This post feature student writing.

Hi, friends and families!

Monday
Today we went to the Shangri La, a hotel on the beach. After a delicious breakfast at Geckos, we separated into two groups: those who had their scuba certificate, and those who didn’t. The people who did not have their certificate went out on a 10-minute boat ride to a beautiful reef where we saw a turtle and many colorful fish. The scuba divers participated in two dives, where they saw many fish and even sharks. After returning from scuba diving and snorkeling, we joined together as a group for a lunch of pizza. When we finished our meal, we had an afternoon of free time to relax in the sand or swim in the ocean.

Tuesday
Today is Patricio’s birthday. After a traditional Fijian birthday celebration where Patricio fed his friends and the Geckos staff, we drove with Nazil, our awesome guide, to a pottery village a few minutes away from Geckos. In the village we experienced the kava ceremony, where we all drank kava roots and then danced. Following that, we had the opportunity to buy the beautiful pottery made by the villagers. After saying goodbye, our group drove to an Indian-Thai restaurant and had an amazing lunch. After finishing eating, we went to another Fijian village where we drank the kava roots again. After that, we had the opportunity to horse back ride or walk up to a waterfall. We all went swimming in the cold water and watched a man jump from an extremely high rock down into the seven-foot deep water. Once we walked back down to the cars, we revisited the Indian-Thai restaurant for dinner since we had such a great lunch there. When dinner was done, we went back to Geckos for our nightly meeting and to get ready for the next day.

Wednesday
Today we had a bit of later start because our leaders, Zack and Katelyn, planned an activity for us on vulnerability to facilitate the formation of deeper bonds between us. We watched a Ted Talk given by Brenee Brown on vulnerability and then we all separated to make our “rivers.” These were sheets of paper that detailed the ups/ downs of our lives. Once done we were paired up into girl/boy pairs. We were allowed to walk anywhere and each person talked for 20 minutes. While many were hesitant about this activity, most came out with a greater understanding/appreciation of each other. At its core, this activity was meant to encourage big talk, not small talk.

After lunch, we were off to hike sand dunes and the views were amazing. The burns on our feet were worth it! Then we hopped in our vans and headed to a beach next to another resort. We soaked in the warm weather and then headed back home to witness a fire dancing competition, which was impressive. Once our nightly meeting concluded, we were off to bed with our alarms set for 4 AM.

Thursday
After an early start to the day on the 4th of July (Fiji time), we arrived at Nadi Airport and grabbed some breakfast at a little restaurant. While the lines were short, it took a bit of time to get through security, for the agents were adamant all toiletries be in ziplock bags. Once through, we arrived at the gate a few minutes before boarding began. It was not a popular day to be flying to Christchurch, so we were able to move around the plane and sit comfortably for our four-hour flight.

At customs, some of us were stopped to have our hiking boots cleaned and then we were allowed to proceed on to meet our in-county guides, Dave and his daughter Ella.

We had a fun afternoon of playing at a family park and eating at an indoor street food market where the food was delicious. Later that night we walked around Christchurch, explored the local mall, and ate dinner at a Thai restaurant.

Friday
Today, it is Madison’s birthday. We began with breakfast at a place called Joe’s Garage and sang to Madison. This afternoon we will meet our host families and attend a high school rugby match of local rivals. We will be with our homestay families for the next five days.

Happy 4th of July!

— Brooke & Ella

Note: Internet has been slow. More photos soon!