Published on Nov, 2024
We had a great day on the Monte Albán tour led by Luis. Our guide Luis was very informative and shared great information about the history of Monte Albán in particular. We were picked up in a small yet comfortable van, and our group was just five including us (six including Luis), which was a great size. The drive to Monte Albán passes by quickly, and provides nice views of the valley on the way up. Once at Monte Albán, Luis guided us through the first portion sharing plenty of backstory for about 30 minutes or so. Afterwards, we were given 50 minutes to explore the ruins, which are spectacular. The site is beautiful, and hard to capture well without being there in person. The history of the Zapotec, followed by Mixteca, civilizations that lived there is very interesting. This is the site where an amazing burial tomb was discovered. Would definitely recommend separately going to the cultural museum next to Santo Domingo church someday after or before to see the skull covered in turquoise stones and the other excavated artifacts. Following Monte Albán, there was a quick Mezcal tasting, followed by lunch at a buffet style spot (try the tlayudas - similar to a large crispier quesadilla sort of), then to an Alebrijes workshop to see the artisans making some of them, and an opportunity to purchase some if you’d like. You can also find plenty of Alebrijes all over the city of Oaxaca if you’d prefer. The end of the tour was capped off with a visit to the Barro negra (black pottery) shop of Dona Rosa. We were shown an example of how they throw the pottery by hand, and the craftsmanship behind it. Overall a great day and worth seeing, especially to visit Monte Albán and learn of its history.
