
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Photos of Itzel leaving the church and outside alongside her parents. Then it is off to the fiesta where, besides food and drinks and dancing, there is a reenactment of her life with different people playing la quinceañera as a little girl and older girl.
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Photos of Itzel leaving the church and outside alongside her parents. Then it is off to the fiesta where, besides food and drinks and dancing, there is a reenactment of her life with different people playing la quinceañera as a little girl and older girl.
The traditional color for the dress is white but now you see every color.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Wedding
I went to wedding Saturday night at Santo Domingo church which is the most elaborate church in Oaxaca. I saw the decorated car parked on the street and thought, photo opportunity! Custom is that at the end of Mass, the couple poses at the altar and everybody takes turns getting their picture taken with them. Someone from the wedding walked up to me and said, go on up to the front, take pictures. I said, really??? 
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Saturday, January 22, 2011
Embroidered Paintings
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Navidad uses the traditional chain stitch of her village but with different techniques such as different angles, combinations of threads, and combinations of colors to get shadings and depth as is achieved through painting. To do these embroidered paintings, the fabric is stretched on a large wood form then the stitching is done by hand with a hook (looks like a fine crochet hook) above the fabric and a small needle underneath.
I don't know what the materials are made of but the threads look shiny like silk.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Fruit
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She offers cantalope, watermelon, mango, papaya, strawberries, apples, jicama and cucumber.
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You can have your fruit natural, with chile and lime, or with honey and granola, or yogurt. Today I had melón con chile y limón.
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You can have your fruit natural, with chile and lime, or with honey and granola, or yogurt. Today I had melón con chile y limón.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Walls
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Painting messages on walls is common in Mexico. Some are tagging but most are political messages, some are stenciled, some are originals. The first image shows that Communism is alive and well in Oaxaca. The next image has a message about a national strike against imperialists.
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This house that is under construction has La Virgen de Guadalupe painted next to the front door. I have seen this same image in different colors on other houses. I think the rose and green are particularly pretty here.
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See? They invented more than the wheel.
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This isn't painted but was drawn on the wall next to a front door by using a sharp instrument when the cement was wet. I stopped to look at it wondering if a musician lived here, and was taking a photo when the door opened and la señora stepped out. We surprised each other then starting talking. She explained that her deceased husband was a musician and this was a song he loved. She sang the song for me. I told her I loved the houses in the neighborhood because each one was unique and charming. She said, are you in a hurry? You can come in and I will show you my house. The house was filled with counted cross stitch, including a family tree showing her 11 children. She has 10 birds in cages on the exterior patio, 6 canaries and 4 parakeets. When I left she said, mi casa es tu casa, so I guess they really say that.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Street Views
Monday, January 17, 2011
Wrought Iron
My Apartment in Oaxaca
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I am back in Oaxaca in the same apartment. Here are a few views of the main room which has a sofa and chair, dining table, and desk. Through a doorway you can see the bedroom. Unseen is the kitchen--which I call the utility room since I don't cook here--located next to the dining table.
I decided to make the place a little more interesting and happy so I re-decorated by covering the sofa and chair with white rebozos, then added a couple embroidered pillows. I replaced the chair pads with green ones. Behind the sofa I hung two "sellos" with Mayan designs, which are cut out of tissue paper. Over the dining table I hung a hand-embroidered cloth that looks contemporary-ish from afar.
What do you think?
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