Me gusta! Me gusta! Bigger tan San Cristobal but just as nice. Oaxaca has a hugh historical center with many old colonial buildings and cathedrals. There is a big market just off the plaza Zocalo, which covers two big halls where you can find really everything you need. There are great art museums - free entrance! - trendy cafes and restaurants with reasonable prices, a car free zone with many shops and theaters with live music.

We arrived early with the 11 hour night bus from San Cristobal. I didn’t sleep much so after we checked in at hostel Don Pablo we went for a short sleep to catch up. When we woke up again we went exploring and sat down at one of the many restaurants on plaza Zocalo. From here we could observe the people walking buy and got the feeling of Oaxaca - the modern city, lots of locals mainly Mexican tourists, street sellers and music.

After the lunch we walked around towards the Santa Domingo cathedral. I already saw that something was going on soon on Zocalo, something looked like something is going to finish here. Not knowing what we walked around and after seeing some more of the historical center the sound of racecars catched my ears. I hurried up to the street where it came from and yes, old timers escorted my the police raced through the city center towards the Zocalo.

After almost all the cars passed by me and Hanne went to the main plaza to see the cars there parked in a line surrounded by hundreds of Mexicans who all wanted photos and autographs of the drivers. I also made lots of photos of course!

While standing on the street I also saw a Belgium car, and once we saw the car parked we got in touch with the driver and co-pilot. Two really nice Belgium man how bought their car in the stats and now racing along with 40 other wealthy international people. We got in the car, made lots of photos, talked about the really and what they were doing back home. Later that day, in the hostel, we googled the names of those two drivers and to our surprise, we just talked to one of the richest people of Belgium! Christian Dumoulin, a Belgium business man.

Anyways, that evening we went out for dinner and met up with a local girl Hanne got in touch with through CouchSurfing. She took us to a local café where we drunk some cervezas and Mezcal - a sort of tequila, very strong stuff. After that we went to Café Central, a funky café with live music and after midnight you can dance on all kinds of music from salsa to pop.

The next morning we checked out at the hostel and went CouchSurfing! Yes my first one. We found two really nice people called Gaby and Tim who hosted us and gave us so many tips and showed us around. First me and Hanne splited up, both going another direction to explorer the city a bit more. I went to several museums; most of them are for free, went walking in the small streets of Oaxaca and finally ended up in the big market.

I went to the Photo museum which had a nice collection of sliced human body´s, the Institute of Graphic Arts which has a large collection of art books which you can read for free, and the museum of Contemporary Art, which was under renovation so it was kinda small.

In the evening we went for diner with Gaby and Tim and went also to a jazz pub for some more local beers and we talked a lot about traveling, Oaxaca and their experiences with CouchSurfing.

The next day we went on a tour! Yes also backpackers do tours. 5 sights were on the menu, the first a visit to the largest tree trunk in the world - Mitla! Yes with a diameter of 14,5 meters it’s the biggest in the world! Than up to a weaver factory where they made lots of handmade carpets in the old fashion way. The third item on the program was I think the best, tasting Mezcal! Learning how they actually make it and then tasting about 8 different sorts of Mezcal. Cheers! With some alcohol in the blood we headed to a archeological sight called Monte Alban, a pre-Hispanic city that was an ancient capital of the Zapotecs. Nice, but not really impressive. The last sight was a natural wonder as they say. Can’t remember the name of it, but just take a look at the photos.

Oaxaca is really a nice place! A place which is easy going, has much to offer, a place from where you can explore the surrounded mountains. Definitely a place to come back to! Gaby and Tim, thank you very very much for hosting us! I enjoyed your company!

From here I am heading up to Mexico City, my final destination!

Photos are here.