Recapping the Trip...

is impossible! But, I'll try. :)

- Our group of kids was awesome! We had 13 11th graders...and even though the week was INTENSE, they (almost!) never complained, worked hard, gave their all, and were HILARIOUS! Great group...and it was so fun to be with high schoolers again!

- I couldn't believe the "haze" that came over my body because it was SO COLD! It was like I just stopped functioning for a huge portion of every day! While we were hiking it was okay, but as soon as we stopped and made camp I couldn't think, talk, move, ANYTHING!

- It was SO fun to push myself physically. But, I'm SO SORE right now!

- I missed Chris. A LOT.

- It was really humbling to see how people lived in the villages we went through. They lived SO high up in the mountains, and were so removed from the rest of civilization. They seemed to be
completely self-reliant, and it was really neat to see their daily lives. It did make me sad, though. I realized that I will never be able to understand these people. We can see their lives and work to understand, but the mentality of village life is something they've been entrenched in since birth. I felt a sense of awe, as well as a sadness. I guess all we can do is work to understand as much as we can, and then accept that we'll never truly "get it." It was amazing.

- It feels like I changed this week, but it'll be interesting to see if it lasts. I'm really starting to internalize the fact that our lives as Americans are SO different than the rest of the world. We can't compare! The way we lived this last week was closer to the majority of the world than anything I've ever experienced (at least I imagine it is...I don't even really know!). All I know is, I was SO happy to get into a warm house with a warm shower, warm bed, and easy-to-prepare food. I felt a little wussy. :)

I'm still processing what I can learn from this trip, but in all it was great. I "appreciate" having the experiences I did, but I was definitely happy to get home. Here are some of the things that you'll never be able to appreciate if you haven't experienced it before... :)

1. It was SO COLD (and I just don't like using the outdoor restrooms) that I "held it" for the last four days of the trip. I'm on trip number 6 to the bathroom today!

2. We all wore a different version of the same outfit EVERY DAY, for the last 7 days. Here's what I brought for clothes...

- leggings
- one pair of pants
- one pair of shorts
- one pair of snow pants
- one short-sleeved shirt
- one long-sleeved shirt
- one fleece
- one wind-breaker
- two pairs of underwear
- one bra
- one hat
- one scarf
- one pair of gloves
- three pairs of socks
- hiking shoes.

The list looks pretty long when I see it like that...but it really wasn't very many clothes and I was SO happy to get back to my closet and dresser.

There's so much more I could write, but I think I'll just post pictures and leave it at that. :) Thanks to the group for such a great trip!