Oaxaca Culinary and Cultural Adventure

Oaxaca Culinary & Cultural Adventure
September 23-October 2, 2016

Back by popular demand! Organized by Jewel Murphy ‘82, this will be an intimate experience for those who value travel and learning experiences that touch all the senses. Oaxaca is a world heritage site that is unlike any other Mexican city. Sitting in the south-central part of the country at an elevation of 5,000 feet, this is truly vibrant colonial city with a rich and textured heritage.   The group who went with Jewel in 2014 raved about their experience.

Highlights and costs include:
• Private lectures, tastings and hands on activities exploring the history and uses of corn and chilies.
• Visits to two different indigenous markets that are only slightly different from what the Conquistadores found when they first came to the Americas. Sample everything to be offered and prepare for tastebud overload!
• Visits to small, home based, local, women-owned food businesses. Get an authentic glimpse of life in rural Oaxaca and explore the countryside. Learn about microfinance. If we’re lucky, we’ll be able to help make tortillas or other traditional foods.
• Visits to archaeological sites and colonial churches where we’ll follow the unbroken thread of habitation from the first cities to the present day.
• Private cooking class with one of Oaxaca’s most renowned chefs. The opportunity to see first hand how mezcal is made including tastings!
• Most meals, including dining at many of Oaxaca’s finest restaurants. (Note we have allowed for two dinners on your own so that you may sample at your leisure from Oaxaca’s many offerings or we can arrange a dinner at the casa for you) Also included, homecooked, traditional meals at the casa and the best of local street food. Enjoy Alice Waters and Rick Bayless’s favorite places to eat in Oaxaca.
• Highly charming, entertaining, and educated English-speaking guides during most excursions. We have gathered some of the best guides in the region who can speak to the cultural history, politics, economy, food, and art of the region.

Full itinerary by our fearless leader, Jewel Murphy ’82.

Accommodations:
• Nine nights lodging at one of Oaxaca’s most charming bed & breakfast operations–home to a tropical garden, a fantastic folk-art collection, and a wonderful library. This is a very special place to stay where you will feel pampered and taken care of.

Cost $2,395 per person.  Note: This is a small customized tour limited to a maximum of 10 participants (single supplement $300) that includes lodging, airport transfers, ground transportation, some meals, classes, and tours.

Tour cost does not include:
• Airfare or transportation to Oaxaca
• Gratuities or tips (which we encourage for guides and hotel staff)
• Alcoholic beverages (except during mezcal tastings)
• Shopping, personal, and other incidental expenses (note that we’ll have lots of opportunities to shop and there will be lots of temptation)

NOTE: There is a possibility of a four day post program add on for those who want to spend four relaxing days on the coast and studying tropical permaculture and local eating in a very beautiful, off-the-grid, hand-built cabin about 300 feet above the Pacific Ocean.

optional 4 day add on where
we travel to the coast and relax and  study tropical permaculture and local eating in a very
beautiful, off the grid, handbuilt cabin 300 feet above the Pacific Ocean?

For additional information or to register, contact alumni@reed.edu.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.