Callie Morgigno

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Finishing First on the Futaleufu!

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

We have had an exciting past couple of days down here at the Futa! We are in the midst of Futa Fest, a three-day event involving boaters and rafters from all over the globe. New River Academy is dominating! The first event yesterday was a downriver race, in the Puente a Puente, or bridge to bridge, section. Eric came in first in the playboat category, and Katie won the ladies playboat category. Then, to the dismay of the Peruvian National Team who came in second, Lorenzo, Andy, Tino, Stephen and David won the raft race! Our team, complete with two guys who have never been in a raft, beat the best of Peru! Pretty exciting. Needless to say, we are so proud of everyone. The kids are out ‘throwing down’ in the freestyle competition right now.

School, while not as exciting as winning races, is going well. We are gearing up for finals week, which will begin in Pucon. Tomorrow is the last day at our incredible campsite on the Futa, then we embark on the long haul north! Until then, we will soak up this experience – sleeping in hammocks so close to the Futa that we practically get our toes wet, waking to the sound of cows and horses promenading past, and reading our favorite books beneath the endless rolling hills.

I can´t believe that we are flying back to the states in 10 days – all the kids can’t wait to tear into some real American pizza…

Callie

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Safe and sound in Patagonia

Sunday, February 28th, 2010

You all should have heard from your children by now that we are all safe, sound and far away from this terrible earthquake. We were in Hornopiren, and none of the students even awoke from the slight tremors. Our day proceeded as usual, and we didn’t hear about the earthquake until late afternoon. My heart goes out to the victims of this disaster, and part of me wishes that we were closer so we could help provide some kind of disaster relief.

On a brighter note, our time on the ferry went smoothly, as did our journey to the Futaleufu. Jessica, Stephen, Eric and I played a hearts tournament that lasted 6 hours- seriously! The ferry dropped us in Chaiten- another victim of the harsh geography here in Chile. Chaiten used to be a resort town, until a volcano two years ago buried the town in ash. The photo students captured some vivid images of houses and cars absolutely full of ash, becoming part of the earth with plants sprouting out of them, the bright green marking a sharp contrast against the grey ash.

Our campsite near the Futa looks even better than the last! We have our own quincho, with a firepit in the middle. We have a woodstove that we can heat if we want hot showers, and a horse stable in the middle of it all! The students are super eager to get out on the Futa today!

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Rio Negro, Hornopiren

Saturday, February 27th, 2010

Lorenzo en el Rio Negro

Katie Kowalski

hanging out in camp

Every morning, the students emerge from their cozy tents, tucked away in the security of the mossy trees. Our campsite here in Hornopiren is perched atop a grassy knoll that slopes gently downward into a craggy ravine, directly to a gorgeously turquoise 10-foot waterfall. This waterfall makes up one of three that we have been running on the Rio Negro, whose tantalizing whitewater is so close to our tents that we can hear it in our dreams. We are enjoying the wonderful countryside hospitality of our host, Dona Tato, who has been serving up three delicious meals a day- she is even spoiling us with homemade pastries for breakfast. Nights are rolling away while we congregate around the campfire, singing along to Tino and Matti’s guitar and Andy’s fiddle. Lorenzo’s ghost stories have us all convinced that his family’s home is haunted.

Weather has been delightful- sunny, warm, perfect, and has allowed for our classes to cluster around the funky, hand-made wooden tables in the yard. My AP English students had a fun project this week, where they learned the importance of being familiar with both sides of an arguement before taking a stance on it. I had them prepare to write a persuasive essay on a controversial topic, repeatedly warning them to investigate the opposition’s viewpoint as well. When the day of the in-class essay arrived, the looks of horror on their faces revealed my sneaky plan. That’s right, they had one hour to write an essay that was exactly the opposite of the thesis they had planned. Matt’s photo classes have been utilizing the gorgeous sunsets and surrounding countryside to explore the world of landscape photography. Taylor and Eric made slideshows showcasing Al Capone and the Flapper era for Tino’s history class.

Today we had a race down the Rio Negro, on a small section beginning with a 25-foot waterfall and ending with a bang as the students landed that boof from the top of the 10-footer. What a great way to end our time in Hornopiren. I left the students back at camp, packing up their tents and gear bags, preparing to rise and shine at 5:30 am tomorrow. We will get on an eight hour ferry to Chaiten, where we will be about two hours away from the town of Futaleafu. I’m sure everyone shares my excitement in experiencing this legendary river!

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Tags: Academics, Chile Rivers, Freestyle Kayaking, gap year abroad, go huge kayaking, high school, Huge Experiences, Photography, whitewater kayak photography
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Goodbye, Pucon!

Friday, February 19th, 2010

Our time in Pucon is quickly winding down; tomorrow is our last day of school here, then we are southward bound. We have a long day of travel ahead of us on Saturday, as we have to get all the way to the town of Hornopiren, which is about 10 hours south of here. We will be camping in a beautiful, waterfall-encircled area in order to run the Rio Negro.

We have had a fun week in Pucon, complete with plenty of time in town to write e-mails home, finally wash that stinky laundry, do some research for assignments, and eat our fill of fresh-baked kuchen, a German-style fruit tart. Unfortunately, our planned race on the Palguin got rained out due to high water, and Stephen and David are now planning a boatercross on the Upper Trancura for tomorrow afternoon. The group did get to spend some time on the Palguin this week, along with the Trancura and playboating beneath the bridge, under the watchful eyes of Stephen and David, who are taking over as our coaches this week.

As a group mentor activity we went to the hot springs one night this week and enjoyed relaxing our tired muscles in the soothing, hot water. Jessica, Tracy and I prepared a dessert of melted chocolate with sliced fruit for dipping; it was delicious! We probably got more chocolate on our faces than inside our mouths… but we’re not claiming to be a tidy group.

Our schedule has been fairly relaxed this week. We let the kids sleep in and had half-days of school so that everyone could catch up on their rest and their homework. This afternoon, we came into town and took everyone to the climbing gym for an afternoon of indoor bouldering. Some of the kids were pretty impressive with their upper body strength!

That’s pretty much a wrap for this week. Our internet connection will be limited in the coming weeks, so don’t worry too much if your kids aren’t writing as frequently! I will be updating you again in about a week from Hornopiren.

Eric climbing in Pucon

chocolate fondue night

: (c)David Gorsky; Kyle following Tino down the Palguin

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Academic Report- Literatura

Monday, February 15th, 2010

All of my English students are reading and writing up a storm! Classes have been full of thoughtful discussions, inspiring authors, and story, essay and poem construction. If that doesn’t sound like paradise, bear in mind that all this occurs outdoors, perhaps under a shady tree, with a breathtaking view of the volcano.

Our daily schedule begins with Taylor and I furiously scribbling sentences in Creative Writing; currently, we are dissecting Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”. Taylor’s passion for words makes her a delight to have in class! My AP English seniors, Stephen, Matti and Tracy, are analyzing their opinions on the effects of war and the possibility of peace as we read Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. Zoe and Kyle are busy discussing Alice in Wonderland as an allegory for adolescence, and writing endlessly, developing skills to construct the perfect essay. In World Literature, Eric, Alex and Clay just finished essays on the importance of freedom after reading Ayn Rand’s Anthem. Now we are studying Chilean history as we embark on The House of the Spirits, a political, semi-autobiographical novel by Isabel Allende, one of Chile’s best-known authors. My British Lit students, Jessica and Chase, are reading poetry by Chaucer and Shakespeare as they dream up sonnets and soliloquys of their own.

Student dynamics are great in all of my classes, and I am thrilled with the level of cooperation and the willingness to discuss.

Callie Morgigno

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Tags: Academic Report, Academics, Go Huge Experiences, go huge kayaking, high school, kayak high school, study abroad programs
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Ahhh… the sunny southern hemisphere!

Monday, February 15th, 2010

Tino and Lorenzo in the quincho

We have had a whirlwind week since returning to Pucon! Finally blessed with sun-drenched days, we have been entertaining visiting parents and kayaking down the Rio Palguin. The Rio Palguin has a waterfall around every bend, literally, and the visiting parents were able to snap photos of their kids from beautiful, riverside vantage points.

Some of the older kids are helping to plan a race down the Palguin, tentatively taking place tomorrow; it should be exciting as our kids are quite the little competitors. Tino has been taking advantage of our location, which is a five-minute walk from the Rio Trancura, to practice safety drills under the bridge. He had the kids out swimming and perfecting their rope-throwing skills.

On the homefront, we have re-settled nicely into our cozy living situation at Dave’s place in Pucon. The gap year kids are sleeping out in the “gypsy cabins” – treehouse-like cabins out in the woods – and loving the extra space. The girls are pretty stoked to have two big rooms to themselves with plenty of table space for studying… or rather, for scattering all of their clothes on top of.

Weather-wise, we have had a gorgeous week, with nearly constant sunshine. This morning I took notice of my surroundings while helping Jessica and Chase write sonnets in British Lit, and saw students reading and learning while lying on the grass in the sunshine. What an awesome classroom!

attentive to Tino's talk-up at the Palguin

lining up to do it again at the Palguin

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Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, Go Huge Experiences, new river academy, Photography, whitewater kayak photography, whitewater kayaking
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Choshuenco y el rio Fuy

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Greetings from Choshuenco! Choshuenco is a one-road town about three hours south of Pucon, accessible only by dirt roads that encircle dazzling lake after dazzling lake. We have our own little lake here in Choshuenco and have been taking advantage of the scenery to enhance our classroom environments. The lower Fuy drains into Lago Choshuenco, which makes the take-out a five minute stroll from our cute hotel, La Posada. Everyone is loving the Fuy! The Upper Fuy boasts an awesome run- a super clean 25-footer, Salto Los Leones, followed by an awesome class V section. I’ll let the more experienced boasters describe the run in more colors for you!

Our first afternoon in Choshuenco, we headed to Salto Los Leones for a park and huck. Everyone killed it, including some ladies who were timid at first, then so stoked at their accomplishments! Jessica ran a beautiful line on her first ever waterfall, and Stephen scared us all as he threw his paddle from the top of the drop. Clay and I both got a little bruised from under-rotating or over-rotating our flips from the top of the waterfall into the swimming hole.

Yesterday we took a break from the whitewater and ventured out to Huilo Huilo, to scout two gigantic waterfalls, a 150 footer and a 130 footer! Some of the daredevils think they’re runnable. Either way, it was a gorgeous place to spend an afternoon hiking around.

On the academic front, classes are running smoothly; Eric, Alex and Clay wrote delightful stories to share aloud in class for a creative writing assignment. Lorenzo’s Spanish classes have been learning Spanish through videos, such as Meet the Robinsons and The Lion King. Video class is putting together a video called “How to by Boof, by Billy Harris”.

Yes, we are all happy, healthy and well-fed; we are getting three scrumptious meals a day. Last night for dinner we had a tantalizing soup stuffed with cilantro, potatoes, corn, green beans and carrots. Some of the kids were already starting to leave the table, satisfied, when the second course appeared- sausages and mashed potatoes, with a sweet peach for dessert. The only complaint we have this week is the weather; rain, rain, go away!

In three days, we will return to Pucon for about a week before embarking on our great adventure south to the Futaleafu!

Callie

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Tags: Academics, Chile, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, Go Huge Experiences, Huge Experiences, Kayak School, study abroad programs, whitewater kayaking
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Read this- an Essay in the Imperative.

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

Sit silently; enjoy the morning sun. Breathe deeply as the warmth spreads throughout your body. Inhale the freshness that comes just after sunrise. Take a mental picture- sparkling Lago Choshuenco dancing in the slight breeze. Marvel at the green, rolling mountains enveloping the lake; admire the perfection in the clouds sitting timidly atop the hills. Tune your ears to the chirp-chirps and the peep-peeps; find the birds scuttling beneath the leafy, shade trees. Now look just beside you at the student who is also writing on this beautiful morning at this enchanting lake. Watch your student enjoying the serenity of this place as she puts her own feelings on paper. Welcome to New River Academy!

Enjoying class on the lake

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Tags: AP english class, creative writing class, go huge, Go Huge Experiences, kayak Chile, new river academy
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First Week in Pucon! | New River Academy

Sunday, January 31st, 2010

Dear Parents,

           Wow, I can’t believe that we are already finishing the first week of school down here in Pucon! Through ironing out the schedule, getting bodies ready for the river and minds ready for class, I have managed to get acquainted with all of my new students!! My name is Callie, and I am the new Literature teacher and Public Relations Coordinator. I will be keeping you updated on the happenings throughout our time in Chile, and am happy to chat with any of you at any time. You can read a more detailed account of my life on the staff web page, but here’s a quick summary: I grew up in Southern California, studied literature and international relations at the University of Salamanca, in Spain, and at the University of Alaska, Anchorage. International travel and playing outside are my passions. I am super excited about joining NRA, and know from the first week that I am going to love this job!
           Also joining us this semester is Lorenzo, our new Spanish teacher and native Chilean. Lorenzo loves all sports, and is a member of the Chilean National Rafting Team, which took him to the World Cup in Bosnia, where his team placed second. He has been involved with whitewater his whole life; his family owns a prominent rafting and eco-tourism company on the Rio Maipo. He also obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in eco-tourism. We are all excited about the kids learning Spanish from a native speaker.
           Four days ago, I went with Dave to collect the kids from the airport, and knew that I would soon fall in love with this program. Even after a long flight, the kids all eagerly introduced themselves and welcomed me. Four days into the quarter, I already feel like we have become friends, and can’t wait to gain their confidence further.
            To some students’ dismay, today is rainy; Andy has lured them out from the cover of the quincho to collect firewood to finish cooking our traditional Chilean lunch, pastel de choclo. The fire is growing and we are all preparing to enjoy a tasty lunch, tucked away in the comfort of the fire-warmed quincho. I’m in love with this place already. In a couple days, we leave for Choshuenco, to run the Rio Fuy, where I will update you again of our explorations here in Chile!

Callie

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Tags: eco-tourism, gap year abroad, kayaking chile, pucon chile, Rio Fuy, spanish teacher, whitewater kayaking
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New River Academy
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Fayetteville, WV 25484
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Fax: (304) 513-2247
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About: Callie

Posts by Callie Morgigno:

Author Archive

Finishing First on the Futaleufu!

Safe and sound in Patagonia

Rio Negro, Hornopiren

Goodbye, Pucon!

Academic Report- Literatura

Ahhh… the sunny southern hemisphere!

Choshuenco y el rio Fuy

Read this- an Essay in the Imperative.

First Week in Pucon! | New River Academy