October 5th/6th, 2007


Note: Due to the Internet problem we are facing here at the lodge, today’s blog is going to cover the events from the past two days.

Yesterday was another one of those days when the weather wasn’t on our side but we still found ways to have fun. The 1:15pm videoconference was cancelled due to some technical difficulties. One thing we learned from Robert was that unplanned things happen and it sux but all you can do is dust your self off and keep going, so we quickly recovered from the problem and decided to record the conference and send it to the audience. It worked out rather nice actually, we all answered the questions that were sent by the group, and it seemed that the actual thing went a lot better than the pre-run, we put a lot more passion and heart into our answers. It was a good day, because we got some rest, fueled up with some energy and were ready for tomorrow (which is today).
“Wow”, is the word that I used many times today and it perfectly fits to what really happened. One of my desires in life was to go on a helicopter ride and today my dream came true. Hudson Bay Helicopters took all of the students on an unforgettable expedition on their private airliners to a polar bear dam. It was incredible to fly over the cold tundra, taking a look at it from a completely new perspective. When landed, the first thing we started was a snowball fight, it was a lot of fun since some of the people on our group never seen snow in their life. Even though there wasn’t a lot of it on the ground yet, we still managed to have an awesome snow battle; there was laughter and excitement in the atmosphere that made the moment memorable.
The smiles on each of our faces never left, even when we got back to the lodge people were still talking how cool the helicopters were. It was a great way to start of the day. After lunch there wasn’t much to do as a result some of us did homework, some edited their pictures and some just rested. Michael had this idea that everyone gets in a group that talks about what each person will when they get home. This activity really showed the other side of some student, there was a lot of emotion and it showed how much this experience meant to everyone. I mean I have friends at home that I’ve known for a while now and it seems that I got to know everyone just as much in just one week. Each person is so unique in their own little way and that’s what makes them so amazing. Right now, sitting here writing this blog and thinking about all the things that happened this week makes me feel like I've learned so much and that it changed who I am inside. I know the little things in this world that need to be given more attention and I have passion and confidence to make a difference.

October 4, 2007


You know how people always talk about heroes and how great they are but the problem is that you never really see one. Well today I think I finally met a hero. His name is Frank Vigh Larsen from Denmark, he built the biggest animal park in the world, in the size of about 5 football fields there are only 20 species, and in an average zoo for that much space there are about 600-800.The thing that amazed me was the fact that he came up with an idea, he did all the work for it and in about half a year he accomplished his goal. The animals that Frank chose were the ones that lived in a harsh zoo environment, were 2/3 of their lives were spent in a four walled, concrete cells.

By PolarBearsInt The thing that deeply touched me inside, was the fact that he has all of his heart in that park, the care and the time he gives to those animals is unbelievable. I keep thinking its a zoo but I don’t want to call it a zoo because after tonight, I see a zoo as a jail for animals and just a way to mentally kill animals). Frank accomplished the “impossible”, he showed the world and me that animals need to be taken care of with respect in a proper environment and there are ways to make them happy. It makes me feel good that there are people like him in this world that make a difference one step at a time.

October 3, 2007


The bright-warm rays of the sun finally once again visited the Polar Bear Capital of The World. The nature was really awake today; all of the birds, bears, arctic hairs, foxes, and even a marten went for a swim in our presence. The big memory card in my camera wasn’t big enough, it seemed that this day was so beautiful that it wasn’t possible to screw up a picture.
The food was very impressive today, Red&Yellow team really showed us their skills in restaurant management, the bad thing about it is that they don’t cook every day of this trip;). Michael Goodyear stopped by today and talked about ringed seals and how he studies them all year round. This guy works for the Northern Study Center and he makes sure that the researchers that come to Churchill have a place to stay and a meal to enjoy. I think that he plays a big role for the NSC and he is also a cool researcher him self. The funny stories, the amazing experience that he told us today, were very entertaining and kept the crew awake the whole time.
After my blog last night we had a heart-warming presentation by some of the local trappers. Parker, Jim and Betty really showed us how the trapping life is a hard but rewarding way of life. I love listening to stories and these folk really experienced a lot in their lives. So another day in the Tundra and it keeps getting better and better as we go.

October 2, 2007


The blowing wind, the bitter drops of rain, was the bad weather that made the outdoors very chilly and unpleasant. But it didn’t stop the group on having some fun. We had a really cool card game of “cheat”, the long laughs that we had was the best.
Even though we didn’t go on a buggy for a ride to look for bears today, the bears came to us. They were some of the most snooping bears that I have seen in the past. They were licking the lodge, biting logs and rolling around while playing with a stick. It was goofy and entertaining but the best part was that they were actually really close to us, all we had to do was run up and down the lodge, fallow the bears while they kept circling the tourist attraction.
Today was probably my best public speaking day ever. After a lot of studying in different groups, we presented things that effect our world in a negative way, global warming, sea ice melting, etc. the presentation went well, considering that it kept changing every time it was practiced. My groups (the green team) received a little toy polar bear, representing that we had the sharpest, brightest, and most powerful performance today. It felt good that we accomplished this assignment with noble success.

October 1st 2007


Outside the town of Churchill beside the plummeting waves in the Hudson Bay something not so grand stands. The past headquarters of polar bear research rests abandon. We stepped inside the dimly lit laboratory, trying to avoid reminisce left over 30 years ago. Beside some new 7-up cans everything was left just as the day they departed. The apparatus they used in their experiments looked horrendous. You could see the pulleys and the containers that the oil was kept before being spilt onto the bears. This study was conducted in order to understand if an oil spill would affect the bears. I mean you would think that it might have been an unnecessary test (and extremely cruel) but the sacrifice of one will hopefully effect many …someday. This one already has by influencing the thickness of the hull in oil tankers that pass through polar bear territory.

Right now I am writing lying on my bunk in the middle of nowhere on the Tundra Buggy Lodge. I look out my window and what do I see…a white bear roaming in the darkness! It is the fourth one we saw today. It took us 3 hours to reach our destination by tundra buggy. On the way we saw arctic hare, ptarmigan, snow geese, caribou and polar bears. The polar bear leaped up the sides of the buggy and I was just 15cm away from touching wet black nose with my mitten hand.

Overall today was an amazing day, the feeling inside of me was so great that the words in the English language cant even describe. Holding my camera in my hands was so cold that my hands were shacking, I dont think that it was the blowing cold wind, it was more of a excitement burning inside of my body while looking into the dark eyes of the creature.

September 31st, 2007


Today was the first day of our trip. It turned out to be a really nice say, and the weather was perfect.
After breakfast we had a presentation and there were so many really cool pictures that I couldn’t
believe that they were taken in Churchill. The second thing on the list today was to visit the Winnipeg Zoo.
I have to admit that there were a lot of animals that I saw for the first time in my life, so if you can imagine it was really exciting for me. There were all kinds of animals, but I have to say that my favourite of all
were the monkeys. They did some of the funniest things ever and like my roommate Omar said “ I can
watch them all day long”. That was true, the monkeys were very intrusting. After the Zoo we all went on
a tour of Winnipeg. Even though I have been to Winnipeg many times, it was a really fun experience.There are so many famous building and statues that I have never seen yet and to think that they were all in Winnipeg was awesome.
Today was a really fun way to start the trip. The people that I met are just keep getting better and there
is so many question and so many things that we still need to talk about so I think that its going to be a great trip,
and I just cant wait to see what they have planed for us tomorrow.

Sunday September 30, 2007

Today was a bid day for everyone including myself, it was time to head up north to Churchill. My biggest question for everyone was, “What do you expect Churchill to look like?” I received a lot of answers and it was very intrusting to listen and compare the real Churchill to what people thought it was like.
The first thing we did when we arrived to Churchill was checked into our hotel, The Tundra Inn. When everyone got settled in and since this is my home, it was my duty to give a quick tour of the town. I have to admit that I was very nervous during the tour, not the part of introducing the town, but more talking in front of everyone. I heard that we will have to do a lot of speaking in front of people on this trip, so I really hope to get over this fear as quickly as possible and get more confident in my self. In the tour, my idea was to show the group the history behind this town and how it al really started. So we went and saw the Town Port, the Churches and the most important one of all, The Complex. The Complex was what I really wanted everyone to see because I consider it as the main entertainment building for the town. Inside the building are a lot of objects and pictures that really talk about the history, the teamwork and the love in the community.
At the end of the tour I felt like I’m slowly increasing in my speaking skills, I was happy that the tour went well and I am actually looking forward to talking again, which is a really new thing for me. This day really opened my eyes towards Churchill, it made me realize how amazing it really is to other people and to me. I have to say that I am very proud to call this awesome place my home town.