"Gita,

When I read your email I was flooded with memories of seeing Loy plan and then take off for Nepal and Tibet.
I have written some of my thoughts below - which you may most certainly use on your Web site if it seems appropriate. 

When my daughter said she and her best friend wanted to go to Nepal and Tibet, I was initially hoping they would change their minds. There seemed to be too many unknowns, which translate into fears in the heart of a parent.  I was so relieved when Loy and Leah found Passage Project.

Being side by side with people from other cultures not only changes the traveler, but it creates a ripple-effect which inspires the world to change as well.

Thank you,"

Carole Foster

"Kristen chose to visit Nepal under the direction of the Passage staff as a means to learning more about holistic health practices in the hopes of pursuing a career in this area.  She has had an incredible experience under their guidance and has seen a part of the world in the process.

We have always encouraged her spirit of travel and adventure, yet as parents have also been concerned that she have as safe an experience as possible.  The Passage staff has been so kind, responsive and enlightening.

We have all been following Kristen's travels with the information from Passage and have enjoyed some of her experiences from afar.  Thank you for providing such an incredibly satisfying experience for our daughter."

Dudley and Jane Cabildo

"Our son, Jacob, at the age of 17, traveled to Nepal and Tibet with a program called Passages in 2001.  If possible, please obtain his 17 year old commentary from those three months. He wrote things like ‘my eyes have been opened' or 'I am now walking down the road with all the ordinary people, cows, chickens, goats, monks and an occasional ascetic.'  His comments, only, can do justice to the remarkable experience Passages provided for him.

For three months he moved from a comfortable, indulgent, middle class, North American home to home stays with Nepali and Tibetan families. Some of the homes were primitive and all of the homes had no familiar cultural, linguistic or family patterns.  He had to draw from his own internal resources, new ways of dealing with everything around him.  He had doting Nepali and Tibetan teachers.

As parents of a boy who had not traveled alone before, we worried unnecessarily and incessantly.  The Program leaders kept us updated and Jacob would frequently email with poetic stories.  He sent pictures showing how he had gained attractive weight!

Prior to his experience with the Passage Project Jacob had been a dependent son (or he had an overly involved mother), he was a rebellious adolescent and a disinterested student. From our parent point of view Jacob’s experiences with the Passage Program in Nepal and Tibet were indescribably challenging, beautiful, and transformative.  He returned from Nepal, thoughtful, self motivated, (mother had to back off) and caring, particularly toward the underprivileged.  He has gone on to anthropology major at Reed College in Portland, Oregon and will be applying to medical school.  He has returned to Nepal three times and speaks the language fluently.

An addendum includes that we, the parents, are currently enjoying a sabbatical, teaching in Dharan, Nepal (academic year 2007-8)."

Sandy and Fred