Lupita’s Quinceanera in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca: Culture and Tradition
You might call it a coming out party or a debut to society if you lived in the United States of America thirty years ago. Some of my southern women friends participated in debutante balls just before women’s liberation took hold. For me, growing up in the wild west San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, […]
In Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca It’s Dance of the Feather with Basketball and HonkeyTonk Fair
There’s a lot going on this week in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, where I live part of the year. Next to the Church of Jesus Christ of the Precious Blood and the annual saint’s day celebrations honoring the church founding with the Dance of the Feather, there is a carnival fair with kiddie rides, a […]
Textile Fiestas of Mexico: New Guidebook for Smart Travelers
The book, Textile Fiestas of Mexico: A Traveler’s Guide to Celebrations, Markets and Smart Shopping by Sheri Brautigam and published by Thrums Books, is hot off the press. It’s a comprehensive guide to some of Sheri’s favorite Mexican textile villages and towns. I contributed two chapters! Sheri invited me to cover Teotitlan del Valle, the […]
Handmade Basket Fair, San Juan Guelavia, January 31-February 7, 2016
Each year, the traditional Zapotec village of San Juan Guelavia showcases its handmade baskets made from strips of river reed, called carrizo in Spanish. (Thanks, Christopher Hodge for this tidbit of clarification. Carrizo is not bamboo!) This is another artisanal weaving tradition in the Tlacolula valley. If you are on your way to the Tlacolula […]
Let the Posadas Begin: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
The Christmas season is upon us in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico. Each morning I wake to the sound of the cojetes — the firecrackers — going off at six o’clock. They continue through the day and well into the evening. This is a signal that Mary, Joseph and Jesus are traveling to Bethlehem […]
Rosa and Abraham Get Married: Wedding Ceremony in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
Chapter II: The Wedding Ceremony, Saturday Afternoon, August 1, 2015 Almost every seat was filled and people were standing in the back of the small, simple Iglesia de Dios in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico, waiting for the wedding of Rosa and Abraham to begin. They were waiting for Rosa to appear on the […]
Day of the Dead, Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca: Gate to Heaven Closed on Sunday
In Teotitlan del Valle, loved ones who come back to visit their families from the great beyond on Day of the Dead, usually arrive on November 1 and depart on November 2. This year it’s different. They get an extra day on earth and leave on Monday, November 3. Why? Because the gate to heaven […]
All Night Party Called Las Cuevitas
Seven years ago I wrote one of my first blog posts called Sunset at Las Cuevitas. Las Cuevitas is an annual Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico tradition that draws the entire pueblo to the caves up in the grassy, nopal cactus dotted hills beyond the village. Festivities start on the night of December 31 and continue […]
Christmas Collage: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
Martha, Marianne, and Judy arrive from the city for dinner on December 23 and then we gather at the house of the eighth posada. Earlier, I go to the local morning market and find a fish vendor from the coast. We eat organic and fresh talapia, squash, potatoes, carrots, onions seasoned with kumquats, candied ginger, […]
Dance of the Little Old Men–Baile de Viejitos, Oaxaca
After a spectacular week of Semana Santa celebrations in Teotitlan del Valle, the village gathers for yet another tribute. Dance of the Little Old Men, or Baile de Viejitos, begins on the Monday after Easter Sunday and goes for five continuous days. It is an ancient pre-Hispanic Zapotec ritual centered around the way the community […]
Oaxaca: Lost in the Revelry
Since last writing a blog post on March 26, my husband, sister, son and extended family arrived to celebrate our godson’s wedding on April 6. Semana Santa came and passed. We found ourselves in the middle of Baile de Viejitos–Dance of the Old Men, then multiple trips to the airport to pick-up family members. I […]
Danza de la Pluma–Dance of the Feather: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca Pre-Hispanic Tradition
Many people come to Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca to photograph the extraordinary Dance of the Feather. This was how we spent Day 5 of our Market Towns and Artisan Villages Photo Workshop. Los Danzantes — the dancers — make a three-year commitment to recreate the history of the Spanish conquest of Moctezuma and the Aztecs […]
Oaxaca Portraits: Parade of the Baskets, Teotitlan del Valle 2011
Oaxaca festivals are more than colorful. They are a sacred experience. Every year beginning on July 5 and lasting for a week, the Zapotec village of Teotitlan del Valle celebrates its Catholic origins and saint day to honor the church–La Iglesia de Preciosa Sangre de Nuestro Senor Jesucristo. The festival includes an opening celebratory parade […]
Let the Parade Begin: Zapotec Weddings in Teotitlan
The preparation begins days, even months ahead. A few days before, the party truck pulls up to deliver hundreds of chairs and raise the huge red and blue striped tent that will cover the courtyard. The wedding celebration is about to begin. On the morning of the wedding, the couple welcomes their relatives in the […]