Turtle Tagging and beyond

Author: James H.
Location: Cane Garden Bay, Tortola
This morning we woke up to oatmeal. It was a good start. Next, we all learned how to drive the dingy. We practiced man overboard drills steering and tying on to the boat. At about 10, we raised the anchor and motored over to Brewer's Bay, which is shallow and has clear sandy water with scattered reefs around it. We dropped anchor and began turtling. We saw no turtles but a few big barracuda swam by along with the seldom tarpin. We ate chicken salad and went back out. The ActionQuest shipmates spotted three turtles so we chased them and ended up catching one. We tagged him, released him, and got ready to motor to Cane Garden Bay. Once we arrived we found a good anchoring spot, dropped anchor and started making dinner. We had Thai Peanut Chicken. We all had a good day but it was very tiring.

Volunteering and Chinese Calligraphy

Author: Caroline R.
Location: Beijing
This morning we split into three groups: two people went to the market/cooked, some went to the baby home, and some worked with the younger group home children. The baby home volunteers got to experience "bath day" at the home, while the volunteers with the group home children got to walk to a local park. The group home children were very happy to go to the park, and especially to ride on an amusement park type train. We came back to the apartment for a lunch of spaghetti, then Brent taught us about Chinese language before a lesson in calligraphy. Ben had a natural talent for calligraphy, and enjoyed the taste of the ink. Callie and Caroline went to the baby home in the afternoon, and enjoyed extra laughs with the babies. We had our Lifeworks forum before dinner, and discussed what community service means to us. We went to our usual restaurant tonight, and enjoyed competitive eating and humerous conversation.
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Soccer Against the Ticans

Author: Shanell and JJ
Location: Picagres
We were all tired after a long weekend at the beach but we pulled it together to finish the last bit of floor and to begin the insulation of the building. Between the laborious activities we managed to challenge the high school students to a game of futbol. The fairness of the teams was mistaken as we were quickly dominated by the large mass of lightening quick Ticans. Despite the inevitable loss we managed to keep their side of the scoreboard under double digits. We were also rewarded with delicious crepes before the return home.
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A day at the park

Author: Everyone
Location: Manuel Antonio
This morning we had pancakes at breakfast. They were so delicious!! Afterwards we took a short ride to the National Park where we saw wild monkeys up close and sloths! Some of us even got to have a shower underneath a waterfall and cool off. Later on that day we went to the beach. The waves were not as intense as the beach from the day before but fun anyways. Devin got buried in the sand by everyone and we made a giant turtle out of sand. We also attempted to undo a human knot which was very hard. On the way out of the park we got coconust from a cart...it tasted very interesting. We had a nice 4 hour bus ride back to the hotel through the jungle.
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Baby Love and Summer Palace

Author: Samantha S.
Location: Beijing
Today everyone spent the day showing "Baby Love" at the Holy Family Home. We split up into three groups; one group worked with the infants and younger babies, the second group worked with the toddlers, and the third group helped sort and organize donated clothes. We all rotated every hour so we had a chance to do everything. As usual, the kids were adorable! They were all so excited to see so many people moving about the home. When I was working with the toddlers my heart nearly melted when Mae-mae fell asleep in my arms - it was so precious! After helping with the kids, we headed back to the flat for hot dogs and some rest before our excursion. Some people took naps, but about half of us engaged in a rather competitive game of Uno. Who knew cards could be so rough? It was a blast though, with plenty of laughs. At around 2 o'clock Brent and Thomas came by to fill us in on our daily "Sinotoid" and "Sinotruth." Brent shared some background information about the Summer Palace, and then we were off to witness it for ourselves. The palace was enormous and the buildings were fantastic; we couldn't even imagine having a home like that for summer vacations! Most of us tried our luck with steering the paddle boats around the lake, which was great fun. After a few hours, we made our way back to the bus and headed back to the compound for dinner. On the way, Thomas taught us (or attempted to teach us!) Chinese tongue twisters! Once we got back, we all took a walk over to a nearby restaurant and had a delicious Chinese meal. After dinner we returned to the flat for our first Lifeworks forum, where we focused on our goals for the trip and thought about how we will achieve them. Now that the forum is over we all have our cell phones back for a little while so we can call back home (and make everyone a little jealous :-P) before we get to bed.
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More turtle tagging

Author: Jon D.
Location: Summer's Bay, Tortola
The day was so much fun. We did a different type of turtle tagging today. Instead of jumping out of a boat head first, we were towed behind a boat. It was a large team effort, but so much fun. Being towed behind the boat a great for seeing coral reefs as well. There were a lot of cool fish! Overall, we caught 3 turtles. It was a lot harder than jumping out of a dingy boat, but more rewarding when we finally caught the turtles. We also had a beach BBQ later that night which was really fun.

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Samantha Sawan from Beijing

Today everyone spent the day showing “Baby Love” at the Holy Family Home. We split up into three groups; one group worked with the infants and younger babies, the second group worked with the toddlers, and the third group helped sort and organize donated clothes. We all rotated every hour so we had a chance to do everything. As usual, the kids were adorable! They were all so excited to see so many people moving about the home. When I was working with the toddlers my heart nearly melted when Mae-mae fell asleep in my arms – it was so precious! After helping with the kids, we headed back to the flat for hot dogs and some rest before our excursion. Some people took naps, but about half of us engaged in a rather competitive game of Uno. Who knew cards could be so rough? It was a blast though, with plenty of laughs. At around 2 o'clock Brent and Thomas came by to fill us in on our daily “Sinotoid” and “Sinotruth.” Brent shared some background information about the Summer Palace, and then we were off to witness it for ourselves. The palace was enormous and the buildings were fantastic; we couldn't even imagine having a home like that for summer vacations! Most of us tried our luck with steering the paddle boats around the lake, which was great fun. After a few hours, we made our way back to the bus and headed back to the compound for dinner. On the way, Thomas taught us (or attempted to teach us!) Chinese tongue twisters! Once we got back, we all took a walk over to a nearby restaurant and had a delicious Chinese meal. After dinner we returned to the flat for our first Lifeworks forum, where we focused on our goals for the trip and thought about how we will achieve them. Now that the forum is over we all have our cell phones back for a little while so we can call back home (and make everyone a little jealous :-P) before we get to bed.

Volunteering and Lama Temple

Author: Beth
Location: Beijing
After waking up and having breakfast today we had our first regular day. Some went and visited the babies and others went to the group homes to spend time with some of the toddlers and older children. I went to the younger group home where there were eight children. Out of all of them there was only one girl and she was by far the most forceful of all of them. She introduced all of the boys and continuously came up to all of the volunteers to show us her work. After we attempted to teach them some american children songs which didnt really work. We taught them some english words by pointing to objects and saying them in english and having them repeat them. After this we took the kids to the park. Soon after that we left and had lunch back at the apartment while some people enjoyed playing their iPod in the speaker. After this we went to the Lama temple which was Buddhist temple. The architecture was beautiful but it was so hot out that we spent the last 20 minutes sitting in the shade eating ice cream. We then came home and ordered in chinese food and chilled for the rest of the evening.
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Play day!

Author: Andy C.
Location: Muskmelon Bay, Guana Island
Today was our day off after 12 days of service for the BVI's. The day started slowly with everyone refusing to wake up, but realizing that duties had to be done. Staff meeting at 8 am meant that Bigorneau was all to ourselves. With many waiting for the total chaos and anarchy involving loud music and jokes, the result was unexpected. Though the catamaran was rocking with great decibels the shipmates were in harmony and productivity was at it's paramount. We even fit in the song "I'll make a man out of you" from the Mulan soundtrack. Oh! It was Jack's birthday today! Happy Birthday! He received numerous wishes and through the radio too! We docked at Marina Cay and spent time calling our parents and/or friends. Then we set sail for Muskmelon Bay, the water around us was crystal clear and we passed through one of the prettiest channels here in the BVI. Hannah was telling us about the "dance party" the ActionQuest sailors had, and the girls on our boat were fired up to have our own dance party. While they were dancing, three yachts passed by. With the girls on their heals and grooving to the music, the counterpart yachts waved, cheered or even danced along with the girls. Setting anchor was extremely difficult today. After a couple times of motoring in circles, we were finally able to anchor our boat in the best location. The afternoon was spent pico sailing, which is known for easy capsizing, and wakeboarding. Everyone enjoyed the activities today and we celebrated the night with a cake for the birthday boy. The least thing we did as a group was watch a documentary about the nature in the BVI which happened to be a rare item.

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Manuel Antonio

Author: Josh and Kayley
Location: Pacific Coast
After a long night we were able to sleep for the almost 5 hour bus ride to the beach. On the way we saw wild crocodiles in one of the rivers. After lunch we hit the waves. We had a lot of fun surfing, body surfing and playing soccer. We are so tired from the day that we must now go to bed. Sorry this blog didn't rhyme. Goodnight.
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Babie Lovin' and Great Wall of China

Author: Ben T
Location: Beijing
Lucky me. I get to write the first blog. To begin with, the first night was difficult thanks to the time change, because I kept thinking about how I would normally be wide awake doing something with my friends back in NY.
Today was the first day we actually got to see the orphans. During Brent's speech he told us to observe how the nurses hold and handle the babies. One thing Brent stressed a lot was to not hold the premature baby, because it was so little at 2.5 pounds. When we got to the orphanage, my first impression was that it was clean and it seemed like a nice environment for the children. As soon as Leah and I walked into the room with the premature baby, there was a nurse holding the little girl out gesturing for us to hold her. At first, Leah was unsure what to do, but ended up giving into the beautiful little girl as she lifted her from the nurses hands, absolutely shocked at how light she was. That one baby soon became her favorite as she nicknamed her Elizabeth (a big name for a little girl). As for me, I wanted to wait until the next day to hold such a fragile baby.
I turned my attention to a young girl about 1 or 2 who had a heart defect and was on oxygen 24/7. She was really great to interact with. My favorite part about her was that when she got excited, she would pound her leg against her rocker and smile. My nickname for her now is "thumper".
The other orphan I felt a connection with was about 3 or 4, and as soon as I walked into his room he greeted me with a big smile and a wave. This made me feel really good. To the delight of the girls on our trip from Chicago, this little boy was wearing a Jayden or Derrick Rose Chicago Bulls jersey. After a short time at the orphanage, it was time for us to leave. Although we spent little time with the two orphans the first day, I felt it was a good starting point for both of us and the young children.
Next on our agenda we were going to what Brent says is the nicest, but steepest part of the Great Wall of China. As soon as I laid eyes on the wall I got very excited, because I have always been fascinated with architectural structures. Most of us brought a backpack with some supplies in it, but all I brought was a water bottle, my camera and my hiking legs (boy was I gonna need them). With every watch tower that I reached, there was another one to be reached ahead. After about 45 minutes of labor, Stephanie and I finished the long trek to the end- and for what I could see it was the highest point of the wall. Reaching the top of the wall was a little bitter sweet. Sweet in that we accomplished something great and that we had a marvelous view. Bitter in that there was no elevator to greet us at the top and take us down. As a few of us were walking down we met an Indian man half way down. The first thing this man asked us is if we are American. We replied YES and he told us that Michael Jackson had passed away today. Our initial reaction was that we were thinking of different Michael Jacksons, so we asked him if it was the Thriller guy. He replied Yes and started singing Beat It. After we left this man, we believed he was just pulling our legs. It was not until I talked to my mom and she confirmed his death that I believe it. Anyway, after the hike I was very proud to say that I climbed the Great Wall of China.
Lastly, once we got back to our compound we all went to the local food shop and bought some snacks and ice cream. I decided to be adventurous and buy corn flavored ice cream. I personally was not a big fan of it, because if I wanted to taste corn I would have bought corn. Everybody seemed to be fond of the corn flavored ice cream and said they will most likely have it again. I am looking forward to many more fun filled days in Beijing with a great group of people.
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Beach Clean up

Author: Sara E.
Location: Marina Cay
Everyone besides the chefs and the skipper today were very lucky to get to wake up at 7:50, the latest morning yet. After the chefs put some elbow grease into delicious cinnamon pancakes, we ate breakfast then started our day. When we heard we were going to Cam beach, we were thankful for the cooler weather. Two minutes after setting foot on the national park, we learned that the morning weather was misleading. After cleaning the beach we saw 3 barracudas while some of us went snorkeling off boat. While people cleaned the galley Anmargaret, Ali, and I took Argo, a really fast boat, down to shore to throw the trash out. While the boat ride was fun, throwing the trash in the dumpster was not. When we came back the day began to settle down and dinner was on the stove. In the meantime some people took shower in the ocean. After dinner we cleaned the dishes and headed for a speech forum on shore.

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Some hard work and a spiritual adventure

Author: Group collaboration
Location: Picagres High School and Juan Sanchez
Starting with the same work as the day before, we lifted, mixed, and shifted even more and gifted with some tico talent cement was laid, we weren't paid but that's okay cause we're here for community service anyway. As we enjoyed lunch the watermelon employed crunch and bugs annoyed us a bunch. As we headed on way to continue the beautiful day. Once we reached our destination, we had to embrace our imagination....to open our minds to the guarni nation. As we left the bus, a new friend came to us. At first it was all good and then O-tip (the puppy) wandered into the wood. But enough about the dog, we learned about the gods. Then it was time to go home.
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Turtle Tagging at its fines

Author: Anmargaret W.
Location: Anegada
After listening to all of the comments during reflection time before dinner, I think it is safe to say that today was the best day yet. The chefs Danielle and Andy, woke up early to prepare cheesy eggs and poppy seed muffins, which were delicious. We had a fun time singing along to my ipod's warey wakey playlist and waking others up for the day. After breakfast and a fast clean-up, we headed out to the local Anegada fisherman's wharf. In groups of 4 or 5, the whole team rotated between turtle collecting and turtle tagging. The first boat comprised of Sophie, Sara, Andy, Taylor and Jack. Sara and Andy each caught a turtle. You may thing that two turtles is not many, but you probably do not understand the difficulty that comes with catching a turtle. First, the turtle must be spotted. Rocks, clumps of seaweed, skates and lemon sharks, while interesting, only make the search for turtles more difficult. Once the turtle has been located, it must be chased around in the skiff. Surprisingly, turtles are extremely fast. Alex, a local from Anegada who is an expert turtle tagger, helped to find turtles. After about 5 minutes of chasing, the turtle becomes tired and begins to swim in small circles. This provides the people in the boat an opportunity at catching a "slow turtle". The second boat consisted of Danielle, Emily, Allison, Megan, Hannah and myself. We caught 4 turtles and saw many skates and 1 questionable Bull shark. The last boat included Jamie, Torin, Zandy, John, and Matt. They brought in 6 turtles, bringing the group total to 12. To tag the turtles, we had to put them on their backs so they would not crawl around. We would take multiple measurements, take notes about their shells, tag each of their front fins, and inject them with a microchip so they can be easily tracked. My favorite adventure of the day was when Ali, Danielle, Megan, Emily, and I herded a turtle into the shallows so that Emily could catch her first turtle. Names of turtles included Verde, Old Bay, Bubbles, Rafiki Bonaparte Warner, and Prince Charming. After the catch and release project, we sailed to Marina Cay near Beef Island, ate a delicious Summertime Thanksgiving dinner, made brownies and relaxed on the boat.

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China

Author: Admin
Location: China

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Iguana Rehabilitation Center

Author: Emily L.
Location: Anegada
Today was a fantastic day in my opinion. Rising at 6:30 to prepare breakfast, we packed our stuff and got ready to head to the Anegada Rock Iguana Rehabilitation Center. The sole purpose of the center is to give Iguanas a safe environment to grow up in away from predators. When grown, they are let out into the wild and are able to fend for themselves. This facility has helped conserve the population of Iguanas in the BVI's because less have died and been hunted. Since most people in the BVI's operate on "Island Time" the man in charge of the facility was about an hour and a half late to meet us. We didn't mind. Our group took the free time to relax and have a fun and in-depth conversation about what is more important: the environment or the economy. When we finally got started, our first task was to clean the Iguana plates and then prepare their lunch. Anmargaret and I looked into the barrel of food tentatively. We were told to add water and transform the ball-like flakes into an oatmeal consistency. We both tasted it and it tasted like Grape Nuts cereal. After forming the mixture, Anmargaret, Sara, Allison, and I decided to get creative and assemble the food in star-shapes, hearts, swirls, etc. After this service activity, we went into town and ate a yummy lunch (that we didn't have to make). Wooo! We were given until 3 o'clock to eat hang out on the beach and snorkel according to what we were in the mood to do. I spent most of this time goofing around and sharing laughs with Danielle. The relaxation ended when Hannah STEAMROLLED me in the sand. Someone needs to teach her some manners :) . At 3, we all took a cab back to the dock where we were allowed to call home and go to gift shops. There was a local BVI kid who had two baby bunny rabbits that we all played with. They basically were the size of my own two hands! Coming back to the boat an hour before the sunset, we had some time to kill before dinner was started. Torin toke Danie and Anmargaret to learn how to drive the dingy. They were gone for ages exploring the nearby waters. The others took showers and chilled on the catamaran. It is easy for the group to just chill together, because now the trip is half way done we are past our awkward stages and we all goof around together. The sixteen o f us on the boat have become such a tight knit group, every one contributing their own unique qualities. Dinner was served around 7:30, Chicken Caesar Salad, Corn and Rice. The chefs of the day, Allison and Sara, did a beautiful job preparing the meal. We gobbled the food quickly after having a long discussion spewed from my two skipper questions: What was your favorite part of the day and who is the most influential person in your life. After dinner, me, Danielle, and Sara had a fun time practicing some dance moves and seeing if rice would float (it doesn't). What a fun day!!

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Day Two ...4 shovels, 10 ambitious souls and a whole lotta mud

Author: A group effort
Location: Picagres and Santa Ana
As the dawn cracked, Devin clapped...as we walked into the breakfast area we were greeted with some very interesting papayas. After a bumpy curvy ride through the jungle, we finally arrived at Picagres High School. Mixing cement for the floor of the new cafeteria, turned out to be much harder than we thought. After lunch, we experienced our first Tico fiesta... as the awkward Americans filed into the dance room, we were greeted by Ticans whose beauty shined like beacons... obviously because they were Costa Ricans. As we returned to the work force we burned calories without remorse. As all of us took a slip, Kayley decided to take a dip. All of a sudden it started raining cats and dogs and we found ourselves sopping through the mud like hogs. As we were on the bus some tragic news came to us, Micheal Jackson our dearest friend had come to a sad and horrible end. As we left our coche we were greeted by a happy Noche (the dog). Late at night we gave our props as our bonds and friendships grew like crops.
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Trash Scavenger Hunt Explodes

Author: Megan P.
Location: Anegada
First of all, HAPPY BELATED FATHER'S DAY, from all of us on Bigorneau! We woke up a little later today (7 am), because of the dance last night. After a quick docking to fill up on water and take out the trash, we went on our longest sail yet (3 hrs) to the very pretty and flat island of Anegada. On Anegada, we split up into 3 groups and walked different beach areas for the trash scavenger hunt. Jack's team won after a lengthy debate over who had the most unique extra item. They found a working smoke flare, but they won because they actually set it off! The video of it was pretty cool. Torin's team was in a close second after finding an old computer monitor. So, after all of those shenanigans, we returned to the boat to find Mike inside our locked boat getting a head start on Mexican Night. With his help, we had a speedy dinner. Finally, we did a lifeworks forum, with really interesting black and white postcards. Overall, today was relaxed and the hikes were a lot more fun now that I look back at them.

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Back in School

Author: Taylor L.
Location: Vixen Point, Virgin Gorda
Today we woke up and had French Toast for breakfast! It was delicious. Then we sailed to Spanish Town to go play with elementary school kids. We played different games, painted faces and beaded necklaces. It was cool looking at the ways the kids acted here and at back home. Tonight we had our first beach party and dance. We joined ActionQuest and it was a lot of fun.

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Virgin Island Search And Rescue Fund Raiser

Author: Danielle C.
Location: North Sound, Virgin Gorda
Today was an earlier day. It was extremely hot and became even hotter at the swimathon. My favorite part was definitely the frozen t-shirt contest. Everyone is given a frozen t-shirt and you have to race to get it unfrozen and then put it on. Even though I hardly got mine unfrozen, it was fun to even try. Another great moment was watching the other shipmates play with the little kids on the water raft. It was interesting how serious the kids got in taking out the girls. The whole day was enjoyable and I don't think I got sun burned, which made it great!

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A day with the Dogs

Author: Ali D.
Location: Road Town, Tortola
Road Town, Tortola
Today was really long and hot, but so much fun. We spend the whole day helping at the BVI dog show. Me, Anmargaret , and Taylor had to dress dogs up and actually walk them in the show. Sophie and Danielle were amazing at the BBQ. Sophie and her Spanish was crazy!! I think everyone had a really great time all day.

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Cleaning Copper Mines

Author: Matt
Location: Road Town, Tortola
We really had a good time cleaning the horribly polluted beaches at the Virgin Gorda Copper Mines. Today was a great day involving bonding over hilarious conversations during and after dinner. So far, today has been the most fun and I feel closer to my friends and shipmates.

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Spelunking at The Baths

Author: Zandy S.
Location: Pond Bay, Virgin Gorda
Today was a perfect day. The weather on the sea was almost perfect. The wind was blowing nicely. My favorite part of the day was going to see The Baths. I thought that was very cool.

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Snorkeling 101

Author: Sophie H.
Location: The Bite, Norman Island
Today we set sail to Norman Island for our first real day in the British Virgin Islands. We began our day with pancakes and then set sail to Norman Island. Upon arrival we began snorkeling at the surrounding caves. We ended our day with an evening talk under the beautiful starry sky.

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Finally off the Dock

Author: Jamie H.
Location: West End, Tortola
Today we all arrived. Most of us have been traveling since 5:30am. We are all very tired. We are still missing one crew member, but they should arrive shortly. Our crew seems very kind and welcoming. This looks like it will be a great journey.