A young arriero leads a mule across fresh snow in the Peruvian Andes. Photo by Benjamin Swift (2016 Fall Semester Photo Contest Finalist), South America Semester.
First Ascent: An Awareness Piece To the Mountains Within Your Soul Mis Chicxs, I sit here on the back deck de la Casita de Manuel. The birds continue to sing while the sun sends its final saludos past the ridgeline. This is the Perú I......Read More
Dear Families, Yes we are okay. Yes we are eating enough. Yes we are wearing sunscreen and staying hydrated. Most importantly we are having fun! We’ve had two whole Spanish classes so far and no one has gotten detention…yet. Nuestros......Read More
Today, we were challenged to discover our new home of Urubamba by way of a scavenger hunt. The instructors split us up into groups of three to get more individual practice speaking in Spanish. We began the day by exploring the local market where we......Read More
Hello from an internet cafe in Urubamba! Today we are doing a scavenger hunt in the city in order to become more acquainted with where we will be living for the next two weeks. We started in La Plaza de Armas and headed to el mercado, where we......Read More
Hola from an Internet Cafe in Urubamba! Today we had the opportunity to explore our new pueblo for the next couple weeks. We were tasked with a scavenger hunt which encouraged us to step out of our comfort zones and involve ourselves in the......Read More
Hola! Hoy hicimos una busqueda en Urubamba para conocer el lugar mejor. El día trae muchos aventuras: Primer, somos Zoomers (gen Z), entonces no podemos usar un payphone. Fuemos a 3 lugares diferentes y ningunos funcionaron. Una mujer......Read More
As our group transitions from Chile to Peru, we are filled with excitement to explore a new country as well as sadness to part ways with Patagonia. As a way to reflect and express our gratitude, we wrote a letter to thank Pachamama and Patagonia for......Read More
La Patagonia y Yo When her name is called I think of the diverse ways in which she is known. The multiple names people call her. The intersecting factors that weave her story into the mountains of her being. I am reminded again and again que yo soy......Read More
Hello dear community of the Andes Leadership Semester, We have started our midcourse reflections as a group with a very real transition of saying goodbye for now to Patagonia and hello to Perú! We wanted to share some some questions that have been......Read More
Hello dear community of the Andes Leadership Semester, We are on the ferry bound for Cerro Castillo where we will be based camped for the next 10 days and climbing! We are rested and very full from our time in Chile Chico. All forward! ps- Manjar is......Read More
Sometimes you need to take a step back and read PachaMama’s signs. This became more and more evident as our first exped in Parque Patagonia continued to unfold. What started as whispers from our surroundings culminated in all our shouting and arm......Read More
***The Andes Leadership Semester, a collaborative program with the High Mountain Institute*** First Yak! I love photography and oil paint but wasn’t always able to pause to take photos/draw, so here are some images that wish I was able to......Read More
A Mountain’s right to its own ecosystem, and the extension of a Mountain’s rights to all beings and things within its immediate ecosystem. A Mountain’s right to retain their natural structure. Freedom from excessive and destructive human......Read More
Hello dear family and friends! We have officially wrapped our orientation in Chile Chico. We spent the last few days getting to know each other. Strategizing how our group will travel for the next 3 months and creating systems that we will employ in......Read More
Hi friends! I write to you with anticipation from Red Lodge, MT, where my partner and I have been settling in to our new life here during the past week. We are feeling cozy in our home, which for the first time in three years, isn’t a car,......Read More