The Final Farewell!
July 20, 2024
Wow! What an unforgettable last two weeks. First off, we want to thank all of our students’ parents for entrusting us with their students and allowing us the opportunity to create all of the incredible memories and relationships that we did. It has been an absolute pleasure to travel South America with each and every student and watch them grow mentally, physically, and emotionally. This group was so special and it was so much fun to watch and be alongside them while they created the experience of a lifetime. Right from the get go, this group never lacked energy and there was never a minute without everyone together. Looking back on what we, as a whole, were able to accomplish puts the biggest smiles on our faces. Let’s not forget all the places we visited and the laughs, love, music, conversation, and people we met along the way.
As we call it in Moondance terms, our group was “norming and performing” almost immediately. Day one being a travel day made us rely on each other to maintain positive energy. Immediately off the plane everybody was so excited. The airport is where we met our guide Fabricio for the first island, San Cristobal – who nobody realized at the time would be responsible for so many memories and inside jokes. The wildlife assisted in really allowing everyone’s reality to set in about where they were and what they were doing. The next few days on San Cristobal would be full of adventure and snorkeling. Oh snorkeling. If there’s one thing that helped us really become closer it was sharing the experience of the freezing cold water while snorkeling. We had the best luck with wildlife too. The group’s good vibrations definitely helped bring in luck. A couple great meals later and one ~moderately~ bumpy boat ride, and we were on Santa Cruz.
I believe Santa Cruz is really where the group dynamic changed from friends to family. This island was a great time for us to learn to rely on each other and forced us to spend lots of quality time away from activities. The long walks around town, card games, shopping sprees, hammock hangouts, and beautiful beaches brought more profound conversations and plenty of down time for us to stock up on energy for the rest of our trip and helped create so many one of a kind memories. Some great body surfing and beach time helped make the island unforgettable. Though our time spent here was quick we were all so excited for the next island. An early wake up and another testing boat ride took us to Isabela. I think Isabela was a fan favorite for many of the students as well as Elizabeth and I. There was so much diversity in regards to both the places to visit and the wildlife to see. The town is very quaint which made everyone feel very welcomed and also comfortable walking around to explore. Our hotel was beautiful and right on the beach which meant smiles were worn 24/7. The smiles might have also been from the empanada stand next door that helped feed everyone’s obsession. Whether it was beach volleyball, getting food or just laying on the sand, the group was never seen without all ten students. After we spent our last morning surfing, we laid out for our final Galapaganian beach moments and then it was back to Santa Cruz. This boat ride was a challenge to say the least but with bumps, hard bathroom attempts and sea breeze in our faces, EGP 3B persevered and made it with no complaints.
The next morning we began our travel day back to mainland Ecuador where we stayed at Hosteria San Carlos. We had time for some hot tub and waterslide time before our dinner that night. We got perfectly cooked pizza and then a huge ice cream dessert. We told the students not to over buy because their eyes might be bigger than their stomach and John and Thomas made absolutely sure that no ice cream went to waste, what a sight that was! After a good night’s sleep we transferred to Cotopaxi for horseback riding… experiencing such a beautiful landscape in such a unique way was truly wild. It was great to see the smile on everyone as they embraced the Chagra lifestyle as they ran their horses through beautiful rolling hills in the nearby Hacienda, not to mention the weather. It is a very rare occurrence this time of year to have clear skies and see Cotopaxi in all of its glory. However, this group continued to bring good luck and we had a perfect clear sky view of it the entire duration of our ride. A long bus ride and nap was in everybody’s future as we moved to Baños later that day.
Baños was such an amazing place that held wonderful views, corner stores, markets, hikes and restaurants at every turn. Our first night in Baños was so much fun. We took some time to gather ourselves and wash the smell of horse off before going to dinner. Our first night we went to a super cool rooftop restaurant where people got all sorts of pastas, salads and steaks. The hotel also had giant Jenga and a pool table for entertainment. Weiler, Sophie, and I took down the boys in an absolutely thrilling game of billiards (we had no idea what we were doing), even still, Weiler aced the last shot on the eight ball to give us the W! After some sweet treats consisting of milkshakes and ice cream, we headed back to our hotel for moon-up and some late night stories shared between the group. Our next day was bliss. Sleeping in before a morning party held on a traditional Chiva to el fin de mundo and Casa De Árbol was a great way to start the day. The Chiva was a riot! Grier and Amelia showed off their great dance moves all the way up and down the mountain, needless to say, the vibes were through the roof! The end of the world overlook gave us the best view of the city and Casa De Árbol provided everyone with the opportunity to swing over the end of the world and get a sneak peek at our next day with a short zip line. Casa de Arbol gave us lots of laughs, one in particular that was a little… “fishy.” After swinging over the edge of the mountain, the students broke up and began to explore the other attractions, one of which was a balance beam that went over a koi pond. Nobody thought twice about it but all of the sudden we heard a splash and turned around to see a sopping wet Thomas standing just about waist deep in the water! To everyone’s surprise it was like he had known this would happen and had an entire clean set of clothes in his day pack, including underwear!
From there, we took the Chiva back down the mountain to our hotel. A taco lunch and town exploration led to finding the enchanted forest of Banos and the local chocolate factory where we tried chocolate ranging from banana and pineapple to ginger and guava and everyone got a little sweet treat of their choice. Then we took the kids shopping around and finally it was back to the hotel that we had made home for some naps, reminiscing, and of course more laughs… those never stopped coming! On our last night we had a salsa dancing lesson and traditional buffet! Once everyone started to work up a sweat we had a great break and got some awesome drinks including frozen juices, bubble tea and more. Then it was back to more salsa. Boy was it a workout, we definitely earned our meal and boy was it good. Before our meal the hosts crowned a salsa king to the best male dancer. In my eyes, it was a landslide with Jackson taking home the award, he was a natural! For our dinner we had a buffet with chorizo, sausage, pork belly, chicken, steamed veggies, rice, potatoes, corn, salad, and apple pie empanadas for dessert. It was arguably the best meal of the trip and gave us lots of energy for a great dance party where everyone showed their moves off. Night fell and we were all exhausted but couldn’t wait to zipline the next morning.
For our last morning activity in Banos we visited Parque Aventura San Martin for some zip lining and rock climbing through an incredible canyon. After the first zip line we traveled across a swinging and bouncing bridge that I think pushed most people out of their comfort zone. The rock climbing was an intense climb on the face of a 100m ravine. This was one of the most intense and uncomfortable parts of our trip. I was extremely proud of Andrew throughout this section. I was behind him during the climb and he seemed so comfortable but about halfway through, he turned to me and said “this is terrifying.” I chuckled and then continued to watch him absolutely crush it, no complaints. The final zip line was meant for a duo which led to great laughs and pictures. Some zipline rock paper scissors games were played too! We had an incredibly long bus ride back to Tababela for our final stay and to prepare for our last day of activities before the airport. We all napped and saved up every last bit of energy for our final night.
On our last night we hold a banquet for the students, which is just our final hoorah as a group. Banquet is a great Moondance tradition where every group puts a little twist on their night. For our banquet we decided to cross dress for dinner and our activities afterwards. The boys looked absolutely stunning in their tennis skirts and LuluLemon athleisure, while the girls cleaned up real nice in their camo, baggy shorts, and southern tide gear. Kate was able to pull one of the infamous “Thomas fits” which brought a smile to everyone’s face. After a great dinner in town we went and got our desserts before the real festivities began. We started with some face painting and body paint that quickly led to a pinata out in the field at our hostel. We then played a quick game of toilet tag before our last moonup. The way we closed our moonup was with a giant dance party that we wish would have lasted forever. While Jackson might have one salsa king, I think that Georgia made her case for the best dancer in the group as she showed off all her tiktok dances and moves for the group. This morning we visited the hummingbird sanctuary first and then spent the afternoon laid out at the Pappallecta hot springs. A great and relaxing closing to an even better trip.
This group has embodied what it means to be a part of Moondance, creating everlasting relationships and meeting new people, trying new things, becoming vulnerable, and finding comfort in the uncomfortable. We are so proud of this group and cannot wait to stay in touch and see where life takes them because we are sure that they can go anywhere they want. This has been such an incredible group of people in such an incredible place, everyone always says it’s the people that make the place, but when the place is as cool as Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands, it just makes everything that better. Good luck to each and every student in your future endeavors, we are so certain that you will go far. Parents, once again, thank you again for putting your trust in Moondance.
Cheers!
Elizabeth + Martin
Rockin' n Rollin' in EGP!
July 17, 2024
¡Hola!
The second half of our trip started with a wonderful hike to the top of the caldera of the Sierra Negra volcano. The group was led by John and Thomas as we had countless great conversations on the way up. We waited for the clouds to clear at the top and were given a great gift when the fog passed and we were greeted with an absolutely breathtaking view that lasted just long enough for us to take it all in and get our picture fix. Some body surfing, volleyball, and beach naps later had us feeling rejuvenated for our nighttime soccer and basketball games against the Isabela locals. The first part of soccer did not go in our favor. Our team was carried by Jackson and Kate but it was not enough to give us the win. Let’s just say the score was a lot to a little. The basketball game did not go much better. Weiler was our team’s leading scorer and definitely our MVP. Nonetheless we had a great time and made so many new friends! We even got necklaces made by the locals! Overall a great last organized night activity in the Galapagos.
Our last morning began with meeting our surf instructors for the morning David and Byron. We met them at Poza De Las Diablas and had a brief lesson before getting in the water and trying to catch a Mawave. Immediately Georgia and Jackson were up! They were pros! For the rest of the morning they were catching waves all the way to the shore. Some retired the boards for body surfing too. Mac was out at the lineup catching the biggest waves out of everyone without any board. Others decided that catching waves wasn’t for them and instead they would become somewhat of an instructor themselves. Thomas, also known as Coach Rhodes, helped many of us catch waves by giving the vital advice of “paddle paddle!” When just about any wave came. After a few great hours getting aquatic we had some relaxation time on the beautiful beach in front of our hotel. This was filled with lots of naps and even more sunburns. An incredibly bumpy boat ride later and we had arrived at our final destination back in Santa Cruz. We would depart from the airport on this island the next day and so we had a night to ourselves. A good dinner, cream and moonup led us straight into a poker game. Everyone was put in teams of two. Big shoutout to our winning duo of Elizabeth and Amelia! Beginners luck? Possibly… but winners nonetheless… what a way to leave the islands.
The travel day was great for everyone, leaders included. I think all twelve of us caught Z’s on the flight back to the mainland. Vibes were always positive and Elizabeth and I cannot thank this group enough for that. Travel days are not always the most interesting but ours was full of laughs, card games, and more! Our day concluded back in Tababela safe and sound with no missing luggage, stomachs full of pizza and excitement for the days to come in the mainland. This morning we traveled to Cotopaxi and did horseback riding. Our group was so lucky and had clear skies and wonderful weather during the entirety of our trail ride. So many of the students described the activity as being the highlight of their trip thus far. Grier said that it made her want to get her own horse. Meanwhile I don’t think Sophie would want any other horse than the one she had this morning, Lucky. Her and Lucky shared a singular mind and were best friends by the end of the activity.
We are currently traveling to Baños for our last few activities before our flight back to the United States. Elizabeth and I are so proud of this group and every individual student and the way that they have bought in and adopted the Moondance way. Each and every student is extremely thankful for the opportunity that they have been given by embarking on this journey with Moondance and wanted to leave their family members a message to share their gratitude! EGP 3B rocks!!!!
Until next time,
Martin + Elizabeth
Kate-Thanks so much mom and dad love and miss you so much can’t wait to see you!
Grier- thank you mom and dad!!! I miss you lots and can’t wait to see you soon. I’m so glad u let me do Moondance for a 2nd year, I’m having so much fun!! Love u guys lots.
Amelia- hi mom and dad I’m having so much fun here and Moondance is so much fun again. im so happy to be here thank you for letting me come again miss and love u!
Georgia- hi! thank you so much for sending me on this trip!!! It’s so much fun! I can’t wait to see you guys! Miss you! 🫡
Jackson- Hey mom and dad thank you for this opportunity to go on this amazing adventure. I miss you and the family.
Thomas: hey mom and dad, I am having so much fun here and trying a lot of new things. I have been taking a bunch of pictures and can’t wait to see you.
Mac: I took a bunch of pictures I can’t wait to show y’all when I get home, get me a steak for when I get home, love y’all
John: Hey mom and dad, thank you so much for allowing me to go on this trip. I am having so much fun and making lots of new friends. I can’t wait to see you when I get home.
Sophie: Hi! Miss you all so much and can’t wait to see you. I’m having so much fun here! I’ll tell you all about it when I get home. Love you all!!
Weiler: Hi friends and family!! I miss all of you so much. I am having an amazing time and have enjoyed every moment. Can’t wait to tell you all about it. Love you! 🫡
Exploring the Galapagos Islands!
July 13, 2024
¡Bienvenidos from EGP 3B!
I hope that this letter reaches you all well and might I just say that we are having an absolute blast. We arrived in Isabela today and cannot wait for the second half of our trip. This group has shown what it means to “drink the kool aid” as we say in Moondance terms and we cannot wait to see how close this crowd will be by the end of the experience.
Our trip started off quickly with an almost immediate transfer to the Galápagos Islands the day after the students arrived in Ecuador. Our first LODs (Leaders of the Day) Jackson and Amelia helped keep energy up and get the group familiar with each other during our travel day. Amelia got conversation going so easily with everyone in the airport and made it easy for everyone to pass the time. Upon landing in San Cristobal we met our guide Fabo, got a pizza lunch and then took a short beach walk to our first snorkeling activity. The cold water took everyone by surprise but after everyone acclimated we had great views, saw some sea lions and a few sea turtles as well. We got a great group dinner at Midori and then it was time for moonup and some much needed rest. The next day on San Cristobal we took a boat out to Isla Lobos for a nature walk where we were lucky enough to see the frigate birds and the infamous blue footed booby – which Kate said was her newest spirit animal. After our nature walk we spent some time snorkeling in the cove by the island and found some crazy fish and a few sea lions who loved the camera! After lunch we hiked to Las Tijeretas for our last snorkel activity at the island. We sat out in the sun with the sea lions for a little while and Thomas learned to embrace the freezing temperature of the water without a wetsuit. After a little bit of rest we went to a Galapaganian locals house to make dinner consisting of ceviche, empanadas, balons and homemade guacamole made by Amelia. Our last activity on the first island was visiting the highlands of San Cristobal for some cultural immersion. We worked on the farm for the first part of the morning which included a cow poop scooping competition that team 1 won, thanks to the hard work and effort of their team captain John. We had some time for R&R in the hammocks and Mac became the chicken whisperer with all the baby chicks! He couldn’t get enough of them, I swear he had them in every one of his pockets!
After our time in San Cristobal we said our goodbyes to Fabo and left for Santa Cruz. After a great dinner full of burgers and fries, we had a great night of cards, bracelet making and small talk.
In the morning we visited El Chato Ranch for our first encounters with the Galapagos Giant Tortoises. There was plenty of downtime at the ranch, this is where Grier thrives though. Grier is the necessary glue that holds our group together and helps keep the energy high and laughs at abundance during the activities and more importantly during the laid back times. A short bus ride led us into a great bus karaoke session. Georgia absolutely carried the group during “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield. We then arrived at our destination for the rest of the day, Tortuga Bay. There was a couple mile walk to our destination. Sophie led great conversations with the girls, and our new guide Bernie chatted with the boys and just like that we were there! The first beach was so much fun, the waves kept everyone busy with body surfing, candid pictures and fun breaks to dive into. After some time at Playa Brava we walked down the beach to Playa Mansa and relaxed on the shore of a calm lagoon for a few hours. Some people buried themselves in the sand while others took naps on the beach. After some shoppings and lots of purchased Blue Footed Boobies merch we settled in for an early night before the last boat ride to Isabela.
This morning we reached Isabela and had ourselves an absolute day! First we stopped for what seemed like hundreds of empanadas. Next we walked to La Concha De Perla for our final snorkeling activity of the trip and had unbelievable luck. We saw marble rays, eagle rays, parrot fish, sea lions, and more! We had some time to check in to our awesome beachfront hotel and spend some time on the beach. Led by Andrew, the boys dug a hole while the girls laid out and tanned before everyone came together for a beach volleyball game. Unfortunately the ball got stuck in a palm tree and the game was called early. After this we visited the Isabela Tortoise Breeding center and then spent some time at the Pink Iguana where we slacklined, played cornhole and got to listen to some live music. We walked down the beach to our hotel and then spent some time watching the sunset outside on the beach. The sunset was accompanied by a spontaneous fully-clothed swim from Elizabeth and Weiler into the water as the final minutes of daylight came to a close. Finally a great dinner, ice cream and some unbeatable group time closed the night off for a successful first night on the island.
We want to thank you for allowing us to share such incredible experiences with your children and we cannot wait to continue to watch their relationships and friendships with each other flourish and develop. We are so excited for the next half of our trip and will keep you all updated as time progresses.
Until next time,
Martin + Elizabeth
Safe Arrival in Quito!
July 8, 2024
Hello Ecuador + Galapagos Families!
We heard from our leaders last night that all the students have landed safely in Quito and the group is headed to their first activity! The trip is off to a great start and we can’t wait to share more updates 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 two 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
