The Journey Onward

Greetings and Goodbye, my friends.

We find ourselves now back in the old familiar places - those places that seemed so comfortable and cozy when we were preparing for a whirlwind trip with twelve strangers. Now we're a family that's been strewn back across the states - physically distant but with new bonds that can't be broken by space and time. Think of all of us often, and reach out to whomever, whenever you wish.

As we write, the sun streams down through the window covering Cliff and Portland in the halo of springtime, and bathing Los Angeles as usual, where Karen is enjoying time with her dad and brother. Wherever you are right now, I truly hope that the journey home is just the beginning of a whole new adventure for you. You don't get to choose your passions, but you do choose to follow them. I urge you to do so. We've all learned so much from each other during our too-short time together. Wherever the breeze takes you, continue to carry those lessons with you. In life there are many lessons . . . at least thirteen.

Love, Cliff and Karen

And here is Hannah's...

Memory:  Originally, I'd say something like horseback riding or scuba diving were my favorite memories. but now, upon returning home, looking back with an outside perspective my favorite memories are the ones when we were together as a family. when we had a hostel room together in Nadi. when we all made it to the top of mt. doom, together. when all snuggled at the Marae. even our FGAAS. it's those moments I'll miss the most.

What's Next:  Well I'm anxious for this summer. hopefully, I'll accomplish half of what we did on this trip. I'll be taking photography and philosophy classes, starting a small garden (inspired by Shelia's farm) and designing jewelry. oh yeah, and of course hanging out with Tevito!

Well I feel like a complete arse I totally forgot about Christine's and Cliff's quotes...please forgive me I haven't slept in 2 days.

Christine-   Memory:  It is so hard to sum up these past three months and pick one memory but if I must it has to be our time on the Routeburn.  It was filled with fun. adventures and family.
                  What's Next-  I have had a blast over the past three months traveling.  Now that its time to go home I will be heading off back to New Jersey working at the BeatSpoon.  In the fall I will be heading off to Northeastern in Boston.

Cliff-           Memory:  The stars over the Outback, over the Pacific miles off the shore of Australia, and while laying on our backs on the CB in Nananu, Fji.  Also...I miss Geoff.
                  What's Next:  To the top of Mt. Hood over & over & over again.

Hello Everybody,

David here, writing the final blog of our journey.  I am writing from my home in Evanston, IL.  It is 4:30 in the morning on Sunday the 8th of May and I haven't been able to sleep because I can't stop thinking about the amazing journey that we have just completed.  I am thinking about the bumpy car rides in Nananu when we would sit in the back of the truck and sing Disney songs, or the horse ride we took through the postcard worthy scenery to that glorious waterfall, or the view from the top of Doom, looking down on the clouds as if we were gods, or the flowing waterfalls at the Milford Sound, or the sense of peace that comes from sleeping under the stars in the Outback, or the color of the sky during a sunset in the South Pacific, or even breaking a bed because we were having so much fun together.  I am going to miss all of these things, but maybe most of all is not having the relaxing thought when I go to bed at night  that when I wake up, I am going to be surrounded by a group of people that are absolutely amazing, both as a group and in their own rights.

So now what...well I guess I'll fill everyone in on our final days down under (although I am sure most of you have heard by now).  The last week was spent in Cairns, a city on the Northeast coast of Australia.  It was an okay town plenty of things to do, but there was a certain vibe to it that turned a couple of us off to it.  After the two days of training (everyone got their homework in thanks to a team effort) we were all ready to hit the reef...well most of us were.  Christine and Kelsey chose to not participate for personal reasons and unfortunately I was unable to participate due to a bad back and some breathing problems.  I am feeling better now, but it was quite a bummer.  Anyhow we all still went on the boat, which was pretty nice, it fit us all easily and the accommodations weren't to shabby.  The first day the seven in our group that did scuba got in two dives during the day where they worked on their skills and saw a number of things from giant clams to Clown Fish...Nemo Fish.  However at night there was the option of a night dive which Lucy, Hanna, and Dylan partook in.  They went down amongst the sharks, jellyfish, crocodiles, dinosaurs, werewolves, ghosts...sorry I'm rambling, but to be honest all of those things could have been down there; they just didn't see them.  Either way they said it was a cool experience swimming around in the pitch black with only a small flashlight to lead the way.  The next day was the big day, the day they would receive their licenses...if they passed...which they did!  Each of them received there open water diving card so they are officially certified to dive by themselves wherever they please.  Ethan our dive instructor had one last surprise however before giving out the cards. It is known as the Vegemite Challenge, actually it was more of a hazing then a challenge, but each of the seven had to eat a spoonful of Vegemite, varying amounts for each based on how they did on a certain test.  Some had just a bit, others had a good amount, but Ryan got the mother load.  It was more of a scoopful then a spoonful.  Before I move on let me just explain that people who like Vegemite must have some drugged out taste buds.  I mean the stuff tastes like metal mixed with dirt.  Maybe I just don't have an eclectic palette, but seeing Ryan put that hunk in his mouth made me want to vomit, which Ryan ended up doing in front of just about every person on the boat at the time.  I was proud of the kid. 

Back in Cairns we spent one more night in our hostel before moving to the Cairns Beach Resort for our last night.  We had enough money saved up to be extravagant, so we did it.  We had 3 huge rooms, but we really only needed one.  We bought a boat load of food for our last dinner together.  Ryan, Dylan, and I had a nice time grilling up the steaks, hot dogs, and assorted vegetables and we all had a nice filling meal.  It is hard for me to really explain what we did in our last hours there because we each went about it in our own ways.  We were all over the place talking with each other, venting, reminiscing, just being with each other was really all we wanted.  We made sure to celebrate Ryan's 21st Birthday with a delicious ice cream cake, but other then that we just chilled. Some of us watched Shawshank Redemption, some of us walked on the beach, others couldn't stay up any longer and just passed out.  We didn't set anything up or have planned activities, it was just natural we were relaxing as one big happy family for the last time.  The next morning was great.  We woke up and had fun together, we cooked pancakes, blasted music, smoked some stogies, cleaned what needed to be cleaned before having our final group meeting.  In the meeting we all talked about ourselves and each other.  Each of us saying our piece about what this trip has meant to us and what everyone else meant to us.  From there we headed to the airport where sadly we had to bid farewell to Karen, Cliff, and Kareem who had flown up the day before to see us.  It was tough saying goodbye to basically our big brother and sister, but I think each of us was proud to of had them as our leaders and I know we will all keep in touch with them for years to come.  I must say however at first we were pretty useless without them, or at least we felt useless, like we were had no idea what to do with ourselves.  But we just let Air New Zealand do the rest of the work and after 16 hours of flying we landed back in L.A. different people from the last time we were there.  Saying goodbye to each other just didn't seem right, why were we saying goodbye?  It just felt like we were at our next destination and we needed to figure out transportation to the next hostel.  I was the first to leave the group and I held it together but inside I was melting. 

So the time has finally come when we are no longer together.  No more waking up surrounded by thirdeen other people, no more adventures in the South Pacific, no more one on one time, no more time spent with the family that we have formed these last three months.  I feel like I have so much more to say, but for now all I want to say is I miss you guys already and I hope the bonds that we have made these last three months last for a lifetime.  So with that I will finish this blog with everyone's favorite memory from the trip and their plans for the future...oh and I think it's fair to say that we were the best Carpe Diem group ever!

Karen-    Memory:  The mossy forests of the Routeburn.  Receiving our personal fly tour of Mt. Cook. OPC.  Horseback in Nananu, Fiji.  Watching our boys       shave theirs armpits and sleeping under the full moon in the middle of nowhere in the Outback near Lake Eyre.
              What's Next:  Southern India baby!

Kelsey-   Memory:  Hiking in the rain in Nananu then getting stuck on the wrong side of the river.  Also hanging out with Sheila and everyone at the farm.
               What's Next:  I'm spending the summer back home hopefully working and preparing to start college in the fall studying journalism at Northwestern.

Dylan-    Memory:  Diving with my partner Frederick on our first certified dive.  We swam through caves and there were heaps of large fish...it was like another world.
              What's Next:  I really don't want this trip to end, but I look forward to spending a lot of time with family and finding a fun summer job.

Lucy-     Memory:  There has been a different favorite moment for every week, from horseback riding in Fiji to snuggling a baby kangaroo in Australia.  My most recent highlight would be my underwater adventure with Emily.  We went through crazy coral caves and had a dance party on the ocean floor.
              What's Next:  I have been sleeping for 80 days and yes I know I'm sleeping cause this dreams too amazing.  now that it's time to wake up I'm headed back home to New Hampshire to spend the summer working at an organic farm.  In the fall I'm headed out to Colorado with the lovely Emily Naranjo.  Colorado College here we come!

Ryan-    Memory:  I DON'T THINK I COULD PICK OUT ONE EVENT AS MY FAVORITE.  THERE HAVE BEEN FAR TOO MANY SUNSETS AND SUNRISES, CHALLENGES AND VICTORIES, FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO STAKE OUT ONE ABOVE THE REST.  (Ryan writes in all caps)
              What's Next:  I WAS THINKING I MIGHT HAVE A BIRTHDAY OR SOMETHING.

Willem-  Memory:  Our time on Sheila's farm was for sure my favorite.  I had such a great time.
              What's Next:  Summer!  Nuff' said.

Emily-    Memory:  It's hard to choose just one memory from the past 3 months, but sleeping in a double swag with a garment-less Christine, Lucy, and Moji under the stars in the Outback is definitely high up on the list.  It was one of the best nights of sleep I've ever had,
              What's Next:  If it was up to me I would keep traveling around with this new family I've found, but instead I will be spending summer with my family in Spain before heading off to Montreux, Switzerland to learn French in an international school.  Bummer, right? ;)  Then in the fall I'll be going to Colorado College with my new roommate, Lucy Gamble!

David-    Memory:  Like everyone else there isn't just one that sticks out as "the" memory, but I really cherished our time in Nananu.  Not only did I enjoy the villagers and everything that we did there, but I feel like the situation was perfect for us to get to know each other and I feel like that was the beginning of our beautiful friendships...Casablanca...yeah I like movies.
              What's Next-  I have one month at home before I head to University of Southern California where I will be studying film for the summer.  More specifically screenwriting and I'd like to thank all of you for the inspiration that each of you gave me on the trip.

I haven't gotten Hannah and Gordon's quotes yet, but I will put them up as soon as I do.  I know that Hannah is looking forward to spending time with me this summer since we live about 10 minutes away from each other.  And we should all be looking for the name Dr. Goon in lights very soon.

I guess that's it for now...it was fun...now the real journey begins...whatever that means.


              

Amazing Blog Job By Gordon Peterson

Oh hey, what's up?

 

Let me first start off by introducing myself...  Hi, I'm Gordon. 

Alright cool. 

 

Where did the past three months go?  It feels like no matter how full our days are the weeks keep getting shorter and shorter.  This last week was spent at the Satyananda Mangrove Retreat Center, a few kilometres outside of Gosford.  Before I say anything, let me just say this, it rained everyday.  They swore it never rained there, so I guess we were just lucky!  Arriving on Sunday around 5pm we got situated in our rooms then met up at 6pm for dinner.  Interesting...  Vegetarian.  I failed to realize there wouldn't be meat on the menu for the next few days until it was already too late.  Mom, this was easily the hardest week to survive without your cooking.  After dinner we had a quick introduction, family meeting, and then it was off to bed.  Between 8:15pm-7:30am each night the community practices Mouna.  Basically, a time for self reflection.  No talking.  Personally, I didn't enjoy it, but it got easier through out the week.  One thing that made this possible was the Sunrise Yoga classes at 5:30am every morning.  It quickly turned 8:30 into bedtime. The day would start with some light stretching, meditation, breathing techniques, with an unlimited source of blankets and pillows.  Breakfast was served at 7am, followed by Karma Yoga at 8am.  Now don't be fooled, I may have said Karma Yoga, but what I meant to say was chores.  Cleaning bathrooms, working in the kitchen, cleaning up the dorms, washing cars, folding blankets, etc.  Yoga lectures daily around 9am, morning tea at 10:30am, followed by something random around 11am until 12:00.  Now, if you haven't heard of Yoga Nidra, I suggest you get you some.  By far my favourite form of yoga from the week.  Imagine a dream like state/meditation/fall asleep if you want/natural mind trip for a half an hour that feels like 10 minutes, but is the equivalent of 4 hours of sleep.  Parents, don't worry, we all got gift bags the day we left with a yoga nidra recording.  You're in for a treat.  Each day we had lunch at 12:30pm, clean up until 1pm, and then the rest of the day had some form of meditation, afternoon tea, and maybe some free time until dinner at 6pm.  Monday was spent in the Library, Tuesday we made yoga journals, Wednesday we got tricked into working on a farm... But, after lunch on the farm we tricked them into giving us all a yoga nidra session before they could put us back to work!  I know Emily and Christine will throw a fit if I don't mention their amazing shit spreading skills, so... Umm, Emily and Christine are really really good at spreading shit.  Just one of the many jobs to be done on the farm before we headed back to the Ashram for the Havan (fire ceremony).  Keep in mind yoga is a science, not a religion... Thursday was a day of silence so there isn't much that needs to be said.  Friday was a half day.  Like usual, wake up at 5am, sunrise yoga at 5:30, breakfast at 7am, a hike up to the caves at 9:15am (really nice view from the top),  one last yoga nidra session at 12pm, lunch at 12:30pm, a team meeting until 2pm and then we made our exit at 2:30pm back to the Gosford train station.  One last night was spent in Sydney, then an early morning departure to the airport headed to Cairns.  Today we had our first official scuba lesson.  Here's one thing they forgot to mention, we have homework.  What?  What is homework?  I thought this was a trip to get out of the classroom???  Oh well, I suppose it's not the worst thing in the world.  I mean, we have gotten almost 3 months off.  Plus, the homework we have could probably be done by a 10 year old.  Overall, it's worth it.  With less than a week left in the trip we are trying to enjoy all the time we have left together, our little travelling family.  We have come so far over the past 3 months, and I am so proud of everyone.  I'm blessed to have been a part of it.

That is all for now!

Dr Goon 

Groovy Grape!

 

G'day Mates!

 

This week we have a special tag team blog for you, brought to you by Emily and Kelsey.

 

We spent the last 7 days traveling getting in touch with our hippie roots travelling on the Groovy Grape bus through the Outback. We left Adelaide in the early morning, picked up 4 more passengers (Boris and Peter from Switzerland, Laura from Germany, and Laurence from Belgium) and drove most of the day through the beautiful Flinders Ranges, stopping to see some Aboriginal cave paintings and two kangaroos. (Note: for the sake of this blog, we will be referring to ourselves in the third person) Emily, Kelsey, Christine, Ryan, and Willem walked further through the bush and met some Aboriginals who let us ride their kangaroos down the mountain.  We stayed the night in an old tuberculosis hospital, which was actually a very nice accommodation. Our tour guide, Michael, prepared some Kangaroo for us, which was mouthwateringly delicious. After chatting around the campfire, we headed off to bed where Lucy weaseled her way into Hannah's bunk bed, convinced her to get naked and sing her a lullaby. Much to Hannah's dismay, she was shortly informed of the fact that she had just been killed in our group game of 'assassin'.

 

On the second day of our excursion several of us woke up early and decided to walk/mountain bike part of the 17km back to the main road before the bus picked us up. Christine, Lucy, Emily, Laura, and Laurence walked while Dylan, Peter, and Boris opted to ride bikes. Each of them saw a kangaroo or two during their trek before the bus picked them up. Our first stop was a giant hole in the ground that was used for mining. Also at the stop was the largest tire that has travelled the most distance in Australia. Pretty cool.

 

Next up was arguably the most unique stop of all...Talc Alf. It was a plot of land that belonged to a man who made sculptures using his own interpretation of the alphabet. Kelsey's name meant 'see what's going towards the future', and Gordon's name meant 'the king and the giver of light'. It was interesting to see how much meaning he could find in something that seems so basic to the rest of us. He also had two camels.

 

On our next stop we visited a ghost town in the middle of nowhere called Farina. The original settlers had set up their lives there because they believed that the rain would follow them so they could have prosperous crops and become rich. Unfortunately, the annual rainfall in that area is about 160mm, so after a few generations, they were forced to abandon their houses and continue their search for better land. A lot of the buildings were still in surprisingly good condition. Lucy and Emily struggled with the fact that so many people had considered those houses to be home, and now they are nothing more than skeletons. It made them think of what their own homes will look like in 100 years, and if people will walk through the ruins of them and wonder the same things.

 

Our next and final stop was a salt lake where we saw the sunset, and loved it so much that we decided to stay the night there instead of continuing on to a campsite. Emily, Boris, and Dylan found wood to make a fire while Ryan and David went to the edge of the lake and allegedly saw penguins. We truly slept under the stars that night in "swags" which are essentially rolled out thin mattresses.  We all loved looking up at at sky as we fell asleep in the middle of nowhere with no one else but us. Many of us had to turn our heads away from the blindingly full moon, but it was a much treasured experience.

 

After loading up the van the next morning at sunrise, Michael informed us that the were going to have to push-start the van. We all looked at him incredulously for a few seconds before we popped up and started pushing. After a few failed attempts, the muscles of the group (the boys) finally managed to get the van to pick up enough speed to start up in 2nd gear.

 

We drove pretty much straight through to Coober Pedy, an opal mining town which is partially underground. Although Christine assumed that we would be lifting up a trap door and walking into an underground city, upon arrival we saw that most of the main buildings were above ground while many residential homes were built either into rock or dug out underground. After dropping off our bags at our underground hostel, we took a tour of Umoona, an opal museum, where we saw an underground home and the process of mining, cutting, and polishing opal. Dylan, Hannah, and the Europeans, as we've come to call them, opted to watch the sunset at a spot 20km away from the town in the desert, and also saw the longest fence in the world.

 

After a pizza dinner, the highlight of the day was visiting a kangaroo orphanage called Josephine's Gallery. Baby kangaroos without a mother are raised here so that they can be returned to the wild and survive successfully. There were four older female kangaroos and a joey we all got to see. We got to pet them, and their fur felt like a baby bunny! We all got to hold Azza, the baby, and some of us even got kisses! Kelsey and many others have decided that they would like a pet kangaroo.

 

The next day we woke up at 5, had a quick breakfast, and drove almost the entire day to be able to see the sunset at Uluru (Ayer's Rock). Our only stops were when we crossed into the Northern Territory, and to see 'Fooluru', Uluru's impersonator.. The pain that we endured from waking up before sunrise and sitting in the van for most of the day was worth it when we finally got to see the sunset.

 

We then piled back into the van and drove into our campground in style, blasting 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight', and 'I Don't Feel Like Dancing', and interrupting several other campers' dinners when we started a dance party that literally rocked the van. I mean, we are American after all, it is our duty to be as loud and boisterous as possible. :)

 

Part of the group played a game called Werewolves around the campfire before bed, which was an entertaining way to end a long day.

 

We got up early again the next day to see the sunrise behind Uluru.  Even though we were sleepy and cold, it was worth the wait to see the sun pop up. Michael had set up a yummy pancake breakfast for us upon our return to give us fuel for our three hour hike through Kata Tjuta National Park, a group of rocks not as big as Uluru but still quite impressive. There were many great views to be seen and it was nice to get in some physical activity again.

 

In the afternoon, some us went for a swim and then we all visited the Cultural Centre to learn about Aboriginal culture. After so much oppression, the Aboriginals are more secretive about their lives and cultural practices than the Maoris in New Zealand, so it was good to learn more about them. We ended the day with another shorter hike to watch the sunset in a gorge at Uluru. For dinner, Laura helped us make a traditional German meal of potato salad and sausages. Om nom nom.

 

The next day was the much awaited 10km (or 6.2 miles for those of you who have yet to switch to the metric system) walk around Uluru. Upon arrival, Michael told us that a German man ran around the base of the rock in a record time of 40 minutes. Naturally, Emily and David took his words as a challenge, and decided to run it as well. I mean, no German man was about to beat us Americans (right?). They ended up running it in a little over 45 minutes, but Emily was still the fastest girl ever. (Mwahaha) The rest of the clan all decided to be a bit more leisurely and enjoyed the beautiful walk around the sacred rock in a timely manner. The only down side to walking was the swarm of flies that badgered us constantly.

 

We left Uluru in the afternoon to drive to King's Canyon. On the way, Michael spotted two different camouflaged lizards called Thorny Devils on the side of the road. Of course we all got out and poked and prodded the bizarre-looking creatures. Michael has the eyes of a predator, which we are very grateful for.

 

That night we feasted on risotto while sitting around a campfire. Many of us were entertained by the small field mice rustling around in the bushes...that is until they ventured out during the night. Hannah's screams can attest to the fact that they were a little bit too curious. Ryan, Lucy, Emily, and Christine all saw at least one shooting star which will hopefully bring good luck for the remainder of the trip.

 

The next morning we drove to the actual Canyon part of King's Canyon for a 3-4 hour hike. We stayed together for most of the first half of the hike (except for when Cliff and Dylan dropped their bags to race back up the side of the mountain), and reached the Garden of Eden as a group. Hannah, Dylan, Gordon, David, Laura and Laurence all jumped into the watering hole that was in between two of the canyons, while the rest of us looked on in amusement as they initially dipped their toes into the freezing cold water. Ryan shimmied his way over to a small cave in the side of one of the rock faces, and started a mass exodus of rookie rock climbers (minus Cliff and Karen) who wanted to check out his discoveries.

 

After about an hour or so, Michael told us we needed to get moving, so we continued on our way. Gordon, David, and Willem Hardcore Parkoured their way down the rest of the mountain. Emily attempted to parkour (not hardcorely) behind them, but just ended up walking briskly, while the rest of the group walked down as normal human beings should and enjoyed the views.

 

We then drove the remaining 720km to Alice Springs where we had one final group dinner with pizza that Michael provided at our hostel.

 

After a week of traveling a total of 3,000km together, we will all definitely miss the Europeans. Several of us formed close bonds with them, and we hope to see them all at some other point in the trip or at some other point in our lives.

 

Yesterday we hopped on a plane back to Sydney, dropped our bags off at the hostel, and rushed over to the Sydney Opera House just in time to catch William Shakespeare's play, 'Much Ado About Nothing'. It was surprisingly funny, and the experience of seeing the show at such a famous theatre will not soon be forgotten.

 

Today, we're celebrating Easter by celebrating our own holiday, Creaster, a blend of Christmas and Easter. We've all picked Secret Santas and are doing a gift exchange later today. It's such a fun way to celebrate, and a good excuse to eat candy!

 

Today we will be travelling to our next destination, Satyananda Mangrove Retreat Center for our spiritual retreat. We are looking forward to a week of calmness after so much chaos. You'll be hearing from us soon!

 

Until next time,

 

Emily and Kelsey

Hello Everybody, David Horwitz here.  We are all back in Adelaide after our group split in two to go and do separate CVA projects.  I am here reporting on behalf of my group which was, me, Gordon, Lucy, Dylan, Christine, Kelsey, and Cliff.  We traveled 8 hours in a little van/bus to Streaky Bay, where we set-up camp in a trailer park.  Our leader on the trip was Geoff a silly Australian man who was very helpful and a lot of fun to hangout with and talk to.  Our group, similar to the other group, had the tedious task of planting new trees. In the end we planted around 800, but the last few that we planted we didn't have enough tree guards to put around them so they are probably all dead by now.  We also had a day of cutting down pine trees which in Australia are an invasive species so they had to go.  It was also very tedious and hard work, but we got it done fairly quickly and by the end it was quite satisfying. 

 

Outside of work our adventures in Streaky Bay were fairly limited.  The city is more of a pit stop so there wasn't much there but we went to the store everyday and bought meals to cook for dinner each night.  Our first night Dylan and Kelsey cooked a delicious chicken stir-fry even though the rice was a bit overcooked.  The second night Lucy and Christine cooked Mac & Cheese which  we all had been craving and it truly hit the spot.  The third night Gordon and I whipped up pasta with a chili marinara sauce that I must say, not to toot my own horn or anything, but he and I need to start bottling and selling the stuff.  Any ways, the last night was Cliff's night, but I ended up barbecuing the kangaroo burgers and steaks that Geoff bought for us and I think we would all agree that the kangaroo hopped deliciously from our mouths to our tummies.  It was a nice barbie to finish off the hard work that we put in. 

 

We also had a few adventures, or more learning experiences outside of our work.  One day after work we traveled down the coastline until we hit a sea lion hangout.  They were a bunch of lazy bums and we only got to look at them from a far, but it was cool to see them in their natural habitat.  One night after work we also went out searching for kangaroos, but we ended up deciding that Australia has made kangaroos up as a tourist attraction because we didn't see one....I shouldn't say that on our second to last day we caught a glimpse of the last kangaroo in the wild...so that's something to be proud of.  And as a group we decided that it was one rugged kangaroo, or at least it sat about 5 foot rugged.  We also learned our new favorite Australian word, 13.  But in Australian it's pronounced more like thir-dane, it's a tricky one but once you get it down you can't stop saying it.

 

Other then the fact that we saved Australia this week I think we are all relieved to head out into the outback where we can just relax and see the sights.  I think maybe the biggest thing that we will take from the week, mostly Dylan, is that bird poop is one of the most frustrating things ever! Overall though it was a great time and rewarding experience, but it's definitely nice to be back with the entire group so that we can finish these last three weeks together.  Until next time...Adios...or whatever goodbye is in Australian..I'm being told it's pronounced goodbye, but I don't believe it.

 

Notes of Australia.

Disclaimer

Blogs are almost inherently dishonest as it is impossible for anyone to write the truth about himself without alteration  or a situation without bias. So it is with a humble undertaking in which I attempt to write a objective , and unbiased recording of Carpe Diems Fanz trip. I'm sorry as I've I already lied to all of you I'm not humbled to write this, and of Course I wish to express my biases to an audience.

 

Prelude To Australia.

It was early in the morning when I immerged from sleep, the others in the room where already awake and preparing to leave New Zealand. I Groggily made my way down to the kitchen of our hostel (Black Sheep) where Kelsey and Karen were already there. One by one everyone made there way down waiting for our transportation to the airport, in comparatively high spirits with that accustomed normalcy that one acquires after now two months of "Backpacking".  The group would unanimously prise Air New Zealand, and with good reason as they've been awarded by the  following.  

·     Best Air Style - 2011, Premium Economy Spaceseats - "Wallpaper Design Awards"

·     Airline of the Year - 2010 Air Transport World Global Airline Awards

·     Best Cabin Staff Australia/NZ Region - 2009 World Airline Awards, Skytrax

·     Best Passenger Service Award - 2008 Air Transport World magazine awards

·     Best Airline to the South Pacific, Australia, and New Zealand in December 2007 by Business Traveler Magazine in the United States

·     Australasia's Leading Business Class Airline at the 14th Annual World Travel Awards 2007

·     Best Pacific Airline - 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004 TTG Annual Travel Award

·     Best Airline to the Pacific - 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001Travel Weekly Globe Awards

·     Best Business Class Carrier, Best Check-in Staff, 1998 Executive Travel magazine awards

With Personal Entertainment systems for every passenger  (with the latest music, Films, Audio books) , spacious seats, & Hearty Meals  Air New Zealand can even make the most exhausting  flight enjoyable.  Carpe Diem  Choice in Airlines is much appreciated by its Students.

Sydney, Australia

With Our Flight coming to an end, the Captain's voice sounds over the speaker  reminded us to keep our seat belts on while we descend on our next checkpoint of the Trip. Then a short bump and we land, and with out Passports in our hands we head towards the Terminal and into the City of Sydney.

Rated among the top 10 livable cities in the world, by the Economist, Sydney Has gained a reputation for Commerce, Arts, Fashion , Culture, Entertainment, Music, Education, And Tourism – (Wiki) 

Considering such accolades (perhaps to a fault due to out limited time) It was a daunting task to plan our next 3 days.

Nonetheless When we arrived to X base Backers. We attempted to.  More on this later.

As per usual when we arrive in a new city I make it my mission to explore it after A few hours I decided the city was altogether Pleasant. The Cafes were reminiscent of those where intellectuals  discuss Modern contemporary fiction and Coffee Shop revolutionaries talks of politics.  It can't be denied of the Vibrancy that the City expels into the night. I've Noticed from Wellington that All X-Base has a Club/Bar Attached to the building, Sydney was no exception, the Name of this place is called The Scary Canary, which hosted Debauchery of the highest levels such as Michael Jackson impersonators, & Gold fish races.

Personally,( And when I say Personally you should just as well accepted what I say or, Don't, its not important) I think X-Base Strengths lies in its knowledge of the community, I mean in the fact that when you enter the place you are soon greeted by the plethora of pantalets and sources of local city gems . The atmosphere itself is that of a gritty city. 

 

Something about Scavenger Hunts

On The first Full day of our stay in Sydney, we were all To compete on a scavenger  Hunt around the City.

We where paired by numbers of Two, however I was Put the inventible pair that is indeed a third Me, Dylan, and Kelsey. Together we Explored, Gardens, Pyramids, Museums, Opera Houses, And Cleverly found hidden and Obscure items.   Now although Not part of my original plan for Sydney it was an clever way to fully explore city icons. It Ran from 10 A.M. Until 8 PM from which we all met in the Steps of the Famed and Grand Opera House where we discussed various events and Highlights of the Day, Began an

An Elusive Game Known as "Assassins"  (More on that by the Next Writer)

And with that The groups again Parted ways. I made my way to Scary Cannery's to Enjoy Dance, and Music .

Last Day

With our Final Full Day in the bustling metropolis, we where all Ready to see what the day may bring. A majority  of the team headed of the Manly Beach. I decided to spend the day with Backpackers I met, (Kyri & Elane) The 3 of us formed and odd but natural companionships bond by mayhem, sarcasm, Boredom and Laziness. My time with them serves as a reinforced reason of why I love the Backpacker life in the first place. Despite me not being with the group today I feel confidant the fun was widespread that day.

Adelaide, Australia

Once again I woke up later than everyone else. I went to 7 Eleven to indulge on Slupees and, Meat Pies, and Beef Jerky. Then Brought my bags to the Shuttle and Drove to the airport, for

Act # 2

Adelaide, I must admit there is a special charm about this place reserved for a Dostoyevsky Novel, Areas with Cold drizzles, lonely cars, herds of people wandering, and small quaint buildings, Areas that resemble New Orleans, with loud music Signature Balcony's on French style building young people trolling hunting for drinks. And A veiled sheet of misty depression and excitement, in which could accommodate any type of person, from the Loud-mouthed Eccentric to the Darkly Sarcastic Madman.

Or at least that's my Impression of the Place, I may Be wrong. Again I lied Im Not wrong Im just saying that out of social norm and to have my writing seem more objective but how can it be!? After all I secretly have no need to be any such writer and my ego wants the objectivity it wants everyone to see my views agree and sympathize, to love or hate me. To notice me. I'm lying again I don't give a fig, my knee hurts let it hurt even more let it be worse!

Excuse me I've Read to much Notes of the underground.....

-          Kareem Youssef

 

Week 7 Already (part 2)

Hey all,

 

Boy what a last few days we have had! Arriving in Queenstown on Wednesday afternoon was really nice. The flight in was quite fun as well. Aside from the scenery change going from the North to South Island, during our descent the plane went down at a much steeper angle than usual, and each time we would get close to the ground, it turned out to be more mountains. In fact, about the only thing you can see surrounding Queenstown, are gigantic mountains (some snow capped.) That is not to say the ONLY thing you can do is climb mountains, the list of activities is endless.

 

As some of you may know, our group decided to spend 3 of its days hiking the world renowned Routeburn Track, and ending up at the Milford Sound. That being said, we had only part of Wednesday and Thursday to ourselves to explore Queenstown. Some of the activities included: going to the Kiwi Wildlife Reserve, disc golfing, catching up on the internet, going to yoga sessions, rock climbing, partaking in more one-on-one dates, and spending time exploring shops and restaurants. Additionally, we were each given tasks to help us prepare for our backpacking adventure such as: collecting cookware, finding plates and silverware, buying groceries, making trail mix, and obtaining our permit for the huts we stayed at. Our final night in Queenstown (at least for the week,) we had dinner at Winnies, which is famous for its pizza and retractable roof. Unfortunately, it had been pouring all day so the roof didn't open, and the restaurant almost lost our reservation. No way did that stop the fun from happening though, we were able to sit out on the deck and were given free starters as an apology for the confusion. A fun time was had by all, and the rest of the night was spent packing and getting ready for the Routeburn!

 

And just like that, we were off. A shuttle picked us up around 8- the guy was a little irritated we weren't ready on the dot- and took us and a few passengers to the begginning of the track after a short stop along the way. The group congregated and discussed a game plan under the leadership of Gordon, and set sail for the 4 hour hike leading us to our overnight hut. Along the way many of us were able to talk and spread out amongst eachother, but the group managed to stay close and hold a steady pace until we stopped for lunch. Just outside of the path was a tributary of the river, which is where we stopped to eat. The water was freezing, but I somehow managed to convince myself it was a good idea to jump in. Luckily it was a sunny day, otherwise I would have gotten hypothermia. Quickly after eating our delicious lunch, we resumed our hike up to one of the many waterfalls, where Karen had an activity planned out. Each of us chose a partner and found a specific part of the falls or surrounding area that appealed to us. In addition, we had to guide them while their eyes were shut, into the perfect position so that when they opened their eyes, they saw our image just as we wanted them to. Kind of like a photograph, which was the name of the activity. All of them were surprisingly different and unique, and following the activity was a discussion. After the discussion, we continued our last 2 hours up towards the Routeburn Falls hut. Many times we stopped to photograph and marvel at the mountains and fields, from various breaks in the heavy forest that was most of the hike. In fact, heavy forest with occasional bridges over the river was all we encountered until the hut. The hut was simple, bunkers and a kitchen with a small dining area. Emily, Kareem, and myself cooked stir fry that evening, which was followed again by an activity. We were each given a card with an example of "leaving no trace," with regards to being in the outdoors. An example of one of the terms would be "dispose of all trash items". First we were asked to brainstorm, then we were asked to do a skit where we could only use the words "bloo" and "blah" (not really words either.) As you can imagine, things got pretty hilarious and a couple times it was hard to stop laughing. Shortly after that, we went to bed early for a good nights sleep.

 

Day 2. Waking up around 8:00 for an 8:30 breakfast cooked by Lucy and Ryan, we were all ready to start the day. We chowed down on some oatmeal, said goodbye to the stunning view from the deck of the hut, and began our 5 hour hike to Mckenzie Hut. As far as rigor goes, this day was quite a bit more physically demanding, but the scenery was overwhelmingly gorgeous. We trekked up steep hills, along big fields of shrubs and grass, and along skinny cliffside trails through the valley. Lunch was made at an emergency shelter, where around half the group decided to hike up another 45 minute peak for a stunning view of everything that extended all the way out to the Tasman Sea! And finally, our day ended with a winding hike down the hillside of Lake Mckenzie through thick, dead forest blossoming with an moss resembling something from Alice in Wonderland, only it ended with the hut rather than a...well you get it. Since we got to the hut a little earlier than the night before, the group split up and explored around until dinner at 7:00. No activities followed, but our hut manager gave us quite the stand up comedy show with his various stories of mishaps on the trail and huts. Many of us chose to be in bed before 9, because Sunday morning would include getting up at 4:45 for a 5 hour hike to The Divide, where we would be transported to the Milford Sound.

 

Day 3: For those of you who haven't woken up at 4:45, it isn't easy. Ryan and Lucy (once again,) provided the early morning fuel for us to power through the rain, wind, and dark we were facing. Right before we left, 3 people were assigned to the front, middle, and rear of the group as well as headlamps were distributed. The first hour and half of the hike was spent with our lights on, trudging through hills, mud, and many streams in the pouring rain and howling wind until the darkness dissipated. I believe we hiked for 3 hours until we reached another hut, where some of us went inside to sit by the warm fire, and others waited out in the cold so they wouldn't have a hard time readjusting to the ungodly weather. Thankfully, only an hour remained, and we were able to move right along with smiles on our faces- thanks to Gordon and David with their ridiculous humor- until The Divide was reached. As it was still freezing and raining hard, we took shelter and broke into our bag of trail mix until our van came. Although it was 20 minutes late, and Christine was not able to get us a discount, we were all ecstatic to reach the milford lodge. Immediately, the group bum rushed the showers, drying room, and laundry area in order to clean ourselves and our clothes. After we had all settled in, we headed out on a wilderness cruise through the Milford Sound. The hut manager the night before had mentioned something about the Sound "coming alive" when it rained, and he could not have been more right. Waterfalls of all sizes littered the mountainsides (one of which we drove right through, Emily and Willem got soaked,) and the clouds added a mystique element to the picturesque scenery. Once we got back, we had to wait 30 mins for our shuttle to take us to the cafe to eat, so we debriefed our roles for the week..and got eaten alive by sandflies. Ending the day at the cafe was perfect, we were all able to enjoy a meal together as well as share conversation about our last few days on the Routeburn, and finally, our last day in New Zealand. In our weekly FGAA's, which followed dinner, it was evident that our group is as strong as ever, with everyone in high spirits, introspective, and ready to enjoy our last full day in New Zealand, and our last month in Australia!

 

I wish you all well, especially those who live in the Pacific NW with all that rain

 

Cheers

 

Dylan

 

Week 7 already!!

Hey all,

 

After departing our unforgettable time at OPC (thank you again to Mark and Ken,) we returned to the Extreme Backpackers Hostel for the night. Many of us chose to do laundry, connect with family and friends on the internet, watch episodes of friends, roam around Turangi, play Bananagrams (a variation of scrabble,) and make dinner in the hostels kitchen. Not surprisingly, we were all fairly worn out from our 2 day excursion, so it was a relatively early night and subsequently early morning.

 

Our bus picked us up a short distance from the hostel around 10:45 for a 6 hour ride to Wellington. A few short stops were made along the way, and once we neared the city a breathtaking view of the ocean popped up out of nowhere, and just like that we arrived in Wellington. While we waited for our transportation- which was 30 minutes late- Lucy tirelessly tried to find out what was going on and I managed to scrape up my thighs from climbing in the trees like a small child. Finally, our second bus arrived and Lucy was able to get us 30 dollars off the original price! And that ain't easy with the taxi drivers here, props to Lucy for that. The hostel we were staying at was quite lovely. Internet was cheap, fun energy with all the international travelers, right in the dead center of the city, and friendly staff. The only downside was the beds, where the braces underneath the mattress moved as you tried to find your perfect sleeping postition. On another note, Sunday evening we had our weekly group meeting (Debrief of each of our roles, and FGAA's [Feelings, Goals, Accomplishments, Affirmations.]) Much of our feelings and accomplishments as you may imagine were focused on hiking two difficult summits in 3 days. With that, we headed off to bed and prepared to make the most out of our 3 days in beautiful Wellington.

 

Having only 2 full days for ourselves, the group branched off and visited the Te Papa museum (New Zealands national museum,) explored the local cafes and restaurants, walked along the waterfront, went to movies at the renowned Wellington cinemas, went on Lord of the Rings tours, mountain biked through the Makara peak trails, and had more one-on-ones with eachother. And with that, a few of the group members favorite part of Wellington is as follows:

 

Lucy- She most enjoyed her mint chocolate chip gelato with Christine& chinese takeout on the waterfront with Hannah.

Gordon- He really enjoyed the overall vibe from the city. Some much needed shopping was accomplished, followed by a fresh cut, and lunch in the afternoon. Next, he and Hannah were able to sneak dinner into a movie, followed by a sprint home to make curfew.

Dylan- I really enjoyed browsing the local restaurants, and my mountain biking experience at the Makara peaks made me really miss biking. Oh yes and jumping in the freezing bay with a few guys I met on the boardwalk 

David- Having been to many places in New Zealand already, David found himself most at home and comfortable in Wellington. A place where he could see himself appreciating and taking advantage of everything it has to offer. And of course, the sushi.

Emily- Of all things, a stingray popped up right in front of her eyes in the shallow waters of the bay. Additionally, talking to mom and dad for the first time in almost 2 months felt very good

Karen- Karen enjoyed walking along the coastline of the city center; people watching the healthy buzz of runners, visiting the Wellington Art Gallery, and hiking the Redrocks Caost with Cliff

Cliff- With his forte of rock climbing, he enjoyed the reachy rock gyms, dingy basement bar-games that are a healthy reminder of why we don't drink on this trip, the rugged coastline, Malaysian food which is a new cuisine for him, and his old favorite- medicore movies

 

The rest will follow once I post another update after our Routeburn Track expedition! Many photos and fun stories will follow

 

Sincerely,

Dylan Stokes

Hello Family and Friends,

 

Hope everything back in the U.S. is thriving. We Kiwis have just returned from a life changing 5 days at the Sir Edmund Hilary Outdoor Pursuits Center.  To say tour time there was epic would be an understatement, to say our time there was tough would be an understatement, to say that we reached the summit of Mt.  Doom in 3 hours would be dead on. 

 

Our time at OPC was primarily spent trying to push our comfort zones and doing challenges that would help us grow as a team.  Our first few days were spent on the grounds of OPC, which is a huge facility.  On our first day we had a number of challenges given to us by our two leaders Mark and Ken.  Some of these challenges involved jump roping, picking up a bucket surrounded by flaming hot lava a.k.a bricks, and traveling as a group from one island to another over shark and crocodile infested waters using a swinging rope.  Each was difficult but in the end we just about accomplished each task.  We also did some trust exercises and this all built up to one of our biggest challenges of the week the trapeze.  This involved us climbing up a wobbly pole, we were on billet of course, as we reached the top we had to stand on top the pole and balance ourselves.  When we were prepared we had to jump for a bar that was about 4 or 5 feet in front of us.  We all had difficulties with the task, some more then others, but in the end we all made it to the top and each of us made the jump.  Only Dylan, Cliff, and I were able to grab and hang onto the bar, but everyone gave it there best effort and certainly conquered some fears in the process.

 

The next part of our day got pretty interesting.  Our leader Mark was in a good way...a bit of a wacko, let's just say he had some interesting ways to work on our team bonding.  The next challenge that he gave us involved three buckets, one was more of a barrel full of tiny little holes and the other two were regular buckets.  Our task was to use the two buckets to fill the barrel with the freezing cold water from the river we were next to.  The team deliberated and we decided the easiest way to complete the task would be to stick our two smallest people in the barrel to that we could take up more space inside.  So as the troopers that they are Lucy and Christine hopped on in and took on the bitterly cold water as the rest of us either plugged the other holes or poured the water.  It was rough, but they stuck it out and we dominated the challenge.  Thinking our time at the river was over our spirits were high, but of course Mark decided to take it a step further.  At the part in the river where a road runs through it he had us lay down and as a team we had to role across each other until we reached the other side of the road.  It was pretty brutal and painful, but like roly polys we got through it and slowly embraced it.  Feeling alive after the refreshing wake-up we were all pumped to move onto our next endeavor which was what Mark likes to call "Urban Caving."  He led us to believe that we would basically be walking through underground passages, but of course he tricked us and it was more like we crawled through a body sized tunnel with a cool stream of water flowing through it.  It was a little terrifying, but most of us jumped right into it and crawled the 20 yards of tunnel.  Our first day ended with Mark tying us all together with rope and having us walk the mile and a half back to OPC, while talking about how our day went.

 

The next day was just as awesome.  We woke up early to make breakfast for ourselves and the other two groups that were at the OPC during our stay.  It was fun and we got to work with our Fijian cook Joyti.  After breakfast Mark and Ken took us caving.  We all were extremely excited for the experience and it didn't disappoint.  For about 2 hours we walked,ducked, crawled, and squeezed through the dark caves.  We stopped here and there to look at glow worms that lit the cave walls as Ryan said it looked like something out of Avatar.  Our main challenge in the cave was at the end when for the last 500 feet or so we had to find our way to daylight without flashlights.  So we all held hands or whatever we could grab onto and walked as one following the glow worms until we finally found our exit.  It was certainly a beautiful journey and something that we will never forget.  After caving we returned back to OPC's main campus where we actually had to split up for a while.  Emily and Lucy had some business to take care of concerning our transportation and living situation in Wellington.  So while they did that the rest of us headed over to the high ropes course.  When we were all back together we all got prepared for the Big Swing.  The Big Swing is a contraption set-up at the top of the climbing wall of the high ropes course, I'd say it was about 50 feet high.  It was a bit intimidating since we weren't exactly sure what to expect until we got up there.  I got up to the top first and Ken began to strap me into a harness and different ropes all of which were connected to a wire out ahead of me.  He then had me step out onto a platform an on the count of three I was told to just step off.  It was nerve-racking, but like everyone else I did it and it was incredible.  It was basically like flying, the only hard part was getting yourself mentally prepared to step off...and maybe the pain that us guys had to endure.  It was a big moment for of us as we had to face some fears and encourage/support everyone else in the group.  That ended day two as we had to go back to our chalets in order to get ready for our double overnighter that waited for us the next day. 

 

The adventure that we set out on on Thursday was a bit of an unknown to us.  We knew where we were going and where we wanted to end up, but other then that we weren't exactly sure what to expect.  We loaded up after breakfast each of us caring as little personal gear as possible and tons of water, food, and equipment for the group.  Mark and Ken then drove us to our starting spot in Tongariro National Park right between Mt. Tongariro (our first summit) and Mt. Doom (our second summit).  We set out excited and ready to face all obstacles that came upon us.  Ryan who has been our captain this week to the lead and found a nice path for us to take up Tongariro which gets steeper and steeper the more you climb.  It was rough going at times we had to make quite a few stops, but after about 5 hours of hiking we reached the summit.  It was a beautiful sight looking over the entire national park and for all of you Lord of the Rings fans we saw the true land of Mordor.  It was a great accomplishment and extremely exhausting, but we were still ready for more.  On our descent we passed by some amazing scenary.  First was the Red Crater which like its name is a humongous crater that has a red tint, we hiked around it and on the other side we saw the Emerald Lakes.  Which are also pretty self explanatory.  They are mini lakes with a deep green hue.  Both were sights to be hold and we took our time to really soak it all in.  As we continued on the sun was slowly beginning to set and it was gradually getting cooler and cooler.  We still had to get to our camp site which was located a third of the way up Mt. Doom.  Looking up at the mountain is quite frightening as it is just a massive object covered with black rocks and very little life.  We made it to our campsite with very little daylight left and as quickly as we could some of us set up our tents as me, Kelsey, and Hannah made dinner.  After stuffing ourselves with beef stew and mashed potatoes we went to bed.  Sleep was hard to come by for most, but we were able to keep warm with lot's of cuddling.

 

Our ascent of Mt. Doom began at 10:00 A.M. on Friday.  As a group we decided that we would keep the pace slow so that we would stick together and so no one would get tired to quickly.  Ryan once again took the lead with me right behind.  I was followed by Christine, then Kelsey, Emily, Kareem, Lucy, Hannah, Karen, Dylan, Gordon, Cliff, and Willem; as Mark and Ken kept a watchful eye from behind.  Mt. Doom is ridiculously steep so to keep a nice pace and everyone together is rough.  However we figured out that if Ryan and I dug out foot holes for those behind us as we climbed it would make for better footing and thus an easier climb.  It worked like a charm, our pace was much quicker and after 2 hours of climbing through the clouds we could finally see the top.  We had reached a rock ledge that would take us right up to the summit.  It took some navigating and patience after another hour we finally reached the top.  As exhausted as we were, smiles were all you saw on our faces.  The view was un explainable.  On one side was the crater of Mt. Doom and on the other was the vastness of the land below and the clouds that we were looking down upon.  We enjoyed a quick lunch at the top and then began our walk around the crater until we reached our descent point.  Looking back I think most of us would agree that the descent of Mt. Doom was much harder then the ascent.  Getting down involved something called Scree Running, which in a sense in skiing down the gravel that covers Mt. Doom's surface.  Mark gave us tips on how to do it, but we all took tumbles on our bums here and there.  Slowly but surely however we reached the bottom and looked up at what we had conquered.  A team meeting had to be called however to decide what our ext plan of action was.  We were supposed to reach the top of another small mountain by nightfall, but Doom had taken its toll on quite a few of us, so as a team we decided it would be better for us to just head to the campsite.  

 

We spent out last night in the shadow of Doom, still in awe of what we had just accomplished.  We feasted on all of the food we had left, beef casserole, mac and cheese, Raman noodles, and delicious cake, and candy.  It was a great way to end the day and we all went to bed proud of the job we had done.  The morning was wet and we were all sore, but we finished up the last mile of our hike in no time and got to our bus excited to get out of the rain and back to OPC where warm showers awaited.

 

Our week was all in all the experience of a life time.  We accomplished something that people only dream of doing.  We did it as a team and we all grew leaps and bounds.  Our team which I already considered strong is now even stronger.  I know personally this week has taught me many things about myself and I think everyone has similar feelings.  But now we head to Wellington this morning as our free week is about to begin.  Hope all is well, until next time.

 

-David Horwitz

 

This is our group photo in front of the Maori house we stayed in all week and David and Ryan with their prom proposal

Here's the girls trying to spin the poi and some of us playing on a playground at a marae we stopped at along the Wanganui river drive

Kia Ora!

 

We left the marae (spelled it wrong before) this morning and are spending the night here in Tanganui at the Extreme Backpackers hostel, which includes a climbing wall that Cliff and Karen have been enjoying. Today has been nice down time for us all to do some laundry  or catch up on e-mail. Emily was very excited because she finally got her long lusted after Kinder egg. Tonight we're having a makeshift prom thanks to Hannah for organizing it so today has included some interesting prom proposals. David and Ryan ambushed me with a dance performance and a yes or no check box written on their chest. Kareem asked Karen on one knee while she was mid-air descending from her climb. We've all been having fun with it and are going for a classy dinner out at the finest of restaurants (aka BK) of course after tons of awkward prom pictures.

 

So last I left off it was Thursday and we had travelled to town to see the Maori museum. We had a guided tour through the museum and were overwhelmed by the rich cultural history of everything from war canoes to musical instruments. After the museum we stopped at a very elaborate playground for lunch and felt like 8 year olds again as we bounced on the see-saw or climbed a giant whale. We departed to drive along the windy roads of the historic Wanganui river, which we learned more about later in the week from Kareem's stimulating historical presentation.

 

On Friday we celebrated the Incredible Mr. Cliff's birthday. Some of us went for a hike to try to find the legendary bottomless lake. We were halted by a gnarly patch of blackberry bushes but enjoyed venturing through the hills and Christine and I found a pretty sweet walking stick bug and gave it to Cliff for his birthday. Cliff also got to whip an exploding mushroom at Ryans white t-shirt for his birthday. Kelsey, Ryan, and Dylan branched off to do some hunting and at the end of the night we all enjoyed delicious caramel pecan pie made from scratch by Kelsey and Karen.

 

On Saturday we rejoiced over the birthday of that tall cup of tea that is David Horwitz. We were able to see a traditional haka performed by a Maori group. Their costumes and songs were beautiful and we all enjoyed watching their dances. The girls were encouraged to go up and we attempted to learn how to dance while spinning a Maori poi. Afterwards the performers sat and chatted with us over tea and sent us well wishes on our travels. For our last night we ate food cooked in a hongi, which was like a dug out oven in the earth that the boys helped build. Ryan and Dylan also came back from hunting with a goat slung over each of their backs.

 

During the week some of us found what we referred to as Jack Johnson tree (because it looked just like the cover of his in between dreams album) and visited it frequently.  Overall it was a week full of birthdays, culture, hiking, and hunting and we all said our goodbye to the marae. We head out tomorrow for the Outdoor Pursuits Center and word has it we will be surrendering all technology so I'm not sure when the next blog will be, but know that youre loved ones are healthy, happy, and psyched on our next adventure!

-Lucy

 

 

Up close and personal of the captured eel

Here's a picture of the mountain ranges we hiked around on our first day!

special shout out to dylan for lending me his memory card to upload pics

Hello again!

 

Lucy here, by the way, forgot to sign my name on my last blog. We have been enjoying our time on the Marai so far. We arrived late Monday night and met the members of the Marai who have been so welcoming and generous. On Tuesday we hiked through the magnificent mountain ranges surrounding our new home to go down to the river. We stopped among a forest to play like monkeys on the vines and picked up abandon peacock feathers as we went. After our hike a Maori women Ameria taught us how to weave flax. We all made little woven fish and boxes. We've been spending a lot of time enjoying the people and the surroundings and doing some hiking, journaling, and playing games.

 

Yesterday Willem, Gordon, Ryan, and I hiked the hills across the road and took some epic shots of Gordon in his Blazers jersey for the Portland Wear in the World contest. We also went eel hunting yesterday morning with some of the men from the Marai. We trekked through the river slipping our hands under rocks to feel for eels. We all enjoyed hopping along the rocks on the beautiful sunny day and some of us rested on the river banks to read and journal. After many bends in the river Gordon, Dylan, and the two Maori men finally caught our prized eel. Today we are going to check out the Maori exhibit in the local museum and drive along the Whanganui river.  Everyone sends their love back home and I'm hoping to get some personalized bits and pictures on here soon!

Hello All!

 

Writing to you from the beautiful lake town of Taupo. We have begun our journey to the Maori village and stopped here yesterday for one night. We're all very grateful for the immense amount of work Emily put in to set up our transportation. We've been taking responsibility in our roles and supporting each other to develop the skills of a traveler so major kudos for Emily's dedication on this one. We have all enjoyed exploring Taupo. Some of us snagged some treasures in souvenir shops for our loved ones back home while others took solo walks along the water front or explored the natural hot springs just down the road from our hostel. We are headed out very soon to complete the final leg to the Maori. We are not really sure what to expect but have prepared a Maori song as an offering for the tribe and are very excited to be immersed in their culture. Ill try to keep you updated on our Maori experiences later in the week, but for now here are the lyrics to the song we will all be attempting to sing today. (hopefully we dont offend the tribe with our botched pronunciation)

 

Ka Waiata

 

Kia Maria

 

Hine i whakai

 

Whaka mea tea mai

 

Te whare tanga ta

 

Hine purotu

 

Hine Ngakau

 

Hine Rangi Marie

 

Kote whaea kote whaea

 

O te ao

 

Kote whae kote whaea

 

O te ao