Traditions Mexico Cultural Journeys
5
全屏
相似体验
5.0
144 条点评
极佳
132
非常好
8
一般
1
较差
3
很糟糕
0
Deborah D
Eugene, Oregon26 条分享
2020年3月
This was my second tour with Traditions Mexico, and if I thought my first was the best ever, I was wrong. The Nouveau Maya Weavers Tour surpassed all my expectations. Based in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, the 8-day tour included traditional marketplaces, colorful and talented artisans, delicious meals, awe inspiring landscapes and so much more, including a living saint named Sergio Castro. Our guide, Ana Paula, was the consummate and tireless hostess. San Cristobal is a UNESCO heritage site, and Ana Paula made sure we had all the intel necessary to enjoy everything the small city had to offer when exploring on our own. Walking up and down the "pedestrian street" I discovered much traditional art as well as slow fashion, chocolates, coffee, ancient churches, regional fruits and delicacies, and the warmth of the people. (Of note – the sidewalks must be a throwback to the days of the pyramids as they are about 18 inches above the street!) The van trips into the small pueblos to see the artists at work are experiences one would never be able to have on their own. That is what makes a trip with Traditions Mexico so special. We, as a group were welcomed warmly by the artisans because of the relationships made by Traditions Mexico, and Ana Paula. She has studied with them and studied their craft. She understands their plight and is their fierce advocate. Every artisan had a smile and a hug for her, as did their beautiful children. I'll never forget the misty highlands, the smoky kitchens and homemade tortillas, the sounds of Tzotzil chatter, and the proud look on the faces of the artists. I am forever grateful for having had the opportunity to experience the Nouveau Maya weavers of the Chiapas highlands.
撰写日期：2020年4月5日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
rfruibt
7 条分享
2020年2月 • 夫妻情侣
We enjoy learning about the people and the cultures in the places where we visit. This tour allowed us to meet with the group who formed and supports a pottery alliance, and to learn about their history. Then we drove to Coyotepec and met with a wonderful family who have been potters for generations. They shared every step of their process and helped us to participate, question, and photograph all they did. There was NO pressure to buy, yet the pieces that we did buy were much less expensive than in town. And they were made by our new friends!
I was so delighted to be part of this experience, and to know that my fees went directly toward the people and community who we are visiting. Thank you for this opportunity!
I was so delighted to be part of this experience, and to know that my fees went directly toward the people and community who we are visiting. Thank you for this opportunity!
撰写日期：2020年2月8日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Eliza R
俄勒冈波特兰2 条分享
2020年1月
A terrific day. Antonio clearly has a passion for the artiseans we visited which made the visits even better. We visited four artists who took time to show us how they worked and had a wonderful lunch. I would recommend taking some extra pesos..... you'll want to do a bit of shopping after you see all of the effort that goes into the crafts.
撰写日期：2020年1月24日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Anthony J
2 条分享
2020年1月 • 夫妻情侣
The cultural traditions tour linked the tour participants to artisans in the Otaclan region. It was a great tour. Antonio, our tour guide was knowledgeable, humble and friendly. You could tell he has established a great relationships with the local artisans, by their conversations and body language. Seeing first hand the tools they use to make their wonderful art was astounding. And our lunch which was provided by Cocina de Frida, served by none other than Frida Kaloh herself was tasty and fun. A worthwhile experience I’d recommend to anyone. Tony Jones
撰写日期：2020年1月15日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Bob S.
5 条分享
2020年1月
As others have said, this tour was a highlight! Antonio is an exceptional guide: enthusiastic, respectful of the culture, informative, and a superlative English speaker and translator. Make sure your budget covers this special opportunity!
撰写日期：2020年1月10日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
SutherinComfort
俄勒冈科瓦利斯23 条分享
2019年10月
This tour was a shore excursion, booked with a local tour company by Holland America. It was outstanding! Only 18 people, A/C on bus, and a very wonderful well spoken guide. We went to 3 private gardens and had things to eat at 2 of them.
Hualtuco is a very impoverished area, although tourism and government intervention are working together toward improvements. The minimum wage, in a tourism related job is $7 per day. A hustling taxi driver in the city center might make $50 per day. Nearly everyone has 2-3 part time jobs.
In the past 12-15 years, the fishing community living near shore were moved to the mountains by the Mexican government. Naturally there was lots of argument and distress over that. The people were told it was for the betterment of the entire region, because 5 star hotels would be built on the fishermens' land. The result would be income into the region and the children would have more opportunities.
In compensation, the fishermen were given land, and they were told that their first 3 children would have birthrights to inherit the land. And, the first 3 children also would get a scholarships for higher education. The new landowners are called CommonLanders. They all had to learn how to become farmers to support their families. The mountainous areas they were moved to were dense rain forest.
In conjunction with that, a private company made an offer to farmers that successfully figured out their new lifestyles. The private company would build Bilapas (like big ramadas made out of hardwood, that have an interesting palm fronds thatched roof that only needs to be rethatched about every 15 years) on the farmers properties, and the Bilapas would have cement floors. These Bilapas are big, like open air patios maybe 20 x 25 feet big. Also chairs and tables would be provided. All of this if the families would welcome tourists to come see their gardens and maybe buy any crafts they made, or sample any foods they chose to offer.
Just making the Bilapas was a big deal because their construction is an old art form and builders of those could make $10,000 to $15,000 each, although construction of each could easily take several months. So that helped the community fairly quickly, bringing money into the families.
The first place we visited had a large homeopathic garden that was well established. I don't think this particular family began life as fishermen. The gardener had carefully planted medicinal, edible, and herbal organic plants and trees, and made signs for each that included the common name, the scientific name, and country of origin, and the uses. Of course the climate is densely tropical and steamy! It rained last night so humidity was thick. And there were lots of edible herbs as well, and cancer fighting plants, and many plants were familiar. He had a cinnamon tree, from which the bark is used. It smelled heavenly. There were citrus and avocado trees, and cacao (chocolate). And a vanilla bean plant. An almond tree had an enormous termite nest about 18" across. Our guide said it doesn't hurt the tree, but apparently termites are seasonal, so when they leave, parakeets move in and create their nest and raise their babies in the former termite house.
Next door to the garden was the Bilapa, and an Adobe room with a dirt floor. The Adobe room was the occupants first house 50 years ago. It is still in use, as a cooking room (sort of a kitchen) because it has a corregated metal roof protecting it. The owners have been married 50 years and the lady still, every day, makes 50-60 corn tortillas from corn she buys from her neighbor (they used to grow their own). She makes the tortillas for her family, and sells extras to the neighbors.
She grinds the corn on a metate with the rolling pin (I forget the name of it) but it weighs 8 lbs, is made from fossilized stone, and she received it as a wedding present from her mother, who received it as a wedding present from her mother.
She grinds the corn with a little water on the metate to make Masa. Then she takes a lump of the Masa dough and makes a ball. Then she puts it in her tortilla press and makes a perfect round flat tortilla. Then, next to her, was a stone waist-high hearth burning wood. On top of that was her Comal, which is essentially a bowl shaped cooking surface. It was round and shallow, about 24" across. She deftly flipped the raw tortilla onto the Comal, and after about a minute, flipped it over. A minute later she picked it up and placed it in a cloth-lined basket held by her son.
Then, we were each given 2 paper napkins, into which we took a steaming hot tortilla. Then the son opened up the corn husks of previously made (still warm) tamales made with beans, garlic, and onion. A tamale went onto our tortilla. Then we spooned salsa onto the tamale and folded the tortilla around it. Our guide said not to worry about the salsa; the lady made it mild, left out the habanero chiles, and called it gringo salsa!
Anyway, it was delicias!! We loved it!
We learned that water is very sparse in the region, and expensive. They receive water twice a week. On the days it comes, they fill barrels and jugs and bottles and some of them have cisterns up on top of their roof. Most of the houses do not have in door plumbing, and out houses are customary.
In the first house, there was El Bano nearby with running water and flushing! It was not part of the house, so I think it was added later for the tourists.
The 2nd stop had a similar Bilapa area, and they run a little neighborhood store. It carried basic supplies and had 50# bags of raw corn sitting on the floor. The owners sold coca cola, Corona beer, Kahlua, Mescal, and Tequila. She offered samples and I tried the passion fruit flavored Mescal. It was fantastic! Smooth and slightly sweet. A small bottle was $25 US dollars. Probably a good price but buying liquor and bringing it home is very complicated, between ship, customs, and airport. So we all passed on the opportunity.
The lady that runs the store is the local representative for her community to the city authorities. As a result, she arranged to get internet service to her store. Then she bought several computers. She lets students use the computers and internet for their homework. And our guide visits the school once a week for 45 minutes as a volunteer to teach English.
The El Bano for the 2nd stop consisted of a dirt floor in a room with a bucket. No way.
The 3rd stop was a Prickly Pear cactus plantation. It's called Nopal and is edible, picked when leaf (paddle) is very young and spines are scraped off. It is used both raw and cooked. The plantation owner sells the Nopal all over the region. Both raw and cooked were served. Raw, it tastes a bit like a mild pear. I thought it would be like Okra, but luckily it isn't slimey or icky. It was ok. Cooked, we had it with scrambled eggs on a tortilla with gringo salsa. And also cooked, and later chilled, chopped into salad. Also on a tortilla with salsa. Both were fine and not icky or too weird!
The 3rd stop El Bano was a room with a cement floor, flushing toilet, and separate facilities for men and women. The sink was outside the rooms, had pump soap, running water, but no drainage, just a bucket. It was pretty civilized.
The roads into these areas are all dirt, and rutted. Hilariously, like in all the rest of Mexico, they control road speed via large Speed Bumps. So in the midst of dangerously rutted dirt roads there periodically appeared enormous speed bumps. The van was nearly high centered on one such bump, as there doesn't seem to be any consistency regarding structure or placement.
We had a lovely experience. Everyone was smiling and gracious, and generous. All of the food was beautifully prepared and delicious. Our guide was outstanding and talked at length about living in the area and what is improving. These little villages may, or may not, have schools. The ones we visited each had schools, consisting of one building with 3 rooms, maybe 3 teachers, and combined grades. Some schools have no books or supplies.
Each of these villages had a community store, a little Catholic church, and an adjacent basketball court. Community events are held on the basketball courts.
Hualtuco is a very impoverished area, although tourism and government intervention are working together toward improvements. The minimum wage, in a tourism related job is $7 per day. A hustling taxi driver in the city center might make $50 per day. Nearly everyone has 2-3 part time jobs.
In the past 12-15 years, the fishing community living near shore were moved to the mountains by the Mexican government. Naturally there was lots of argument and distress over that. The people were told it was for the betterment of the entire region, because 5 star hotels would be built on the fishermens' land. The result would be income into the region and the children would have more opportunities.
In compensation, the fishermen were given land, and they were told that their first 3 children would have birthrights to inherit the land. And, the first 3 children also would get a scholarships for higher education. The new landowners are called CommonLanders. They all had to learn how to become farmers to support their families. The mountainous areas they were moved to were dense rain forest.
In conjunction with that, a private company made an offer to farmers that successfully figured out their new lifestyles. The private company would build Bilapas (like big ramadas made out of hardwood, that have an interesting palm fronds thatched roof that only needs to be rethatched about every 15 years) on the farmers properties, and the Bilapas would have cement floors. These Bilapas are big, like open air patios maybe 20 x 25 feet big. Also chairs and tables would be provided. All of this if the families would welcome tourists to come see their gardens and maybe buy any crafts they made, or sample any foods they chose to offer.
Just making the Bilapas was a big deal because their construction is an old art form and builders of those could make $10,000 to $15,000 each, although construction of each could easily take several months. So that helped the community fairly quickly, bringing money into the families.
The first place we visited had a large homeopathic garden that was well established. I don't think this particular family began life as fishermen. The gardener had carefully planted medicinal, edible, and herbal organic plants and trees, and made signs for each that included the common name, the scientific name, and country of origin, and the uses. Of course the climate is densely tropical and steamy! It rained last night so humidity was thick. And there were lots of edible herbs as well, and cancer fighting plants, and many plants were familiar. He had a cinnamon tree, from which the bark is used. It smelled heavenly. There were citrus and avocado trees, and cacao (chocolate). And a vanilla bean plant. An almond tree had an enormous termite nest about 18" across. Our guide said it doesn't hurt the tree, but apparently termites are seasonal, so when they leave, parakeets move in and create their nest and raise their babies in the former termite house.
Next door to the garden was the Bilapa, and an Adobe room with a dirt floor. The Adobe room was the occupants first house 50 years ago. It is still in use, as a cooking room (sort of a kitchen) because it has a corregated metal roof protecting it. The owners have been married 50 years and the lady still, every day, makes 50-60 corn tortillas from corn she buys from her neighbor (they used to grow their own). She makes the tortillas for her family, and sells extras to the neighbors.
She grinds the corn on a metate with the rolling pin (I forget the name of it) but it weighs 8 lbs, is made from fossilized stone, and she received it as a wedding present from her mother, who received it as a wedding present from her mother.
She grinds the corn with a little water on the metate to make Masa. Then she takes a lump of the Masa dough and makes a ball. Then she puts it in her tortilla press and makes a perfect round flat tortilla. Then, next to her, was a stone waist-high hearth burning wood. On top of that was her Comal, which is essentially a bowl shaped cooking surface. It was round and shallow, about 24" across. She deftly flipped the raw tortilla onto the Comal, and after about a minute, flipped it over. A minute later she picked it up and placed it in a cloth-lined basket held by her son.
Then, we were each given 2 paper napkins, into which we took a steaming hot tortilla. Then the son opened up the corn husks of previously made (still warm) tamales made with beans, garlic, and onion. A tamale went onto our tortilla. Then we spooned salsa onto the tamale and folded the tortilla around it. Our guide said not to worry about the salsa; the lady made it mild, left out the habanero chiles, and called it gringo salsa!
Anyway, it was delicias!! We loved it!
We learned that water is very sparse in the region, and expensive. They receive water twice a week. On the days it comes, they fill barrels and jugs and bottles and some of them have cisterns up on top of their roof. Most of the houses do not have in door plumbing, and out houses are customary.
In the first house, there was El Bano nearby with running water and flushing! It was not part of the house, so I think it was added later for the tourists.
The 2nd stop had a similar Bilapa area, and they run a little neighborhood store. It carried basic supplies and had 50# bags of raw corn sitting on the floor. The owners sold coca cola, Corona beer, Kahlua, Mescal, and Tequila. She offered samples and I tried the passion fruit flavored Mescal. It was fantastic! Smooth and slightly sweet. A small bottle was $25 US dollars. Probably a good price but buying liquor and bringing it home is very complicated, between ship, customs, and airport. So we all passed on the opportunity.
The lady that runs the store is the local representative for her community to the city authorities. As a result, she arranged to get internet service to her store. Then she bought several computers. She lets students use the computers and internet for their homework. And our guide visits the school once a week for 45 minutes as a volunteer to teach English.
The El Bano for the 2nd stop consisted of a dirt floor in a room with a bucket. No way.
The 3rd stop was a Prickly Pear cactus plantation. It's called Nopal and is edible, picked when leaf (paddle) is very young and spines are scraped off. It is used both raw and cooked. The plantation owner sells the Nopal all over the region. Both raw and cooked were served. Raw, it tastes a bit like a mild pear. I thought it would be like Okra, but luckily it isn't slimey or icky. It was ok. Cooked, we had it with scrambled eggs on a tortilla with gringo salsa. And also cooked, and later chilled, chopped into salad. Also on a tortilla with salsa. Both were fine and not icky or too weird!
The 3rd stop El Bano was a room with a cement floor, flushing toilet, and separate facilities for men and women. The sink was outside the rooms, had pump soap, running water, but no drainage, just a bucket. It was pretty civilized.
The roads into these areas are all dirt, and rutted. Hilariously, like in all the rest of Mexico, they control road speed via large Speed Bumps. So in the midst of dangerously rutted dirt roads there periodically appeared enormous speed bumps. The van was nearly high centered on one such bump, as there doesn't seem to be any consistency regarding structure or placement.
We had a lovely experience. Everyone was smiling and gracious, and generous. All of the food was beautifully prepared and delicious. Our guide was outstanding and talked at length about living in the area and what is improving. These little villages may, or may not, have schools. The ones we visited each had schools, consisting of one building with 3 rooms, maybe 3 teachers, and combined grades. Some schools have no books or supplies.
Each of these villages had a community store, a little Catholic church, and an adjacent basketball court. Community events are held on the basketball courts.
撰写日期：2019年12月24日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
sabine17093
加利福尼亚门多西诺153 条分享
2019年11月
Traditions is a fabulous way to see some villages outside of Oaxaca. Our guide Carlos was fantastic. So was Antonio with whom we took a one day trip after the Dia de Los Muertos one (5 days in Teotitlan and environs). So much to learn. Such wonderful people. Couldn't have been better.
撰写日期：2019年11月10日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Michael R
加利福尼亚旧金山45 条分享
2019年10月 • 夫妻情侣
I definitely recommend the Timeless Cuisine Tour. It’s a memory that I will cherish forever. Priscilla was a great guide and interpreter for us. She brought us to 3 unique locations where we got to help make fresh chocolate at one place and mole at another. We really felt like part of the family in the village that hosted us for lunch. Our host shared some local rituals and told us some personal stories of struggle and joy. The day was topped off with a tour of an agave field where we got to taste some locally produced mezcal. Go hungry and don’t plan a big dinner after. Enjoy!
撰写日期：2019年10月24日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
hughinav
Rocky River, Ohio, United States2 条分享
2019年10月
This tour was educational, fascinating, and thoroughly enjoyable. Our guide Antonio had a terrific command of English, along with a wide range of interests and knowledge, which made the trip itself even better. He knew the countryside and the people we met obviously like and respect him. Absolutely recommend this company and Antonio!
撰写日期：2019年10月10日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Vacationer666560
5 条分享
2019年5月 • 商务型
This was a life changing adventure. Peru is full of culture. And, this tour put you in the mist of it. There was honey making, corn beer making, Alpaca Blessing Ceremony, Alpaca shearing, yarn making, fabric dyeing, and weaving. We also had plenty of good food, especially potatoes, dancing, fun and laughs. It was wonderful! Caution: Be prepared to walk steps and hills. You can take your time. The group is there for you. Enjoy!
撰写日期：2019年6月14日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 Tripadvisor LLC 的观点。 Tripadvisor 对点评进行检查。
Amen! This trip went deep...into Peru and into each of us. Thank you so much for being part of our first great Peru adventure. I know the wonder of it will stay with all of us for a long time! -Eric
撰写日期：2019年6月17日
此回复为企业代表所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Jenny L
2 条分享
Hola buenas noches!!
Duda, cuánto tiempo dura el tour??? A qué regresamos?
TraditionsMexico
墨西哥奥亚沙加
Hola Jenny. Es un tour de 8 horas. Salimos a las 9am y regresamos aproximadamente a las 5pm. Esperamos verte! Saludos
veronicardehoyos
德克萨斯州休斯顿
Hi. I absolutely love those aprons! I am traveling in October to Oaxaca. Do you happen to remember the name of your he artist or village these were in? I appreciate any help you have.
Thank you
Veronica
TraditionsMexico2017
墨西哥瓦哈卡
Hi Veronica,
We are happy to give you further information. Please write us an email (you´ll find it on our website) traditionsmexico.
All the best,
Ana Paula
