The "THE JUNGLE" jungle lodge - Ecuador!

Day 0:

TeleferiQo cable car

                 We woke up and got ready and left for LAX airport. After some time we boarded. We are now on the plane to Houston, Texas and then we will take a flight to Quito ("Kie Thoe"), Ecuador. From Quito we are going to the Amazon rainforest by stopping in Coca! We will: canoe, do our thing, meet tribes, hike and more!

Day 1: (Reached Ecuador)

              We are staying in Holiday Inn Express at Quito. We ate breakfast after we got ready. I ate a "cheese inside bread" sandwich. I had great (really sour) orange juice. FRESH SQUEEZED!!! Then we went on a tour.We saw church, after church, after church in old town Quito. There is also a modern Quito. We saw a Bishop bless people (The town had graffiti everywhere, there were cobblestone roads and the buildings looked old), We then went to trams TeleferiQo.  We had a ride, lunch on the top, and another ride down.

Walking on the equator

I GOT MY HIGHEST SCORE IN FRUIT NINJA WHEN WAITING IN LINE TO GO TO THE TOP AND MOM COULD NOT BEAT IT!!!!!From TeleferiQo, we went to Equator Museum and did experiments. I stood on the Equator. Then we went to a tribal kitchen and saw...REALLY REALLY CUTE GUINEA PIGS!!! They are my favorite animals now.


My parents (at the hotel) were super hungry (so was I). So we decided to eat in "Spaghetti" restaurant. Mom thought they could get the food delivered. Dad thought we could go by taxi. In the morning I actually spotted "Spaghetti" right next to our hotel. So i interfered and led my parents (hungry ones at that) to Spaghetti! Mom/Dad thought I saved the day! Oh, we ate icecream, I played in the park and went to bed.

Day 2:

     

     We started at the hotel and ate breakfast. Then we left for the airport and left for Coca by Aerogal aeroplane.  Scary flight with too many dips and turns. My ears hurt and got clogged in the end. They got better at Coca airport. We went to a boat dock and...SAW A SQUIRREL MONKEY!!!!! I then took a 2 hour boat ride and hiked and took a canoe. In the boat we had a burrito, vegan cake and juice for lunch. We, after all that reached La Selva Jungle Lodge or The "The Jungle" Jungle lodge. We found out our room had a tub and a hammock!!

Our Suite

Then we had an evening activity (canoeing around and looking for birds). We found a kingfisher, ani, anhinga, hoatzin (stinky turkey), and lesser kiskadee. We even found a howler monkey and a spider skin. Then we had a 4 course dinner with mousse. After that, sleep.

Day 3:

                I first ate pancakes for breakfast and then we hiked to a butterfly farm where we saw caterpillars and .... butterflies!!! A tiger butterfly landed on me!! It was creepy! Oh, and ... I COULDN'T GET IT OFF OF ME!!!!!

Caught in a storm in the lake!

After we got it off, I went back to the caterpillars. Then we took a walk. We saw a tamarin monkey, a screech owl and more. When we came back, my dad and I went eco-fishing where we let the fish go after we catch it. We didn't catch anything. It was so fun. Then we went on a boat ride (evening), and saw a PYGMY MARMOSET MONKEY!!!!!!!! Then when we went exploring, we had turned back because it was pouring rain. We got dinner at the lodge and then comfortable sleep time.

Day 4:

Caught a Piranha!

                 First we ate breakfast and then walked to the watchtower. We saw a falcon, a kite and more. Then we took a hike. We saw some more tamarin monkeys, heard oropendula and more.Then we came back and ate lunch. We went on a boat ride and saw hoatzins in a nest, and a swimming anhinga. Then we took a night walk and saw a scary tarantula, glass frog and a cute mouse opossum. Then we came back, ate dinner and went to bed.

Oh! I forgot to mention, we caught a piranha during fishing! we let the fish go after that.

Day 5:

               Today is DAD's BIRTHDAY! I planned a birthday cake surprise! I worked with Patty our guide. The activities(for dad) was a birthday treasure hunt, I made. Then we ate breakfast and left for our first nature activity. We went to the Napo river by hiking and canoeing. Then we took a boat ride to clay licks. Parrots come there to lick clay. Bunch of parrots came. More came to the top (canopy) like always. They were slowly coming to the lick and making sure it is safe. Then one by one parrots started licking. Soon hundreds were there. Then we left the clay licks and we went to a community (tribe).
We visited part of the Sani community. We walked around, saw a school and its kids, saw a Yucca plant, bananas, palm, and sugarcane (we got to see them harvesting Yucca). After all that, we bought souvenirs and ate "lunch". Then I made chocolate. We took it back to the lodge. After, we ate lunch as in lunch, lunch. Then we tried fishing. No luck but lots of tugs. Then on a boat we went and saw two pygmy marmoset monkeys! Then we took a night boat ride and saw a frog.

We went back for dinner. I brought the chocolate. I gave it to the kitchen and wrote my dad's name down. Soon the whole cake came in and everyone sang "Happy Birthday". It was his first birthday cake EVER!!! He was embarrassed! Then we went to bed.

Day 6 (Saddest day of my life - almost - in 2014):

We went back to Coca the way we came to La Selva (See Day 2). Then we took a plane to Quito airport. Flight to Houston was 12 hours away. So we took a taxi...to...OTAVALO MARKET!!! I took a lot of pics, bought a painting, and a traditional Quechua community dress (costume). I did this with a lot of bargaining! Then we went back and went to the Quito "Airport Center". We got dinner there and ice cream and chocolates. Then we went back and took a flight to Houston, Texas.

Top favorite things:

• All animals (especially pygmy marmoset, hoatzins in the nest, call of the oropendula, Howler Monkeys)
• The company there
• The Hammock and Tub in my lodge room
• The guide (Patti)
• Catching the Piranha during fishing
• Fishing
• TeleferiQo tram
• Guinea pigs in Equator Museum
• The whole Otavalo market and costumes and things i bought
• Pancakes everyday
• All Desserts
• Planning the Birthday cake surprise for my dad

Butterfly landed on me!

Top Funny Things:

• Seeing my dad get embarrassed with his Birthday cake
• My friend Darcy saying "Stinky Turkey" (Another way to call Hoatzin) all the time
• The butterfly landing on me
• Leading my parents to Spaghetti restaurant
• My dad taking too many pictures of one thing

Top Curious Things:

• Graffiti everywhere in Quito
•  The Quito airport is actually outside Quito
• Waking up to the Howler Monkey Noise
• The Tarantula nest we saw on the night walk
• And that's it!

Saving the California Least Tern - In my view

I have learned about the California Least Tern and I want to share facts and what I did to save it.

The Audubon Society asked many people to volunteer to help the California Least Tern. My parents and I volunteered to help. We were meant to pull out a non-native plant called the Filaree from the Tern nesting grounds. They offered us gloves but I didn't want any because I wanted to get my hands dirty and I liked that feeling.  I did this in Mission Bay. I picked about at least 3 big buckets with my family. They needed help finding good plants within the Filaree. Good plants were Coastal Wooly and Lotus (which is all I remember).

The California Tern is endangered. They are ground nesters and that is why they have more predators. Their predators are hawks and you could say people. Tern eggs are sand colored. Predators could eat the eggs if they were exposed by the green Filaree. Another thing is, since the Filaree can grow so tall, the Terns won't be able to see their predators coming their way.

I felt really proud that I did my part (and I felt hungry). Every little bit counts!

Another thing I did at a different time was pull out trash (with gloves of course!). It was in a special location in Chula Vista at Sweetwater Marsh. There was a lot of water in the marsh and so I saw a bunch of coots, shorebirds, and while picking up trash, I saw two Royal Terns!!! I not only did this for the terns, but also for the Snowy Plover because the chicks run to the marsh on instinct. We picked out specifically plastic (also a bunch of thermocol) so that Terns and Plovers don't eat them and don't get stuck in them. The trash got here by people throwing trash into the water and the trash washes up on the shore because the tide comes in.

I learned a lot about the Tern.

I felt really glad that I did my part even though I stayed for only 1 hour for the trash pick up. Now I am waiting for the Terns to arrive, and then I will go Tern watching and I will tell you my results.

My Offer - A Poem

How may I brighten up your day?

Can I move trouble away?

Your blanket, may I lighten?

Your belt, may I tighten?

I have forgotten to ask!

May I fasten your mask?

May I set the table?

Call me when you're unable

To freshen your time makes me say "Yay!"

I've chosen to light up your day

Characterisitics - A poem

This is a poem I wrote for school, but my mom really likes it and I am wondering if you will too. I wrote it in 10 minutes and the requirements are: 1) I had to make it as if a pet is writing it to me 2) I had to use spelling words like goal, hello and stuff like that.

The poet is an owl (That's what I was supposed to do at least)

It goes like. . .

I say "hoot"

A train says "toot"

And a pony says "neigh"

And it likes hay.

In the dark, some things glow

At least that's what I know.

A soccer player gets a goal

And here's a hero probably named Joel.

Well I know, you can say "Hello"

And probably play the Banjo!

P.S: As an owl with really good eyes, I could see and hear this happening around.

P.P.S: An owl can be kept as a pet

Europe is AMAZING!!!

Day 0:

Today we are heading to the airport. We are going to London! At London we will see the city highlights, go on the London eye and to Greenwich park! I am really looking forward to the London eye. It is a ferris wheel and you can see all the city.

I am now at the airport where I ate some really yummy quinoa soup and then played cards with my dad. It is now time to board the plane.

I did not like the food though! Now we are going to land at London Heathrow airport. After we reached we went on the Heathrow Express train to Paddington and then caught a taxi to Jury's Inn. Then we went to Victoria Station for dinner using the London Underground and Overground! I ate bread and soup for dinner.

Day 1 - London:

Today we started the day by eating breakfast at Jury's Inn and took the underground to Victoria Coach Station and took a tour. I saw the Albert Hall, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben (the bell inside the tower is called Big Ben). Then we ate lunch, saw Buckingham Palace, Marching guards, St.Paul's Cathedral, the tower of London and went on a Thames River Cruise and went on London Eye! I liked the underground and the London Eye the best! Then we did an underground trip, got lost in Harrods ate dinner and went to bed.

 

Day 2 - Belgium:

We took a ferry from Dover to Calais and then the bus to Belgium. In Brussels we heard a story about kings dying too early, saw a pissing boy statue, looked at a beautiful square, and then ate a wrap I didn't like and then ate ...a.....WAFFLE!!!!! and then went to get 2 souvenirs and some....CHOCOLATES

 

Day 3 - The Rhine:

We left Belgium by bus and reached Boppard in Germany to do the Rhine River Cruise! After the cruise we reached Wurzburg. Now are are at Germany. Mom spotted a ferris wheel, so we went on it. Turns out it is a fair so we went on a lot of rides but there was one really scary one that I cried. Then we got some slushes and went back to the Hotel where we saw fireworks and went to sleep.

  

Day 4 - Germany to Austria

We are heading for Innsbruck Austria. But instead we are in Rothenburg and we got to see a pretty tower and colorful houses and walk on cobblestone roads and buy souvenirs! I bought a plate and a puppet! Then we left for Innsbruck and on the way I was singing a song. Oh!!!!!! I forgot about Neuschwanstein Castle! It was unfinished and boring but I got an icecream! But on the way back it was raining like crazy crazy! There were even extremely small rivers! Now i am dry but I was soaking outside and in the bus!

Day 5 - Innsbruck, Austria

We are doing a tour of Innsbruck and we took a drive around and then we took a walk around. We saw a church called Wilten church (yellow baroque church) and a sound of music house and were driving again. There are 140,000 people in Innsbruck and 165 of them are 100 years old! Then we went to a museum in a church where we saw bronze statues and took a walk. I saw mimes and a headless man! Then we went to Swarovski and got crystal figures and left for Switzerland.

P.S: I got a card game that I love.

Day 6 - St.Moritz, Switzerland

We are now in St.Moritz and we are in the hotel and there is a bunk bed and mom let me sleep on the top! When we reached we took a walk around the lake and spotted moths and a small waterfall with fishes in it. Then I swam in the pool but the shower in the hotel went all over the place and mom got wet!

Day 7 - Bernina Express and Lugano

I am boarding a train called Bernina Express - St.Moritz to Tirano, Italy where we looked around. On the way there were beautiful sights like lakes and mountains. The train was going really fast! There was a moth in the train, dad caught it and let it free. At Tirano I got ice cream and took a walk. We got back on the coach and drove around Lake Como and reached Lugano. At the hotel, there was a wonderful view of funicular cars! We even played a game where we predicted what kind of car it was. But the hotel room just had beds a table, and a bathroom. That's it! We did a lake Lugano cruise to a restaurant and ate and then we went to Italy in the cruise (took 5 to 10 minutes), saw the moon and went back to Lugano, Switzerland.

Day 8 - Lucerne

We left for Lucerne and bought a cuckoo clock and went to a cafe and got a chocolate brownie and went to Lake Lucerne and took a walk around. I saw swans and on the way we went on an old bridge called chapel bridge! Then i waded in the lake. Then we took a funicular and cable car (it was so much fun!) to Mount Stanserhorn. We ate lunch and did hikes, got icecream and went back. Then we went inside a clock tower and I felt mysterious (like Hugo Cabaret) and then I went to a Swiss Folklore and did some yodeling but was extremely scared! Then we danced and left.

P.S: I lost my 8th tooth in the bus!

Day 9 - Interlaken, Guyere and Geneva

From Lucerne we went to Interlaken and got chocolate and then we went to Guyeres and ate lunch and went in a really awesome castle and then went all the way to Geneva and went around a lake and got icecream! We took a walk around Geneva and saw a clock made of wood and plants and then we we went to the bus but nearly missed it and went to the hotel!

Day 10 - Paris

We are going to Paris but stopped in Beaune. It is famous for it's wine. We stopped there and bought some macaroons and a basket and went to Paris. At Paris we went to the Seine river for a cruise and went under the lovers bridge, the concorde bridge, the Alexander bridge. We also went under Pont Neuf and 18 more bridges like that - 22 bridges altogether! And then we went on a really fast elevator ride in Montparnasse and went to the hotel.

P.S; in almost every hotel there is hot chocolate!
P.P.S: We ate dinner in Illy - Best Panini in the world!

Day 11 - Paris

We took a bus tour and saw Notre Dame chapel and lit a candle and said a prayer ad saw stained glass windows and there were these monster statues called gargoyles and it was raining and the gargoyles were spitting out water and we learned about a story of a hunch back. Then we drove around and got dropped off near the Louvre and we said goodbye to everyone. I missed the tour people but it was also good to get some nice time alone. Ah what wonderful freedom. We ate a WONDERFUL sandwich and went to the lovely Musee d'Orsay and OOHed and AAhed at the paintings. We saw THE Starry Night! I observed neo impressionism and said they use a lot of dots.... when I didn't know about it! There were sculptures too. Afterward I ate crepe!!! Then we took the metro to the Arc of Triumph and climbed to the top! Then we went to Sacre Cour and I lit 2 candles and said 2 prayers!!! then we went to the dome.Then we did a BORING carousel ride and went to a sweet shop and saw chocolate sculptures  and bought sweets. Then we went to Champs De Elysses for dinner and then went to the EIFFEL TOWER!!!!! It was lit up so we went to the tippie toppie and saw a laser show. Then we took the metro to the hotel.

I loved the day even though I walked quite a bit and climbed a lot of things, and the day was packed!
Some of my favorite things were the Musee d'Orsay, Arc of Triumph, Sacre Cour, Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower and eating crepe!!!!!

Day 12 - Paris:

We started the day by getting up and eating breakfast and drinking hot chocolate (as usual). Then took the metro to Invalides (Napoleon's tomb) because i am so, no wait, sooooooo interested in Napoleon. I got to see where Napoleon was buried CLOSE UP!!! I LOVED it! I even saw Napoleon's coat and hat! Then we went to Notre Dame but it was TOO long a line so we went to a restaurant called Krishna Bhavan. Then we took the metro to the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa, but it was too hot, too crowded and confusing all at the same time!Then we went to Champs de Elyses (pronounced Shawn Elees) to shop for fashion. Tough luck. Just one dress. Then we went to a restaurant called Saravana Bhavan and went to the hotel. Tomorrow we leave for the airport.

Day 13 - Back home

Now that the vacation has ended here a list of favorite, funny and curious things.

Top Favorite Things (not in any particular ranking):

1. Paris Metro (Paris)
2. London Underground and Overground (London)
3. Mt.Stanserhorn (Switzerland)
4. Crepe, Icecream, Ovaltine, Hot chocolate (everywhere)
5. Wurzburg fair (Germany)
6. Arc of Triumph (Paris)
7. Eiffel tower (Paris)
8. London Eye (London)
9. Seine cruise (Paris)
10. Musee d'Orsay (Paris)
11. Invalides (Paris)
12. Notre Dame (Paris)
13. Sacre Cour (Paris)
14. Souvenirs (everywhere)
15. My new adult friends (everywhere)
16. Cobblestone roads (everywhere)

Top funny things I heard:

1. You go baroque when you have no monet
2. The kings dying story in Belgium
3. The French cooks, British police, Swiss running everything story
4. Luigi's YAH!!!!
5. When we all guessed the river name wrong

Top curious things I saw:

1. Paid potties (turning potty seats)
2.  Cobblestone roads
3. Fun public transportation
4. Curious castles
5. Cute names of towns (Beaune, Guyere etc)

Description of vacation in one sentence:

It was so fun and I loved the new styles of things and I loved all the fun and different things and everything else except for too much rain and too long bus rides.

Hug-A-Bear Hug-A-Bit

One day it was dad's birthday. Mom got a fitbit for him for a present. On the same day I kept on hugging my mom and I remembered the fitbit and I decided to make a fitbit for hugs! I have a girls version and a boys version. The screen is split into 3 segments. Two of them have dials. One, on the right is where you can choose the person who you want to hug the most. It shows the picture of the person. On the left, like the flower of the fitbit to know how much steps you have taken, this one has a chain of hearts. The dial is to change the color of the hearts. Unlike the right and left, the center doesn't have a dial. It really just shows how much hugs you've given. The green things are cameras to take a picture of the one you hug, but you should hug the person you've chosen the most. It even comes with a cover that is red and yellow striped. There is a gold color clip on the back of the hug-a-bit to clip onto your shirt. The reason I came up with a cover, was because daddy lost his fitbit in the laundry! My cover and screen and dials are waterproof! The whole Hug-A-Bit is waterproof! The picture shows the girls version. The boys version will be star shaped.

Now, Can you hug me a bit? :)

Inside-the-cocoon cars

At home when I was about to go to bed, a butterfly design on my blanket inspired me to make something that has to do with a butterfly. I wanted to do something with transportation because it is my favorite invention. But it is a good house too. The invention is a car that can also fly and is also a house. Each one is different but with almost the same details. Their shapes are different because that way the buyer can make a choice of which one to buy. One is a caterpillar, another is a moth, one is a dragonfly and another is a butterfly. Each has bedrooms and a garden that can be used for a party room, a lounge, a pool, a jaccuzi, a kitchen in the back and a lookout point in the front. It gets power because the antennae are wiggling all the time and that gives it energy to move.