Will Wamaru
Combine your hunger for travel with your commitment to learning about other cultures. On this course, you’ll join a group of motivated explorers to make your way through Tanzania’s remote savannah and forests. Challenge yourself physically on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain. Immerse yourself in human history as you explore the valleys of Ngorongoro Crater and Olduvai Gorge. Learn about ways of life in Tanzania today as you spend time meeting the Maasai, Bushmen, Chaga, and Meru people in rural villages. As you explore Tanzania, you’ll observe wildlife like giraffes and elephants and find new challenges every day. You’ll spend most of the semester living in a tent, mastering the minimum-impact skills of Leave No Trace and learning to cook delicious meals on a camp stove, and spend some of your time living with a Tanzanian family during the homestay section.
All NOLS students arriving in Tanzania are met at the airport and transported to the campus by NOLS staff. Let us welcome you to East Africa!
Leadership will be a focus of this semester. You will build on the skills you learn throughout the course to develop your own leadership style. Some days, you may focus on tolerance for adversity as you navigate challenging terrain. On others, you may need to adapt plans to changing weather conditions, focusing on developing decision-making skills. Throughout the course, interactions with the people you meet are an opportunity to develop skills in communication and cultural competence. These experiences will prepare you to be a leader in a world that’s becoming more deeply connected each day. You’ll finish this course as someone ready to be a thoughtful international traveler, wilderness explorer, and leader in your community.
Two questions we often hear are concerning Visas and Vaccinations.
“Summiting the active volcano, Ol Doinyo Lengai, and Africa’s highest point, Mt. Kilimanjaro, were two of the most difficult, yet most rewarding endeavors I’ve ever taken on, and each day those accomplishments motivate me to take risks and work my hardest as I continue on with my college career, because I know that with just a little determination, I can do nearly anything.”