Photos from the first few days

at Larco museum, Lima

on the streets of Ollantaytambo . . .

our rafting trip . . .

Saludos from Ollantaytambo

We arrived in Lima early Thursday morning and met Lindsay who was waiting patiently at the airport. After a short nap and breakfast, we started the day with introductory meetings in our On Assignment teams. Archaeology and Ancient Culture students were introduced to their subject with a visit to Huaca Pucllana, a mud-brick temple constructed by the Lima Civilization in 500 AD. It was exciting to see archaeologists actively excavating the site. They told us that only five days ago they found remains of a human sacrifice! Photography students began with a meeting and slide show about learning how to control all the settings on the camera and an overview of what being ´On Assignment´ entails.

The group spent the afternoon visiting some of Lima´s most famous sites, including the Parque del Amor, a cliffside coastal prominade where locals lounge and tourists fly by, paragliding on the coastal wind currents. Photo students captured the commotion of the historic Plaza de Armas while the archaeologists were intrigued by the the catacombs of the Monasterio de San Francisco, where the remains of 25,000 people have been sorted and arranged into eerie designs. A local guide walked us through the fascinating private collection in the Museo Rafael Larco Herrera, home to some of the most famous and well preserved artifacts of Peru´s many ancient cultures. We finished with a dinner at a local Peruvian-Argentian restaurant.

Yesterday we woke early to catch our flight to Cuzco. Miguel, our local contact, met us at the airport and drove with us to Ollantaytambo, our home for the next 10 days. We walked through ancient Inca streets on our way to lunch where the group tried chicha morada, a local drink made from purple corn. Adjusting to the altitude (2800m/9186ft) wasn´t a problem but we relaxed for the afternoon and finished our orientation activities.

This morning students caught up on sleep or woke early to catch soft morning light with their cameras. A few worked individually with Michael, learning more about the camera´s capabilities. Next, we visited the local museum, CATCO, which opened especially for our group. During lunch at Hearts Cafe we had a chance to meet and speak with the owner Sonia, who runs a local non-governmental organization (NGO) with the profits made from the cafe. Students were happy to have a chance to speak with Sonia about the NGO´s health, education and conservation projects in local mountain communities. After a break from the sun, the we broke into On Assignment teams for special projects. Archaeology and Ancient Culture students spent the afternoon walking through Ollantaytambo on an scavenger hunt where they learned about local foods, exploring Inca city streets and practiced Quechua words from locals. The photo students began with a short critique of the photos from this morning and yesterday before breaking off into small groups to continue shooting around town.

With all the action we can´t believe we have only been here in Peru for three days! We are excited to get active tomorrow on a rafting adventure and on Monday to meet with our National Geographic Expert, Peter Frost.

Hasta luego,

Michael and Lindsay

The group has arrived

We've received word from the expedition leaders that the group has arrived in Lima.

Meet the Expedition Leaders

2009 Peru A Expedition Leaders, Lindsay Mackenzie and Michael Hanson

Photography

Michael Hanson. Washington and Lee University, B.A. Michael is a Seattle-based travel and documentary photographer whose clients have included the New York Times. USA Today, Sunset, Runner’s World, National Public Radio, and National Geographic Adventure. He majored in Spanish at Washington and Lee, and spent a semester abroad at the Universidad de Cuyo in Mendoza, Argentina. Michael co-founded a photography workshop serving an underserved inner-city school in Birmingham, Alabama. He was commissioned by America 24/7, a popular coffee-table book series, to photograph Americans and their homes, and as a member of a team funded by a National Geographic Research and Exploration grant spent a month on a remote Fijian island photographing indigenous fishing techniques. He’s completed independent photography projects on a proposed gold mine in Chile, a Guatemalan women’s co-op, and an oil facility in the Ecuadorian Amazon. His most recent projects include a women’s photography initiative documenting life after genocide in Kigali, Rwanda, and a photo-documentary project in Ethiopia. Michael’s work was exhibited at the Bare Hands Gallery in Birmingham. He is fluent in Spanish.

Archaeology & Ancient Culture

Lindsay Mackenzie. Colgate University, B.A. Lindsay graduated magna cum laude from Colgate, where she majored in Geography and studied abroad in Geneva, Switzerland. She received the Peter Gould Award in her major discipline, was a member of the Konosioni Senior Honor Society, and earned Distinction in the Liberal Arts core curriculum. Lindsay worked as a reporter for the Pique newsmagazine in Whistler, British Columbia, served as the Kosovo logistics coordinator for the Balkans Peace Park project, and worked as a research assistant at the Centre for International Relations (CIR) at the University of British Columbia. In 2005 and 2006 she was awarded a year-long Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to explore transboundary conservation and development issues in Europe, the Middle East, Southern Africa, and Central America. For the past two years Lindsay has worked as a Tour Leader for Adventures Abroad Worldwide Travel Ltd. In this capacity she has led groups of adventurous travelers on cultural tours in locations around the world, including Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Malta, Romania, Bulgaria, Australia, New Zealand, Iran, and Brazil. She has explored some of the world’s richest archaeological zones, including Rome, Sicily, Petra, Persepolis and Chichen Itzá. Lindsay is a talented photographer. She is proficient in Spanish.

Welcome!

Welcome family and friends of National Geographic Student Expeditions participants!

We have created this blog in order to keep you updated on the progress of your child’s National Geographic Student Expedition this summer. We hope that occasional updates throughout the expedition will help keep you informed about the activities, projects and successes of the program.

The expedition leaders will post entries approximately once per week during the program. The leaders’ first priority is the students and the program. If updates are infrequent, it is likely due to the group’s very busy schedule and inconsistent internet access. Please know that any important issues that arise during the program will be discussed and resolved with leaders and parents by phone, not through the blog.

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Best wishes from us all at National Geographic Student Expeditions