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The Ashram Experience
Blog from Kippie. Photos from Jon and Anya.
Note from Headquarters: the Shiva group just arrived in Leh, Ladak where they will volunteer with a partner organization and then go on a Himalayan trek! The group will have very limited access to internet for the next two weeks. I last blogged when we were heading into a week long yoga and meditation retreat here in India. Now a week later… Read More
Peguche Part 2
Thursday, October 13th, officially marks the one month anniversary of our group’s journey. Similar to the rest of the week we began the day with Spanish class from nine to one. After 4 hours of spanish, we were all ready for a delicious meal from our host families. Generally, almuerzo consists of a vegetable or chicken soup accompanied by tea and bread from the local panaderia. After a filling meal… Read More
Peguche
We arrived in the small town of Peguche on Monday after a full day of travel from the Amazon. The group was greeted by Lorena whom we met in Banos and introduced to our homestay families and homes for the week.
On Tuesday morning, we had an artesan workshop in which we learned about the intricate process of making “bufundas” or scarves. From dyeing the wool with natural pigments from… Read More
Student Directed Travel was a Success
file_002 The week of the 9th-14th was set aside as a week of student directed travel during which the Overseas Educators stepped back and allowed the group to fully take the helm and take charge of our own trip.
As a group we were in charge of organizing everything that would go into the trip, from departure on the 9th from Riverside intentional community to arrival on the 15th in… Read More
The Family Farm
Over the last week we’ve stepped into the shoes of a farmer spending mornings milking cows, feeding pigs, and collecting eggs. Greg and Rachel Hart welcomed us into their lakeside lodge showing us a glimpse into their daily lives on the farm. Rachel taught us new amazing recipes to take back home filled with fresh ingredients and love. We worked with Greg to create new trails through the rolling green… Read More
Getting Down and Dirty ;)
Sawatdee from Chiang Mai!
We have just returned to the city from our home stays and volunteering in an Ahka tribe village outside of Chiang Rai through the Mirror Arts Foundation.The job was to create a water channel to reduce the amount of flooding and damage from the heavy rains that the village faces.
We woke up early, enjoyed our instant coffee, and then began our day. Our days consisted… Read More
More stories from the Amazon!
Hola familias! The second half of our week in the Amazon went quite swell. On Thursday, we worked in the garden harvesting turmeric, which is used for medicinal purposes in local communities. After that long, hard day of work we got to go tubing in the river! Tubing was fat lit. Maddy and I held hands the whole way and Paxton got some mosquito bites to remember the trip by.… Read More
And The Photo Reel Continues
Here are some pictures of the volcano crew enjoying lunch along the shore of the crater lake at the summit of Volcano Maderas and another shot from the basket (or shall we more accurately say, hat) weaving workshop.… Read More
Hurricanes, Netflix, and Rumba
When someone says “Class-four Hurricane” what do you usually think? Perhaps it’s pictures of the damage done by Hurricane Sandy several years ago that comes to mind. You may think of the satellite image of the spiraling blob of red that has showed up on the news a bit too often for comfort last week.
Yet while both of these examples could be used to describe the most recent storm… Read More
Finding peace in Bodhgaya
Namaste beautiful friends and family!!
Catherine here from Bodhgaya to update you on our latest week!! Boy, have we had an amazing time here at the Root Institute. I know I can speak for everyone when I say we don’t want to leave!! From the moment we arrived here, we could feel how special it was. Monks and Nuns smiling at you, the cutest goats running around seemingly overwhelmed by… Read More
Photos from the Amazon
Boat ride to Arajuno Lodge, working hard, and meeting with the local shaman!… Read More
Taj Mahal and Rishikesh
Blog by Kippie. Photos from the Overseas Educators The past few days since leaving Udaipur have been filled with unpacking bags and repacking them, trains and rickshaws, and ever new and exciting India. We arrived in Agra mid-day Wednesday, and spent the afternoon recovering from the hours on the train, as well as wandering around one of Agra’s largest bazaars. At this point in our trip, we’ve been to more… Read More
From Mystical Atitlan to the top of Volcan Pacaya
Hola! The past week has been incredible, from the Mystical Yoga Farm to the city of Antigua. Lake Atitlan was absolutely beautiful. Every morning at 6 we woke up to the amazing view of three giant volcanoes towering over the bright blue waters of Atitlan. We then made our way to our meditation and yoga class. It was a great way to start the day! We think that the best… Read More
Student Directed Travel Begins~!
On October 9th the first week of Student Directed Travel begins. Every student was either booking, researching or supporting those who were working hard. We spent a lot of energy in the short amount of time given to us to plan. Very early, on the morning of October 9th, we will depart from the beloved Riverside Community and drive to Nelson where we will catch a Maxi Cab to Picton.… Read More
Riverside Community Living
This week the group was at Riverside Community helping and learning an amazing amount about the environment and living within a community. The start of the week was very stressful as we were planning a week in advance for our first Student Directed Travel. We spent a day and a half getting the main frame of the week in place. Our captain for the week split us up into groups… Read More
First Week on Finca Bona Fide
After 2 bus rides, a taxi ride, a ferry, and a van ride, the group successfully left Matagulpa, and arrived at the Bona Fide permaculture farm on the island of Omatepe, located in Lake Nicaragua. We’ve spent the past week getting up bright and early, and tasking ourselves with a variety of jobs such as hauling firewood and rice husks, weeding the gardens, and trailblazing with machetes. We’ve adjusted to… Read More
The Amazon
We arrived here on Sunday evening after a long travel day. We were dropped off by the Arajuno Bridge and then took a motorized canoe (which was pretty awesome) to our destination. My first thought when we pulled to the Arajuno Jungle Lodge, was that it was much more modern than I expected. The facility is very nice, which is a relief because we are working quite hard and it… Read More
