Aldous Huxley visited in 1933, D. H. Lawrence lived there, and Nietzsche wanted to make it his home.
Oaxaca. Pronounced wa-ha-ca, it is Mexico's state capital, and a real gem. Set in a valley at 1500m, surrounded by the Sierra Madre Mountains, it is famous for its perpetual spring weather, historic buildings, rich Indian culture, good food and the locals' love of music and art.
Founded in 1521, this colonial city was declared a cultural heritage site by Unesco in 1987.
During the colonial era Oaxaca was known for its cochineal, cotton and clergy. Today it has an international reputation for its arts and crafts. The indigenous Indians, the Zapotecs and Mixtecs, have been renowned designers and artisans since the Zapotecs settled here in 500BC.
Even though Oaxaca has a population of half a million, it is an easy city to visit - it is a delightful city for walking, and is even a romantic city. On the one day, I spot a bride in the morning and, while enjoying an evening tipple in a delightful, walled garden, I watch a Frenchman at the next table slip a large diamond ring on to the finger of his future bride. I'm not surprised she says yes, especially if they spent the day ambling around the cobbled streets, admiring the colour-co-ordinated colonial buildings with courtyards showcasing local sculptures.
Perhaps they spent the afternoon in the zocalo, the central square, enjoying life like the Mexicans do, or been slurping the local mezcal, along with a lick of salt and a slice of lime, and munching grasshoppers sauted in garlic and onions.
There is such a marvellous mood in the zocalo, you can't help feeling positive. Mariachi bands fill the mountain air, flowering jacarandas shade the icecream stores selling a farrago of flavours, including cactus juice. Toddlers toying with helium-filled balloons waddle after pigeons as shoe shiners watch the colourful passing parade.
With the largest ethnic population in Mexico, the passing parade is always fun, especially because the Indians have been determined to keep their traditions. More than half the population still speaks the pre-Hispanic Zapotec language.
In 1524 Cortes complained it was difficult to contain the Oaxacans. This did not stop the Spanish building one of the new world's finest cathedrals. The Santo Domingo baroque cathedral is a work of art. This 16th-century extravaganza is extraordinarily ornate, but at the same time relatively simple in design. Aldous Huxley described it as "one of the most extravagantly gorgeous churches in the world". Elaborately carved, and primarily painted gold and white, the Santo Domingo is dominated by a three-storey gilded altar, topped with a sculptured band of cherubs playing the flute, cello, violin and harp.
The cathedral is spectacular, but Oaxaca is more famous for its markets, especially its Saturday market. However, I have to question this reputation, now there is a new market selling all sorts of wares including food, and an additional tourist market, the Mercado Benito Juarez.
This is indeed a tourist trap, with cheap, mass-produced goods and a fair share of thieves. Believe me, I have first-hand experience.
Much safer and much more authentic, and consequently much more enjoyable, are the weekly regional markets in nearby towns.
In the middle of the Octolan market, dipping fresh bread and sweet biscuits into hot, milky chocolate, sitting beside a big bowl of chrysanthemums and a bunch of fresh basil, I'm captivated by the comings and goings. Patrons are primarily Zapotecs, little people whose women wear shiny, long, black plaits. They chat happily as they bargain for mountains of dried chillis in all shapes and sizes, an essential ingredient for one of their favourite dishes, mole, the centrepiece of many a feast. (The other essential ingredient is chocolate.)
The locals savour icecreams served from tin tubs in wooden vats filled with ice and salt. Some of the Zapotec women are not much taller than the vats, but they are robust, especially the woman meandering with a breast-feeding baby tucked under one arm and a live turkey under the other.
Men strut along with huge baskets of bread, shaped like coffins and shrouded in cloth, balanced on their heads. Some carry big bunches of alfalfa, and gorgeous young women look a picture selling bundles of daisies, roses and gladioli.
The herbalist offers potions from big jars of herbs alongside the sign advertising Escritorio Publico Aqui, a reminder that many Mexicans are so poor they are illiterate.
The stall selling cosmic talismans and amulets has a special "Packaged Health Kit", consisting of a highly ornate cross 18cm high, a small cactus plant, a dozen tiny packets of potions, ominous-looking herbs and powders, a golden horse and lots of glitter reminiscent of Christmas tree decorations.
The nearby town hall is highly decorated. Vast murals painted by the highly regarded local artist Rodolfo Morales illustrate gold mining, sword- and knife-making, as well as flower-cultivation.
Until the mid-1990s, the Santo Domingo Octolan Convent was a prison where tourists could buy handicrafts made by the inmates. Through the generosity and foresight of Morales, it has since been restored as a museum displaying excellent local art and craft.
A philanthropic painter, Morales welcomes visitors to his studio, with windows opening on to apricot hibiscus, cerise and mauve bougainvillea, pink frangipani and exotic orchards.
Another famous muralist from Oaxaca, the Zapotec Rufino Tamayo, donated his beautiful collection of pre-Hispanic Aztec and Mayan artefacts to the city. Displayed at the charming Museo Rufino Tamayo, this superb collection also includes pre-Columbian artefacts.
By far the most outstanding collection is at the Museo Regional de Oaxaca in the renovated cloisters of the Dominican monastery. Vast stone passageways with vaulted brick ceilings lead to galleries with frescos, overlooking gigantic courtyards, and the newly planted cactus garden.
Artefacts of alabaster, glass, obsidian and pottery are displayed along with the armoury of the conquistadores, traditional medicines, ancient musical instruments, and tools for producing mezcal, the Oaxacan cousin of tequila.
The Museo Regional de Oaxaca also houses an astounding treasure trove unearthed in 1932 at the nearby Monte Alban, Mixtec tomb dating back to AD500. The exquisite gold jewellery and superbly detailed gold masks and breast plates are a delight to see and a real inspiration for Oaxacan artisans.
Just 10km outside Oaxaca, the Zapotecs began building Monte Alban, one of the first cities of Mesoamerica, in 500BC.
Even at the first glimpse, it is spellbinding. You can hardly believe your eyes. How on earth did the Zapotecs literally shave the top off the mountain, by hand, before they constructed a city which eventually housed 25,000 people? Built on a flat terrace, Monte Alban had palaces, astronomical observatories and large pyramids. Today, you can see numerous staircases, the market square and the ball court, as well as the remains of temples.
On the wall of the main square is The Palacio de los Danzantes, a strange bas-relief carving of "dancers". No one has defined these figures. Maybe they are medical specimens, sacrificial victims, slain enemies or even ball-game players?
Nor does anyone know why this thriving community began to collapse around AD700.
But the artistic legacy is thriving. Besides the major public collections in Oaxaca, the city has innumerable galleries exhibiting paintings and sculptures. Quaint shops sell locally made jewellery and crafts and courtyards are decorated with rugs for sale.
It is fun to window-shop, but even more entertaining is taking a car and driver for the day and touring the craft towns. This is an excellent opportunity to visit the artisans in their homes, where you not only see the best work, but have the chance to enjoy the best aspect of travelling in Mexico, meeting the extremely hospitable people.
Villages specialise in different crafts, including carpet and rug weaving and back-strap loom weaving. In Coyotepec, potters throw beautiful black shiny pots and ship them all over the world, packed in the traditional Indian fashion, in baskets.
The Tilcajete village has an international reputation for producing fine hand-painted, hand-crafted small, wooden figurines. Love was in the air when we visited this village too, and we toasted artisan Margarito Melchor Fuente's son with tequila, for he was getting married on the weekend.
CHECKLIST
When to go: Year round, as Oaxaca is renowned for its eternal spring-like climate.
Getting there: By car it's a 4 1/2 hr drive from Mexico City or six hours by bus - there are at least 10 buses a day. There are also several daily flights from Mexico City to Puerto Escondido. Return flights from Auckland to Mexico with Air Tahiti Nui and Delta Airlines go via Papeete and Los Angeles. Contact Flight Centre.
Getting around: Local town minibuses cost less than $1. Hire a guide with a driver and transport from 170 pesos ($29) an hour, depending on the number of people.
