Where There Be Dragons

I feel so lucky to have traveled with wtbd. The trip was so packed with adventures that it takes a few months post completion to realize what you accomplished. The program was beautiful, challenging and an opportunity to become a better person. I made new friends, tried new food, and visitied places i would never have discovered without the program. I miss the andes so much, the scale of the mountains and the culture and history that lives inside of it is out of this world. I miss hiking up the side of a mountain and taking a boat ride down the river beni into the amazon basin. If you are fortunate enough to find yourself signed up for this program, get excited and take every opportunity that comes your way when in south america. Dont hold back and be yourself.

I've done a few summer and semester programs like Dragons with various other companies, and Dragons really blew me away. I felt guided and supported towards learning the culture, language, leadership, interpersonal skills, etc., and pushed out of my comfort zone to figure a lot of it out on my own, which I really loved. I got to bushwhack in the rainforest, swim in a glacial lagoon in the Andes mountains, sleep in ancient Incan ruins, dance with my host family in a huge parade, and so much more that I never would've dreamed of. By the time I left, I was forgetting words in English.

I had a wonderful time on the trip. At first I was really nervous, I spoke Spanish terribly and I knew very little about Guatemala. Those fears were quickly dismissed. Everyone in the group was nice and everyone had something offer. The staff were very nice and they did a good job of keeping the group together, not letting it form into individual cliques. Our counselors were Jochen, Paula, and Kelly. They worked together to keep us safe and they worked non-stop to making plans for the group. I know this all sounds like insincere hyperbole but it’s true! But that’s not to say there weren’t hiccups. During our 4 day trek we had to send two kids — one by one — by ground transportation to the destination, leaving us with only Kelly for a day. Three of us got sick because they forgot to filter their water. But despite these challenges, we all had a great time. Not to mention that I came back way better at speaking Spanish than when I left. We all grew a whole lot in that summer month. And we all still keep in contact.

I loved my trip with Where There be Dragons to Thailand. I was fully immersed into Thai culture. I learned about their language, customs, and traditions. We even participated in a week long homestay in a rural village. My host mom was amazing and I was so sad to say goodbye. After our homestay we city hopped and visited some super cool monasteries, night markets, and museums. Parts of the trip are definitely challenging and way out of your comfort zone. As long as you keep an open mind to change you will have an awesome time!

This was my first experience traveling abroad in a meaningful way and for an extended length of time. I had zero expectations for what the trip was going to be like and I ended up having the best three months of my life, I’d go back tomorrow if I could. Dragons does a really good job of teaching students how to be travelers not tourists, and I’ve learn so much about international travel from that alone. The instructors on the trip really make the trip as good as it can be, their familiarity with the regions and knowledge of the culture makes them the best people to learn from and lean on for support when traveling for so long and to unfamiliar places. My trip with Dragons changed my perspective of the world in a lot of different ways, I cannot wait to travel abroad again.