The Sounds of Oaxaca

After living in Oaxaca for shortly over a week, I´ve come to discover there are numerous sounds that indicate important opportunities or events that are going to take place in the very near future. For instance, people who drive in the city fail to use any of the signs or stop lights that still function perfectly well. Signs have absolutely no significance. And stop lights simply mean pause. When drivers beep their horn it means you have literally a split second to get out of the way before they run you over. At every intersection it´s very important to be cognizant of the sound of motor bikes. These guys don´t stop for anyone. And they tend to behave as if the entire "centro" was their race course. All of this leads to extremely exciting ventures every time I leave my house.

Virtually everyone buys water from the "water man" who peddles down the street every day on his tricycle hollering at the top of his lungs "Agua, agua, agua!" When I first arrived in the neighborhood, I had yet to understand the sounds of the city and could not for the life of me figure out why this person kept coming by my house every day yelling for someone. I was later informed that it´s simply the water man.

Aside from the numerous roof dwelling dogs that bark at me on my way to school every day, I am also fortunate enough to be graced by the presence of a very loud rooster who lives in San Jose la Noria (my colonia). This rooster never sleeps and can be heard at all hours of the day, like this morning at 6:00 am for instance. I guess it´s his job. On top of the rooster, I also have my very own parakeet named Quicho. The first day I had moved in, I came to discover he likes to cat call passers by by whistling at them. He also has a very colorful vocabulary of swear words he likes to use. (I´m pretty sure my abuela taught him.)

All of these sounds have opened my eyes to the colorful culture that exists in Oaxaca. However, my very favorite sound by far is the gasoline truck that drives through the streets every day blaring a noise that sounds distinctly like a distressed cow. I´m sure I will come to recognize other sounds throughout my stay. Apparently the locals are able to recognize which people sell the best baked goods by the songs they play from their little vehicles as they pass through the neighborhood.