Life changing experience in Peru!

My month in Peru with Pacific Discovery was the best month of my life and the most life changing for me. We started with a week of living in home stays, studying Spanish and volunteering at orphanages. This experience not only helped my Spanish but also opened my eyes to the living conditions and lives of people in Peru. The next week we started adventuring. We mountain biked down a mountain, did a multiple day hike to Machu Picchu and in the Colca Canyon, explored Cusco, Arequipa, and islands of Lake Titicaca and went sand boarding in the desert. Along the way, we experienced living conditions throughout Peru. During our Colca Canyon hike, I stayed in a mud hut with a metal roof and shared the room with two people and a goat! (He was the families pet and he would come and go as he pleased). Peru taught me so many things and changed my life so much. After my month in Peru, I changed my major from business to non-profit management. After being in Peru and experiencing life there, I realized that I want to help them and other countries in South America. Also, I became a vegetarian and a strong believer in recycling. I spent so much time near animals in Peru and many of the people I was traveling with were vegetarians too, so I decided to try it and I've never felt better. Our guide in Peru, Susan Staley was very conscious about our impact in Peru. We were advised to use the least amount of plastic possible and if we did use it, to collect it as we go. In Peru, many places didn't have recycling systems so they would just burn the plastic on the side of the road. Overall, Peru has changed me in so many ways and I could talk about it forever. I loved the trip, the people, the country, everything! I wish I could do it again!