Ideal SPANISH MEXICO has two locations:
Cuernavaca and the city of Oaxaca
Ideal Cuernavaca
In Cuernavaca IDEAL is located, since 46 years ago, in the Colonia “La Pradera,” a middle-class neighborhood just a 20 minute walk north of downtown Cuernavaca. Near IDEAL there are various services that make students’ stay more comfortable: banks (with ATMs), inexpensive restaurants, drug stores, a supermarket, newspaper stands, currency exchange offices, bakeries, hair stylists and computer stores.
Cuernavaca has been worldwide known like the place to learn Spanish. The success of Cuernavaca’s language schools, in addition to the development of a highly-efficient teaching methodology, was due to the city’s excellent location; 1½ hours from the largest city in the world – Mexico City. It is also very close to various places where students of the Spanish language and Mexican culture can get to know the country in its different facets. With activities ranging from cultural visits to museums and archeological sites to recreational destinations, such as Acapulco, visitors can choose from a wide variety of places to go.
Cuernavaca alone offers numerous cultural and tourist attractions. Above all, Cuernavaca offers the opportunity to admire and learn about the different stages of Mexican history; from the pre-Hispanic period at the Teopanzolco archeological site to the Spanish Conquest with Hernan Cortés’s Palace, which is the city’s most famous historical landmark. The Colonial Period is represented by various buildings and small niches, the most noteworthy of which is the Cathedral. The period of the Reform and the French Intervention is on display at the Borda Garden, where Maximilian of Habsburg had his home. The kiosk at the Zocalo is from the Porfirian Period. Being the birthplace of Emiliano Zapata, the state of Morelos – and its capital, Cuernavaca – have no shortage of monuments to the great hero of the Mexican Revolution.
The “City of the Eternal Springtime”
Above all, Cuernavaca is best known for its weather; local temperatures are between 20ºC and 30ºC (68ºF to 86ºF) all year round. There are two main seasons: the dry season, which lasts from October to May, and the rainy season, from May to October. Fortunately, it usually rains in the late afternoon or at night, and the sun usually shines during the day.
The warmest months are from the end of March to May, and the coldest season is from December to February.
Due to its benevolent climate and proximity to Mexico City, many Mexico City residents spend their weekends in Cuernavaca, where many also own homes. As a result, the city has a wide variety of restaurants, cafeterias, bars, nightclubs, malls, spas, and movie theaters as well as first-class tourist services.
Cuernavaca is located 1,500 meters (4,920 feet) above sea level.
Ideal Oaxaca
After six years of experience working in Oaxaca, we are beginning a new stage, collaborating with our Oaxacan colleagues in that beautiful city. In the last years we used to work in Oaxaca only summers or with groups, but now everybody, including independent students, will be welcome to study Spanish in Oaxaca, anytime, beginning any Monday year-round.
Our colleagues of Oaxaca share our didactic and academic philosophy, the enthusiasm to teach Spanish and the pride to show the great Oaxacan culture.
The city of Oaxaca is the capital and largest city of the state of the same name Oaxaca. It is located in the foothills of the Sierra Madre at the base of the Cerro del Fortin. This city relies heavily on tourism, which is based on its large number of colonial-era structures as well as the native Zapotec and Mixtec cultures and archeological sites. It, along with the archeological site of Monte Alban, were named a World Heritage Site in 1987. It is also the home of the month-long cultural festival called the “Guelaguetza”, which features Oaxaca dance, music and a beauty pageant for indigenous women.
Oaxaca has a Tropical savanna climate with a wet season and a dry season. During the dry season, temperatures during the day remain warm with an average high of 27 ºC (81 ºF) in the coolest month, December, and an average high of 34 ºC (93 ºF) in April, just before the beginning of the wet season. Although daytime temperatures are warm, nighttime temperatures are cool with an average low of 9 ºC (48 ºF) in January. Due to its altitude of 1,555 meters (5,102 ft), the climate of Oaxaca is milder than lowland areas with the same climate. Precipitation is concentrated in the summer months with June being the wettest with an average precipitation of 172 mm (6.8 in).