(Steve Irwin Accent)
“AUSSIE! AUSSIE! AUSSIE! AUSSIE!……….AUSSIE! AUSSIE! AUSSIE!”
First week in Australia was CRIKEY! The stoke levels of the group were off the charts heading into this next leg of our journey. We could feel the energy of the outback coursing through our veins obsessing over the dangerous and gnarly environment in our near future. Upon our arrival in Brisbane we stayed our first night at the BBR (Brisbane… Read More
It is hard to believe that this week brought about the end of November and the final stages of our itinerary here in India, but there is no where I would have rather spent it than in Sadhana Forest.
Our group spent 10 days sleeping in tree-house bamboo huts under mosquito nets in a small community outside of Auroville that is based on forest regeneration, water conservation and sustainable living.… Read More
Written By Kylie Xin chao from Ho Chi Minh City! After Kylie and German’s extra few days in Phnom Phen with visa issues, the group was finally reunited. In the morning we were happily overwhelmed by all the welcoming handshakes and hugs from the Tan Tao University students. They picked us up from our hostel, and as we rode to Tan Tao University we all got to know each other… Read More
While in Ait Ourir we were able to briefly observe a national level bocce competition (known as pétanque in French.)
It’s popular and Morocco is a regular contender in international circles, winning silver at the 2018 world championships, and placing in the top ranks numerous times over 50 years in both men’s and women’s competition
Our group didn’t compete, though we did try a few tosses and were surprisingly good… Read More
Howdy Folks,
It’s Yung Perz on this beat (Omid). We’ve made some serious political gains out here in the streets of Ait Ourir. From shaking hands with the pacha (senator) and discussing the issues with our president’s economic/foreign policy to meeting with the Vice President of the city council and discussing Moroccan public health issues, it’s fair to say we are striving to prosper in Morocco. All jokes aside: We… Read More
Situated in a unique location, Air Ourir is only a 45 minute drive from Marrakech, the bustling shopping capital of Morocco, but drive 10 minutes from the city center and you’ll find yourself in the countryside, the landscape dotted with farms.
On Monday, we had the opportunity to visit several of these farms. We saw an olive plantation, a mint farm, and a potato farm. However, the farm we spent… Read More
The group has been in Kochi for a little over a week with everyone taking different classes, such as Ayurvedic medicine, painting, martial arts, flute, and cooking. For our last day as a full group, we decided to take a trip to the backwaters to do a kayaking and biking trip. Everyone woke up at 7:30 am to hop on a bus and ride an hour to the backwaters. Upon… Read More
Kochi: it’s not a city, it’s a feeling.
Kochi: a tropical, coastal wonderland full of culture, food, and fun. This whole trip, I’ve never felt so at home as I’ve felt in Kochi. Every one of us has a chance to take classes on varying topics and stay with wonderful host families.
Every day, we would wake up and have breakfast with our host families before going to our own… Read More
After 12 days in the remote village of Nakuku, we took an hour and a half bus ride back to Savusavu. In our first day of scuba, we went to a dive resort. It was super weird being in a resort after trying for the past two months to be travelers not tourists. We split into two groups at the dive resort. The first group was for people that may… Read More
This week we went off the map and then a little further to Qenco, a village quietly nestled in a mountain at 12,000+ feet.
Enduring the rain, wind, and mud, we were rewarded with picturesque mountain views and opportunities to hang out with llamas and 100’s of sheep in the morning and at sunset.
We also spent time working with our host families on various projects to fully engaged in… Read More
After our six week adventure in Guatemala, we were finally able to make it to our first week in Costa Rica. Our first stop in this small Central American country starts in a small city called Turriabla. Smack dot in the middle of Costa Rica, Turrialba offers a whole variety of fun things for the gang to do. For the past few days the group has been obsessed with eating… Read More
This week we were welcomed into new host families in the small town of Ollantaytambo, which is the jumping off point for many treks to Machu Picchu. We partnered up with Awamaki, a local NGO whose purpose it is to aid and empower women in the area through business endeavors and workshops.
In addition to having homestays, this week marked the final week of Spanish classes for our group. We… Read More
Written By Beverly Oujda was fairly quiet in comparison to Rabat. Our contact Abdo was incredible. He introduced us to many organizations; some were local, others were organizations found in every major Moroccan city. It was so interesting to learn about the statuses, issues, and statistics regarding refugees and immigrants in Morocco from these organizations who took the time to sit with us and explain their missions. On November 1st,… Read More
Written By Joe The day we left the island we traveled back to Kratie and on the way stopped at a wild dolphin watching spot. We learned that in Cambodia there are only 92 Irrawaddy dolphins left. Although we didn’t get to see much besides dorsal fins, we were excited to have experienced this. Joe made a friend with a local who gave him a sugar cane juice for free!… Read More
For the past ten days, we have been staying in home-stays in a rural Fijian village, Nakuku. This has opened our eyes to new ways of life, community engagement, and cultural immersion. Throughout our time here, we have had time to reflect on our past experiences and dive into a something that might be a little harder compared to life in New Zealand. This was the first time on this… Read More
Deciding to take a gap year is a big decision! Now that you’ve started researching your many gap year options, you’re probably coming up with more questions than answers.
If I had to guess, you’re probably wondering about things like how to get your parents on board, whether or not you want to earn college credit while abroad, how to pay for your gap year, and how to fit… Read More
Written By Pualina Did you know that the best place to swim is in the Mekong River? We know from personal experience, but this blog post begins five exciting days before. We left Siem Reap in style, in a 12 seater van that should probably only be used for ten people. A very cramped eight hours later, we arrived in Kratie, a peaceful city along the Mekong River. Our group… Read More
Written By Saffron We said “chao” to Ecuador and proceeded to miss our connecting flight from Lima to Cusco. The six hours of waiting in the Lima airport for the next flight to Cusco made our arrival to the inkan sun city all the more exciting. We have been in this bustling city for four days now. We arrived on halloween night and the streets were teeming with people, music… Read More
Written By Claire G. Suae Sdei from Cambodia! We have now ended our Thailand journey and we start anew in beautiful Cambodia.
After having spent 6 weeks in Thailand, it was a very weird experience going to the airport. We arrived and it was go time. We went through security with no problems except a couple of scissors being taken away. We all got through immigration without any problems. And… Read More
Written By Grace & Saffron After a stunning bus ride up and around and through the mountains, we found ourselves in the small town of Pucara at Finca La Fe. Pucara is located on the western slope of the Andes in the Intag/cloudy forest region. This region is known for ecological diversity and being suspended in cloud vapor the majority of time. During out time at Fina La Fe we… Read More
