The team relayed the following message, written by two students Callis W. and Andrei C.:

Today is the third day of the Yunnan trip and the first day of hiking. In the morning, the average temperature of Shangri-la was -5 degrees Celsius*. After taking breakfast near the hotel, we started our six hour hike towards a local Tibetan village. Although it was a quite challenging trail, we ultimately managed to arrive at the village punctually and ate a traditional Tibetan lunch before moving on to our next experience.

Half of the group stayed to help with washing the dishes, while the other half went to help move organic fertiliser (animal feces) to a farm nearby. One part helped move the fertiliser onto a truck powered by a tractor, and the rest walked to the farm to help spread the fertiliser on the farmland. The group that went to spread the fertiliser on the farm enjoyed an eventful ride in the truck back to the village.

After dinner, some of the local Tibetans performed their traditional dances for us. We were invited to participate, and it was a spectacular experience for everyone. We even got to share our own “cultural dances” for our incredibly gracious hosts.

Tomorrow, more hiking!

*Because of local conditions the group will only camp out for 1 night, and instead stay the rest of their nights in the hotel/guesthouse.