OBSERVATIONS AND COMMENTS BY PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS

General comments

“I had been longing for years to visit Mexico, but I was always warned to be careful because of the crime and the dangers of the food and water. When I did a Yahoo search about three years ago, I was looking for something for teachers (to avoid groups of college students), with a homestay, and a visit to Mexico City. I, of course, was directed to your information. I was immediately impressed by the quality of information on your site. I deduced from that information that this would be a serious program with someone on site to guide you through the dangers and pitfalls of travel in Mexico. And that was exactly right.”

“Anne Mueller is absolutely superb. Her gift for teaching and genuine concern for every person and every aspect of the program could never be replaced.”

“I am very glad I partook in this program; my minimal Spanish skills have improved greatly and I met some wonderful people. I would highly recommend this program and hope to do others in the way off future.”

“I've got at least two friends who say they are committed to coming next year; I know it's not your mission, but this program is perfect for English grad students who are required to study a foreign language. I hope you don't mind a few of us "crashing your party," but there's so much more to be gained from the OIC experience than from any other trips I've researched.”

“What an excellent job Anne does running the program. She is a real master: helpful and well organized. Also, all of her years in Puebla make her a rich resource with good suggestions for places to eat and shop. She also having so much experience with the medical services available that she was really valuable for those who didn't choose to heed her advise regarding eating places. The families also know that she expects excellent homestays and, at least mine, was eager for her to know that they were meeting her expectations.

Principal value of the program

“total immersion into the language, customs and life of the people”

“immersion experience with the host families and the language instruction”

“The Petegogy class taught by Anne was extremely useful. She is exteremly knowledgeable and the knowledge gained from that class will help me in my classroom.”

“1.Mexican people; 2-Spanish; 3-Pedagogy; 4-Tours.”

“the "survey course" on travel in Mexico it provided me”

Homestays

“Very friendly and warm”

“Outstanding”

“Very welcoming family and I really liked them. We both happened to be independent and didn't need too much in terms of direction.”

“My host mom was very accomodating, always spoke to me in Spanish and helped me with my verbs and vocab. Even the children joined in.”

“The family was warm and friendly and very endearing. They were very helpful and caring. It was obvious that it was important to them that my stay in Mexico be a pleasant one .”