Fiji 2024

 Aloha families  Today was our day three in the village. We had two more dives today on the outer reef which were pretty amazing. The current was very strong but the coral and abundance made it all very worth it. We saw lots of bucket list fish like sting rays and lion fish. Its a totally different ecosystem then what we have at home which is making this an incredible experience. During our down time today we did other activities like hermit crab racing which was very fun to watch, and we also took advantage of the low tide and did some tide pooling. This was a very fun experience we managed to see lots of different shrimps and crabs along with other fish and eels. This trip has already been one that I will never forget and I’m very excited for the next couple days. Dylan

   Vibrant - different - exciting - new - warm  We completed two dives yesterday - a checkout shore dive where students learned the gear, practiced some skills and our instructors Sara and Matthew learned us as divers! Our second dive was off of a boat learning about coral morphology! Internet is slow so only including a few photos! Laura

 On a trip without our phones, disconnected from the internet, we have been playing a lot of games. Upon getting through security in Kona, we quickly asked around to see who had brought a deck of cards. Sat down in the airport we played a couple rounds of go fish. During our layover in Honolulu, cards were broken out again, this time for spoons—pens being substituted for spoons. Olivia also taught the group to play Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza. Both games incited laughter and joking and were just what we needed to keep us all awake! Now, being in the village, we are continuing to play uno and other card games. Emma is even teaching us to play Texas Hold ‘Em! That being said, we are also learning to play Fijian games with our host families! Emma, Kela, and my family have taught us to play a game similar to pool and air hockey. In this game, circular chips are set in the middle, and we all slide a larger chip to the middle it try and hit the chips into holes at each corner of the squar...

After a long flight, our group arrived in Savusavu. We were welcomed at the airport with our hosts from Ocean Ventures, Sara and Matthew.  They brought us to a local restaurant right on the ocean for a delicious meal.  We enjoyed eggs and French Toast while taking in an incredible view of blue green mountains and a harbor filled with sailboats.  Before departing the group changed into our village clothes, where we put on colorful sarongs, and covered our shoulders with t-shirts. We loaded into two vans and began the 1.5 hour drive to our village.  For some of us it was a new experience driving on the opposite side of the road.  We were impressed with how lush the scenery was and saw some familiar plants that also grow in Hawaii.  We arrived to Vusaratu Village just before lunch and were warmly welcomed by the villagers. After setting down our bags, we were invited into the community space for a welcoming ceremony.  It was difficult to understand what w...

 Due to inclement weather we made a pit stop in Samoa! Luckily they were able to accommodate everyone on the second flight so we are all together!  Everyone in amazing spirits! A few photos from our final flight to Savusavu!