The Prospector (Helena, Mont.) 1916-2015, November 09, 2006, Image 1

inside this issue .... New Carroll Professors Chemistry Club Makes Ice Cream No More Fall Break? The Prospector Carroll College Student Newspaper JL Helena, Montana VOLUME 90 EDITION 2 Traveling to far-away lands Anna Mannex spends time with her 5-year-old Peruvian friend Octavien, who looks through binoculars for the first time by anna mannex and pat manning Some experiences come only once in a lifetime. The Carroll College study abroad program of­ fers several opportunities through­ out the year, some that take us places we may not otherwise have the chance to see. A trip to the Amazon rainforest in Peru? Now that’s a rare opportunity. Professors Beth Wilson and Dr. Jennifer Geiger chaperoned this year’s trip to the Amazon Basin. When explaining the trip, Wilson, Assistant Professor of Business, stated “this provides a gredt oppor­ tunity for students to experience a completely different culture and to provide community service to the village.” This is the second year the study abroad program has traveled to the Basin. Although the trip was only the extension of Fall Break, we and other members of the group say it felt more like a month. With activities beginning as early as 6 a.m. and going as late as 10 p.m. we definitely covered a lot of the jungle. After some 20 hours of airplane travel from Helena, we landed in Lima, Peru. We spent a few hours in Lima. We were able to get a brief look at the nightlife and culture; the culture shock with the language change and humidity were overwhelming. Shortly after, we were back at the Lima Interna­ tional Airport to fly to an eastern part of Peru to a town called Iqui- tos. From Iquitos we went by boat up the Amazon River for about 50 miles, then up the Ta- huayo tributary for another 40 miles. By speedboat, the trip took about four hours. Amazonia Expeditions is the company Beth Wilson discov­ ered three years ago while on her first trip to Peru. This exceptional company made all travel arrange­ ments, provided airport transporta­ tion, and has a lodge on the Ta- huayo tributary where we stayed. We were all comfortable and well taken care of the entire trip. Students who enroll on this trip pay about $2,300 for travel expenses, which include all trans­ portation, meals and lodging, and $945 for the three credits earned. Students have the option of earning business or natural science cred­ its. Personally, neither of us have the highest aptitude for science, so that’s what sold us on the trip. All members of the trip agree that we learned much more than we would in any classroom or textbook. Each day we participated in four to five excursions. Piranha fishing, tree zip-lining, searching for Caiman crocodiles, hiking, viewing gray and pink freshwater dolphins, and learning about me­ dicinal plants were only a few of the opportunities. In the morning we would typically have the option of bird watching. Daily we would see about 30 to 40 species of birds, which was outstanding, but overall there are over 500 different spe­ cies in that area of Peru alone, including the Hoatzin bird, which is the only pre-historical bird left in existence. Dr. Shields, Assistant Professor of Natural Sciences, who attended this trip was amazed with the diverse amount of bird species. When asked about the birds he exclaimed, “awesome baby!” The biggest cultural experi­ ence for several of us was visiting local villages on the tributary. Buena Vista and Chino were two villages that we provided medical and school sup­ plies to. While this made a large impact on the village, in reality, “I think it had a bigger impact on us,” stated senior Tracy Michel. Amazonia Expeditions has been running the Tahuayo Lodge for 25 years. It has been success­ ful at providing unique learning and travel experi­ ences for high school and college groups. It is also open to private travel and family groups. We think that everyone should take the opportunity to study abroad through Carroll Col­ lege. By studying abroad, we are learning so much about the world and are pleased that Carroll offers these programs. We would especially like to thank the numerous donations we received from the Helena commu­ nity. This had a huge impact on the people of the Tahuayo Tributary. Group shot of the Carroll students who studied abroad in Peru