Tepoztlán

Seventy kilometers southwest of Mexico City in the gnarled foothills of the great snow-capped volcanoes, the hilltop village of Tepoztlán is famous for its intoxicating air, its cobbled streets, its walled adobe houses draped in bougainvillea, and its unusual fidelity to pre-Columbian traditions, reflected today in near-constant processions, celebrations, feasts and fiestas. The people of Tepoztlán are descended from the Tlahuica inhabitants of the fertile valley that leads toward nearby Cuernavaca  and were known before the Spanish Conquest for the purity of their spoken Nahuatl--the hushed, poetic language still spoken in the surrounding villages and south to the Pacific Coast--as well as for their ability as scribes. The local museum has numerous artifacts  that bear witness to Tepoztlán's role as a center for producing amate, the paper on which pre-Hispanic history was told in images that mesmerized the conquerors.   To this day, the oral traditions of that culture survive in legends handed down from generation to generation, told now in Spanish, though a few much-interviewed old people can still recite the ancient poems in Nahuatl. Their sense of continuity with the past gives the Tepoztecans their deep sense of identity and the courage to resist near-constant attempts to turn the village into a resort. Their defeat of a proposed golf complex (the so-called "Golf War") made international headlines in the mid-1990's and has inspired communities elsewhere in Mexico.

Once a three-day excursion from Mexico City by mule, Tepoztlán is now an easy one-hour ride from the capital on a highway that rises through cool forests before opening out onto the immense mountain-ringed valley of Cuernavaca, in which the volcanoes Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl seem to float unattached to earth or sky.   Though still used as a set for movies that require the perfect Mexican square with marketplace and men in spurs and cowboy hats, Tepoztlán has grown into a bustling town that draws weekenders from the capital eager to escape the pollution and crowds of Mexico City.   Most stay only for the day, wandering the streets for a taste of rural Mexico, visiting the 16th century Dominican cathedral, shopping in the crafts market or climbing to the 14th century pyramid atop the Tepozteco.  There are restaurants for every budget, and markets stalls  known throughout the country for their exquisite handthrown tortillas.

Tepoztlán is also an ideal base from which to study Spanish. For those wishing to enroll in customized classes while in Mexico, we highly recommend Cemanahuac, a Cuernavaca-based school whose flexible program allows students to begin each Monday. Cemanahuac can arrange homestays with local families or other accommodations for UTV participants either before, during or after our workshop. You may contact them directly: harriet@cemanahuac.com. Be sure to mention that you are registered for UTV. We can also arrange private lessons for you in the village.