HOWARD PERU PROGRAM

Welcome to the official homepage for the Howard Peru Program! This is where you will be able to find answers to many of your questions regarding our upcoming adventure. Please refer to the below information to see what you can expect going forward and let us know if you have any questions!

Dates: April 14-25, 2011
Price: $3,400 (all-inclusive)
Deposit Due: November 19
Payment Due: January 31
Balance Due: February 28

Howard Contact: Julia Martinez, Spanish Teacher
Email: julian_martinez@hcpss.org
Phone: 443-812-1641

Walking Tree Representative: Luke Mueller, Director
Email: luke@walkingtree.org
Phone: 303-898-5135
Fax: 720-306-3204

ITEMS TO COMPLETE AND RETURN (if you haven’t already)

UPDATED INFORMATION

All of the following information is contained on this page. To skip to a particular section, please click on the corresponding link below.

-Group flight information
-Travel Insurance
-Immunization information
-Day by day Itinerary
-Roster of Participants
-Leader Biographies
-Expected Correspondence and Cell Phones
-Packing List

Note: This program has been approved by HCPSS but the county reserves the right to cancel a trip at any time and is not responsible for any financial losses if a trip is canceled.

GROUP FLIGHT

Our group flight leaves from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) at 6:28AM on Thursday, April 14th, 2011. In order to ensure that we are together and have plenty of time for any unforeseen complications, PLEASE BE AT DULLES BY 4:00AM ON THE 14TH. We will meet at the Copa Airlines check in desk inside Dulles where your teachers will be waiting. The group flight information is as follows:

Departure from USA

Airline: Copa Airlines
Flight: CP 357
Date: Thursday, April 14, 2011
Departs: Washington Dulles (IAD) at 6:28AM
Arrives: Panama City, Panama (PTY) at 10:38AM

—connection—

Airline: Delta Airlines
Flight: CP 393
Date: Thursday, April 14, 2011
Departs: Panama City, Panama (PTY) at 11:36AM
Arrives: Lima, Peru (LIM) at 3:06PM

Return to USA

Airline: Delta Airlines
Flight: CP 476
Date: Monday, April 25, 2011
Departs: Lima, Peru (LIM) at 2:13PM
Arrives:Panama City, Panama (PTY) at 5:44PM

—connection—

Airline: Copa Airlines
Flight: CP 488
Date: Monday, April 25, 2011
Departs: Panama City, Panama (PTY) at 7:12PM
Arrives: Washington Dulles (IAD) at 12:57AM on April 26th

A Note on Flights
Air travel is unpredictable. Although we can ensure that our groups arrive to the airport with ample time and follow all airline instructions, there may still be instances when a flight is delayed or cancelled due to weather, mechanical problems, labor strikes, the whim of the airline etc. In such an event Walking Tree is not financially responsible for unexpected costs incurred by travelers but for this and other reasons we recommend travelers consider a travel insurance policy. Regardless, please know that should flight delays/cancellations occur we will do everything we can to get students home in a timely manner and will do our best to keep family members updated on developments.

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Our experience has taught us that travel can be unpredictable. As such, we strongly recommend that our participants purchase a separate travel insurance policy that helps to cover them financially in the event of an unforeseen complication or mishap. Coverage for emergency medical evacuation, medical expenses if you get sick or injured, lost luggage/delays, travel delays, lost travel document replacement and trip cancellation are basic tenets of any good policy.

While we encourage you to research all options available, we have had good experiences with the International Volunteer Card. It is discounted insurance exclusively for volunteers and underwritten by TravelGuard, the largest travel insurance provider in the US.
Medical doctors are available 24/7 through a free international phone number and personnel can assist in everything from flight and luggage delays, to emergency situations. All their coverage has no deductible and covers you for multiple trips – up to 180 days of travel in a given year.

Trip cancellation is an additional option. It covers your trip being canceled for natural disasters, organizational failure, debilitating sickness or tragedy preventing you from going on the trip. You can also purchase this through the Volunteer Card. An additional benefit for the Volunteer Card is they offer 100,000 discounts for volunteer travelers.

There are different plans to choose from but their Individual Plus plan covers the following and only costs $35:

$25,000 Accident Medical Expense
$25,000 Sickness Medical Expense
$300,000 Emergency Medical Transportation
$25,000 Repatriation of Remains
$300 Travel Delay
$1,000 Baggage & Personal Effects
$150 Travel Document Replacement
$100 Baggage Delay

To view more details regarding these plans, please visit http://www.volunteercard.com/ and please get in touch directly with Katie Olson from Volunteer Card at 952.886.7685 or kolson@volunteercard.com with any questions.

A NOTE ON IMMUNIZATIONS

Currently, there are no required vaccinations to enter Peru. Some small malaria zones do exist in Peru, but they are isolated to remote regions of the country we do not visit. The vast majority of our participants do not take malaria medication, but it is something we leave to each family to decide. We suggest all participants make sure they are current for standard vaccinations (Hepatitis B, DTP, and Polio), as well as Hepatitis A. For more information we suggest that you contact your local travel clinic.

Howard Perú Itinerary

Date	Day	Location	Activity	Lodging
April 14, 2011	Thursday	USA/ Perú	Arrival, Orientation	Lima Hotel
April 15	Friday	Lake Titicaca	Travel to Lake Titicaca	Puno Hotel
April 16	Saturday	Lake Titicaca	Tour floating islands and Taquile in private boat	Puno Hotel
April 17	Sunday	Peruvian High Plains	Travel across the Peruvian High Plains to Cusco	Cusco Hotel
April 18	Monday	Cusco	Tour famous ruins of Saqsay Waman and have photographic scaverger hunt of city	Cusco Hotel
April 19	Tuesday	Pisacc, Cusco	Visit bustling market of Pisac and have free afternoon in Cusco	Cusco Hotel
April 20	Wednesday	Chinchero, Moray, Salineras	Learn about traditional weaving and mountain bike to Incan wonders	Ollantaytambo Hotel
April 21	Thursday	Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes	Tour Incan city of Ollantaytambo and take train to Aguas Calientes	Aguas Calientes Hotel
April 22	Friday	Machu Picchu!	Tour Famous ruins and climb Wayna Picchu	Ollantaytambo Hotel
April 23	Saturday	Ollantaytambo/Cusco	Visit to indigenous village, travel to Cusco	Cusco Hotel
April 24	Sunday	Cusco	Dance lessons, goodbye dinner	Cusco Hotel
April 25	Monday	HOME!	Fly from Cusco to Lima, connect to international flight	HOME!

Howard Perú Roster

Please make sure your name is spelled correctly and email luke@walkingtree.org if it is not.

Lindsay Joi Kyle
Shamir Parham
Evan Mallon Fuller
Kyle Meyers
Brianna Patterson
Andy Cameron
Monty Rahman
Eric Byers
Genesis Henriquez
Timothy Nathan Ferrell (Chaperon)
Julia Greiwe-Martinez (Chaperon)

LEADER PROFILES

Mario Tapia Meza

ICPNA (Peruvian-North American Cultural Institute) While in Lima, Mario spent two years learning English then he moved back to Cusco when he started to study Tourism for three years at I.S.T.P. Antonio Lorena Institute, during those three years he learned about Peruvian history, geography and archaeology, has traveled all Cusco area, Puno and Bolivia while studying he has worked for ProPeru a non-profits organization based in Sacred Valley as translator, Aventura Quechua, Munaycha Experience and Chaski Ventura cusquenians tour companies as tour guide. He organizes activities like horseback riding, mountain biking, trekking and soon will run his own business.
He has led group of tourist in Arequipa (Colca Canyon), Puerto Maldonado (Tambopata Reserve), Ica (Nazca Lines), Ayacucho (Vilcashuaman) and others Peruvian touristic areas
Three years ago he met Gabriel Duncan and Luke Mueller showed them all Cusco and Ollantaytambo’s area where most of Walking Tree programs homestays are located.
He is fluent in English and Quechua (Peru’s native language), likes to travel, dance and loves his country like no one else.

Paul Laurie

Santa Clara University B.A. Marketing and International Business. During college, Paul spent a semester abroad in Madrid, Spain studying Spanish and European Commerce and graduated early with two degrees. Next, Paul embarked on a three-year journey that took him all over the world. First was a road trip from Times Square to the Panama Canal, which included a stop on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica to help create an organic farm and eco-tourism destination. He continued to South America, where he traveled from Columbia to Tierra del Fuego, settling in Buenos Aires long enough to realize that he would never be a professional tango dancer.

Eager for more, Paul made his way to Asia and traveled overland from Siberia to Singapore, enjoying distinct cultures and great food every step of the way. After all of this travel, only one city felt right: New York. Paul worked as a fashion photographer, on Wall Street, in the World Trade Center and in a multitude of other positions before returning to his real passion for travel and starting Walking Tree. Since, he has led Walking Tree programs in Costa Rica and China and is active in all aspects of the organization’s operation. Paul has traveled to over 55 countries, is certified by the Red Cross in CPR and First Aid, and is proficient in Spanish.

EXPECTED CORRESPONDENCE WHEN ABROAD

Participants will have access to public phones throughout the program and internet at least once a week to contact family and friends. The easiest way for them to make a call is to buy a phone card shortly after arrival in Peru. These cards can be used from any landline and are reasonably priced. Bringing calling cards from the United States is more expensive and runs the risk of compatibility issues.

For all general inquiries to Walking Tree email is the best option. There will be Walking Tree staff checking our email regularly and they will be able to get back to you quickly (info@walkingtree.org). If an immediate response is needed you can call Paul and Mario directly, the Walking Tree program leaders. Only in the case of an emergency should you call the group leader’s cell phone directly. Keep in mind that there is limited service for our cell phones when we are in Peru, so you may have to leave a message or try back several times.

In general, you can expect to receive one blog posting per week while the program is in session. This will be a good way for the leaders to share stories, daily accounts and progress with all interested parties. Occasionally, posting a blog on a weekly basis may not be possible due to a poor internet connection or factors beyond our control. If this is the case, leaders will post blogs as often as possible. If you do not see a blog when you expect it or do not see your student in a picture please understand this does not mean there is something wrong. To read our blog postings please visit our website at www.walkingtree.org and click on the “Blog” icon on the landing page.

We will be in contact with you before your program begins with an email containing all of the above important contact information discussed above for you to reference.

A Note on Cell Phones
Although personal cell phones are discouraged during our time in the host countries, we do find it helpful for participants to have available during the first and last day of the program in case there are any flight complications or delays. During the rest of the program, we ask that participants keep their cell phones off and in their bags, so they do not distract from being fully involved in the program.

PERU SUGGESTED PACKING LIST

Please note that seasons in Perú are opposite ours in the United States so we will be traveling during Perú’s late fall. That said, late fall and early winter are the driest parts of the year and often the most pleasant times to visit. Most of our program will be spent at high altitudes where daytime temperatures can reach the 70’s and it can freeze at night. Layering is the best way to prepare for these variable conditions.

As you are packing please use judgment when deciding what to bring. We will be moving throughout the country and while you are welcome to bring what you like, you will be expected to carry it. Put one change of clothes in your carry on in case of lost luggage as well as any medication and other items you can’t live without. What follows is a guideline, but you know yourself better than we do so please modify as you see fit.

We recommend you bring a larger piece of luggage like a backpack, roller or duffel bag and a smaller backpack that you can bring on hikes, weekend excursions and shorter activities.

Clothes
7-9 pairs of underwear
6-8 pairs of socks (a mixture of good hiking socks and casual socks)
5 t-shirts (some quick dry)
2 long sleeve shirts
1 sweater
1 warmer jacket
1 rain jacket
2-3 pairs of travel/athletic shorts that are breathable and light
2 pairs of comfortable/hiking/everyday pants (NOT all jeans)
1 nice shirt/top to be worn to more formal dinners (girls might want a skirt or something a little nicer for such occasions)
1 pair of durable athletic/hiking shoes

Toiletries
Bring the BASIC toiletries you need plus:
Sunscreen (you will use a lot)
Mosquito repellent
Band Aids and Neosporin
Hand Sanitizer
Medication in properly marked original container

Miscellaneous
Sunglasses (can be purchased cheaply in Perú)
Journal and pen
Book
Camera (digital, disposable, waterproof)
Converter (Perú runs 220v, 60Hz AC electricity. Only necessary if electronic device doesn’t have built in converter)
Alarm Clock and watch
Debit card/US Dollars (we recommend about $50-$150, depending on amount of desired souvenirs, extra items etc.)
Durable water bottle
Flashlight/headlamp
Batteries
Deck of cards or other portable games