Today we said goodbye to Uganda and headed into Rwanda! Although Uganda was amazing, it was interesting to see the immediate differences between the two countries as we crossed the border. The first thing I noticed was the cleanliness. Rwanda has extremely strict laws surrounding public aesthetics.

We are 9 days into the program and it is safe to say that this experience has completely changed my views on what I thought Africa was like. Uganda is beautifully lush and unique in it's geography. The only thing that does not shock me is how exceptional the wildlife is here.

The main focus of today’s educational experience was to visit the unique, Afro-Ecuadorian community of Salinas.  To note, today is Good Friday and it was interesting to observe what similarities and differences that are practiced on this holy day in Canada and Ecuador. 

Today we woke up to the wonderful views of Banos, had breakfast, and made our way up from 2000 metres to 4000 metres towards our next stop, Quilotoa. On our way, it was easier to see the landscape progressing from the rivers and valleys of Banos to the small farming communities of the high up Andes.

We woke and went downstairs for breakfast. After thinking we were going for our hike, we briefly stopped at one of the cable car canyon crossings. Thinking we were just stopping to look around, we found out that we were actually going on the cable car that went from cliff to cliff right by the waterfall.

Hey! Its Courtney and today is day 7 of our trip to Ecuador! I was nominated to do the blog today because it’s my birthday and this is probably the best place to spend it! This morning, we left Sinchi Warmi, which was pretty difficult because of how beautiful it was there and how great the staff took care of us!

Today we returned to the Tekera Resource Centre (TRC), where they were hosting their annual sports day. Their sports day was mainly track and field events, in which we helped the staff at the TRC keep track of the points and positions of each team.

For us, sleep is sacred, and this morning we were able to sleep in for a few extra hours. It may not seem like much, but after back to back days of 5:30am wake up calls it was a blessing.

Yesterday we had the amazing opportunity to embark on a safari! It was an early rise at 5:30 am to make it onto the safari trucks for 6:30am, just in time for sunrise. Immediately, in the cool Ugandan morning, we got to see loads of animals going about their morning routines.

Today started out with a 4 hour hike into the Amazon. We started by walking through an old rusted gate onto what seemed like a logging road until it ended and our guide Favio cut some bushes to the side and revealed a very narrow path that we followed him through.

Our first full day in Sinchi Warmi has been anything but usual. Waking up to the sounds of the Amazon made me feel well-rested and awake, even at 5 in the morning. Soon after eating breakfast and enjoying the best papaya my tastebuds will ever experience, we quickly packedour raincoats and cameras and took off to canoe and fish around.

So far, our trip has been an unreal experience, though I believe we can all agree that Sawa World and our first Ugandan craft market was a real introduction to Kampala and Uganda.

We woke up this morning to a beautiful sunrise over the misty valley that surrounds Kampala. As the capital of Uganda, Kampala has a population of over 2 million and a massive wealth disparity. Driving towards our first program activity, we passed gated communities only blocks away from tiny houses made of sheet metal.

On our third day we woke up in the morning for a traditional Ecuadorean breakfast known as Umita. It was wrapped like corn but tasted like banana bread.

Hey Everyone! it’s Courtney and this is day 2 of our stay in Ecuador! Ms. Zagar and Dan finally got here at about midnight last night. We were all extremely excited to see them! This morning we woke up, had breakfast and headed to Impaqto Quito.

Our first day in Quito (and our first in Ecuador) was very busy, even a five-minute nap on the bus, from one location to the next, was appreciated. The mountain surrounded city is absolutely breath taking.

Summer 2015 Semester in Development participant’s reflections on the controversial topic of aid.