Travel Never Ends

Kevin and Ruth – 77 countries and counting!

The Indigenous Market at Tlacolula

We invited our neighbours Peter and Patricia from Switzerland to join us on our visit to the big Sunday market at the town of Tlacolula 22 kms (14 miles) away. We set off at around 10am and shared the total one way cost of a taxi at 200 pesos ($15 CAD, $10 USD).

Colorful "Tlacolula de Matamoros, Oax." city sign outside a PEMEX gas station, with a hot-air balloon and mountains in the background
Arrived in Tlacolula.
Woman preparing food in large ceramic bowls at a colorful market stall displaying hats, clothing, and accessories

The first stall we stopped at was a lady selling tejate… a traditional, non-alcoholic pre-Hispanic cold beverage made from a blend of toasted corn, fermented cacao beans, toasted mamey fruit pits, and flor de cacao (cacao flower). It has a slightly sweet, corn/chocolate flavour.

Large bowl of purple fermented beverage or dessert at a market stall, with a wooden ladle and stacked plastic cups nearby.
A big bowl of tajeta.
Colorful handcrafted embroidered pouches and woven accessories displayed at a market stall
Historic church with twin bell towers and red-and-white detailing, surrounded by a landscaped garden and visitors under a clear blue sky.
The church in Tlacolula.
Ornately decorated Baroque church interior with gilded carvings, religious paintings, sculptures, chandeliers, and an illuminated altar.
Ornate Baroque crucifix sculpture mounted on an intricately carved and gilded decorative wall

That’s different.

Ornately decorated Baroque church dome featuring religious paintings, sculptures, gold details, and star motifs

Don’t forget to look up!

Inside the main market building was packed… it’s a popular place for grilled meat, but very smokey!

Crowded Mexican market hall with food stalls, shoppers, vendors, and colorful papel picado decorations overhead
Busy market stall displaying hanging cuts of meat and sausages, with vendors serving customers.
Assorted meats, sausages, seafood, mushrooms, and green onions grilling on a smoky barbecue
Crowded Mexican market aisle with colorful papel picado decorations, meat stalls, and vendors grilling food amid smoke and flames.
Assorted filled tortillas and flatbreads cooking on a foil-lined griddle
Smiling couple dining at a colorful Mexican market restaurant with traditional decorations and dishes on the table.

Not often we get a photo of us!

Group of friends enjoying food together at a colorful Mexican restaurant decorated for Día de los Muertos
Ruth, Kevin, Peter, and Patricia.
Colorful embroidered clothing and textiles displayed at a market stall
People browse handmade crafts and painted wooden stools at a street market outside a shop.
This lady was showing how to make corn flour from dried maiz.
Shoppers browse a market stall piled high with dried red and dark chili peppers.
A pile of peppers!
Crowded market stall with women shopping for bowls of dried chilies and spices.
Crowded market stall with Indigenous women selling dried goods, spices, and jars of red sauce.
Bowls of chapulines… fried grasshoppers.
Colorful mototaxis on a sunny street in Tlacolula, Mexico, with mountains in the background
These little mototaxis are buzzing all over Tlacolula.
Street mural depicting a seated Indigenous woman, mountains, torii gates, and a patterned background, with a motorcyclist passing in front

We did some fruit and veggie shopping. Prices here in Oaxaca are definitely cheaper than what we pay in Valle de Bravo. Then we found a taxi to take us back to Tule and the campground. For whatever reason, the taxi going back was only 175 pesos.

Back at the campground, a new rig had arrived…

Blue license plate partially obscured by green leafy branches

With a license plate from China! The people weren’t there, but it would be interesting to meet them. Hopefully we’ll get a chance before we leave this morning.

Planning to hit the road before 10am! We’re headed for Puerto Escondido, but we’re taking the free road. There is a relatively new cuota (toll road) that opened in 2024 that runs between Oaxaca and Puerto Escondido, but we’ve always wanted to do the free road and we never have. It’s going to be about a seven hour drive to do 250 kms (155 miles) through the mountains, so we’ll probably break it into two days.

Great price on a 10′ x 10′ Pop Up Instant Shade Canopy at Amazon.com

And in Canada, a good price on this 1500 Watt Space Heater at Amazon.ca

karead7

One response to “The Indigenous Market at Tlacolula”

  1. Shirley Avatar
    Shirley

    The picture of the man crucified upside down is probably St Peter, and there is an S and P beside him.

    Tradition says St Peter requested the inversion because he felt unworthy to die in the exact same manner as Jesus Christ.

    Reply

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