I finished my time in Peru with another great week. I had a number of favorite memories, and cool events that I got to be a part of at the school. During my first week the students celebrated Earth Day by having a parade/protest where they walked through the streets and stopped traffic for 20 minutes. Protecting the environment was definitely an emphasis at the school, even in the first grade classroom. The next week we celebrated Father's Day at school. On the Friday before, all the students, teachers, and a lot of parents walked to the countryside and had a picnic and played games. The kids made little gifts for their dads and it was nice to see the families interact. For my last day of school the students had a festival celebrating the Day of Cusco and Inti Raymi, the giant festival at the end of June that all of the others lead up to. Some of the students dressed up in traditional clothing and gave small reports of the history, as well as danced. After the performances the families cooked food for everyone and ate together in the classroom. I enjoyed getting to see the students be so involved with their history. Austin College gave me 10 T-shirts to give to students. So I outfitted part of the students with shirts and the others with little goodie bags as a way of saying goodbye. 

 

This week I took a city tour and was able to go to a number of different Inca ruins as well as cathedrals. I also participated in salsa lessons again and learned how to make ceviche. Other traditional Peruvian foods I tried were choclo, which is corn with cheese, and the best street food I had were the churros. 

 

On my last Saturday I woke up at 2 a.m. to be picked up and driven three hours to Rainbow Mountain. It was absolutely beautiful! I was one of the first people on the mountain so I was able to make it to the top with hundreds of other people around. The top was 16,732 feet, the highest I had ever been before. After I climbed the mountain, the guide and I walked over to the red valley. Due to the minerals the mountain and valley were many different colors. It was very cool to see along with the partially snow covered mountains. 

 

The next day I attended the Inti Raymi festival. It is a celebration of their sun god. The festival has three different locations throughout Cusco. There are many elaborate dances that tell the story of their history. At the last location they have a sacrifice of a llama, now fake, as a gift to the god. I enjoyed being a part of their celebrations and learning more about their culture. 

 

The GO Fellowship was an incredible and influential experience. I loved Cusco, the kids I worked with, and my weekend excursions. I would urge everyone to apply for a GO Fellowship, as it is a once in a lifetime opportunity.