On their way home!

The PDXchange crew is at the airport in Nepal and is starting their journey home! They’ll arrive back in Portland on Friday morning. We can’t wait to welcome them home and hear all about their journeys over the past 8 weeks.

Safe Arrival in India!

Arrival in Bangalore!

Dear family and friends of the Spring ’24 PDXchange group,

The PDXchange group has arrived safely in India! They are on their way to their hostel in Bangalore where they’ll be spending the next few days for their orientation. They are ready to rest after their long travels, and look forward to learning more about the program and India in the coming days. We look forward to their updates – they will post an update about their orientation early next week.

All the best,
Carpe Mundi and Carpe Diem HQ

Estimados familias y amigos del grupo PDXchange 2024,

¡El grupo PDXchange ha llegado sano y salvo a India! Están en camino a su hostal en Bangalore, donde pasarán los próximos días para su orientación. Están listos para descansar después de su viaje largo, y empezar de aprender más sobre el programa y Camboya en los próximos días. Publicarán un blog con mas noticias y refleciones sobre su orientación a principios de la próxima semana.

Un saludo,

El equipo en Portland de Carpe Mundi y Carpe Diem

वसन्त '24 PDXchange समूहका प्रिय परिवार र साथीहरू,

PDXchange समूह भारतमा सुरक्षित आइपुगेको छ! तिनीहरू बैंगलोरमा आफ्नो होस्टलमा जाँदैछन् जहाँ तिनीहरू आफ्नो अभिमुखीकरणको लागि अर्को केही दिन बिताउनेछन्। तिनीहरू आफ्नो लामो यात्रा पछि आराम गर्न तयार छन्, र आगामी दिनहरूमा कार्यक्रम र भारत बारे थप जान्नको लागि तत्पर छन्। हामी तिनीहरूको अद्यावधिकहरूको लागि तत्पर छौं - तिनीहरूले अर्को हप्ताको सुरुमा आफ्नो अभिमुखीकरणको बारेमा अद्यावधिक पोस्ट गर्नेछन्।

सबै राम्रो, Carpe Mundi र Carpe Diem मुख्यालय

Enroute home!

The PDXchange crew left Chiang Mai late last night and are on their way home! They’ll arrive to Los Angeles later tonight and back to Portland tomorrow morning.

Photos from Orientation in Cambodia: Blog post coming soon!

Safe arrival in Cambodia!

Dear family and friends of the Spring ’23 PDXchange group,

The PDXchange group has arrived safely in Cambodia! They are on their way to their hostel in Siem Reap, where they’ll be spending the next few days for their orientation. They are ready to rest after their long travels, and look forward to learning more about the program and Cambodia in the coming days. We look forward to their updates – they will post an update about their orientation early next week.

All the best,
Carpe Mundi and Carpe Diem HQ

Estimados familias y amigos del grupo PDXchange 2023,

¡El grupo PDXchange ha llegado sano y salvo a Camboya! Están en camino a su hostal en Siem Reap, donde pasarán los próximos días para su orientación. Están listos para descansar después de su viaje largo, y empezar de aprender más sobre el programa y Camboya en los próximos días. Publicarán un blog con mas noticias y refleciones sobre su orientación a principios de la próxima semana.

Un saludo,

El equipo en Portland de Carpe Mundi y Carpe Diem

Shining Light on a Gray Day

Shining Light on a Gray Day - Meet Carol and Soumya!

Carpe Mundi is coming full circle. Soumya and Carol met in 2019 when Carol started at Carpe Mundi full time and Soumya started as an Americorps Vista for the year. Now, they are leading PDXChange’s Pon Lue Cohort to Cambodia and Thailand. A lot has changed between then and now, but their love for Portland, exploration, equity and inclusion has not.

Here are some hot, cold, and tepid tips that they have learned over the years about travel:
✅ Unless you are particular about your body products you can find what you need there except menstrual supplies
✅ Bring half as much and twice as much money
✅ Pack a pair of clothes in your carry on

Also— even if you’ve know each other for a long time, (the pandemic doubles years so it’s been a while) there’s still more to learn about each other. Here’s some things we learned chatting, laughing, and tripping around Mississippi and Albina.

1. Soumya thinks she might be growing a mullet. (she says she IS growing a mullet.)
2. Soumya possesses an intuitive compass and Carol is envious.
3. A true treat for Soumya is French fries and always kombucha.
4. If Soumya trips in front of a property she is likely to buy it. (According to her mom).

1. Carol’s handwriting is eerily similar to Soumya’s sister.
2. Say the word booger to see Carol laugh so hard she cannot really make a sound. Thanks Alberto from the 4th grade.
3. Carol doesn’t like when people talk over each other. Also you can laugh at? With? Around Carol to make her smile.

We are so excited to hear our students jam out and see how they are inspired by the musical stylings of Thai and Cambodian music. We can’t wait to see them soak up the wonder of ancient civilization, beautiful architecture and also become increasingly aware of what it means to care about the climate issues far away from ‘home.’

Also, did we mention we look forward to laughing heartily?

Up in the Clouds and Below the Earth

Hello everyone this week I (Steven) led with Alice Yvonne and Balin. For this part of my blog post I want to start by thanking everyone who supported me (and us) along the way because this week was amazing. We left Peguche teary eyed and arrived at a place called San Antonio de Pucará located in the Intag Region which is a cloud forest. When we first arrived, we were greeted by the whole community - and had a celebration as a very nice generous welcome! The town was decorated, we played group games, and witnessed the young members of the community perform two wonderful dances. We also played lots of fun (and funny) games including one called chushpi where you spin a top with a whip and have to keep it spinning! Our time spent in Pucara and Junín was some of the most eventful and fulfilling to our hearts and spirits. During our time up there we stayed on a farm called Finca La Fé with Peter Shear (Pete) and his partner Julie - both who work very closely and are connected with preserving the Intag region - the most biodiverse region of Ecuador.

Walking through the welcome arch as Pete Shear waits for us on the other side!

The dance team from a neighboring community doing the Afro Latin Bomba.

Our accommodations this week were rustic and we all slept in tents and took really cold showers. It was glamping, which is camping with style! Even though we were off the grid we had some solar power which was a plus at night so we all could play card games at night. Without internet and limited electricity, we played card games and finished up presentations! On our first day in Pucara we went on a hike where we were making the trail as went. This was challenging for most of us and no problem at all for the kids who are part of the community’s Environmental Club. Our hike led us to a waterfall where we participated in water quality testing with the club. On the second day we learned a bit more about the farm, helped with collecting healthy soil and re-planting tiny coffee saplings. Pete also gave us a brief history of ‘extractivism’ in the Intag region. Even though we left Pucara after two days (where we received a lovely goodbye ceremony as well - how sweet <3), we followed Peter and Julie to Junin along with two of the teens from the community, Carlos and Romal, who joined us at our stay at an ecolodge in Junín.

Pete giving us a tour of the farm.

Looking for ripe pineapples on the farm.

Our work this week was really important as we learned all about mining and the impact it could have on this beautiful region which is really special to me (Alice). Currently this region is under mining concessions, and we had the opportunity to witness this environment in its natural, untouched beauty. In Junin, one of the locals shared their personal experience with mining companies. They shared a harrowing account that started when they were just our age! Their story included protests, paramilitary, not knowing where their family was for up to a year, and an unyielding desire to keep fighting for their community. Not only did we learn how mining could negatively impact people’s lives but we also learned how it would affect our earth and if they were to continue drilling. Mining in this region would put many species to extinction, contaminate water sources, and contribute to an imbalance in the ecosystem with untold effects. In the mornings we would be greeted by the sounds of the rare Yumbo, in this case a beautiful breed of bird eating budding fruits in the trees nearby.

A note: Coincidentally, it is believed that Pete’s property is home to a truncated pyramid and amphitheater built by the Yumbos who were an indigenous people to the region prior to the Incas.

The Barbudo Tucán (Toucan Barbet) referred to as the Yumbo.

We honored Pacha Mama’s beauty by exploring an area that may soon no longer exist on its own because different mining companies are exploring the land for copper and other rare earth metals. Witnessing the beauty of the natural landscape, it would be a tragedy to see the sub-tropical forests and waterfalls taken over by mining facilities. Inspired by this community’s fight, we went to work in the morning with the mission of partnering with the community so the Ecuadorian people in the Intag could keep their land. 

A tree marked by the Mining companies to indicate areas explored.

Imagine a mining facility going right here next to this beautiful waterfall?!

We had help crossing this river without getting water in our boots from our friends Bryan and Jorge!

While working with the communities you can see how thankful they were to have us there after the pandemic. It was so heartwarming. Even though I didn't know them closely it felt like we knew each other forever and even if the sun wasn't shining their souls and hearts were shining through their smiles. Something I will especially miss is the food cause y'all know me (Steven), I love food! I might even need to go dance again to lose a few pounds!

The last bit of our mission and efforts with Pete and Julie, led us right back to Mindo - exactly where we started this trip. To be exact, it led us right back to the same hostel - La Casa De Cecilia! So cool! On our way to Mindo we stopped by at a nursery to help with loading 5000 young trees into a truck so that we could plant them the next day. Our reforestation efforts didn’t work out quite as planned due to some issues with when the truck got to the nursery. Then, when we were headed to the site, there was a landslide on the road just five minutes before we got there! It added another hour to our journey but we sure are thankful to have missed the landslide! Given all of the mishaps, we woke up before the sun the next morning to get a head start at the reforestation site. Unfortunately, we ran into more issues waiting on the truck to arrive. However, we can happily all say we assisted in the process of planting 5000 trees even if we physically didn’t put them in the ground (we transferred them all to and from a bus!)

Unloading trees off the truck in assembly line fashion. Pass ‘em back!

It is also worth noting that sometimes it’s not just us. Things don’t work out for a lot of people, like this person who’s cow made a run for it while we passed them in our chifa. (We caught most of it on video!)

Views from the road: a cow’s daring getaway!

Plus, it was awesome to be back to the place where we started and reflect on all of the adventure we had done so far these past two months in Ecuador. In fact, I (Alice) still had the egg Tiernan and I were charged with caring for during orientation. This felt like the perfect place to let Edgar, el huevo chido go. We are now off to Student Directed travel where we will be in Quito for Good Friday, back to Otavalo, and end in Quito one last time before flying home to PDX! Wish us luck in our next adventures :)

A natural casket-basket for Edgar, el huevo chido.

Alice Yvonne lets Edgar float away.

'Ayllu' Time in Peguche

Hi, Tiernan and Kayla here, two of your four student leaders for the week!

Ayllui is Quicua for ‘Family’ which is exactly how we spent our time in Peguche, just outside of Otavalo. I'm going to talk a little bit about our homestays and classes during Peguche. We had four different groups: #1: Sky, Alice M. and Nayeli. #2: Balin, Alice E. and Samanta. #3: Leila, Kayla and Steven. #4: Erick and me. It was really cool because each of our families were vastly unique from one another and we all had very different experiences. For example, Erick and I lived with Mama Suca, a grandmother who is famous within the community of Peguche. She was an amazing cook and treated us like her sons (she even called us "Hijo"). She taught us some Quicua, which is the native language of Ecuador, and when I had a headache one afternoon she cleansed my spirit with a family ritual involving an egg. 

Sky, Nayeli, and Alice's homestay was really close to ours, so we spent the most amount of time there. They were very kind, and had a brother around our age named Said who we played a lot of pool with. They also had a lot of community contacts, and were the ones who set up the Temezcal. 

Balin, Samanta, and Alice's homestay was a bit farther away but Erick and I also spent a lot of time there because it was the music house. They were absolutely loaded with instruments, and had everything from guitars to flutes to an accordion. Since Erick and I play guitar and Balin plays bass, we had a really good time playing and singing together (they had a microphone hooked up to speakers). On Monday the 4th the whole group went over and we had a sort of musical exchange. The family is also in a band, and they played us some of their original songs. Afterwards, we played for them and everyone danced. It was an awesome day. 

Finally, the homestay of Leila, Steven, and Kayla was the farthest away. It was about a 15-20 minute walk from Erick and I's homestay, so we only went there once or twice. I wish they had lived closer, because they were probably the most knowledgeable family about what to do in Peguche. For example, one day they took us to a place where you get to catch your own fish and then for 3 dollars they made us a whole meal with them. Aside from being knowledgeable, the family also had a daughter around our age who spoke English, which was really cool because it allowed her to bond with those of our group who don't speak as much Spanish.

Another thing this area is famous for is one of the biggest indigenous markets in South America. It is known for its artisans, handmade crafts, and woven products. There were many stands selling crystals, ponchos, paintings, and other interesting things. I bought a beautiful painting of Cotopaxi, the mountain we climbed up back in Baños. It was an overwhelming shopping experience but I enjoyed seeing the different artisan crafts as someone who has an interest in the arts. I also got to try my bargaining and haggling skills at the Otavalo market, something I've never done before. It was a weird feeling for me to decide what low price I would pay for a potentially handmade product but I could tell that many of the things that were sold here were likely made by machine. Regardless it was a really cool experience and definitely made me more conscious as a consumer.

We’ve had a really sweet time in Otavalo and can’t believe our time is nearing to an end! Next week’s leaders will share more about our time in Pucara and Junin!