The Project Tour
by Fundación En Vía Fundacion En Vía En Vía is a non-­‐profit organization based in the beautiful and culturally-­‐rich state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Founded in 2010, and run by a small staff and dedicated team of volunteers, En Vía works in six different communities in the valley surrounding the city of Oaxaca. En Vía is an organization dedicated to supporting the growth and creation of income-­‐
generating businesses, with the view to empower women, promote the well-­‐being of their families, and the strengthening of community. With this vision, En Vía focuses its community-­‐centered efforts through three highly participatory programs: microfinance, education and responsible tourism. Microfinance: Many individuals living in poverty have the skills, ideas, and motivation to put to use to make an income-­‐generating business work, but many lack access to important financial services like affordable credit, savings and insurance. The basic idea behind microfinance is that if given access to these services, people can use them as tools to invest in their own businesses and through this generated income achieve improved well-­‐being for themselves and their families. Through our tours, we are able to provide interest-­‐free loans to women participants. Using this model, En Vía has worked with over 400 women, and given out more than 2000 loans. Education: En Vía also has a commitment to providing free education programs in the communities. Through our educational programs we support different needs and interests of the communities. We provide English classes; business classes touching on topics like money management, marketing, managing risk, and operations; as well as workshops on health, nutrition, and personal empowerment. Our goal is to provide an extensive range of programs that encourage personal development and professional success. Responsible Tourism: Another important issue that En Vía addresses is the concept of responsible tourism. Responsible tourism can be defined as “tourism that improves the well-­‐being of the local community”. We aim to encourage people to connect in meaningful ways with the local people, learn about their culture and livelihoods, and experience a genuine exchange. En Vía has created a travel opportunity that provides the traveler with a genuine experience that also benefits the local community in a responsible way. On En Vía’s microfinance tours, participants have the chance to meet the women who are the recipients of the microloans. Through our program we are able to accomplish our goals of responsible tourism and community development by directing resources from tourism i.e. capital, knowledge and connections, into the communities. Over the last four years we have introduced over 2000 travelers to the workings and power of microfinance and community development. Our newest endeavor in responsible tourism is “The Project Tour”. This tour will continue to support our values of exchanging, exploring and empowering, with the hope of making an even bigger difference in both our tour participant’s lives, and our program participant’s lives. We invite you to join us in Oaxaca, as we work together to achieve great things. Read on to discover The Project Tour! Fuel Efficient and Smoke Reducing Stoves More than half of the world’s population cooks their food indoors over open fires. Inhaling the smoke causes a multitude of health problems, from pneumonia to lung cancer. If more efficient stoves are used, the number of health issues directly related to indoor pollution will decrease, the contribution to greenhouse gases will also decrease, and the increased efficiency will mean that women will have more time and money to spend on other activities that could promote the well-­‐ being of their families. Many of the women En Vía works with use open flame stoves in order to cook their food such as tortillas, beans and corn. One example of the benefits of building a new, more efficient stove is the story of Elodia, one of En Vía’s microloan recipients. Elodia supports herself and her family by making and selling tortillas. The soot from the open flame of her stove would cover the walls of her kitchen, and she reported that she would spend several hours a day inhaling the harmful smoke. In 2012, En Vía decided to participate in a project in which they built, side by side with Elodia and her family, a new and improved efficient stove. Since the stove was built, Elodia has commented that the solid fuel burns much more slowly which means she buys less wood. She also reports that she now does not inhale the smoke, as it is channeled out through a built-­‐in chimney. With the money saved, and the added profits from her growing business, she is sending her daughter to high school. The Project Tour 2016 Itinerary Saturday July 2nd – Wednesday July 6th Friday 1st July During the Project Tour you will be staying the first two nights in the Bed and Breakfast, La Betulia, located in the Historic Centre just a five-­‐minute walk from the famous Dominican church, Santo Domingo. Guests are able to check-­‐in to La Betulia Hotel any time from 3pm onward and have the evening free to acquaint themselves with the city before the tour commences the following morning. Day 1 – Saturday 2nd July We start the day with breakfast served at La Betulia and an orientation to the events of the week. Then we will head out in to the communities for an introdcution to En Vía’s work through a microfinance tour. We will enjoy lunch with one of the women in our program and meet with program participants to learn about their businesses and communities. After the tour, we will have some free time to explore colonial down town Oaxaca, and finish the evening together with dinner at top restaurant La Biznaga. Day 2 – Sunday 3rd July After breakfast at La Betulia, we will travel out of the city of Oaxaca to Teotitlán del Valle where we will attend a cooking class taught by renowned local cook, Reyna Mendoza. In her class, you will start off with a visit to the bustling produce market of Teotitlán to buy ingredients. Thereafter, you will enter Reyna’s colorful kitchen for a hands-­‐on class where you will make a full course traditional meal complete with a recipe packet to take home! Accomodations: Las Calandrias Bed and Breakfast in Teotitlan del Valle. Day 3 – Monday 4th July On day three we will roll up our sleeves and get to work to build a fuel-­‐efficient smoke-­‐reducing stove with one of our En Vía borrowers. We will enjoy lunch at the worksite. There will be an afternoon demonstration of traditional weaving techniques that Teotitlán is known for. We will eat dinner together in the town, before retiring to the cozy comforts of Las Calandrias Posada, a local bed and breakfast in Teotitlán. Accomodations: Las Calandrias Bed and Breakfast, Teotitlán Day 4 – Tuesday 5th July We will eat breakfast in Teotitlán before traveling to another community to assist in a project for an En Via program participant. We will eat both lunch and dinner in the communities, as we work on the project and get to know the towns. Our accommodation for the night will be a locally run ecotourism cabin in the hills of San Miguel del Valle, a community where En Vía works. Enjoy the clean mountain air and great views of the valley! Day 5 – Wednesday 6th July For the final day of activities, we will eat breakfast in San Miguel with an En Vía borrower. Then we will travel to Mitla to visit ancient Zapotec Ruins. You will recognize the geometric patterns carved into the temple walls at Mitla. Many of our borrowers incorporate designs from these temples into the rugs that they weave. Finally we will head back to the city and have a celebratory good-­‐bye lunch at one of Oaxaca’s top restaurants. Tour ends at approximately 3:30pm Pricing The cost of The Project Tour is $995 USD per person or $1850 USD for two people (must share a room). This price includes all transportation during the tour activities, meals as outlined in itinerary, accommodation for 5 nights as per itinerary, and activities for 5 days as per itinerary. PLEASE NOTE: The above price does NOT include flights/travel to Oaxaca or travel insurance, airport transfers, alcoholic beverages or extra meals, museum entrance fees. If you wish to extend your stay in Oaxaca on either side of the tour, please contact La Betulia Bed and Breakfast directly at [email protected], and they will advise of costs and bookings. Booking and Payment Spaces on the tour are strictly limited. All bookings and enquires can be made through [email protected] Once your booking has been made by email, and confirmed by En Vía staff by return email, you will be required to pay booking deposit of $100 USD per person via PayPal to reserve your spot on The Project Tour. Final payment is then due 30 days before tour start date, and is also payable by PayPal. Cancellations must be made at least 30 days before tour start date. The deposit will not be refunded and will be used to cover administrative costs. Contact E-­‐mail: [email protected] Avenida Juárez # 909, Oaxaca Centro, Oaxaca 68000 For more information about our programs, the communities where we work, and our tours, check out our website at: www.envia.org. Find out what people are saying about our tours on TripAdvisor!