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Why Travel With Us: Help sustain 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 Connection and 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
Tell us how we can put a program together for you! Send an email norma.schafer@icloud.com
PRESS
- WEAVE Podcast: Oaxaca Coast Textiles & Tour
- NY Times, Weavers Embrace Natural Dye Alternatives
- NY Times, Open Thread–Style News
- NY Times, 36-Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico
Our Favorites
- Cooking Classes–El Sabor Zapoteco
- Currency Converter
- Fe y Lola Rugs by Chavez Santiago Family
- Friends of Oaxaca Folk Art
- Hoofing It In Oaxaca Hikes
- Living Textiles of Mexico
- Mexican Indigenous Textiles Project
- Museo Textil de Oaxaca
- Oaxaca Lending Library
- Oaxaca Weather
- Taller Teñido a Mano Natural Dyes
The New York Times 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico Back-story
Freda Moon, travel writer for The New York Times, contacted me on July 29, 2011 to say she was working on a feature about Oaxaca. Travel information about the city hadn’t been updated at the NY Times since 2007 and Freda thought it was about time. Her editor agreed! Freda was leaving for Oaxaca the next week, found this website/blog during her research, liked our in depth coverage, and asked me to offer suggestions for new favorite places on the city scene.
During her time in Oaxaca, Freda discovered spots I hadn’t even heard about (including those mescal venues that become lively long after my bedtime). At my suggestion, she connected with Brown University linguistic anthropologist Liza Bakewell, author of Madre: Perilous Journey with a Spanish Noun and they talked about city life.
Now, it’s nearly impossible, as many of the commenters to the article have said, to cover all that is wonderful in Oaxaca and village environs in 36 hours. The two Puertos on the coast (Escondido, Angel), Juchitan, the Sierra Mixteca (and more) all offer unique and extraordinary experiences. Three weeks would be more like it. Or even 36 weeks! Freda could not have included everything in her short article — either all my suggestions or those made by others!
So in a series of posts to come, I’m going to share with you what I shared with Freda Moon, starting with my favorite restaurants.
Disfruta! Enjoy!
And, if you love Oaxaca, please share The New York Times 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico on your Facebook page and via email. The indigenous people and artisans of Oaxaca will love and appreciate you for it! They depend upon tourism for their major source of income.
Oaxaca Safety: It’s also important to read the COMMENTS section on Freda’s article to hear first hand about how Oaxaca is SAFE and inviting — heard from visitors who have come back here many times and those of us who live here.
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Posted in Books & Resources, Clothing Design, Cultural Commentary, Textiles, Tapestries & Weaving
Tagged 36 Hours, art, blogsherpa, culture, Freda Moon, Mexico, Oaxaca, The New York Times, travel