Kemeny courtyard bee on a yellow flower close up

Lily Johnson

Class of 2027

My planning work in the fall and winter terms culminated in a one-week interfaith trip with 10 other students over spring break in New Mexico. The first couple of days were spent in Albuquerque, and the rest of the week in Santa Fe and the surrounding area. This experience of planning and leading the trip as a paid Tucker Fellow was particularly interesting for me because last year I also went on the interfaith spring break trip to DC, and it was a notably different experience not to be leading. I wrote a couple of blog posts about last year's trip, one about houses of worship and another about museums and organizations. The theme of last year's trip was the interfaith history of America. This year in New Mexico, we focused on how interfaith relates to living a healthy and fulfilling life. These trips are also all expenses covered, so they are very accessible to students on financial aid, like most things at the College are.

Also, check out my earlier post about being a Tucker Fellow.

The trip was a beautiful experience not only because of the places we visited, but also thanks to the fact that we all lived in the same house, ate together, and traveled in minivans, which set us up for a lot of informal conversation and interactions. The amazing part, from my perspective as a leader, was how willing people were to share their perspective and bring out the best in everyone in terms of asking hard questions and letting it become a group conversation. In my experience, these trips help with learning about other cultures and beliefs, and also tend to boost people's connection to their faith traditions, or can also help figure out what spiritual or faith paths are most interesting for them.

These are the houses of worship, organizations, and museums that we visited:

Albuquerque: Albuquerque Zen Center, Talmud discussion activity (student-led), Islamic Center of New Mexico and Iftar with the Muslim Student Association of the University of New Mexico, Center for Action and Contemplation, Indian Pueblo Cultural Center

A group of Dartmouth students with a small tree in front of the group and bamboo behind and surrounding the group on the right side of the photo, with wind chimes in the center of the photo.

The group at the Albuquerque Zen Center after a meditation session and time to ask questions.

Dinner at a cafe with a blue and cream colored wall behind four of the Dartmouth students who are laughing in the picture.

Dinner with the UNM Muslim Student Association after visiting the local mosque, lots of laughter and good conversation!

A room in the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center museum with the walls painted a rusty red color and a sign that says 'Religious Friction' with Christian saints surrounded by Native American motifs.

This was part of the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center that I found to be particularly impactful on an interfaith trip because it focused on the Spanish conquistadors imposing their religion on the Pueblo Tribes.

Santa Fe and Surrounding Area: Holy Trinity Orthodox Church and Dinner, Santa Clara Pueblo Puye Cliff Dwellings, Santuario de Chimayo (main post photo), Hacienda de Guru Ram Das Gurdwara, Dar al Islam & Plaza Blanca with Iftar, Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

This photo is inside the main part of the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church, where services take place. There is a chandelier at the top of the photo and ornate iconography on the walls.

The group at the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church after we went to a service and had a dinner where the congregation let us ask questions.

Some of the Dartmouth students standing on the side of the Puye cliffs with the desert cliff landscape surrounding. Bright blue sky in the background.

The Santa Clara Pueblo Puye Cliffs was a good opportunity to learn about the history of the tribe and also have fun climbing down the side of the cliffs.