“We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate.” – Pico Iyer, Why We Travel
Without further ado I’d like to share with you the tentative schedule for our first six weeks in China. We will be traveling throughout western and northwestern Yunnan for the first four weeks of our journey through areas of vast geographical and ethnic diversity. This will help orient ourselves to the beauty of the beast that is China and will act as a vivid juxtaposition to our time metropolis of Kunming which we will return to in early October. Be prepared that this itinerary will likely change based on the opportunities that arise in our paths as well and the needs and interests of our group, so please only use this as a brief reference and an introduction to our journey. We will continue to post on this board with stories and anecdotes on every step of our journey so don’t think you’ll be missing out! Students, please post your introductions here and we will see you in just under 10 days!
Friday, September 1 (JFK – Lost Garden, Kunming): Arrival at 10:50am
Saturday, September 2 (Lost Garden, Kunming): The Basics
Sunday, 3 (Kunming – Baoxiang Temple, Jianchuan): The Journey Begins!
Monday, 4 (Baoxiang Temple, Jianchuan): Language, Goals, and Staying Safe
Tuesday, 5 (Shaxi Cultural Center): Diving into the Local Culture
September 6-9 (Shaxi Cultural Center): Orientation and Exploration Continues
September 10-16 (Laojunshan National Park, Lijiang): Exploring Northern Yunnan – Trek
September 17-October 2 (Bangdong Village, Lincang): Rural Homestay
October 3-10 (Kunming): Introduction to Kunming and the Months to Come…
October 9 (Kunming): Language and Homestays
October 11-13 (Kunming): NGO Placements