teotitlan and tlacochahuaya, mexico:

One of the highlights of our entire trip was visiting the towns of Teotitlan and Tlacochahuaya with an organisation called Envia. Envia is a non-profit project that supports local women and their businesses through the giving of micro-loans and the provision of business classes. The aim of the trip was to visit some of the women who have received these loans, and who had then successfully expanded their businesses. I am big supporter of projects that are empowering, especially when it involves women and creativity, so it was pretty exciting to see first hand the success of the project. 
We met some incredible women - a couple who weaved, one who cooked and sold hot tamales, and another who made tortillas to sell in the local market. They shared with us how their business's worked and how the loan had made a difference, allowing for growth both in production and sales. 
100% of the fee we paid for the day funds the loans, so it was great to see for ourselves the difference our small contribution would make.

The highlight for me was meeting the weavers in their workshops, and listening about their process when designing and creating beautiful products using 100% wool and natural dyes.  Although there are many lovely shops in Oaxaca selling gorgeous hand woven textile pieces, nothing beats being able to buy a piece straight from the source and the chance to meet it's creator. We were fortunate to have spotted a gorgeous and rather unique looking rug whilst visiting weaver Olga's studio, which is now in our home being a lovely of reminder of our day with Envia.

If you visit Oaxaca and want to explore some of the smaller towns, I HIGHLY recommend checking out Envia and accompanying them on one of their trips. So good.

next: the Ethnobotanical Garden of Oaxaca

 

teotitlan

tlacochahuaya