The hot and heavy humidity covers me like a blanket, as sweat drips down my for head, and falls towards the floor of the bus. I look to my left and see my friends sticking their heads out the window of our bus, driving from Nadi, Fiji, to Latoka, Fiji. An old Fijian man asks me where I’m from, and I tell him I’m from the states. He speaks fluent… Read More
Our first week in Fiji has been an exciting one! We arrived at the airport and immediately felt the hot, heavy air. After piling all of our belongings, ourselves included, into a van we made our way to the Nadi Downtown Hotel where we would stay for 2 nights. The boys unleashed their inner little girl after finding a large cockroach in the bedroom, which eventually we got used to.… Read More
Dear friends and family,
Our apologies go out for the delay of this post as internet access is limited in Fiji. Included below are highlights from our week of student directed traveling (10/12 to 10/19):
*Stargazing at lake Tekapo on the beach
*$5.50 burgers in town (cheapest we’ve found!)
*Seeing a few wild Kea Parrots
*Eating lunch while a man dressed in camo gear carrying a headless deer on his… Read More
Hello friends and family of the Hongi group!
We had a great start into our free travel week as we left the Marae and headed to Tekapo for the night. While in Tekapo, we lounged on the beach and soaked in hot springs. It was a quick stay but surely relaxing. Then it was off to the fun city of Queenstown, just for the night, to prepare for our couple… Read More
A key part of our gap year in New Zealand, Fiji, and Australia is dedicating time to reflect on how we got to where we are today. For this exercise, we all thought back to the hey-day of our childhood. From quirky to serious, read on for bits of wisdom from the Hongi group!
– Invest all of your Christmas money into Apple before iPhones.
– Play more basketball and… Read More
Greetings from the young and adventurous Hongi!! We successfully lived at the Marae for five nights. We stayed in Rapaki and were introduced to the Maori and their humble living area. The opening ceremony was fun, interesting, and made all of us a bit anxious. The important thing was, we were accepted.
Throughout the rest of the week, we got down and dirty (with the wildlife that is). We… Read More
Hello readers of the Hongi FANZ blog! Our week at Blue Mountain Adventure Center was exciting but tough for all. We started our week of adventures by spelunking on Monday. We were all surprised by how intense this first activity was. Only a handful of us had ever gone caving before, so I think I can speak for the group when I say that the intensity was a surprise! If… Read More
Q: What was the most challenging part of this week for you?
A: “Rafting. It was stressful getting stuck in the rocks so often and it was cold and wet.”-Ben
Q: What personal challenges did you overcome?
A: “I pushed myself physically more than I thought I could.”-Melissa
Q: How does it feel to have been away from home so long?
A: “I like being away from home and I… Read More
Hello friends and family of the Carpe Diem Hongi group! This last Sunday on the 28th we arrived at the Blue Mountain Adventure Center (BMAC), wet and cold from the morning downpour and exhausted still from the eight hour bus ride into National Park the previous day. It was a surprise to all of us that BMAC resided only 5 kilometers or so from the hostel we had stayed the… Read More
Q: What is your happiest memory from being on the Hart family farm?
Justin S: Probably the first day that we arrived when we were overwhelmed with the beauty all around us and the activities we were about to take part in.
Q: What is the one lesson or value you took away from being at the farm?
Holly B: It taught me that it’s possible for people to be… Read More
By Karinne Dadigan and Melissa Zegnoev
This past week we found our home away from home at the Hart family farm (Mangarara). The owners, Rachel and Greg, along with Nikki and Shane, showed us how to work hard for a purpose and truly treated us like family. Every person in our group was impacted in so many ways. From domestic chores to manual labor outside (the best kind), we truly… Read More
Creamy – by Karinne Dadigan
The farm was creamy, absolutely creamy. The walks outside, the view from the deck, the everyday early rituals and connection with the land and animals was all a creamy sensation. You look at the moments, and the views, and you want to eat them up. The oars in the water as you kayak, the soil that runs through your hands, the cup of tea that… Read More
This just in from our Greg at the Family Farm in New Zealand. Â The group has been doing awesome pruning trees, digging thistles, milking cows, feeding calves and pigs and hens, cooking meals, and more. Â Tomorrow the plan is to dock some lambs….should be a new experience for all!
More updates to come soon.… Read More
So far in New Zealand we have come across a lot of diversity. There is a huge Asian population here in Auckland, NZ. This post if for our scavenger hunt.… Read More
Hello everyone! Today in Auckland we are doing a scavenger hunt that requires us to post a blog. Hello to everyone back in the states! 🙂 We have had a wonderful time so far, bonding and exploring. Can’t wait to tell you all our cool stories when we get home. Talk to you all soon.… Read More
Hey this is Holly, Ben, and Olivia! We are the most choice squad out of them all. We just met an extra from Lord of the Rings and watched a pigeon fly into a restaurant. This is our last day of orientation in Auckland and we love it but can’t wait to volunteer on the farm (SHEEP). We love all our group mates and can’t wait to bond more. We… Read More
G’day Everyone!
This precocious group of young travelers have met up with Christian and Megan, their fearless overseas educators, and all are incredibly excited to begin their journey together.
Stay tuned for updates when they land in Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud, more commonly referred to as New Zealand!
With a lot of smiles and high energy they headed through security, next stop Auckland. Good luck team… Read More
Greetings, dingos! We’ve just spent an AUSSSSSOME day adventuring ’round the beautiful city of Portland, channeling our inner-explorers, consuming fine literature (children’s books count, right?) and overdosing on delicious coffee and funky donuts. It’s hard to believe we’ve only been friends #IRL for about a week – and we can’t (freakin’) wait to say the same thing about you all after we *finally* meet next Tuesday!
As we enter… Read More
