Goodbye to Greece
June 21, 2026
Hello Moondance Families!!
Reporting back from another new country… GREECE!!! This is truly the moment we have all been waiting for!
It was time for our first activity in Greece! For breakfast, we had Greek yogurt bowls with peaches and delicious chocolate granola. This was such an amazing switch-up from all of the breakfasts we have been having! Everyone chowed down, then loaded up into the vans so we could drive up to rock climbing! We pulled up to a big rock on the side of a trail overlooking the beach, where our guides set up three routes for us to warm up our rock climbing skills. Before we started climbing, our guides took us over to a heart-shaped cave, where we got to climb inside! We took a group picture and admired the insane view again before heading over to climb! Kyra wasted no time in curating an amazing queue of songs to set the vibe of our climb. She started us off with some hype music so we could wake up, then we slowly transitioned into more chill indie throwback vibes. Elizabeth jumped in to the hardest route they offered us, and made it to the top in no time! After we all had the chance to try out the routes, they decided we needed more of a challenge. They took down the easier routes and set up three more to the right to see if we could handle the challenge. Spencer proved to be the rock climbing master, easily conquering every single route offered within minutes! We had a quick watermelon snack break, where it was almost impossible to avoid getting it all over our faces! When we weren’t climbing, we were snacking and dancing! Lillie faced the most challenging route of the day head on, and did not give up until she made it to the top of the route!! We all cheered her on when she made it to the bottom. After everyone had the chance to attempt every route, we headed back to our place for lunch! We were reminiscing on how good our chicken gyros were for lunch the other day, so why not just go ahead and make them ourselves! For our main meal we had Greek bowls with pita on the side. Charlotte made sure all of our ingredients were prepped and ready to go in the bowls, and made the presentation beautiful. We loaded our bowls up and sat outside to take in the perfect weather. We cleaned up as quickly as possible so we could head out to the beach! Luckily, we are staying just a 5 minute walk from the beach! We walked down and set up our towels to soak up some sun. It wasn’t long before we ran into the refreshing ocean. The first day we went to the beach it was a little windy and the ocean was a little rocky. Today, the weather cleared up and the ocean was still and crystal clear!! The water was the most amazing blue color and we continued to be wowed by the view. We spent the rest of the afternoon at the beach reading, making rock towers, walking along the beach, and soaking up the sun as well as our last moments together!! We keep saying how we don’t want this to end. We headed back to our place to start making dinner. Tonight, for our main dish, we went with a pesto pasta with chicken nuggets. Kiersten took on our appetizer charge with a vision: a caprese salad with peaches. It was incredible and we couldn’t get enough! The pasta was incredible and we were all stuffed… but we still had room for dessert! We all shared a giant tub of vanilla and chocolate ice cream and it was the perfect cherry on top to such a perfect day.
Today was exciting because we got to have a boat day!! Throughout the trip, the kids would ask us if we were going to get on a boat and Davis and I always told them no. So this was such a fun surprise! We boarded our insanely cool snorkeling boat and soaked up the sun on the front of the ship as we cruised along the coast playing some of everyone’s favorite tunes. We stopped at a lovely secluded beach, in awe of the picturesque cliffs and islands spread across the sea around us, and water so blue we could see every fish below us. We suited up, leaped off the back of the boat, and snorkeled for as long as we could. The boys opted in for wet suits… but somehow the cold water didn’t seem to bother any of the girls! We reluctantly swam back to the boat to sun bathe and enjoy some amazing Greek sandwiches and fresh fruit, finishing the watermelon in under 10 seconds. We headed back the port, quietly enjoying every last bit of sunshine and breeze we could. Eleanor made sure to soak up every drop of sun she could before the day was over! We then got in our bus to head home, but we couldn’t have a boat day without gelato!! first, just HAD to try the famous homemade gelato next door, making sure not to spoil the feast we had ahead of us. After we got back home, everyone was exhausted from such a long day in the sun. Best feeling ever. We laid low for a little bit before dinner. We obviously couldn’t resist going to the coffee shop down the road from us! We have gone so many times that the owners now recognize us!! We gave them a Polaroid picture to put up on their wall so they could always remember us. Before we left, they gave us a sample of their freshly made Greek frozen yogurt! It was incredible and we were already planning when we could go back and get more. We came back and played cards – Dutch cup has become a fan favorite! After playing round after round and adding up the scores, the girls decided to go down to the beach for a nice late afternoon ocean dip! Even though it was freezing cold, we felt refreshed afterwards, and it was just what we needed. While the girls went to the beach, the boys started up making dinner. JB has been in the kitchen every night, eager to help the group cook dinner! I think our cooking class ignited a new passion for him! Since it was our last night, we made a giant smorgasbord of all of the food we had left!! It ended up being a form of a Greek bowl, which was a fan favorite anyways!! We loaded up our bowls with chicken, tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, potatoes, tzatziki, and more!! No one’s going hungry around here! We had dinner as the sun was setting, so after we ate we had to head back down to the beach to watch the sunset. On the way, we stopped at the local market for another sweet treat. We can’t lie, this groups got a sweet tooth!! After eating some snickers ice cream bars and Oreos, we made it down to the beach just in time to see the sky light up with pinks and oranges. We took some pictures and passed the soccer ball around with some local kids, then went back to start cleaning up and packing up our stuff! We are always on the move around here! After everyone was ready for bed and had their stuff ready for tomorrow, we gathered around for another great night of moonup! Pace and Lucile were our LODs and boy did they make moonup fun!!! Lucile brought in the nug jug on all fours like a dog, which was a hilarious way for us to start moonup and open the nug jug. Pace then led us in a game of hot potato, where he created his own song! We all laughed as we passed around the hot potato (a Nalgene). They closed up the moonup by having a cringe off, keeping the group laughing. It was safe to say they killed it as our leaders of the day!!
Today we headed over to Corfu town!! However, we weren’t headed straight there! After a morning of cleaning up, we loaded up into a van that took us to our sea kayaking spot! We brought our backpacks and kayaks down to the beach, then started paddling out to a beach cove! The paddling proved to be more challenging than we expected, but it was nothing we couldn’t handle with a smile! The ocean was glass on this fine morning, and it was so satisfying watching the paddles dip into the water to help our kayaks glide. We parked our kayaks at a beach with some rock formations that we climbed on top of and were able to jump off! We swam across the way to an island and explored the rock formations over there. All of the rocks had shells and smaller rocks that looked like they had been glued on to the bigger rock! We rated each other’s dives then swam back to the main beach for snack time. We made a giant sandcastle with a moat, a bridge, and two points. It was a work of art! We swam around for a little bit longer, then got back on the kayaks to head back to shore. We looped around the island then headed straight for the beach! This was perfect timing, because we were all starting to get hungry for lunch! We made it back to the beach then took out our sandwiches we made the night before. This was great because everyone got to choose their own adventure-Nutella, peanut butter, turkey and cheese. We swam for a little longer after lunch, trying to catch fish with our hands and trying to bend water. We got back in the van and before we even knew it we were in Corfu town!! Yayayay! Everyone got all dressed up so we could walk around and go shopping! We got some snacks, and bought jewelry, clothes, and souvenirs!! Time flew by and soon enough it was time for dinner! It was so nice and delicious, it felt like our banquet dinner! Most of the group either got some linguini or chicken gyros. Both are group favorites! We walked towards the water to watch the sunset and admire the view, then walked back into the town to get some more gelato!! We changed into our pajamas then went over to the park for moonup! We opened it by playing a game where John was locked in and figured out who held each role in the game. We went to bed as soon as we could for an early flight to Athens for one last day all together!!
We woke up so early we could see the sunrise, then headed over to Athens for our final day all together!! We landed and immediately dropped our bags off so we could head over to a famous gryo shop!! After ordering large chicken gyros (because if we are at a famous gyro place, why would we get the small), we walked over to a shaded area to have our lunch. After fueling up for the day, we began to wander around to see the city! We saw the Parthenon and tons of other ruins. After taking in some of the history, we spent the rest of our time shopping around! William brought us into a hat store and found a perfect sun hat, but didn’t end up buying it. We ended up doing a lot more window shopping than we did actual shopping. We got smoothies on the way back to our hostel, then took a nap before getting ready for banquet!!! We all dressed up then walked towards the botanical gardens to get a few pictures before dinner. At dinner, we got lots of traditional Greek meals, but the fried feta with honey was a standout crowd favorite!! We walked up Mount Lycabettus for a view of the whole city, and it was the perfect end to such an amazing trip. Everyone was saying how grateful they were for this moment and for this trip. We hiked down and made one last gelato run before it was time for our final moonup! We opened it by passing the pulse-just like we opened it on the first day! The LODs read the Bon Vivant Manifesto, which is everyone’s favorite, then spent the rest of the night reminiscing on all of the hilarious moments from the trip. We closed it out by giving everyone in the group hugs, then we all said one last goodnight before our early flight tomorrow!
We had one last car ride all together, then made it to the airport for our final goodbye. With tears in our eyes, we hugged the kids goodbye then sent them off on their way! What a special first session. Thank you so much for letting us hang out with them!!
Hello, Greece + Goodbye, Albania!
June 16, 2026
Hey hey! Coming back with another update about our time in Albania! It did not take long for us to fall in love with this beautiful country, and we cannot believe we are already in Greece! This trip is flying before our eyes, and we are taking in every moment we can before it ends.
We arrived at the most amazing mountain hut, and we were blown away by the food. The honey at breakfast was some of the best we ever had, and it made sense because on our hike we passed by tons of apiaries! After scarfing down breakfast, and packing a few sandwiches for lunch, we were off for the day! We walked down the road to the zipline we had passed yesterday. This was a great activity to get our blood pumping! We got all geared up then lined up to go down the zipline in pairs. James bravely faced his fear of heights, and jumped right up to go off the zipline first! What an amazing start to our day! After everyone got a chance to cruise through the air and experience the breath-taking views, we grabbed our packs and headed out to the Blue Eye! The Blue Eye is a natural water spring that looks like a human eye due to the limestone formations and the bright sun! We started our hike walking through the town, then headed up into the mountains. The hike was rocky, sunny, and nothing short of amazing. Great conversations were held all around. We stopped for a quick apple break about halfway through the hike, then continued on! The trail led us into another mountain town closer to the Blue Eye, where we stopped for lunch! There was a beautiful river, so we all sat on the rocks and opened up our sandwiches we made earlier this morning! The cheese on our savory sandwiches had melted, making lunch just that much more delicious. We refilled our water bottles with a freezing cold water fountain, which is exactly what we needed for a final push to get to the Blue Eye! After an uphill push, the air around us cooled, and we knew we were close. The trail took us right up to the Blue Eye: a beautiful natural swimming pool with a waterfall! We couldn’t believe our eyes!! Everyone threw their swimsuits on as fast as they could, so we could cool off after our hike. And boy was the water cool! Every single person in our group made the daring jump into the water, and it was hilarious watching everyone’s reactions to the water temperature. We then decided to climb up to where the waterfall is to slide down the falls, and jump off the jumping rock! It took all of us a moment to collect ourselves before jumping, to mentally prepare for the cold plunge. Charlotte was debating whether she should go down the waterfall slide or not, then after saying that she might never be here doing this again, it took her no time to jump in the water and slide down! We all climbed out of the water and warmed up in the sun, then headed on back! We surprised the kids by only having to hike halfway back, then we got in a bus back! The surprises weren’t over, because we then took them to go get ice cream! Today was shaping up to be one of the best days yet. We bought so many ice creams and snacks from the store, that the owner gave us a free Albania magnet!! We scarfed down our ice cream then walked back to our new home for dinner! Before dinner, we had some free time. While half of the group was showering, the other half laid on the lawn and read, journaled, and drew. Later at moonup, lots of them said this was a highlight of their day! We were all so excited for dinner, because the first dinner they gave us was so amazing! And we were amazed yet again. We had a full plate of grilled chicken, roasted bell peppers and zucchini with balsamic, goat cheese, cucumber and tomato salad, and tzatziki. We then finished off our meal with a delicious plate of honeydew. We all agreed: it was the best honeydew we had ever had! We wrapped up our night with another amazing moonup, with horses neighing and dogs barking in the background, and we truly felt immersed in Albania!
Today we woke up excited for a challenging day of hiking ahead! We had our biggest day of hiking, and everyone was excited and a little nervous about the day that awaited us! Everyone packed their backpacks with tons of layers and snacks to fuel us to our next stop. We hiked through a forest, then the trees cleared and we ended up in a beautiful valley filled with flowers of all different colors. We obviously had a quick photoshoot, then continued on up. The boys passed the time by counting to 10,000 in shifts of 250. We were all excited when they got to 6,767. We walked through some more tall trees, then found a beautiful viewpoint and decided to stop for lunch. We all pulled out our sandwiches, which we had perfected from yesterday. After lunch, we had our final push to get to the highest point of our hike. We played the ABC hiking game, where you greet the people you’re passing with phrases that start with each descending letter of the alphabet. After viewpoint upon viewpoint, we finally saw the Albanian flag, and made it to the top! Our hard work had been worth it, the views were truly incredible. We had some gummy worms at the top, and met an adorable dog that seemed to be the king of the mountain. After taking in the views, giving the dog some love, and drinking some water, we decided it was time to continue on! The path we usually take down is currently covered in snow, so we met up with a local guide, and he took us down a safer route. Kyra kept the group entertained the whole way down by making up different freestyle raps and songs about the members of our group, and even about our mountain guide, Sammy! We were laughing the whole way down the mountain. The trail eventually flattened back out, and we saw cows! Kiersten remembered that cows like jazz, so we had to play some jazz to see if it was true. I have to say, I think I saw the cows ear’s perk up! We listened to some more music on the way down, and continued having great conversations. One of the best parts about hiking is how much time we get to spend hanging out with each other just chatting! We learned about what everyone’s rooms at home look like, and talked about music we love. We then had a great Taylor Swift moment, and played our favorite songs to sing along to as we finished up our hike. We were practically skipping as we arrived at our next new home! There was a huge field in the front, so we played a game where we juggle the ball in a circle, then after it gets three hits, you have to try to grab the ball and throw it at someone to get them out. We then played around with the hacky sack, and before we even knew it, it was time for dinner! Pace planned a surprise to bring our whole group Snickers bars!! He knew just what we all needed after a long day of hiking! It quickly got cold outside, so we all went and bundled up for moonup! We opened moonup by complimenting the person to our left, and closed it by complimenting the person to our right! This group has been so amazing so far, and this just proved what amazing relationships everyone has formed with each other. We had an impromptu group hug, then went off to bed after a long, yet amazing day.
After our long day of hiking yesterday, we got to sleep in and have a slow morning. Everyone needed it!! We spent the morning listening to music, juggling the soccer ball, and having a giant spikeball tournament. We played the juggling dodgeball game again and Elizabeth did not come to play. No one was safe, and she ended up winning the game! All of the girls went on a hot girl walk and listened to Taylor Swift. Before we knew it, it was time to eat again! For lunch, we had trout! Martina, our guide, showed us how to clean it. It was so delicious and fresh! After lunch, we packed up our bags and started an afternoon hike to a nearby farm! We walked along the road to get to the trailhead, and stopped at an Albanian souvenir shop! The girls got cute bracelets and we tried on all the different Albanian garb. We turned at the river then began hiking uphill to get to the farm in the mountains. The views were spectacular. We sat at an outdoor table that We played ERS (Egyptian Rat Slap) to pass the time until it was time for dinner. We had a delicious soup with fresh bread and pickles! The pickles were so sour we all tried them and everyone made the funniest sour faces! After dinner, we hung out for a little bit longer and played more ERS. Soon enough it was time to hike back down to our camp for another great moonup. One of the other guests at the camp had picked a bunch of flowers from her hike, and she gave us some so we could make flower crowns!! Lillie showed off her skills and made me the best flower crown ever. We had a few more snacks before it was time for moonup. Moonup was amazing, we talked about our bucketlist items and shared something that most people might not know about us. The cherry on top was closing it with an evil laugh competition. It was so funny hearing everyone trying to do their most evil laughs.
And just like that, it was time to leave Valbona and head on down to our next stop of the trip… Albania’s capital city, Tirane!! We got in the car and listened to music and chilled. Soon enough, we were at our first border crossing!! Even though we were driving to another city in Albania, the fastest route is actually through another country: Kosovo! And it was beautiful! We had some snacks packed for us, but we couldn’t resist getting a few more snacks at our first gas station stop!! Everyone got an assortment of fun new candy and chips to pass around and try! For lunch, we walked over to a delicious pizza spot! What a treat! After scarfing down lunch, we were excited to continue on our way to Tirane! We took some post-lunch naps, but eventually we started playing games and telling riddles to pass the time. We played poison dart frog, where one person is chosen to be the poison dart frog, and they have to secretly stick their tongue out at people to try to eliminate them! Once we got sick of that game, we moved on to tell some riddles. Spencer had everyone hooked with his riddle asking everyone if random things were containers. A few people caught on, but most of the group was left confused and laughing! Before we knew it, we had made it to Tirane. We quickly put down our bags then walked over to a cooking class! We made some traditional Albanian dishes!! We chopped up tomatoes and red bell peppers to create a red sauce to pour into scooped out eggplants!! JB was a natural in the kitchen-glass of coke in one hand, rolling out dough with the other. We also made spinach and cheese byrek, which is a delicious Albanian pastry! Lucille and I worked together to make one, and I think our wrinkling technique of the dough was top tier. Lots of the kids said this was one of the best meals they ever had (I agree!!). We were so proud of our hard work! The cooking class was not only rewarding, but we also spent our time laughing through it! We ended the cooking class with some cookies and it was truly the cherry on top of an amazing experience. We walked home with full bellies and full hearts. We had moonup on the balcony of our hostel, and watched the stars shine on another perfect night in Albania. We found a guitar, which was so exciting! We spent some time after moonup singing some songs together (By and By and Jersey Giant). What would usually be considered a long, tiring day of travel was made so fun and turned out to be one of the best days ever due to the positivity and fun energy of our group. We love spending time with them!!
We woke up, and we were ready to get on the road again to head down to Sarande!! The beach! Yay! We got our time in the mountains, so now everyone was excited to get down to the beach. We got in the car, swimsuits in our bags, ready to hit the sand as soon as possible. Throughout the car ride, we took as few stops as possible, only stopping to get more byrek for lunch! We were determined to get to the beach. Once we made it, everyone threw on their swimsuits and headed down to jump in the ocean as soon as possible. We spent the rest of the afternoon jumping off the dock, soaking in the sun, and exploring our new home for the night. The boys found a local pasta spot and insisted on getting the linguini. While everyone enjoyed it, William truly loved it and wanted to go back for more! We showered off then headed into town for burgers!! We were so excited to finally be in a city, and it felt like a new world after being tucked away in the mountains for the past few days. After dinner, we watched the sunset on the ocean. We took some pictures to remember the beauty of the moment, then continued on our walk back home. Davis and I were excited to surprise the kids on the way home by playing bumper cars! We all grabbed some tokens, then hopped in the cars and tried our best to hit as many people as possible. It was genuinely so hilarious. We even had some local kids playing with us, who just had to be pros. Afterwards, we decided to keep the vibes high and grab some ice cream! We passed by someone else who had a cone of soft serve earlier, and it was a no-brainer that we had to get some too. And boy did it not disappoint! Another best day ever in the books. We had moonup on the dock we were jumping off earlier. The silly question of the night was to create and define a word that doesn’t exist. Some words that were created were floop, johnny, jabbi, and dingletropolis. We closed it out by all grabbing a random hand and untangling the giant knot.
Good morning and goodbye Albania… hello GREECE!!!!! Wowowow we have been waiting for this moment and it is finally here! We woke up and got aboard the ferry to Corfu. We took in the scenic views along the ride and soaked up some sun. We passed the time by reading, journaling, and exploring all the different parts of the ferry. You would be surprised how many different sections there are, I surely was! We arrived in Greece, went through customs, then headed over to our side of the island! We got lunch at a local Greek restaurant, and were immediately amazed by how good the food was. We got Greek salads, chicken gyros, souvlakis and more! We then headed down to the beach, but not before getting a treat on the way there! Eleanor stopped at a local coffee shop where she found they have matcha!! She had been looking for some matcha throughout the whole trip, so we were all excited for her when she found it on the menu!! We made it to the beach and immediately got into the water! We even found a boogie board along the way, so we brought it down to the water to test it out. We quickly realized why someone was trying to get rid of it, because it was pretty difficult to catch waves with. We walked down the beach and explored the area, which is full of places to get ice cream and souvenirs! We went back to our villas and played a round of fishbowl. Before we could finish the game, Martina, our guide, arrived back with our groceries and it was time for us to cook dinner! For our first night of cooking, we decided to make something we were all missing: Mexican food! We made some chicken taco bowls with bell peppers, rice, lettuce, and cheese! It hit the spot!! We cleaned up and then went into moonup. The LODs opened moonup with a great skit, and asked everyone what animal the person next to them would be. Some good answers included bald eagle, beaver, koala, fox, butterfly, and turtle. We had a few bites of ice cream then headed to bed, excited for our first day of activities starting in Greece tomorrow! Yay!
We are having the most amazing time so far, here are some more shoutouts from the kids! Thanks for letting us hang out with them!
– Caitlyn + Davis
Lillie: Hey Mom and Dad!! This trip is amazing and the mountains are so pretty I wish yall could see them. Thank you for all you have done for me. Love and miss yall so so much. See yall soon.
Kiersten: Hey Mom and Dad!! Thank you so so much for sending me on this amazing trip! I really appreciate this opportunity and will cherish this experience forever! Love you guys!!
Eleanor: Hi Mom and Dad! I miss you both so so much and love yall! (Mom I am looking for the shoes!!) Thank you so much for this trip I am so so lucky to be here!!
Kyra: Hi Mom and Dad! The people and the places on this trip are so so so AMAZING!! I’m beyond grateful to be on this trip, Thank you! I hope yall are having fun in st. Barths, I love and miss yall!
Lucile: Hey Mom and Dad! This trip is the best and I’m having so much fun! Thank y’all and see ya soon!! 🙂
Elizabeth: Hi Mom and Dad!! Im still having the best time and am SO SO thankful for this amazing trip. Im sad to leave but SOO excited to see yall soon. Love yall to the moon and back!
Charlotte: Hi Mom and Dad!! I am having so much fun on this trip! Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity! I will never forget it! Super excited to see yall soon!! Love yall!!
Pace: Hey Mom and Dad, having a great time on this trip thank you for sending me. See yall in a week!
William: Hey, I am having a blast here we are headed to the beach now just wanted to say thank you so much for this awesome opportunity and cant wait to see you when I get back home.
Spencer: Hey guys, Albanian food is amazing and cant wait to tell you all about this trip. Thanks for sending me and I cant wait to see Greece. Peace
JB: Hey Mom and Dad, miss y’all but can’t wait to see y’all back in Bham
James: hey guys miss yall and dogs and i am forever thankful and cant wait to see you guys soon!
Beginning of AMGetawayyy!
June 10, 2026
Hey Moondance Families!!!
Reporting live from Bosnia & Herzegovina! Before many of the kids even knew where B&H was on a map, we were already here!!
We picked the kids up from the airport and started driving to our rafting camp in Bosnia. We stopped for a quick, but scenic lunch in the middle of Montenegro! The trip started off fast with James’ birthday!! We surprised him at lunch by singing happy birthday and giving him strawberry shortcake. He was gracious enough to share it with the group, and we all rated it over a 8/10, it was a hit! While we continued to get to know each other at lunch, once we got back in the car, the jet lag hit and it wasn’t long before everyone was snoozing. We listened to music, and before long we had made it to our rafting camp!! It was a beautiful mountain hut with a view of the Tara river. We had a delicious dinner! After dinner the owner made us a campfire so we all went and hung out around the campfire!! While the kids hung around the fire, we surprised James one more time for his birthday. We brought out a cake with some sparklers, a balloon, and gave everyone birthday hats!! It’s safe to say I think our surprise was successful! He said he had no idea it was coming. We ate another delicious cake (even though we agreed the one from lunch was our favorite) then headed into our first moonup! On Moondance, we have moonup every night to reflect on our day and get to know each other better. Everyone was super tired, so once we wrapped up our first moonup by howling at the moon, we quickly went to bed in anticipation of our first day of activities tomorrow!!
We got to sleep in a little bit today so the kids could adjust better to the time change. It was just what we needed before a full day of rafting! We got suited up in our stylish fits: a wetsuit that resembles a wrestling uniform, booties, a life jacket, and a helmet. We then got to take a beautiful drive up the river to the drop in point. During the few moments when we weren’t paddling through rapids, we took the time to play games like wavelength, and to tell riddles. I got to tell my favorite one about two penguins rowing in the dessert, and Charlotte was the first to figure it out among our very confused group. Now, all the kids know the riddle and the answer, so you can ask them when they get home!! We stopped about halfway through our rafting journey to jump in the water, and the guides said they had a surprise for us. While we were swimming, they assembled the rafts into a slide for us!! We all took turns sliding down as many ways as we could possibly imagine! Then, we saw another group of rafters jumping off a nearby rock, so we asked our guides if it was safe, and they said yes! So everyone ran over and made sure they could get a jump in before we left! We had an apple for a snack then continued on rafting back to our camp! Elizabeth found herself a new seat on the front of the raft and challenged herself to stay on as long as she could. There was a chill rapid, so the guides asked if the kids wanted to float down it! Lillie jumped in with no hesitations, saying that this might be the only time we are here and get to do this! Love that attitude! Once we got back, we had a delicious lunch. We spent the rest of our afternoon listening to music and talking at our “beach”. After catching some rays, we all went and showered then played hacky sack until it was time for dinner. While most of us struggled to hit the hacky sack, Spencer showed off his skills by juggling and stalling with ease. Before we knew it, it was already time for dinner! We had a delicious assortment of chicken, sausage, and french fries! Last night, the camp had a live Serbian band come play. As great as that was, we were excited to have the stage to ourselves so we could sing some karaoke! After some singing and dancing, we were all dripping in sweat, and decided it was time for moonup. Lucille and William killed it as our first LODs, asking what animal would you be and what is a quality in others that you admire. This was a great way to get to know the others in the group!
(To the tune of the 12 days of Christmas) On the second day of rafting, group B said to me, let’s go swiiiiimming! We had a shorter route today, and less rapids, so that meant more time to explore the river and hang out on the rafts. Within the first 30 minutes we had already rafted up to a beautiful jumping rock! We all jumped off the rafts before we could even think about how cold the water was going to be and quickly swam up to the rock. While most people were happy with one jump, Pace wasted no time swimming as fast as he could back to the rock to get one more jump in. We floated up to a waterfall that we got to hike up and explore. We took a quick shower under the freezing cold falls then hiked back down for a quick snack before getting back on the rafts. Back at camp, we went back to our favorite place: the beach. We drew, read, and chatted some more, and got some rest in after an amazing final day of rafting. We had a little more time before dinner so we decided to play a group game! Spoiler alert, I think it’s our new favorite! We played a game called fishbowl! After a hilarious game, where some of the funniest things people wrote down included: constitutional convention, bobby pin, and that dog up there, we had to wrap our game up and head to dinner. It was delicious, but the highlight was being surprised with Nutella crepes!! The owner of the camp gave us a giant bucket of Nutella and it didn’t take us long to be scraping the sides trying to get the last of the Nutella!! We played a few games of foozball and pool before it was time for moonup! Kiersten showed off her foozball skills and scored an easy 20 points on the other team, even with one of the players being broken! We then had another amazing moonup where we opened it by playing a game of duck duck goose, then went quickly to bed for an exciting day of hiking the next day!
Rafting was so fun, but we were so excited to experience a new activity on our trip! We packed our day packs for the hike and drove over to Montenegro to hike to a beautiful lake! The drive was so scenic, we were listening to music and gazing out the window the whole time. Eleanor was killing it with the song suggestions and sang along the whole way up!! When we pulled up to the most amazing viewpoint, we couldn’t believe that it was the trailhead! After a quick photo shoot so we could remember the views, we put our packs on and hiked on! We played a game where whoever ended up with the blue carabiner on their pack by the time we got to the lake had to do a punishment. The “punishment” was quite the opposite, because the person who ended with the carabiner got to jump into the lake! We hiked from Bosnia to Montenegro and jumped from country to country. The trail then brought us down into a beautiful valley full of colorful flowers then hiked up towards the lake. We saw so many horses on the way! It started to rain right as we got to the lake, so we put our swimsuits on as fast as we possibly could so we could jump into the lake! One rule we have on Moondance is if you see a body of water you HAVE to jump in! Without a second thought, Kyra had her swimsuit on, ready to jump in the lake! We tried to fit as many people on the log as possible, then laughed when we all fell off. We got back out of the lake because it was time to finish our hike! After swimming and having a delicious sandwich lunch with a beautiful view, we headed back to the car! Our conversations ranged from friends from home to Harry Potter to eels. Safe to say the hike wasn’t boring! Even on the way back, the views continued to amaze us. Once the sun was hanging lower in the sky, it lit up the valley to have a beautiful golden glow. We played a quick game of hacky sack by the vans, taking in every last drop of the amazing view, then got back in the van to head back home!! The drive back was full of cows, goats, and pigs! We had an earlier dinner where we couldn’t get enough of the food, and they kept bringing us out more! Our final portion was a giant plate of French fries, and it only took us 5 minutes for not a crumb to be left on the plate! It’s safe to say we refueled after a long day! Once the kids packed up their bags, we played some more pool and foozball. I made the mistake of playing against JB in pool, who proved to be essentially a professional! He was jumping the pool balls over one another and it wasn’t often that he missed! We headed back to our favorite moonup spot for one last time and reflected on the perfect day we had. I even heard a few kids say it was the best day ever!! We made sure everyone was as packed as possible because we were hitting the road tomorrow! Off to a new country… ALBANIAAAAAA!!
We got an early start to the day so we could hit the road and get to Albania! We crossed the Bosnia/Montenegro border and got stamps (which everyone loves), then had a surprise stop at a local mall! We let the kids shop around for any extra necessities they might need for our trekking section, and just let them stretch their legs after being in the car for a while. We got back in the car and had some lunch then crossed the Montenegro/Albania border! Three countries a day is a record for most of us! We spent most of the rest of the afternoon driving and playing games like 20 questions. We tried to name as many countries, colleges, and chain restaurants as possible without repeating. We stopped at an insane viewpoint, which only got us more amped for our upcoming hikes!!!
We will be spending the next few days exploring Albania, and we cannot wait to send more updates!! Here are some shoutouts from the kids!!
🩷🩷 – Caitlyn & Davis
Lucile: Hey yall! I am having the best time! I love my group and all of the activities we have down so far. Mom and Dad I miss yall! Happy birthday MEV!! I can’t wait to hear all about y’alls Greece trip and hope y’all are having so much fun at home. I love and miss y’all so much!! Hal also miss you so much and hope school and football has been fun!
Spencer: Hey Mom, Dad, Lillian and Ella, I am having a good time and our group is great! Bosnia and Herzegovina is sick. We have been rafting and hiking and the mountains are everywhere. See ya!
Pace: Hello foster family, AMG is great, my group is great and I’m having a great time. Hope Rome is going well, make sure you all wish trim a happy birthday today on June 10th.
Lillie: Hey mom and dad! I miss y’all so much! I am having so much fun. We hiked and white water rafted in Bosnia and Montenegro. Tell Rainey and v that I miss them. Love y’all so much!!!!
James: What’s up family! We spent our first days in Bosnia which was awesome and now otw to Albania for some hiking! And then Greece next!! Can’t wait to see y’all and hope the dogs are doing alright love you guys!
Charlotte: Hi Mom, Dad, and MK! I hope yall are having so much fun at home! I am having so much fun and Bosnia was sooo pretty! We are about to start hiking in Albania and I can’t wait! Miss y’all so much! Love you!!
Kiersten: Hey Mom, Dad, and Matheus! I miss you guys so much!! We’ve been rafting and hiking through Bosnia and Montenegro for the past couple of days. Soon we are going to Albania and later to Greece!!! Thank you so much for sending me on this awesome trip, love you guys!!
Eleanor: Hi Mom and Dad!!! I miss y’all so so much and I hope you’re living it up in Dominican. Montenegro/Bosnia was so much fun and we are heading to Albania today. I hope Jack is having lots of fun as well and I can’t wait to tell y’all about it!
JB: Hey Mom, Dad, and Carson. I miss y’all a ton and hope y’all are having a fun time. Montenegro/Bosnia has been a blast and can’t wait to tell y’all all about it when I come home. Thanks for sending me on this trip, love y’all .
Elizabeth: HEYYY Mom, Dad, Caroline and Hammond. I’m currently otw to hike in Albania. The past few days we have been in Bosnia/Montenegro rafting and we hiked to a BEAUTIFUL lake!! I’m having sooo much fun and have a great group. 10/10!! Love and miss yall SO SO much!! See yall in Switzerland!🩷🩷
William: What’s up we are in Albania right now and having a great time meeting new friends and seeing new things. Can’t wait to see you and happy early Father’s Day love you
Kyra: HEYYY GUYSSSSS we started in Bosnia and went rafting which was sm funnnnn I jumped off a cliff. We just drove to Albania and it’s THE PRETTIEST PLACE EVERRRR. I am beyond grateful to be on this trip and I am having the BEST time ever, party it up for me in St. Barthes! I miss you guysss so much
💗💗💗
Safe Arrival in Dubrovnik
June 6, 2026
Hello AMG Families!
We have heard from our leaders that the group has arrived safely in Dubrovnik! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure!
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week. This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
