A Change of Direction

After much thought and much hard work, our group of close to twenty students and teachers has dwindled (all for good reasons) down to two - my son Morgan and myself. We will be reposting the large trip for open participation for the summer of 2012 and we hope that by using this blog to document the excursion we leave for tomorrow, many of you will be encouraged to join us for next year and the big trip we had planned. It will be a lot of fun, and a fantastic learning experience, so email clmquintin@gmail.com or post here if you would like to be included in the planning for next year.

When we decided that the large trip simply couldn't go ahead without more families committed, Morgan and I put our heads together and thought of where we might go for this year's Kids' Trek expedition that would be less expensive than the large trip. I asked him where he wanted to go, and he replied "Somewhere where I can learn about a different culture." As we are in the midst of winter, and the winter blahs were getting to us, I put two and two together, and we decided on a week in Quebec City. Carnavale! Yay! Through expedia.ca we got a great deal on our flights and accommodations. We are (mostly) packed, and this was no small task since it included all our winter gear. We are going to spend a few days at Carnavale, the world's largest winter festival; packing for two for a week for both winter gear (including boots, ski pants, heavy jackets, etc), indoor clothes, bathing suits etc was difficult. Air Canada only allows one checked bag per person now before paying premiums, we crammed everything into two suitcases to check, and two backpacks to carry (and they aren't even heavy...yet...there's still tomorrow morning!).

We got Morgan his own photo id card from the Saskatchewan Government - looks like a driver's license, but it isn't - very cool! I recommend them - they are only ten dollars and are excellent photo id. He's very proud of it. On the language side, I'm brushing off my rusty French from high school (taught to me by a Swiss speaker) and my university grammar classes (taught to me by a Polish speaker) and hoping I can get by in la belle province. Morgan initially was keen on French but now he says it gives him a headache - but I'm sure he will pick up lots while we are there.

I won't give away too many secrets about what we are doing and where we are going; you will have to check back on this blog for photos and updates. We will be doing evening updates and as part of Morgan's educational endeavours for this journey, he will be blogging from his own account each night as well. For now, I have to be awake at 4 a.m. to "gently encourage" the boy to get out of bed and off to the airport; our flight leaves at 6 a.m. There will be more to read tomorrow evening!

Carol-Lynne