Welcome, we are excited to share our experience of our trip to Peru, the land where the sun is reborn.

Throughout our adventures we will travel to Lima, Cusco and Trujillo, Peru. In Trujillo, where we will spend most of our time, we will be shadowing in the local teaching hospital and hopefully gain a small look into the medical culture of Trujillo. Travel (vicariously) with us as we live, breath and dream all that Peru has to offer.

Our adventure begins as we depart from the Minneapolis Airport at 6:20pm on Jan. 3rd and take the first step on this exciting adventure. Make sure to check in every now and then to catch updates on our trip.

Here is an introduction to our crew

This way you can place names with faces and enjoy the stories with us during our three and half weeks abroad.

Jae Creger - Sophomore, Chemistry Major
"I am very excited to observe different approaches to healthcare and experience culture the of Peru."

Teman Miller - Sophomore, Chemistry and Spanish Major
"I'd like to learn more about Peruvian culture and daily life as well as better my Spanish speaking."

Annie Holtz - Junior, Biology Major
"I am very excited to fully immerse myself in the Peruvian culture: the food, the music & the people! I can't wait to get started! Vámanos!"

Mitchell Riley - Junior, Health and Fitness Promotion Major
"I want to improve my Spanish speaking and listening. Both are not my strengths, so this trip should definitely help."

Bailey Pohlman - Sophomore, Biology Major
"The only time I've been out of the country was in 6th grade on a week long cruise (to Cozumel, Mexico, Ochos Rios, Jamaica and the Grand Cayman Islands) so I'm pretty nervous to be going to a country where I can't use English, but I'm very excited."

Crista Schuetz - Sophomore, Nursing and Spanish Major
"I want to learn how to appropriately converse with Spanish speakers and talk like fluent speakers would."

Molly Hilgart - Senior, Nursing Major and Spanish Minor
"As a future nurse, I am excited to see the health care system and how it differs from clinics in the U.S. I am also incredibly excited to hike Machu Picchu."

Anna Larson - Sophomore, Psychology Major and Spanish Minor
"I am so excited to travel to Peru to not only get to know a new family, but to be immersed in a beautiful culture & language in a medical context, Machu Picchu too!"

Tiffany Cassmann - Junior, Biology Major and Spanish Minor
"I am excited to have the opportunity to travel to Peru and learn about Peru and their culture. I want to come back from Peru more confident with my Spanish speaking abilities and stories to tell my friends and families."

Gabrielle Laske - Junior, Music and Spanish Major
"I was the only student in my medical terms class in high school who was taking the course with the aspiration to become a translator or interpreter someday. I'm looking forward to completing the second leg, so to speak, of that journey by now learning that vocabulary in Spanish."

Hannah Potter - Junior, Social Work Major and Spanish Minor
"I'm very excited to get to experience living with a Peruvian host family. I hope to be able to learn about Peruvian food, customs and culture from my hosts. I also can't wait to visit Machu Picchu and get to know this group of students!"

Devin Hedlund - Junior, Biology & English Major and Spanish Minor
"I'm excited to experience Peru and especially excited to meet my host family."

Here's an introduction to our course leader

Professor Nancy Gates-Madsen

"This is my third time leading the Spanish for Medical Professionals course abroad. I'm excited to teach this course in a new location and look forward to exploring Peru with the group."

And an introduction to your bloggers

My name is Will Simonson, I am a Sophomore at Luther and am majoring in Spanish and Exercise Physiology. I am part of the cross country and track team and love being outside and being active. The part of the trip I am most excited about is being able to connect my two majors. Although Spanish and Exercise Physiology are completely different subjects, I hope to learn how to utilize both studies in a professional setting. In the future, I hope to be an Occupational Therapist in a bi-lingual setting, using my studies in Spanish and Health.

My name is Kjerstin Nelson, I am a Junior, Biology & Spanish Major and Linguistic and Chemistry Minor at Luther. I am also a RA, Admissions Representative, and Security Assistant. I enjoy participating on the Ballroom & Swing Competitive Team as well as the Women's Ultimate Frisbee Team. I love to learn about everything under the sun and watch the people around me develop and grow. One day, I aspire to use medicine in emergency setting all across the world, like as a Trauma Surgeon with Doctors Without Borders. I am looking forward to this trip acting as another step into the world of international medicine as well as developing one of my passions of breaking through language barriers.

We are excited to relay our adventures through blogging as this is a new but exciting experience for us. This is also a fun chance to reflect on our experiences during the trip and share our gratitude for the amazing opportunities Luther has to offer for study abroad trips.

See you when we land!