The One with Thoughts from a Pearl...daughter of a king...

Here's the second installment from my thoughts on the Pearl of Great Price...

Scripture: Moses 2:31

As with every other teenage girl to ever exist in the history of mankind I spent the majority of my teen years struggling with body image issues. The result of those years is a quote that hangs on my wall. The quote reads “I know I’m somebody ‘cause God don’t make no junk.” I have no idea who first said it, but to that person I owe a significant amount of gratitude.

Study Abroad Peru 2013: April 30: Day 4 (Cusco)

Today started really early (for me who doesn't believe that things should happen 10 am, and for exhausted travelers of all sorts). Whitney opted to stay in bed/Cusco in an effort to stay on her feet later in the trip. Therefore, I had the distinct pleasure of joining Dr. Lewis and Dr. Jones, Megan, Larissa, Kristine, Perry, and Derek in the tiny town of Mattinga above Cusco.

The stove at the school. The best stove we
saw, because it had a hood and chimney.

Study Abroad Peru 2013: April 29: Day 3 (Lima to Cusco)

I recently decided to finish blogging about my adventures in Peru last spring (spurned on by procrastination and my upcoming trip to Peru this spring).  So here it is straight from my journal...


Today started out slightly rushed, I think we were still making up for days past. But we managed to get up, packed, eating breakfast, and then out the door in time for our flight. After navigating all the way through the airport we had sometime to play some rounds of 5 Crowns. Everyone got into the game (who wasn't napping) including Dr. Lewis who had no problem dishing out a lot of trash talk. Good thing we have no problem giving it right back. The plane ride to Cusco was short and gnarly. (I'm from California, I can use that word.) Cusco is so high (and in such a steep mountain range, the urupampas) that we literally had to fly through the mountains, as in the peaks were above us, to land. The whole process seemed a bit sketch (what else would you call it when you look out your window and feel like you could touch the mountainside) but worked out in the end. Cusco is relatively small but extremely packed. Everyone has something to sell, and they aren't afraid to put it under your nose and ask you to buy it.

The One about the Root of Inequality...

Once upon a time (October 2013) I was contemplating the courses that I needed to complete my undergrad degree it turns out that I had two GE requirements that I needed to fill, "Global and Cultural Awareness" (because spending two weeks serving with people in Peru is not an indicator that I am aware of the rest of the world and their cultures) and "Social Science" (an oxymoron if I ever heard one). Naturally the only solution was to take "ANTHR 101 - Social/Cultural Anthropology" (because all seniors dream of taking classes with freshmen) to fill both credits at once.