March 5: The morning began with the weekly walk up the Cerro de Fortin hill above town. Several hours later, we traveled just 10 miles outside Oaxaca to the famous ruins of Monte Alban. At one time, perhaps 30,000 Zapotecs lived here, second only to the Aztecs in Mexico. We had an reserved but very informed guide, who kept re-iterating that the Zapotecs lived in harmony with their local environment, had an excellent calendar (though not apparently based on 365 days) and an astronomical observatory that lined up with the longest and shortest days of the year. Also, one of the famous Mexican "ball courts," where the natives played a game with a rubber ball on a sunken rectangular court.

Cristina, Jackie, John, Roy atop Cerro de Fortin.