Learn Spanish Travel Spanish Blog

     There are not enough words to express the level of satisfaction that I had at Español Interactivo, but I’ll try my best.

First, some incidentials, that I’m finding more and more important. For those of you that travel with your computer and need a free WIFI connection, the school provides a strong signal on site. They also provided a telephone that we students could use to make direct calls to the U.S. (without charge).

The school is located on calle Lopez about two blocks from the Zócalo, the city center of activity, so it is very convenient to live music, cafes, restaurants, mercados, catedrals, gardens and museums. This is a real plus, because you can walk to all of these things after class. Request a home stay within walking distance and you’ve got it made.

 

Now, about learning Spanish: Espanol Interactivo turned the corner for me. I was beginning to feel that I was never going to actually be able to speak Spanish without going…. uh….uh….uh…. I have a good vocabulary. I have a grasp of the grammar. I just couldn’t seem to get past having to translate everything in my head. Espanol Interactivo got me past that. That’s not to say that everything I want to say just comes right out. For one, there are still a LOT of words that I don’t know. And I’m still studying grammar, of course. But at Espanol Interactivo, the very small classes, the one on one attention, the class time spent walking around in Oaxaca with the teacher right there beside me…. Well, three weeks of that and for the first time I felt that I could actually speak Spanish. And that if I kept at it, that I could become fluent.

 

 

I had chosen the superintensive option of instruction, so I had 4 hours of conversation each morning from 9 - 1. with Luz. My first week there was 1 other student in my class, but the second two weeks it was just me and Luz. The school provides a group of reference sheets with lots of information that we used during the classes. They were very helpful.. Luz reviewed lots of common phrases and words with me and then worked them into our conversations and encouraged me to do the same. We never ran out of things to talk about in Luz’s class. The student could choose the subject or Luz would think of something. I learned a lot about the history of the city of Oaxaca, both ancient history as well as modern history. I also learned a lot about the politics of the place. It was fascinating. The last two days of my classes with Luz, we walked to some of the museums and even explored the exConvent Santa Catalina, which is now a beautiful hotel, (Camino Real). My afternoon grammer class –2 more hours of instruction—was with Luis. He is in his mid-20’s but is a serious teacher. It was obvious immediately that he knew his subjects well and he always came up with an interesting variety of methods for teaching. Some days we walked to the zócalo and used the sights around us to practice the grammer of the day. It was great. Occasionally, Luis’s younger brother Fernando would work with me for that last two hours. He was more quiet than Luis, but just as dedicated to succeeding in teaching the subject. There were times when I felt frustrated because I couldn’t understand a certain point. I was ready to just throw in the towel, but Fernando changed direction once or twice and kept patiently working with me until things because clearer.

Normally, there was one weekly excursion to a nearby pueblo to visit mercados, ancient ruins, exConvents, and ornate cathedrals. There is an extra cost, usualy around $120 pesos that includes transportation and, in Zaachila, a ride in a mototaxi. Wherever we went, we usually stopped and had lunch, too. Each of us paid for our own food. Luis was always our guide on these excursions. Not only does he know and teach grammar very, very well, but he also very knowledgable in the history, the culture and the local food and art at all of the places that we visited. Those excursions (on local, public buses) were always lots of fun, educational, a great way to practice our Spanish and lasted a full afternoon.

Luis also gives dance classes for those that are interested. Luz helps him a little here and there to demonstrate what the dance should look like.. One couple took lessons from him as they prepared for their daughter’s wedding. They seemed to have a lot of fun while they were learning. Luz handles the cooking classes. The normally start at 1 p.m. with all of the ingredients artfully arranged on a platter in the kitchen. Everyone was given something to work on, roasting peppers, cooking chiles and tomatoes, cutting things up, making balls of dough and then flattening them in a tortilla press to make fresh corn tortillas. Most meals took about 30 minutes to prepare and then we all sat down to eat and have a conversation around the table (in Spanish, of course).

My first week in Español Interactivo we took a fieldtrip several blocks to a shop that makes chocolate. They start with the cocoa beans, some cinnamon bark, and raw sugar. That’s it. The hot mixture was placed in a bag, still hot from being freshly ground. We carried it back to the school where we rolled it into little, cookie sized balls and other shapes before laying it on the table to dry for 24 hours. The next day, it was made into a wonderful, rich hot chocolate.

I have grandchildren that are studying Spanish at home. I asked Luz what age children they could teach and she said they would tailor a program to any age. She told me of some 8-9 year olds that came for a week. Her daughter designed a program for them that taught them Spanish while they played games and did crafts and went on little excursions.

Luz said it was very successful.

One evening, Luz spent an evening out with me and two other women students that were leaving Oaxaca. We walked to the zócalo to listen to a little live music then strolled to a little restaurant where they cook one the the local Oaxaca specialties (Tlatugas). We talked and laughed just like any gang of girls out for an evening. Next, we went to a place called Cafe Central. There was a comedy troupe from Argentina performing. They did everything from stand up comedy, acrobatics, juggling, singing, etc. When I later told my husband about it he said it sounded like it was Vaudville-ish. The place was packed and smoky, but fun.

The whole time I was in Oaxaca, I felt that I was among friends, not just attending a school. Everyone at the school was supportive and helpful and I felt that they did everything they could to make my learning experience as positive and fun as possible. It was hard to leave them at the end of my three weeks in Oaxaca.

This was my third Spanish school experience (2 in Mexico and 1 in Buenos Aires, Argentina). They have all been really good, but this was absolutely the best. I definitely recommend it without reservations.

By the way, to add to my immersion experience, I stayed with a local family that is associated with the school, Leo and Hector. Leo is a retired teacher and Hector is retired from the telegraph company. They live in a lovely, comfortable house about a 25 minute walk from the school. The picked me up at the airport when I arrived in Oaxaca and took me back there at the end of my visit.

Leo is a wonderful cook (even for picky vegetarians like me). She or Hector, or both sat around the table and talked with me and the other students at each meal. We agreed on the first day to try to speak only Spanish, so we all made a game of trying to act out words that we couldn’t understand or express. Occasionally, they pulled out a very well worn Spanish-English dictionary. Hector brought out a bottle of very good mezcal or tequilla each evening for each of us to taste. Leo preferred sweet drinks, so we tried some sweet, mezcal based liquor type concoctions that were her preference. It was fun. Meals were varied, very tasty and artfully plated. It was better than any restaurant. Every meal was a mixture of funny stories, little jokes, idioms, and discussions comparing life in Oaxaca with life in each of our own cities. I will think of Leo and Hector as life long friends, too.

Bottom line, if the city of Oaxaca is on your list of places that you would like to visit and you are interested in a wonderful Spanish immersion experience, check out Español Interactivo. If Oaxaca isn’t on your list, well, it should be. I would recommend the host family Leo and Hector as well, but that’s another topic. If you’re serious about learning Spanish, and want to learn as quickly as possibe (with wonderful folks), you can’t do better than Espanol Interactivo in Oaxaca. Let me repeat that, you can’t do better than Espanol Interactivo in Oaxaca. You just can’t. I know it sounds like I work for them or something, but my one and (so far) only experience with them is the 3 weeks I spent there. And I LOVED it.

Tags:   immersion · Immersion school · Learn Spanish · Learning Spanish · Mexico · Oaxaca Mexico · Spanish · speak Spanish · Travel Spanish1 Comment