beachbeachbeach

Today was awesome.

We went to Tauranga. The beach just over the mountains. We all loaded up on the buses and drove to the most beautiful beach I have ever seen.

When we arrived, Hannah and I charged the beach and victoriously danced and jumped for the beach WAS OURS. And then I climbed a dead tree. On the beach. It was awesome.
 

Then we split up according to our teams. The Outdoor Pursuits guys went to climb a mountain, Music and Worship hiked a much smaller island mountain, and our one Surfer hit the waves.

Gosh, it was so beautiful. There’s something so romantic about a cold beach. I don’t know what, but it is. God just swept me away in the beauty of His creation.

The water was so crystal clear. On one side of the small island mountain, waves crashed against these incredible rocks, and on the other side was complete peace; still clear water and shady trees. It was so breathtaking to see God’s handiwork in such a wide spectrum on such a small piece of the Earth.

After we finished exploring our little island, we split up into 2 teams of 5 for a scavenger hunt. Matt (a Canadian) was our fearless leader, and the rest of our team was Hannah (a lovely Kiwi), Mattheiu (he’s a French-speaking Swiss kiddo), and Noemi (Austria – THE HILLS ARE ALIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC AHHHHH) (sorry) (not really). We managed to create a pyramid with random strangers on the beach, find Dora the Explorer paraphernalia, get Burger King crowns and convince random strangers to wear them, have an organized dance party (JUMP ON IT) in the middle of the sidewalk, interview a local, and serenade an old couple with “Kiss the Girl” until they felt led to a little bit of PDA themselves, in under a couple of hours. We also managed a few other tasks, amongst them taking many group pictures and blazing trails in overgrown forests atop urban hills. I also somehow ended up singing “How Sweet It Is” with a sidewalk guitarist in exchange for an apple.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the dream team jumped in the ocean after completing said obstacles. We changed into our bathing suits and ran screaming into the unforgiving Pacific. Why unforgiving? Do you know how close New Zealand is to Antarctica??? Did you now that the hottest it gets in the peak of summer is around 85 degrees Fahrenheit? And that is in the PEAK of summer. We’re still in spring.

And so it was. Literally the coldest water I have ever willingly thrown myself into. I couldn’t feel my limbs. When I first hit the water, it was so cold that I could not breathe. Really, it took my breath away. Then came the stinging and then the numbness. It was crazy. It only hurt after I got out of the water and my body began to thaw again. I never thought that warmth returning to my body would be such a painful experience.

Legit.

Our team won the scavenger hunt by the way.

Pictures to come soon.

 

Peace out girl scout.