10:55 pm
We just came back from an ultra late dinner of tlayudas at a tiny, family run restaurant just a couple doors down. The abuela cooks on a griddle out on the street while the daughter serves and the little granddaughter sleeps soundly on a bed of chairs behind us. Honestly, it looked a bit shady, but it was the perfect bedtime snack. And straying from the guidebook to find these mom-and-pop restaurants is all part of the fun of travel.
Before dinner we had a relaxed evening of beers on the zocaló. Much like last night, but tonight was a Friday, and a slew of racecar drivers and motorcyclists were in town. The square was noisy with the rumbling of enginges, the calls of vendors, the deep baritones and twanging strings of mariachi bands, and the laughter and cheers of the drinking crowds. At the table next to us was a group of drivers enjoying towers of beer three litres tall. I hope they were done driving for the night!
Alfonso, the fellow who works the front desk at our hotel, explained that it was the Carrera Panamerica. They are in town as one stop in their seven-day race across Mexico, and should be here for a couple days. It should be fun and interesting to see the excitement over the next while!
We also stepped in on a mass in Oaxaca Cathedral. Lillies of all colours lay in rows on the tiled floors, waiting to be hung up on the church’s pillars, while the organ and female voices sang something I assume was religious, but sounded more suited to an eerie, midnight travelling circus. I wish I knew what the song was. Lines of the devout streamed to the altar to receive communion. It was a bit awkward to be there, so obviously and glaringly a tourist. But with the flowers and the strange music, it was quite a sight.
