Jeff
One of the reasons I wanted to move to Arequipa is the mountains. There are three peaks over 19,000 feet very close to the City. Unfortunately, I have not met any climbers and the guide services do not run many trips this time of year due to low demand. I could not wait anymore and decided to attempt a solo climb of a nearby volcano called Misti. I bought a few items that I needed (including a map and compass) and arranged for one of the guide services to transport me to the trail head shown below.
My chosen route was very easy, with the altitude and route finding being the only real challenges. However, on the way to base camp, I got stuck in a snow/hail storm so I decided to stop at a lower camp that had some small ledges I could sit under since I did not have a proper tent. I went to sleep around 5:30pm but was so worried about not having made the upper base camp I got up four hours later to start my summit attempt. It turns out I was way too worried about time. I reached the summit in the dark and made it back to my camp by 6:00am. It was a nice hike and a very beautiful mountain to spend some time on.
The hardest part of the trip was getting home. The long hike back to the trail head was followed by an even longer hike to the road. However, I loved the high desert scenery and the previous night's storm brought out some beautiful wildflowers. Once the walking was over, I had to sit in the middle of nowhere praying for a bus to show up on a seemingly deserted highway. After nearly two hours in the hot sun, I finally saw a bus! I started jumping up and down frantically to ensure the driver stopped for me. Everyone was cracking up when I got on board; I am not sure if they were laughing because I was waiting in the middle of nowhere, had been jumping up and down like a maniac or that my face was covered in volcanic ash. Once I settled into my seat, an old guy reached over and patted me on the shoulder. He said something in what I think was Quechua. My Quechua is very limited; he was either telling me "congratulations on the climb you strong north american hero" or "don't worry crazy and stupid gringo, everything will be just fine."
Emma
A couple of days ago I competed in a swimming competition at school. I was 1 of the 4 people that competed for my class. I won a silver medal for speed, velocidad, below is the medal.
My medals are now hanging on my closet door.
Aileen
A few weeks ago I mentioned to a friend that I when I get back home to the U.S., I wanted to get back to working in Special Education, because I really loved it. She said that she knew someone who worked with a special education program and could arrange a volunteer placement for me. She said somewhat flippantly, "I believe that if you really love doing something, you should do it." Even though she said it off the cuff, I've been thinking about it a lot. Anyway, her aunt brought me over to Unamonos, a privately funded program for special needs children, and since then I've been volunteering there a few times a week.
It's been really interesting for me, to see both the similarities and the differences between special education in the U.S. and here. I find that on Monday mornings as I walk to the school, I'm looking forward to seeing the kids I've been working with and helping out however I can.
Hannah
We had Thanksgiving at our house. When we were cooking the turkey it was kind of weird but we had to give it a shot to get the juice in there. We had to stick carrots and celery and onions in the turkey's butt which was weird too. Mommy and me cooked everything.
After we cooked all that stuff our friends came over: Sammy, Francesca, Ximena, Mafer and the adults - Erica, Nelson and Teresa.
We played with them in our garage and did hide-and-go-seek and los paises. I really loved the turkey. Thanksgiving was so good!
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| The route uses the prominent rib to the left of the sign |
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| View from the summit |
Emma
A couple of days ago I competed in a swimming competition at school. I was 1 of the 4 people that competed for my class. I won a silver medal for speed, velocidad, below is the medal.
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I won another silver medal for relay, postas. In the photo below is my team. The boy in the towel is Sergio Tadeo, the boy next to him is Brandon, I am next to Brandon & to my left is Maria Fernanda.
My medals are now hanging on my closet door.
Aileen
A few weeks ago I mentioned to a friend that I when I get back home to the U.S., I wanted to get back to working in Special Education, because I really loved it. She said that she knew someone who worked with a special education program and could arrange a volunteer placement for me. She said somewhat flippantly, "I believe that if you really love doing something, you should do it." Even though she said it off the cuff, I've been thinking about it a lot. Anyway, her aunt brought me over to Unamonos, a privately funded program for special needs children, and since then I've been volunteering there a few times a week.
It's been really interesting for me, to see both the similarities and the differences between special education in the U.S. and here. I find that on Monday mornings as I walk to the school, I'm looking forward to seeing the kids I've been working with and helping out however I can.
Hannah
We had Thanksgiving at our house. When we were cooking the turkey it was kind of weird but we had to give it a shot to get the juice in there. We had to stick carrots and celery and onions in the turkey's butt which was weird too. Mommy and me cooked everything.
After we cooked all that stuff our friends came over: Sammy, Francesca, Ximena, Mafer and the adults - Erica, Nelson and Teresa.
We played with them in our garage and did hide-and-go-seek and los paises. I really loved the turkey. Thanksgiving was so good!
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