Hey everyone!!

I'm at camp louise, it's my second day (which in itself is odd, I really haven't been away from home for very long). Yesterday we woke insanely early (5am new york time) so went for an early breakfast, which was pretty impressive for a hostel.. juice, fruit and philadelphia cheese bagels. We were still too early, so we headed across a few blocks to the far end of central park. I went to central park!! It was very pretty, and ridiculously hot for 8 in the morning.

We then took the longest ever bus trip from New York state, straight through Pennsylvania and into Maryland. The camp is actually right on the border between Pennsylvania and Maryland. If you leave to go shopping, you end up back in Pennsylvania. We had to fill in hundreds of forms when we got to camp, for social security numbers, criminal background checks etc. Not fun. But then we got a welcome meeting which was great. The returning staff are all so friendly, and we're already having a great time.

I met the group doing ODL (outdoor living) with me, everyone is lovely. We have a lot of schedules and planning, meeting etc to do, but everyone has a laugh doing it. Tonight is the official welcome to camp, because all the staff have arrived. On monday the kids get here, which means the next few days are a crash course in climbing, camping, cookouts, etc.

The food is pretty good, and there is a lot of it. But more than anything, it's salad, fruit and things so my fears of leaving incredibly fat (which were heightened when the only available lunch stop yesterday on the coach was burger king, and I saw how large a small meal is) were pointless. Camp is absolutely massive. I still get lost going between my bunk, and the dining hall or the offices. I have a phone, and should be able to activate it soon. You can also write to me (if you want to):

Lucy Hebburn, ODL

24959 Pen mar road

Cascade, MD, 21719

I hope everyone's ok. Lots of love xxx