Teneille Shea volunteers in Hveragerði, Iceland
Teneille Shea, is a Tłįchǫ citizen and a ONE recipient, who is currently completing her combined degree in Science and Education at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, AB. With her busy schedule she volunteered two weeks with Worldwide Friends in Hveragerði, Iceland last month (December 2016).
For two weeks, Teneille worked in geothermal greenhouses which provide tea, vegetables, and fruit for the Rehabilitation and Health Clinic 'Heilsustofnun NLFI'. “Our work included: cutting and separating tea leaves, cleaning the greenhouses, preparing them for the upcoming season, and planting this season's tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers,” said Teneille.
During my stay, I also took part in a few organized excursions featuring some of Iceland's most beautiful features. This included: The golden circle tour featuring a crater, the Gulfoss waterfall, natural Geysers featuring the active geyser Strokkur which erupts about every 5 minutes, and the Pingvellir National Park. We also witnessed the amazing all-day firework display in Reykjavik (Iceland's Capital) on New Year's Eve with the main feature being the fireworks at midnight at the Hallgrimskirkja church. Lastly, we visited the glacial lagoon Jökulsárlón, the waterfalls Skogafoss, Seljalandsfoss, and Kvernufoss, the glacier Solheimajokull, the black beach, the natural reserve Dyrholaey, the Vatnajokull National Park and the glacier Svínafellsjökull.
It was an amazing experience, I made friends from Japan, Korea, Russia, Serbia, Australia, Holland and Greece! I was proud to represent, the Tłįchǫ Nation, and Canada and to learn about other cultures while working in a remote country and learning about Iceland as well. Together, we shared a bungalow and enjoyed meals provided by the Rehabilitation and Health clinic themselves, and got to enjoy the tea we made! We also explored Hveragerði and the natural pools it has to offer ranging from 20 degrees to 80-100 in which you could only observe! It truly was a natural wonder and amazing experience.
To learn more about our ONE program please visit the following link:
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