How did SaND Travel begin?

It all started when…

In the summer of 1985 Michael made a decision to travel to Mexico City. While there he built not only life long friendships, but worked with local young adults creating a program with a mission that was light years ahead of its time.

The program they established bore the name Diálogo Sur-Norte. Here is an excerpt from a magazine published in 1989 describing objectives of the group.

As you may have noticed, the translation of Dialogo Sur-Norte is South-North Dialogue which we have shortened to SaND. Sand travel is not the same organization that was created in 1985, but we carry the same spirit.

Our mission is to connect the world by building bridges that foster meaningful friendships through art, work and conversation. You can be part of this global conversation by joining us on a trip like no other travel experience you’ve had.

What is SaND Travel?

A SaND trip isn’t about a photo op or a history lesson; it is about the people, the stories and the culture that can be shared across languages and borders. Each day you are spending time with hosts from the country you are visiting who invite you into their experience of life.

A morning might start with coffee.

But not just a cup of joe; Arturo would show you through the process of taking beans to pour. You might learn about the different beans and where they come from. You may have the opportunity to learn the difference between good and bad beans and help separate them. Conversation can lead to learning about the role coffee plays in Arturo’s life in comparison to the average american. Asking questions about the coffee roasting process could lead to discovering the impact of modern coffee production on the environment. You could walk away with your cup of coffee in hand that is now more than a symbol of a lack of sleep or a speedy life. Coffee is now part of your SaND story.

A morning could be spent working.

You might get to garden with women in Tecuanipan. In the garden there could be a variety of vegetables and fruits, some familiar, and some you have never seen or heard of. Working together you fertilize the seed rows that were recently planted with the compost they have collected over the years. You may realize that the ‘waste’ from breakfast that morning wasn’t thrown out but instead added to the compost for future use. The women might share challenges they have been facing with some of their plants. You could relate it to your own backyard where you are also having trouble getting your tomatoes to grow. Together you try to figure out what issues might be affecting your gardens in different parts of the world. By the time you take a break for lunch you have a list of tricks to try in your garden back home and a new connection with Marelene, a woman in Tecuanipan.

Lunch time you may spend in the kitchen.

Using food from the garden you spent the morning in, you could help prepare lunch. It might be on the grill cooking cesina or on the stove making “real’ quesadillas. These quesadillas might look nothing like the ones you are used to eating back home. As you learn to make one yourself you might think they are playing a trick on you by saying the tortilla is backwards. Instead you learn that authentic tortillas do have a front and back side. Laughing with the local hosts you correct your quesadilla and have a forever changed perspective of tortillas. The fresh peaches you then cut might be used for the easiest fancy looking snack you’ve ever seen. With only cheese and balsamic vinegar to taste, you are inspired to bring the recipe back home to impress your friends. Now the taste of this delightful peach snack is part of your SaND Story.