Oaxaca Textiles, Craft + Culture Tour with Taos Wools January 2026
This January 8-15, 2026 program is more than a tour. It includes weaving and natural dyeing for workshops, a visit to artisan markets, and studio visits to meet makers. Immerse yourself in all that Oaxaca has to offer with travel and hands-on experiences. We are partnering with Joseph Barry and Taos Wools, located in Arroyo […]
News and Updates: A Brief Report
Good morning, everyone. I’m still in Taos and won’t be returning to Oaxaca until just before Day of the Dead. So, far, it’s been a whirlwind of a summer. Hot, dry, filled with non-stop activities and I’m holed up now, taking it easy. I’ve hosted my son’s 50th birthday party, joined a reunion of Chiapas […]
Artist Hollie Taylor Creates Frida Kahlo Retablos
At Casa Azul in Coyoacan, Mexico City, one of the largest collections of folk art ex-votos (also called retablos) hangs along with pre-Columbian art and memorabilia collected by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. They were avid supporters of artists who had no formal training but who represented the naive, populist art of Mexico. Ex-votos are […]
Travel Oaxaca’s Natural Dye Textiles + Weaving Trail: One-Day Study Tour
We introduce you to weavers of wool, cotton and silk who work with organic natural dyes. This one-day educational study tour gives you in-depth knowledge about the artisanal process for making hand-woven cloth using sustainable technologies. We visit home studios and workshops to meet some of Oaxaca’s outstanding weavers in this curated day trip. See […]
Oaxaca Women’s Creative Writing Retreat Gives Voice to Lee Schwartz
Minerva Rising Literary Journal just published a piece written by Lee Schwartz on their blog that I want to share with you. Her voice is stunning, real, painful and alliterative. I love listening to her descriptions and following her words on the page. What she writes about has universal truth and especially resonates for me. Lee […]
Oaxaca Faces: Photographs Up Close and Personal
Yesterday, Janet and I went to Cafe Brujula (the compass), a great little spot on Garcia Virgil that roasts its own beans. This before she went off to work in the morning, and I went out and about for a day filled with errands. Some debate which is better, Cafe Brujula or Nuevo Mundo. You will […]
Penland Travel Adventures: Exploring the Textile Traditions of Oaxaca
November 4-10, 2013 — 6 nights, 7 days of cultural immersion and discovery! Click Here for Registration Form. Spaces open with full payment. Questions? Call Norma Hawthorne at 919-274-6194 or send an email [email protected] Penland School of Crafts, an international center for craft education located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, was founded on the […]
Happy Holidays, Discounts and Taking a Break
Felices fiestas de la temporada: Hanukkah feliz, feliz Navidad y feliz Año Nuevo. Happy celebrations of the season! I am in Santa Cruz, California now and will have lunch today with Debbie Mayfield and Bella Jacque, two Day of the Dead Photography Expedition participants. Bella is coming back to Oaxaca in February with her sister to […]
Guelaguetza Photography Workshop in Oaxaca, Mexico
7 nights, 8 days, July 26-August 2, 2013. Our Guelaguetza Photography Workshop gives you an opportunity to capture indigenous folkloric traditions and build upon your photography skills. Guelaguetza is a magical time in Oaxaca when indigenous people come to the city from throughout the rural areas of the state adorned in their finest handmade traje (indigenous dress). On […]
Jean Paul Gaultier, Bad Boy of Fashion, Madonna and the Virgin of Guadalupe
In 2007, French fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier introduced his Spring/Summer 2007 Haute Couture Collection – Virgins on the Paris runway. It was controversial, ethereal, and evocative, garnering applause and criticism throughout the world. This week I saw this collection, along with others on exhibition […]
Oaxaca: Beauty is Everywhere — And It’s Safe, Too
Oaxaca is beautiful and safe, says Elliot Stoller, who visited in December 2011. He recently wrote to me and ordered the self-guided tour map of Teotitlan del Valle to prepare for his trip next year. Elliot’s photos are so beautiful that I want to share them with you (with his permission, of course). And his […]
Where To Go Next? Oaxaca, Of Course!
Oaxaca Cultural Navigator is your GO TO source for value-added, budget travel that combines educational workshops, cultural immersion and travel. Where to Go Next, an online travel magazine that features travel news, information and resources, including advice and tips, has just recommended Oaxaca Cultural Navigator. Check it out!
New Oaxaca Workshops in the Works
Behind the scenes, we’re busy! I’ve talked with writers, artists, and designers about new workshops to offer in Oaxaca in 2012. I’m happy to say we are in the final planning stages for the following programs: Making handmade books and journals with Lisa Gilbert. We’ll go to the paper studio in San Agustin Etla to see […]
Witness For Peace in Oaxaca Works for Sensible Policy
Tonight, Stephen and I are going to hear a Witness for Peace (WFP) presentation at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Church in Chapel Hill (106 Purefoy St.) about their work in Oaxaca. Tony Macias is one of four WFP team members in Oaxaca and former assistant director of North Carolina Student Action with Farmworkers. He […]
Leaving Oaxaca: Notes, Lists, Preparations
For the past two days I have been preparing for the trip back to the U.S. Taking it slow. Doing laundry. Meandering the village. Saying goodbye to friends. I forget that even under an overcast sky clothes will dry on the rooftop line in several hours. It’s easy to gather them up before the afternoon […]
Oaxaca Festivals: Dance of the Feather, Teotitlan del Valle 2011
One of the great Oaxaca festivals is the Dance of the Feather in Teotitlan del Valle — a must-see for every Oaxaca resident and tourist. It is a story of honor, conquest, survival and endurance. As a dance, its roots are pre-Hispanic and with most rituals and traditions in Oaxaca, it has evolved to blend […]
Oaxaca Photography in Teotitlan del Valle
What an incredible photography and cooking class day with Reyna Mendoza Ruiz at her family home. El Sabor Zapoteco is the cooking class program. And we did so much — photographing each other doing the food preparation in the traditional ancient Zapotec way, making mole rojo, the traditional fiesta mole of Teotitlan. The photography expedition […]
Oaxaca, Mexico to Host 2011 North American Textile Conservation Conference
When you travel to Oaxaca, Mexico this coming November, be sure to stop in to visit the Museo Textil de Oaxaca. Arts and educational programs are scheduled during the North American Textile Conservation Conference from November 8-11, 2011. (Consider attending our Day of the Dead Photography Expedition as a pre-conference cultural immersion.) “Plying the Trades […]
Writer’s Guide to Reading in Public: 8 Tips
Writers are solitary, work in silence, and are often intimidated by the daunting prospect of reading their work in public. Robin Greene, MFA, the leader of our Women’s Creative Writing and Yoga Retreat attributes this fear to our collective wish to “get it right and not make mistakes.” She says that imperfection is what makes […]
I’ve Been Gone for a While, Immersed in Poetry, Vocal Yoga, Temescal, and the Joy of Being With Creative Women
We began each day last week with yoga at eight o’clock in the morning, arising to rooster crows, the beat of the loom next door, the bark of the dog upstairs, the donkey brays. There were eleven of us — all women, joining together to lift our voices through the written word, through the sonorous […]
DSLR Camera Shopping for Novices: Oaxaca Summer 2011 Photo Expedition
Yesterday, I had a question from a novice photographer interested in attending the Summer 2011 Oaxaca Photography Expedition: Market Towns and Artisan Villages. This would be his first trip outside the United States and he does not own a DSLR camera. What should he buy based on what criteria? Some people love their Canons. Others […]
Robbins Photography and Summer 2011 Photo Expedition News
Sam and Tom Robbins, wife and husband art photographer team from Columbus, Ohio, are set to lead June 29-July 5 photo expedition in Oaxaca, Mexico. They were just featured in a Columbus, Ohio area newspaper. Read more in This Week News then contact [email protected] to inquire and register. Take a look at their website: robbinsx2.com