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From the point of view of students:
Comments from students studying Spanish in Buenavista de Cuéllar, México
at Tlatoani Language School.
Ron
B. - Roman Catholic Priest, Washington
After returning to Washington, Fr. Ron emailed us his diary of events
that he kept to chronicle his experiences living and studying in Buenavista de
Cuéllar. Click here to read Fr. Ron´s comments.
Dayle
C., - Episcopal priest, Colorado
"I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated my two weeks at Tlatoani and
Buenavista. It was not so much that I learned so much Spanish as that it gave me
a wonderful opportunity to try to make my tongue work right with what I already
knew, which I continued in Taxco and with folks here at church yesterday"
Pedro
González, Long Beach CA (Second Samoan Congregational United Church of
Christ)
"Por
este medio deseo expresar nuestro agradecimiento por las atenciones que le
dieron a Rvdo. Misipouena Tagaloa durante su estancia en tu esucela. Me comentó
que estuvo muy contento con todos ustedes, donde recibió una atención de
calidad, cordialidad y ambiente familiar, comentó que realmente se sintió como
en casa" ("With this letter I'd like to express our appreciation for
all the attention given to Rev. Misipouena Tagaloa during his stay at your
school. He commented to me that he was very happy with everyone and that he
received cordial and quality treatment in a family-like atmosphere, he
said that he really felt at home.")
Catherine
K., Boca Raton FL.
"Choosing a school was an agonizing decision, as I'm sure you
know. I am very happy that I chose Tlatoani and Buenavista." (4 weeks)
Carrie
K., Appleton WI. (Medical Assistant)
"For now, suffice it to say that I had a wonderful time, and that
all the school's efforts to help me in my areas on interest were above and
beyond my expectations." (2 weeks)
David
S., Bristow VA (4th Grade Teacher)
"I had a great time here. I feel I have a great basis for learning more and
more Spanish. Gabriel is a very good teacher and an even better person." (2
weeks)
Mary
Alice S., Kentucky USA (Doctoral Student)
"Overall,
I was very pleased with the program. The school provides a great atmosphere in
which to study. I think it is to the school's advantage that it is in a small
town, at least in terms of the amount of Spanish students have to use while
staying there. I took language classes in Cuernavaca as a part of my study
abroad program in college and found that pretty much everywhere I went, people
spoke at least some English (or were English speaking students there to study
Spanish) and would immediately start conversations with me in English. In
Buenavista, that didn't happen. The home stay was excellent."...."
Julia and Lorena, Missionaries, Georgia USA
"The town was everything we hoped it would be...We
were more than pleased with our teacher, Raquel. She kept us on track to perfect
pronunciation (although we probably wore her out with our Spanglish...smile!
)....She went out of her way every day to help us." (2 weeks)
Monica Whyte, Florida USA
From Monica's parents..."We were amazed with Monica's fluency and that was
because of her total immersion at your school....She found
the first week in Buenavista exhausting because she never got a break from
Spanish. At the dinner table they conversed with her and expected a response.
She said it was very difficult for her brain to be thinking all the time. By the
second week she said she felt very comfortable and was thinking in Spanish
rather than translating in her mind all the time. When I spoke with her on the
phone she was using many Spanish words without realizing it and she commented
that she was afraid of forgetting how to speak English because she was so
immersed in Spanish she was now thinking totally in Spanish" ..."The
family and teacher treated her so well, like she was part of the family. There
is not one more thing they could have possibly done to make the experience
more enjoyable for her." (Studied 3 weeks at Tlatoani)
Rev. James Dammier, Wisconsin, USA
"My experience at Tlatoani has been good and I would really like to see the
school develop, especially the San David Program. There is a great need for it
for those ministering in the USA and Canada to Latino populations."
(Studied 4 weeks at Tlatoani)
Jeff Cowell, Tennessee, USA
"I had a great fifteen days in Buenavista, dividing time between
birding, practicing Spanish, writing my book and enjoying Dolores'
cooking (a little too much)." (Stayed 2 weeks at Tlatoani)
Curtis Boe, North Carolina, USA
"I found the teaching to be very challenging, stimulating, and fun. Señor Arizmendi was very demanding as to correct pronunciation of our
work. Both of the gentlemen had great rapore with all of the students. They definitely created a fun and learning atmosphere" ....
"I would highly recommend the Tlatoani School. The professionalism of the instruction, the interaction with students, and the real
'heart felt concern' for the students learning impressed me a great deal." (Studied 1 week at Tlatoani)
Fr. Ken Davis, Director Hispanic Program, St. Meinrad Seminary, Illinois USA
..."I would recommend the school. It is in a very pleasant spot with a fine climate, no pollution, and no crime. Yet the town is large enough
to have a bank, internet access, etc. The Tlatoani compound is compact with classes and housing across from each other. The home cooked
meals were excellent. As far as additional information, as a priest I was interested in training of seminarians. They have relationaships with a
convent of Nuns and a local church for that. I hope to send three seminarians to the school this summer."
Melissa
Nix, Colorado USA
"Overall, the experience was an excellent one, well worth the time and
money. The school was very professionally run and my host family experience was
a good one......The family was so incredibly excellent about really trying to
make me feel comfortable in every way. They went out of their way to fix
delicious vegetarian meals, to introduce me to so many of the people of
Buenavista, to help me see beautiful places in Mexico, to help me really learn a
lot about Mexican people and culture, and to involve me in anything that they
were doing as a family. This was definitely one of the highlights of my time
there." (Studied 2 weeks at Tlatoani)
Sharon
Jackson, High School Teacher-Private Catholic School for Girls, Illinois USA
"For my part and I believe I speak for all participants, not only were
there highlights within the trip, but also the trip overall was one of MY
personal highlights, which takes on added cogency, when you consider my ten
years as a travel agent, three prior trips to Mex, and just generally ambitious
travel history."... "Not only were you very kind and forthcoming
with info, etc., before the visit to fill and ease our minds; but, immediately
upon reaching Buenavista, the kindness and holiness of the town commenced to
wash over me and , by week's end, I was newly baptized by it all......though our
girls generally come from wealth, I believe not only Spanish lessons were
learned in BVC, but also lessons about what truly defines WEALTH!" (1 week
study/vacation with high school group at Tlatoani)
Amy Isaac, High School Teacher-Private Catholic School for Girls, Illinois
USA
"We had a wonderful time in Buenavista de Cuellar. As the girls have had
time to reflect on their week, they seem to appreciate it even more. Everything
certainly met, if not exceeded, my expectations. The sleeping arrangements were
ideal, even better than if we had been staying with families. The food was
wonderful and the fact that no one became ill there was a tribute to the care
that was taken in preparing our food.......the Buenavista environment really
lends itself to a different type of learning.".... "After hearing
about our wonderful week, many other students are asking when the next trip is
scheduled for."(1 week study/vacation with high school group at Tlatoani)
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