The grand adventures of Courtney, Juan, Jorge, Juana, George, and Chuminga

This is very late, but a couple of weekends ago, I went on a camping trip with my Adventure Tourism class, and I wanted to share some picture, thoughts, and memories with you. It was definitely one of my favorite experiences of this semester. We went canoeing, spelunking, hiking, horseback riding, zip-lining, rappelling, and mountain biking. 

I began to realize the intensity of the trip right off the back. We started off the trip with an 8.5 mile canoeing trip to our lunching destination. My arms were aching as early as the moment I stepped out of the boat, but it was a beautiful, fun, and challenging experience. 

We canoed up the river, against the wind and the current, until we reached the ocean. At that point, we loaded up the canoes and settled down in the grass for a picnic. It still blows my mind that this was my "exam." 

   

After canoeing, we took our bus to a large hill(not a mountain), called Cerro Aroquita, where we entered a cave and went hiking. 

This is a picture inside the cave. We spent a lot of time in silence, listening to and watching the bats and the dripping water. Not everyone would have enjoyed this, but I sure did!

Here is a picture of the hill and the views that we saw from the hill:

Here is the forrest that we walked through to reach the top of the hill. 

 

 The place we ended up staying is actually the same place I went with my parents for the day. But I was excited to return because I thought it was beautiful and I left feel like I had seen everything there was to see, which is very fulfilling.

This was the view from our cabin (on the day it rained).



Here is a view of Salto del Penitente, which gets its name from the two large rocks, which look like praying hands. Unfortunately, I did not have my camera, because I did not want it to get lost or broken, so I do not have pictures of me doing and activities. But, I repelled from right below the two large rocks all the way to the stream, in the bottom left corner.


Mountain biking through the area was by far the most strenuous activity, but the views made up for it in the end.



This picture was taken in the gold mine we visited on the rainy day.

Some general thoughts about the trip: 

• exhaustion- This trip was seriously one of the most exhausting experiences I have ever had. It was only three days long, but we did a large number of activities, and I left feeling worn out and sore. 
• tranquility-There is something so soothing and majestic about the Uruguayan countryside. One this trip, I did not climb the tallest mountain I have ever climbed, or see the grandest waterfall, but I was overwhelmed by the calming beauty of the country I have had the privilege of living in this semester.
• community-It was such an honor to be able to join this community of students and professors. This group in particular, has such a love of life and they exude with joy and laughter. This trip was sometimes difficult socially, because I was not able to relate completely with the Uruguayans or break through the lingual and cultural differences that kept us apart, but it was rewarding just to be able to watch everyone interact with one another. There was a song or game for everything. And laughter was a given. 

You may be wondering what the title of this post is about. Well, I am going to tell you. As some of you may know, "Courtney" does not exist in Spanish. In fact, it is not even pronounceable in the language. And so, throughout my time here, especially during this particular week, I have picked up several nicknames and have been "renamed" numerous times, both intentionally and unintentionally. So, there it is. 

Until later.