July 10th

July 10^th was no ordinary day at Shad. Today we got on a bus at 7:00 am to leave for our last camping trip. The three hour drive went by quickly. All around the bus, Shads were sleeping, sharing stories, and over all having a great time. The roads had massive holes in them which caused everyone to jump out of their seats whenever we went over one.

The first stop of the day was the Acadian village, Le Pays De La Sagouine. Here we ate a delicious lunch where if you wanted you could have a traditional Acadian poutine. I, however, ate a chicken sandwich with French fries, which I enjoyed quite a lot. I have tried a lot of new foods since I came to Shad, but to be honest my food preferences have not really changed. Outside from where we were all eating, performers were singing and dancing. As soon as we were done lunch, a few Shads and I went to listen and dance to the music being performed. After that, we explored the village by going through the houses and hearing stories told by the workers at the village who were dressed in original Acadian costumes. Before leaving, a few of my new friends and I climbed a lookout tower to see the entire village below, and the view was amazing. Although I have visited New Brunswick with my family in the past, I still marvel at the beauty of this province.

We continued on our way to our next stop the sand dunes at Batouche, where we went in the waist deep water. We saw creatures such as hermit crabs, clams and many jelly fish. Many Shads were brave enough to pick up the jelly fish even with the chance of getting stung. Many people ended up getting stung, but they said it was worth the risk. I decided not to pick up a jelly fish, but instead found a hermit crab that satisfied my craving, in a much less hazardous way, to hold a sea creature. After exploring the beach, we had a barbeque in the park, which was soon interrupted by a massive downpour of rain. We all quickly rushed under a shelter where we finished eating. I actually found the rain enjoyable as a few Shads and I decided we were going to embrace the rain, and we danced in it.

After leaving the sand dunes, we returned to the bus for our last stop: the camp site. We arrived at Kouchibouguac National Park and luckily the rain did not follow us, which made setting up the tents easy. After setting up the campsites, we watched the sun set on the beach. It was one of the prettiest sights I have ever seen. We completed the day with a camp fire and sing along. We satisfied our desire to munch by eating marshmallows and dreams (bread that is put over the fire that is filled with pie filling). It was a perfect finish to a perfect day…something we seem to have a lot of around here.

Sami Semchyshyn, Shad Valley University of New Brunswick 2010
Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba