Alo!
June 15, 2025
What an eventful stretch we have had since we last updated you!
We arrived to Theth, Albania after our long travel day excited to see where we’d be for this next section. Our guesthouse sits in the middle of the most stunning mountains you’ve ever seen. We arrived just before sunset, perfect for settling in and a friendly game of football to take place. The dinner that was served blew us all away- 3 course meal featuring a delicious chicken noodle soup, Greek veggies, meats, and of course topped off with chocolate cake.
We played our daily Family game around the campfire and then held MoonUp surrounded by the stars along the ridges of the mountains.
The next morning we woke with anticipation for day one of Trekking! We packed up our lunch pouches, laced up our boots, and hit the trails in the morning to head to the Blue Eye. Hudson & Louise, our LODs of the day, briefed the group on what to expect for our upcoming hike and led the group flawlessly.
Kiko, a dog from our guesthouse, accompanied us the ENTIRE way. It was so impressive because he is such a little dog scaling some pretty big rocks. We adopted him as our Trip Dog, and he stayed loyal all day and took us to our destination. Hilliard especially found a friend in Kiko, checking in on him and looking out for him. Ben carried Kiko back down when he came up to a look out and couldn’t get down. On the trail, Ava & Annie played riddle games with EC, while Cash and Ben were deep in convo for a long stint of our trek.
Once we made it to the Blue Eye, a waterfall & swimming hole, the group threw on our baiting suits for a much needed cool off. To our surprise, there could be water colder than the river in Montenegro, and the Blue Eye topped the list. Ivey & Avery braved the cold and jumped in quickly, followed by shrieks that had others in stitches. One thing our group loves is jumping in a body of water, and we surely found a way to do so. Lots of us jumped off the waterfall into the Blue Eye, with Joe & Ava being raving fans. Snacks and ice cream fueled our trek back. Martina, Ben, & EC danced and sang with the ice cream shop owner.
Though the group thought we were done for today when we reached our guesthouse, there was a surprise in store: Ziplining!! We went straight from the trek to the launch pad and flew through the air. The zip line was a lot longer than you’d think. Hudson gave us a show on his way down while Payton captured the views with his camera. Once back from ziplining, we all took a much needed shower and had a second to relax before dinner. One thing we love about this group is how chatty and interested they are with each other. Our meals last at least an hour and a half every time, filled with lots of giggles and conversation.
Day 2 of trekking was a HUGE day. We trekked the Valbona pass, which took us from where we were staying in Theth to Valbona! Valbona is another town over the mountain. Before we hit the trail, EC taught the group Shake and Pop, a dance game that never fails to leave the group cracking up. Ivey was a beast at the game, and it quickly became a new group favorite. LODs Hilliard, Ella Barnes, & Wade set the tone and led the group through a long hiking day. Jack was a trailblazer for our group, leading the way and pushing everyone to the top. Avery offered such a great perspective with her loads of hiking experience. We played games along our hike to keep our minds occupied, like star and penguin riddles. Annie and Ivey were especially skilled at guessing movies before the rest of the crowd! Joe solved the infamous plane game riddle and flexed his geography skills. We stopped at a mountainous coffee shop about halfway up our trek to the pass, we ate snacks tried new Turkish coffee’s and had little taffies to cheer us up! Wade especially likes his sweet treats and took down more than the rest of the group. After our coffee and snack break we began an especially steep and demanding part of the summit, where we were cheered on by semi wild horses that roamed across our path!
We summited our peak at 6020 ft! As we climbed, the views got better and better. The 360 view was unbelievable- we were fully surrounded by the Alps! Ava and Louise especially loved the lookout at the summit of our pass climbing higher than the rest of the group for the best view. One of the coolest parts about the peak was seeing where we started and also to where we would end up. It was hard to fathom that we walked that far!! Wade and Payton were our group photographers! They wanted to try and capture the magic of the views from the summit to show their friends and family when they returned home.
We trekked down the backside of the mountain through tedious switchbacks. When we got down to flatter ground, we traversed a dried river bank. White stones covered the trail, setting a scene that looked out of this world. Louise, Ella Barnes, Hilliard, & Wade took in the views with EC while jamming to some tunes at the end of our full day trek. We made a friend at our guesthouse, Fabian, and he is always down for a game! Payton taught him how to throw a football, and he joined us for hacky sack!
Day 3 was our last full day of trekking in Albania! We were blessed with a later start today which really made Ava happy. We had a hardy breakfast of eggs, keesh, feta, bread, and ham! Accompanied by warm tea and coffee that Wade especially enjoyed and appreciated. After breakfast we got ready and set out with Fabian and Martina as our guide! We got the privilege to explore Valbona, the locals were so kind to welcome us as we made our hike over to our lunch spot where we had iced coffees, played Mafia where Hudson was playfully voted off every round. After we finished up our game we set back out to find a place to swim in the river! We hiked along the countryside and stopped at a roadside shop where we looked through different trinkets. Once we got to the river the water was freezing, but Ivey, Martina, and Annie braved the cold water taking a polar plunge while Joe, Payton, Jack, and Ben played hacky sack, a fan activity for our group during downtime!
Once we got to the swimming hole, Ben was first to jump in, bringing up the energy of the group. we’re quick to follow, once again freezing. After we dried off and got back our packs back on to head back home, Hilliard got ahold of the speaker and started jamming out to remixes! He helped keep the vibes high on our journey back to our guesthouse. On the way Martina showed us a local ice cream spot where we picked up a sweet treat. We ended the night with a campfire under the stars cúrtase of our wonderful hosts! Our group has loved time outside, sitting by the fire giggling.
The next morning we woke up, packed our bags, and hit the road for our Albanian cross country road trip. Our first stop was the capital- Tirana! Our ride there was relaxing with a few stops on the way. We racked up country number 5 by driving through Kosovo! Paprika chips were a hit as we tried snacks at a convience stop. Once we arrived to Tirana ready for our next portion of the trip, a cooking class! It was amazing our chef and instructor, Davis, welcomed us with open arms and shared much about the traditional Albanian cuisine. We baked Bakllava which is a traditional pastry filled with tomato’s and onions! The group loved crafting the pastries, making it into a competition that chef Davis judged. Ava, Annie, and Payton came out on top in the end with the most fluffy and best constructed pastry. Jack and Joe were upset their pastry wasn’t favored by Davis but they all tasted the same in the end.
After the cooking class we made our way through the city, seeing the city center and stopping at a national monument to take some photos and watch the sunset. Then we had a MoonUp in the park and strolled on home to get a good nights rest for tomorrow! Cash navigated us through the city back to our hostel, bringing us through parks and statues along the way! We are seeing all that Albania has to offer between our time in the mountains and visit to the big city. We are heading to the coast tomorrow to embark on the highly anticipated next section of the trip: Greece!!
This group continues to amaze us as leaders! We are so excited for the week to come and thankful each one of your kids are a part of this experience.
Ciao!!
Emma Cutter + Ben
We know you want to hear from your kids, here are some shoutouts!!!
Ava- Bello! I am having such an amazing time with all my new pals. All of these countries are very stunning and I am so very grateful that you sent me on this trip. Please give Ham and Gooney and Skweegy a huge hug for me, and Zoe I suppose but she’ll prolly be at her 9 to 5. Also if you haven’t sent my stuff to Boston yet can you pop some contacts in there. They are in the brown box on my bathroom vanity. If there’s not enough in the brown box then I’m out so could you lowk order me more. Thanks I love you!
Louise- Hey mom and dad thank you so much for signing me up for Moondance, I’m having such an amazing time with everyone and the scenes are unreal!! Give goose and chewy a lot of walks for me. Hope we did well in Big Rock, been supporting whitecaps all the way in Albania! Also happy Father’s Day we love you JT! Love ya and miss you guys!
Ella Barnes- Hey mom and dad! Happy Father’s Day dad! I am having the best time seeing so many different countries. I have met so many great people! We are in the capital of Albania and heading to Corfu tomorrow. Thank you so much for sending me to these amazing places. Love y’all see y’all soon! Tell all my friends hi! I hope having no kids is relaxing 😉
Avery- Hi mom and dad!! Happy Father’s Day I love and really miss you. This trip has been so so fun and we have traveled to so many new places! All of my new friends are great and I love them! Thank you guys for sending me on my final Moondance, best part of my entire summer! I love and miss you guys so much and see you soooooo soon! Tell Cabo I say hi!
Ivey- Heyy mom and dad and happy Father’s Day Joe pa!! I miss y’all so much but I’m truly having the best time. The views are insane and I love my group, they are sooo fun!!! We are headed to Greece tmr and I’m so excited to see it! Thanks for giving me these fun opportunities to see some pretty cool places. Y’all are the best. Tell everyone back home that I love and miss them tooo (especially Zoe and Archie) Hope Sadie’s Deb was fun! See you all SO soon!!
Annie- What up fam. Currently entering into the capital of Albania!! We have been having the best time in the mountains, rafting, playing games, and hanging out! My group is awesome and I am so thankful for the opportunity to be here. Miss y’all tons and hope Ireland is amazing. See y’all and Mexico Lindo soon…! Peace love arroz con pollo
Hilliard- Hey y’all! I’ve been having so much fun on this trip. We summited a mountain in Albania, and have been eating lots of good food! We went rafting also and are about to go to a cooking class. And then we spend all of this week in Greece! I hope to bring back a lot of cool stuff. Tell Cannon and Loulie I said hi!
Cash- Hey! I miss y’all, I’m having a great time on this trip though! I have made some good friends and one that I am super close with. I hope y’all are doing well and that dad got it done in Newport. We are getting ready to head to Greece! Can’t wait to show y’all pictures. Love y’all.
Jack- Hey y’all! Happy belated birthday Dad! Sorry I missed it again, but hopefully you had a great day. Also happy Father’s Day!! Hopefully it was a great day!! We’ve been rafting and hiking so far. The water during the rafting was insane! I got a solo shot for the Christmas card Mom hopefully it’s usable. We are going to Greece In the next few days which I’m super excited for. I’ll see y’all in a few days! Love y’all.
Joe- Hey guys! Miss y’all so much and can’t wait to see y’all soon. The trip has been awesome meeting new people and making so many memories for life. Also, happy Father’s Day dad hope you smacked some fish this morning. Love y’all and see you guys soon.
Wade- Hey Mom, Dad, and Sophie! I’m currently in a hostel in Tiranë, Albania, the capital. I had lost my voice on the plane ride for 6 days but thankfully I got it back. I’m having a great time here and I’m so thankful to be on this trip. I have so many photos on my camera, like 400 so far, and we just got half way through the trip. Nature here is definitely not like Albany, I’m enjoying my time away, but I do miss y’all and I can’t wait to tell y’all all about this trip. I hope everyone is doing alright, love y’all.
Payton – Hey Mom and Dad, we are staying at a hostel in the capital of Albania! I hope y’all are well and everything back at home is going fine. I am having a great time and finding my place amongst the group. Dad, Happy Father’s Day! You are my inspiration for improvement and I could not be more grateful for everything you do for mom and me. To trooper I love you pup and can’t wait to hear your barks! All for now see y’all soon.
Hudson – hey y’all hope everything is well. I miss y’all so much and have been thinking about how extremely grateful I am for this opportunity y’all have blessed me with. Dad happy Father’s Day. I wish I could’ve spent it with you but I want you to know how grateful I am for our relationship. Can’t wait to celebrate with y’all when I get home. I’ve missed home every day but have made some great friends and memories so far. I love you!
AMG Rafting Adventures
June 11, 2025
AMG 1A Trip Update 1
Family! Friends! Hello from the Balkans! Since you last hugged your kids goodbye, they have become world travelers, making the journey to join us in Europe. From navigating airports, visiting 4 countries, to meeting their new Moondance family, the first week has been jam-packed to say the least. We are overjoyed that our trip has begun with your incredible kids. We cannot wait to fill you in on all that we’ve done thus far!
Ben and Emma Cutter (EC) waited eagerly as the kids arrived in Dubrovnik, Croatia! We were met with positive energy from the group.
We didn’t stay long in Croatia and loaded up our van to head to country number two of the trip: Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the way to Montenegro! The drive from Dubrovnik to Bosnia & Montenegro was gorgeous with views of mountains overlooking the oceans while we were exiting Croatia! After entering Bosnia, we travelled through small towns that sat next to light blue rivers and lakes, around this time most of the students started to get some much needed rest on the drive.
On the way to our campsite, we stopped for our first taste of Balkan cuisine. The meal consisted of spinach soup and a mix of meats and potatoes- a perfect first meal! Cash must be an animal whisperer because a cat promptly hopped into his lap and remained until we had to leave. After our meal we sat in the yard of the restaurant and hung out in the hammocks before getting back on the road to make it to our campsite in Tara Canyon. Along the way we began seeing wandering cows, sheep, and goats along our drive! Ivey couldn’t get enough of the cows and giggled about them for so long.
Our Whitewater Rafting camp sat on the banks of the river border of Montenegro & Bosnia. Bungalow cabins would be our home for the next 4 nights with mountains surrounding us in the canyon. Once we got settled in our cabins we went to the pool and played star with the whole group, then checked out the river and Cash took a polar plunge with Ben! We showered up and played pool and spoons till we had dinner at the camp. We did our first Moonup on the lawn under the Balkan stars, while there was a birthday celebration going on at our campsite marking a memorable first night.
The next morning we woke up and got suited up for day 1 of rafting! We fueled up and got our wet suits fitted before loading up to go to our first drop in spot. As we arrived at our drop in spot on the river, we couldn’t help but stare in awe at the color of the river- imagine Blue powerade and you’ve got the idea. Crystal clear and quickly flowing, the Tara river would be our playground for the next few days. The mountains surrounding the canyon are lush with green trees, contrasting the pristine flowing river. It truly looks like a scene out of a fairytale.
We hopped on our rafts and began our expedition down the river. Martina, our amazing local guide, who will be with us for the entirety of the trip, led the charge, starting a playful splash war with Payton that turned into a full-on rafting battle. Hudson declared the water the coldest he’s ever been in when Payton brought devious energy, splashing the other raft at any given chance. The group was buzzing with the shock of the water. The water is COLD, coming off of the mountain. Wade and Hudson captained their boat, being up front in the splash zone. Half way down our river path, our guides showed a safe spot to jump into the river. We climbed up the rocks and Avery was the first to take the plunge!
While all of this has been going on, EC and Ava got some extra time in Dubrovnik due to some travel delays. The next morning, Ella Barnes and Louise arrived in Croatia!! Once we all made it, we headed to our rafting campsite to meet up with the rest of the group. The girls took the detours like seasoned travelers and we were so happy they made it!
The group returned to camp and eagerly awaited the arrival of Ava, Ella Barnes, Louise, & EC! We were finally reunited as a full group and all was right! We hit the jackpot with our meals- our hosts prepared an array of dishes always accompanied by homemade bread and soup that fueled us for our rafting section. Joe taught the group like a pro how to eat a full fish. Our first meal all together was full of chatting and getting to know each other, and hearing the travel tales of Ava, Ella Barnes, & Lousie.
Day 2 of rafting was nothing short of eventful with the whole crew. Ava, EC, and Annie jumped in the water, and Jack was the first to go full belly flop in the pond, which got everyone in the crisp water. Avery & Louise found a log to soak up the sun and the group quickly followed suit.
We passed the safe cliff jumping spot from the day before, and Cash, Hudson, & Hilliard were all stars and jumped off (with helmets and life jackets). Such an amazing way to overcome hesitation to heights! It’s so exhilarating.
We weren’t alone on the river – we met folks from France, the Netherlands, and plenty of curious locals. Lots of funny conversations ensued across the river. Payton and Cash especially bonded with our guides, always asking questions about culture and life in the region.
Back at camp, the pool remained a fan favorite. There was an intense game of taps in the pool and outside the pool that Joe and Louise got really into. You can’t beat soaking up the last moments of sun as it goes down behind the most picturesque mountains.
After dinner, we gathered around the campfire and played a game that was a hit with the group. Ella Barnes had a huge underdog win that had the group in disbelief. We circled up for Moonup around the fire and deepened our connections with thoughtful conversation driven by the LODs. To end Moonup, we played a hilarious game that had everyone cracking up at Hudson’s dance moves.
On our third day of rafting, our legendary guide Auggie set up a makeshift raft slide, and Annie was the first to send it! We did some more jumping into the river, with Joe, Jack, and Auggie eagerly jumping in. Martina and Ivey led raft karaoke that had everyone singing (and laughing). As we floated downstream, the hours gave us space to talk about everything under the sun – from spirit animals and video games, to the year ahead.
Hacky sack has become a group favorite, with Payton leading the charge. Joe, Annie, Jack, and Hudson have kept a fierce Yukar saga going. Pool games continued (Ben and Hilliard dominated), and Martina led us in much-needed river stretches – Ava and Louise were all in.
The next morning we woke up, had breakfast, and said goodbye to our bungalows and wonderful hosts and hit the road for Montenegro! The van ride was filled with songs, riddles, and gawking at the insane views as we made our way to the capital city of Podgorica! Hilliard and EB started our ABC song game which kept vibes high. After a quick pizza lunch and stop at the mall, we were on the road again heading towards our final destination of the day: Albania! As we pulled over at a viewpoint high in the mountains, the group erupted with excitement – no words can describe the feeling of being deep in the Alps after a big travel day. Ben and I have been incredibly impressed by this group’s positive attitude, adaptability, and the way they’ve bonded so naturally.
Now, we’re heading into the next phase of our journey- trekking! The group is ready, the boots are laced, and the excitement is high. More stories and unforgettable views await – and we can’t wait to share them with you in our next trip update!
Until next time,
Ben & Emma Cutter (EC)
The Adventure Begins!
June 7, 2025
Hello Albania, Montenegro, + Greece Families!
We heard from our leaders this morning that most the group has landed safely in Dubrovnik! Unfortunately, due to travel delays, three students will be arriving soon and will be greeted at the airport by one of their leaders. The group is so excited to start their journey together all together!
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
