A "native" Colorado kid, Karen grew up in Denver and Boulder. After trying to leave the state a few times, she decided that the Rocky Mountains were home and now lives in Steamboat Springs where she teaches at a local elementary school. When not busy with students, Karen gets outside as much as she can. 
A native “Kiwi,” Simon is an all-around sports enthusiast. He has been involved in a wide range of activities in New Zealand, including volunteering with the Onehunga Community and instructing with the Outdoor Education Camp of Motutapu Island. 
Alanna is delighted to be embarking on this journey back to the South Pacific with Global Works. She is from Cape Cod where she grew up playing soccer and running track year round. Her love of the outdoors drew her to attend school at the University Vermont where her degrees in Sustainable Community and International Development led her to a course in St. Lucia and a semester in New Zealand. Welcome Global Works travelers, parents and friends. We are excited to share with you trip updates from around the world. As our main office receives updates from the trips we will update the page as we receive news from the field.
The Australia / New Zealand Group has arrived safely and their trip is off to a great start! We will be posting in the next few days with further updates and photos. Stay tuned…
Update # 1:
After twelve hours on a plane we finally arrived in the legendary New Zealand, home of the Kiwis, and reached our first of many destinations, Auckland. During our first phone calls, one common parental question was, “How beautiful is it?” The only problem was we hadn’t left the airport! Once we made it through customs and out of the airport we stopped for gum boots (rain boots). By the time we arrived in Raglan, a town that a picture can’t do justice, we had already created bonds and friendships with members of the group. A day of adjustments for the time zone change was perfect as we got to relax and get to know one another better. After exploring the Karioi Lodge and surrounding areas, we enjoyed a delicious meal consisting of primarily food from a local organic farm and rested up for the next big day ahead.
On day two upon waking up we all suspected a great day was in store for us and it turned out to be true. The morning consisted of team building activities, including playing games such as the human knot. We then had a long meeting to go over trip expectations and then took a journey to a beach, where our jaws literally dropped in awe at the beauty. The beach provided us with many things to do such as: playing soccer, running, and exploring the rock formations and caves. We saw starfish and shells like we had never seen before. After the beach Karen lead us in a yoga session, and we enjoyed another good meal before watching a New Zealand film to get us prepared for the next day.
On day three we had an early start to an unforgettable day. When we arrived at the Raglan Area School, we hardly knew what to expect. Once we got there we were immediately greeted with open arms and a traditional Maori welcoming ceremony by the staff and children at the school. We then split into groups and got paired off with a student from the primary or intermediate school. They individually gave each of us a tour of the school grounds and the amazing view of the mountains and ocean surrounding it in all directions. We then got to work releasing native plants and weeding in the school citrus garden. After the school day closed we toured around downtown Raglan and went back to the lodge for an evening full of more team building.
The next day we headed to the school again in the early morning. Upon arrival we split into two service groups. One group worked in the horticulture garden area and the other group worked releasing native plants. We then had morning tea and participated in another welcoming ceremony for a group of students from another coastal NZ town visiting on a sports exchange. This time we were on the welcoming side, since we were already considered insiders by our hosts. After the ceremony we watched some of the sporting events with our Kiwi host students. We ended the day with a new understanding of how much went into their ceremony for us and how unique and interesting their native culture is. We enjoyed a quiet evening and wrote our host students “thank you” cards, before getting some rest to prepare us for our last day at the school.
Update #2 - (July 5, 2010)
Kia Ora from New Zealand again! We are having a great time and arrived safely yesterday to our new home for a week in the South Island in a town called Wanaka. But let’s back up…. last time we wrote we were in Raglan working with students at the Raglan Area School there. We had one more day of service there, and it was again a wonderful experience. We got to see some sports that they were participating in like rugby and netball and finished our work in the horticulture area. After another great day, we got to see another traditional Maori ceremony in the form of a goodbye this time. The Raglan Area School kids were really sad to see us go and we were sad to leave.
The next day we hung out at the lodge we were staying in for a little while in the morning and had time to do some more group bonding on the low ropes course and the flying squirrel (also known as a zip-line). We spent the afternoon at a local organic farm called Kaiwhenua talking with Kaiwaka- the Maori guy who runs the place. He was super interesting and told us some great stories as well as sharing a lot of information about organic farming. After that we ventured into town to explore Raglan a bit more.
The next day after a delicious breakfast of Milo cereal, scrambled eggs and other assorted yummy items, and after a group meeting, we drove to the nearby town of Hamilton to stock up on warm clothing. We then went on a short hike to Waireinga or Bridal Veil Falls and although the stairs to the bottom were tedious, the view of the waterfall was breathtaking. “Life’s a climb, but the views are great”- Miley Cyrus. We then drove back to our lodge and had dinner, and packed and cleaned rooms so we were ready for an early departure to Aukland the next day. Yesterday was a big travel day…. we had a van ride to Aukland, a wait in the airport, a short flight to Queenstown, and another van ride to Wanaka where we will be living for the next week. The views on the drive were amazing and Wanaka is spectacular. There are snow covered peaks all around us!
Update #3:
July 10, 2010 Although it has only been a few days, we have all been really busy! Here is what we have doing since we last wrote.
July 5, 2010: We started our day with an early wake-up for an eight o’clock departure from our new home in Wanaka. We were split into two groups, one went to an island and the other went to a waterside trail called Waterfall Creek working with a man named Andrew who works for the Department of Conservation. That group arrived in the bitterly cold morning with frost on the ground, disappointed that we couldn’t plant the frosted trees that we had planned to. Instead, we took a very relaxing hike along the trail overlooking the gorgeous lake with an island and snow-capped mountains in the background. Then we were split up into groups of three with big clippers. We chopped down huge weeds, the size of trees. This was a tricky and tiring yet extremely fun task. While trying to avoid the flying thorn branches, we were laughing, working together and finding out that some of us had more strength than we thought. It was great to feel the sense of accomplishment when we pulled out the trees. After this, our group walked down to see the gorgeous views on the beach of the lake, and took amazing pictures with our friends. It was incredible to take in all the beauty of the land at once. We then went to Andrew’s house where he had sheep and roosters outside. We got to go in and play with the animals, feed them and learn about them. This was such a fun experience and totally New Zealand. After arriving back to our rooms and meeting with the other group, we all took a trip to a nearby beach where the ate in the lake was so shallow that we could walk all the way out to the middle… it looked like we were walking on water. That was the end to a truly amazing day in New Zealand.
July 6, 2010: We had another physically demanding and rewarding day full of gorgeous views… as usual! The group split up again today and my half went to an island in the middle of Lake Wanaka. It is an island uninhabited by mammals and therefore there are lots of birds there. We got there on a boat driven by Chris, who we worked with today and immediately set to work clearing a non-native weed called bracken. We hiked our way up to the top of the mountainous island where we ate luck at an elevated glacial lake (beautiful!!) with a weka bird who we named Wall-e. It was foggy so we hiked up and around in order to fully appreciate the breathtaking views. On the way down, we stopped to plant four native trees. After that we met up with the rest of the group in Wanaka and ate dinner. We then went to a really cool indie movie theater that had couches instead of seats. Lots of people had the “famous” hot chocolate chip cookies during intermission (yes, intermission IN A MOVIE). We are all incredibly pumped about hitting the slopes tomorrow!
July 7, 2010: There is nothing like getting up in the freezing cold before the sunrise right? Wrong! Today we had to get up at 5:45AM. This wake-up call goes against one of my beloved mottos: “If the sun isn’t up, then I shouldn’t be either.” Karen disagreed arguing that the sunrise is beautiful sight only viewed if you are awake beforehand. Karen’s argument turned out to be void because many of us missed it anyway because we were inside the lodge renting equipment however the early wake-up turned out to be worth it. Everyone had a blast! A few people showed off their skills and others found that gliding down a showy mountain wasn’t as easy as it looks. Whether we were speeding down a black diamond, repetitively conquering the bunny hill or eating chocolate in the lodge, it was a fun, exhausting and rewarding day.
July 8, 2010: Today we headed up to Cardrona for our second day of skiing and boarding. Unfortunately, we headed up again at 6:45AM. When we went up we had lessons and then we were allowed to ski in groups on our own. We left at about 2:30. We stopped in Wanaka on our way home and after dinner quite a few of us headed out to a climbing gym to try something called clip and climb. It is something that they only do here in New Zealand and it turned out to be a lot of fun. We got to climb lots of different walls- ones with ropes coming out of them, ones with regular climbing holds, one that glowed in the dark, and one that had small tubes coming out of the wall. It was a fun evening for sure!
July 9, 2010: This morning we had a chance to split into two groups- some people went up for one last day of skiing which turned out to be great- they had great conditions and even some fresh powder! The rest of us went to Queenstown where we spent some time wandering around. The town and the mountains that surrounded it were gorgeous! It was next to a lake and we all walked around town, did some shopping, went on a gondola to the top of a mountain for amazing views, and generally enjoyed ourselves. It was another incredible day in New Zealand!
Update #4:
July 18, 2010 – WOW… The trip is flying by! We are now in Australia and have been here for almost a week now- lots to report!
Before leaving New Zealand, we drove to Mt. Cook from Wanaka. When when we got there, we got our stuff unloaded and went on a hike. We saw glaciers, glacial lakes and Mt. Cook (New Zealand’s tallest peak). The scenery was amazing! After the hike we had grilled cheese and soup for dinner and watched a rugby match on the television.
The next day we left spectacular Mt. Cook and headed to Christchurch at about 7:30 in morning. After a few hour scenic drive we arrived in Christchurch. We got settled into our hostel and headed out to explore the city. In groups we shopped in gift shops and clothing stores and walked all around exploring. We had an early dinner in town before heading back to get packed up and in bed early.
We awoke with bloodshot eyes and exhausted yawns from waking up at 3:00 in the morning. Though we were grumpy, the excitement outweighed the early morning wake up as we were finally in Brisbane. We arrived early after just a three hour flight. After getting settled into the place we were staying, we explored the city for the remainder of the day. Many of us found this a breath of fresh air as the places we had been staying had been more rural. It was good to be back in the city again. Others of us were a bit overwhelmed by all that was going on in the city, but it was warm and we spent the day soaking up the sun and enjoying the city. We were tired from our early morning and so after dinner (at which some of us sampled kangaroo meat- tastes like chicken), we went to bed early.
The next day was a bit of a later wake-up but for some of us, not late enough. We had breakfast and then it was off to Lonepine Koala Sanctuary. We were thrilled considering koalas and kangaroos are two animals you may never see anywhere else on the earth. Not only was it a lot of fun, but we learned all about the animals there. Did you know that koalas sleep for about twenty hours a day? What a life huh? Another cool aspect of this place was the interaction the people and the kangaroos had. We could feed them! We also got to see wombats, a cassowary, emus, a platypus, and lots of other indigenous animals. We left the park happy and fully satisfied.
Today we woke up and packed our bags for our next destination, Hervey Bay. The three hour train ride was pretty uneventful. When we arrived in Hervey Bay we checked into our hostel and took a walk over to the beach across the street. Some brave souls ventured into the cold water, while the rest of us stayed on the beach and played rugby, or walked around. We had Mexican food for dinner before packing up for Fraser Island.
We woke up early the next day and loaded the jeeps up for Fraser Island. Then we had a forty five minute ferry ride before arriving on Fraser Island. When we arrived we drove out on the windy, bumpy roads to a fresh water lake on the island; where we had an opportunity to swim and sun bathe. When we arrived at our lodge we were pleasantly surprised to see that we were staying in a place right by the beach with tent like rooms. We checked out the beach and were super excited to see some Dingos on our first night on the island!
Our next day out on Fraser Island we had breakfast and learned about the unique features of the island that make it a World Heritage Site. We also learned about the conservation work we were going to do over the next few days. Then we loaded up in the jeeps for a bumpy ride on the beach to our work site. That day, we worked pulling up morning glories, an invasive plant that will suffocate other plants around it. At lunchtime we stopped and ate lunch at picnic tables and saw some kookaburras, which we had just seen in a cage a few days earlier at Lonepine Koala Sanctuary. After a couple more hours of work we headed back to our lodge and had some time at the beach to play and/or relax.
We started our second full day out on Fraser Island with an 8:30 a.m. breakfast. We spent the day getting rid of unwanted trees in an area about thirty minutes away from our lodge. We worked in teams pulling and cutting down these plants. It was hard, but rewarding work. While we worked we entertained ourselves by telling each other riddles and playing games. After spending the majority of the day doing service work we headed back to the beach where we played active games that involved teamwork and strategy. After dinner we had a bonfire and roasted marshmallows.
Update #5:
Most of the group started the day with a walk to the beach at 6 a.m. to watch the sunrise. We then went back to bed for a little more sleep before breakfast. We all enjoyed toast and cereal for breakfast and then packed our bags and loaded the cars. After about a twenty minute drive up the beach, we arrived at a famous shipwreck. We took pictures and explored. Then we went to Eli Creek, and walked through the water; a tradition before leaving the island. We then caught the ferry off the island, and jumped on a bus for a three hour ride up to Agnes water. We unpacked and had a pizza dinner at a restaurant. After a long day of traveling we were all very excited to collapse into our new beds for the night!
We awoke today to a warm, sunny day in Agnes Water. After having a delicious pancake breakfast we took the short walk to town and spent the morning shopping and taking care of business (i.e., laundry, exchanging money etc.). It was nice and relaxing, and the locals were friendly and accommodating, as always. We returned to our motel, ate lunch, suited up and made the trek back into town to the surf shop. The rest of the day consisted of surf lessons and some surfing with our instructors. Surfing is much harder than it looks! By the end of the day we were all exhausted from paddling, but we all had a fantastic time. After surfing we went to a nice, big family dinner in town.
Most of the group woke up early expecting there was going to be good surf, but it was flat. Most people went back to bed, while others went into town. Later we all went down to the beach for the last day of surfing. Most of us jumped right into the ocean, and others sunbathed. After enjoying the waves for a good two hours everyone headed into town for a great lunch. We enjoyed the rest of the afternoon on the beach, then had dinner back at the motel. After dinner, we got packed up for Cairns and called it a night early.
We woke up at 5:15 and said goodbye to Agnes Water. We hopped on a bus to Brisbane, then boarded a flight to Cairns. Upon arrival in Cairns we got settled into our hostel and relaxed for an hour or so. We then headed into town to explore, eat some dinner, and see a movie.
The next day, we woke up at 8:30 for breakfast all packed up and ready to head to our next destination. We left at 10 for a two hour drive. At noontime we stopped for lunch in a nice little town, then continued on our way. We had to cross over a small river in the vans to get to the Daintree National Park. Once we reached our hostel, we had the option to go to the beach or relax in our rooms. We then had dinner, followed by a delicious apple crumble. After an exhausting day we were ready to head to bed early.
Update #6:
The last days of our fantastic trip are beginning to dwindle down. Today consisted of service work and fun! We woke up (most of us with the help of all the animals outside of our cabins making noise) and had a terrific breakfast, then quickly left for our day’s work. We arrived in a tourist site in Daintree National Park to do some service work. With Lyle and some other park rangers and volunteers, we removed weeds, sticks, and leaves from garden beds and constructed rock beds around them. Later on, we planted a bunch of trees and spread mulch. Hopefully, we will be able to come back here ten years from now and see how big the trees have grown! It was a hard day of work, but the it was also very rewarding. We finished the day very accomplished and tired out. That night, the brave souls in the group, took a three hour night walk through the rainforest. It was a relatively quiet night, but we saw lots of trees as well as some birds, frogs, enormous spiders, and other insects. It was a very fun ending to a successful day!
Today we got to sleep in and we woke up to a lovely breakfast at 10 a.m. We left to do service works shortly after. At Mossman Gorge we ate lunch and then got into planting trees and plants to improve the look of the park. After we finished our service work we went into Mossman, walked around and ate ice-cream. After we returned to our lodge it was dinnertime. After dinner we relaxed and got to bed early.
Today our youngest trip member, Dani turned 15! We also went scuba diving and snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef! The sights under water were truly incredible. We saw fish as small as our pinkie fingers, and as large as our legs, families of clown fish, baby sharks, sting rays, turtles and more! After the boat got back to the marina we had a chance to walk around Port Douglas and get dinner. When we got home we had cake to celebrate Dani’s birthday. It was a great way to end a memorable day!
The second to last day of our trip was truly bittersweet for many reasons. From a positive standpoint today was the last day of service work. It truly solidified what a positive impact we’ve made on the places we have worked; yet it was a relief to conclude all the physical work! It was tough coming to the conclusion that we would be going home in two days! We discussed our favorite memories from the trip and everyone has tremendous memories of unforgettable times on the trip.
