Day 3 -- Arrival in Chilka

We started the day with a great breaktfast at Las Portadas, the hostal that has been our home up until now in Peru. We packed our bags and headed to the main square to begin our whitewater rafting in the nearby Vilcanota River. We got to the put-in site and everyone got in a raft except Brett, who managed to borrow a kayak for the day. He missed out on some great group bonding as the boats got into a huge splashing competition. The scenery was incredible with the blue waters of the river, the eucalyptis trees, Inca ruins and the snow-covered mountains. This day, like all the others, has been brilliantly sunny. We hit a few class II and III rapids, and then ended with a final big drop. When we got to the lunch spot, we scrambled out of the rapids and aired out in the sun. Some of us jumped off a nearby bridge into the water before having a riverside lunch. We were going to ride a van into the community of Chilka but we all decided the day before that we would rather hike in. So we started out on foot on what would end up being a 2-hour hike. Ben and Cullen decided to run ahead but we soon caught up to them because they made a wrong turn and were out of breath. Finally we arrived in Chilka and all the families welcomed us into their homes. That afternoon we walked around town and saw the school where we will work. We are all very excited to be here and begin working --
Conor Cassidy