Huge thanks to Claire for her work compiling these reflections and photos from her Spring 2020 South Pacific group! “I asked the group to share a few pictures, their favorite memory, and how they experienced the evacuation and return. I hope this sheds some light on what we as students were feeling during the evacuation time and also to share some great memories we made even though the time was… Read More

Written By Rachael & Nathan Kia Ora friends and families! Nathan and Rachael here writing from Seattle and Northern California. We said goodbye to the group yesterday in LAX where we met 6 weeks ago. We exchanged warm and fuzzy notes and gave air hugs. Tears were shed. This has been a trying last week with plans changing daily and the group having to readjust plans constantly to keep up… Read More

Howdie doodie neighborinos! Hanny and gang here. What a wild ride the past few days have been…. After we said our farewells to all the people and creatures at the Hart farm (especially to Pippi the dog!) we traveled down to the lively city of Wellington! We enjoyed a couple days strolling up and down Cuba Street, browsing the funky shops, eating at all the restaurants, and drinking TONS of… Read More

Written By Mia & Lucas It’s Mia and Lucas here to let you all know what we’ve been up to during the past week. We first were given the opportunity by our amazing overseas educators to explore the city of Rotorua. We started things off with a nice dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant, sharing our excitement about the next few days of adventuring. After a great first nights’ sleep… Read More

Kia Ora Hongi fans, what’s up y’all, this is real life, After orientation we moved to Solscape, a sustainable hostel looking over the ocean, and slept in train cars for a couple nights. Here we began learning about Maori culture with Tiaki and Madi. Starting out strong at 5am, we headed over to Wairenga Falls; it was a really powerful experience. This waterfall is a place where Maori people let… Read More

This is Nathan and Rachael, the Hongi group OE’s, saying hello and updating you on what we’ve been up to. 5 days ago we met each other in LAX where we shared snacks and some cute, awkward introductions. We boarded our 13 hour flight, traveled a whole day forward in time and landed in Auckland on Valentine’s day! Getting in our rental vehicles we made our way down the long… Read More

Dear Friends and Family of the Hongi Crew: We have received word that the group has landed safely in Auckland. The Overseas Educators report that it was a smooth flight and that all are well, if not a bit tired. The group will now pick up their rental vans, and make the short trip to Raglan where they will begin their orientation. We wish them all well in their journey… Read More

Dear Hongi Friends and Family: We wanted to update you and let you know that the Hongi group has safely arrived at LAX. The group will go through security and then dive into a few introduction and orientation activities led by their Overseas Educators, Rachael and Nathan. The group will then embark on their long flight over the Pacific Ocean, en route to Auckland, New Zealand! We will provide an… Read More

This is Rachael and Nathan your OE’s. This is the blog we will be taking turns writing on throughout our semester. It is a platform to share our experiences, challenges, joys, and some photos with friends and family. We are currently hanging out (haha) with the other OE teams in Portland enjoying a semi sunny day wandering around, getting to know each other, and preparing for our upcoming adventure. We… Read More

Wow who knew 3 months could be filled with so many memories. We will never forget all the campfire sing alongs, the rain in bark bay, or games of patterns filled with laughter. It was a beautiful ride filled with more lessons than we can count. From experiencing a remote village in Fiji, to learning how to milk a cow, and even getting certified to dive. We experienced all we… Read More

Written By Sierra & Hunter This is Hunter and Sierra giving you all an update on our most recent journey Down Under. On Nov. 10th, we arrived at our first destination in Australia: Sheoak Ridge. The people at Sheoak—Claire and Marcus—strive to protect native eco-systems in far North Queensland on their 165-acre property. They conduct research, work on rehabilitating wallabies, practice mindful land management, and provide unique opportunities for students… Read More

Written By Rasheed & Lily Kia Ora! It’s Rasheed and Lily here and we are extremely excited to update everyone on our upcoming adventure. Since our time in Nakuku village, we have been vigorously planning and brainstorming on potential ideas for our week of student directed travel. During student directed travel, us 12 students have come up with an exhilarating itinerary. We have all put in lots of hard work… Read More

Good Day from Noah, Lottie, and the rest of Hongi! It is hard to grasp the fact that our week on the Hart Farm is finally coming to an end… It feels like just yesterday that we rolled up in the “Blue Whale” van a tad soaked from our town time grabbing lunch before meeting our lovely hosts Rachel and Greg Hart. Hongi instantly felt at home and couldn’t contain… Read More

Written By Nicole & Alex Kia ora! A big hello from Alec, Nicole, and the rest of Hongi! We are excited to be the ones to fill you in on everything that has happened this last week. This week’s leaders were Alec and Sofie! Alec: Being a leader for a week was honestly very stressful at times. It challenged me in many different ways that I never would have thought… Read More

Kia Ora. Hello everyone, it’s Jackson and Trish and we are so excited to have the opportunity to blog for you all again. Tonight we have the official changing of the guards which means that tomorrow we will have new jobs and will no longer be the group bloggers. I know we only had the opportunity to blog twice but I am so happy we have been able to give… Read More

Bula and Hello! My name is Jackson Tahmoush, and my name is Trish Pizzica. Today we are sitting in an amazing hostel in Nelson, New Zealand but this is the recap of our past weeks with Hongi Fall 2019. After a beautiful and sunny orientation in the Tubakula Beachside Bungalows right outside Sigatoka, we made our way to Suva for a day and eventually all the way up to a… Read More

Rasheed and I are writing from an internet cafe in Sigatoka whilst on a scavenger hunt exploring the city. Our group has thoroughly enjoyed getting to know each other in our own mini paradise at the Tubakula Beach Bungalows as well as doing orientation and getting excited for the next three months. We have got to go check off the rest of our list, but all is well from the… Read More

Hey everyone! We are Sarah and Nathan, and we are so excited to lead this Hongi group in the South Pacific this fall! This trip is bursting with all sorts of adventures and growth opportunities. In anticipation and preparation for the semester, we have spent the last week training with other Carpe Diem Overseas Educators. Before we get to what we have done this week, we want to tell you… Read More

Written By OEs, Bria & Dave Greetings from the Other Side! Here we are, writing the final dispatch from Bilbo Bloggins, as we look out over the nearby cloud-capped peak of Mt. Doom. Here at the One Bean to Rule Them All Cafe, the guy at the table next to me sports a familiarly flowing white beard, and the guy in line had hairy bare feet… but that might just… Read More

Written By Ryan Our last week was just like so many others in that it was memorable, adventurous, and exhausting. I’m going to miss being on the constant go, traveling somewhere new and different every few days, but I think everyone is also ready to depart, return home, and slow down. After our retreat at Chenrezig, the group including myself enjoyed our night out in Brisbane watching and later singing… Read More