Oaxaca Immersion Trip 2025: We’re back from Oaxaca City, México!
Monday – First Full Day:
Our week began with a walk in the Jalatlaco neighborhood. This is one of my favorite spots in the city, as there are so many beautiful murals and colorful streets to get lost in.
In the afternoon, we met up with Karla from Hotel Con Corazón for a cooking class. We walked to the market to pick up fresh ingredients to make memelas and salsas together, and then shared in a delicious meal of authentic Oaxacan flavors. This activity is always a hit – there’s something so special about learning about a culture through food, preparing a meal with your own hands, and then enjoying the fruits of your labor – all while in good company. 🙂
Tuesday – Spanish Classes & Free Day:
Travelers started the day with an individualized Spanish class, which allows everyone to focus on their own goals – whether you want to strengthen the basics or work on advanced grammar and conversation.
And that’s it! After class, we had a free day. This time is important not only to customize the experience, but also for rest. Travelers can recharge and take a break from group activities or explore the city and practice the language on their own. It’s an opportunity to customize the experience! Our group decided to visit the market and grab lunch together before eventually splitting off for some free time.
Wednesday: Hierve el Agua y Tour de Mezcal
Wednesday morning we visited Hierve el Agua and hiked up and down the mountain. Our guide talked to us about the natural landscapes, petrified waterfalls, and the flora and fauna in the area. At the end of the hike, we had some time to relax in the natural pools and enjoy the mountain views.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at a mezcal distillery and learned about the production process, not complete without a little taste testing. Aaannd — who’s brave enough to eat the scorpions at the bottom of the mezcal bottle?!?!?! My travelers, that’s who!!!
Thursday – Spanish Class, Alebrijes, Black Clay Pottery:
Travelers had another Spanish class on Thursday morning. Usually, the afternoon would be more free time, but I had a very adventurous group this year! Instead, we visited a few towns outside of Oaxaca City. We made a stop in San Martin Tilcajete to watch artisans at work creating alebrijes of all shapes and colors. One artist works on designing the creature, another carves the wood, another repairs the wood, and another paints. The alebrijes are sometimes fantastical creatures and sometimes real animals. Our guide shared what our alebrijes would be according to the Zapotec calendar. Mine would be a mix of a monkey and a turtle – look up the meaning of those two animals and tell me what you think. 😉 It was such an incredible experience to see the artisans at work; the level of detail on the hand painted alebrijes is amazing!
Afterwards we visited the town San Bortolo Coyotepec, which is known for its black clay pottery. We had a tour of the workshop Casa Isaura to see the process and then participated in a pottery class ourselves, complete with pancitos, chocolate, y mezcal. 🙂 It was a nice way to do something creative and hands-on as a group.
Friday – Monte Albán & Lunch with our Spanish Teachers
And just like that – it was already Friday, the last day of the trip. We took a guided tour of Monte Albán first thing in the morning. Monte Albán is an archaeological site of one of the earliest cities in Mesoamerica complete with temples, plazas, houses, tombs, astronomical observatory, and even a ball court. We learned about the ingenuity and legacy of the Zapotec people while surrounded by mountain views.
To end the program, we had a lunch with our Spanish teachers, a free afternoon, and then the final dinner with our group of travelers. The lunch with teachers was an opportunity to spend time with them in a more casual, social setting outside the classroom. During dinner we shared memories from the week – whether that be “aha!” moments of language learning or a favorite moment during our time together.
If you spent the week with me in Oaxaca this past October 2025 – THANK YOU for being part of this incredible experience! What a wonderful week we had together. ♡ It’s difficult to recap a week of memories in one blog post, but I did my best! What did I miss?
If you’re considering joining a future immersion program, make sure to subscribe to updates. I’m currently brainstorming programs for 2026 to continue facilitating moments of language learning, cultural immersion, and human connection. ♡
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