On the 1st of December, 18 committed young adults, a movie camera, and supplies will pack into a 35 foot bus in San Francisco and embark on a nine-week journey through Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and back.
Making a Difference
* Los Angeles: Fundraiser kick off.
* Baja: 3 day drive down the peninsula and practice Janzu water massage (Bahia de la Concepion), to be used in Manzanillo and Questaltenango with children (see below). Janzu is an aquatic new age therapeutic technique, which means “pacific water” in the Chinese language. Its function is the unblocking of physical, emotional and mental energy. The masseuse guides the recipient in a fluid motion through the water relaxing, and unifying them with the water. The experience of weightlessness allows the recipient to be moved and massaged in ways without applying stress to the body.
* El Cardonal: Building Super Adobe earth homes in El Cardonal with local laborers. An incredibly sturdy home, these earth structures are sustainable and literally dirt cheap to build. They are also very simple - one knowledgeable person can lead unskilled laborers in creating the dome. These qualities make this adobe home perfect for remote areas of the world.
* La Paz to Mazatlan: Ferry to mainland Mexico.
* Guadelajara and Lake Chapala: Performance in conjunction with a local art auction to raise funds to benefit the polluted Lake Chapala. Lake Chapala, located south of Guadalajara, is the largest natural lake in Mexico and supplies drinking water to most of Guadalajara’s five million inhabitants. The lake is a national treasure and home to thousands of plant and animal species, including the migratory white pelican from central Canada. However, the lake is in bad shape and is polluted with industrial, agricultural, and domestic waste water. The money will be used in an effort to restore the quality of the lake’s ecosystem.
* Manzanillo: Water massage and other activities with special needs children, ie performance and music workshops created by our various performers. Ulises, our Mexican guide, has a cousin with Multiple Sclerosis who is part of a community of children dealing with the Multiple Sclerosis condition. This is being arranged by his relatives.
* Around Pochutla, Oaxaca: Working at two locations. La Ventanilla, a community on the beach and La Vainilla, its sister community in the foothills of the sierra. The village of La Ventanilla is inhabited by 20 families who work to preserve the environment, especially the mangrove swamps. They manage nurseries for crocodiles, parakeets, and white-tailed deer, as well as for baby sea turtles, of which they release 15,000 every year.
* Questaltenango, Guatemala: working at the first domestic violence shelter for women and children in Guatemala: Asociación Hogar Nuevos Horizontes. Nuevos Horizontes is an organization dedicated to reducing domestic violence and providing survivors with the resources they need to rebuild their lives. They have a capacity for 60 women and children. The families receive shelter, food, educational costs covered, medical care, psychological counseling and work training during the year they stay in the shelter. At the present moment they have over 30 children living in the shelter, aged from 1 month to 14 years old. They aim to provide the children with educational and stimulating activities during the day to help them learn vital life skills like creativity and team work. We will also visit Fuentes Georginas to perform water massage with the children.
* Perquin, El Salvador or San Salvador, El Salvador: Walls of Hope, School of Art & Open Studio or Soy Project in San Salvador.
* Lake Atitlan, Guatemala: working with local Mayan people, exact site still to be determined.
* Xecacquic, Quiche, Guatemala: constructing fence around medical clinic and assisting in schools.
* Lagos Montebello, Chiapas, Mexico: taking multi-day camping excursion in the ruins of Yaxchilan, Piedras Negras and Bonampak.
* San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico: camping at Rancho San Nicolas. We will be working with Project TUPA, Transmitters Uniting People of the Americas.
* Oaxaca City: working at the Divertigranja, a farm/petting zoo for children with and without disabilities. They have numerous projects for us in different areas from building infrastructure to working with the animals, and the children.
* Oaxaca City: Working with nurseries for crocodiles, parakeets, white-tailed deer, and baby sea turtles, of which they release 15,000 every year.
* Quertero: MAD location, this is being set up for us through the University of Oregon, details still to be determined.
* The Copper Canyon: Work with Noritari, based outside Creel in San Juanito, with an 1-2 night visit to Batopilas, at the bottom of the Canyon. The Copper Canyon is where we can meet the Tarahumara Indians, the most primitive tribe in all of North America.
* Tuscon, Arizona, USA: No More Deaths. Performing desert aid and border aid stations for migrants from Mexico.
Sharing the Adventure
The entire trip will be captured on digital video, uploaded to our website via internet, and be made into a short feature documentary at the completion of the journey. In a time when a conscious, global community has never been more important to the survival of our species, and when our country has proven it is ready, The Extra Mile Adventure will literally go the extra mile in order to assist with existing community projects and share a common humanity through artistic expression.
* An album recorded by blending the sounds of local musicians we meet along the way.
* Performing physical comedy and clown shows to the public as well as creating an expressive performance workshop that operates beyond cultural and linguistic barriers.
* Vegan cooking to promote personal and environmental health.
* Writing blogs of our trip, original plays, poetry and workshops with the bus and communities.
* Creating a photo journal of our journey.
