Spanish Immersion

Other Courses: Baja | Denali | Lake Clark

•	Course Overview
•	About Chacala
•	Course Description
•	Course Schedule
•	General Info
•	Photo Gallery
•	Tuition

The classroom is Chacala, a sleepy fishing village of 300 in the state of Nayarit on the Pacific coast of Mexico. This course came into being after two of the instructors lived in Chacala for a month and realized what an ideal town it would be for a “classroom.” Family-oriented, safe, and quiet, it is the perfect setting for youth to be immersed into Spanish language and Mexican culture. In addition to being a warm, beautiful place with cobblestone roads, roosters crowing and a pristine beach, the people are warm and inviting toward visitors and very willing to tackle language barriers in order to share their culture with new friends.

Chacala has a mild climate in the winter. Days are hot in the 80's and mostly sunny. Nights are milder in the 60's and 70's. The sun is very strong during the day and the ocean water is a perfect temperature for swimming. Rain is almost unheard of in the winter.

There are no policemen in Chacala and very little crime. The town votes a new judge into office once every three years and it is his/her job to help settle any disputes. In addition to being safe on land, the water is safe, too. Due to the orientation and slope of the beach, it is a very safe Pacific beach to swim at. Although the surf is occasionally strong, there are no strong riptides and the depth does not drop off sharply.

The only access to Chacala used to be a worn dirt road, which helped to keep Chacala pristine. In July of 2001 the spur road from the highway was paved, making it easily accessible. Because of this, the town is starting to undergo changes and see more American tourism since Puerto Vallarta is only 60 miles away. However, the advantage to the new road is the quick access, which makes it a safer destination for a school group. The clinic is only 6 miles away. (See the safety section for more information.)

Chacala is a very active, involved community. As tourism causes it to grow, the residents are taking an active role in its development, making sure it is growing in the direction they desire. Consequently, there are many family-owned businesses as well as community projects such as afterschool programs, scholarship programs, and a local Techos of Mexico volunteer project, which builds family homes with rooms to rent out to tourists.

The community of Chacala values education. Chacala has a kindergarten with a student teacher, a two-room primary school with six grades and two teachers and a 3-year junior high school with one teacher. For students to complete school beyond junior high, they must be very dedicated because there is no high school in Chacala. Therefore, they have to travel to neighboring towns and pay for tuition, uniform, books and transportation.

Because of the overwhelming costs for a student to go to high school, a scholarship program was started, called EBACH (Estudiantes Abecados Agradecidos de CHacala = Grateful Scholarship Students of Chacala.) If you'd like to learn more about EBACH, you can visit their website. We will spend a lot of time with the EBACH students.

The town also has an afterschool program in the library. It is popular with all the young children and offers many activities from basketball to crafts (after students finish their homework).

The town of Chacala is located over a small area. You can walk from one end of town to the other in 10 minutes! Walking to the store for groceries takes about 3 minutes. Its small size allows students to become oriented quickly in one afternoon and then move around town safely in small groups. On the first day, students receive a walking tour of Chacala from Trini, our Spanish instructor.

There are many restaurants in town to choose from - most of them right on the beach! There are also several small groceries where students shop for ingredients to cook at home.

Few Chacalenos speak English, making it an ideal place to practice Spanish. It is such a small, welcoming place that students are able to become part of the community and experience Mexican culture, not just observe it. In fact, now that we've spent so many years there, the locals look forward to our return because we are old friends. We will probably be invited to many special events and celebrations.

“This is an excellent opportunity for students to experience first hand other languages and cultures. CWAV give students a chance learn how other people live. The interaction my child had with the people of Chacala is something he will never forget.”
- Parent, Spanish Immersion '05

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