There was a time when I thought I wanted to be an ethnobotanist. Truth be told, I envisioned myself as some sort of plant Indiana Jones, trudging through the forest to discover the cure for cancer. The reality turned out to be far different, although I get ahead of myself. My mother, understanding how much I like to travel, found an educational homeschool travel program called Project World School. The goal of the trip is to experience the people and culture in a non-commercial way and to learn as much as you can. Because of my interest in ethnobotany, Lainie, the owner and group leader, arranged for me to meet a working ethnobotanist in Peru.
We visited a friendly family of weavers who were friends with Lanie and Miro. They showed us how they make dye from the local plants and minerals and wash and prepare the llama and alpaca wool they make their textiles out of. Then, they showed us how they turn the died wool to yarn, and the yarn into everything from carpets to gloves to purses. Afterwards we played with the children in the family in a ruin near their house. The family cooked us amazing tortillas and a variety of soups for lunch. The tortillas reminded me of the fry bread I ate at the Hopi reservation I visited on the 9th grade trip, they tasted like fried happiness. After lunch we said our goodbyes, but not before buying some amazing home-made clothing at a discount price.
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