Lowri - Humans of Camp America (CA Brand Manager)

By Camp America on 08/06/2016

For the summers of 2014 and 2015 I have been a photographer at Camp Winaukee in the state of New Hampshire. My after camp travels are days that I will remember for as long as I live!...

For the two years I have given myself up to two weeks travelling before flying home after camp ends. Of course, the first year I was quite nervous about venturing out on my own to some of the most well known places in the world but what I’ve learnt is that travelling within America is easier than travelling within the UK!!

My first year I decided to stay relatively close to New York. My first stop was DC, and even to this day it’s one of my favourite places I have ever visited!! I travelled from Boston to DC overnight on a Megabus, it was an insanely cheap option to travel bus also became a place to sleep for the night!From the museums to the White House, the variety of things to see and do was amazing!! I also found myself befriending some British people in the hostel who invited me to a rooftop pool party on one of the highest buildings over looking the mall…..IT WAS AMAZING!! From DC I went to stay with a friend in New York. Thats one thing you come to learn while you're out in America, friends will invite you to stay at their houses or invite you to meet them for food as they truly appreciate the friendship that you have built over the weeks at camp.

My second year I decided to venture further afield and flew straight to Miami from Boston. During my flight I had a wave of nervousness I though that travelling alone again for the second year may be slightly harder as I was going so far away! I couldn’t have been more wrong!! Miami was a hotspot for British councillors who had just finished camp. Everyone who were there were all there for the same reason, to relax. I became a pro at applying suncream and making sure I knew when I’d need to cool off in the sea as the sun in Miami is a whole different level to what I was used to at camp!! I became close friends with 3 girls who had just finished camp too and spent the 5 days going for walks, meals and sightseeing with them. From Miami I flew to LA to meet with a friend from camp from the previous year. Katie and her family welcomed me in to their house with open arms and made me feel right at home. Katie became my chauffeur and tour guide for 5 days and I saw sights that I had seen on tv and in films, LA was such a surreal place! From LA I then flew back over to New York, this time I stayed in a hostel in Queens. As apprehensive as I was staying in a hostel in one of the worlds largest cities, it exceeded expectations and I was in a lovely little room with teenagers that were travelling across America too. While in New York I took full advantage of the SubWay and tried to see everything!! I saw the Empire State, Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Memorial Centre, Museum of Natural History and the best part of all, I managed to get tickets to watch the Yankees play!!

I can’t imagine what my summers would have been like if I hadn’t gone to camp and travelled for a few weeks after. It has completely motivated me to see what the rest of the world has to offer and to experience the different cultures in other countries.

Lowri - Camp Winaukee (2014-2015)