2. 2
This is a photo of the Los Angeles Memorial Stadium. We had about a 10 hour lay over
for our first day of Olympic Quest, so Bonnie and Banks had a few twists for our trip and
brought us to the most iconic stadium in the world and in Olympic History. This photo means a
lot to me because it has a lot of rich history in many aspects of sports. I am a huge sport lover
myself and reading all of the plaques, pictures, and history across this stadium really intrigues
my mind about this place. I took this photo also to remember that I stood ground on the same
soil as many Olympic, Baseball, and NFL stars. I also glad I had the chance to see this stadium
before they renovate to add on more seating and booths. They are also building a bigger
screen just to try to keep it up to date with the rest of the stadiums in the world. However,
they are trying their best to keep the stadiums main historic physych because many people
complained about how the renovation would change the culture and history of the place. The
only two football teams from this present day that play on this soil are UCLA and USC. Both
teams are rich in history of football. This photo will also mean so much to me, even if it's 5, 10,
or even 20 years from now because can tell my future children that I had the opportunity to
tour a historic Olympic stadium.
3. 3
On our second day of the trip, we traveled to Rotorua to go tour Waiotapu (thermal
wonderland). The city is most famous for its geothermal activity. These were old hot pools and
holes of steam similar to that of Yellowstone National Park in South Dakota and Whyoming. In
this picture, the yellow and orange looking water was cool while the dark blue water was really
hot. This picture meant a lot to me because of the beautiful colors and beauty these thermal
pools give to the land of New Zealand. They are classified as “active volcanoes” according to
our tour guide because of the steam and heat that is coming from underneath these pools of
water. There were many other pictures that I took this day on the Geothermal Activity pools,
but this one stood out because of all the colors that is in this one picture. Also right before I
took this picture, there was a small bird walking across the orange and yellow part of the water.
It was a perfect day for the tour of these ancient volcanoes and in 5 years from now I would
love to come back and tour these geothermal pools again.
4. 4
Here is a picture of Aaron Banks and one of the Maori leaders for the dance we
performed infront of the attending crowd. He was front row and right in the middle of the
group that tried to perform the Maori dance. In Rotorua, it is one of the main places in New
Zealand where Maori culture and traditions can be seen from many different aspects of life. It
can be seen in wood carvings, rock carvings, pictures, dances, meeting places, and their main
meal; Hangi Dinner.
After our Hangi Dinner, we had the chance to experience a Maorian dance. When they
were done with their performance of the dance, everyone in the audience had a chance to
attempt the dance with the Maorian people. I picked this picture because it was the highlight
of our Maorian dance attempt and Banks had the best facial expression out of all of us on the
trip. In many years down the road, I will tell my friends and family about the Maorian dance
and they will get a kick out of how the Maorian facial expression is included in their dance.
5. 5
Zorbing in Rotorua was a lot of fun and it was a great experience for Megan and I, and
for the whole group. It is a huge ball that you slide down in on a big hill. Some people tried to
stay standing to try and run down the hill. Brad was the only one that went the farthest
without falling. All in all, it was a great time, an awesome experience for trying an extreme
sport, and I also believe this moment on the trip brought the whole group together closer than
before.
I picked this picture because it was the first time I have ever even tried an extreme sport
like zorbing. Megan and I both were drenched and we also landed on each other a few times in
the bubble. Luckily, there were no bruises or scratches with how many times we ran into each
other. This photo also means a lot to me because I was zorbing with my best friend. We had a
lot of laughs after zorbing and it only seems fitting to choose this picture for one of my 9
favorite pictures of the trip. It is a perfect picture to talk about 5 – 20 years from now when
someone doesn't know what zorbing is all about.
6. 6
This was a picture of us Bros at our first beach on the trip. The beach we were at was at
Waiheke Island, which is outside of Auckland, New Zealand. We took a 30 min ferry ride to the
island and it was a sight to see. The view was amazing and us Bros just made the view that
much sweater. It was also our first time to soak up the sun, which for some we had too much
sun as we started to burn and a few had blisters by the end of the day. There were a lot of
shops and restaurants along the shoreline as it felt like a tourist type of beach. On this island,
there were also two other beaches with the same landscape and culture that surrounded the
shore. It was a great day to have some free time to explore this iconic island and I was glad to
be spending the time with the guys.
I chose this picture because it showed a great view of the water and of the boats in the
background from the beach we were standing on. It also means a lot to me because I had many
great friends that were exploring this free day with me on this beautiful island. We were all
having a great time at the beach as frisbee and swimming was also involved. In my years down
the road, this beach will have more meaning because I can reflect on the great times I had on
the beach with my new friends from this awesome trip.
7. 7
On our trip, one of the biggest cities we traveled to was Melbourne, Australia. In
Melbourne we had the chance to tour the Melbourne Cricket Grounds and it was one of the
biggest stadiums in the world. It can hold over 100,000 people for not only just cricket games,
but also for soccer and rugby. We learned on the tour that this stadium also hosted the 1956
Olympic Games, which was also very successful for the city of Melbourne and Australia. As we
toured this stadium, we found out that there was a cricket game going on the next day. A few
of us bought a ticket to experience our first Cricket match. It was the longest most intense
experience we have ever had.
This photo is meaningful to me because I have never experienced a bigger stadium in
my lifetime. It has a lot of history and culture added to this stadium, as I had first experience
with that when I was at the Cricket game of Australia vs. India. I decided to pick this particular
photo because it was empty and clean. I can’t complain about that one bit.
8. 8
The next day in Melbourne, our group went to one of the most famous tennis
tournaments in the world; The Australian Open. In our package, we received a 35 dollar ticket
that took us on certain venues and games that were going on in the Australian Open. If you
wanted to see the main matches that were going on per day, you had to pay extra. Still, this
experience of going to these matches and seeing celebrities and famous tennis players was a
sight to see. It was perfect weather and walking around this big venue and sports complex was
a great experience and I am glad I had the chance to see the Australian Open in my lifetime.
I chose this picture because I was sitting in one of the big venues of the Australian Open.
I can look back at this picture and talk about all the players I saw play and practiced on the
courts at the tournament. We saw some upsets and one Australian player that advanced to the
next round, which the stadium and fan base gave her a warm cheer for her accomplishment. Of
course us as a group were always cheering on the Australian players at the open just to be
apart of the crowd. This picture had one Australian player playing but lost. Down the road, the
Australian Open will always be pictured in my mind; especially when I watch it on tv.
9. 9
My second to last favorite photo of this trip is the Sydney Opera house. This is one of
the most iconic buildings in the Southern Hemisphere. According to our tour guide, it took
about 16 years to build with many complications with policital reasoning in between those 16
years of this project. It holds many different concerts and shows, which some of the shows can
go on at the same time as others in the opera house. It has one main stage for the orchestra
and for other big events that need to be played in that venue. There are smaller rooms for
comedian shows, acts, and presidential conferences. One of the nights, a small group of us
went to one of the shows at the opera house. It was called Blanc de Blanc and you could say, it
had a good portion of nudity but the actors played their roles very well.
I chose this picture because it was one of my favorite views of this iconic building. The
bridge in the background made it a complete picture to talk about in front of my friends and
family. It means a lot to me because my family is rich in history of music. Almost every person
in my family either plays a musical instrument, sings in a choir, or sings for events. This
experience is something I can easily talk about 5-20 years from now.
10. 10
My favorite picture on this trip is a picture of Megan and I at one of the most famous
beaches in the world. Bondi beach is known for its scenic views, big waves, and the bundence
of shops and restaurants along the road that goes behind the coast line. It is also known for its
“Bay watching” and surfing. A lot of tourists from around the world try and catch Bondi Beach
while they visit the country of Australia. Everyone on this beach likes to have a good time by
playing frisbee, playing catch with a rugby ball, and burying themselves in the sand.
I picked this picture because this was our last stop before our journey home. Seeing all
different views and landscapes of Australia and New Zealand makes this picture put the cherry
on top. This picture also means a lot to me because I had the chance to experience a trip of a
lifetime with my best friend and with new friends I had the chance to meet through this
journey. In 20 years from now, it will mean much more because of the memories, laughs, and
experiences we all had together as a group.
Thank you again Bonnie and Banks for making this a fun journey in my lifetime!
