For me it is, LOL. Renaissance Vapers, RVs, camping, camping tragedy. It's an easy progression.
This is not so much a camping field trip exactly but my senior class (you do all this fundraising and stuff) went to Costa Rica. We could not afford the :"best" of all tour guide services, they may have been the worst, actually. Our first "hotel" had bedbugs, that was a BAD TIME and where I learned to fear, hate and detest bedbugs. When I signed my "bedbugs clause" on the apartment, I was not afraid for ME, but for everyone AROUND me. They will go through like, electrical sockets and move about from place to place. There is a heat "eradication" treatment (supposedly) but I was like, "Um, I am sorry, you are just gonna pay tor replacing all my stuff."
But yea, night one bedbugs, we stayed in this crazy little town where one of the tour guides lived and they were CONCRETE block "motels" with no door locks or electricity just this sort of "cot." It was kind of like prison, actually. One chick got her stuff stolen and was like "I am going to FIND it" but came back empty handed and refused to say what happened. I had a meltdown in that town (I was suppose to go on an jungle hike and like, see some power plant that had never been seen)and made them call my parents and I demanded they "remove" me immediately. My parents said no, the heartless creeps. So I stayed behind and slept in the tour guide's bed (normally gross, but it had mosquito netting, making it SO GREAT I had a feeling of safety I never had before on that trip). A pal remained behind as she had been bitten by a large spider, and watching her ask for an egg for breakfast in a town where no one spoke English in mine... I mean, she laid the egg and everything it was SO COOL.
Also, our guide but almost plunged off a cliff on this dirt road up to some mountain, really, 1.5 wheels were OFF. Fortunately (I pointed out maybe I should decamp) some OTHER crappy tour guide service came by and "helped" with like a chain and some reverse.
I was heavily in favor of NOT getting on the bus again--ever-- but like, we did. Saw a live volcano and ignored the tiny don't go beyond this point sign and went and lit cigarettes off the lava. It did blow up later that night, and in the US there would have been dire warnings and maybe a fence. LOL.
Also, my spider friend needed treatment and we went to a "hospital" and it was all nice, and airy and run by like, I think some religious place, I really wanted to stay there for ever. I also got treated for my poison oak because we'd gone crazy wandering through some cloud forest, I guess I touched some.
The coffee was amazing the beer was strong and freely available to you in like, any place you went as a minor.. Plus other things. Sometimes you had to fend off some dudes ,but that almost felt like a positive compared to everything else.
I did not keep a journal, I was in revolt (we were supposed to keep one) but I just wrote up my experiences upon my return. Per my teacher, "There are parts of this journal that make me laugh until I cry."
I have no idea WHY because Costa Rica was HER idea, I wanted to go somewhere civilized. Also, the parents all compared notes I guess, and future classes were forbidden to go overseas.
I don't know why that was even a necessary prohibition I mean I hear places like New Jersey and Delaware are really nice. I had no need WHATOSEVER to go to Costa Rica but I was not consulted, really. The teacher was all like (she was a biologist) "I have found Alberto and his brother and we can afford to be guided through Costa Rica!" Oh, yay!
I have also found that a fair percentage of Albertos are not to be trusted. Etc.
Anan
Anna