Day 2: walking around Oaxaca, Tierra del Sol Restaurant.
Our day starts with an orientation slide show for history and background.
Our local guide Suzanne going over some of the orientation.
Walking about the various neighborhoods of Oaxaca.
This statue is in front of a group of artisan's shops.
Many of the streets are decorated, as we just missed the Day of the Dead holiday.
The Temple of Santo Domingo is the main church.
Inside, it is beautifully decorated...
...and of course, the altar is full of gold and imagery.
A special tribute in one of the side apses.
Next to the temple is what used to be a convent, now a museum.
Inside the main courtyard.
Even Jesus gets some worshipping on the Day of the Dead.
Kimberly just loved the face on this pot.
A view from the museum tour of the botanical gardens next door.
Everyone taking a break to look out over the gardens.
Downstairs is a special exhibition for this wood carver.
Kimberly with her obligatory lion.
Some of the street decorations are there all the time.
Others have been put out specially for the Day of the Dead.
Another beautiful baroque church.
We stop in Mercado 20 de Noviembre for a family-style lunch...
...including this platter of beef, pork, and chorizo to make tacos out of.
We then stop at Mayordomo, a major chocolatier in the city.
They show us the roasted cacao beans and other ingredients.
These machines are used to grind the chocolate, cinnamon, and other ingredients to order.
Tasting some of the grindings, very delicious.
They also make a little drink, kind of like a foamy chocolate shake, which is also very good.
Walking through the market, these paddles are for rubbing between your hands to foam up the
chocolate drinks.
Suzanne helping people buy some ingredients to take home.
The stalls go on forever.
We stop and pick up some chapulines (dried and flavored crickets) to snack on.
These have salt and chile on them.
Going off to dinner that night, Santo Domingo is lit up nicely.
We take our appetizer tortillas and salsas downstairs...
...then move upstairs to this patio.
The restaurant is lovely...
...and has wonderful views of the area.
It is called Tierra del Sol, and has a nice bar area.
Our first courses consist of a salad, and a lovely bean casserole.
The second course is nopales (cactus) with some black bean dumplings.
Two of the desserts: the one on the left is fruit-based, and
the one on the right is a chocolate mousse with finely-chopped fruits in it.
