There is a huge class divide in Mexico and although I had known this before it has been made very obvious while travelling inland.

In Queretaro, we stayed with friends and they took us around town to show off their city. It was great, we ate at the oldest restaurant in the city, then went for dessert at another Queretaro institution. We drove to Pena de Bernal to have breakfast overlooking one of the largest monoliths in the world. We went to a winery and sampled some great wine. The weekend finished with a BBQ and watching the football game. We discussed animal welfare, politics, retirement, and work; it was like being at home only warmer. It made me think about our indigenous friends on the coast and how our time spent with them is so different. The language barrier is part of it as well as Jorge’s family inland all speak English.

But it also speaks to the massive indigenous population and lack of opportunity. In Mexico the Spanish ruling class have the opportunity and expectation, I suppose, to get an education, carry on with a good career, travel, etc. Whereas the indigenous people are the labourers, the workers in the shops, taxi drivers and farmers. I wonder what the statistics are of indigenous people who make it to university or move on to positions of power? Imagine being indigenous and a woman, how small your world would be.

We have travelled now into Oaxaca where the Indian population is the majority and you can see how the state is treated like a poor relation. The pueblos have more unpaved roads, there are way more corrugated metal shacks, the churches less ornate in the square and there is a general feeling of unrest. But the beauty of the landscape, the amazing people, fantastic art and wonderful food more than make up for the political unrest that is making our time here a bit more complicated. Our plan for today is to go to Monte Alban and then into the city where we have a hotel booked right near Santo Domingo. I want to explore a women’s cooperative of handicrafts, plus I also want to go to the Museum of Contemporary Art. The problem is the teachers are planning a major protest today to fight for better wages and we have been told all major routes around the city will be blockaded. Crappy. That poses a problem for us. Do we chance it and go with our plans and risk sitting in traffic for hours or do we skip the ruins, get into the city and try for the ruins tomorrow?

We arrived in Oaxaca 2 days ago after an 8 hour drive from Queretaro. The drive was good, I found it quick and the change in landscape astounding. It was smog filled and industrial until we got passed Puebla and then it was like a desert. The girls were snapping pictures of the biggest cacti we had ever seen and it was getting hot. We went through a crazy amount of toll booths and on the exit side there were people selling everything from drinks to puppies. Every time we were stopped for roadworks, there would be group carrying baskets selling drinks, food, beer, gum, and individual cigarettes. This would be in the middle of nowhere, hours from the nearest town.

Hours Later……

So here is how the day played out. We went to Monte Alban without any traffic troubles but G is sick right now and the air up there is so thin that we were just walking in and she couldn’t breathe. Her little heart was pounding in her chest. Nick and I were afraid it was in her lungs as her cough sounds terrible so we drove into Oaxaca proper and found a hospital.

I may not have mentioned this before but parking in any major city is impossible. So Nick dropped us off at the entrance while he went to park. I somehow in my first grade Spanish managed to jump the queue and see a doctor straight away. He took her temperature, checked her lungs, looked at her throat, and hooked her up to a machine to test her pulse, respiration and lung capacity. He said her lungs are clear, but she has an infection in her throat. Rest and no sun for a few days plus antibiotics. He typed the prescription on A TYPEWRITER that didn’t even have auto return. It was circa 1950 I think. Crazy. The whole ward was tiny; tiny beds, old equipment, poor lighting but as the doctor nattered away in Spanish and I caught the gist, I was thinking how great it was to walk right in. It would be a 5 day wait back home. So 400 pesos later we had our results and were on our way. G spent most of the day in the hotel while we walked around the city in shifts.

There is so much more that we did over the last few days. A few standouts: the rug I bought from the tiny indigenous woman who was such a great saleswoman. I didn’t really want the rug but it was worth it just for the experience. We all laughed as her and I went back and forth over the price. Then later Maddy came back with a beautiful wrap that she paid half of what I paid! Mads is the new haggler! We also watched the teachers march through the city blocking roads and chanting for better pay. There is also a 3 million dollar reward for any information leading to the missing student teachers. Any occupy the zocalo is also ongoing.

We are off to Puerto Escondido tomorrow with a side trip to Monte Alban. We will give it another try. Hopefully G will feel a bit better and she will be able to breathe up there. If not we will have to give it a miss as we have a place booked through airbnb tomorrow.