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)

here in Fiji

Bula!! Family and Friends
We landed in Fiji on Thursday morning at 5:10am. During the first few days we've had been orientation, we have been getting to know each other through various exercises and games and spending a lot of time bonding. We went into the town of Nadi to explore and to purchase the traditional dress of the Fijian culture, the zulu. Currently, we are learning about the differences in customs from America to prepare for our home-stay in a traditional Fijian village. Everyone is getting along well and are very enthusiastic about what were here to do.

From Fiji with love,
Nick Ciffolillo & Alex Wentworth

They're All Together!

HQ is pleased to announce the successful arrival of everyone constituting the Hongi group, and in a few short hours they will be whisked away on the wings of Air Pacific to begin their adventure together!  Look for an update from the group members themselves in a couple days, and from this point on.

Fall FANZ Kick-Off

Dear Fanz Hongi 2010 crew:  Dimitrios, Kyle, Nina, Laura, Alex, Nick, Alexandra, Greg, Michelle, Michael and Catherine.

We hope you have been enjoying the last gasps of summer and are psyched for our South Pacific adventure.   We leave in two days!

This is our group trip blog, a site where all of your friends and family will be able to keep track of our movements and experiences over the course of the coming semester.  Please let your friends and family know how to log in to view the blog while you are gone.  They will appreciate reading about your adventures almost as much as you will enjoy having them.  The blog is a cool way to post a photo of you with your new marsupial friend or to share an anecdote about your favorite Fijian delicacy.

Best of luck with your last minute preparations.  We will see all of you at LAX.

To all friends and family of Fanz '10 members, welcome, and we will be in touch again from Nadi, Fiji!

Stefan & Casey - Fanz Hongi '10 Co-Leaders

Good Bye Fanz

What a trip! A few shout outs too our whole group for either getting Certified to open water dive *Becca C. Becca O. Sarah, Jordin, Shelby, Coco, Maxx* and to Andy for getting his Advance, Suz for continuing her diving! And Matt getting to snorkel the reef!

As our trip comes to a close we all wanted to think back about some of our favorite parts of our 3 month long adventure

Sarah: Marama organics with Graham and Giselle. Our stay there was fun filled, educational and purposeful

CoCo: I loved our neon CVA vests and the OPC wetsuits, also the time we spent in them, even if some of it was type three fun!

Jordin: I loved all the people we met on this trip. We got really lucky with all of them. Without them my trip would not be what it was. Thank you Kali, Graham, Juliane, Giselle, Steve, Ethan, Patrick, and everyone else who made our trip what it was.

Becca C: ill never forget dance parties and kava ceremonies in Nananu. I will always remember my Fijian family and friends and hope to return some day. ROLLER BLADING AND POWER WALKING FOR LIFE!

Becca O: POWER WALKING AND ROLLER BLADING 4 LYFE DOG!

Matt: I will never forget fulfilling my goal of this trip of seeing and touching Koala’s. Also making some money playing my guitar on the streets of Cairns.

Shelby: ill never forget our adventures in Nananu and playing volleyball with all those strong Fijian men. Kava dance parties. New Zealand home stays. The OPC zip lining and caving and abseiling. I had a blast shearing sheep and painting the woolshed with Graham and Giselle. And I’m totally stoked on being SCUBA certified! The people we’ve met are unforgettable. Kali, Graham, Julian, Steve, Ethan; all of them have made this trip a bit more memorable.

Andy: fresh coconut milk from Fijian palms. Mangoes, guavas, waterfalls and crystalline springs. So many beautiful botanical gardens! Outback sunsets, early morning yoga. Sheep herding, cave exploring and breathing underwater. Chess playin, Frisbee throwin, balderdash and bufords of fun!

Suzanne: oh what a trip. So many memories. Dancing our buts off with all the Nananu folk, cooking and eating yummy meals at Graham’s. Exploring the caves at the OPC and laughing hysterically when reflecting on our sleepless camping adventure. Milford sound, yoga, wombats( need I say more) WOMBAT WARRIORS! Along with wombat jobby of course. Sleeping under the stars, grooving the grape with steve and diving WOW! I will forever remember each one of you and our crazy adventures. XoXo

Maxx: What a trip. When I think of my favorite moments on this trip I think of OPC adventures doing things I never would have thought I could do (climbing threw sewers, jumping high ropes, and adventuring in caves!) I will never forget any of the amazing people that I have met throughout this trip and the things I have learnt I will take with me for the rest of my life. Thank you all so much.

Thanks to everyone who made this trip possible

and helped us along the way