I’m on the Shinkansen to Kyoto at this moment, but I want to report on attending the major national handmade paper show held yesterday in Tokyo. It was four floors of all things paper, and related items. We saw everything from glittery, textured, screen printed papers to stickers, paper thread for tying packages, vintage paper postcards and trims, to silkscreened tote bags, pins, keychains, handkerchiefs and neck scarves. The aisles were packed and Annie and I were the only Anglos. The experiences was spectacular and exhausting.
My friend Nancy Craft, a Japan travel expert who is helping us plan the itinerary for our October 2025 folk art and textile tour, suggested we go. Don’t forget to tell me if you are interested in this trip. We are taking list now.
Gift wrapping is an important part of the culture here. It is as or more important than the gift. There is ceremony in gifting. No one would ever think of putting a gift in a paper bag and typing the handle with a bow (which is something I have done with frequency). I suspect that even a humble gift is elevated to importance when the giver has taken the time to wrap and decorate it.
Here are a few photos of our experience. Most of the expo goers were young women between the ages of twenty and forty-five. Many were toting babies.
We checked in to the Hotel Metropolitan last night after landing at Narita. It was an almost 11 hour flight during which I dozed some. It took over four hours to go through customs, immigration, get yen from the ATM, figure out directions to get from the airport to Tokyo Station and the hotel in Maronouchi. The train took almost an hour. And then we walked and walked to find the exit! Tired, we opted for a taxi to take us three blocks for 900 yen.
I slept nine and a half hours last night. Hallelujah.
we needed coffee this morning and opted to stay in the hotel for the buffet breakfast and unlimited cups.
Here is the amazing breakfast.
We kept going back for more. If we do nothing else today, it is perfect. So healthy. So delicious. Ouishi!
Good morning from Denver. I’ve got my ticket to Oaxaca for Day of the Dead, arriving on October 21 and staying for three weeks. Like many of you, I like to be home with my family for the winter holidays. I plan to participate in the Teotitlan del Valle photography workshop led by Luvia Lazo. She is an award-winning photographer, recognized in The New Yorker Magazine and Vogue for her interpretation of village life. I’m excited because I’ve known Luvia since she was a very young woman who was just getting started. She has a keen eye that notices the juxtapositions of composition and I’m confident that she will teach us how to see people and place in different and innovative ways. BTW, you don’t have to be a photographer to participate. Our only requirement is curiosity!
Today is my last appointment with my surgeon who performed the spinal fusion surgery. I’m hoping for a clean bill of health on the road to recovery. I’ll keep you posted about the outcomes. This is one reason I haven’t been writing much. The surgery and related recuperation was much more intense than I ever expected and I’ve been completely focused on the process of getting better in time for my departure to Japan for two weeks on Friday, September 6.
I’m excited. Japan has become one of my favorite countries and this will be my second visit. I’m traveling with friends who have been there nine times! As I write, they are on a six-day hike through geological formations along the southern coast. They are covering ten miles a day. I can now manage two miles walking at a slow pace with two hiking poles for support!
This is going to be a research trip for me. Eric and I are planning Japanese Folk Art and Textile Tour for Oaxaca Cultural Navigator in late October 2025, if all things align. We will focus on pottery, indigo dyeing, temple markets, sashiko embroidery stitching, and exploring food and culture. We are working with our friend Nancy Craft, Conde-Nast Japan Travel Expert, to assist us in building an itinerary and securing all the logistics to make a trip like this possible.
My Question: Would you like me to report on what I discovered on this Japan trip that starts Friday with intermittent blog posts? Would you be interested in this?
As ever, thanks for reading. All my best, Norma
This is a Sashiko embroidered hat made by Keiku in Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, in the Hida region of central Japan. She works on indigo dyed cloth, much of which is vintage. I will visit her with the hope that we can include a hands-on experience for our October 2025 tour. I’m meeting her on the east side of the Red Bridge and she will take us to her home in the historic district, where she has her studio. It’s been a back-and-forth arranging this private visit. Keiku doesn’t speak English and I’ve been communicating with her son Atsushi, who lives in the USA with the help of my friend Svetlana, a textile installation artist.
Why Travel With Us: Help sustain regenerative traditions.
We know the culture! This is our land! We are locally owned and operated.
Eric Chavez Santiago is tri-lingual --Spanish, English, Zapotec.
Eric was founding director of education, Museo Textil de Oaxaca + folk art expert
Norma Schafer has lived in Oaxaca since 2005.
Norma is a seasoned university educator.
We have deep connections with artists and artisans.
63% of our travelers repeat -- high ratings, high satisfaction.
Wide ranging expertise: textiles, folk art, pottery, cultural wisdom.
We give you a deep immersion to best know Oaxaca and Mexico.
We organize private travel + tours for museums, arts, organizations, collectors + appreciators.
Creating Connectionand Meaning between travelers and with indigenous artisans. Meet makers where they live and work. Join small groups of like-minded explorers. Go deep into remote villages. Gain insights. Support cultural heritage and sustainable traditions. Create value and memories. Enjoy hands-on experiences. Make a difference.
What is a Study Tour: Our programs are learning experiences, and as such we talk with makers about how and why they create, what is meaningful to them, the ancient history of patterning and design, use of color, tradition and innovation, values and cultural continuity, and the social context within which they work. First and foremost, we are educators. Norma worked in top US universities for over 35 years and Eric founded the education department at Oaxaca’s textile museum. We create connection.
OCN Creates Student Scholarship at Oaxaca Learning Center Giving back is a core value. Read about it here
Meet Makers. Make a Difference
Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC has offered programs in Mexico since 2006. We have over 30 years of university, textile and artisan development experience. See About Us.
Programs can be scheduled to meet your independent travel plans. Send us your available dates.
Arts organizations, museums, designers, retailers, wholesalers, curators, universities and others come to us to develop artisan relationships, customized itineraries, meetings and conferences. It's our pleasure to make arrangements.
Select Clients *Abeja Boutique, Houston *North Carolina Museum of Art *Selvedge Magazine-London, UK *Esprit Travel and Tours *Penland School of Crafts *North Carolina State University *WARP Weave a Real Peace *Methodist University *MINNA-Goods *Smockingbird Kids *University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
October 27, 28, 29: DAY OF THE DEAD PHOTO WORKSHOP in Teotitlán Del Valle with Luvia Lazo, featured in The New Yorker Magazine. Portraits and Street Photography, recipient of Leica Women Foto Project Award Winner 2024. This is an insider's Street and Portrait photography experience. We visit families in their homes to arrange photo sessions, we take you on the back streets where tourists rarely go.
October 30: Bucket List Day of the Dead Immersion in Teotitlan del Valle A one-day immersion into culture, traditions, and meaning. Build an altar. Gather altar decor at the special market. Savor a homemade tamale lunch. Taste mezcal. Visit artisans. Dye a special textile. Register FAST.
December 6-14: Oaxaca Textile Tour and Workshopsincluding dye and weaving workshops, Tlacolula market and spinning village visits, plus lots more. With Fiber Circle Studio, Petaluma, California. Registration open!
January 11-17, Deep Dive Into Oaxaca: Cooking, Culture + Craft.Take a cooking class and printmaking workshop, visit artisan studios, weavers, potteries, eat street tacos, taste artesanal mezcal, shop at markets, explore the depths.
February 6-15:Guatemala Textile Study Tour: Cloth and Culture. Discover Antigua, Lake Atitlan and Panajachel, Chichicastenango Market, and visit Coban where they weave fine gauze cloth called pikbil. SOLD OUT
March 12-17: Deep Into the Mixteca Alta: Oaxaca Textile + Folk Art Study Tour 2025. This is cultural immersion at its best! Following the Dominican Route, we visit potteries, churches, Triqui weavers working in natural dyes, a cooperative in Tijaltepec that makes smocked blouses, the expansive Tlaxiaco Saturday Tianguis. Experience another side of Oaxaca.
October: Japan Folk Art and Textile Tour. Get on the Interested List. Details to Come. Email us.
Oaxaca has the largest and most diverse textile culture in Mexico! Learn about it.
When you visit Oaxaca immerse yourself in our textile culture: How is indigenous clothing made, what is the best value, most economical, finest available. Suitable for adults only. Set your own dates.
One-Day Tours: Schedule When YOU Want to Go!
Ruta del Mezcal One-Day Tour.We start the day with pottery, visiting a master, then have lunch with a Traditional Oaxaca Cook who is the master of mole making. In Mitla, we meet with our favorite flying shuttle loom weaver, and then finish off with a mezcal tasting at a palenque you will NEVER find on your own! Schedule at your convenience!
Teotitlan del Valle Map with select rug weavers, restaurants, village attractions
Tlacolula Market Map -- where to find food, shopping, ATMs, and more
Our Favorite Things to Do in Oaxaca -- eating, shopping, gallery hopping + more
We require 48-hour advance notice for orders to be processed. We send a printable map via email PDF after your order is received. Please be sure to send your email address. Where to see natural dyed rugs in Teotitlan del Valle and layout of the Sunday Tlacolula Market, with favorite eating, shopping, ATMs. Click Here to Buy Map After you click, be sure to check PayPal to ensure your email address isn't hidden from us. We fulfill each map order personally. It is not automatic.
