August 2, 2015

Blog post from August 2nd:

For those of us coming from Baltimore, our day started in the dark when we met at Webs' house a little before 5:00am. We were all very tired, but super excited and eager to start the trip. We  hopped on the bus bound for the DC airport, still a little in awe that by the afternoon, we'd be in Winnipeg meeting the Kelvin students. An hour and a half later, we had our tickets and were through security. We had a little while to wait before our plane boarded, which we filled by playing lots of cards and getting some early morning snacks. 

We made it through to Toronto and then to Winnipeg, with only a small scare of lost baggage which was quickly found. At the airport, we were met by Miguel and Shannon from Kelvin High School. The trip became more and more real as the day went on and we went around Winnipeg. A little while later, we got to meet arctic researchers Jim and Jane Roth and spend some time at their house to relax before dinner. Some of us went off to shop for groceries, while the rest stayed to watch Amazing Race Canada and play with the Roth's feisty guinea pig, Patches. 

We met the Kelvin students at Miguel's parents' house, where we had pizza and played a lot of ice-breakers. It was awesome to finally meet them and see all the people with whom we'll get to spend the next two weeks. After getting to know each other and making some fantastic and hilarious poems and raps, we doled out group gear and talked all together about what we wanted from the trip and questions we still had. We headed out after dinner with a couple different families for homestays, but bright and early tomorrow, we'll all reconvene at Kelvin to begin the drive to Thompson and the rest of the trip!

-Leah Genth, The Park School of Baltimore