With our friends, Penny and Steve, we had booked five nights in an Airbnb "casa" about a 20-minute walk from the city centre.
The sign says "Welcome to the House of the Grandparents". Since we are all "abuelos" we felt this was a good omen for our stay. We were right. The casa had three bedrooms (one of which we didn't use), two bathrooms, a generous living room with a large table, some comfy chairs, a TV (which we also didn't use) and a small kitchen. There was a patio at the front with a flourishing pink bougainvillea vine, and our two bedrooms overlooked a second internal courtyard with a large lemon tree.
A couple of streets away was a covered market selling all kinds of produce.
Outiside on the adjoining plaza were stalls selling all sorts of household wares.
There was even a mobile optometrist offering on-the-spot eye exams.
Cafes and restaurants were scarce in our neighbourhood, but we did find one with friendly staff with a diverse menu to suit all our tastes.
Most days we walked into the centre, enjoying the colourful storefronts and flowering trees along the way.
One of the stores en route was a local mescal co-op, where we stopped in to sample their product.
Oaxaca's main thoroughfare is a pedestrian precinct, which allows for lots of opportunities for enjoying the architecture and window-shopping. In the heat of the afternoons, the few people not taking a siesta cling to the shady side.
In the city centre, dominating the street is Oaxaca's magnificent cathedral.
The forecourt, a popular place for the locals to hang out, is planted with some spectacular agaves.
The interior is vast with a heavily encrusted ceiling.
Here and in the surrounding streets, people gather at dusk to chat, flirt or just enjoy the cool of the evening.
... some of it on the streets.
We visited one visited one graphic arts collective that had a display of posters against repression.
In contrast to the rather grim images, cheerful groups of students were having lunch in the central courtyard shaded by a huge bougainvillea.
