14 March 2011 – Oaxaca, Mexico – Sisters of mercy, some girls wander by mistake
Oaxaca is a state in Mexico as well as a city. It is famous for its indigenous people, culture and it is the home of Mezcal. It also has stunning beaches in the south.
Laura, Damo and I went to check it out. We stayed in a beautiful hotel in Oaxaca City built from an old nunnery and we did a one day tour around the region.
 We visited the biggest tree in the world. |  Also witnessed a carpet being made by hand. WoW! |
 We also learnt how to make Mezcal at a local factory. This is an Agave cactus fresh from the field and ready to be turned into Mezcal! |  The Agaves are cut into quarters and cooked for 3 days in an earthen oven. This releases the sugars from the plant. |
 The cooked agave’s are then crushed into pulp by a horse drawn crushing wheel. |  The pulp is then left for a week or 2 to ferment, then is is cooked in a large copper vat, and the alcohol is distilled from the steam. |
 ...and….the end result. |  The actual end result after a night out nearly had us in the slammer. |
Damo managed to climb onto this church and pass the bell rope down, which I attempted to play jingle bells on…anyways, about 2am, a passing militia vehicle took interest and a number riot police climbed out… in full gear, black as night; armour; helmets; machine guns and faces covered with masks. We decided to surrender as we knew we were out gunned on this night. Anyways as they came over to us, they started laughing behind there masks…and so I turned to Damo, and told him to put his hands down. They must’ve thought us right little dickheads and so let us go with a shake of the head. Ahhh the fun never ends….
 The scenery in Oaxaca is amazing, here are some natural limestone pools. |  And the guys sorting out places to visit ad things to see from our super sweet hotel. |
So, Oaxaca is a sweet place to visit, and for the nerds that are interested, mezcal and tequila are pretty much the same thing. The only difference is the state that the stuff is brewed in. Bang, there you go.
x.brad
