When I was walking in Oaxaca

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The pavement jumps up to greet my startled toes, my body falters ever so slightly and my lips whisper ‘aiiiii!’. Old cable anchors and telephone pole stumps create extra obstacles forcing my eyes to stay trained on the slim sidewalk in front of me.

Here in Oaxaca, walking is not only common but is treated as a mixture of sport and art. Oaxacan Sidewalk Walking: the new Olympic trial sport for the 2012 London Games. Remove your eyes to look at the buildings or attempt to read the random street names and kablouey! For a chronic klutz like myself, getting to school takes on a whole new life meaning. Tree roots are left in the ground, even when only the three inches of trunk remains, just enough to stay bellow sightlines but enough to break toes and blacken nails. Even if you manage to avoid the trunk itself, the roots have lifted to pavement up helter-skelter, just to make it all a little more interesting. Rebar peeks out of the cement in groups of four, sometimes accompanied by leftover wire or metal shavings. If you want a few nice blood blisters on your toes then rebar is the way to go. If, however, you would prefer a small scalping or black eye, or even just need a morning jolt, then keep your eyes peeled for random power lines draped over your path or strings of lights hanging from balconies.

For those of you over 5’5” don’t despair, Oaxacan Sidewalk Walking has something for everyone. Trees are planted down most streets, despite the lack of boulevard and skinny walkways, nope, that doesn’t deter these city planners. Luckily the tree overhangs are helpfully maintained at a height of 5’6” in order to stay in line with all store signs and awnings.

Yes folks, if it’s walking challenges you crave make Oaxaca your next vacation destination!


This has been a paid advertisement
brought to you by the
Sidewalk Walkers Association of Oaxaca
“Live Dangerously!”

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