Photo Gallery: Study Abroad in Ecuador with the WWU Honors College

Twenty one students, four faculty members and two staff have set off for Ecuador for a study abroad program with WWU’s Honors College this summer in Ecuador. The course focus is split between two main areas: a Humanities-focused exploration of the culture, history, and literature of Ecuador led by Professor of Modern and Classical Languages Amy Carbajal, and a Geology focus led by Honors College Director and Professor of Geology Scott Linneman. Professor of Biology Deb Donovan will lead a marine science component once the expedition reaches the Galápagos Islands. 

Check in here for photos from the trip by WWU Director of Visual Media Sean Curtis Patrick and Interim Director of the Office of University Communications John Thompson, who joined the trip to document the experience.

John Thompson
A student sits on the Swing in the Clouds, looking over Quito, Ecuador.
A student smiles between two llamas next to a hillside in Ecuador.
Students look out over the mountainside at Teleférico on the slopes of the Pichincha Volcano
Students and faculty gather in the PAC Plaza at 2 a.m. before taking a shuttle to the airport to fly to Ecuador.
Students and faculty gather at the airport for their trip to Ecuador.
Two students look out over Quito, Ecuador, from a hillside.
Scott Linneman holds up a map as he talks to students about the geological forces that formed the Andes.
The hills surrounding Quito topped with clouds.
A student sits on the Swing in the Clouds on the slopes of Pichincha, looking over Quito, Ecuador.
Students gather in the greenhouse of an Otavalo rose plantation.
Clouds dapple the mountains around Otavalo.
A worker at an Otavalo rose plantation trims a bloom.
Students line up on the stones of the solar clock that rests exactly on the equator.
Students and instructors gather in front of the caldera of Cotacachi.
A vendor at the Otavalo market sells a variety of woven textiles.
Two llamas stand on a grassy hillside with clouds in the background.
Students gather at the railing of a covered dig at the archaeological site of Cochasqui.
Students and instructors walk down a hillside around Cochasqui.
Students and instructors walk down a hillside around Cochasqui. Sean Patrick/WWU
The Yacuma Eco-Lodge lit up in the jungle at night.
Students ride in a motorized canoe across the Rio Napo, one of Ecuador's largest Amazon tributaries.
Students visited a Kichwa community to learn about life in villages across the Amazon.
A boa constrictor curls around the fauna in during a night tour of the jungle near the Yacuma Eco-Lodge.
Students walk through on the bank of the Rio Napa as they head into the Amazon.
Students walk on a suspension bridge toward the Pailon del Diablo waterfall.
The Pailon del Diablo waterfall splashes on a walkway as a student looks on in awe.
A student holds out their hands to catch the spray from the powerful Pailon del Diablo waterfall as they stand on a nearby walkway.
A student appears to float in the clouds as they ride the Swing at the End of the World at the Casa del Arbol in Baños.
The group gathers on flat ground with snow-capped Chimborazo in the background as the clouds clear up.
A group of students smiles in the sleet as they hike up Chimborazo.
Amy Carbajal lifts her arm in celebration as she reaches the second refugio on Chimborazo, with sleet falling and a structure in the background.
Students pose for a picture in front of the ruins of Ingapirca.
Students walk among the ancient stone walls of Ingapirca toward the Temple of the Sun.
Students study the exterior of the Iglesia de Balbanera.
Students walk up the steps as they explore the city of Baños.
Students walk along the sidewalk as they explore the city of Cuenca.
A seal relaxes with its chin up on the beach of Isabela Island.
A green sea turtle rests on the pebble beach of Isabela Island in the Galápagos.
A Galápagos brown pelican stands on a large rock as a boat goes by in the background.
A lizard suns itself on the rocks of Isabela Island.
Students pose for a photo on one of the land bridges that connects Los Tuneles off Isabela Island.
A sea turtle swims by as students admire it during a snorkel session in the Galápagos.
A blue-footed booby walks along the land bridges near Los Tuneles.
Students listen to an instructor as they sit on a boat before going snorkeling in the Galápagos.
A boat full of students heads off for a snorkel session in the Galápagos.