Dear friends,

We can’t believe it has been so long since our magical adventure in the Galapagos ended! I can still remember the amazement on each one of your faces the first time we witnessed sea lions swimming and jumping beside our boat in the beautiful blue waters of Isabela Island. And seeing the wild tortoises trekking through the highlands of Santa Cruz! Often times it feels like just yesterday that we were hiking through the islands together playing contact, swimming in the ocean with an abundance of wildlife, and volunteering at the tortoise ranches. While your lives have continued on and I’m sure you are occupied by the madness of high school (or college!) life, we are still here thinking of you and the impact that we made together.

While it may not have always felt like much, the work we did together in the Galapagos truly made an impact toward the future sustainability of the islands. The tortoises at Campo Duro and Chato Ranch are happier and healthier with their new selection of food that you planted for them. The organizations have been able to continue their work of supporting the tortoise population to grow and thrive on the islands so that we never have to worry about their species becoming extinct. The children at the school in Isabela have been enjoying their newly painted basketball court, and the teachers so much appreciate the kindness you showed by taking an interest in their lives and wellbeing. But aside from all that, we hope that the knowledge that YOU gained on this trip has helped you to serve your communities back home as well and made you more conscious of how your actions impact the world around you.

The one thing that we have yet to forget is how much fun we had together here as a group. You guys were the most inclusive and accepting group of young adults and I am still amazed by the kindness and love you showed to everyone that was a part of the trip. It has continued to inspire me to this day and give me hope for the future. I look forward to seeing what your generation will accomplish. We worked hard, grew a lot as individuals, and had a blast together. Whether going on evening walks through town, eating ice cream, snorkeling in the most incredible waters, learning to dance, or lifting heavy boulders, it was always the best of times because we were together. We will never forget GLA Galapagos 2018. Thank you for creating such special memories in the most amazing place. Now go out and continue to be a positive influence and changemaker in the world around you. We love you!

Some special moments from our trip:

-Snorkeling with sea lions, sea turtles, colorful fish, sharks, and even spotting an octopus!

-Learning about the unique wildlife and ecosystem in the Galapagos from Jorge and Edison

-Opening up and sharing our life stories with each other on the Isabela hotel terrace

-Playing our hardest to try beat the locals at a “futbol” match

-Eating ice cream several times a day

-Attempting to lift giant boulders to protect the trees that we planted to help reforest the island

-Watching the sunset on the beach in San Cristobal

-Having to say 3 positives every time your whiney voice or negativity came out

-Creating our own jewelry out of plastic waste

-Being amazed at Matthew’s impeccable sea lion imitation

-Dancing in a party bus and viewing the beautiful city of Quito at night

Best wishes,

Your mentors Amy and María Fe
Local Team Patricia, Hakan, Jorge and Edison

 

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Dearest Audrey, Ava, Avril, Emma, Gwynne, Josh, Julian, Matt, Max, Molly, Patrick, Sadie, Sam, Seiji, Sofia, Teagan, Tim, Tyler, and Will:

Hey, everyone! (Or as David would say, “Hey, good people!”)

We hope this letter finds you all living your best lives with adventurous memories of our time together in Ecuador with GLA.

We truly accomplished a lot together from developing lifelong friendships to giving back to the communities that so graciously accommodated us to learning so much about Ecuador and the Galápagos. We hope you feel a sense of pride when you look back on how well you adapted and maintained positivity outside of your comfort zones. That is, after all, what GLA and travel are all about!

Some of our favorite memories include:

-Watching your teamwork as you wrestled with roots and stones at Campo Duro
-Getting to witness breeding success at the Galápagos Tortoise Breeding Center 😉
-Love attacking so many pups! (Mocha, Muffler, Jeff, etc.)
-Observing the variety of loud ponchos purchased at the Quito market
-The sweetness of the celebration circle

We feel fortunate to have gotten to spend part of our summer with this great group of humans. We, Håkan, Wilson, Fernando, and the tortoises thank you all so much!

We’d like to remind you of this quote:

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
-Howard Thurman

Stay curious, be kind, and follow your hearts always! (And stay in touch!)

With love,
Jenny & David

 

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Dear friends.

Time flies and we are already in a new season, with new plans and expectations. I would like you to make a stop now and for 5 minutes go back to the summer of 2018 where the life of many people changed for good. Since your visit to the Galapagos Islands, nothing is the same.

Your parents faced the uncertainty of letting you go to a different country on your own on, for some of you, for the first time. You decided to get out of your comfort zone and use your summertime to learn, share and grow. Your mentors took the challenge of guiding you on an experience that we expected to be the best of your life. The local community opened their doors to visitors that came to support their work and dreams.

Everything started with you arriving in Quito. The green and majestic mountains welcomed you and we remember that was the first comment some of you made. The Historical center, the churches, the cobblestone streets and the smell of sweet chocolate gave you a glimpse of what living in Quito means. One of the highlights of the day was the view from El Panceillo and the many pictures you took of the sunset up there.

It was time to get on a flight, a bus and a couple boats to get to the Galapagos. We can’t describe the excitement on your faces that day. You were all eager to get there and despite the late arrival of the luggage you kept positive and the view of the first blue waters paid off everything.

The hard work painting the school and cleaning the tortoises’ field in Isabela, planting trees and picking rocks in Santa Cruz or the beach clean up in San Cristobal were mixed with some unforgettable moments of snorkeling, kayaking and swimming all surrounded by sea lions, sharks, fish, turtles and many other magical creatures that we found on the way..
The wall of tears hike, the beach time, the soccer game with the locals along with he leadership activities and free time gave us the opportunity to challenge ourselves in many ways and open our eyes, minds, and hearts to the world we want and dream.

Can you see the change now? Parents, students, mentors and the community of Galapagos. Our lives cannot be the same. Now we trust more to each other, we are more aware of social and environmental issues, we grew personally and as a group, we experienced homesickness but also compassion and friendship. We have overcome our fears and got answers to our questions. We had fun and found friends for life. What a wonderful summer.

Highlight memories from our trip:

-Arriving in the Galapagos only to find our luggage was left on the mainland and having to run around the island in the evening trying to find any type of clothing that could work for swimming
-Kayaking through a group of blue-footed boobies while sea turtles, sea lions, and penguins swam by
-Trying to teach the game Contact to everyone while hiking to the Wall of Tears
-Watching the sunset on the beach on San Cristobal Island
-Jumping and swimming at Las Grietas
-Dancing on the beach before the random concert in Isabela
-Attempting to beat the locals at soccer
-Learning Salsa
-Understanding the equator forces
-Giving shout-outs to each other the last night in Quito.

Don’t forget your time in Ecuador and don’t forget us.

We love you.

Your mentors Amy and Maria Fe
Local team Patricia, Jorge and Edison

 

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Dear Abby, Asher, Blair, Eleanor, Erin, Finn, Grace, Haana, Jackie, Jason, Jennifer, Lauren, Madelaine, Manolo, Mariana, Matteo, Noah, Victoria, Vishal, & Zara:

Hey, everyone! (Or as David would say, “Hey, good people!”)

We hope this letter finds you all living your best lives with adventurous memories of our time together in Ecuador with GLA.

We truly accomplished a lot together from developing lifelong friendships to giving back to the communities that so graciously accommodated us to learning so much about Ecuador and the Galápagos. We hope you feel a sense of pride when you look back on how well you adapted and maintained positivity outside of your comfort zones. That is, after all, what GLA and travel are all about!

Some of our favorite memories include:

-Listening to each of you open up about yourselves during Story of Self – y’all went deep!
-Watching your teamwork as you wrestled with roots and stones at Campo Duro
-Getting to witness breeding success at the Galápagos Tortoise Breeding Center 😉
-Endlessly playing with sea lions each time we went snorkeling
-Creating a spectacle with mini-mart arm wrestling

We feel fortunate to have gotten to spend part of our summer with this great group of humans. We, Håkan, Wilson, Fernando, and the tortoises thank you all so much!

We’d like to remind you of this quote:

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
-Howard Thurman

Stay curious, stay kind, and follow your hearts always! (And stay in touch!)

With love,
Jenny & David

 

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Dearest Ava, Brady, Carl, Emma, Jacobe, Jazmin, Jody, Katy, Kenny, Kenzi, Lily, Makayla, Maleiya, Meg, Quentin, Sara, Taylor, Tea, & Yobany:

Hey, everyone! (Or as David would say, “Hey, good people!”)
We hope this letter finds you all living your best lives with sweet adventurous memories of our time together in Ecuador with GLA.

We truly accomplished a lot together from bonding as friends to giving back to the communities that so graciously accommodated us to learning so much about Ecuador and the Galápagos! Y’all were true rock stars for the duration of the trip, and we hope you feel a sense of pride when you look back on how well you adapted and maintained positivity outside of your comfort zones. That is, after all, what GLA and travel are all about!

Some of our favorite memories include:

-Ava’s flawless and ultra serious rendition of “The Fox” during lip sync karaoke while Emma supported her with lots of paw-licking… “Is this correct?”

-Brady’s determination to try fried guinea pig regardless of how his stomach was feeling

-Carl’s endless comedy; best soccer goalie and Spanish student ever!

-Emma’s incredible ability to “tan” and “not get sunburned”

-Jacobe’s affinity for peaches as well as his passionate performance of “Hotel California” for the group

-Jazmin’s dedication to both her veganism and to building the sand wall on Isabela

-Jody’s ultra-downness for each and every activity and adventure

-Katy’s toughness and sweet flailing moves during the ant attack at the tortoise preserve

-Kenny’s triumph over the Sea Baby on the second and third boat voyages – keeping it down!

-Kenzi’s blossoming over our 2 weeks together – and her desire to buy ALL the things at the market

-Lily’s trendsetting abilities…the sisterhood of the Ecuadorian pants

-Makayla’s sweetness, consistency, and determination to conquer the Sea Baby, even if it meant sacrificing her travel pillow

-Maleiya’s near perfect Miley Cyrus performance and consistently taking an abundance of photos

-Meg’s commentary on Christopher Columbus as well as her amazing lighting engineer skills during lip sync karaoke; also, Woman Crush Wednesday even though it was aSaturday

-Quentin’s excitement over crepes and willingness to be helpful and learn as much as possible about well, everything!

-Sara’s warrior-like persistence during service, even when she was wounded by a stump that fought back

-Taylor’s scheme to get his mom lots of chocolate in the hopes of chipping away at days of being grounded

-Tea’s demonstration of how to barter in the market and showing the group how to really beach with ceviche and a coke after snorkeling

-Yobany’s creation of a unique handshake with everyone and his amazing snowman socks and tropical swimsuit

As our first group of the summer, y’all set the bar very high for the next groups! We feel fortunate to have gotten to kick off our summer with this great group of future leaders. We, El Sueco, Wilson, Fernando, and the tortoises thank you all so much!

When we really miss y’all…YES!!!

We’d like to leave you with a quote:

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
-Howard Thurman

Stay curious, stay kind, and follow your hearts always! (And stay in touch!)

With love,
Jenny & David

 

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our 2019 programs, or enroll now.