One speaks of far off lands in glowing terms and the other can't wait to get a taste of it.
Wanganui's kayaking prodigies Aiden Nossiter and Max Brown leave next week for their European and Canadian odyssey with the New Zealand Junior kayaking team.
The teenagers will compete together asa K2 team and then as part of the K4 boat at the Slovakian nationals, followed by the Czech Republic nationals just over a fortnight later.
All that will serve as build-up for the Junior World Championships, being held in Toronto from August 1-4.
This is Nossiter's second go on the European tour after last year, while Brown, who made his debut for New Zealand in Australia back in January, will be on his first northern hemisphere trip.
Nossiter has been sharing the stories of temperatures reaching the mid-40s, strange local meals, pick-pockets and the down trodden eating out of trash cans.
"The jet lag was the immediate thing, but [NZ coach] Alan Thompson made us sit out in the sun with no sunglasses so we stayed awake." Brown is not intimidated in the least.
"I get pretty excited, to be honest. Checking out different cultures, I'm open-minded I guess."
Nossiter said as well as the European teams, the Brazilians also showed up last year and they would like to test themselves against them.
The key remains adapting to make the fastest starts possible, which is the specialty of the big Hungarians who are expected to dominate in Toronto.
Coaches Brian Scott and Roger Marriott have been making the 6am starts with the pair to get them ready for this trip.
Marriott said they were just starting to taper off the boy's weight now.
"I've seen a huge improvement, in a year-and-a-half with Aiden and a year with Max. "It's a privilege to work with them, with their dedication and discipline."
Brown said their goal in Toronto was to make each A grade final, while blowing their personal best times out of the water.
