Written by Eli and Megan After a smooth week of student directed travel, the group headed to the beautiful island of zanzibar. once we landed in stonetown, we were introduced to our final homestay families. After settling into our new homes for the week, we were lucky enough to be given a proper tour of stonetown by our contact, Faisal, and his funny sidekick, Ally. We learned about how some… Read More

Written by Reid and Megan Jambo! This week we spent our days relaxing on the beach and learning how to SCUBA!! After two days of theory and skills in the pool we finally got to go out on our first dive on the third day! We started off with review of the important skills we learned then went on our first dive at Mnemba Atoll. We split into small diving… Read More

Written by Frederick and Cari Hamjambo! Oli otya?! Amakuru? Choo kikowapi?! (Where is the bathroom?) is what we often questioned everyone, in a hurry, after we rushed off our never ending buses through East Africa… Usually we found them in time and hoped that we remembered toilet paper. We say “usually,” because sometimes you get the travel gurgles and you have a whole new experience. The best part was our… Read More

Written by Eli and Lily After our amazing home stays in Uwembe Village the group began student directed travel. With several weeks of stressful preparation we were finally on our way. A decision was made to make our way back to Iringa where we spent two nights. Whilst in Iringa we swung by the cinema to watch The Nun and The Spy Who Dumped Me. We woke early after the… Read More

By Ellie G, and LilyDear past family, We’ve just returned from spending the week with our new families! After the time at Ohana Amani, our gang walked an hour or so to the nearest town, Uwemba, where we were welcomed with open arms and a fantastic surprise party! We shared a yummy first meal with our home stay mothers, and after a round of introductions, we headed off separately… Read More

By Ben Kamwene friends and family, Sorry it’s been a while since the last blog post. We’ve been on a holistic retreat in the Southern Highlands region of Njombe. We spent the week meditating, doing yoga, eating and cooking farm-to-table meals, and learning about ourselves. At Ohana Omani we were greeted by an amazing pair of sisters named Chevy and Curry who led our activities for the week. Curry would… Read More

By Ben and Rebecca Hello Beloved Family, Let us tell you about our crazy week! We arrived at the small village of Mufindi at around 5 on Sunday evening. We were thrown directly into a week of new experiences and a little bit of culture shock. We were to spend the next 5 days in homestays with the families of Mufindi. We would not see our fellow Carpe students until… Read More

By Rebecca & Elizabeth Hello beautiful family and friends, We write to you from the depths of Tanzania in a small town known as Iringa. The air smells of eggs and french fries. We are sitting at an internet cafe in the post office, reflecting on our past week at Wildlife Connection. On Monday we arrived at our campsite that was situated just 20 minutes away from Ruaha National Park.… Read More

By Eve and Ellie B Mambo! We just spent our first week here in Tanzania taking Kiswahili classes at a language school at a Lutheran seminary in Morogoro. We also went on a beautiful hike up a mountain to get ourselves acclimated with the town. During our stay at the seminary, we lived with homestay families that live on the campus. Some of us were alone, while others stayed in… Read More

By Eve and Hanya Hey Everyone! It’s currently our third day in Kigali, Rwanda. After an eventful and challenging week trekking the beautiful rolling hills of Lake Bunyonyi, it’s nice to be back in the city. In fact, we’re currently on the 13th floor of a plaza overlooking the hills of Kigali munching on some yummy Chinese food. Eve took the photo, picturing Hanya, Ben, and Ellie G. Our trek… Read More

By Maddie and Hanya Hello family and friends, It has been an exceptional week at SNEC (The School for Special Needs Kids here in Uganda). We met all different kids with many different disabilities whether that be mental or physical. Every kid stole our hearts. We loved being able to work with them and helping them with different school subjects such as Math and we even did some Art lessons.… Read More

By Overseas Educator Cari Peck Ellie B. And Lily stoked to be hanging out with Kori and her two year old baby, Ajabu. Eli trying to make friends with a baby cow. Eve celebrating her 19th bday at Ziwa. Clearing invasive plant species. Visiting the national mosque in Kampala. Rebecca looks out at the view of Kampala from the top of the national mosque. Lily, Meghan, Ellie, and Hanya getting … Read More

By Overseas Educator Cari Peck The whole crew headed to Nile Raft Camp after rafting. Sunset on the nile.… Read More

By Reid Cohen Hello everyone! Its Day 12 and so much has happened already! We went through our three days of orientation and started to learn about each other’s likes and dislikes and what everyone’s strengths and weaknesses are so that we are able to be there for one another in the upcoming months. We are learning about all of the cultures here as well! It’s so much fun to… Read More

By Maddy Today is our last day of orientation and we have been sent off in groups to explore the streets of Jinja to locate internet cafes, shops, and markets. In orientation, we have been talking about ways to integrate ourselves appropriately into the cultures and customs of the area.… Read More

Nkula is growing! We want to give the warmest of welcomes to Hanya, who has just arrived in Entebbe, Uganda. We have just got word that the leaders have met her, and they are heading to a hostel for well deserved rest. We hope this semester is full of growth and transformation for you all! Welcome Hanya, and now Nkula is complete! Onwards!… Read More

Dear Friends and Family It is with a smiling heart that I say “Nkula has arrived!”. The group is safe and sound in Entebbe, road weary from an incredibly long flight, yet so excited at the adventures that lie ahead! We hope that their travels are filled with the magic, kindness, and beauty! Nkula crew: The blog is now yours! Best wishes, Jonathan… Read More

Greetings, friends and family! We just received the news that the Nkula crew is united in Amsterdam, en route to Entebbe and the beginning of an exciting semester! Thank you to everyone who has made this journey possible, and for the continued support throughout the semester. What a gift to for these students to be able to explore the world, develop new perspectives, and grow into ever more engaged global… Read More

By Overseas Educators Cari and Frederick Hey Everyone! Aisei! Can you believe the future we’ve been stewing on is nearly here? In just a few days we’ll be boarding giant birds and flying together to begin our journey! Both of us, Cari and Frederick, have been camping in a lovely forest outside of Portland, sharing stories and getting ready for our upcoming adventure with all of you. We’re both excited… Read More

By Overseas Educators Rachel & Peter Sitting on a wooden porch on a rainy afternoon in Nairobi, sipping some soups, we can’t help but notice something: it’s so quiet! Nobody around is playing cards, listening to music, or slurping passion fruit juice. The only other beings around now are just a fluffy golden retriever, an old white lab that seems to be blind, and a needy little cat. We invited… Read More