Tianguis de Santa Tere

I went with a friend on Sunday morning to Tianguis de Santa Tere. I had to look up exactly what a tianguis is, because it differs from a mercado in a few important ways. 

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Here is a little information on this interesting and fun part of Mexican culture, courtesy of Wikipedia, Tianguis and Traditional Fixed Markets:

A tianguis is an open air market or bazaar that is held on a certain day(s) in a town or city neighborhood.

The main (and coolest) difference is that Tianguis were the main form of commerce of the Aztec Empire, and still function in much of the same way as they did in Mesoamerica. Mercados were later introduced as a way to regulate the pre Hispanic Tianguis, and are almost always set up in buildings owned and operated by the local government. 

As an interesting side note, one of the oldest continually operating tianguis in Mexico is the one in Cuautitlán, just outside of Mexico City, which has been going on every Tuesday for over 500 years.

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At Tianguis de Santa Tere, I came away with 2 cute head-wraps, a shirt, and a very cute, teeny-tiny plant that now goes by the name, Chiquita. Total amount spent: 70 pesos (about $5.50 USD).

"Chiquita"

Whether it's a Mercado or Tianguis, these places provide jobs/income for LOTS of people. While in Tlaquepaque, one group of tenants organized a protest of an impending building project designed to replace their existing market with a new commercial area with underground parking, among other things. I'm not sure what has happened since the protest, but I thought I'd share this video I took as they passed by.