Here's an easy recipe for a dessert we've made at a school a number of times. Advanced students can use the Spanish version:

Cold Lime Pie

Ingredients

1 package of Maria-type¹ cookies
¾ cup of butter (softened)
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (300 ml)
1 package of regular Philadelphia Cream Cheese (250 gr)
½ cup of fresh lime juice (never use concentrated lime juice!)

Preparation

Grind the cookies in food processor to a powder and mix them with the butter into a dough. If you think the dough is too dry you may need to add more butter.

Cover the pie mold with the dough and put it in the freezer for 10 minutes to harden.

Put the cream cheese, condensed milk and lime juice in food processor at high speed until mixture is smooth and creamy. Pour mix into the hardened pie crust. Even out the mix on the crust.

Put it in the freezer for at least 3 hours. And switch it to the fridge 30 minutes before serving.

¹Maria is a type of cookie you should be able to find at any grocery that carries Latin American or Spanish products

Pay Frío de Queso y Limón

Ingredientes

1 paquete de galletas marías
1 1/2 barra de mantequilla (ponla en una taza en el microondas por 20 segundos para suavisarla)
1 paquete de 80 gm. de queso philadelphia
1 lata de la lechera
1/3 vaso de jugo de limón

Se muelen las galletas y se le añade la mantequilla suavisada y se revuelven hasta hacer una pasta suave. Ahora forras el molde con esta pasta (trata de apretar con una cuchara para que quede firme y sin ningún hoyito. Mete en el congelador para que se vaya endureciendo, y espera 10 minutos. Luego en la licuadora mezclas el queso philadelphia, la lechera y el jugo del limón, una vez que apagues la licuadora inmediatamente vacíalo sobre la base del pay endurecido y con una cuchara trata de emparejar dentro del molde. Ahora mételo por 3 horas en el congelador y cuando los saques sírvelo con un vaso de leche fría.

No, it's not a Volkswagen advertising campaign. When you see "VW" logo on a Oaxaca city bus, it refers to the Volkswagen dealership, northeast of the city center (the VW logo on this map):

Click map to see full size image
Map © 2009 Económica Rent-a-Car, Puerto Escondido

So, if the bus has the VW logo on the windshield, that means it goes past the Volkswagen dealership. However, Oaxaca city buses list all the destinations on their entire route so, depending on where you catch the bus, it may have already passed Volkswagen on its way downtown. Volkswagen is a major transfer point: buses to Tule, Tlacolula and Mitla all stop just across the street from Volkswagen, next to the baseball stadium.

Another potentially confusing bus destination is Central (see map), which doesn't mean the "Centro", or city center but, rather, the Central de Abastos area where the second-class bus station is. To add to your confusion, many buses will say both Central and Centro, which means they pass through downtown (usually near the zócalo) on their way to Central.

The Chedraui supermarket (see map), southeast of the city center, is another common bus destination: you'll see that on a lot of buses. If you are heading to some of the towns east of the city (Tule, etc.), you should be able to catch a bus directly to your destination anywhere along the Periférico or ring road, between Central and Chedraui.

Hi everybody, sorry it's taken us so long to update the blog, January is always busy, busy, busy. Hope you all had a fantastic holiday.

Just wanted to take a moment to talk about a wonderful organization we've started partnering with here in Oaxaca, Estancia Fraternidad.

What the Estancia does is offer housing to the families of patients undergoing long-term hospital treatments, and often to the patients themselves once they're out of hospital. Poor people often have to come long distances for treatment in Oaxaca City, because there are no adequate medical services in their own communities. The patients' families often know no one in the city, and can't afford expensive rental accommodation for the duration of the treatment.

Beyond the obvious financial assistance, the Estancia provides a welcoming, caring atmosphere for families who are going through an emotionally wrenching time. During these tough economic times, your donations are especially appreciated. You're also welcome to visit the Estancia and see the work they do in person, see their website for more details.

In the past few years, there has been no shortage of reporting about Oaxaca. However, much of that press coverage has been at best ill-informed or, at worst, downright hysterical. As is often the case, the most incisive political commentary has come not from the press but from Oaxaca's contemporary artists.

Demián Flores' "Aztlán", 2008

Demián Flores is an internationally-reknowned Oaxacan artist who is famous for incorporating elements of Mexican folklore into his work. Wrestling, that most Mexican of "sports", is a recurring theme in his work, as are "found" images of such political heroes as Benito Juárez and Emiliano Zapata.

Flores' recent series "Oaxaca" addresses some of Oaxaca's recent socio-political issues with a much-needed dose of humor.

For more info see demianflores.com

To continue our series on Oaxacan street food, we turn to the hamburger:

The Oaxacan version is probably a little different than what you're used to at home. For one thing, hamburgers here always come with a thin slice of jamón, which isn't literally "ham" but more like "luncheon meat". Along with the usual condiments like lettuce, mustard and ketchup, you get slices of jalapeño pepper. A common variation is the Hawaiana which, like the Hawaiian pizza, comes with pineapple. They usually come with cheese, like a nice slice of manchego.

There are hamburger carts everywhere, especially later in the evening. This picture was taken at our personal favorite: the Hamburguesas al Carbón stand on Avenida Universidad, near the Plaza del Valle shopping center. There is a bit controversy as to whether the other, identical-looking stands around town with the same name are locations of the same "chain" or, merely impostors of the original.

In any case, wherever you try an authentic Oaxacan hamburger, you'll be glad you didn't go to McDonald's or Burger King!