Day 1. August 28th.
Arrive in Oaxaca. As flights will arrive at varied hours, we will plan no formal dinner. After settling in at Casa Oaxaca, which will be our home away from home for the tour, we will offer a walking tour of the city, and a margarita reception.
Day 2. August 29th.
(B,L,D )
In the morning, after breakfast, artist Claudia Martínez Vargas will demonstrate her techniques and present her work of collages and nichos in the interior patio of Casa Oaxaca. Afterward, we’ll visit the spectacular Church and Museum (former monastery) of Santo Domingo de Guzmán. After lunch, we'll visit the Museo Textil de Oaxaca (Oaxaca Textile Museum), with a personally guided tour by the Coordinator of Educational Services, Eric Chávez Santiago.
El Museo Textil, located in central Oaxaca in a beautifully restored 18th century building, is the only museum in Mexico dedicated exclusively to textiles.The remainder of the afternoon is free to explore the city (We will offer an optional walking tour of the famous Benito Juárez Market in the city center, and we will provide informational brochures with recommendations for museums, churches, shops, etc. for those who wish to strike off on their own.) For dinner, we will have a special welcome meal (including a mescal cocktail) at El Portal del Marques Restaurant on the Zocalo.
Day 3. August 30th.
(B,L,D)
After breakfast, we will head south of the city, stopping after 10 km. at Tlapanochestli , an independent cochineal farm and research facility in the town of Santa María Coyotepec. Cochineal is an insect cultivated on the nopal cactus, which when dried and ground provides a colorfast natural red dye, much in demand by the Zapotec weavers we will visit later in our tour. Silk worms, brown cotton and other plants used to make natural dyes are also cultivated here on a small scale. One of the goals of the facility is to educate people from the surrounding communities (including groups of children from local schools) in the cultivation and knowledge of cochineal and its different uses.
We will continue on to the nearby town of San Bartolo Coyotepec, famous for its black pottery. We will visit the Mueso Estatal de Arte Popular de Oaxaca (Oaxaca State Museum of Popular Art), where one large salon is dedicated specifically to the black pottery of San Bartolo Coyotepec. After a lunch of traditional Oaxacan cuisine at Casa Coyotepec, we will visit the homes/studios of two master potters (Magdalena Pedro Martínez and Fidel Martínez Martínez) and the more traditional workshop of Doña Sofía Reyes. We will return to Oaxaca for dinner.
Day 4. August 31st.
(B,L)
In the morning, we will explore the nearby Monte Albán archaeological site, the Zapotec ceremonial and market center, which 1,200 years ago was the first metropolis of America. Afterwards, we will visit the private home of Linda Hanna, an American expatriate who lives in a village 8 km northeast of the city, for a catered traditional regional meal.
For over a decade Linda has been cultivating and nurturing connections with the artists and artisans of Oaxaca, and her home is full of Mexican fine art and folk art. We will also be treated to a presentation by one of Linda’s favorite artists, Manuel Reyes.
From there we will drive a few kilometers east to visit the studio of painter Román Andrade Llaguno, who works with gouache on amate paper as well as oils on canvas. Free evening in Oaxaca. We will provide informational brochures with recommendations for museums, restaurants, etc.
Day 5. September 1st.
(B, L, D)
We will travel southeast of Oaxaca to the town and archaeological site of Mitla, founded by the Zapotecs in 100 B.C. The site is known for the precision of its construction and its geometric patterns, and 90 to 95% of the important structures are intact.
Then we will visit the nearby town of Tlacochahuaya and its Dominican church built in the 16th century, noted for its architecture and elaborately painted walls and ceilings. We will visit the town of Tule (with its famous and disputably largest tree in the world) for lunch at El Milenario, a local restaurant, for locals, featuring delicious regional cuisine. After lunch, we will return to Oaxaca and visit the studio of artist Humberto Batitsta.Batista's work includes assemblages built from natural and cultural artifacts, and abstract paintings.
Afterward, we will visit the Rufino Tamayo Museum, which houses the great Mexican artist's personal collection of prehispanic, colonial and modern art and artifacts. Dinner on the Zocalo.
Day 6. September 2nd.
(B, L, D)
In the morning we will again travel southeast of Oaxaca to the weekly market in Tlacolula, famous for its size and large variety of crafts, food and other items. We will also visit the local church in Tlacolula, built in the 16th century, and its special Chapel of the Martyrs. Returning towards Oaxaca, we will visit a palenque (a local, mini-distillery of mezcal) for a demonstration of the process of making mezcal. Then, we will have lunch in Teotitlán del Valle and visit the church and community museum, with local historian Zeferino C. Mendoza providing a glimpse into the past and present Zapotec culture; and yours truly, Armando and Craig, presenting a short history and explanation of the ritual La Danza de la Pluma. We will visit the workshop of local candle maker Sofía Ruiz for a demonstration of the making of traditional handmade ceremonial beeswax candles; and afterward we will visit the workshop of Zapotec master weaver Isaac Vásquez García and family, for a demonstration of the preparation of natural dyes and the entire weaving process, and be treated to the Vásquez family’s delicious Zapotec cuisine for dinner.
Day 7. September 3rd.
(B,D)
In the morning we will visit artist Enrique Flores González in Huitzo, 20 km north of the city. Flores González produces works of oils, watercolors, lithographs and engravings.
The afternoon is free in Oaxaca city – take a last stroll around the city center, visit any museums, galleries or shops still on your “list”, and say good-bye to any special places you've found.
In this, our last evening, we will have a gala dinner at Casa Oaxaca, sharing memories, musical entertainment and a meal prepared especially for us by Casa Oaxaca’s renowned chef, Alejandro Ruiz.
Day 8.September 4th.
(B)
Travel to Oaxaca airport and fly home.