Watch Out For Drop Bears!!

Two weeks ago, we flew from Sydney to Adelaide where we met up with our contact from the Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA). After a quick orientation where we met our group leader Hamish, we discovered that we would be doing work on Kangaroo Island. The work we did consisted of building boardwalks on four of Australia's most beautiful beaches. We were also pleasantly surprised to find out that we would be staying in a beach house owned by our group leader's friend. Throughout the week, each of us got one day off during which we could relax and explore the island. During our down time after work, our group enjoyed spending time with Hamish, attempting to complete a 1500 piece jigsaw puzzle, cooking meals, and watching movies. After 5 days we returned to the mainland by ferry and said goodbye to Hamish at our next destination Adelaide. Here, we spent several days exploring the city. Nick, Catherine, Laura, Alex W, Michelle, and Stefan learned how to surf while the rest of the group enjoyed wandering around the city. On the final night in Adelaide, the whole group saw the new Harry Potter movie. The following morning we got picked up by our Groovy Grape tour guide Leith. Highlights of the Groovy Grape trip included meeting people from France, Germany, and Denmark, sleeping in caves in Coober Pedy, touring Opal mines, visiting Uluru and walking around Ayers Rock, sleeping in swags, and saying goodbye to the Groovy Grape group in the lovely city of Alice Springs. In Alice Springs, we stayed in our first motel and flew to Cairns in preparation for scuba diving. Although we are excited to scuba dive and see the Great Barrier Reef, we had to say goodbye to our group member Catherine who is heading off to college orientation back in LA. Good luck to you Catherine and we love you.

Blooooooooooooooooooooooooog

From the farm, our group travelled to Te Anau for the beginning of our free travel. For our first activity, we hiked a portion of the Kepler Track that led to one of the highest peaks bordering Lake Te Anau. It took all day but the view from the top was completely worth the strenuous walk. The first portion of the hike ended at a hut near the summmit where we took a break and ate. From the hut, a majority of our group soldiered on and made it to the top. The next day, we we continued with our exploration of the outdoors by embarking on a cruise of the Milford Sound, which is said to be among the most beautiful places in the world. After our cruise we went on another hike around the Milford Sound where we kayaked to the beginning of the trail. Despite the constant attack by swarms of sandflies, the scenery was breathtaking and we kayaked amongst a pod of dolphins on our return which made a great grand finale for a beautiful day. From Te Anau we continued to our next destination of Queenstown. We were in Queenstown over Guy Fox day and many people in the city celebrated by shooting off fireworks. Our group discovered a new love: Fergburger- a famous and memorable (as well as positively delicious) burger venue on the main street, so much so that everybody ate multiple meals there. In Queenstown we did one group activity known as jet boating. We rode on a jet boat through the Shotover River with beautiful scenery and rocky features. After a few days in Queenstown we boarded a plane and left New Zealand, a country we have grown to love over the past month, to depart for Sydney. We had a day to explore the city where many of us took advantage of a free city tour as well as went off to explore on our own. Next we went to the Mangrove Satyananda Yoga Ashram for our retreat. Every morning we woke up at 5 to start our 5:30 yoga class, which included learning how to "salute the sun", chanting, and various other exercises. After breakfast we practiced karma yoga for an hour, a practice where one selflessly gives their time to serve others while retaining a yogic attitude. Our group became a constant presence in the kitchen where we helped to chop vegetables and do other various jobs. Another part of our daily routine was Yoga Nidra, which is basically where you lie down in a sleeping position for 30 minutes but attempt to retain consciousness while your body rests. It is commonly known around the ashram as "nap time" and we all loved it. Our other activities varied from day to day- one morning we all used neti pots to clear out our nasal passages and improve balance and breathing... we drank the most amazing chai ever produced on the porch of a farm before a havan ceremony, which involved chanting mantras and giving thanks to nature over a fire. There was a huge thunderstorm during the ceremony and the rain perfectly coincided with the practice. We also went on an Om walk, a bushwalk to the caves on our last day, practiced singing kirta, and every night we participated in mouna (complete silence) until the end of breakfast the next day. Needless to say, it was an eye-opening and amazing experience for all of us and we all left with new knowledge and an appreciation for the practice of yoga.
Love from Australia!
Catherine and Nick

Home, home on the range..

   I find that sometimes it is those completely unplanned, random moments that stick with me throughout the trip. It might be squeezing into a horse trailer on the way to the farm or having a conversation about organic food with Graham (the owner) or even finding yourself in a cemetery on Halloween surrounded by people you've come to know and love. Clearly our time on the farm was indeed superb. We were welcomed with opened arms by Graham. He was not only extremely inviting to us, he also shared his knowledge with us on farming, eating organic food and having a good work ethic. The work was strenuous and difficult at times, but I must say that it was quite rewarding. Some painted windows while others weeded gardens and planted vegetables. And I mustn't forget about our other great responsibility at the farm: taking care of the lambs, chickens, dogs and cats. Everyone also spent some of their mornings and afternoons all day in the kitchen making lunch or dinner for at least twelve people. The home-cooked meals were not only delicious, but made us all feel more at home.
      Although Halloween is not celebrated in New Zealand, we all took advantage of the fact that we had the farm to ourselves that day. Laura made us some delightful goodie bags with chocolate and candy and although we couldn't carve any pumpkins, Greg and Nina made us some delicious pumpkin pie for dessert. Shortly after the sun went down, Casey and Stefan took us all on an adventure to gaze and the unbelievable stars. We were surrounded by the sounds of sheep crying out and the only thing visible besides the stars in the sky was one single candle that had been lit. We told ghost stories in honor of the holiday until we became too tired and headed back to the farm.
    As we all piled into our two rented vans and headed for Te Anau, I looked back at what we were leaving behind. Our journey on this trip thus far has been incredible, but our stay on the Marama Organic Farm was an experience I know none of us will forget.

And in case you were curious...
-Alex F. and Laura spent an entire morning and afternoon tailing sheep
-Alex W. fed the wee lamb everyday and nursed it back to health
-Michelle made two furry friends named Clyde and Tiger (two of the cuddliest farm cats)
-Stefan and Casey took a long drive up to Queenstown to pick up the two vans that we will driving in all through free travel. Thanks to them for going so far out of their way to pick them up for us!
-Catherine cooked lunch and dinner for us at least six times (and it was always delicious of course)
-Nick was always up for the most interesting and unique jobs.
-Nina ate pumpkin pie for the first time!
-Greg was fantastic at handling the oh-so-scary puppy-dogs.

That's all for now.

Sincerely,
Michelle Blau

Learning to Fly

There is nothing more unsettling to me than being surprised by a gigantic winged insect whilst visiting the restroom. On an average night, I would have responded with A. a scream, B. an immediate retreat, C. the throwing of something heavy at the intruder, or D. some combination of the three.

On our first night at the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuit Center, however, I encountered a bug that made all three options undesirable.

Unfortunately, this emerald moth, speckled with dots of creamy white and the deepest of blacks, was clinging to the back of the bathroom door, making a safe retreat impossible. The space we were sharing was so small that a panicked screech could easily cause it to take flight, ratcheting up my bug anxiety considerably. Even if I had been in possession of something to throw at it, that would not have been an option; crushing something that large could only be considered murder, and if I missed, the massive bug would probably have had the strength to chuck the item right back at me.

No, none of my usual responses would do.

In the end, I settled for making a mad dash through the door, swinging my arms above my head and shimmying about the front porch in my attempt to rid myself of a bug that had probably not moved in hours.

The next morning, I walked outside to find a dozen large green moths littering the ground, all of them dead. At first, I just thought them to be an extremely sickly breed of moth. However, after asking our OPC guides, Luke and Sally, the group was informed that these mammoth insects were not a sickly bunch in the least (a fact that was confirmed every time I tried to wash my hands or use the showers). The reason that they were making motionless appearances on the porch each morning was because these insects only spent one day as moths. The majority of their lives are spent in the worm/cocoon stages. They have roughly twenty-four hours to live from the time they sprout wings and burst forth into the world.

Personally, If I were experiencing the world on a brand new set of wings, I wouldn't hang out in a lady's bathroom all night. But that's just me.

Still, if I wouldn't want to grace the side of a porcelain throne for hours on end, these moths made me consider-made the group consider-how we would spend our winged hours. What would we do if we had a short amount of time to spend with a wonderful and rare opportunity? What would we wish to accomplish?

With that thought in mind, we embarked on our five days at the OPC.

-Alex W. overcame her fear of heights in order to successfully rock-climb on a New Zealand mountain.

 -Greg fit the last piece of strategy in place to complete a team building swamp-crossing exercise without exposing us all to pond scum.

-Alex F. and Nick braved the below freezing weather out in the New Zealand bush away from the group, creating their own shelter and dealing with furry critters during a solo overnight.

-Catherine experienced the lush scenery from a whole new angle, conquering the precarious monkey wire high ropes course challenge.

-Michelle took a leap of faith, facing her fears by jumping off of a loft bridge into freezing water after our raft building/racing experience.

-Nina agily scaled the outdoor climbing wall while carrying a full-sized pack on her back.

-Stacey (Stefan and Casey) were the first to master the strenuous layback procedure used to climb the rock face of a mountain warmed by a rare afternoon of blazing sunlight

All of us have learned to spread our wings and seize fleeting opportunities this past week. Although one of us will be leaving to spread their wings elsewhere, we will always share our experience at the OPC, where we were taught the importance of seizing the day and living life to the fullest.


-Laura Weyl

Glow Worms Don't Have Stomachs!

Kiaora from our new location-- Taupo, New Zealand. Here is a poem to let all you mates know what we have been up to:

We started this week on a Morai,

where we picked thistles, painted fences, oh how time flew by.

We went on a hike with tons of sheep and beautiful hills,

and some of our group members learned how to catch eels. 

For fun we played frisbee and barefoot soccer too.

However, two group members had to go home, so now their time is through.

We ended up in Taupo and had to say goodbye,

but we wish them luck with everything and hope they succeed in all they try.

The past few days here have been adventurous and fun, 

we played an intense game of paintball and of course the gold team won. (Greg, Laura, Alex F., Alex W., Casey)

Then we went to the hot springs, it was such a relaxing time,

The dragon water slide was awesome, it was definitely worth the cold climb.

Wednesday we went black water rafting in the Waitimo caves, what a beautiful site,

the glow worms helped us find our way because they were so bright.

Our adventures in Taupo are now over and we are very sad to leave,

for the next 5 days we will be outdoors, exploring NZ with the OPC!!!

THE END!

Here are some shout outs to family and friends from each member of the group!

Laura: "To Mom, Dad, and TJ: MONKEY!"
Greg: "Laura's Latin teacher!! Hey parents and bros!"
Alex W.: "I LOVE YOU MOMMY! I miss you uncles!"
Mike: "Doin good- still here. Love you guys!"
Alex F.: "Having a great time in NZ. Hope everything is well back at home!"
Catherine: "Dear Family, glad we finally had contact. Good luck in congress Jane!!"
Nick: "Still Alive. :)"
Michelle: "All my quick dry clothing came in handy."
Nina: "To Mom, Dad, Allie, Rach, Chad, Josh, and Daisy: I meeeeeeeeees you and I miss pink-panthering with you. The foot is a-okay! Love you guys. Did you like my poem?"

Thanks for reading mates! Hope everything is great at home!!
Cheers!
-Nina Rosenberg & Alex Wentworth...AKA the master poets.

Kia ora from Aotearoa!

The morning we get ready to take off from Nananu theres a solemn feeling in the air. We all grew so close to our families, but we were looking forward to the next location on our adventure, and trying some new foods rather than we've been having every day in the village. All of us are going to miss the families that we stayed with, the little kids that we played games with, and the dance parties that went late into the night. With a tearful goodbye, we headed off to Nandi where we had an early flight to New Zealand the next day. We arrived in the big city of Auckland, NZ, which was quite the change of scenery after 3 weeks in Fiji. After arriving at our hostel we were immediately given freedom to roam the city and experience NZ city life. After exploring the world of delicious kebabs and Queen Street shopping we hopped on a 4 hour bus ride to Rotarua. There most of the group experienced some amazing NZ Zorbing, while Nick rode on some breathtaking NZ mountain bike trails. To finish off the day Fafoutis, Dimitrios, and Nick had some fun luging down 3 intense tracks. All in all, we have all been having an amazing time since arriving in NZ and are looking forward to the many great experiences that lie ahead of us!

-Alex Fafoutis/Dimitrios Phillio

Suki Power!

Bula friends!
For the past 2 weeks, we've been at a homestay in a small village called Nananu. We took a couple of buses from Nadi and were welcomed into the village (after we put on our sulus) by the community in an opening ceremony. We all really loved our naus and magus (moms and dads) and became really close with our families. Our community service project was building concrete pathways throughout the village. We spent our free time fishing, swimming in waterfalls, visiting the Fiji water factory, and hiking. Some of the village festivities included nightly dance parties and a cookout by the river. On Sunday we attended a Methodist church service (and some of us attended Mass as well) and sang Fijian hymns while dressed up in our church clothes. We spent a day at a beach resort in Raki Raki where we enjoyed beautiful waters and banana splits. Our last day in the village was a family day where most of us helped cook and rested up for the all-night dance party that the village threw for us before we left.
Brusch luckily doesn't have rabies after being bitten by a dog without ears that was new to the village. Fun fact- there has never been a reported case of rabies in Fiji. Nina has been expanding her food horizons by trying a bunch of new things- like prawns, fish, and curry, to name a few. Kyle has been taking his "balls to the wall" mentality to the next level by doing things such as cliff-diving, going barefoot hiking, and eating prawns straight out of the water. Alex, our captain for the second week, has been bonding with her family and members of the village (especially Fili and Billy) by playing volleyball every afternoon with them. Dimitrios impressed the villagers with his breakdancing at the nightly dance parties. Laura has been a kid-magnet for all the village children and spent most of her free time playing with them. Faf loved the village despite the fact that there is a significant lack of meat in their diet, but found comfort in the group's numerous discussions about American foods (which we all miss dearly). He and Dimitrios bought a goat with their family and slaughtered it for the meal on their family day. They said it was delicious. Michelle made a lot of bracelets for everybody in her family and just finished a particularly sick one with like 50 strings. She also got the chance to ride on a horse. Also- TODAY IS HER 18TH BIRTHDAY! Happy birthday Michelle!!!! We had birthday cake with breakfast this morning before we left Nananu and got to sing happy birthday to her right at midnight in the middle of the dance party. Nick has been playing guitar for everybody and one night was even awarded baby powder in his hair/face and a sulu for his performance. It's a Fijian tradition for when they are entertained, and it was entertaining for the rest of the group to watch. Catherine and Greg find it awkward to blog about themselves in the 3rd person, but are doing great.
Moce!
-Catherine and Greg (/George)