 Cuernavaca Road Scholar
If you really want to study the Spanish language, this is the only truly intensive language study program in the catalog. It accommodates students at every level from absolute beginner to advanced . The core of the program is intensive small group instruction in homogeneous classes of no more than five students (and often fewer) per native instructor for at least three hours daily.
There is no better place in the world to study Spanish . This resort city and capital of the state of Morelos is situated in a lush valley with one of the most perfect climates in the world . Cuernavaca is mild even in summer months thanks to its altitude of 5,000 feet above sea level. There is no need for heat nor for air conditioning. During U.S. winter months daytime temperatures are in the 70s or higher, and in July and August it is hotter in Alaska than in Cuernavaca. The city's proximity to the cultural riches of Mexico City, its physical beauty, and the profusion of seasonal flowers have attracted visitors since the days of the Aztec emperors. Since the 1960s this delightful city has been world famous for the teaching of Spanish to foreigners and there are over 20 schools with hundreds of outstanding stafff who specialize in language teaching. For a lengthier description go back to menu and click on Cuernavaca.
PROGRAM GOALS This program seeks to develop your understanding of Mexican culture while pursuing the study of the Spanish language. No one can expect to achieve fluency in any language in two weeks. For some it will be an introduction to the language; for others it will be an opportunity to improve upon previous study or to polish fluency. No matter what your level, you should expect to master new grammatical usage, build vocabulary, and practice useful phrases that will make your travels in the Spanish speaking world more enjoyable and enhance your understanding and appreciation of an important neighbor.
THEME/FOCUS
PROGRAM STRUCTURE & COMPONENTS:
The program includes two weeks tuition (over 50 hours) in arguably the best school in the world for Spanish study. It includes 15 nights lodging in comfortable hotels, three hearty and delicious meals daily, transfers from Mexico City to Cuernavaca and back, daily transportation from the hotel to school and back, modest tips for all hotel and dining room staff, a bilingual site coordinator and group leader to assist you with all your needs, five guided field trips , four lectures in English by a published scholar specializing in Mexican studies, performances by Mexican musicians, two fiestas, and free access to the school physician. Beyond that are innumerable personal experiences unique to this program that most visitors to Mexico regrettably miss. There will be a half day of scheduled leisure time the first Sunday and a full free day the second Saturday. You may use the period after lunch for Spanish conversation or grammar review, to swim, take a stroll, explore the town, or enjoy a siesta. See the sample daily schedule below and the calendar of events with supplemental materials. The Academic Institution hosting the program is Universidad Internacional - Center for Bilingual Studies, popularly called Centro Bilingue or UNINTER. Located in a residential area of Cuernavaca, its manicured grounds and colorful gardens provide an educational oasis in a crowded city. The student body is broadly diverse in age and national origin. The school is entirely Mexican-operated and all your Spanish language teachers will be native instructors. We are sure you will be impressed by the quality, dedication, and friendliness of the staff. For more information on the school, go back to menu and click on Language Study or click below:
This sample schedule is intended to give you a sense of how a typical program day is structured. The actual order of elements will vary from program to program according to local circumstances. You will receive a full schedule upon arrival. See the detailed calendar below.
CLICK TO SEE "CUERNAVACA ROAD SCHOLAR ALL PROGRAM CALENDAR"
HOTELS MEXICO CITY Mexico City is a transit site to and from Cuernavaca, so only two overnights & meals are included here. If you are a first-time visitor, consider arriving early or, better, staying on after the program to enjoy this world-class city. When you cross the Paseo de la Reforma, you are in the heart of the Zona Rosa (Pink Zone), noted for upscale shops, outdoor cafés, and lively night life. Nearby are the Zócalo (main square), famed for the National Palace with its murals by Diego Rivera, the Metropolitan Cathedral, and the Templo Mayor archeological site behind the cathedral that includes a museum that rivals the spectacular Museum of Anthropology. Accommodations:
Accommodations: Posada Quinta Las Flores is about three miles from school and 1.5 miles from the zócalo (central plaza). This charming, family-run hotel is built around a lovely garden and swimming pool. Double-occupancy bedrooms with private bathrooms (showers, not tubs) and all meals are provided in the program cost. A limited number of single rooms are available at supplemental cost. There is an open-air bar with reasonable prices. The hotel's excellent restaurant serves a full breakfast, a large mid-day meal, and an ample supper. All rooms have safe-deposit boxes. All linens are provided. The native Mexican staff delight in practicing Spanish with foreign guests. For more information, check out the hotel's web site, www.quintalasflores.com
The volcano Popocatepetl is 50 miles from Cuernavaca and any eruption is unlikely to result in anything more than ash in Cuernavaca. North Americans often frighten easily over incidents far removed from their destination. Canceling a trip to Cuernavaca because of an event in Chiapas is like canceling a trip to Chicago due to a riot in Los Angeles. If in doubt about any press reports, by all means call, fax, or e-mail Jim Horn for a complete assessment of a situation . There is a serious crime problem in Mexico City , with a population of 25 million, forty percent of whom are impoverished, so we urge you to exercise caution at all times and to take responsibility for your well-being. The most serious incidents have involved robberies by rogue taxi drivers and their accomplices, and those too are avoidable. Official taxis at the airport and at hotel taxi stands have not been involved. Your Road Scholar program includes just two overnight stays in Mexico City, the first and the last nights of the program. We will explain how to take a safe, authorized taxi from the airport to the hotel, and we will call reliable hotel drivers to return you safely to the airport on the last day. There will be group flights and a group transfer beginning in Jan. 2002 . For those staying extra nights in Mexico City, preferably at the end of the program when your Spanish is better and your awareness heightened, we will provide thorough instructions on safety precautions. Again, dozens of hostelers have stayed extra nights in the capital without incident. You may flag taxis on the street in Cuernavaca and you may walk safely on the streets during reasonable hours . These warnings are not meant to diminish Mexico in your eyes. Thousands of robberies occur every year in U.S. airports. Wherever you travel, you must be on the alert for petty crime. We have had a remarkable record of safety in our Cuernavaca program. Thousands of hostelers have enjoyed Cuernavaca without incident. We promise to do all we can to make your program both safe and enjoyable.
HEALTH & PHYSICAL CONSIDERATIONS THIS PROGRAM IS NOT HANDICAPPED ACCESSIBLE Mexico City (where we spend two nights) is at an altitude of 7,300 feet which may cause temporary shortness of breath in some people. Air pollution in Mexico City is severe, especially from December to May. If you have any health or physical conditions that could be affected adversely by poor air quality, please consult your physician well before departure. Cuernavaca sits at 5,000 feet above sea level. It is built on multiple hills with some steep streets. While the daily class schedule is not physically challenging and this is not considered a physically strenuous Road Scholar program, there will be considerable walking over hilly city streets and irregular terrain on at least two occasions: our walking excursion through Cuernavaca covers two miles and takes approximately two and one-half hours; and it is impossible to observe the spectacular ruins at Xochicalco without climbing a steep hill and mastering many staircases. Those with walking limitations may opt to sit out activities they consider too demanding. We regret that we are unable to provide alternatives for those who choose not to participate in scheduled events. Few buildings in Mexico are equipped for people with physical disabilities. Some class and hotel rooms in Cuernavaca are on a second floor, but adjustments can be made for those who must be on the ground floor. Most buildings lack elevators and/or accessible ramps. The campus physician is available daily at no cost to students. Health care facilities in Cuernavaca are adequate for routine medical conditions but far from the sophistication you are accustomed to at home. Access to medical services is more limited in rural areas. At the furthest distance, we will be approximately 60 miles by vehicle from a high quality hospital. Meals consist of local foods prepared according to local tastes. We regret that special dietary needs/requests cannot be guaranteed; salad and sandwich options are available for the midday and evening meals. For all meals provided as part of the program, special attention is paid to proper sanitation and disinfection of fruits and vegetables. Outside of the program, you must be very careful and take precautions. Cuernavaca hotel meals have been evaluated enthusiastically by previous participants. Better hotels and restaurants take great pains to provide purified water and uncontaminated food. Otherwise, drink only bottled water, juices, etc., and drink only from your own bottle. Never drink tap water. Ice made from tap water is also unsafe. Both hotels provide purified ice. Outside of your hotel and the better restaurants, do not eat any uncooked foods - especially food from street vendors. "Traveler's Diarrhea" is a common occurrence that can be greatly reduced with proper precautions. One study found that people who took two doses daily of bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto Bismol) had a lower incidence of diarrhea. Eating yogurt daily is helpful, but more convenient and effective is taking acidophilus tablets or capsules. We cannot emphasize strongly enough the benefit of acidophilus which retards the growth of E-coli bacteria, the major cause of diarrhea. The recommended dosage is two tablets with each meal daily starting a few days before departure, then two tablets daily for maintenance. Look for a brand that does not require refrigeration. Acidophilus tablets are not expensive except in some pharmacies and nutrition stores. U.S. discount marts have them in their vitamin section for under four dollars a bottle. Be sure to talk with your doctor about prevention and treatment measures for Traveler's Diarrhea. If you require prescription medications , be sure to bring a sufficient supply with you, along with a copy of your prescription. Be sure to know the generic names and correct dosage of your medications since many U.S. brand names are not available in Mexico. International health authorities have noted the incidence of hepatitis, typhoid, and cholera in parts of Mexico. These illnesses are confined largely to impoverished rural areas, not the urban areas where we are staying. Discuss the prevention of these illnesses as well as traveler's diarrhea with your physician. Frequent travelers should investigate vaccine for hepatitis. |
Because there are many ROAD SCHOLAR programs in Mexico and several in Cuernavaca , previous participants suggested this web description so that prospective participants can be sure they are getting the only programs at Universidad Internacional (UNINTER or Centro Bilingüe) directed by Professor Jim Horn , author of Cuernavaca , a Guide for Students and Tourists. For brief biographies of Jim Horn, see program staff below.
WHY CUERNAVACA?
Amidst the extraordinary beauty of Cuernavaca, we'll become immersed in conversational Spanish at all levels of proficiency. Beginners will learn "survival" Spanish including functional phrases and vocabulary useful in travel. Advanced students will receive an intensive review and move on to more complex grammar and idiomatic expressions. In addition to intensive classroom instruction, we'll explore history, economics, politics, society, and current events as we truly "live" the language and culture of Mexico through lectures, field trips, excursions, and extracurricular activities.
The emphasis is on flexibility and on individualizing instruction to your personal goals and previous level of Spanish. The heart of the program is three hours daily of intensive grammar and conversation in homogeneous groups of no more than five students per class (sometimes fewer). This is followed by large group instruction in language and culture with at least three options each hour for different levels of fluency. You may choose to sit out any hour of large group instruction in favor of small group conversation, library reading, self-study, review, or relaxation. The school offers an optional additional two hours of instruction in the afternoon at no extra cost. (This option requires missing the main afternoon meal and taking a box lunch instead.) 
In addition to language classes and other lectures, we've planned a series of fascinating cultural field trips including: an orientation by bus to Cuernavaca and its surroundings; a half-day walking excursion through downtown Cuernavaca with an opportunity for independent exploration of the history museum; a guided walk through the pre-Columbian ruins at Xochicalco followed by a visit to Los Pequeños Hermanos, a ranch providing work for 600 orphans; a full-day trip to Taxco, the famous "silver city" and monument to 18th-century colonial architecture; and a bus trip to some of the picturesque villages and haciendas in the surrounding countryside of Morelos. Local circumstances and unforeseen conditions such as holiday closings may require modifications and/or substitutions to the planned schedule. All program-related events are for enrolled participants and program staff only and are not open to non-participants.
The U.S. press and televsion reports have highlighted certain dangers associated with travel in Mexico without specifying that there are many areas in Mexico far safer than cities of comparable size in the United States. Cuernavaca is such a relatively safe city. We appreciate your concern and we would never knowingly put you in any danger. We are confident you can enjoy this program safely and we offer the following update on the situation in Mexico. 
