Good Bye New Zealand, Hello Fiji! – New Zealand & Fiji

Kia Ora!

We arrived to Franz Josef on the Westcoast of New Zealand at the Rainforest Retreat – a beautiful lodge located near the world famous glacier! Our journey down was spectacular as we had the Ocean on one side and the rising Southern Alps on the other. With the weather being somewhat uincooperative for glacier hiker we we lucky there were some amazing natural hot pools nearby that we took advantage of! The trip members dunked into pools of various degrees that all had different healing properties. In the afternoon, Chad, Ben, Matt and myself took the rare opportunity to see the nocturnal Kiwi bird at a conservation area nearby. We learned all about New Zealand’s national animal and got up close and personal with two of the little guys.

Relaxed and rejuvenated, we hopped on the bus towards our final destination of New Zealand, QUEENSTOWN! Along the way, we stopped at some spectacular lookouts including the famed Lake Matheson. We marveled at the natural beauty this country has to offer and picked up some kiwi delicacies along the way, meat pies! Our first day in Queenstown did not disappoint, as we made our way up to The Remarkables mountain range for a day of shredding some powder. Our resident boarders, Justin and Zac, took no time to rip down the mountain while filming some serious footage on Zac’s GoPro camera. Our ski team of Hannah, Matt, Jake, Noah, Ben, Andy and Chad hiked peaks and took amazing photos while having the ride of their lives. After a day on the slopes, everyone took to the town and some trip members were brave enough to try out the burgers at the local hot spot, Fergburger. With burgers the size of your head and famous BBQ sauce, no one left unsatisfied!

Our second day in Queenstown was a more relaxing day. The trip member’s were keen on exploring the local shops, so we headed out to town and spent some time walking around. In the afternoon, we traded our sneakers for some ice skates and hit the skating arena. Morgan and Maria were our resident dj’s, requesting some of our trip’s fave songs. The boys took part in a game of hockey, while the girls had a blast skating with the penguin themed sleds available at the arena. Back at the lodge, we fired up the BBQ to grill an epic meal of steak, chicken and salmon (tofu steaks for our in-house vegetarians).

The next morning, we ventured off to Milford Sound, part of Fjiordland and one of New Zealand’s most spectacular sites! We got to see the sun rise over the mountains and took lots of photos along the way as the scenery was out of this world. On the boat, all the trip members staked out the perfect photo snapping spot and we filled up our cameras  with shots of rolling hills and waterfalls that seemed as though they were coming out from the sky!

Our last full day in Queenstown was another hit! After a hearty breakfast in town, we checked-in for our jet boat experience. We were given hilarious ponchos and took some shots pretending we were from Lord of the Rings, before boarding the little boats that would take us on a thrilling ride. And thanks to the 360 degree spins, we were all given flattering new hairstyles!!! For our last dinner in New Zealand, we took the gondola up to a beautiful restaurant overlooking Queenstown. Chad and Zac took some great photos from the balcony and we all enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner of local and international cuisine.

This morning we awoke to yet another incredible day in Queenstown, and sadly said goodbye to our amazing bus driver and local guide “Scratch”. After presenting him with a token to remember us by, we checked in at the airport for the next chapter of our adventure…. FIJI!

Until next time!

The Westcoast Blogger

Wowie, We Love Maui! – Hawaii Community Service

Another update from Hawaii Community Service:

Wowie we love Maui! There is a never a dull moment when it comes to our group. As we boarded the plane to Maui, we met a group of high school wrestlers that were the best in the state of Nebraska. Being the amicable group that we are, we quickly made friends with them on our 25 minute flight and once exiting the plane taught them “the dance move” of the summer. The boys were delighted to help us and we wished them good luck in their tournament as we began our journey here.

After a morning of traveling, trip director, Adam, decided to take us to a local beach, Baldwin, for some rest and relaxation. From the moment we stepped on the sand, all of us agreed that the crystal clear waters of Maui were exactly as they had envisioned them to be. That night, we went into the town of Paia and visited the local Fish Market eatery.

On our first full day in Maui, we were greeted by Nature Jay, who guided us on our first service project here. After a few scenic stops, we made it to one of the rain forests on the island where we were instructed on our task, picking out invasive plants. These plants are not native to Hawaii and harm some of the endangered plants that trying to survive in the rainforest. Jenn, Jamie, and Luciana got into tug of war fights with some roots of the plants while we were working. Even though the job was tough and muddy, we all had a fun time! Afterwards, Nature Jay walked us through the rainforest and explained that we were laulima “working together” to give our mana’o “soul” to the earth and that this concept is one that is taken very seriously with the Hawaiian people. They are extremely serious when it comes to recycling and being “green”. While we were at Twin Falls, our group was lucky enough to actually view the twin falls because this only happens when it rains. Sarah, our trip member photographer, took many of the pictures that were uploaded to the website! She is planning on taking the pictures and working with them in her photography course during the school year. Because Nature Jay is so close with the owners of the property, they were kind enough to let us try some pure sugar cane, fresh low acid pineapple, passion fruit, coconut chips, coconut candy, and drink from coconut. Maddie and Carli enjoyed taking the opportunity to try the new and fresh foods and loved it! It was really cool to see the inside of a coconut and watch how the shell of it becomes the spoon as the texture is not something that we expected.

Nature Jay brought us to the Iao rainforest the next day for an education excursion. This rainforest is made up of 4 valleys in a row which are all carved out be erosion from wind and water. It is considered a sacred place because ancestors’ bones were buried in caves. As a peace offering, people wrap rocked in tea leaves and place them next to a larger rock. With the guidance of Nature Jay we spent time near a stream near a safe waterfall. Chelsea, Christine, Richard, Jason, and Sam took full advantage of this opportunity and made their way upstream with the trip leaders to sit underneath the waterfall. The rush of water against their skin was refreshing. It was definitely one of the coolest experiences thus far!

To continue with our love for nature, we went snorkeling the next day and we were all able to continue our amazement with mother nature. We visited two snorkel points and both were equally beautiful. At Molokini, our first point, Dani, Victoria, Paige, and Lindsay swam through schools of fish and explored the wonders of the ocean. They spotted yellow fish hiding in the coral and some others playing tag! Our group was lucky enough to also spot some more sea turtles on our way back to port.

Yesterday, we went surfing for our second time and the day turned out to be stunning. Every single member of our group made it into the water and rode at least one wave in! Much to her own surprise, Carli, excelled at the sport. She stood up numerous times and left the ocean with a smile on her face! To prove her athleticism, she and some other trip members bought some pictures from the photographer that was there documenting the occasion! To keep the day going, we visited Lahaina for dinner at night and dressed up the cast from Jersey Shore. We also played glow in the dark mini golf where seven of our trip members received a free ice cream for making a hole in one on the last hole. Once finishing our celebration at Coldstone Creamery, Adam decided to have a sit down chat with the group and SURPRISE, OUR TRIP FINALE COMPETITION BROKE!!! Congratulations to our Generals, Maddie and Sam, and our Lt. Generals Dani and Lindsay!!! We will be sure to keep you updated as we start our time with the Boys and Girls Club.

The Westcoast Blogger

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