Bula! We have arrived safely in Fiji, after our unforgettable experience in New Zealand!
The few days we spent at the marae with the Ngai Tahu iwi (tribe) was the perfect way to finish our journey in the South Island. Manaia, our host at the marae, taught us about a chemical free way to cultivate potatoes, the history and spirit of the land, and the future of the Ngai Tahu… Read More
Blog from Paiton and Brent.
Mambo! Hello from Morogoro, Tanzania! We started this week in Rwanda, and a lot has happened since. At the beginning of our week we journeyed to Huey for a coffee tasting. After sampling some of the pride of Rwanda, we embarked on an educational trek about the life of the coffee bean from cultivation to cup. We learned that Huey Mountain Coffee Company supplies beans… Read More
Arrival at San Juan Del Sur! We´ve finally reached out first student directed travel destination. Everyone´s expectations were totally blown out of the water as soon as we stepped into the hostel. The hostel we are staying at, Casa De Oro, is a comfortable change from Bona Fide. Instead of sleeping with mosquitos and tarantulas and whatever other bugs decide to get friendly at night, we actually have air conditioning… Read More
Kia Ora! We are finally settling down here in a Marae outside of Christchurch nestled on the harbor banks following our four day experience with student directed travel! After leaving Family Farm, we bussed down to Wellington and spent two days exploring New Zealand’s city life. Wellington is the capital of NZ and reminds us of a small San Fran meets Seattle with endless coffee houses, bookstores and vintage shops.… Read More
Thursday October 13th 2016 the King of Thailand passed away. It has been a huge shock for the entire country, in which every citizen adored him. On our bus ride from Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai we started to see the country grieve. Not as many people were out, those that were wore black / darker colored clothes. The flag not only of Thailand, but the flag for the king… Read More
Hola amigos.
After an amazing weekend of student directed travel in Antigua the group took a van to Guatemala City and arrived at the G22 complex. G22 is an organization that focuses on urban sustainability and renewable energy. They participate in numerous projects in Guatemala and other countries around the world helping reduce urban waste and promote conservation of natural resources.
This was the first week the group spent living… Read More
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
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
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
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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
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
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
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
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
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
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
