Hi,

I am looking for a 2 - 3 week excursion to latin america where I can learn spanish with my mom who is a woman in her mid 50's. My mom is also interested in learning about cooking - so I thought Oaxaca would be a natural choice.

Given our age difference, I'm curious if anyone has a recomemndation for a) a specific school in Oaxaca or b) a location other than Oaxaca that they would recommend? c) any other tips?

Thanks in advance for any feedback!

Suggest you check out langlink.com

I have used several of their schools. If you e-mail them they will be most helpful in helping you with a school. The Becari school in Oaxaca is good. I've been there. I also hear good things about the Instituto Cultural in Oaxaca at www.inscuoax.net

I have met people doing what you propose and they have had a good time in Oaxaca. The two recommendations for schools above are good ones.

Dude: which one of the two do you like best?

Mikemo posts from San Miguel de Allende which would be an ideal location for this. I suggest you do a word search for his screenname and you will turn up some very good suggestions.

Thanks for all the feedback!

My daughter (26) and I (58) spent a week in San Miguel Allende, touring, studying Spanish, and taking cooking classes. We experienced 2 great cooking classes - Maria Ricaud and Maricela Campos. Maricela doesn't advertise, but her class was excellent! She runs a small, low-key guest house on Calle Jesus. Maria advertises widely and is very popular and gets great reviews (ours included!).

There are several language schools in SMA. For our short week stay there, we found Josefina's school, Centro Mexicano de Lengua y Cultura de San Miguel, to be very flexible and very accommodating. We just dropped in and asked for 2 hours/day to accommodate our 2 very different levels of Spanish.

This coming March, I'll have 2 weeks in SMA and will try AHA.

We looked at Oaxaca, but from our location in Chicago, it seemed very complicated to travel to. OTOH, there were direct flights to Leon, near SMA.

OK
So we've decided to take classes at Becari for 2 weeks and will be flying into Mexico city a few days before the Monday school starts, and we will be staying a few days (through the weekend) after school ends.

Should we attempt to venture out to the coast for that last weekend before going back to Mexico City? Or, are there recommendations for things to do that are good weekend trips.

I considered spending some time in Mexico City, but we've both been there and thought that there might be plenty to explore in and around oaxaca.

Any thoughts are much appreciated

Thanks!

The teachers in the language schools in the state of Gto. (especially in San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato) have very "neutral" accents like the US talking heads "trained" in US English in Nebraska.
I have always thought that a plus - well, maybe not in Galicia, Spain.
M

Final thought: why not take the bus to Queretaro, San Miguel de Allende, Dolores Hidalgo and/or Guanajuato?
Or, if the coast is in your sights, the Costalegre (www.costalegre.ca or www.tomzap.com).
M