Centuries ago the indigenous people of Mexico created a unique and magnificent culture, one which endures to the present day. Nowhere is this more visible than in the incomparable color and excitement of Mexican fiestas and religious observances.
We’ll start off with a visit to Oaxaca, to the creators of the incomparable folk art of Mexico, where we’ll spend five nights in this delightful small Mexican city. Here we’ll visit many of the homes of the most famous artisans in Oaxaca, where we’ll have demonstrations and discussions about the pottery, wood, and wool art they create, while we become familiar with the delicious foods and colorful ambiance of colonial Mexico.
This trip has been planned to allow us to observe Carnival in the state of Chiapas. Our hotel will be in the small city of San Cristobal de las Casas, but much of our time will be in the villages which dot the steep mountainsides of the area. The villages of Tenejapa and San Juan Chamula, the most indigenous villages in Chiapas, hold spectacular Pre-lentan observances, which have their origins in both Prehispanic and Christian religious celebrations. These fiestas will be the highlight of our trip, and will be a wonderful culmination of our Mexican travel program.
Finally, we’ll visit the magnificent archeological site of Palenque, long hidden in the rain forests of lowland Chiapas, where we can study the Prehispanic Maya in a lovely hotel not far from the entire site and new archeological museum. And we’ll end our visit with one day in Villahermosa, in the state of Tabasco.
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Daughter of woodworking artist |
Itinerary (B = breakfast, L = lunch, D = dinner)
Day 1 | Saturday, February 14, 2009 (D)
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Arrive, Oaxaca
Visit to the public market and brief orientation tour, time permitting
Welcoming dinner
Overnight in Oaxaca, Hotel Marques del Valle
Day 2 | Sunday, February 15, 2009 (B, L)
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Breakfast on the Zocalo (town square)
Introduction to Oaxaca City, visit the public market and the local crafts market and museums
Lunch on the Zocalo
Drive to the remote and rural hillside village of La Union, home of several woodcarving families
Dinner on your own
Overnight at the Hotel Marques del Valle
Day 3 | Monday, February 16, 2009 (B, L)
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Woodworking artist painting her work in San Martin |
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Breakfast at the hotel on the Zocalo
Visit to the rug weaving village of Teotitlan del Valle for demonstrations of natural dyes, weaving and dying of wool, and decorated candle making
Lunch in the village at a local restaurant
Visit the village of Santa Maria de Tulle, home of a lovely small church, dwarfed by the magnificent Tulle tree in the courtyard
Dinner on your own
Overnight at the Hotel Marques del Valle
Day 4 | Tuesday, February 17, 2009 (B, L, D)
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Breakfast on the Zocalo
Visit the villages of San Martin (wood carving), Ocotlan (the home of Josefina Aguilar and wonderful pottery figures...we will visit all four of the Aguilar sisters) and stop in the black pottery village
of San Bartolo, where we’ll visit the former workshop of Doña Rosa
Picnic lunch on the bus
Dinner in Oaxaca with group
Overnight at the Hotel Marques del Valle
Day 5 | Wednesday, February 18, 2009 (B, L, D)
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Josefina Aguilar making her ceramic art |
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Breakfast on the Zocalo
Morning visit to the archeological site of Monte Alban
Afternoon visit to Arrazola to the home of Manuel Jimenez and his sons, the most famous wood carvers in Mexico
Lunch at the archeological site
Free afternoon
Farewell to Oaxaca dinner (restaurant Asador Vasco) & Mexican music
Overnight at the Hotel Marques del Valle
Day 6 | Thursday, February 19, 2009 (B, L, D)
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Breakfast on the Zocalo or at the airport
Fly to Tuxtla Gutierrez
Drive up the mountain to 7000 feet and the colonial city of San Cristobal
Brief walking tour if time permits
Dinner in the hotel
Overnight in San Cristobal, Hotel Ciudad Real, on the Zocalo
Day 7 | Friday, February 20, 2009 (B, L)
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Breakfast at the hotel
Walk around the city of San Cristobal, with visits to the public market, the women’s weaving and textile cooperative, the church of Santo Domingo, and the textile museum of Sergio Castro
Lunch at the hotel
Dinner on your own
Overnight at the Hotel Ciudad Real
Colonial city of San Cristobal
Day 8 | Saturday, February 21, 2009 (B, L, D)
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Breakfast at the hotel
Visit to the village of Zinacantan, noted for the distinct dress of the men and the flower embroidery of the women. The local hills and mountains are dotted with green crosses, each marking the abode of different gods of the earth.
We will be accompanied by Alejandro Arando.
Picnic lunch
Late afternoon visit to Na Balom, former home of Trudi and Franz Bloom, who are credited with bringing knowledge of the history and the contemporary lives of the Lacondon Indians to the world
Dinner at Na Balom
Overnight at the Hotel Posada Diego de Mazariegos
Day 9 | Sunday, February 22, 2009 (B, L)
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Colorful cemetery in the countryside of Chiapas |
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Visit to the Tzeltal-speaking village of Tenejapa, Sunday market day, with a stop at the local cooperative
Lunch in a local restaurant in San Cristobal
Afternoon free in San Cristobal
Dinner on your own
Overnight at the Hotel Ciudad Real
Day 10 | Monday, February 23, 2009 (B, L)
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Breakfast at the hotel
Travel to the village of Amantenango del Valle, a village noted for its pottery, fired in the Prehispanic method
Visit to other villages, including the cotton production village of Aguatenango, accompanied by Alejandro Aranda, who will explain the types of dress and other facets of each village
Picnic lunch
Dinner on your own
Overnight at the Hotel Ciudad Real
Chiapas market signs
Day 11 | Tuesday, February 24, 2009 Shrove Tuesday (B, L, D)
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Breakfast at the hotel
Full day in San Juan Chamula for Carnival. In San Juan Chamula, the Christian ceremonies are so interwoven with Prehispanic beliefs that it is difficult to know where one begins and the other ends. The ceremonies that mark the beginning of Lent are fascinating.
Middle afternoon drive down the mountain to Palenque (about 6 hours)
Dinner at the hotel when we arrive
Overnight at the Palenque Ciudad Real Hotel, Palenque
Day 12 | Wednesday, February 25, 2009 Ash Wednesday (B, L, D)
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Breakfast at our hotel
Morning tour of the famous archeological site of Palenque, one of the largest and most beautiful Mayan sites in the Mesoamerican world
Lunch at the hotel
Afternoon, return to the archeological site of Palenque or spend quiet time
at the hotel
Dinner at the hotel
Overnight at the Palenque Ciudad Real Hotel
Day 13 | Thursday, February 26, 2009 (B, L, D)
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Palenque temple |
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Breakfast at the hotel
Depart from Palenque, with visits to Agua Azul national park with magnificent blue waterfalls. We’ll arrive in Villahermosa in time to visit the La Venta Park with its enormous Olmec heads and lovely park-like setting with deer and other animals roaming freely.
Picnic lunch on the bus
Farewell dinner in Villahermosa
Overnight at the Hotel Tabasco Maya, Villahermosa
Day 14 | Friday, February 27, 2009 (no meals)
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Fly home from Villahermosa
• Note: This itinerary has been prepared months ahead of the actual trip. There may some very slight changes to take advantage of new opportunities.
• Note: There will be considerable walking required to see the villages and events included in this tour. The walking is not strenuous, but the streets are cobblestone and uneven.
Coordinators
Nancy Crow
Nancy is an artist. She first traveled to Mexico in the 1960s, and has fallen in love with this most beautiful and fascinating country. Nancy has been creating contemporary quilts for 28 years and maintains a large studio on her farm east of Columbus, Ohio. Her work has appeared on the covers of two of Maya Angelou’s books and is in the collections of the Museum of Arts & Design, Smithsonian American Art Museum, and The Museum of American Folk Art. She teaches worldwide and offers in-depth workshops on her farm in a recently renovated 1884 timber frame barn. Nancy was named a Fellow of the American Craft Council.
Vivian Harvey
The tour leader, Vivian B. Harvey, lived in Mexico for almost 20 years, and has traveled extensively throughout Mexico, Central America, and South America with university students, faculty members, teachers, artists, and groups of adults. Prior to moving to Mexico, she was Assistant Dean in the College of Human Ecology at The Ohio State University for ten years. Vivian is the Educational Programs Coordinator at the Cemanahuac Educational Community in Cuernavaca, Mexico. She works with college faculty members across the United States and Canada to establish cooperative academic programs with Cemanahuac for both graduate and undergraduate credit. Vivian's web site: www.vivianharvey.com
Nathaniel Stitzlein
Nathaniel is an artist who works with Nancy Crow on coordinating art trips to France, Mexico, South Africa, and Guatemala. They also work together to produce art workshops at the Crow Timber Frame Barn. Prior to organizing tours and classes, he was an admissions counselor for The Ohio State University. In addition, he studied ceramics in South Africa for a year and is a free-lance graphic designer.
Nathaniel's web site: www.artgrange.com
Fees
TRAVEL FEE: $3100 (twin) U.S. Funds Only
• Note: Add $450 for single supplement
• Sorry, credit cards are not accepted
This travel fee includes:
• All accommodations
• All breakfasts, all lunches, selected dinners (8)
• Land transportation
• Admission fees
• Tips and Guidance
This travel fee does NOT include:
• Roundtrip airfare from the USA/Canada/Europe to Mexico
• Airfare inside Mexico
• Departure tax and travel insurance
• Meals not included on the itinerary
• Personal expenses
Deadlines
Deadline for reservation and deposit of $600: As soon as possible - only a few spaces left!
• Deposit must be made by check.
• $200 is non-refundable unless trip is cancelled.
• $400 is refundable up to October 1, 2008.
• None of the deposit is refundable after October 1, 2008, unless trip is cancelled.
Deadline for remaining payment of $2500: November 1, 2008 (add $50 if paid after due date)
(add $450 for single supplement)
• Final payment is non-refundable, unless trip is cancelled.
All payments must be in US FUNDS ONLY! No credit cards
Questions? Please click here to send an e-mail
Please complete the form below & mail with your deposit:
Flight Information
All participants are responsible for making their own flight travel plans. We have made special arrangements with eXito, a company which specializes in offering low-cost airfare to Latin America. Full information will be sent to you at the time of registration.
We are not arranging for a group flight since people are coming from all over the United States/Canada/other countries and many use frequent flyer miles. There are easy and inexpensive taxis to the hotel in Oaxaca City, and we will make arrangements to accommodate various travel schedules.
It is not necessary to use eXito if you have a favorite travel agent or frequent flyer miles or want to make your arrangements on line, so please use a travel plan which fits best with your schedule and budget.
Please wait to make flight arrangements until the trip is confirmed.
Travel insurance is available from eXito or any travel agent.
No special visas are required, but a valid passport is necessary.
Participants should take the least expensive and easiest fights.
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Ken Johnson
eXito Latin America Travel Specialists
108 Rutgers Street
Fort Collins, CO 80525
Phone: (800) 655-4053 ext. 8531
World wide: (970) 482-3019 ext. 8531
Fax: (510) 868-8311
Email: Ken@exitotravel.com
Web: www.exitotravel.com
Artists Nancy Crow and Nathaniel Stitzlein and tour leader Vivian Harvey have organized a thirteen-day tour of southern Mexico that will focus on its unique arts, crafts, archeology, and spectacular religious ceremonies. This tour is open to anyone who wants to get away for a sunny exploration of wonderful artifacts in their natural setting.
This is the best of indigenous Mexico!
And we will be a part of it all!