El Sol de la Costa — Puerto Escondido News — Useful info and classifieds — Puerto Escondido Oaxaca

Culture

200 Years of Mexican Independence
	Mexico celebrates its bicentennial this month. READ MORE

Viva México!
	Mexico's Independence is Somthing to Shout About! READ MORE

Mariachi: Symbol & Soul of Mexico
	MARIACHI IS MUCH MORE than a musical genre; it is the cultural essence of Mexico and its people. Mariachi has become a symbol of national identity, unique and recognized around the world as an authentic expression of Me READ MORE

“La Guelaguetza, Mondays on the Hill”
	The sights and sounds, the flavors and colors of all the regions of the state create an amazing mosaic of history, culture and tradition in the Oaxacan capitol during that most important cultural festival of the year. READ MORE

World Cup Fever
	Football, that is, as it is known in most of the world, foot plus ball, kicking, no hands, no helmets, no pads. Mexico is always soccer crazy, but every four years, especially if the national squad has earned a berth . READ MORE

Antsy for the Rains
	For the ancients - - and, indeed for their modern day antecedents - - the rain meant far more than a comfort zone. READ MORE

A Cockfight in La Barra
	It's not for everybody, but cockfights are a staple of many traditional local fiestas and strongly embedded in the local culture. READ MORE

Anatomy of a Fiesta
	IF YOU THINK THAT IT seems is if there's always a fiesta going on around here, you are probably right. The people of the Oaxaca coast are passionate in embracing their cultural traditions. READ MORE

Easter Week
	The Sacred and the Profane The most important days of the religious calendar are also busy days for tourism in the country. READ MORE

Magic Under the Stars
	The Music Festival is over. But the beat and the memories linger on and the music scene in Puerto will never be the same. READ MORE

Oaxaca's Night of the Radishes
	"The Night of Radishes" is a Christmas tradition unique to the City of Oaxaca. It is a popular festival in which horticulturists and florists exhibit special designs created with huge radishes READ MORE

The Coast Festival of Dance
	The Coast festival of dance is a showcase for the vigorous and enduring traditions of this area’s cultural mosaic of Indigenous, European and African peoples. READ MORE

Day of the Dead: When Skeletons Smile
	One night of fun for the dead? How utterly outrageous! How absolutely awful! And really . . . how awfully sweet. READ MORE

Day of the Dead
	THE SKELETON OF THE LADY Dandy (la Calavera de la Catrina) has become an icon of the Day of the Dead. It derives from an early 20th century zinc etching by José Guadalupe Posada and was meant to satirize the lifestyles of the rich and famous. READ MORE

MEXICO'S MONTH OF THE NATION
	FLAGS, PARADES AND CIVIC ceremonies mark the month of September, known in Mexico as the “Month of the Nation” (el mes patrio), which commemorates the events and individuals who forged and protected Mexican Independence. READ MORE

A Trek for Mezcal in Miahuatlán
	Oaxacan mezcal is a drink of amazing variability and complexity. It is the province of artesanal craft producers who distill on a tiny scale and whose regional and seasonal differences can be as significant as they are in the world of fine wines. READ MORE

Alvaro Carrillo
	THERE ARE MANY remarkable things about the Oaxacan who is arguably Mexico's best loved composer READ MORE

Carnaval de la Costa
	So as not to conflict with the monster fiesta in Chila, local authorities have decided that this year's festivities will be held on these dates, which sort of defeats the purpose. Read on for this year's program. READ MORE

Playing with Fire
	BUSKING, PERFORMING in public places for tips, is an ancient and honorable occupation which has been marginalized in the post-industrial world where everything that is not permitted is prohibited READ MORE

Live Music: July 2008
IMPROVISED, FREE-SPIRITED, hot: good adjectives for Puerto Escondido, but they could just as easily describe the music of the two bands performing here this summer READ MORE

Semana Santa 2008
	HOLY WEEK is the most important religious feast in the Christian liturgical year READ MORE

Music of a Cherished Land
	Oaxaca is a land of beauty and joy and sadness, of poetry and romance READ MORE

Navidad 2006
	MEXICO'S TRADITIONAL Christmas festivities get underway on Dec. 16 with Las Posadas (the Inns, or shelter, hospitality). READ MORE

Coast Festival of Dance
	The Coast Festival of Dance is a showcase for the vigorous and enduring traditions of this area's cultural mosaic of Indigenous, European and African peoples READ MORE

The Rites of Spring: Faith, Ritual & Pageantry
	AS WITH almost all Christian holidays, Easter has been secularized and commercialized. The dichotomous nature of Easter and its symbols, however, is not necessarily a modern fabrication. READ MORE

Short History of the Independence Struggle
	THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, from the 1790's into 1800's, was one of those eras that come along every few generations to shake the world READ MORE

The Symbol of a Nation
	The image of an eagle perched on a nopal cactus while devouring a snake, which appears on the flag and national coat of arms is a universally recognized symbol of Mexico. READ MORE

Music: The Heart of Mexican Culture
	MEXICO LINDO Y QUERIDO. "My beautiful, beloved Mexico" goes the famous ballad. More than words to a song, it is also an expression of a rich, proud and complex culture. READ MORE

Villa Tututepec Celebrates 1,653 Years of History
	Villa Tututepec de Melchor Ocampo holds its own Guelaguetza on July 26. It's always on our list of interesting day trips. READ MORE

On the Town
	Scoping out the local nightlfe scene READ MORE

Cock Fights, Fiesta Staple
	There’s cock fighting this month in Río Grande, May 7 to 9, and in Barra de Colotepec, May 13 to 15. It’s not for everyone, it just is what it is. READ MORE

Jaripeo: Rodeo Oaxaca-Style
	Whenever there is a holiday or fiesta on the coast, there's sure to be a jaripeo, a bullriding rodeo. Even the smallest town has a makeshift corral where the young studs can demonstrate their courage and cowboy skills. READ MORE

It's a Small World: Mexico, a Land of Friendly Strangers
	IS MEXICO MORE KID friendly than other countries? April 30 is celebrated throughout he nation as “Day of the Child.” That means an extra day of gifts and treats and parties and generally being spoiled. READ MORE

Blow me away
	Fireworks: Mexico's home-grown psychiatric therapy. READ MORE

Puerto Music Festival 2010
	January 13 - March 6: THE FESTIVAL WEEK BY WEEK Find out who will rock Puerto Music Festival 2010 READ MORE

Traditions of a Christmas in Mexico
	MEXICO’S TRADITIONAL Christmas festivities get underway on Dec. 16 with Las Posadas (literally “the Inns”, but in this sense the meaning is one of shelter or hospitality). READ MORE

Fiesta for the Virgin of Juquila
	Early December sees the culmination of the pilgrimage to the shrine of the Virgin of Juquila. Tens of thousands of worshippers, some from as far away as Chiapas, Puebla and Veracruz, will descend upon the small mountain town READ MORE

Chilena Music
	IT’S THE SOUND AND the soul of the coast and of its people. Chilenas provide the soundtrack for all important occasions, from baptisms to funerals. READ MORE

There's Only One México!
	September, when the entire nation is swathed in "red, white and green" to commemorate its illustrious history, it’s also time to celebrate all things Mexican and recognize its amazing cultural heritage. READ MORE

Mezcal: Magic of the Maguey
	Perhaps mezcal has been one of the great underappreciated treasures of Oaxaca, but now that might be changing. Compared with its better known cousin tequila, Mexico’s other spirit of the agave plant, mezcal is small time. READ MORE

Mezcal: To Your Health
	Drink one shot of mezcal before breakfast and one at night, in order to enjoy the full therapeutic value of this distilled agave (maguey) beverage. So recommends José Ríos, the proprietor of locale 53 in the market, and himself a mezcal enthusiast. READ MORE

Jimena: A Star is Born in Puerto
JIMENA BECAME an instant star in Puerto Escondido when she was added, unannounced, to the line up of the 2008 Puerto Blues Festival READ MORE

Day of the Dead
	THE DAY OF THE DEAD CAN be traced back in Mexico for 3,000 years. The Aztec celebration occurred throughout the month of August and corresponded with the corn harvest. READ MORE

Magic of the Market
	IN OAXACA, SHOPPING and the market place are cultures in themselves READ MORE

Puerto's Live Music Venues
	A brief listing of some of Puerto Escondido's live music venues READ MORE

Puerto Blues Festival 2008
	The festival was born in 2001 when Bill Evans, a resident of the Toronto area, who has wintered in Puerto for years, invited Canadian blues king Jack De Keyzer to come down to visit and maybe play a little READ MORE

Mexican Icons: September
	There's only One México! Flags, parades and civic ceremonies mark the month of September, "Month of the Nation" , when México commemorates the events and individuals who forged and protected Mexican Independence READ MORE

Puerto Blues 2007
	THE BLUES WERE BORN the day the West African shoreline fell from the horizon, as the first slave ship sailed to North America. It spent its infancy on the slave plantations and the Jim Crow chain gangs of the Deep South and came of age in the dark h READ MORE

Lila Downs: La Cantina
	MANY OF US WHO LOVE Mexico, its people and its culture, have long been under the thrall of Lila Downs, so a new CD release by this remarkable artist is exciting news. READ MORE

Pelota Mixteca: A Game for the Ages
	It is one tough sport! And it is growing in popularity throughout the state of Oaxaca and beyond. READ MORE