Hi Folks. The main thing that kept me busy during the five weeks in the Yachana Reserve was my studying towards the qualification to be able to lead and supervise biological surveys. I chose to research amphibians and reptiles of the neotropics because they are so fascinating. It was a lot of work but I succeeded! I learned a lot in a short time and I really enjoyed every minute of it. Because the majority of these fabulous creatures are nocturnal, most of the field work was done at night in the rainforest, often requiring us to wade through streams and rivers and climb steep ravines in the rain, dodging tarantulas, scorpions and spiky plants en route.. The night VES (visual encounter survey) involved 6 people walking in a line for 500 meters over the course ... read more

Hello everyone! We have been living in a rainforest for a month without any communication, and it has been great. We are currently en-route to the Yasuni National Park and we have and couple of hours in the town of Coca. We have both learned lots about this precious ecosystem and have both came to love it very much. We will send you an more indepth blog about rainforest life but as we are short on time and cannot upload any pictures of the snakes and spiders and poisonous frogs we will send you some pics that we down loaded in Peru. T and D... read more

Hola! We sped out of Puno faster than the Millenium Falcon and headed to the city of Arequipa. The city has a lot of old Spanish colonial buildings and is situated in the shadow of three mighty volcanoes. We also dropped a couple of kilometres in elevation so theres no need to chew on the controversial leaf of the Erythroxylum coca or to drink coca tea. The cocaine plant has a lot of medicinal qualities to it, easing the strain of altitude sickness is one of them. One of the highlights was a visit to the Santa Catalina Convent, a Spanish-built building dating back to the 1500s. Hasta Pronto. T and D... read more

Hello! Wow what an amazing week! Dave and I split up to see Machu Pichu, the Inka ruins, in different ways. So we now have different stories to tell! We are learning lots about the ancient civilizations in Peru and other regions through the museums and our tour guides at the top of Machu Pichu. In part of our amazing journey, was an interesting visit to both our intestines, of travelers diarrhea (from local bacteria! yay!), both of which are better now. Nothing like really appreciating a nice solid bowel movement after you experience the Machu poo poo! Haha! This is what makes the adventure so much more magical. Appreciating the small things....like everyday things. Much love from Peru! Enjoy the pics! T I Hiked the Salkantay Trail to Machu Picchu, a grueling 5 day, 87 ... read more

Hello from the Great White North! We found that Churchill just wasn't north enough for us so we ventured on up to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories. Theresa has just completed her 3 weeks of work at the Stanton Hospital. Now holidays have officially started! We have enjoyed the nature walks around Frame Lake, especially because we didn't have to watch for bears! The crisp air and the orange skies of sunrise and sunset in the short daylight hours are magical and the people are really hospitable and friendly. We had a great Christmas with Theresa's cousin, T-BO, the well-renowned artist of Yellowknife and his lovely Jacklyn. We both really enjoyed the North and its quirky atmosphere, however we have decided to migrate south for a wee while to get a bit more sunshine and warmth...? ... read more