After breakfast and team pictures students picked up there things and headed to the buses. Both flight group one and two checked into the airport at the same time. Flight group one is already in the air while flight group two has a few hours to spend in the airport, which they seem to be enjoying immensely. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Last night teams “orange,” “green,” and “blue” camped at a local nature reserve. They were woken up this morning to the sounds of boys being playful, girls giggling, and cows mooing. After an eventful night of cooking dinner and sleeping under the stars the students were excited for a new day.
We were greeted by some of the local wildlife, four cows that are allowed to roam around the nature reserves. After stealing a bag of our bagels they were shooed away by the dragonfly staff as students watched from a safe distance.
After students had breakfast they repacked the tents and cleaned up camp, doing our best to practice the “leave no trace” methods that we have been learning all week.
Teams “green” and “blue” headed off from camping to a day of hiking and appreciating nature. Students navigated and hiked the way back to camp, approximately six to seven kilometres. They persevered and learned more about themselves and navigation along the way.
“Red” and “yellow” team were able to end the trip with canyoning. Student wound their way down a meandering stream climbing over and around rocks. With a few slips and a lot of encouragement along the way students were able to make it through in high spirits.
Todays junk boat, fish farm, and snorkel group was “orange” and “black” team. Students enjoyed the cultural experiences of the temple visit, fish farm, and floating house visit. After a wonderful lunch students continued their junk boat ride to a snorkelling spot. Only a few students wanted to snorkel but most students choose to jump from the top deck into the ocean.
We ended tonight with all the groups together (they missed each other) sharing about water conservation. Each group prepared a presentation, song, or skit that talked about the importance of conservation.
It was a great day with lots of highlights. We are looking forward to being home soon, seeing family, and eating some wonderful Korean food!
Today, 3 groups (black, yellow, & red) returned to camp after a camping adventure! We arrived at camp around 4:00PM, and students learned how to pitch their own tents! They did a great job; many students had just gotten back from a long hike, but they successfully set up their own tents with hammers and pegs. Here are few pictures of what the campsite looked like:
After setting up their tents, students went to work on making their own dinner! Groups were given 3 bags of pasta, 2 cans of tomatoes, 2 cans of mushrooms, carrots, and onions. They boiled their own pasta over a small stove, made their own sauce. It was a lot of fun to watch them make their own meal and be successful. They worked really hard and showed some great teamwork while making their meals. And, as adults, we teachers enjoyed the meal as well.
And then, the best part of the whole day: students got to make s’mores over a bonfire! It was delicious and the students had a lot of fun to hang out with friends around the fire. Then, after our stomachs were full with lots of food and the sun going down, students went to sleep in their tents nice and early – around 8:30PM. In the morning, we woke up and students made their own breakfast. They had oatmeal and bagels with cream cheese. Mmmmmmmm!
Overall, students really enjoyed their camping experience. Even students who had never camped in a tent before said that they liked camping and enjoyed the experience. The Dragonfly staff did a great job at making it fun, challenging, and educational.
After learning about compasses and how to read a map, the “black" and "orange” team headed out on a hike. The hike took about 6 hours (all breaks and lunch included). They students really enjoyed themselves (despite being tired) and we saw some pretty amazing views!
While the "orange" and "black" team hiked the "blue" and "green" team went canyoning. They survived the tough trek with good spirits and loved the adventure.
"Red" and "yellow" were able to go on the junk boat and see the fish farm. Students started off with visiting some of the local culture of Hong Kong. Students were able to visit a fish farm. The farm consisted of a large floating platform that has removable boards. Under the boards there were large nets that the fish live in. The fish live there until they are large enough to sell to market. They said that the largest can be sold for 1,000 HKD. The students were able to feed the large fish and eels feeder fish. They were also allowed to touch a giant starfish. The owners of the fish farm then graciously allowed us to visit their home. Their home was also built to float on the ocean. The farmers built and have maintained their house for 30 years.
Students were also able to go to a local temple and learn about how the people of the area worship.
After a wonderful lunch students continued their junk boat ride to an area that was safe for snorkelling and jumping off the top dock of the boat.
It’s been wonderful watching our students try new things and enjoy them. We are looking forward to our final adventures tomorrow before we head back on Friday.
Today has been a busy one here in Hong Kong. The weather was absolutely gorgeous as we set out on out many adventures today.
Black and Orange team started out the day with learning about water sustainability and our role as consumers. We analyzed how much water we consume daily and what the effects of these habits are. Both Orange and Black team did canyoning next, which involved walking down to a gorge and hiking along the rocks on the river. This was a few hour endeavour filled with loads of fun, climbing, and sometimes getting a little wet. What was impressive was the amount of teamwork that was exhibited. When the activity was debriefed we talked about how it was difficult to get through the course alone, but with people helping an encouraging the trek was easier. After our exciting afternoon the Black team set up their camps for a night of camping and the orange team headed back to the dorms for a night of games.
Yellow and Red team were our hikers today. After they left from breakfast they went on a hike through some of Hong Kong's beautiful landscape and ended at their campsite where they joined the Black team for a night of pitching bright orange tents, cooking dinner, and eating smores around a camp fire. We checked in with them midway through the day and they seemed to be having a great time setting up tents and getting ready for many of their first time camping experiences. The girls had created a tent row so that they could all be connected to one another. More stories and pictures when they come back to the land of wifi.
The Green and Blue team headed to a fish farm and a temple walk. At the fish farm they got to see eels and giant fish that were being hand fed to eventually be sold to market. Students were also able to see a floating city of fish farmers. A community of about 20-30 houses that are held up by gasoline containers and other found materials. From here students were able to go onto a junk boat (a medium sized boat with three floors) and go snorkelling. Students had the choice to either stay on the boat and jump off or stuff themselves into dry suits and go snorkelling. They were able to enjoy beautiful coral and fish. After an eventful day they came back to camp for fun and games.