Me again!

I know it's a while since I wrote the last blog, but I've been having to find a spare hour or two in the day to write it over the last week (which is hard enough as it is!), and for the last 2 days we've had "in village" where all staff and campers (kids) have to stay in their villages where there's no wifi. So I apologise now for the length it'll probs be to fill you in, but I'll try not to make it boring. It might be easier to start from where I left off…

Last Sunday we had our first International staff day off, alongside our first day of rain, so we were taken out to the "movie theatre" (I'm already starting to use the yanky terms) to see Rock of Ages (so much cheese!) and to the bar next door (obv some of us can't drink legally but our supervisors aren't TOO fussed, as long as we don't go crazy about it). On returning to camp in the evening, a small group of us headed out to my Junior side beach, Sobell, to lie on the dock and watch the fireflies dancing in the trees around us and above the lake, flashing their little lights every few seconds. It was pretty magical, especially with the stars out above us and shooting stars flying across the sky.

The next morning, Georgia, one of my Aussie friends, and I decided to implement a fitness plan over summer to make sure we stay in shape (we're given so much fooood!) so every few days we've been going to the small gym off the staff lodge before breakfast - we'll see how long it lasts once the kids arrive! We'd go for a run around the lake but unless I have a full-on face protector, I'm gonna pass on that one - it's like running through a wall of bugs.

We then had to have TB test to see if we needed to get a vaccine, before being taken out to a huge outlet mall for a few hours. A group of us went for milkshakes at Jonny Rockers, a massively stereotypical American diner with tiny Jukeboxes on each table to play our own songs, and burgers that could probably give many healthy people a heart attack. Frickin' MASSIVE!

The American staff arrived that day so we had a lot of staff orientation talks and meetings, before being separated into our villages and cabins to "mingle" with the new arrivals. Most of the Americans were campers before and are now working at camp as general counsellors with the kids once they've reached the maximum age of a camper, so a lot of them are only 16/17 - makes us feel pretty old! It was one of the Aussie girl's birthday today also, so she was made to skip around the flagpoles in front of everyone before dinner (a tradition I'm NOT looking forward to when I turn 21 in August), and my group of girls all surprised her with little cupcakes and candles when we got back to our cabin :)

The next day it was 35°. H.O.T. With no breeze. Luckily we waterfront staff were to be working in the lake - definitely the best place to be in this weather. We learnt how to carry out white water searches, and I can probably say with confidence that it's the worst job we have to do, and hopefully one that we'll never have to do for real! We use these searches to look for a child if they have gone missing and we think that have fallen unconscious in the lake or have drowned. We all have to spread out in a straight line parallel to the dock within an arms distance of each other, extending from the shallower end to deeper into the lake. Once in a line, we have to dive straight down to the bottom of the lake headfirst, a lot deeper if you're further out, and sweep the bottom with our arms to feel for a body. It's like swimming through walls of weeds and mud in the dark, before resurfacing and getting back in line to repeat it over and over again. This process carries on across the whole shorefront until we reach the other side, which can take a while as it's pretty hard to get to the bottom alone with one breath if you're further out, let alone swimming and sweeping! I was OK with the depth so I could go further out, but in a real situation when the siren is blown to announce a missing child and we all have to dive in and search, no matter where we are in the line, you have to dive and search. It's especially hard searching under the giant inflatables, as you have to try and swim under and down, before finding your way back to the surface without ending up underneath it, but also making sure you don't miss an inch. It was also pretty disturbing as one of the lifeguards last year ended up in hospital after coming up beneath one and panicking after he couldn't find his way out. It was incredibly tiring as we were made to repeat the whole thing over and over again, especially as we would be sitting around relaxing and the siren would suddenly sound to announce a search. At one point, a turtle about the size of a dinner plate floated right in front of me where I was about to dive, so I had to go down and just hope that I wouldn't bump into it - they've been known to bite, hence their name, "Snapper turtles"…!

That afternoon, as it was still so hot, the senior staff put on a pool party for all of the staff in the swimming pool - even joined by the camp director himself! - and after dinner we were told to head out to one of the back villages where a small stage had been rigged to the back of a huge tractor, and a small band was playing country songs. We were all told to get into lines to join in with a huge barn dance that was taking place while the sun went down! It was soo good, followed by a small bonfire and singing around the guitar. Totally chilled.

After another little morning gym session, I went out onto the lake with the other boating and canoeing staff (there're only 5 of us) and we canoed around the lake, checking out small coves and scaring the small deer that had come for a morning drink. There are lily pads surrounding the perimeter of the lake which are apparently protected as a rare species, so we're told not to go near them. We then did more white water searches (joy.) before creating maps and treasure hunt games for the kids when they come for their canoeing sessions. Following this, all of the waterfront staff had to swim across the WHOLE lake, at least a km, and back without stopping, which was knackering! It took me just over half an hour as the 6th to finish out of around 20 of us (pretty impressed with myself if I must say so myself!). I can't complain though, it's completely beautiful, and every so often a bald eagle would circle overhead - yes dad, bald eagles.

Each Wednesday we have a "cook out" where the staff of each village cook hot dogs and things over a fire, so we all of the girls in my village sat around and cooked, before heading out to the beach for a beach party - it was still 37°C. We had the huge inflatables out, speakers blaring music, rides on the tube that's dragged are along behind the jet skis…awesome.

The next day we had a staff orientation day with talks about security, safety, special needs, and a special guest motivational speaker (Jerry = legend) to get us pumped up for the kids' arrival We then spent time with the staff in our separate villages, creating camp songs and t-shirts. The rest of the girls in our village are all 16-17 year old Americans who've been through the camp system since they were 6 and are now working as cabin counsellors, each assigned their own bunk and kids to look after. That evening we had a basketball tournament with everyone in the huge gym, with loads of singing and cheerleading carrying on into the night.

During my time at camp, I've honestly never seen so much enthusiasm in my life! Every 30 minutes we're cheering about having the "best summer EVERRRR!" and applauding EVERYTHING, no matter how remotely inspirational. The camp director, Lee, is THE most enthusiastic, fervent, passionate man I've encountered, and gives THE most motivational speeches, even simply to announce that lunch is ready!

At 7:30am the next morning the waterfront staff all went for a staff canoe to practice basic skills and rescues, before having a "music lunch", something that happens every week, i.e., music is played from the speakers in the huge dining hall and everyone stands up in their seats and dances around. We had the Shabbat ceremony that night to announce the beginning of their holy day on Saturday, which involves song sessions on the outdoor amphitheatre that sits on the bank of the lake, as the beautiful sun set behind.

Saturday was a big one. Normally it would be our International staff day off from Fri night to Sat night during their holy day, but we had a big weekend coming up. First we had to perform white water searches in front of the whole staff to demonstrate our "ability to protect the children and demonstrate safety approaches on the waterfront", but it helped us to gain a lot of respect from the other staff as they're not easy or fun by far! As it was Saturday, we experienced "Hav Dallah", the celebration of the last religious week and the start of the new one, so everyone sat in the old amphitheatre in the dark, singing Hebrew songs and holding candles and flashlights - it was so atmospheric.

On the Sunday we had Fun Day, the camp open day for new kids to come with their parents and try out the activities to see if they wanted to come. I was based in the canoes all day, guiding the kids and parents around the lake and getting v. sun burnt in the process - this is just the start of the lovely kayak and life-jacket tan lines yet to come…The international staff then had the rest of the day off, so we were taken out to the nearby city of Novi for some AMAZING burgers as a welcome break from camp food, and the cinema. We were told that there was also a puppy store, exactly what it says on the tin - little puppies sitting in cages upon rows of shelves around the store! It was closed by the time we got there, but we could see them sitting staring out at us through the window - I found it slightly sad and depressing in my opinion!

On the Monday, the day before the kids arrived (and our jobs really began) we were taken out to Detroit Zoo to see the tigers, bears, rhinos, giraffes, polar bears, etc, before spending the rest of the day exploring a bit of downtown Detroit and checking out the restaurants and shops. Once we arrived back at camp in the evening, we helped our village councillors carry all of the kids' duffel bags into their individual cabins ready for when they arrived in the morning, and I'm want to just note here that I've never seen so much stuff belonging to a 8-10 year old kid! I swear I don't even own the amount of clothes that they brought (seriously, mum!). As a specialist, I was then assigned to an individual cabin, where I have 6 kids and 2 American councillors who sleep in the cabin with them and generally look after them. Pretty excited about them all arriving tomorrow!

We were all up early to greet the kids as they were dropped off on their buses .We made arches with our arms and cheered them as they got off the buses and into their village groups, some of them looking extremely apprehensive and somewhat overwhelmed! I DEFNITELY would have been. Most of them are returning from previous years at camp, but a lot of them are newbies also. As one of the biggest camps in North America, and the largest Jewish camp, over 1000 children are coming to stay this summer, with over 300 staff to keep it running. Situated over 1000 acres though, of which 500 are used by the camp, they're spread pretty far!

We lifeguards were assigned to the waterfront to give the kids their swim tests that morning, something that all of the campers have to do, as do the staff, by swimming a certain distance to see who the weaker swimmers are. We had some time afterwards to get creative in the arts and crafts building to make our area flags, i.e., the 2 beaches, Waterski, and Boating and Canoeing, before heading to the "opening ceremony" after dinner, where we sang songs and announced our new 2012 camp motto and song, "Waving the Flag" by K'naan. T'was very cool when huge mesh lettering forming the title of the song was set alight upon the stage during the finale. Heading back to villages, we had a bonfire with the girls and roasted marshmallows to make smores, before the exhausted kids were put to bed.

Today, we had our first proper full day of activities, with 2 hour long periods in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. The B and C (boating and canoeing staff) are all given timetable each morning, and I was assigned to take the younger boys' village, DeRoy (the male version of my village as 9-10 year olds), kayaking for period 1. It was pretty nerve-racking at first, as I've never actually instructed anything like this before, especially on my own, and our supervisor had only given us a few pointers and games to work with, but I think managed to handle it OK! The session sizes can be anything from 6-15 kids, along with their cabin counsellors, so it was difficult to control everything at once, especially when they're all of different abilities, some are scared of the water, one's got himself stuck in the reeds and another's sailing off towards the speeding waterski boats, etc... I'd begin by explaining the rules of the waterfront (compulsory) before teaching the basics of the strokes and the boats, then aim to get them into the water asap to play games and basically let them get used to the water and have fun. As their sessions progress, I'll instruct them more on their canoeing ability and improve their confidence. My second and third periods were using the boogie boards, which were way more fun, as I got the kids to try standing up, jumping on them, doing the Macarena without falling off, forming congas as we all held on to each other, myself acting as the "piranha" swimming around and trying to get as many falling in as possible. (Stephanie = "best instructor everrr!" as some of the girls said, woo wooo!).They can also win different coloured beads for each achievement throughout camp, for example, 10 mins standing on a board, the "Macarena" bead, etc. One of the councillors also told my supervisor that I did a really good job for my first time, which was pretty awesome - and I definitely didn't bribe him! Usually each day our supervisor tries to give us a free period, but some of us were asked to perform more swim tests for the girls at an Orthodox Jewish camp that sits adjacent to my camp across the back of our lake. As they're a lot stricter in regards to their religion, no males are allowed to accompany them at any time during their time in the lake, so only the female lifeguards were allowed to go and watch them.

As it's Wednesday, we had the cook out again tonight with the kids, cooking hot dogs over the bonfire. We've just come back from the annual traditional and legendary "Second Night Show", where all of the staff from each village perform a song and chant on the amphitheatre stage in front of everyone to represent their village, dressing up in all sorts of crazy ways to try and show that each village is the best.

ANYWAY, on a more recent note, I've just had the shock of my life! Upon getting back to my cabin after saying goodnight to all of my little campers (so CUTE), I thought I'd get on and finish typing up this blog, with just another American girl, Randy, in her bed. Just quietly sitting here, typing away, Randy turns to me and says, "Steph, there seems to be a bird in our cabin". I look up to see a little dark furry shape swooping in low circles around our cabin - it seems we have a resident BAT! Of course we both scream. Randy leaps down from her bunk and runs out of the door, whilst being at the opposite end of the cabin, I have to make a wild dash for it, keeping as low as possible as it breezes over my ear. Crashing out of the door, I run over a small tree stump and cut my foot, while some councillors who hear our screams come running over, complaining that we're being noisy, before spotting the bat flitting around and scream themselves. It was like a slapstick comedy moment. We tried to entice it out by turning the lights off but it seems to have taken roost in the corner of one of the beams, so we're accepting that we have a 9th resident of Bunk 11 - Vladimir. Let's hope he doesn't poop on us in the night or decide to hang from one of our bunk beds…

I promise I'll try my best to be more regular with my blog updates, it's just very dependent on my little spare time and the dodgy Wifi, but I'll get there! Love to all, hope you're enjoying your summers too xx