Day 7 - Yes that is a horse and cart traveling down the road. Day 7 - What do you drink on a river raft in Colombia? Coffee, of course! Day 7 - MY host teacher let me wear her shoes so that I could climb out onto these rocks... many thanks to her! Day 7 - Yes, I know this is the fourth picture for this day... but had to share me and Ellen enjoying our first full day in Cartago.
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Day 6 - Checking in to my home for the week and meeting my fabulous host, Angelica! Day 6 - First, of many, shared meal with my host and her husband, Angelica and Mario, and my amazing travel partner, Ellen! Day 6 - Welcome basket full of traditional Cartago treats from my host teacher, Angelica. Yum!
Day 5 - Seeing the city from the top of Bogota Day 5 - Lunch at 10,000 feet above sea level Day 5 - Celebration of Colombian culture which includes dancing, of course!
Day 3 - First elementary school visit ... and an unexpected beautiful welcome! Day 3 - Learning about Colombian culture from the students Day 3 - So much joy and love
Day 2 - practicing my recording skills at Unitec Day 2 - What should you learn about in Colombia? Coffee, of course!
Preparing to travel … mentally
So my TGC cohort group was one of the last groups scheduled to travel. The Morocco and Senegal groups traveled first in the spring, a few months after our whole group symposium in Washington D.C. I was excited for them in an abstract and semi-removed manner. I wasn’t traveling yet, but I was curious to see and hear how these travel adventures would unfold now that I had meant several of the travelers in person. Then the first pictures and photos started to appear on Instagram and Facebook. Excited faces and exotic backdrops! TGC fellows started writing about their experiences as unforgettable, unbelievable, indescribable, and life-changing. My interest level grew. I started checking Instagram and Facebook more often just to look for the pictures and posts. I wanted to see what was going to happen next. By the time June finally arrived I was looking forward to the next travel group’s departure with anticipation. I rechecked the departure dates for the Peru and India cohorts. Again, the pictures and posts started to appear, and again I was drawn into the experiences with a level of expectation and interest that I had not anticipated. Not only was I interested on the other cohorts’ experiences, the anticipation and excitement for my own travel experience increased with the on-going reports from the other fellows already in their field experience. I was going to have a similar adventure! I was going to actually enact an image of myself that I cultivated from a young age. I was going to fulfill one of my primary goals and purposes for becoming a teacher and pursuing a career in education. This dream was really happening. But, as my departure date approached while my excitement and anticipation continued to grow, so too did my anxiety. Oh my gosh, I thought, what have I done? What have I gotten myself into? In an earlier moment, before the reality and anxiety began to set in, I happily explained the proposed experience to a colleague at my school. “Doesn’t that sound so cool?” I asked him. “Sure,” he replied. I sensed some hesitancy on his part. “Don’t you think so?” I asked again. “So, you’re traveling to Colombia alone for more than two weeks?” he clarified. “No, I’m not going alone. I’m going with a group of teachers,” I explained. “You know them?” he again clarified. “Well, yes, I met them in February in Washington,” I furthered explained. “So, you’re traveling to Colombia with a group of people that are basically strangers,” he responded. Well, when you put it that way, I guess so…. I guess that’s one way to look at the situation. |
AuthorTeacher, traveler, life-long learner. Archives |