We enjoyed our last week of Spanish classes in Ollantaytambo. It is fairly small but extremely touristy because it is very close to Machupichu. As of now we have all completed 70+ hours of Spanish classes and have the opportunity every day to practice with locals. Ollantaytambo is surrounded by mountains on all sides and the cliffs on the North and East sides of the town had Incan ruins near the top. During Spanish classes one day our teacher took us on a hike to the top of the Northern ruins. She there explained that these were the school, food storage, and defense forts for the Incan community.

We then took off into the Tanzanian bush for our grand safari adventure. Upon arrival, we were briefed on our friendly and welcoming new neighbors, the lion and the black mamba. We were told to “hoot” if we were concerned about any suspicious noises (growls?) during the night in our durable, lion-proof shelters: the backyard tent. I can’t speak for everyone else, but Rebecca and I sounded like a pair of owls by morning. 

We headed to Ha Tien to spend a week with students from Tan Tao University in their first cultural exchange. The week was spent in homestays with the locals of Ha Tien as well with the students. We were welcomed into Ha Tien by the local government with open arms.

APRIL 16, 2018 | SABAI

By Ashley Gonzalez-Lopez

This week our group went on a yoga retreat. The main focus was to try to reflect on what we have done on this trip, the obstacles we have overcome, and the people we have met. Every day we woke up to silent time and went straight into yoga practice at 7:00 am.

Peace between those who breathe together,
Ohana Amani,
Peace within,
Peace throughout.

We finally arrived in the community and were greeted by our host families, who threw flower petals on our heads as a welcome and introduced themselves. This would be the first time that Carpe Diem has stayed with this community and to commemorate, they invited us to break a beer bottle over the doorway of one of the houses with a hammer. Alex had the privilege of doing the honors, and thus, the week of homestays and cultural exchange had commenced. 

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Last week we finished staying at the Munfindi Children’s Home. It was amazing to experience bonding with the children and learning about the large presence of HIV/AIDS in the region. Tosca, Rachel and I even got the opportunity to play soccer in the rain with the older boys, best believe we were soaked by the end. While we did that, the rest of the group participated in the wonderful “baby power hour” at the nursery.

The past few days our Sabai group has traveled to Cambodia! We arrived for our first few days in the bustling city of Phnom Penh. The city that holds just about 1.5 million, felt no bigger than a small town. We spent our first few days throughout the city, exploring the beautiful temples and the royal palace. We saw the extravagant Central market and walked along the beautiful Mekong river with all of its busy boats and all.