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Well, after an extremely successful trip, the ladies are heading your way! Thank you for sharing your daughters with us in Peru. Each one of them is full of kindness, grace, and passion. I have learned so much from them and love each of them dearly. I can't wait to see how they incorporate the Action Step into their daily lives and into their communities when they return. Thank you for all the joy, laughter, and fun ladies. Until next time!  Today was super fun. Another full day of service. Some of us went to Anyi Wasi. Some went to Amawaki. Some went to Kuska School. The paint selection as Kuska School was not the best but the llamas were cute. It was a cool time of cultural immersion and service. Saw a mom dog with 1000000 puppies in the street. Been learning a lot! See you soon! Urs in Christ, Livi Mac and Amanda The picture below is from the group that went with Anyi Wasi to the remote village of Rumira Sondormayo, a rural community at 11,000'. The girls helped the members of the community learn and practice effective hand washing and tooth brushing techniques. Great work today!  Today was the first day of NGOs and the group split up to perform service in three locations. One group went to the Kuska School where they got to help the kids with their class activities, painted a fence in the school, and saw the students talent show. Another group joined Awamaki, a weaving co-op, and went with them to a rural community where they learned how to weave their own bracelets and tried guinea pig. The group was the first group of tourists to ever visit the community! All three of us leaders of the day were in a group together that joined Anyi Wasi, the Sacred Valley Health Clinic, to present short demonstrations on hand washing and teeth brushing to kids in an after-school program in a different rural community. It was interesting to see the lifestyle of children in various Peruvian villages. After explaining how to wash your hands and brush your teeth we helped each kid wash their own hands and brush their own teeth. We had the help of a giant toothbrush and tons of real toothpaste, soap, and toothbrushes. All the kids where excited to learn in a fun way (they loved singing happy birthday to keep time when brushing teeth and washing hands) and afterwards they showed their thanks by singing beautiful songs for us in English and Quechua. It was super cute!! We are spending another full day at the NGOs tomorrow! -Sheridan Monroe, Grace Ellsworth, Emily Kwiatkowski Today, I (Shayna Cooke, WLS) was with the group that went with Awamaki to Huilloc Alta to learn the basics of how to weave. The following pictures are from that adventure...  
  Greetings! We arose, and after unsuccessfully trying to shove everything in our suitcases, ate square shape pancakes for our last meal at the Ollantaytambo Lodge. They were FANTASTIC and a hundred times better than American pancakes. Then we walked to Kuska School where we played with llamas and assorted farm animals. We met with the woman who will be helping us during our time working with the school and she gave us a lot of background information to prepare us for the coming days. We then hiked for a solid 3 minutes and 30 seconds and were all gasping for air #notmyhike. We discussed our "leadership story" and took some time to reflect on our individual stories that we will share with the group later in the week. We then visited a traditional Incan house that was swamped with guinea pigs running around. We met our cutesy home stay families and had lunch and a little free time with them. We gathered in the plaza and then visited the Sacred Valley Health Clinic. A volunteer gave us an overview of all the work they do and we began prepping our projects for Wednesday and Thursday. Back to our home stays for dinner and sleep :) Bye for now! Clare, Olivia and Maddie 
  Hello fans. This is Kerry, Amanda, and Elizabeth here coming to you live from the terrific town of Ollantaytambo. We are enjoying the #unpluggedlife and really becoming connected with the nature vibes. We are one with nature now ;) The day started quite eventful, as our beloved team member, Amanda, adventurously sat in a baby cactus today. Don't worry... she's fine! We trekked to Machu Picchu, the home of the llamas. Many dreams were fulfilled (mainly Elizabeth's) when we came face to face with a chunky llama. The selfies turned out grand and the ruins blew our socks off. Many of us engaged in a treacherous hike up to the Sun Temple. Although it was hard, we made it successfully after an hour of hard work! We truly bonded as the sweat poured down our faces but the view at the end was stunning. We encountered many more fluffy dogs who we pet with our eyeballs instead of hands. We saw a chinchilla and a super crazy turkey gobblin around. Everyone was plopped on the train ride back, and then we made our final trek back to our beloved inn where we continued to bond and grow. Shoutout time!!!!!!! Shoutout to the proud mother of our team member Elizabeth, Happy Birthday!!!! Truly sorry i can't be there to celebrate. Well parents we all miss you dearly because you are the light of our lives, but don't worry we're thriving. See you in 2020 when the condor flies with the eagle. SIGNING OFF: CARRIE, ELISABETH, AMAENDA :O      We started our second (or third not really sure what day it is at this point) day with the most heavenly pancakes ever. We then played Puma for a little, great game not gonna lie. Next, we walked through the town to our tour of the Sun Temple. We met some really friendly and adventurous alpacas at the base of the temple. We did not realize that walking up one stair meant using the most amount of energy we have ever used in our entire lives (thanks, altitude). We walked up a million. Incans must be Dwayne the Rock Johnson on steroids. Also they were really smart and innovative (like us). They made parts of the mountains into an animal or a face and even though some were hard to see, it's the thought that counts. After the tour, Johan (the best person ever) told us his leadership story about how he saved his tour group from a sinking boat in the Amazon (just a reminder we won't be on any boats). So he's pretty cool. We also talked about the mission of WLS and finding your purpose and wrote our names next to our leadership goals (pictured below). Lunch was dank. We had burritos and it was beautiful and wonderful and everything we've ever hoped for in a meal. Good thing because the next thing we did was a 40 minute walk to the healer's house where we experienced a traditional despacho ceremony. It was refreshing to see his perspective of the world and encouraging to see his hope for more globally united nations. On our way back to the hotel, the weight of our vehicle was so concerning that as we went uphill we were not moving and had to promptly exit the vehicle. We good tho. Dinner was muy delicioso and the live music was even better. We ate brownies from the heavens and also had a Peruvian classic: mint tea (good for digestion ;) ). We are super stoked for Macchu Picchu on the morrow and our constituents will update you then! LOL (lots of love), Livi, Ellie, and Brooke       Hello family and friends of the Georgetown Visitation program in Peru! The group has safely arrived in Cusco and are making their way to Ollantaytambo. They will start updating the blog tomorrow. Don't hesitate to call 303-679-3412 with any questions! Thank you for your trust and support! Erin Hawk Executive Director  Hey! I’m Michaela and very excited to be the first blogger for our journey. iBienvenidos a la ciudad de Cusco! These welcoming words had been greatly anticipated over our long 3 flights from Dulles to El Salvador, El Salvador to Lima and finally Lima to Cusco. As soon as we stepped off the plane we were greeted with the chilly air yet colorful surroundings of the Peruvian city. A chourus of “oohs” and “ahhs” could be heard throughout the bus ride from Cusco to Ollantaytambo as we passed hundreds of street dogs. Despite the dogs super cute appearance we have been “petting them in our eyes” only. Ollantaytambo is a small yet bursting village with a square full of many restaurants, shops and markets. We habe already been treated with delicious food at the Ollantaytambo Lodge. After a few ice breakers and team building exercises including tying all of our shoes together and passing a hula hoop through our (which left many of us laughing on the ground) we ate a delicious lunch at a local restaurant. After a short and much needed nap, Johan, our local instructor, taught us a traditional game (which definitely stirred up some fun competition) similar to a combination of tether ball and dodge ball. Johan then explained the significance of the corners on the Andian cross. My biggest takeaways from the cross were the importance of spirituality, strength, working as a community, learning, and loving. We then had a group discussion of our fears and goals for the trip which included bettering our Spanish, immersing ourselves in the culture, and stepping outside of our comfort zone. We then walked into town again for dinner, which was a delicious quinoa salad, rice, and chicken. Now we are back and ready to shower and go to bed! I am so excited for a full day tomorrow of visiting Incan ruins and a healer. Buenos noches! XO, Michaela    |
