Adventures Cross Country received this essay from Jessica Aronson for our Summer of a Lifetime essay contest and we were all moved by her essay and thought you would be too!

I was a blur of color as I flailed my arms wildly in my fluorescent tie-dyed t-shirt and traditional floral sarong, attempting to follow the angelic Thai dancers. I longed to master their smooth movements and gentle twirls, but continued to stumble as my feet wove and twisted in an attempt to imitate the complicated steps. My inability to understand the beautiful dancing custom distanced me from the culture, as I felt completely lost. However, as we danced throughout the night, my perspective of our differences was transformed, allowing me to cross the bridge of cultures.

On our last night at Kenoi, a tranquil Thai hill tribe where I spent a week volunteering with a dozen American teenagers, the villagers planned a celebration full of traditional Thai dances. My companions and I climbed the splintering wooden steps to a small plateau, where the ceremony was held, and were guided to dusty lawn chairs, surrounded by dozens of villagers sitting on the damp grass. I felt like we were royalty, perched on thrones as we were presented with various embellished Thai outfits from each of the tribes. I watched the villagers on the floor, whose piercing black eyes stared curiously back, and was disturbed by the sense of superiority that came with the privilege of sitting in the plastic chair.

As we observed each tribe demonstrate their unique traditional dances, I led the bravest of my group to the center of the verdant dance floor to join the heavenly performers. I much preferred being a part of the Thai culture than watching from a distance, even if it meant dancing as ridiculously as my eight-year old brother on Christmas morning.  However, despite my former incompetence in mastering the various wrist-flicks and toe-taps, I became relatively skilled in the art of Thai dancing after the third performance. As I copied the elegant moves of the Thai goddesses, I observed the Americans and Thais absorbing the exuberance of the evening, and began to realize the parallels between our cultures’ simple pleasures. I could see the common unbridled joy for dancing and laughing as I spun throughout the crowd. Each step I danced led me across the cultural bridge, refining my understanding of our similarities.

After the sophisticated dances of the experienced women, fifteen of the village orphans presented a simpler performance. While the adult dances were calming, filled with fluid motions perfectly paced with the soft ripple of a deep drum, the orphans twirled with enthusiasm and energy. They hopped around the field, watching each other for clues as to what move was next. As I joined them, I was reminded of my kindergarten ballet recitals: a mob of carefree children prancing around joyously, not caring about where they were going. Suddenly, Zai, a shy Thai girl dressed in grungy, checkered shorts and a faded, threadbare sweatshirt, grasped my hand. I looked across the matted lawn, and watched as a multicultural chain of Americans and villagers linked together, holding each other’s hands and moving in unison to the vivacious beat. The performance had evolved from pleasant entertainment to a stimulating celebration of cultures, sparking unity between the seemingly incomparable worlds. At that moment we were one; we laughed from the euphoria of each other’s company, and cheered when anyone joined the circle of diversity. I, an American freckle-faced teenager, whose comfortable life and family had prepared her well for a successful future, was connected with those who had spent their whole lives in cramped bamboo huts. I had finally crossed the bridge of cultures, and was completely enthralled by our countless similarities. ~ Jessica Aronson

Sarah Dutton was one of our entries for our Summer of a Lifetime essay contest and we thought her essay was definitely worth a read!  Sarah was an alumni of our 31-day blue water adventure to Tahiti, Fiji and New Zealand last summer – she actually wrote this essay for her college applications.  Good luck to you, Sarah!  We think any college would be lucky to have you!  Read on and see why we thought this essay was noteworthy…

Sarah Dutton
Common Application Essay

I was in the ocean halfway around the world with fifteen people I had known for only nine days trying to breathe underwater. What the heck was I thinking?! I had a history of panic attacks and hyperventilation problems. I had just spent three long days in a hot classroom watching cheesy videos about scuba diving. I had seen children, teenagers, and adults frolicking underwater and diving like life was one, big, happy underwater picnic. But when placed into the situation myself, infamous butterflies fluttered into my stomach.

We drove to the dive site, and before I knew it almost everyone was ready to go. I rushed to get my equipment together as the nerves built up in my stomach. One of our instructors came over to help me get ready faster. He motioned for me to sit on the side of the boat and flip over backward to enter the water. I gave him my best “you have got to be kidding me” look. He ignored the look completely and flipped me over the side of the boat. I rushed up for air like a child learning how to swim. I’ll never forget the first time I breathed underwater. Breathing was so much harder than I thought it was going to be! Breathing in takes more effort than one would think, and breathing out is simply blowing bubbles, which threw me off completely because it was so different. And of course, the whole time I kept thinking to myself, “Don’t panic! You’ll hyperventilate and die!” which was the basic message I had gotten from the videos. As everybody rushed to go down, I reluctantly stayed on the surface and came up with reasons to get back on the boat.

As always when faced with extreme challenges, I began having an internal conversation with myself– the angel and devil on your shoulder kind of thing. I started comforting myself, telling myself that feeling uncomfortable wasn’t my fault; scuba diving was a strange, new, and potentially dangerous activity that I wasn’t familiar with. I didn’t have to scuba dive; in fact, there are tons of people in the world who choose not to! But the other part of me began yelling at that part, saying I was making excuses for myself and telling me to get over it.

Well, this battle lasted all day and actually went into the night when I recorded the day’s activities in my journal. “It’s just stressful being underwater because I love air so much. I just want to be able to do it. I have to. I HAVE to! Blah. It’s just so hard to breathe that it’s not fun, you know? I’m going to try harder tomorrow. I’m going to try harder and succeed tomorrow. I can do it.” ……Jeez woman, make up your mind!

Well, I had never conquered a challenge like this before. Prior to diving, I knew there was a pretty promising possibility of not earning my scuba certification, and I was okay with that. I thought to myself, “As long as I try, that’s all that matters.” I would have been okay with not scuba diving. But I realized that I didn’t want to be just “okay” with a decision. I didn’t want to try one day, have breathing be hard, and give up. Not earning my certification could have been enough, and usually it would have been enough, but this time I decided I was not going to let it be enough.

Day 11, July 8, 2009: The group dive. Today was the last day of our Fijian scuba-diving experiences. We sailed out to the middle of the ocean with nothing but a fantastic blue all around us. People began getting their gear on and flipping backward into the water. I flipped into the water and started tensing up. I could feel my breath shortening. The fear swarmed back into my body; I didn’t think I could do it. Again the internal conflict began: “I tried, I really did, but I just can’t do this. Some people can’t scuba dive, and it’s okay that I’m one of those people.” But that other part of me fought back with all its might. “No! Not this time! I need to scuba dive! I need to prove to myself that I can do this! I need to take this challenge and I need to conquer this fear. Never in my life have I done something like this before, and who knows when I will get the opportunity again. I need to do this to prove to myself that even when I’m sure I can’t, I can.”

And so guess what? I did. I descended down that rope and I went nineteen meters underwater.  I did it. I have never felt prouder than I did during those forty-five minutes. Scuba diving that day was a great accomplishment, and I hope it is the first of many. Now I know that when all hope is lost, when fear has overwhelmed my body, and when I’m sure that I can’t, I can. Thank goodness I tried again.

Always wanted to go to Europe but in a different way than traditional sightseeing?  Do we have the trip for you!  Our 28 day Southern Europe Multi-Sport adventure begins with a visit to the Parthenon and the Coliseum in Rome and kayaking around the Elba islands.  You will then backpack through the rolling hills of Tuscany to classic Italy, Cinque Terre.  From there, incredible whitewater rafting adventures in the Alps lead you to the highest peak in Europe, Mont Blonc.  Our  Southern Europe adventure will definitely leave your thirst for thrill-seeking and adrenaline quenched!

Read why the Southern Europe Multi-Sport Adventure is 28 days you will never forget!  Here is a blog from last year’s program, highlighting the end of their incredible journey, the stunning sights explored, and the wonderful friendships created.

A Strong Tour Finish!
A trip log from Southern Europe, 2009

After 8 days on trail our group has emerged and settled into Bourg Saint Maurice. We arrived during the same day as the 16th Stage of the Tour de France! The group gathered about 1km from the finish line of the stage and cheered on the competitors, especially Lance Armstrong. It was a great (and unexpected) finish to the Tour de Mont Blanc: During our 8 days the students had some reflective time to themselves where they had these thoughts (in no particular order):

Mike: “The backpacking through the Alps was one of the best experiences of my life. It is so something we will remember forever and every mountain we climbed was worth the view.”

Samantha: “The TMB was so neat walking through the villages in the valleys so secluded from the rest of the world. Each hotel was a great treat after a great day of hiking. The second to last and third to last days were the hardest but each step you knew you were getting closer to the top of the mountain, and once you were up there the views would make it so worth it!”

Chris: “We had so much fun being with each other and doing some awesome group activities. I had such a great time and I can’t believe it’s over. I’m really going to miss the mountains. I loved being in the Alps.”

Sarah: “This 8 day hike was one of the most amazing things I have ever done in my life. We had some long days and some points were challenging but together we made it through as a team. Nothing could stop us! The sights were amazing from the tops of mountains to the waterfalls coming off them to the valleys that never end. The refugios we stayed in were really unique, they all had different vibes to them. I love this trip and don’t want it to end.”

–Southern Europe 2009

Imagine having to stop in the middle of the road for a family of elephants crossing your path.  Or riding in an open-air bus while gazing at lions sunbathing, giraffes snacking on the highest tree branches and hippos cooling down in the water.  Now imagine that on this very same adventure, you are helping to improve the lives of children in school, repairing classrooms and creating soccer fields for the community.  All the while, you are bonding with a group of people who will impact your life forever, as you will impact theirs. 

That’s what our Tanzania Service ARCC Alumni did last summer – they opened their hearts and their minds to the people of Tanzania and came home with stories and experiences they will not soon forget.  Check out this awesome video that documents their adventure!

Lago Atitlan is an incredible freshwater lake situated in the highlands of Guatemala and surrounded by three cone shaped volcanoes.  It is quite the picturesque scene, the water and the volcanoes, the jungle around and of course the incredible colors of the Guatemala weavings all come together for an amazing image. 

We arrived to the town of Panajachel – called Pana – and met with our local guide Pablo, who promptly took us to the local boat dock to catch a boat to the surrounding towns.  The lake has 12 little towns or villages around it and each is unique in its own right. 

The town of San Juan was my favorite in that it is quite a small town – less then 2000 people – many of whom have organized themselves into cooperatives to work together in order to bring visitors to their small town.  They have several weaving collectives, where the women weave the famous Guatemalan colors, not only do they do the weaving but they also make the dyes from natural sources, for example the orange color is from carrots.  They showed us around and had the plants for each color growing right there. We also visited a collective where they make medicines from plants and an artisan gallery with amazing paintings. 

We were treated to a delicious lunch of a traditional bean soup served with mini-tamales followed by a traditional Guatemalan chicken dish, with rice, vegetables and of course the handmade tortillas that were being made right in front of our eyes.  The desert was sweet plantains in a chocolate mole sauce. Yum!

See some photos from the trip on our Facebook page!  Become a fan and get updates and deals on our 2010 trips.

Ellery & Brian are now in Guatemala, scouting a 2010 adventure!  Here is an update we received from Brian yesterday:

Hola from Guatemala!  Ellery and arrived yesterday after a long but pleasant journey.  The flight was a red-eye and we woke to the dawn breaking over a picturesque landscape below.  The Gulf coastline was flat and marshy here, the ocean invading to form lagoons.  As we flew further inland, the coastal flatlands gave way to steadily rising hills, reminiscent of Hawaii in both their steepness and vibrant foliage.  Eventually the hills showed their true origin, as volcanic peaks appeared, cresting the ridgeline.  There were several calderas, collapsed craters that had filled with murky wáter.  We even saw one that must have erupted in the recent past, as the forest below was drowned in its now-cooled lava, bare except for a few adventerous plant colonists, its cráter adorned only with a few wisps of cloud. 

We had a good overview of Guatemala from above.  Farms abounded and the terraced hills spoke the agrarian lifestyle that´s still very much alive here.  As we were landing I tried to ask my seatmate (an old woman who looked uncannily like my neighbor from back home) what was being grown, but she was busy muttering prayers under her breath!  ¨Thank God!¨ she exclaimed as we landed, and I couldn´t agree more.  We were finally in amazing Guatemala…

“The camels are not cooperating…there will be a delay.”  Those were the somewhat nerve racking words we heard as we were waiting for our camels to transport us to a Bedouin camp for a traditional desert meal.  Seems they were being a bit ornery and needed a little extra prodding to start their journey.  We finally climbed aboard the creatures and headed out of town into a desert canyon.  Riding was surprisingly easy….cross one leg in front of you around the horn and control the camel much like a horse, relax in the saddle and sway along with its hypnotic gate.

Our Bedouin lunch was spectacular….best meal in Egypt according to Zach.  We were all seated on cushions in the shade of a large thatched 3-sided building.  A light breeze wafted through as waited for lunch.

In the background, live Arabic music played on traditional Bedouin instruments.  We were served the obligatory sweet tea to start, followed by grilled chicken, Kofta (Egyptian sausage—delicious!), grilled vegetables and of course pita bread and hummus.  Our groups will spend 3 days with the Bedoins deep in the desert.  It will be an amazing experience for our teens.

Things we’ve seen and heard:

• A lone camel purposely walking down the streets of Dahab, apparently heading home on its own.
• Egyptian mini bus drivers need special training and papers to drive American and British citizens.  Seems the government is extra cautious that nothing untoward happen to these nationalities.
• The most frequently heard language in Egyptian Sinai is Russian. They arrive by the chartered planeload.
• The beaches along the Sinai Peninsula are 4-5 miles wide and hundreds of miles long.
• Egyptian Airlines seat row numbers start at row 20 and get higher.  Who knows what happened to seat row 1-19.

After a great visit to the city of Luxor, a much quieter version of Cairo with broad boulevards, a beautiful walkway along the Nile River and the staggeringly huge Karnak Temple, Zach and I flew to Sharm El-Sheik, perched at the southern tip of the rugged and mountainous Sinai Peninsula.  Flying in over the Red Sea, we could see miles and miles of turquoise blue waters, perfect for SCUBA diving.  It is easy to see why the Red Sea is reputed to be one of the best diving locations in the world.

A common pilgrimage in this part of Egypt is to climb to the top of Mt. Sinai to watch the sun rise.  (As a quick review for those of you who haven’t read the bible recently, Mt. Sinai is the mountain Moses climbed to receive the 10 Commandments from God. ) We caught the late bus and drove through half the night to reach the base of Mt. Sinai around 2am.   Our small group of international travelers was assigned the team name “Alaska”—that way if we got separated in the dark, our guide would simply yell “Alaska” and we’d head in his direction–and we started the 2 ½ hour trek to the top.

After 30 minutes of hiking through rugged boulder-strewn canyons in the pitch dark (and frequent calls of “Alaaaaaska”), we suddenly started hearing these strange guttural sounds.  Instantly dozens of huge “boulders” inches away from us all started growing…and moving…and swaying.  In the ambient light we realized we were hiking through a Bedouin camel park and we were in the midst of hundreds of camels….none too happy to have us get so close.  It was all a bit surreal…Egypt, Sinai, Moses, Camels.

Our arrival at the summit was punctuated by the chanting of monks, a strong reminder that this was one of history’s and religion’s most sacred sites. The sunrise was spectacular.  It was stunning watching the Sinai desert come to life far beneath us.  All in all, a very mystical experience for a couple of pretty cynical guys. 

Things we’ve seen and heard:

• You drink tea with every meal, negotiation, meeting, and get together.  We were even offered tea when we were buying goods at the little knick-knack shops.
• Rule of Negotiation in Egypt.  Once a price is given, counter with 10% of that price and then be pleased if you end up at 60-70% of the original price.
• Camel carcasses litter the desert.  Sad to see them along the sides of the desert roads.
• Karnak Temple in Luxor is so massive and huge that St. Peter’s in Rome would fit inside of Karkak. It was build by the pharoahs to dwarf the common man…and it does.
• An airport security screener sound asleep with his head resting on a roll of toilet paper resting atop the X-ray keyboard.  We had to wake him up to pass security.

Check out the latest photos from Scott and Zach from their scouting adventure in Egypt.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=127358&id=48114747508&saved#/album.php?aid=127358&id=48114747508&ref=mf

Street crossing is an Olympic sport here.  Crosswalks are pretty much nonexistent, so it is not unusual to see people walking across 6-8 lanes of speeding traffic.  Imagine standing on the lane lines on an interstate highway while cars whoosh by at 60mph on either side of you and you’ll get a sense of what it is like to cross the street in Cairo.  It basically becomes a game of chicken:  can/van/truck vs. pedestrian.  Obviously a vehicle wins, but there is big trouble for the driver if a car hits a citizen so things have struck a nice balance.  To cross the street, we’ve found it best to tuck behind a local and do exactly what they do…works like a dream.

We spent Thursday night exploring the local souk or street market.  Thursday night starts the weekend in the Muslim world and it was absolutely NUTS!  The souk was jam packed with thousands and thousands of Cairo’s citizens, all tightly crammed in the rabbit warren like streets and alleys as they shop, explore, bargain, shout, and enjoy the start to their weekend.   We’d often be stuck in pedestrian gridlock, packed shoulder to shoulder with everyone pushing with no one moving at all, when suddenly there’d be a commotion ahead and one, or two or three delivery boys with teetering dollies topped high with 100 lb. bags of rice or spices try to muscle through the impossibly tight wall of bodies.  Shouting, cajoling, pleading would follow and somehow they’d get through…but it was all pretty crazy.

I love trains, and train stations, in developing countries.  We took the overnight train out of Cairo to the city of Luxor.  In Egypt, there are 2 types of trains:  the Locals train and the Tourist train, but everyone leaves from the same station. The Cairo train station is a wonderful mix of people, sights and smells.  The platform is a buffet of local color with men dressed in long flowing robes and the women in gowns and headscarves, all waiting for their train.  It is hard not to imagine how different this commute is from all those parents waiting to take the train home in Chicago or New York.

One of the most frequently asked questions prior to our visit was “How safe is Egypt”?  I can honestly say that I’ve never felt safer than on any other trip I’ve made.  We’ve been in slums, out late at night, traversed Cairo and Luxor by foot and I never once felt threatened, never had a hard stare from anyone, never even felt nervous.  I’m not sure if it is a Muslim thing or an Egyptian thing ….probably a bit of both.  Stealing is very “bad form” in the Muslim world.  Plus, Egypt’s largest employer is the police force and “tourist police” are
everywhere, the Egyptian respect for authority keeps everyone on their best behavior.

Though I’m always concerned about petty theft when traveling in developing countries, it doesn’t seem to be an issue here. Egyptians won’t steal from you, but they will figure out some way to come between you and your cash….they just do it upfront and face to face, instead of snatching your purse.  Egyptians are notoriously good at business and negotiations….whether it is the kid selling trinkets on the corner or the hotel clerk trying to sell you a trip to the Pyramids.  Even though they won’t pick your pocket, it sure seems like they have after you’re done negotiating with them.

Some things we’ve seen:

• Many Egyptians drive at night with their headlights off unless absolutely necessary.  They think it saves battery life.
• The desert culture persists to this day, even in Cairo.  Shops are open early in the morning and are closed in the middle of the day. They reopen late afternoon and stay open well into the night.  It all stems from the pre-air conditioning days when desert people did business during the cool hours of the mornings and evenings.
• There was an Egyptian guy on our flight that was “Mr. Fashion”…all duded up…and wearing bright orange soccer cleats.
• Flying over the desert it is odd to see a major highway suddenly disappear into sand, only to reappear 4-5 miles later.
• If you are going to buy a camel, get a Sudanese one….they are much more robust than the Egyptian models.

We uploaded some photos from our trip to our Facebook Fan page.  Check them out at http://tinyurl.com/ykfgqjr.