Spain
Everything is going well in Spain. We have a great group of students. This afternoon we’re having our own “Inaugural Watch” starting at 4pm our time at the CCCS. A Spanish television station is coming to interview our students.

It is snowing here in nearby provinces like Granada where we went this weekend and had gorgeous weather.

Barbados
Students in the Barbados course successfully completed the final course challenge on Monday. Presentations were given on Tuesday morning with small groups focusing on a specific special topic. The creativity, depth, and scope of the presentations was impressive! Following the group presentations we watched history unfold as the inauguration was broadcast on televisions and radios all across the island. Large screen televisions were set up at many public venues including Kensington Oval which provided seating for 4000 viewers. Obama t-shirts and other memorabilia could be found in the shops in and around Bridgetown, the capital city. You can read more about Barbados’ coverage of the inaugural events here: http://www.nationnews.com/newnation/story/321527817166006.php. 

Today (Wednesday) is Errol Barrow Day, a national holiday celebrating one of Barbados ten national heroes. As a constant reminder of his life and service Barrow’s image appears on the Bajan $50 bill, popularly known as “an Errol”. You can read about him and Barbados’ other national heroes here: http://www.barbados.gov.bb/bdosnathero.htm.

Students are taking the final exam for the course this morning and looking forward to attending the Plantation Theatre tonight to see Roots and Rhythms, a stage show representing West Indian culture. Tomorrow will be our last full day on the island as we have an early departure for Miami Friday morning. The attached picture was taken during class at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill campus this past week. 

Peru: Field Biology
We have made it through the rain forest and just left Atalaya and headed for Cusco will up date in a few days. all is well. had great weather with very little rain for a rain forest. 

Australia: Aboriginal Studies
After visiting the Kodja Centre, we traveled to Katanning, a small country town of about 4,000 people. After a great supper, we met with a local Aboriginal elder, Les Eades. He is the chair of the Southern Australia Corporation, a large Aboriginal community which spans most of Southwestern Australia. He shared many stories with us about his life as
an Aboriginal person - the struggles he encountered, how his life was different than the average white man’s, and the treatment of Aboriginal people by white settlers. A very important story he shared was that of how he avoided becoming part of the Stolen Generation. He and his brother each carried either bread or water and ran into the bush
immediately upon their father’s cue. This happened several times and they always managed to get away because of their superior knowledge of the bush. Some of these stories were horrific and violent; it was very discouraging to hear of this treatment. Les did an excellent job connecting with us and truly getting us to understand what has happened.

After a restful night at the New Lodge Motel, we set our sights on the Carrolup Community and Marribank Mission, an area where the Stolen Generation of Aboriginal children were sent. We toured the entire area including dorms, prison, and church. In one building the paintings of the young Aboriginal boys were housed. Unfortunately, not all of them are there. Not until recently were they discovered in the basement of the Colgate Museum in Sydney.

Overall we were extremely privileged to spend some time chatting with and learning from such an important Aboriginal man. Hearing hisstories put an entirely new perspective on the Aboriginal struggles, past and present.

Peru: Heritage
The Peru Heritage left Cusco and entered the Sacred Valley for three days. Our first day took us to Pisaq and Ollantaytambo. Pisaq was an Incan city built overlooking the Vilcanota River. It is located such that travelers from the rain forest to Cusco pass by and must stay in quarantine houses before entering the city. Students experienced the use of terraces or “andines” that the Incas used for farming. Ollantaytambo was an unfinished structure where the last great battle with the Spanish occurred.

Our second day took us back in time again as we traveled to 13,000 feet to perform “ayni” with some local families. Ayni is the act of families helping families, possibly by plowing fields or building new houses. A similar practice is seen in Amish country. We were treated to a “pachamanca” - a native way of cooking lamb over hot rocks and were invited to participate in a “hair cutting ceremony”. During the first hair cut of a young child (about 2 years old) participants are asked to “give their strength” to help raise the child. Anyone that cuts the hair is considered a godparent. The local family asked Don Daniel and Don Ernesto to be the principle godparents but all Elon students stepped up. Many of the students felt honored to be part of this ceremony. Students were also given the chance to talk to a shaman about their future. The reading of coca leaves by shaman is part of South American culture.

We traveled to Raul´s hometown of Chinchero on our third day and were taught about the native weaving customs. Many of the girls took the time to try weaving. We also toured local ruins at Chinchero and nearby Moray. Moray is an interesting site in that it was a scientific laboratory where the Incas trained plants to grow at higher elevation.

We leave tomorrow for Machu Picchu, most likely the highlight of our course. I hope to update everyone one more time when we return to Cusco but I am not confident of our timing.

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