Tag Archives: buy

Location Change: Where To Buy Bus Tickets, Mexico City

October 2016, MEXICO CITY — The place to buy bus tickets has changed. It is no longer next to the McDonald’s across the zocalo.  It is here, a few store fronts down the row:

A little ticket stand, way in the back, Centro Joyero de Mexico

A little bus ticket stand, way in the back, Centro Joyero de Mexico

This is a little ticket stand selling ADO bus tickets on the same stretch of shops lining the street opposite the zocalo, but it’s hard to find. The stand is in the Way Back. Only open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.  One person and a computer. Cash only.

Another Option to Buy Bus Tickets in El Centro, CDMX

Travel agency at Hotel Rioja, Av. 5 de Mayo 45, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, D.F., Mexico, Tel:  +52 55 5521 8333.  The travel agent is there from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and can book on any Mexican bus line. Cash  or Mexican credit card.  

Entrance to Hotel Rioja. Travel agent is just inside.

Entrance to Hotel Rioja. Travel agent is just inside.

We used this option to buy our tickets on ADO to Cuetzalan del Progreso the day before we were set to leave. We had to pay first, then return to get the tickets. It seems they were printed/issued in another site.

Hope this helps with your travel plans!

 

3-Day Pop Up Huipil Sale: Mexican Folk Art Dresses

These textiles — dresses and blouses — huipiles and blusas — are from my personal collection. I’ve decided it’s time to send them on to others who will also appreciate their handwoven and embroidered beauty.

If you buy by Wednesday, March 30, I will bring your purchase with me to the USA and mail to you. Send me an email and tell me which piece(s) you want.

7 pieces left! Scroll down to see. Take 20% off remaining pieces! Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday sale. Say SALE when you email.

  1. San Antonino floral dress, embroidered and crocheted, finest quality. Size L-XL. New. Never worn! See the little dolls that form the bodice gathers? Cotton. Hand wash. $295. USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

 

2. Traditional Chinantla Huipil from San Felipe Usila. Size L-XL. Handwoven on back strap loom. New, never worn! Bought on a visit to Usila, 12 hours from Oaxaca. 100% cotton. $375 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

3. San Miguel Soyaltepec huipil, size L-XL. Chinantla region of Oaxaca. New, never worn! Hand stitched on finest quality muslim cotton. Bought on a visit to the island village on the Miguel Aleman dam. $295 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

 

4. San Bartolo Yautepec huipil from the Sierra Sur of Oaxaca, hand-woven on back strap loom with 100% fine cotton (cream color), with blue figures and butterscotch yellow accents woven into the cloth (called supplemental weft). Size L-XL. $295 USD include shipping to anywhere USA.

5. SOLD. San Antonino Castillo Velasco blouse. Size L-XL. $85USD includes shipping to anywhere USA. 

6. From the Yucatan, machine stitched cotton dress with cutwork, perfect for a garden party summer, size L-XL. New, never worn! $125 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

7. SOLD. Lightweight, easy-to-wear cotton dress from Yalag, all hand embroidered. Size L-XL. $125 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

 

8. From San Juan Bautista Valle Nacional, near Tuxtepec, Oaxaca. Needlepoint embroidery called punto de cruz (cross stitch) on back-strap loomed cotton, breathable and easy-to-wear. $195 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

9. Huipil blouse from Amantenango, Chiapas. I loved the graphic beauty of this piece. All hand-embroidered. Size L-XL. Could be repurposed to make a pillow cover. New, never worn! $140 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

10. SOLD. From Puebla, Mexico. Hand-embroidered blouse with great detail. Size L-XL. $125 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

 

11. SOLD. Iconic Oaxaca huipil from the Mixteca region, with intricate and finest embroidery on cotton woven on the back-strap loom. Size L-XL. $295 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA.

 

12. SOLD. Black Rebozo from Tenancingo de Degollado. $125 USD includes shipping to anywhere USA. A beautiful, largest size shawl with hand-knotted fringe.

Tenancingo Rebozos: Pop-Up Sale Online

It’s easy to get carried away and fall in love with ikat cotton rebozos in Tenancingo de Degollado, Estado de Mexico. Of course, I bought a few too many during our recent Mexico Textiles and Folk Art Tour Study Tour: Tenancingo Rebozos and More! 

Ikat: a design technique where the warp threads are first dyed before they are tied onto the loom and create the pattern in the cloth. Very time intensive!

I also love to sew and so … I have three rebozos I have repurposed, designed and sewn into pullover ponchos. These are all cotton, have French seams and open sides — one size fits all. Just slip it over a tank top or bathing suit for a summer cover-up, or wear over a light-weight Tee and jeans to add pizzaz. Makes a nice evening wrap, too.

This post offers 3 pullover ponchos and 7 rebozos, scarves or shawls. Keep scrolling to see all.  Send me an email if you want something!

Pop-Up Sale: Buy Before March 29, 2016.

After that, the sale goes away! I’m leaving Oaxaca on March 30 for a several week visit with friends and to take care of business in North Carolina. I’ll take what you buy with me and ship to you (USA only) as soon as I get there. Send me an email and I’ll let you know how to pay. Many thanks.

  • Pullover Poncho #1–Tomato Red and Black. Ikat cloth hand-woven on the counterbalance pedal loom. 28″ long from the shoulder seam, 26″ wide and a 5″ collar that drapes beautifully. French seams. Open sides (sew them closed if you like.) One size fits all. $95 + shipping.
  • Pullover Poncho #2 —  Spring and Olive Green. Ikat hand-woven cloth made on the counterbalance pedal loom. 27″ long and 29″ wide with a 7″ cowl collar. French seams. Open sides. One size fits all. $95 + shipping. See below.

 

  • SOLD! Pullover Poncho #3–Periwinkle Blue. Ikat cloth hand-woven on the counterbalance pedal loom. 32″ long from the shoulder seam, 28″ wide with a hand-stitched scoop neckline. French seams. Open sides (sew them closed if you like and voila, a dress!) One size fits all. $95 + shipping.

  • Rebozo #1: Blue and Brown by Fito Garcia, one of Tenancingo’s masters. 74″ long. 29″ wide. Plus a 13″ punta (hand-knotted fringe). Below. $185. + shipping.

  • SOLD! Rebozo #2: Black and Brown. Dramatic ikat design with impressive hand-knotted 13″ punta. 74″ long, 29″ wide. $165 + shipping. Below.

  

  • Rebozo #3: Very finely woven by master Jose Luis Rodriguez, soft as silk chalina in two-tone dark and light blue. 65″ long, 29″ wide with an intricate 13″ punta. $155 + shipping.  See below.

 

Please send me an email if you want to make a purchase. Thank you!

  • Rebozo #4: Forest green and navy blue ikat rebozo, 68″ long, 26-1/2″ wide, with a knotted 5″ punta. $125 + shipping. See below left.

Blue-Green rebozo (left), $125 + shipping.

L-Blue-Green rebozo, $125+ shipping. R-scarf with chaquira beads, $75+shipping

  • Rebozo #5: Red and camel ikat scarf, 20″ wide, 61″ long with 9″ punta. $85+ shipping. See below.

 

  • Rebozo #6: Mango scarf with blue ikat accent stripes and chaquira beads hand-knotted into the fringe. Great accent piece! $75+ shipping. See below right.

 

  • Rebozo #7: Above left is a beautiful, soft silky cotton ikat scarf, 58″ long and 18″ wide, with loose fringes. I loved this one because of the ikat gradations along the center panel of the scarf. $65+ shipping.

Please send me an email if you want to make a purchase. Thank you!

Come along with me on the next Rebozo study tour in September for the annual Rebozo Fair in Tenancingo de Degollado, Estado de Mexico.

Gracias a Dios! Have You Heard of Gin Mezcal?

We hadn’t heard of gin mezcal until the other night at Oaxaca’s Origen restaurant. Our very competent waiter suggested we taste it which was on the menu as a mixed drink. What was it like unadulterated? How could mezcal be gin? Hollie asked.

Gin Mezcal with 32 different herbs including lavender

Gin Mezcal with 32 different herbs including lavender

Gracias a Dios is the mezcal brand. That means Thank God. They produce several different varieties. This one, our waiter told us, has 32 different herbs including a very aromatic lavender. I guess it’s the aroma that gives the name GIN instead of the juniper berries. It was so good, we each ordered a little sipping cup and drank it along with our dinner instead of wine.

Gracias a Dios bottles espadin, plus the wild mezcales cuixe and tepeztate.

Gracias a Dios bottles aged espadin, plus the wild mezcales cuixe and tepeztate.

Next question: Can we buy it here? No, he said, and directed us to local La Mezcaloteca on Calle Reforma that sells bottles and dispenses tastings at the bar. They didn’t have it. Can we help you with something else they asked? No thanks.

Big selection, handpainted boxes at the ultimate gallery Mezcalillera

Big selection, handpainted boxes at the ultimate gallery Mezcalillera

Do you know where we can buy it? The barkeeper referred us to a vague place at the corner of Benito Juarez and Murguia. Lots of directions here are vague. One needs to be persistent. Along the way, we asked at the retail mezcal shop two doors down. No luck. Then, we stopped in a couple of mezcal bars along the way. No luck.

Map with contact information for Mezcalillera

Map with contact information for Mezcalillera

At the corner of Murguia and Juarez, there was no evidence of anything resembling the sale of mezcal. I asked a young man with an ice cream cone in his hand. He sported a beard. He appeared as if he might know.

Hard to find brands, artesanal and delicious.

Hard to find brands, artesanal and delicious.

And he did, pointing us to the middle of the next block on Murguia between Benito Juarez and Pino Suarez. Hallellujah. We found it. And bought the only two bottles of Gin Mezcal. So sorry! Maybe by the time you read this they will have stocked more.

7 Mysteries, with a look like a boutique California wine label.

7 Mysteries, with a look like a boutique California wine label.

Mezcal provisioners are cropping up all over town. Most mezcal bars will also sell bottles. Mezcal is the hot commodity all over the USA and Europe. Some of the bottles for sale have been certified for export. If you go out to the palenques and find the taste you love, you can often buy 750 liters of uncertified mezcal for 200 pesos, a real bargain and fraction of what a Oaxaca retail store will charge.

And, now for the Meteor!

And, now for the Meteor!

La Mezcalillera, Murguia 403A, Centro Historico, Oaxaca. Tel. (951) 514-1757. Facebook: mezcalillera  Enjoy!

 

Santa Fe, New Mexico Gala Supports Oaxaca Ceramic Arts

It was two days after the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market closed but the celebration continued.  Los Amigos de Arte Popular de Mexico hosted a gala fundraising dinner at a private home filled with folk art treasures within walking distance of the city’s historic center.

Innovando Best 41-26 Innovando Best 41-13

About forty people attended to support Innovando la Tradicion ceramics cooperative. We were from all over, including Oaxaca, New Mexico, Texas, California. Of course, it was a huipil fashion show, too!

Innovando Best 41-23

The food was prepared in the Oaxaca clay cooking vessels made by Macrina Mateo and her family in the indigenous Zapotec village of San Marcos Tlapazola, just a few miles from where I live. I’ve visited Macrina and took photographs of the firing process, which you can see here.

Innovando Best 41-14 Innovando Best 41-15

Susana Trilling, famed Oaxaca chef, cooking teacher and cookbook author prepared the multi-course meal. She was assisted by local culinary school faculty, students and friends. Everyone donated their time and talent!

Innovando Best 41-40 Innovando Best 41-36

When Susana left Oaxaca for Santa Fe, her suitcases were loaded up with Oaxaca cheese, mole coloradito, sea salt, poleo, spices and condiments. Her bags just reached the weight limit, she said.

Innovando Best 41-30 Innovando Best 41-31

The meal was spectacular, of course, because it featured these ingredients which were also available for sale under Susana’s private label.  If you click this link, you’ll get recipes, too.

Here is the Menu:

  • Corn fungus taquitos, pumpkin seed dip
  • Fondue of string cheese, pork, and purslane in green sauce
  • Ensalada de la milpa
  • Oaxacan coloradito mole with chicken, or
  •  Yellow mole with oyster mushrooms and vegetables (vegetarian option)
  • Baked, spiced potatoes from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec
  • Layered mango pudding or “charlotte”
  • Oaxacan chocolate chile truffles
  • Hibiscus flower and ginger cooler, sangria punch
  • Poleo tisane

Innovando Best 41-20 Innovando Best 41-21

John Waddell, one of the organizers, said he made a liter of sangria for each attendee. We started off with huitlacoche tacos and finished with Susanna’s Oaxaca chocolate truffle paired with a mango raisin cream pudding.

Innovando Best 41-34

The first course was a pork stew floating in salsa verde, topped with Oaxaca string cheese, garnished with wild greens and served in one of Macrina’s handmade clay duck bowls.

chicken mole

The entree was chicken with mole coloradito served with Isthmus of Tehuantepec style tangy potatoes, mashed with peas, carrots and onions.

For dessert, we dove into the mango cream pudding and exhaled.

dessert Innovando Best 41-33

After dinner, Susana and Macrina presented the culinary school with a gift of their largest cooking vessel. Then, Eric Mindling talked about his book, Fire and Clay, a bilingual journey into the traditional ceramics making culture of Oaxaca.

Innovando Best 41-17

Innovando Best 41-32 Innovando Best 41-10

The gathering was relaxed, informal and fun. We hung around to sip more sangria, visit with new and old friends, and just savor the experience of welcoming Oaxaca folk artists to Santa Fe.

Innovando Best 41-18 Innovando Best 41-19

There was just enough remaining after the folk art market of the beautiful, lead-free black and red pottery to present tonight for sale at a free gallery opening at Santa Fe Clay gallery and workshop. If you are in town, don’t miss it. Call to check times.

Innovando Best 41-7

During my visit, I made a day trip to Taos to visit friends Jane and Adam. On the drive, you pass through the Rio Grande River canyon. It was so beautiful, I stopped several times just to get that special inspiration from the landscape. It is sacred space that offers renewal, healing and enlightenment.

See you soon in Oaxaca!

Where to find this pottery in Oaxaca:

  1. 1050 Degrees ceramics shop, Rufino Tamayo 800-c (Xolotl), 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca, Call us: +52 951 132 61 58
  2. Tlacolula Market every Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Find Macrina and her family at the intersection of the main road and church. They lay out a straw mat to display their work and sit cross legged on another
  3. At the family studio any day in San Marcos Tlapazola