29/09/2026
Oaxaca: The Copal Road
A journey into the markets, mountains, and sacred smoke of Oaxaca
You are the one who gets everything done. You've raised the children, built the career, and carried everyone else's plans on your shoulders for so long that you barely notice the weight anymore. People call you strong. They call you busy. Somewhere along the way, you stopped asking what you want.
What if, for ten days, you didn't have to be in charge of anything at all?
Imagine stepping into a market where the air is thick with copal and chocolate, where marigolds spill from baskets beside mountains of chiles, and hand-woven blankets glow in every color the earth knows how to make. Women call out prices, children weave between the stalls, and somewhere a brass band is playing. It is loud and fragrant and gloriously alive. And just when it becomes too much, a door opens onto a quiet courtyard, a cup of hot chocolate, and a long, slow breath.
This is the land where my own story began. As a girl, I came here with my father to find the finest copal in the world, following mountain trails to share food and stories with the families who gathered it. I learned then that incense is more than fragrance. It is memory. It is prayer. It is a place you can carry home in your hands.
Together, we will:
Wander the great markets, tasting as we go, in search of resins, herbs, flowers, and spices
Walk among the ancient Zapotec stones of Monte Albán and listen to what the land remembers
Meet the people who gather copal and hear the stories behind the sacred smoke
Share long meals with women who have also spent their lives being the strong one
Gather in simple, heartfelt ceremony to honor this place and whatever you are ready to release
Blend your own incense in sacred space, a fragrance that holds everything this journey stirred in you
You don't need any experience with ritual or magic. You don't need to know the right words or believe the right things. You only need to show up as you are. I'll hold the space, and the land will do the rest.
Every detail is taken care of. Lodging, meals, transportation, and guides are arranged, so the only thing you need to plan is what to pack.
On our final evening, we will burn our incense together for the first time. Every time you light it afterward, for years to come, you will be standing in Oaxaca again, remembering the woman you met there.
This journey is for you if:
You've spent years taking care of everyone else and aren't sure who you are when no one needs you
Your vacations keep turning into working vacations
You love food, markets, and history, and you want to travel to meet the people behind what you buy
You feel a quiet pull toward something ancient and sacred, even if you can't quite name it
What would it be like to leave home far behind and let this land show you who you are becoming?
