We're at the 60 day mark.
The countdown feels heavy in my heart at times. I'm excited - and yet have worries of not being as prepared as I want to be. I have to expect the last one.
We have resumed weighted training. I'll report more on this on the weekend.
Our boots are in. Reading is in full swing. More products are being purchased. The date is fast approaching.
I've returned to work - so I have been rather busy these last few weeks. My next update will be included over the weekend. There is still much to catch up on and people to thank!
In a blink of an eye, I'll be at the airport. :)
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Wolong reports...
...and all the Pandas are okay.
This sounds like a very strange thing to worry about - but there are only 16 Panda reserves in China - 11 of which are in the Sichuan Province which was ravaged by a terrible earthquake this Monday. For animal reserves that are trying everything they can to restore endagered species' populations - this type of natural disaster could have been devastating for these animals.
Unfortunately, the human death toll continues to climb as rescue workers push through trying to find more survivors. It took aid workers 36-48hrs to reach the epi-centre and begin their search.
Brent and I will be in the Sichuan province in the summer of 2009. I have a feeling that the clean up of the damage will not be complete by that time, so we might see reminence of the quake. When planning the Wolong part of our trip, I was reading about the drive from Chengdu to Wolong. It used to take 6 hours because of all the road construction. They had finally finished all the work and the drive was a more realistic 2.5 hours. At this point in time, I do not know if that roadway is passible or not. The damage of the quake showcased on the news has shown main roadways turned into impassible mountains of concrete and rock.
We're 74 days away.
This earthquake has got me thinking. Every single destination of our trip lies on active fault lines. New Zealand has earthquakes almost every day - check out their earthquake tracking site. One section lists the country's 30 most recent quakes. Most of which are between 3.0 - 5.0. In December 2007, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook the grounds of the North island and changed the face of one city. A lot of structural damage was reported, but thankfully only 11 people were injured. Unfortunately, one person did pass away - but it was due to a heart attack.
New Zealand is no stranger to stronger earthquakes, but thankfully they are not as frequent as their 'smaller trembles'.
Just something that crosses your mind when you are surrounded by the media's coverage of natural disasters around the world. I think we might spend some time in the smaller towns around Wolong to see how the towns are recovering.
I start work once again on Tuesday - thank you God!! This trip has a few upcoming financial obligations that will require a bit more funds.
Next post - the long awaited update of gear and where we're at with our planning.
This sounds like a very strange thing to worry about - but there are only 16 Panda reserves in China - 11 of which are in the Sichuan Province which was ravaged by a terrible earthquake this Monday. For animal reserves that are trying everything they can to restore endagered species' populations - this type of natural disaster could have been devastating for these animals.
Unfortunately, the human death toll continues to climb as rescue workers push through trying to find more survivors. It took aid workers 36-48hrs to reach the epi-centre and begin their search.
Brent and I will be in the Sichuan province in the summer of 2009. I have a feeling that the clean up of the damage will not be complete by that time, so we might see reminence of the quake. When planning the Wolong part of our trip, I was reading about the drive from Chengdu to Wolong. It used to take 6 hours because of all the road construction. They had finally finished all the work and the drive was a more realistic 2.5 hours. At this point in time, I do not know if that roadway is passible or not. The damage of the quake showcased on the news has shown main roadways turned into impassible mountains of concrete and rock.
We're 74 days away.
This earthquake has got me thinking. Every single destination of our trip lies on active fault lines. New Zealand has earthquakes almost every day - check out their earthquake tracking site. One section lists the country's 30 most recent quakes. Most of which are between 3.0 - 5.0. In December 2007, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook the grounds of the North island and changed the face of one city. A lot of structural damage was reported, but thankfully only 11 people were injured. Unfortunately, one person did pass away - but it was due to a heart attack.
New Zealand is no stranger to stronger earthquakes, but thankfully they are not as frequent as their 'smaller trembles'.
Just something that crosses your mind when you are surrounded by the media's coverage of natural disasters around the world. I think we might spend some time in the smaller towns around Wolong to see how the towns are recovering.
I start work once again on Tuesday - thank you God!! This trip has a few upcoming financial obligations that will require a bit more funds.
Next post - the long awaited update of gear and where we're at with our planning.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Sichuan Province devastated by 7.8 magnitude earthquake
It's too early to tell what's going on in the Sichuan province of China. The earthquake's epi-centre was approximately 100kms NW of the province's capital of Chengdu, and shook so violently that the quake was felt throughout China and even as far as Vietnam.
As of this posting, the death toll is estimated near 8,500 people, with that number surely to climb as rescue workers search through the collapsed buildings.
Prayers are with the people of the Sichuan province as they work through this devastation. I am wondering how this earthquake has affected the Wolong area, as they are approximately 140kms west of Chengdu.
We're 2.5months away from our departure.
This was the last story I wanted to read about today.
As of this posting, the death toll is estimated near 8,500 people, with that number surely to climb as rescue workers search through the collapsed buildings.
Prayers are with the people of the Sichuan province as they work through this devastation. I am wondering how this earthquake has affected the Wolong area, as they are approximately 140kms west of Chengdu.
We're 2.5months away from our departure.
This was the last story I wanted to read about today.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Daijin Mei
pronounced: Day- jin - Maay (i heard it online)
A rough translation of Energetic Beauty in chinese (wonderful/beautiful).
This is the chinese name that I would like to give to my panda.
I'm on cloud nine.
I've been spending a better part of the day reading about New Zealand and China. Yet, sadly, spent a great deal of time focusing on China. Reading about the different branches of the Great Wall we can explore (some of which are overgrown with forest and have been left untouched through the years) and then reading and researching about Wolong. Now - Brent's job is researching China - he is in charge of that part of the trip. But now it might just be Vanuatu. I have dreamed of returning to China since we first went to Hong Kong when I was in grade 6. This desire to travel there re-surged when I found out about Wolong's Nature Reserve.
Oh my goodness - a dream reserve. A Giant Panda nature reserve (there are 16 in China, 11 of which are in the Sichuan province). Mind you, right now travel to the Sichuan province is highly NOT recommended - and things could stay unsettled for a long time with this Tibet/China feud. But when you see the pictures of the panda cubs, how can you say no to this part of China?
I was reading about this one woman's experience - which gave me great hope for planning my own trip and not taking part in a tour (the tours in China can be tricky - a lot of detour time spent in places you don't want to be, and 'side trips' to jade factories and chinese medicine locations - it's a long story). After reading these stories - I've realized that I can contact the Wolong reserve directly to volunteer with them. And that's what Brent and I will be doing. Probably only for three full days (i could spend forever working there!)...but it will be magical.
You can spend time in open gardens with panda 'adolescents', have your picture taken with cubs and babies (if they are old enough) -- mind you all at additional costs -- but WELL WORTH IT. You can also adopt a Panda cub for 500USD (yes - pricey, BUT, I LOVE PANDAS - and this is such a dream come true). With your adoption - you get 10mins+ alone in an enclosure with your cub (supervised of course), free admission to the park thereafter, updates of their growth, and if you are the first to adopt it - you get to name the cub (chinese name only). I thought energetic beauty was perfect. :) We'll see when I meet my little rascal. The best part is knowing that your adoption fee goes right back to the park where they use the money to continue their studies of this beautiful species and fight to save them from extinction.
When you volunteer there - you spend two sessions with a Panda Master with a 3-4 hour break in between the sessions (time to explore the reserve (where the animals are alert and active, due to the high altitude) and hike in the mountains). The Volunteer work isn't something I would classify as glamorous per se - you basically clean out the cages (both indoor and outdoor), set out bamboo for the animals, but you also get to assist the Panda Master with training the bear (ex: teach an animal to put its arm outside of the cage to get medical vaccines/shots) and you may also assist in documenting animal behaviour and viewing veterinary visits. You are assigned to one Panda Master all day - who looks after one panda bear. So you are able to observe one Panda's behaviour over the course of the entire day.
The giant pandas were a feature at the Toronto Zoo the ONE YEAR my family didn't go when I was younger. It was so sad. My absolute favorite animal, and I've never seen one in the flesh. I used to want to be a zoologist. I thought I would study in Vancouver and learn Mandarin (or the proper dialect required for my travel to China). I then wanted to work at tracking Giant Pandas in the wild and spend my life studying them. Then, at an impressionable young age, I watched the movie "Gorillas in the Mist" - and that definitely gave me nightmares about the idea of studying animals in the wild.
That's my Panda story.
See the thing about China - is at this point of the trip - we're on a tight deadline. We have to return to Canada (namely Ontario) by the end of July - or risk losing our OHIP coverage (we have to report to OHIP that we have returned - but it must be done in person). So from NZ, we have about a month to do Vanuatu, China and Vancouver. I think we'll spend about a week in Vanuatu. This is cut down from its original 2 weeks. At first, we were going to spend our time sea kayaking between the 83 islands in the ocean. This might be possible between some islands, but even the country report lists key islands that have a high shark presence in the water. Not places that you want to be sea kayaking too far from shore. (I also recently saw "Open Water" - based on a true story - such a scary concept). Then we will be in Hong Kong for 5-7 days (soooo short, but we really can't hang out too long). Fly to Chengdu - bus/drive to Wolong. Spend a night in the hotel. Volunteer three days. On the third day bus back to Chengdu - and maybe straight to the airport and fly out to Beijing (sleep on plane). One night recovery in Beijing, spend 2-3 days hiking 2 different parts of the great wall (we have to choose our favorites) - and hopefully take part in an overnight wall experience. Back to Beijing - straight to airport - fly to Vancouver. Probably sleep the entire flight. And back on native soil - enjoy a wonderful few days in Vancouver before flying back home (we're already there to catch a connecting flight - it would be a shame not to show Brent the vancity).
So - as of today, may 6th - that's the new plan. It's sadly a very rushed China experience - but since we aren't spending several months exploring the country, we have decided to take a really quick snapshot.
I haven't really run this new itinerary by Brent yet - he's currently half way through his last exam ever (yay!!) - so this could be altered. Especially since I would love to see the Yangtze River before the entire surrounding area is completely flooded (they expect this to occur by 2010).
I'm done. I have some SUPER EXCITING New Zealand news too - but I want to wait until I follow up on my two amazing emails.
At this exact moment - I'm fluttering. Life is beautiful.
82 days baby!!
A rough translation of Energetic Beauty in chinese (wonderful/beautiful).
This is the chinese name that I would like to give to my panda.
I'm on cloud nine.
I've been spending a better part of the day reading about New Zealand and China. Yet, sadly, spent a great deal of time focusing on China. Reading about the different branches of the Great Wall we can explore (some of which are overgrown with forest and have been left untouched through the years) and then reading and researching about Wolong. Now - Brent's job is researching China - he is in charge of that part of the trip. But now it might just be Vanuatu. I have dreamed of returning to China since we first went to Hong Kong when I was in grade 6. This desire to travel there re-surged when I found out about Wolong's Nature Reserve.
Oh my goodness - a dream reserve. A Giant Panda nature reserve (there are 16 in China, 11 of which are in the Sichuan province). Mind you, right now travel to the Sichuan province is highly NOT recommended - and things could stay unsettled for a long time with this Tibet/China feud. But when you see the pictures of the panda cubs, how can you say no to this part of China?
I was reading about this one woman's experience - which gave me great hope for planning my own trip and not taking part in a tour (the tours in China can be tricky - a lot of detour time spent in places you don't want to be, and 'side trips' to jade factories and chinese medicine locations - it's a long story). After reading these stories - I've realized that I can contact the Wolong reserve directly to volunteer with them. And that's what Brent and I will be doing. Probably only for three full days (i could spend forever working there!)...but it will be magical.
You can spend time in open gardens with panda 'adolescents', have your picture taken with cubs and babies (if they are old enough) -- mind you all at additional costs -- but WELL WORTH IT. You can also adopt a Panda cub for 500USD (yes - pricey, BUT, I LOVE PANDAS - and this is such a dream come true). With your adoption - you get 10mins+ alone in an enclosure with your cub (supervised of course), free admission to the park thereafter, updates of their growth, and if you are the first to adopt it - you get to name the cub (chinese name only). I thought energetic beauty was perfect. :) We'll see when I meet my little rascal. The best part is knowing that your adoption fee goes right back to the park where they use the money to continue their studies of this beautiful species and fight to save them from extinction.
When you volunteer there - you spend two sessions with a Panda Master with a 3-4 hour break in between the sessions (time to explore the reserve (where the animals are alert and active, due to the high altitude) and hike in the mountains). The Volunteer work isn't something I would classify as glamorous per se - you basically clean out the cages (both indoor and outdoor), set out bamboo for the animals, but you also get to assist the Panda Master with training the bear (ex: teach an animal to put its arm outside of the cage to get medical vaccines/shots) and you may also assist in documenting animal behaviour and viewing veterinary visits. You are assigned to one Panda Master all day - who looks after one panda bear. So you are able to observe one Panda's behaviour over the course of the entire day.
The giant pandas were a feature at the Toronto Zoo the ONE YEAR my family didn't go when I was younger. It was so sad. My absolute favorite animal, and I've never seen one in the flesh. I used to want to be a zoologist. I thought I would study in Vancouver and learn Mandarin (or the proper dialect required for my travel to China). I then wanted to work at tracking Giant Pandas in the wild and spend my life studying them. Then, at an impressionable young age, I watched the movie "Gorillas in the Mist" - and that definitely gave me nightmares about the idea of studying animals in the wild.
That's my Panda story.
See the thing about China - is at this point of the trip - we're on a tight deadline. We have to return to Canada (namely Ontario) by the end of July - or risk losing our OHIP coverage (we have to report to OHIP that we have returned - but it must be done in person). So from NZ, we have about a month to do Vanuatu, China and Vancouver. I think we'll spend about a week in Vanuatu. This is cut down from its original 2 weeks. At first, we were going to spend our time sea kayaking between the 83 islands in the ocean. This might be possible between some islands, but even the country report lists key islands that have a high shark presence in the water. Not places that you want to be sea kayaking too far from shore. (I also recently saw "Open Water" - based on a true story - such a scary concept). Then we will be in Hong Kong for 5-7 days (soooo short, but we really can't hang out too long). Fly to Chengdu - bus/drive to Wolong. Spend a night in the hotel. Volunteer three days. On the third day bus back to Chengdu - and maybe straight to the airport and fly out to Beijing (sleep on plane). One night recovery in Beijing, spend 2-3 days hiking 2 different parts of the great wall (we have to choose our favorites) - and hopefully take part in an overnight wall experience. Back to Beijing - straight to airport - fly to Vancouver. Probably sleep the entire flight. And back on native soil - enjoy a wonderful few days in Vancouver before flying back home (we're already there to catch a connecting flight - it would be a shame not to show Brent the vancity).
So - as of today, may 6th - that's the new plan. It's sadly a very rushed China experience - but since we aren't spending several months exploring the country, we have decided to take a really quick snapshot.
I haven't really run this new itinerary by Brent yet - he's currently half way through his last exam ever (yay!!) - so this could be altered. Especially since I would love to see the Yangtze River before the entire surrounding area is completely flooded (they expect this to occur by 2010).
I'm done. I have some SUPER EXCITING New Zealand news too - but I want to wait until I follow up on my two amazing emails.
At this exact moment - I'm fluttering. Life is beautiful.
82 days baby!!
Thursday, May 1, 2008
I think I see where my calcium will be coming from
"New Zealanders are amongst the highest per capita consumers of ice cream in the world - lying either 2nd or 3rd (with Australia), behind the USA." (Information provided by: http://www.nzicecream.org.nz/index.htm)
Wonderful!
Who would have thought? My type of country.
Today, I learned the definition of Scroggin and quite possibly overwhealmed my brain with NZ tramping information. So I have put away my books for now to let my brain breathe a little bit.
Tomorrow I open my new Canadian bank account and acquire yet another credit card to enable me to purchase Travellers cheques for free come July. Next week, a HUGE gear shop - as Brent finishes exams on Tuesday. :)
Oh - and we received written permission from our air cariers to bring our camping stove and empty fuel cannisters onto the plane. Isn't my life exciting? :)
I'm surrounded by lists on post it notes and books filled with pages of lists and websites. The internet is a double-edged sword.
Wonderful!
Who would have thought? My type of country.
Today, I learned the definition of Scroggin and quite possibly overwhealmed my brain with NZ tramping information. So I have put away my books for now to let my brain breathe a little bit.
Tomorrow I open my new Canadian bank account and acquire yet another credit card to enable me to purchase Travellers cheques for free come July. Next week, a HUGE gear shop - as Brent finishes exams on Tuesday. :)
Oh - and we received written permission from our air cariers to bring our camping stove and empty fuel cannisters onto the plane. Isn't my life exciting? :)
I'm surrounded by lists on post it notes and books filled with pages of lists and websites. The internet is a double-edged sword.
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