All courses have now safely returned home.

The Aboriginal Australia Course reports:
Greetings from Perth!

After departing from Hyden on the 20th, we went to New Norcia, which is Australia's only monastic town. We arrived in the afternoon and found where we were sleeping, which was the old convent. We then did a walking tour of the town - a very small town! It had four schools, which are now out of business but one was for aboriginal boys, one for aboriginal girls, one for white boys and one for white girls. It also had two churches, a tiny general store, a hotel and of course the monastery. All were very beautiful!

The next day one of the monks showed us around one of the museums, and then we went to another museum with our tourguide. After, we attended afternoon prayers with the monks and then had an art workshop with an aboriginal artist. Sheila, the artist, grew up in New Norcia and told us very interesting stories about the past and how aboriginal people got along with the white people. Then we had a spear and boomerang throwing lesson with another aboriginal man who was raised there as well! After dinner, one of the monks talked to us about his life in the monastery.

The next morning after breakfast, we had a talk with another monk about the history of the town of New Norcia. Itwas very interesting and we learned a lot about the settlers that came to Australia in the 1800's. It was nice to hear the history from both the aboriginal people and the monks because they see it a little bit differently.

After the talk we came back to Perth! It was so great to see civilization again. We were all very excited to be back at the hotel and in a city, especially with air conditioning! For the past few days we have had some free time in Perth, which options to go to the beach or explore more of the city. Yesterday we had the choice to take a tour of a wildlife park, a winery and a chocolate factory. It was amazing! We got to hold baby kangaroos and wombats, and we saw koala bears, dingos, tasmanian devils, and a few more native australian animals.

Tomorrow is Australia day here which is a lot like our fourth of july. There will be fireworks at night and a big festival during the day. There is an aboriginal festival as well, with dancers and story telling. After tomorrow we are on the long haul home, getting back the 27th!!!


The Ireland Course reports:
The Ireland class returned safely to the US on Sunday, but the learning and the deep effect of these three weeks will continue. Friendships began to form during our first twenty-four hours while we were stuck in JFK waiting for a rented plane since our original one had been struck by lightning. Those friendships and the great good will of the entire group grew and grew. Many students had their first experiences of truly connecting with a piece of literature and its author, and several have committed themselves to reading more of the authors that we studied. Perhaps most important of all, over two thirds of our students saw their ancestors' homeland and were moved on ways that were eloquently described in their journals. They will now set about the task of writing the papers that they researched while there--everything from Gaelic sports to housing prices in relation to the economy to the legacy of the religious conflict in Northern Ireland. Many of us are glad to be home, but almost all of us shed a tear at leaving that green and rainy land.

The WWII Course reports:
On Saturday, we toured the site of the Plaszow concentration camp on the edge of Krakow; it was where many of the scenes in Schindler's List took place. The first picture shows the house where Amon Goeth, the commandant of the camp, lived; the second shows the memorial marking the execution site. On Sunday, we travelled to Berlin, and on Monday studied sites related to the Nazi government. The third picture shows the longest remaining fragment of the Berlin Wall, while the fourth shows the Topography of Terror exhibition in the remains of the basement of the headquarters of the Gestapo.





The Peru Course reports:
We spent our last three days in the Sacred Valley on our way towards Machu Picchu.

On our first day, we left Cusco and visited the Incan ruins at Pisaq and Ollantaytambo. Pisaq is a beautiful city built on a mountain with spectacular views of the valley below. It is unique in the fact that all visitors from the rainforest stopped here to be quarantined for a period of time before going into the city of Cusco. Ollantaytambo was the place where one of the last battles with the Spaniards took place. These battles allowed the Incan royalty to move toward Machu Picchu and Vilcabamba ahead of the Spaniards and they were basically able to abandon those sites before they were discovered. Ollantaytambo is the starting point for the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, a four day hike up and down a difficult mountain chain.

The second day brought the group into the Patakancha Valley. This excursion brought us up to 13,000 feet and back in time 500+ years. The students met two families that still practice ancient farming techniques. They were able to ask questions and try their skills working the field. Kelly and Larissa were gung-ho and tried a variety of techniques, but I am pretty sure the families were going to redo our work! We left the families and traveled to Huilloq were we were treated with a pachamanca. Pachamanca is a meal cooked in a stone over similar to a Hawaiian luau. We eat lamb, potatoes and quinoa soup. After lunch the students had the opportunity to participate in an Andean costume of talking with a shaman. The shaman used coca leaves to answer questions about the students' futures. Some students were skeptical, some were optimistic. He did predict the Giants would beat the Packers! Sorry, no info on the Super bowl!!!

On our last day in the Sacred Valley we traveled to Chinchero, the hometown of our guide Raul. Chinchero is the home of a women's weaving cooperative were the women are trained in the ancient art of weaving. The quality of the weavings is fair beyond tourist quality and some parents may be getting some surprises. Many of our young women took the opportunity to learn to do some basic weaving but we could not convince any of the guys to try.

After the Sacred Valley we move onto Machu Picchu and then return to Cusco for the final exam.

The Cathedral Course reports:
We have arrived in Ireland - our last destination. The weather is great and everyone is enjoying themselves!

The Italy Fine Arts Course reports:
We are fine, Sienna is beautiful!

The Peru Biology Course reports:
We are in Cusco and all is well.

The Aboriginal Australia Course reports:
Today was spent walking around and learning about the town of Albany, which was the site of the first European settlement in Western Australia. We met with two local Nyoongar elders, Alvin and Vernice Gillies, to learn about Aboriginal life before and after the arrival of the Europeans. On a bush walk, we learned the Creation Story of the area, which involved two giant snakes shaping the land and rivers. Later, Alvin and Vernice took us to what used to be a reservation for Aboriginal people, who could not leave the area from 6PM to 6AM.

Friday Jan. 18
On the way from Albany to Hyden, we stopped at Kojonup, "place of the stone axe," where we met a local older for a tour of the Kodja Center museum. The museum contained exhibits about the agriculture industry in the settlement of Western Australia and how the Aboriginal people were affected by it. Outside, a rose garden maze contained the stories of an Aboriginal woman, a European settler, and an Italian immigrant. The stories told of their different experiences in the area and provided background to the different cultural influences.

Saturday Jan. 19
Today we are in the small town of Hyden, which is famous for Wave Rock, a geological wonder, which held significance for the Aboriginal people. They camped there in the winter, where they were able to find fresh water. We also visited Mulka Cave, a place where mythology tells of the punishment of a cannibalistic, murderous Aboriginal outcast. The story was told to Aboriginal children by their parents to remind them of the importance of following the law of the land. Because of the story, the area of Wave Rock and Mulka has become taboo for the Nyoongar people.

Sunday Jan. 20
After a day of traveling, we arrived in New Norcia, a small town that was founded by Spanish Benedictine monks, who set up a monastery there. We toured the monastery and learned of its history as a boarding school for both white and Aboriginal children, some of which were taken from their families by order of the Australian government. These children were a part of what is called the Stolen Generation, an attempt to incorporate Aboriginal children into Western society and eventually "breed out" Aboriginal blood.




The Brazil Course reports:
We are alive and kicking at Ariau Jungle Towers in the Amazon forest. This is an incredible place and a great spot to end our course. We come home tomorrow (Thursday) and while it will be hard to leave, I think most of us are ready!

The China Course reports:
Lijiang is by far everybody's most favorite place out of all the 6 places we've been and everybody just wishes we could have more time here. Many students have said this is the real China in their minds before they come to China. Even the four-side courtyard style hotel (Photo 1) makes it stand above all the other modern ones. In Lijiang, we've toured the Black Dragon Pool (photo 2) to see the mirror image of the beautiful Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the cleanest water we've seen in China, the Naxi Museum to learn the unique pictorial Dongba culture (photo3), the Yak Meadow to observe the 13 peaks of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain from different angles (photo4). During night, the students have enjoyed the singing competition and fire dance with the local people. Tomorrow, we'll leave Lijiang for Guilin to see the famous Tower Karst in the world. However, many students have said they'll come back in the future, even for their honeymoons.






The WWII Course reports:
On Thursday, we studied areas involved in the Holocaust in Krakow. We first looked at the Kazimierz neighborhood which was a center for Jewish life before the war. The first picture was taken at a site featured in the film Schindler’s List in the scene after the Jewish residents of the neighborhood have been forced to leave by the Nazis and the little girl comes down the steps and is hidden under them by her Polish friend. The second picture is from the Podgórze neighborhood, location of the Jewish ghetto. It shows the square where the Jews were brought to be registered during the closing of the ghetto, after which they were all transported to the Płaszów and Auschwitz concentration camps. After everyone had left, only the chairs where the Nazi registrars had sat were left, providing the model for the current memorial in the square. In the background is the famous Eagle Pharmacy. The third picture is taken in front of Oskar Schindler’s factory, a short distance away. To end the day, we met with a Righteous Among the Nations, a Polish woman recognized by the state of Israel for having risked her life to save Jews during the Holocaust. As a girl of 17, she and her family hid nine Jews under their house for the duration of the war. She told us of her experiences and explained that her father never hesitated when the opportunity to provide a hiding place for the first Jewish family arose, saying it was the only thing to do. On Friday, we’ll explore Auschwitz.









We spent a long day exploring the memorial and museum at the concentration camps at Auschwitz on Friday. The first picture shows us entering the first camp at Auschwitz (Auschwitz I) through the main gate with the infamous cynical slogan Arbeit Macht Frei (Work makes you free) where thousands of prisoners marched out as slave laborers daily. The second picture is also in Auschwitz I at Block 11, showing the Wall of Death where the Nazis executed thousand of prisoners, mostly Polish political prisoners and resistance fighters, by shooting. In the afternoon, we studied the Auschwitz II / Birkenau extermination camp, a short distance away. The third picture was taken in one of the wooden barracks in the quarantine camp which housed several hundred prisoners at a time to accustom them to the unquestioned obedience of camp life. The next picture shows the class on the railroad platform with the gate to the camp in the background. Here Nazi doctors met incoming transport trains and selected those prisoners whom they deemed fit for labor; those not selected were marched directly to the gas chambers at the end of the track. The final picture shows some of us in front of the remains of gas chamber and crematorium II, blown up by the Nazis days before the camp was liberated by the Russians. It was a long and challenging day for us.

Photos 7-11 Auschwitz