By Ella Gambell, Latitudes Australia
I’m not going to lie, the first couple weeks of this semester were pretty tough for me. At Latitudes orientation right before I came here, I heard about all of the amazing things all of the other Carpe kids are doing and I wondered if I could be doing something better or more adventurous than working on a farm. I would be weeding in the… Read More
By Isabella Spivey
Saludos de Peru!
Isabella here, to update you on our adventure from the past week. Our second to last day in Ecuador, we said a bittersweet farewell to Sarah Beth, and joined her and her family for dinner and shared our gratitude for having her as part of our Inti Family. As sad as it is that she will be leaving us, we are all holding out… Read More
I’ve thought about leaving many times; some days I was excited to move on and other days I dreaded the day I would have to say goodbye. And now that time where I have to say goodbye and move on is not in the far-off future anymore – tomorrow I must say goodbye. And, now that the time to leave is finally here I find it hard to accept the… Read More
By Annie
Our week and a half at Colibri Spanish School came to a close with some final juegos and all of us attempting to absorb our last formal Spanish lessons of the trip. We said goodbyes and thank yous to the amazing teachers, excited for one last weekend in Matagalpa. As it is Good Friday, the main cathedral off of Morazan Park was hosting a special annual service and… Read More
By Eli Karsh-Lombardo, Latitudes Ecuador ’18
The days start at 6:30 AM with the crazy urge to pee after the three-Nalgene-a-day-from-sweat kicks in. Real alarm clock is when the family of seven Spiderman and 200 square monkeys decide to jump play and fight on the thin loud metal roof of the volunteer house. After that, depending on the schedule of the day, we either head straight to the bodega for… Read More
Getting ready to herd sheep on the Hart Family Farm.I am Wes, and I’m in the midst of an epic journey.Rachel taking time to reflect at Hart Family Farm.Morning chores.Spa day at the mud pools.… Read More
A fierce game of badminton at the Fox’s Farm in Mufindi.Maytal enjoying the lush landscape in Mufindi.Kiara got muddy playing soccer in the rain with some boys at the children’s village in Mufindi.Hanging out with Mr. Fox, a British man who founded the NGO we worked with in Mufindi.There were really cute dogs.Saying good bye to the kids and house mamas of Mufindi.The group … Read More
By Kiara D. Chavez, Tosca, Mary Dudley, and Maytal
Hola mis quieridos amigos,
Last week we finished staying at the Munfindi Children’s Home. It was amazing to experience bonding with the children and learning about the large presence of HIV/AIDS in the region. Tosca, Rachel and I even got the opportunity to play soccer in the rain with the older boys, best believe we were soaked by the end. While… Read More
By Chris Denning
The past few days our Sabai group has traveled to Cambodia! We arrived for our first few days in the bustling city of Phnom Penh. The city that holds just about 1.5 million, felt no bigger than a small town. We spent our first few days throughout the city, exploring the beautiful temples and the royal palace. We saw the extravagant Central market and walked along the… Read More
By Wes
BULA!!!! (Hello in Fijian)
After leaving New Zealand we have made our way out of Aukland and into Nadi, Fiji. We posted up at a very nice hostel there and met some pretty cool people. One of them was Nazil, our taxi driver, photographer, all-time best friend and “FBI” agent. He took us to a gorgeous mud pool where almost everyone pushed their limits with their comfort zone… Read More
Sites along the trek.During the trek, the group stayed at local villages along the way and met many kind hosts.Navigating the rivers on a bamboo raft in Northern Thailand.During the trek the group was able to visit an elephant sanctuary. The students enjoyed visiting and playing with the elephants, while learning about all of the ways elephants can be mistreated and how to help rescue elephants.… Read More
Participating in activities at a local festival in Northern Thailand. Celebrations include music, stilt walking, and fishing.OE Jon practices his flying skills.Hanging by the river waiting for the festivities to begin in Nan Thailand.Puppy friend at the permaculture farm.The group takes a photo break during their trek outside of Chiang Rai, Thailand.Drinking out of bamboo cups at a break during the trek outside of Chiang … Read More
Boat trip along the Mekong outside of Kirati, Cambodia.Working with local communities on a garden project through SUP Asia.Staying with homestay families on an island in the Mekong.Exploring Bangkok by boat.Watching a muay thai match in Bangkok.Meal time at Sahainan, a permaculture farm in Thailand.… Read More
Classrooms for the week!Cooking class!Elliot stirring homemade honey.Cooking class.Annie getting ready to fry up our pastries.The finished product.Grace roasts fresh coffee beans.Talia enjoying the aroma of freshly brewed coffee.Ready for the next coffee tasting.How we make “bio” gas!Composting toilet.Vista from the Spanish School.… Read More
By Rebecca Klane
Halfway through. Never before have I had such a mix of awe that it has already been six weeks and frustration that we will not experience the comforts of home for another six. Time has passed quickly but it still seems like there is such a long way to go. Though not logical, this juxtaposition between positive and negative mindsets matches up well with the mixture of… Read More
Hello family and friends of the Sabai group!
This past week the group headed to our friend Sandot’s permaculture farm in Thung Chung, Thailand. Permaculture farming is a style of sustainable farming that is able to use its surrounding areas to its advantage. This enables the farmer to interact with the farm as minimally as possible (once it is established). We learned so much on the farm.
The first day… Read More
By Maddie Cloran
Hola!
Greetings once again from Escuela de Español Colibrí! It’s been a Spanish-practicing, organic, activity-filled week at school and we have been having so much fun continuing to explore the city of Matagalpa. Here at the school, we’ve been practicing our Spanish skills while immersing ourselves in the Nicaraguan culture. Every day this week after class and a lovely home-cooked lunch, we participated in an activity to… Read More
By Greg Hart, our contact abroadThe hillside where we planted the trees for Carpe Diem last year. Most have survived the summer and are set for good growth over the coming wetter season.Spending a couple of hours pruning trees in a block that every Carpe group of students we have hosted (this is the 8th) has spent time working on.… Read More
Kayleigh and Kiara relaxing on the top of a waterfall after a long hike near our Swahili School.Group photo with our teacher from Swahili school.Prepping to make pizza for our host families in Morogoro.The proud chefs.Kiara, Elle, and Tosca with their host parents.Maytal and Kayleigh with their host dad.Always waiting for a bus! (Mafinga, Tanzania)Mary Dudley learning the art of whacking beans with … Read More
