August 10th 2014, was
the start of a long journey. It started at Dunbar Heights United Church with
two birthdays: Kelsie and Samantha. It was also an early start to our day,
waking up at 5:50 to be on the road by 7. At the beginning it was mostly the
kids from Victoria and a few from Castlegar. Slowly, around departure time
everyone else started to trickle in.
Sunday was a long drive
day, going straight up to Prince George where we would be staying for the
night.
We stopped along the way
to pick up a few stragglers, not to far from our start point. Of course we also
have a few pit stops, because though there is a bathroom on the bus, who really
wants to be the one to stink it up?
Our lunch stop was at
108 Mile House. It was a little area off the highway that had older building,
kind of like you were going into the past, but not. There was a house, a barn,
a postoffice etc. all the things a little town needs. After about 45 minutes
there we were back on the road again. The day, being our first, just felt long.
Like really long, but it was okay in the end.
I believe we arrived
early at St. Andrews church, which gave us a bit of set-up time before a super
yummy dinner of salad, chicken nuggets and spaghetti. We even had cake, but it
was just general cake.
We went swimming at the
Prince George Aquatic Centre, which meant a shower!
Back at the church, we
had quiet time, which was meditation time. Then to bed for an early start the
next day.
~ S
Today, August 11th 2014,
was a long day. But not a bad day, just long. It was Merlin's birthday as
well.
The day started early, 6
o'clock am wake up, breakfast at 6:30. The church we were staying at, St.
Andrews made beautiful breakfast sandwiches and yummy potatoes. They were
delish! We were even early, leaving at 6:26 am, which is pretty good for 44
people. After a few photos, we hit the road, our first stop, McBride. It was in
the middle of nowhere, off the 97 highway. It's a railroad town, with a cute
little tourist centre and a pretty awesome park. We only stayed for about 10
minutes, long enough for everyone to take a bathroom break and to stretch our
legs. The bus rides are long, but not unexciting. Singing and laughing can be
heard through out the bus. Out the windows, mountains and trees sped by, the
emerald waters following us along our path.
We had a picnic lunch at
Lake Lucerne, consisting or sandwiches, munchies and juice. It was a time to
relax and converse and take in the 'northern' BC air, which wasn't short of
Horse-flies.
After about 45 minutes,
we made way for Jasper, where we were going to have a short visit with the
Aquatic Centre. Seeing as the churches we stay at don't have showers, and even
if they did it would take all night for 45 people to shower, we took advantage
of pools. It was a short visit since Jasper National Park had some construction
going on, slowing our pace. Though that didn't weaken our spirits.
After a short swim, of
about 45 minutes, we hopped back into the bus, only one more stop on the
schedule: Edmonton. It was approximately 4 hours, which is long to sit in a
bus. Eventually your butt starts to hurt and you have to change positions, but
that can be a bit difficult in a moving bus. We had on pit stop at a visitor
centre off the highway. Hunger was eating at us, so a few snacks were taken out
for our hungry tummys. After a short break in the warm sun, back onto the
stuffy bus we went. Only a couple more hours till we reached St. Alberts, just
outside of Edmonton.
We arrived and brought all our luggage to our respected sleeping areas. Soon after dinner was had; spaghetti and salad.
Surprise, surprise,
there was a birthday cake for the birthday boy. He even got little
present.
There was some free time
after dinner, which lead to a few "get to know each other" games
since we got some new people. Then it was our circle time, which consists of
some singing and meditation. A nice calm end to a long day.
Tomorrow we start all
over, but thankfully we get a later start, which means more sleep!
~ S
My favourite moment so far is when my bus buddy and I started listening to Bohemian Rhapsody, and we started singing out loud, as anyone does to that song. And slowly, one by one, almost everyone on the bus joined in, and it was so harmonious and it felt like a true community.
~Kaylyn M.
Life is glorious,
beautiful, and stupendous. This entire trip i cannot stop feeling effervescent,
jubilant, and rapturous! I am surrounded by friends who i would like to
call my second family and i love each and everyone of them like I've know them
my entire life! so happy to be here and am having the time of my life and know
that it will never end just like my heart never skips a beat <3 -Merlin S
There is something
incredibly poetic about travelling cross country on a greyhound for several
hours and watching the world go by. I can't describe this experience except to
say that I feel completely safe and comfortable with all the people around me
on this bus, the ones I can call my close friends and the ones I have yet to
connect with. Communities exist everywhere, but I can't help but feel like the
community being created on this trip can't be paralleled by many of the
communities in my life. I can't wait to see what these next days will bring,
and experience them with a completely open heart.
- Anthea F
I always look forward to
traveling with Youth / and Young adults, and learning different qualities about
people has always interested me. its kinda crazy that we get great chances like
this to visit places all around Canada. some certain things i've liked
the best about the trip is just being out on the road and seeing the world
flash before my eyes; it's truly a beautiful place to live . - Mason A
My first Rendez-Vous
could not be with a better group of people! Probably the best part so far has
been our stops at pools so that everyone can have showers. I'm so excited to
see so much of this beautiful country with these beautiful people. If after just
one day I feel this close to this many people I can't wait to see what the rest
of this trip holds! - Tim H.
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