I'm Back online!!!
Hello all,
After a whirlwind of packing, running around and flights I arrived in Oz in one piece and haven't stopped since.
My flight started in Vancouver, where I flew to San Fransisco, then to Sydney, then to Townsville.
David picked me up from the Airport in Townsville at 11:45pm where we drove out to grade 7 camp where the kids were all asleep along a riverbank, tucked in their bivi's.
I crashed hard and soundly. I awoke to Larissa, one of the grade 7 students, standing over my head, "are you the new helper?". With one eye open I answered her string of 20 questions and got up to meet and join my cohorts (Gap students Emma from the UK and James from QLD and Principal of the junior school; Matthew McGucken)and have a cuppa (milo for me) by the fire.
The day consisted of swimming, swinging from a rope that had been tied to a gum tree, into the river, and going down a series of rapids on Lilo's (blow up mats) down the fast flowing river, promptly where I scraped the crap out of the upper portion of my legs, feet and toes on the pointy rocks. But it was all in good fun. Kids are great and always full of questions.
After two days at camp, we returned to Townsville to unload and I met Richard (David's good friend and owner of the house I would be house sitting for) and Rachael. I dumped all my gear off at his amazing beach house and we starting packing and purchasing goods for the trip to Papua New Guinea and the start of my second trek across the Owen Stanley's.
In the next few days we were back in Port Moresby, PNG and I was hugging all of my friends I had met from the first time I had gone there, only a few months ago. We zoomed around the city, paying park/trekking fees, purchasing food, arranging pick-ups and other jobs I would need to know for the times when I will be setting the trips up myself. We then welcomed the clients into the world of PNG and Melanesian time(usually quite an adjustment for on-time Aussies). Every area has it's own pace, usually extremely slow.
We started out on the trip with a tour into the Bamona War cemetary outside of Port Moresby. We got to spend some time walking around and looking at all the stunning white marble rows crosses. Thousands of Australians that were buried here after the war clean up, many only 18yrs of age. David and I lit an incense for Larissa (his daughter who was killed last year by a drunk driver) and had a prayer for her and all the men and the one woman who lost their lives.
Next we headed out on the scary drive up the range, by the power dam (Port Moresby is totally powered by water energy)and up to the famous "Owers Corner" where our trek would commence.
After a whirlwind of packing, running around and flights I arrived in Oz in one piece and haven't stopped since.
My flight started in Vancouver, where I flew to San Fransisco, then to Sydney, then to Townsville.
David picked me up from the Airport in Townsville at 11:45pm where we drove out to grade 7 camp where the kids were all asleep along a riverbank, tucked in their bivi's.
I crashed hard and soundly. I awoke to Larissa, one of the grade 7 students, standing over my head, "are you the new helper?". With one eye open I answered her string of 20 questions and got up to meet and join my cohorts (Gap students Emma from the UK and James from QLD and Principal of the junior school; Matthew McGucken)and have a cuppa (milo for me) by the fire.
The day consisted of swimming, swinging from a rope that had been tied to a gum tree, into the river, and going down a series of rapids on Lilo's (blow up mats) down the fast flowing river, promptly where I scraped the crap out of the upper portion of my legs, feet and toes on the pointy rocks. But it was all in good fun. Kids are great and always full of questions.
After two days at camp, we returned to Townsville to unload and I met Richard (David's good friend and owner of the house I would be house sitting for) and Rachael. I dumped all my gear off at his amazing beach house and we starting packing and purchasing goods for the trip to Papua New Guinea and the start of my second trek across the Owen Stanley's.
In the next few days we were back in Port Moresby, PNG and I was hugging all of my friends I had met from the first time I had gone there, only a few months ago. We zoomed around the city, paying park/trekking fees, purchasing food, arranging pick-ups and other jobs I would need to know for the times when I will be setting the trips up myself. We then welcomed the clients into the world of PNG and Melanesian time(usually quite an adjustment for on-time Aussies). Every area has it's own pace, usually extremely slow.
We started out on the trip with a tour into the Bamona War cemetary outside of Port Moresby. We got to spend some time walking around and looking at all the stunning white marble rows crosses. Thousands of Australians that were buried here after the war clean up, many only 18yrs of age. David and I lit an incense for Larissa (his daughter who was killed last year by a drunk driver) and had a prayer for her and all the men and the one woman who lost their lives.
Next we headed out on the scary drive up the range, by the power dam (Port Moresby is totally powered by water energy)and up to the famous "Owers Corner" where our trek would commence.
posted by jannahsworld at 10:19 am
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