Tyler Brown and I first bonded when we both ended up on a raft on the Gauley River in West Virginia, taking on class five rapids like we meant business. As I recall Tyler was sitting in front of me on the raft and his only weakness was, in crucial moments when paddling was essential to our survival, Tyler would simply stop paddling at which point I'd yell PADDDLEEEE TYLERRRRRR! Anyway, whitewater rafting Gauley is a great way to get to know someone.
Since then our relationship blossomed into something beautiful, and really peaked last weekend when I made the journey up to Huaraz where Tyler's been living for the last 10 months as a Peace Corps volunteer. It was a straight 8 hour shot on the bus from Lima to Huaraz, the capital of the province of Ancash. Tyler has been working on health projects in a very small community called Chavin, a "3-7 hour, depending on the circumstances" bus ride from Huaraz. He speaks Quechua like it's his first language! Very impressive.
It was wonderful hearing about Tyler's Peace Corps adventures, meeting his fellow volunteers (all incredible, fun people), and turning his city upside down! Check out his blog here.
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