Colorado Mountain College
Multi Day Course, September 25 to October 4, 2023
Monday, September 25 - WELCOME!
DAY 1 - BIENVENIDO
Arrival in Oaxaca.
Any travel delays please call:
From USA: +52 (951) 508-0469 -Ana
Email: info.seasonsofmyheart@gmail.com
Take the airport transportation to Hotel Casa del Sotano or Casa Colonial. You will have two options: take the airport safe taxis or the airport safe shuttle.
You can buy tickets for either option at a counter in the airport (it’s a very small airport and it is easy to spot). Tickets are priced by zone of the city, and if you show them the address of Hotel Casa del Sotano or Casa Colonial, they will know where to take you. The airport shared shuttle to the hotels per person costs $120-$150 pesos but it usually makes several stops and takes a little longer than the taxi, which fits 4 people and costs $550 pesos. If you are all coming in together we can arrange for a van to pick everyone up together.
If you need an ATM machine you can find one to the left of the taxi ticket counter. The dollar’s current exchange is about 20 pesos MXN.
Take the airport transport to:
Hotel Casa del Sotano
Calle de Tinoco y Palacios 414, RUTA INDEPENDENCIA, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Tel. +52 951 516 2494 - Rosalba
or
Hotel Casa Colonial BnB
Calle Miguel Negrete 105, Santa María del Marquesado, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Tel. +52 951 516 5280
Susana will meet us at 5:00 o’clock at the Hotel’s Sala for a welcome introductory talk and cocktails. Walking tour downtown followed by dinner at Los Danzantes Restaurante to try their signature cocktails and the specialties of the Chef. On the way we will try some street food such as Esquites, Consome de Res and tacos al vapor.
Tuesday, September 26
DAY 2 - MONTE ALBAN, ATZOMPA AND THE CITY OF OAXACA
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning pickup at 9:00 am to go to Monte Alban, one of Mexico’s most important archeological sites. We will have a guided tour with Gabriel Sanchez, with a stop at the museum. *If it is possible, we will have a lecture and tour of the digging site of one of Colorado Mountain College professors, who is working here in Oaxaca.
We will visit Atzompa, at the base of Monte Alban to visit a few ceramic artists who work with the local barro to make comales, cazuelas and ollas, among other decorative pieces. .
After lunch with a local cocinera traditional, we return to Oaxaca to have a guided tour of the city by Gabriel Sanchez. Evening dinner at La Popular in Oaxaca.
Wednesday, September 27
DAY 3 - ETLAMARKETAND PESCADOS
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning pickup at 9:00 am to go to Mercado de Etla, where we will tour this wonderful market that is only open on Wednesdays.
On the way to the school, we will visit one of our favorite street taco joints for Tacos de Carnitas, and Crema de Coco.
We continue on to Seasons of my Heart Cooking School Susana will lecture about fish and the different dishes we will make in our first hands-on cooking class featuring different culinary techniques.After dinner, we will return to the hotel.
Thursday, September 28
DAY 4 - TRADITIONAL FOODS, COCINA DE HUMO AND ZAPOTEC ARTISTS
9:00 am walk to La Cosecha for breakfast. This is an organic market featuring cocineras traditionals at different stands, where we can sample from various communities.
After that, we will cross the valley to visit a couple of great local artists: We will start in Santa Maria Coyotepec, home of the famous black pottery. We will have a presentation by one of the grandsons of the infamous Dona Rosa, demonstrating her technique of burnishing the pottery with quartz crystals.
We will continue our journey to the familia Navarros (cotton weavers) in Santo Tomas Jalietza. They are traditional backstrap loom weavers who have won many national prizes for their work.
We will visit the workshop of Jacobo y Maria Angeles (woodcarvers) in San Martin Tilcajete and eat at Almuu, a beautiful cocina de humo in the woods, owned by their daughter. If they are in town, they will join us.
We finish the day with a visit to a mezcal palenque (Distillery) in Santa Catarina Minas to see the mezcal’s process and a tasting of many different expressions.
Return to Oaxaca, stopping for tacos on the way home!
Friday, September 29
DAY 5 - CENTRALDEABASTOS, CHILES&NIXTAMAL
Breakfast at the Hotel.
Early walk to the largest market in Oaxaca, Central de Abastos, for the Dia de Plaza to tour the market, visit the chile stall of our favorite vendor and eat lunch at one of our favorite Fondas, Sisters Marilu.
On our way to Seasons of my Heart Cooking School, we will stop at a chile plantation in the campo (the season permitting).
We will have our ¨Chiles¨ class, starting with a tasting of over 15 different dried chiles. We will also have a tasting of all the native fresh chiles that are in season in Oaxaca.
We will cook chiles — both fresh and dried in many different ways for our menu.
In the afternoon, we will make nixtamal for the following day. Return to Oaxaca.
Saturday, September 30
DAY 6 - MAIZ, CHEESE MAKING
Breakfast at the hotel. We will head out to the cooking school for a cheesemaking demo by Silvia followed by a lunch of Salsa de Queso, stopping at a local molino to grind our nixtamal into two types of dough. .
Guest lecture by corn expert Amado Ramirez Leyva for one of the most in-depth look at the subject of corn with a lecture of the Oaxacan Cuisine about ¨Maiz¨ or Elote. We will also be learning about maiz, different corn varieties in Oaxaca, the significance of milpa (the holy trinity: corn, beans, and squash) in Oaxacan culture.
Susana will continue with another lecture about the dishes we will prepare, followed by our hands-on cooking class. We will be preparing dishes made with fresh and dried corn and participating in making hand-made tortillas as well as other dishes on a fire lit comal.
Return to Oaxaca.
Sunday, October 1
DAY 7 - MUSHROOM FORAGING IN THE SIERRA NORTE, ZAPOTEC RUG MAKERS
Early Breakfast at the hotel.
8:30 am pickup to visit the mountains in the Sierra Juarez to a small village called Cuajimoloyas. This village is known for the vast varieties of mushrooms that are foraged there. We will have an almuerzo with Mercedes Juarez, daughter in law of the late village cocinera Dona Lucia. Then we will go mushroom foraging with our guide Marta Contreas. Her husband Amos, will talk about the “usos y costumbres” of the Pueblos Mancomunados in the Sierra Norte. After walking in the woods for a few hours we will go to her restaurant and cook the mushrooms with her. * Bring your jackets because it's cold, (10,000 feet above sea level) and wear your walking shoes because it's slippery and wet.
Then, we travel back down the mountain to Teotitlan del Valle, to visit a family of local folk artists who are rug weavers. Here we will have a rug making demonstration with Don Jesus Hernandez and his wife Doña Alicia, and try their traditional tamales only made in this village.
Return to Oaxaca.
Monday, October 2
DAY 8 - BARBACOA DE BORREGO
Breakfast at the hotel.
Early morning pick up to travel one hour east to Tlacolula to marinate a lamb or a goat to bury in the ground in the traditional style of Barbacoa, under the direction of Aurelia Ramos.
While the lamb is cooking, we will visit the archeological site of Mitla with Gabriel Sanchez and a visit to the traditional “Mujeres de Barro Rojo” — red pottery makers in San Marcos Tlapazola.
We will unearth the barbacoa, and the bottle of mezcal we bury in the earth and eat with two salsas, garnishes, frijoles de olla and fresh tortillas..
Or we can do this same dish with my friend cocinera traditional Zoyla in the Mixteca, a three hour drive from Oaxaca. There we have a trip to see the Dominican churches, the unique market place and a visit to an artist's home.
Tuesday, October 3
DAY 9
Breakfast at the hotel.
We will travel to the Valley of Etla to visit a sustainable glass blowing, recycling project called Xaquiche in an industrial park. We will go to visit Oaxacan painter and lithograph artist Enrique Flores and have lunch in his home. After lunch we will go to San Agustin Etla, to visit sculptor Jorge Gonzalez Velasco on the way home.
Evening visit to one of my favorite restaurants in Oaxaca, Levadura de Olla. The chef Thalia, is a young woman from the Sierra Sur and the restaurant is doing very well with her interpretations of her native foods.
Wednesday, October 4
DAY 10
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning free. Pick up at 12 pm to go to Seasons of my Heart for a chocolate making on the metate experience followed by the Mole class.
Lunch de Verdolagas y Puerco en Salsa Verde.
Chef Susana Trilling will give a talk about the recipes, ingredients and methods we will be using in preparing the moles. Then we will start our hands-on cooking class, in which we will create distinct moles, including Oaxaca’s famed Mole Negro, which is usually reserved for special occasions such as weddings, funerals and Dia de Los Muertos. We will also prepare Mole Amarillo with mushrooms and pork, Mole Verde de Pescado and our favorite Mole “Chichilo”. We will make the celebratory Pastel de Tres Leches to finish off the meal.
We will celebrate the closing of the course with music and Margaritas! Clausura, closing ceremony.
Thursday, October 5
DAY 11
Departure, no activities. Transfer to the airport.
Today will be your farewell breakfast at the Hotel. Departure, no activities.
**We reserve the right to change the schedule as needed**
Note: We suggest you arrive in Oaxaca at least one day early to acclimatize and to avoid missing the first nights of activities due to travel delays. We also suggest you extend your stay to relax after the course is over and before you return home!
