Log 34: Holy S**t

Remember the entry before I left? The one where I said I had no idea what I was getting myself into with this trip? That was a really accurate statement to make.

I'm writing this the morning after my arrival at Liberty Vista, I think because I've just been a little bit in shock up until now. This is camping, you guys. Like, serious camping. You know how at the hostel, I was having a little laugh over taking a cold shower because I didn't know how to turn on the hot water? At Liberty Vista, there is no hot water. That is, unless you heat up a big pot of it on the stove and haul it to the shower. Even after taking a shower, which I did maybe two hours ago, I almost immediately feel dirty again. 

Before I first set up my tent (which is the only "indoor" space on the premises), I had to clear away undergrowth with a machete. A very dull machete, that is. I may as we'll have used a stick. The bathroom is an outhouse with a hole in the ground, and to get to it you must trek fifty or so yards from your tent up a wall of lava rock. During the night, this is the scariest experience imaginable. Actually, I take that back - the scariest experience imaginable is eating dinner in the communal kitchen (it's really just a slightly bigger and dirtier tent) underneath a web with the biggest spider you've ever seen. All stretched out I'm sure his legs would reach the edges of my palm. Drinking water has to be hauled up from the bottom of an unforgiving hill, and the trash has to be carried down the same route. I'm not sure why, considering it just sits in a heap at the bottom of the hill and never seems to get taken anywhere else.

Okay, now that I've gotten the whining out of my system, let me tell you about the good parts. First off, it's beautiful here. The Farm is on a hillside overlooking the ocean - you can see Koho'olave in the distance.

There are monarch butterflies everywhere, the weather is beautiful, and the three other WWOOFers on the farm right now are super cool. There's also animals: a cute little puppy named Hoku, and two cats that wander around camp - we named them Moonlight and Saltine. Thyme, mint, rosemary, parsley, green onions, and aloe grows wild around the tents. The stars are incredible; they're easily the best I've ever seen. And I know I didn't make the bathroom sounds super appealing, but since no one's around, you can go with the door wide open and look at the view, which is pretty cool.

My fellow campers are named Anastasia, Christine, and Teá. Anastasia is a couple years older than me; she's quirky, bubbly, knows a lot of stuff, and is a great cook considering the supplies we have. She's from Virginia and is an Aquarius sun, Sagittarius moon, Scorpio rising. 

Christine is from Maine, and she's a mother of three kids around my age. She works in agriculture back home, and has a lot of experience with bees, which is what drew her to Liberty Vista. She's also an Aquarius, with a Virgo moon and Aries ascendant.

Teá's a junior on a gap year like me. I would say she's quiet and thoughtful. She also has a car, which is nice because she can drive us into town. Except she can't anymore - she's leaving promptly tomorrow morning since she found worm larvae in her sleeping bag. Who can blame her?

Highlight: For my second night, my goal was to make a fire in camp. The first night, I tried unsuccessfully to get something going in the fire pit - it had rained the past several days, and everything was too wet. On night two, however, I was successful.