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Category Archives: Photography
Bondowoso / Culture / Daily Life / iGLOW Camp / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Teaching
Indonesian Girls Leading Our World – iGLOW Camp 2013
My decreased blogging has not been in vain. Over the past three months, five other volunteers near my area and I have been working incredibly hard to organize a leadership camp for 10th and 11th grade girls held at my school, MAN Bondowoso, from Thursday, March 28th to Sunday, March 31st. Since November of last … Continue reading
Australia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
100 Hours in Sydney
Leaving Indonesia after almost a year of Peace Corps was more needed than I could’ve imagined. Right before parting, I was feeling rather irritable at everything here, mostly the food, the rain, the mold and the motorcycles—one, which crashed into me while I rode my bike the day before my trip. (I’m fine, it was … Continue reading
Bondowoso / Culture / Daily Life / Indonesia / Language / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Teaching
Rhymes On Paper Hearts
For a multitude of reasons – some of which are admittedly strange – elephants have been on my brain. So when I encountered this poem back in January, I paid extra attention. This poem then led to an entire month of English Club focusing on poetry, which culminated in some pretty decent rhymes (for the … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
1 Snowman Made in the Sand
Awhile back, I mentioned that my strategy for dealing with my first Christmas away from home was to ignore it completely, to have it go by as if it were any other day. I’m happy to say this didn’t occur. Spending Christmas in Riung certainly made the holiday different than anything I’ve ever experienced, but … Continue reading
Culture / Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Religion / Travel
3 Colored Lakes in Kelimutu National Park
When I first received my invitation to join Peace Corps Indonesia, it was never a question on whether I wanted to serve as a volunteer. I did, however, question the location. To help with this big decision, I went out and bought a Lonely Planet book. I hadn’t made a commitment yet, and I was … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
4 Stunning Sunrises and Sunsets in Flores
Here are a few images of a few of the stunning sunrises and sunsets I photographed during our trip. In Kelimutu— In Kanawa— In Komodo National Park— On New Year’s Day in Kanawa— * for more logistical details about traveling to Flores check out this blog post. Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / Photography / Travel
7 Days in Kanawa Island
Kanawa, an island located about an hour by boat from Labuan Bajo, is the type of beautiful you only see in travel magazines. From the minute we stepped off the boat, desires to remain in Kanawa forever were impulsively expressed—with good reason. An aquamarine sea brimmed with starfish composing underwater constellations that glistened in the … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
8 Hundred Thousand Flying Foxes in Riung
According to Lonely Planet, Riung is a small fishing village surrounded by 21 islands making up the Seventeen Islands Marine Park—a name chosen out of nationalism rather than fact—in which you can snorkel and see flying foxes. I was immediately sold on the idea of spending some extended time near the beach for the first … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
9 Hours in Komodo National Park
I have a vivid memory of me as a little kid watching a TV program of some Komodo dragons devouring deer. I don’t remember the details, but undoubtedly that nature show was filmed in Komodo National Park. I was so disturbed by the images shown that I remember crying for quite some time for the … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
10 Seconds Until Midnight 2013
Our crew spent New Year’s Eve in a small, quiet topical island paradise named Kanawa. While the island is beyond beautiful, it didn’t quite foster the best atmosphere for a rocking New Year’s Party…until we came along. Suspecting that the evening would be tranquil, our crew mobilized to gather a few essentials: fireworks, drinks and … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
13 (and Then Some) Kids in Ende
Ende was the first place we visited in Flores. It was our intention to fly into the East part of the island and slowly make our way to the West side, hitting some interesting tourist destinations along the way. Ende was the cheapest city to fly into, and to me, it was rather unimpressive. Though … Continue reading
Flores / Indonesia / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Travel
14 Hours On the Road to Labuan Bajo
Flores is so unlike Java. There is one main road cutting through the entire island. There are hardly any cars on this winding road, barely any motorcycles and only a few tiny villages scattered in between long periods of time. The landscape is gorgeous and untamed, changing in flora as you climb up into the … Continue reading
Ecuador / People / Photography / Quito / Travel
The Best Things About Ecuador
Note: Writing posts like this is how I celebrate major Quito holidays – Que Viva Quito! In many parts of the world it is the most wonderful time of the year, but being in a primarily Muslim community—where the weather is perpetually hot, where the mango season is ending and mostly, where no commercialism is … Continue reading
Bondowoso / Culture / Daily Life / Indonesia / Music / Peace Corps / People / Photography / Teaching / Travel
A Drive Around Bondowoso
November 15th marked the first day of the Islamic year: Muharram 1, 1434. To celebrate this, all the students and teachers from my school take a motorcycle drive around Bondowoso every year. As a Peace Corps volunteer, I am not allowed to ride a motorcycle (which is the reason why I was feeling left out … Continue reading
