Greetings! We are very excited to go on this learning adventure in Peru with the group! On Friday, we got to know each other a lot better with a bunch of quick-fire questions as each student took turns sitting in the "hot seat." We went over some key aspects of the trip including some highlights on the packing list (water bottles, chapstick/lotion/sunscreen, shampoo/soap, gloves!) Students also established group norms and had some quiet time to reflect on their goals and write a letter to themselves (as seen in the photo below!) Going forward, students are excited to take turns updating this blog with our adventures in Peru! -- Mr. Chang and Dr. Garvey
¡Hola desde Zurite! We started off our morning bright and early with a 7 AM breakfast meet-up where we got our itineraries and homestay families! From there we reflected on intentions while we ate pancakes, meatballs, pineapple, and watermelon. Once we were officially packed, we set off to Zurite. It was a gorgeous ride as we picked out landmarks along the way before arriving to a gorgeous celebration welcoming us to the community. Representatives from the homestay families dressed in their traditional clothing and gifted us with dried flower petals and "serpiente" necklaces in place of flowers to accommodate the dry season. From there we toured the village in a dancing circle with live music following us! Once we learned about Zurite's history like how the Conquistadors took over, the recent landslides, and finally how Zurite is growing as a community now, we headed back to Don Tomás's house for a delicious lunch! We all had cuy (guinea pig) for the first time as w...
Yo, what up?! It's your girls Katie K and Hadley L back in DA CASA (in Zurite duh). Big day today, being our last work day here! Tomorrow is our big celebration day, so today we locked in to finish our projects. Most of us woke up and did our normal morning routine: eating bread, corn mate, potatoes, eggs, and tea for breakfast. Then we headed over to DT (Don Tomas') for our daily poop check and yoga session led by Toph. Afterward, we split into two groups—one to finish mapping the canals and the other to hang up the Hummingbird trail signs. Our finished signs! Que bonitos! In our all girl power group (+ Topher), we mapped one last canal, traversing 12 km in total. We started up by a reservoir and followed the canal around the perimeter of Zurite. It may have been muddy (to say the least), and there may have been quite a few smells that made our imaginations run wild (and not in a good way), but we had fun queuing songs under different themes. Our favorite theme was "mod...