Just over one month ago, my peers and I packed our bags and left for Peru. Giddy with nervousness and excitement, we boarded the plane and began our journey. Twenty hours later, we arrived in Cusco. A bus was waiting for us at the airport to take us to Amauta School where we would meet our host families. Sitting on the bus, just seeing the city of Cusco for the first time, was surreal. Cusco was like no other place I have traveled to before. The bright crowded buses, bustle of people, and street vendors nestled in the gorgeous mountains blew my breath away. Amauta School is located in the older and more historic district of Cusco. It’s where you’ll find the cobble sidewalks and narrow streets with countless historic landmarks. We walked into the school on the first day where we met our host families. Lily DeMovellan and I stayed with a 30 something- single mom named Melisa and her 4-year-old son, Fabian. The first day we met her, we used the formal greeting ‘usted’ to greet her. “No,” she said, “Use tu. For the next two weeks, we are going to be friends.” And that’s exactly how I would describe our relationship with our host mother. She was kind and fun, but treated us like adults. We played games with her and Fabian, and we helped to cook and clean the dishes while we made conversation. Every weekday, we headed to the school where we took Spanish classes. Over the course of the two weeks, we completed 40 hours of classes. In the classes, we learned a lot of grammar and practiced applications in conversations with the amazing teachers at Amauta. And on the weekends we went on excursions. One of these was Machu Picchu. It was incredibly breathtaking. The view was amazing and to think an advanced civilization was standing in the same soil where we stood was mind blowing. But the most unforgettable part of the whole trip was volunteering. Lily and I worked with the project San Nicolas Urraca. Everyday, around 20 to 30 kids would come to play with the other kids. One kid told me about fruit he sold on the street that day, another about baskets she made with her mother, and many about the school days they had come from. But when the kids came together it was all pure laughter and happiness. When we first walked in and introduced ourselves, the kids were very warm. They gave us hugs and included us in their games. A lot of times, we walked outside and drew on the sidewalk and played hopscotch. Other times we played cards or puzzles inside. Their favorite activity was to go to the park, where we went once a week. They rode tall slides and jumped on the trampolines. Other times, we gave them piggy back rides or played tag. Over the two weeks, we bonded with all the kids. We learned about their families, their friends, and their favorite colors and activities. At the end of the day, they always gave us hugs and asked when we’d see them again. Seeing the kids have so much joy over things that we, in the states take for granted, was eye-opening. It was an experience that I’ll never forget. At the end of the two weeks, Machi, the woman who ran the project, spoke with us in Spanish. “You must remember to be grateful for what you have,” she said. “Be grateful to have opportunities in the States that many others do not have. You have been privileged. But in the end, remember that we are all still children. We all have hearts that beat, lungs that breathe and cuts that bleed.” The trip to Peru was an incredible experience. While my Spanish improved immensely, I learned much more than just the language. I learned about different people, a different culture, and different ways of life. I cannot thank everyone who made this trip possible enough. Thank you for giving me an experience I’ll never forget. Cusco, until we meet again.
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The city of Cusco is surrounded by mountains on all sides, and the views from any balcony are spectacular. The cobblestone streets are packed, cars speeding around, pedestrians running across intersections, horns beeping constantly. Shouts of rapidfire Spanish fill the air. The open storefronts display colorful artwork and clothing, beaded jewelry, and all kinds of souvenirs. Music blares from open car windows and shops. People bargain for tamales, fruit, and crackers. The city just has the feeling of being alive. In Cusco, we saw people living in abject poverty, children selling things on the streets. The water was undrinkable, bathrooms did not have toilet seats or toilet paper. The streets were scattered with dog poop and garbage. But soon we didn’t notice any of it. Instead, we saw people who were proud of their heritage, honoring their ancestors with monuments and museums. We saw parades and many traditional religious practices. We saw incredible architecture and art, and a city full of history. Their culture was very different from our own, but every bit as meaningful. With our host family, we were able to experience Cusco in an entirely different way. We went to local markets and restaurants and bought food on the streets. When we ate at home, we would have bread, rice, chicken, beans, or pasta. We would buy sweet popcorn and quail eggs on the street. My favorite food was the picarones we bought every night after volunteering. My favorite part of the trip was not taking classes or going to Machu Picchu, it was working at the project with the kids. When we arrived, the kids would race down the sidewalk to meet us, and drag us off to play, chattering away. We never really knew what to expect. We could play card games, make puzzles, draw flowers and mermaids on the sidewalk, play catch or hopscotch. The kids had incredible enthusiasm about everything we did. On days we went to the park, we could spend hours on the same slide or swing, making up games. Dayra, the little girl I spent most of my time with, loved coloring and piggyback rides and Spot It. At the end of the day, they would give us a hug or a kiss on the cheek and say, “Hasta mañana, Profe!” Saying goodbye to them was heartbreaking. The trip was an amazing opportunity to experience such a different way of life, and I learned so much during my time there. Being rewarded for something you did is always a good feeling. Whether it’s a simple acknowledgement from a teacher for scoring a 100 on a test or a first place trophy for winning the championships soccer tournament, it is nice to know that you have succeeded. However, I truly believe the most rewardful item isn’t materialistic.
A little over a month ago, I went to Cusco, Peru. I spent two weeks living with a host family, taking language courses, volunteering, visiting historical sites, and immersing myself into the Peruvian culture. The experience was rewarding in ways that I will never be able to pay back to the people that helped create this magical feeling. My life is forever impacted, because of Cusco. While in peru, I roomed with Stella Brex. We lived with a local family who has been hosting foreigners for over two decades. They were extraordinarily welcoming, loving, and kind. The inevitable awkwardness was gone within moments, and from then on we were treated like family. We all ate meals together, told stories and laughed with one another, and created lifelong bonds with our Peruvian parents. Mami and Papi, our parents, created an environment for us to feel safe and comfortable in after a long hard day out on the town. Part of our language immersion trip was to take classes. We spent 40 hours of our trip in the Spanish classes. Four hours a day, five days a week. The classes were mainly focused on improving our grammatical Spanish. However, we also spent some time focusing on conversational Spanish. In the classroom we were taught through worksheets, games, flash cards, and movies. Outside of the classroom, we would have opportunities to practice our oral and auditory understanding of the language. We would go on trips to the main plaza (Plaza Del Armas), museums (chocolate museum, textile museum, coca museum), markets (El mercado San Pedro), and other places where we could fully dive into Spanish speaking communities. Spanish classes were very helpful in the developmental process of becoming bilingual. The company that provided us with spanish classes, also organized our volunteer projects. Stella and I worked with the project Colibri. Colibri is a program for children who have parents that sell items on the street. The kids can go to Colibri after school to work on their homework, watch television, play games, interact with one another, and have a snack. Working with these kids was more than just “community service”. We created such strong connections with all the children, it was truly heartbreaking to leave them. The kids didn’t view us as strangers or as their “teachers”, but rather they viewed us as their friends, brothers, sisters, and role models. We were able to make a difference in the kids lives. This difference became apparent when their smile would grow wide when we brought balls or bubble for them to pay with, when we would sit and talk and braid each others hair, when we would paint together, when we figured out the really hard math problem and could finally take a break, when we would high five after someone scored a goal, when we would hug a million times before leaving for the day. Ever since my last day working with the Colibri kids, not a second has gone by that I haven’t thought of them. The feeling I left Peru with, was like no other. I had felt proud to have made such a difference in the lives of the kids I worked with. I was astonished to see how my Spanish improved by leaps and bounds. But most of all, I was eternally grateful. I was grateful for my family, my teachers, maria, flor, leo, and carlos from Colibri. I was grateful for the numerous ways Cusco has allowed me to grow as a young adult and as a Spanish student. I was grateful for the memories I created. I was grateful for the beautiful sunrises, and chilly night trips to an ice cream parlor. Cusco 2019, an unforgettable trip. Unlike any other. It will be missed. by Stella B Perú fue una experiencia increíble, y me abrió los ojos a una cultura completamente nueva. Mi familia peruano fue muy simpáticos. Maisy y yo tuvimos habitaciones súper bonitas! La madre de la familia era muy buena cocinera y siempre cocinaba algo delicioso. El papá era muy divertido y nos encantaba hablar con él. La gente del Cusco es muy religiosa, y Maisy y yo podríamos ir a una iglesia en la Plaza de Armas. La Plaza de Armas es un lugar grande con una catedral y muchas tiendas. Había mucha gente en la iglesia, especialmente porque era La Semana Santa. Después de dos días, comenzamos las clases y el voluntariado. Las clases fueron de ocho hasta doce y media con una pausa de veinte minutos en el medio. Aprendí mucho de las clases y los profesores eran muy buenos. A las tres a seis, fuimos a nuestros proyectos de voluntariado. Maisy, Calvin, Kyle y yo tuvimos el Proyecto Colibrí. Es un proyecto que ofrece una oportunidad para los niños con padres que venden cosas en las calles. Los niños pueden jugar o hacer tareas. Inmediatamente me enamoré de los niños. Mostraron mucho afecto y estuvieron más que felices de jugar con nosotros. Los extraño mucho. Ser voluntario allí definitivamente me cambió, ahora yo se que es importante en la vida. Esos niños no tienen mucho, pero ellos estaban riendo mucho. Una cosa que yo voy a recordar por el resto de mi vida es ver a Machu Picchu. Era increíblemente hermoso, pero había mucha gente. Personalmente, disfruté el Huayna Picchu más porque había menos gente y no teníamos una guía. La vista también era increíble de Huayna Picchu. Con la familias y en restaurantes podriamos probar mucha comida diferente. ¡La comida de Perú! Probamos la bebida Chicha Morada. Chicha Morada es una bebida de maíz. En nuestro último día probamos cuy. El cuy es un plato muy tradicional en el Perú. Personalmente, no me gustó el cuy. Pero, algunas personas les gustó. Perú fue un viaje tan increíble, y aprendí y crecí mucho. Peru was an amazing experience, and it opened my eyes up to a whole new culture. My host family was incredibly nice and welcoming. They provided Maisy and I with very nice rooms and delicious food. The mom of the family was a very good cook and always fed us great dishes. The dad was very funny and we loved to talk with him. The people of Cusco are very religious, and on our second day, Maisy and I were able to attend a mass at a church in the Plaza De Armas. The Plaza De Armas is a town plaza with a cathedral and many shops. There were so many people at the church especially since it was Semana Santa ( week of the saints.) After two days, we started classes and volunteering. The classes were from eight to twelve-thirty with a twenty minute break in the middle. Our Spanish teachers were very enthusiastic and they taught us so much. At three, we went to our volunteering projects which ended around six. Maisy, Calvin, Kyle, and I had Project Colibrí. It is a project that offers an opportunity for kids with parents that sell items on the streets for a living. The kids are able to come and play around or do homework. That way, the kids aren’t on the streets selling things as well. Immediately, I had such a tight bond with all of the kids, they melted my heart. They showed so much affection and they were beyond happy to play with us. I miss them so much. Volunteering there definitely changed me, as I have realized what’s really important in life. Those kids don’t have much but they were still laughing, smiling, and having a good time. One thing that I will remember for the rest of my life is seeing Machu Picchu. It was insanely beautiful, but at the same time it was full of tourists, which was to be expected. Personally, I enjoyed hiking Huayna Picchu the most because there was less people and we didn’t have a guide. The view was also stunning at the top of Huayna Picchu. With our host families and at restaurants we got to try many different foods that are common in Peru. We tried Chicha Morada which is a drink mainly of purple corn and sugar. On our last day we tried guinea pig. Guinea pig is a very traditional dish in Peru. Personally, I did not like the guinea pig. However, some of my peers did. Peru was such an incredible trip, and I learned and grew from it so much. In April of 2019, 15 nervous Spanish students and five tired chaperones arrived in the dry, warm air of Lima, Peru. They spent the night in a comfortable B&B, then continued on their long airplane journey to Cusco. After traveling for over a day total, the students arrived, exhausted, in Cusco. I was one of those students. We spent Saturday resting and getting to know our host families. We would be spending the next two weeks living with a Peruvian family and our chosen roommate. Sunday was visiting Cusco, and resting more, hoping that we wouldn’t get altitude sickness.
On Monday, we started our classes and volunteering. After being separated into groups of five or six at the Spanish school, we began learning tricky Spanish word forms, such as the imperative tense. After two classes with different teachers and one snack break to explore the streets, we set off to eat lunch with our host families. Then we continued on to volunteering. The kids at my project, San Nicolas Urraca, were loving and playful. They enjoyed American games such as Spot It, and also enjoyed teaching us games such as Plic-Plac, the Peruvian version of Hopscotch. Twice, we enjoyed going to a nearby playground, where the kids would enjoy colorful slides from dizzying heights, and bouncing around on the trampolines. The following weekend, we visited Machu Picchu, and hiked the nearby summit Huayna Picchu. Machu Picchu was fascinating, filled with interesting ruins and misty fog. Later, we started to climb Huayna Picchu. It was a much shorter hike than i thought, only an hour each way, but dangerously slippery and steep. At one point, we had to crawl up a set of stone steps! Fortunately, we also arrived safely at the top, which presented an amazing view of the Urubamba River and Machu Picchu. After stumbling back down, we checked out of our Aguascalientes hotel and headed back on the train to Ollantaytambo. It was exhausting, but it was worth it! The rest of the week whipped by with Spanish school, volunteering, and HOMEWORK!!! Soon, we were saying goodbye to kids at the project for the last time. After assuring them that we would definitely return in the future, we said our final goodbyes and left them with heavy hearts. We flew back to the US full of new Spanish vocabulary, pictures from the kids at the project, and new appreciation for our privileged lives in America. It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience In April of 2019, 15 nervous Spanish students and five tired chaperones arrived in the dry, warm air of Lima, Peru. They spent the night in a comfortable B&B, then continued on their long airplane journey to Cusco. After traveling for over a day total, the students arrived, exhausted, in Cusco. I was one of those students. We spent Saturday resting and getting to know our host families. We would be spending the next two weeks living with a Peruvian family and our chosen roommate. Sunday was visiting Cusco, and resting more, hoping that we wouldn’t get altitude sickness. On Monday, we started our classes and volunteering. After being separated into groups of five or six at the Spanish school, we began learning tricky Spanish word forms, such as the imperative tense. After two classes with different teachers and one snack break to explore the streets, we set off to eat lunch with our host families. Then we continued on to volunteering. The kids at my project, San Nicolas Urraca, were loving and playful. They enjoyed American games such as Spot It, and also enjoyed teaching us games such as Plic-Plac, the Peruvian version of Hopscotch. Twice, we enjoyed going to a nearby playground, where the kids would enjoy colorful slides from dizzying heights, and bouncing around on the trampolines. The following weekend, we visited Machu Picchu, and hiked the nearby summit Huayna Picchu. Machu Picchu was fascinating, filled with interesting ruins and misty fog. Later, we started to climb Huayna Picchu. It was a much shorter hike than i thought, only an hour each way, but dangerously slippery and steep. At one point, we had to crawl up a set of stone steps! Fortunately, we also arrived safely at the top, which presented an amazing view of the Urubamba River and Machu Picchu. After stumbling back down, we checked out of our Aguascalientes hotel and headed back on the train to Ollantaytambo. It was exhausting, but it was worth it! The rest of the week whipped by with Spanish school, volunteering, and HOMEWORK!!! Soon, we were saying goodbye to kids at the project for the last time. After assuring them that we would definitely return in the future, we said our final goodbyes and left them with heavy hearts. We flew back to the US full of new Spanish vocabulary, pictures from the kids at the project, and new appreciation for our privileged lives in America. It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience In April of 2019, 15 nervous Spanish students and five tired chaperones arrived in the dry, warm air of Lima, Peru. They spent the night in a comfortable B&B, then continued on their long airplane journey to Cusco. After traveling for over a day total, the students arrived, exhausted, in Cusco. I was one of those students. We spent Saturday resting and getting to know our host families. We would be spending the next two weeks living with a Peruvian family and our chosen roommate. Sunday was visiting Cusco, and resting more, hoping that we wouldn’t get altitude sickness. On Monday, we started our classes and volunteering. After being separated into groups of five or six at the Spanish school, we began learning tricky Spanish word forms, such as the imperative tense. After two classes with different teachers and one snack break to explore the streets, we set off to eat lunch with our host families. Then we continued on to volunteering. The kids at my project, San Nicolas Urraca, were loving and playful. They enjoyed American games such as Spot It, and also enjoyed teaching us games such as Plic-Plac, the Peruvian version of Hopscotch. Twice, we enjoyed going to a nearby playground, where the kids would enjoy colorful slides from dizzying heights, and bouncing around on the trampolines. The following weekend, we visited Machu Picchu, and hiked the nearby summit Huayna Picchu. Machu Picchu was fascinating, filled with interesting ruins and misty fog. Later, we started to climb Huayna Picchu. It was a much shorter hike than i thought, only an hour each way, but dangerously slippery and steep. At one point, we had to crawl up a set of stone steps! Fortunately, we also arrived safely at the top, which presented an amazing view of the Urubamba River and Machu Picchu. After stumbling back down, we checked out of our Aguascalientes hotel and headed back on the train to Ollantaytambo. It was exhausting, but it was worth it! The rest of the week whipped by with Spanish school, volunteering, and HOMEWORK!!! Soon, we were saying goodbye to kids at the project for the last time. After assuring them that we would definitely return in the future, we said our final goodbyes and left them with heavy hearts. We flew back to the US full of new Spanish vocabulary, pictures from the kids at the project, and new appreciation for our privileged lives in America. It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience The 5th grade at Monument Valley Regional Middle School went to Nature’s Classroom for a week. Some people slept over for 4 nights, others came for the day. Every day we would go to the dining hall and have breakfast, then we would have transition time, then we would sometimes have field group time, and other days we would have a special interest class. And if we just had our class we would have transition time and then have field group. You would explore the world of mother nature! After that we would get transition time then we would head off for lunch! Yummy ! (the food is so good there, it was one of my favorite parts of the day). After lunch we have another transition time then one more class, then the day kids would leave, and we would have like an hour or so to ourselves, and then we would have dinner. After a little time to ourselves again we would then go to the art center, and do fun classes with our field group! And then QUIET SING! We would have so much fun doing that! That is just a normal day at Nature’s classroom, but on Wednesday we have a 4-hour hike and it is fun, but be prepared! So that is just the kind of things you might be doing at Nature’s Classroom, so fourth graders, you should start getting excited for NATURE’S CLASSROOM because you are gonna have the best week of your life!!!!!
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