I was traveling solo so I contacted Cesar at his email to see if it was possible to still get a tour or join another one. He said it would be no problem and communicated well leading up to the tour. We went to his family’s home and had a traditional breakfast and lunch and walked around his beautiful town. Cesar was very informative about his family, culture, and life in his town. Then we took his tuk tuk to his brother’s gallery and ended at the mezcal distillery. There was a big thunder and hail storm at the distillery which was actually quite fun to watch. The view was beautiful and it was a nice way to end the trip. Thank you Cesar for sharing your time and culture with me!

My 2 friends and I joined Cesar for his Tour #1 Gastronomy, Crafts, Culture, and Scenery. We absolutely loved the experience and Cesar & his family were wonderful hosts as we immediately felt welcomed as guests in their home and not just “tourists”. His communication was perfect leading up to the day of the tour and pick up was prompt at my Airbnb. All of the food & drinks provided by his family was delicious and Cesar shared lots of local knowledge during our walk around the town. We were invited to help make chocolate and tortillas with his mother and later visited his brother’s art gallery. We finished our day at his friend’s Palenque outside of town, tasting mezcals and enjoying the incredibly beautiful view from the hillside. I’ve been in Oaxaca for almost 2 months and taken many classes/tours since I got here…Cesar’s tour was absolutely one of the best! Highly recommended!

The day spent with Cesar and his family provided a most memorable experience.

The day started when Cesar picked us up at 8.30 am.

During the hour or so to reach his home town, San Dionisio Ocotepec, Cesar engaged in an informative discussion of the history of the region and its local economy, especially nearby Matatlan being the Agave/Mezcal “capital” of Mexico.

On arrival at his home, his mother greeted us with a light breakfast of hot chocolate and freshly made delicious bread. The rest of the morning was spent watching and assisting his mother make a robust lunch of tortillas, tosdadas, empanadas, memelas, and delicious salsas.

This was followed by a cooperative effort to make chocolate from cacao beans, involving roasting, peeling, and then grinding them by hand on a special stone.

During a casual walk around town visiting a local artisan’s shop, the town hall, park, church, and his brother’s art gallery, Cesar explained the form of autonomous government used by the Zapotec community for managing the town of roughly 6,ooo, 95% of which are Roman Catholic. Essentially a council of elders appoints members of the community who are obliged to serve one-year, without pay, in the various functions of managing the town.

And finally a visit, via Cesar’s tuk-tuk to a traditional, yet fairly new open air distillery that his friend had built in the surrounding hills and agave plantations to learn first hand the process of harvesting and processing agave to produce a fine mezcal, which we sampled eagerly. His friend is a third generation mezcal distiller.

Mi esposo y yo estábamos buscando nuevas experiencias en Oaxaca y el tour de César cumplió con nuestras expectativas. César fue amable en todo momento. La primera parada fue en su casa, dónde toda su familia fue muy atenta y su mamá nos preparó un rico desayuno y me dejó hacer unas blanditas (tlayudas blandas), claro que no me quedaron como a ella, pero se agradece infinitamente la explicación y que me dejara intentarlo. Después visitamos una pequeña fábrica de chocolates y mole que nos dejó sin aliento, todo el tiempo y dedicación que ponen en la selección de insumos y producción artesanal se refleja en sus productos. También visitamos un nacimiento de agua carbonatada poco concurrido, que si bien no es hierve el agua, se disfruta más. La ida a una mezcalería no podía faltar. Y para finalizar una localidad de alrededor de 8 casas, dónde la convivencia con la naturaleza se realiza en armonía.

César is super friendly and accommodating. It’s clear that he truly loves his town and the surrounding countryside, and he wants people to enjoy it as much as he does. I got to talk with real people working, not someone in a tourist-center; and instead of crowds, the places he took me to were the opposite – quiet and wide-open. It was so beautiful and relaxing, and César is great company. He’s added some sites, and I can’t wait to go back again!