A Little Background

This May and June I will be traveling to Ecuador and Peru. For those who don’t know me I thought I would give a little bit of a background as to why I am returning to South America for a fourth time and what I will be doing (and no, I do not have a boyfriend down there!).

My First Time

After graduating in 2011 I was able to travel to Peru for two weeks, where I fell in love with South America. I had never really been outside my own little world of rodeoing and living on a farm. Most of my travels throughout my youth had been for rodeo, traveling to such exciting places as Farmington, NM and Fallon, NV. The first time I stepped foot in the ocean was when I was 20! On my trip to Peru we traveled to the Amazon for four days where I had a brief introduction to the culture and nature there. Upon leaving my gut told me that I had to return to spend more time immersed in the culture and the beauty of the amazon.

I’m Back! (x2)

Seven months later I was on a plane to Ecuador to spend time with a native Shuar family in the Ecuadorian Amazon. On this trip I learned a lot and experienced things that I never could have fathomed. I was able to immerse myself into the Shuar culture and participate in ceremonies that have been in their culture for thousands of years! My experiences in the amazon were some of the most challenging yet rewarding experiences I have had in my life.  Seven months after leaving I returned to Ecuador for another visit. And now almost nine months since my last trip I will be returning to Ecuador and finally returning to the place where my desire to travel and love of the amazon began, Peru.

And Back Again!

This time around I will be traveling for 2 months! I will be volunteering at a sustainable rural development program in Ecuador (http://www.progresoverde.org/) for three weeks, where I will get to put my soils background to good use and give back to a country that has given me so much. After that I will be traveling to Peru, stopping in Lima for a quick stint before continuing on to the city Iquitos located on the banks of the Amazon River (which is the largest city in the world that cannot be accessed by road!). I will be spending some time immersed in the Shipibo culture, and I really hope to have to opportunity to swim with the amazon river pink dolphins! I will be hopefully be finishing my trip by traveling to Lake Titicaca, Cusco, and finally machu picchu. Gotta do some of the touristy things right?

To Blog or Not To Blog… 

I’m hoping to keep a blog of my travels. On my past two trips I have taken a journal with good intentions to write in it, but the only things I have written down are directions to give to taxi drivers! Here is hoping that I might be more apt to write about my adventures when there is a chance someone might read it.

Sunrise at Machu Picchu