When we first arrived in Oaxaca and revealed that we would staying at least three months, the locals would excitedly exclaim, "You're going to be in town for the Guelaguetza!!!" What is a Guelaguetza I wondered? Today I found out. Similar to the state fair concept in America, each region of the state of Oaxaca sends a contingent to the city of Oaxaca (which happens to be the capital of the state of Oaxaca) to celebrate the culture of their region. The celebration takes place on the last 2 Mondays of July. It begins with a parade in the zocolo on the first Monday and ends the same way on the next Monday. In between Mondays, spontaneous parades, called calendas, spring up along the city streets displaying giant paper mache dolls, men on stilts, dancing, singing, you name it! Hold out a small cup and watch it get filled with a shot of mezcal when the calendas pass through. Oaxaca is famous for mezcal and takes a lot of pride in the signature drink. Every calenda is accompanied by musical bands and traffic is haulted, even foot traffic. The only path to the other side of the street is through the parade. Dance your way through or catch on one of the little candies tossed to the crowd and enjoy the treat while you watch the show. while the parade passes through. The guys in the second picture are from one of the fishing regions and are throwing nets over the crowd.
In our apartment complex, a poster advertises the Guelaguetza. I spent several days learning to pronounce this word. Now I can say it with ease. The first long word I practiced in Spanish was estacionimienta. This means parking garage. Try saying it as fast as you can. It sounds just like it's spelled. The even is highlighted by dance performances the dance-a-thon held in a stadium high above the city. Purchase tickets in advance; I had to watch it on the television.
Each costume, or traje, and dance usually has a local indigenous historical and cultural meaning. Oaxaca has a large native indigenous population, well over 50 percent of the state's population, compared to 20 percent for Mexico as a whole minor clebrations throughout the state
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