The Traveling School

Hello Everyone,

Angie Royce here. My son Taylor and I were fortunate enough to be part of the Galapagos experience. It was an amazing trip. Taylor and I whisked off to Florida the day after we returned from Ecuador and now are just settling back in to home, so I thought I would share!

First of all I'd like to say that we truly enjoyed meeting each and every one of your daughters. As a group, they work so well together. They are truly all inclusive and really look out for one another. You can see that they have bonded and they really enjoy each other's company. The teachers and Gennifre have done a great job of helping them find their way as a group. I found it refreshing that a group of girls this age could be so supportive and encouraging of one another, be serious about their studies-and still have so much fun together! (And Taylor has a whole new respect for "big sisters" :) They were very good to him!)

Heather and Samantha are wonderful leaders. (And I'm sure Cara and Claire are as well - they were greatly missed!) Our girls are learning so much - not just academics, but they are learning so much about themselves. And the teachers fully facilitate this process. They open the doors to new learning and encourage the girls to find their way through-by asking them their opinions, by encouraging their questions, by leading through example, by supporting them individually.

Their methods of teaching really empower our girls to know themselves and what they are capable of. It's really inspiring! Every teenager should be so fortunate.As for the Galapagos themselves, they are truly special. We were very privileged to have Maria as our guide. She is and extraordinary person with a great passion for the islands and for educating those who visit. We were able to not only learn volumes of information about the flora and fauna, the landscape and geology, but she also shared with the girls the finer points of conservation efforts and some of the complex issues surrounding the protection of the islands. We became very aware of how vulnerable this part of the world is to the many changes that come with increased tourism and global warming.

If any of you are wondering why you haven't heard much from your daughters... I found out why! During our week together, we had two opportunities to go into town. Each time, the girls had about an hour or so to themselves. Much of that time is spent catching up on shopping or other errands. If they do have time to get online, connections can be painfully slow. If they happen to get to a phone, sometimes connections are unreliable and require SEVERAL attempts to get through. After dealing with these issues myself, I have a lot more sympathy for them and their efforts to communicate with the outside world!

Take care! Our girls come home in just about 5 weeks!!! Can't wait!

-Angie

If you would like to visit a Traveling School group, please check out our Adult Expeditions