This summer, 12 students and two faculty members are traveling to Oaxaca, Mexico to immerse themselves in the culture and language of Oaxaca, Mexico and develop their conversational fluency and understanding of daily life in Mexico by living with Oaxacan families and attending class at the Universidad Autónoma Benito Juárez. Please enjoy this blog post from Victor ’26 as he shares about the groups excursion to Hierve el Agua and Santa Maria del Tule.
Hola todos!
After eating breakfast with our host families, the group met up at 9 o’clock to take an hour and a half bus ride to Hierve el Agua. There, we saw the petrified waterfall and a guide showed us through the mountains to learn more about its history. We even visited a small cave that the ancient Zapotecas used to live in!
Following the long and grueling hike, we were able to relax in the natural springs in the mountains. We were able to swim and enjoy a good view by the side of the mountain. After everyone changed and ate lunch, we headed to a store where we tried some of the local coconuts and mangoes. We tried some natural coconut water which was refreshing after a tiring hike and swimming.
After our visit to Hierve el Agua, we stopped at a buffet with many options of food to choose from. Our last stop with the group was the two-thousand-year-old tree called Àrbol el Tule. Its size was incredible, and we spent some time looking around the park. After returning home and resting, my friends and I headed to the center to see what was going on. This was probably the first time seeing nightlife in Oaxaca, so we were excited. We saw things like live performances, public bachata classes and a huge bike race with over 50 participants.
Today was definitely a busy day, and we had a lot of fun, but we also had free time to explore on our own. We’re excited for tomorrow’s activity – a visit to Mitla and to a traditional textile weaving shop.
