Mexico
Seven moles simmer in a city where every wall is an altar to colour.
In the Pasillo de Humo the smoke does the advertising: butchers hand you tasajo and cecina straight over wood-fired grills, and the whole market eats standing in the haze. Oaxaca treats food as its first language.
Oaxaca's UNESCO-listed centre carries markets, museums and workshops through streets of saturated colour, and its kitchens command seven principal moles, from negro to manchamanteles. Chapulines, maguey worms and chicatana ants are part of the region's table, not a dare, and mezcal is its liquid heritage. Monte Albán and the craft villages of the Central Valleys turn the city into a strong multi-day base.
Solo
Eat your way through the markets stall by stall and build days around the valleys.
Couple
Split time between mole kitchens, courtyard museums and evening streets in full colour.
Friends
Share a mezcal education and a table big enough for all seven moles.
In the Pasillo de Humo, market butchers grill tasajo, cecina and chorizo over wood fires while you wait.
The city's kitchens command seven principal moles, with chapulines and chicatana ants part of the everyday table.

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