July 16-17: Indian Pow-wow and Hike Up to the 'M'

Saturday, July 16: Indian Pow-Wow

Indians Dancing

at the Indian Pow-Wow

We drove out to Elmo, where we met Kootenai Elder Mr. Vernon Finley to discuss the history of the Kootenai people, the role of the pow-wow in their ceremonies, and to explain various aspects of the pow-wow that we saw later on. The Kootenai Tribe, also known as the Ktunaxa Ksanka Band, welcomes all nations and the general public to a pow-wow weekend of dancing and traditional food. We watched Indian men, women, elder, and youngsters performed in a parade of costumes, music, and dance while we enjoy various kind of food sold around the festival together with people who came from many places just to see the famous pow-wow. I bought an Indian Tacos, and I guess it is one of the best food I ate in my whole USA trip.

Missoula from the 'M'

sitting on the 'M'

Sunday, July 17: Free Day

That day we had no scheduled activity, so everyone used it to go looking for souvenirs, explore the city of Missoula, working on the group projects, and also prepare our cultural performance. In the morning i hiked up the hill behind the university up to the "M". The "M" is the symbol of Missoula, made of concrete, and built up in the hill so that everyone can see it from afar, and it also marks the location of the university which is right beneath the hill.