August 2, 2019
Today was a successful and eventful start to what has already become quite the adventure.
We started our morning around 9 am, waking up and getting ready for the day which was shortly followed by our breakfast. After eating, we all made our way out of our hostel and began our long day of on-foot travel throughout Lima. Beginning our walk from our hostel in the South-most area of the country’s capital, we made our way all throughout Lima. We experienced an up-close view of neighborhoods and had a clear shot of the ocean where we took a rest and sat by the water. Covering ground fast, we visited numerous market places, exchanged our money, shopped around, and ate lunch.
Continuing our walk, we headed towards the North-most area of Lima called Miraflores where we stopped by a nice shopping mall, saw a small turtle sanctuary, stopped by some beautiful public parks where we began our general group bonding, shopped at a market for any foods or drinks that the students would want for our bus ride, and ate dinner as well.
After dinner, we were met by our drivers who then delivered us back to our hostel from our previous night to regather all of our larger baggage and after packing up, we all headed to the bus station where we waited to board our overnight bus to the region in which we’re working, Oxapampa.
Now, all on the bus and looking back on today, it was very very full and very very fun. The overall feeling was excitement towards our trip and what’s to come
August 3, 2019
We arrived at the bus station in La Merced at 8:30 in the morning.
Right away we ate breakfast, which was a drink-able oatmeal, and got on two separate vans, driven by Luis and Edgar who will be our drivers for the next week, that took us on a scenic drive to a local swimming area underneath a stream of waterfalls. We walked up to the largest and swam around as a group, going under the waterfalls and enjoying the clean water. Later we walked down to another, even larger waterfall and sat where the water just barely misted us. After swimming we drove down to a restaurant called “The Bambu 2” where we were served typical plates from the region. Around an hour later we drove to Villa Rica and stopped at a local lodge where we’ll be staying for the portion of our trip that includes service.
August 4, 2019
Hey All, today was definitely one for the books.
A large transition from our previous lodging and locational arrangements here in Peru, our first full day in Villa Rica was a satisfying success. Arriving at the Yanesha community village (Union De La Selva) was an amazing opportunity for the group to establish a great relationship with members of the community such as leaders, locals, and the children. We arrived and viewed Yanesha community traditions such as traditional dances, archery, music, and food. We viewed and discussed previous projects in the community and developed our game plan for the worksite.
After our day in the community, we returned to the lodge for dinner and to continue our physical training for our Machu Pichu trek. After dinner, we had a long discussion about global economics, international relations, and the way the world works. After that we had some group bonding session, daily reflection and tried a new fruit “Granadilla – similar to passionfruit.
August 5, 2019
The early morning exercise was a beautiful jog through the immediate area around the hotel.
Then we ate delicious fruit with yogurt sauce to satisfy the needs of everyone in the group. After that we started working on the project, we split into four groups of four, one group continued to dig the hole for the water tank deeper, another group carried bamboo to help construct a storage/rest area, a different group shoveled cement mix significantly closer to the hole in preparation for the cement stage.
After returning to the hotel and having dinner we made a trip to the local market for fruits and snacks for the week.
August 6, 2019
Today was the exploration day.
We hot our feet eaten by fish in a nearby lake ‘Lago Ocunal’, then we rowed a boat in amongst the lilly pads and birds.
From there we went to try some coffee from an overly passionate coffee professional. The coffee was great and produced with fair-trade practices. After which we opted to visit local waterfalls where we hang out and some of us went swimming.
After dinner, we watched a documentary on Incan history and had a discussion on global wealth equality.
Finding Local Solutions in Peru
August 1-15, 2019
August 7, 2019
August 8, 2019
Today was full of work and energy, and finished with an intense lack of energy. Today the group grinded out a lot of positive and productive work towards finishing our ambitious water tank!
This morning we woke up and ate breakfast and then shortpy after took off for our work cite where we began working around 10 o’clock.
August 9, 2019
August 11, 2019
Hey folks, 2 loooong days of travel! But also some welcome surprises and new adventures. Vicuña sightings, mountain top lakes, shopping in the city, pizza, distracting puppies, breath-taking-views-in-full-body-armor mountain biking, a remarkable breakfast, cusco city and a couple of precious hours of sleep. Everyone is thoroughly exhausted and nervous for the long hike tomorrow but the building anticipation for Machu Pichu is keeping everyone going.
August 12, 2019
Waking up at 5:30 am, the day started before the sun rose. The group walked to a breakfast buffet before beginning the day long trek on the Inca jungle trail. Along the route we learned about coca, mango, and quinoa farming. By mid-day we stumbled upon the Monkey House and were met by hammocks, shade, and cold water. The spot lived up to its name as one little monkey ran throughout the house. Our stay was much longer than planned as tour leader John painted everyone’s faces with a local and natural plant that also serves as an insect repellent. From there we headed up to the Inca trail, reaching our highest point of the day. Hiking down to lunch, the heat set in as the altitude dropped. On the final stretch of the 15 mile walk, the group came upon cable cars soaring across the river into a tunnel only lit by our flashlights. Soon after, we reached hot spring pools where we spent an hour and a half relaxing and reflecting upon the day. The group then took a 15 minute shuttle to the hostel and walked down the block to a filling dinner as day one came to a close. The views today did not disappoint, and the group is looking forward to tomorrow with soar legs, but happy hearts.
August 13, 2019
Blog to be written but please enjoy some of our awesome pictures from today!!