Te Puni Talent Quest, Choir, and Battle of the Bands

Sunday, September 18

            This morning I went to St. John’s with Rayce. It was raining, but it was good to get out of the hostel for a bit.

            After lunch, I went to the library to do research for my linguistics assignment. We have to analyse part of a transcription of a conversation. I am getting an early start on my assignment because I have two essays due the same day.

            Tonight was Te Puni’s Talent Quest. There were about ten acts. A few featured singing and guitar playing, there was a girl who did Irish step dance, a guy signed a song (in Universal Sign Language), and two people did a Disney medley in the midst of telling a silly story. Everyone did a really good job, and it was a very entertaining show.

            After the Talent Quest, the choir had a super-short practice, just running through each song once. I am excited for Thursday’s competition.

Tuesday, September 20

            Today after dinner, I checked my mail and saw that I got something from my parents. Inside the envelope was an envelope addressed to me from the Negleys (friends from Maine)! It was so much fun getting a piece of mail, and this one included pictures! I am excited to go back to Maine and see the Negleys again.

Wednesday, September 21

            In the afternoon, I went with one of my friends to her English class. They had just read a play (I don’t remember which one), and some people were performing it in the lecture hour. The acting was surprisingly good, and I enjoyed it a lot. It was a nice way to break up my day.

This evening, the Te Puni choir performed in the dining hall at the very end of dinner. It was our dress rehearsal, so everyone was dressed nicely. The performance went well for being our first one in front of a live audience. We were supposed to have a practice in the venue from 12 midnight to 1am, but we couldn’t book the room.

Thursday, September 22

            Today was the inter-hall choir and chamber music competition. There were seven choirs and four chamber groups who participated. The choirs and chamber groups were dispersed throughout the program, so there was a nice mix. At the end of the night, it was announced that Te Puni won the choir competition! We were all super excited and happy. The Te Puni chamber group was beat out of first place by half a mark. The choir received a silver cup trophy to take back to our hostel. I had so much fun participating in choir, and I’m really glad I had the opportunity.

Friday, September 23

            Tonight I went to the inter-hall Battle of the Bands. It was held in Hunter’s Lounge, which worked out really well. A girl from my hostel and I went together. There weren’t as many people there as I thought there would be, but we got a great spot on the balcony looking down over the stage. Apparently the band that was supposed to represent Te Puni had some last-minute issues, and some of the members couldn’t make it to the performance. They ended up performing the Disney medley from the Talent Quest. Some of the bands were pretty good, and others I thought were just really loud. But it was fun to get out of the hostel and see some uni bands.

Saturday, September 24

            Today was spent working on my children’s literature essay and reading for my children’s literature tutorial on Tuesday. It was not very exciting, but it was moderately productive, so that’s a good thing.

            Tonight I went to Hunter’s Lounge and watched the All Blacks play France with Rayce. It was a really good match, probably the best I’ve seen yet. France and New Zealand were the two best teams in this pool, and the All Blacks on 37-17.

Zealandia and Sketch

Sunday, September 11

            This morning when I woke up, I was able to listen to the commentary of the last set between Djokovic and Federer. I can’t believe Djokovic came back from two sets down and then down two match points to win the match.

            I was supposed to meet Rayce so we could go to St. John’s morning service together, but he thought it started an hour later. So, I went by myself. It was their quarterly communion, and it was very much like Sunnyslope’s (no wine or communal cup this time).

            After lunch, I met my international buddy, Mae, and we walked to Zealandia. Zealandia is a fenced off area that they are trying to restore to the point before settlers came. They’ve taken out all of the animals that were introduced, such as goats, mice, and cats. We bought tickets to both the exhibition area and the outdoor sanctuary valley. It was interesting to learn about the different animals and how much the settlers disrupted the environment. Mae and I were able to see a number of birds when we went outside, and it was so fun listening to them chatter. There were also some great views from the dam.

Tuesday, September 13

            Today after dinner, I had choir practice. The songs are coming along nicely, and I am excited for the competition next Thursday.

            Since I didn’t have much work to do tonight, I went to one of the TV rooms with a friend and watched ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’ It is interesting because the TV seasons are later here than in the US. I know that new seasons in the US are going to start in a week or so, and I am sad that I won’t be able to watch my favourite shows. The one I’m going to miss the most will definitely be ‘The Office;’ I really want to know how the show is now that Steve Carell is no longer part of the cast.

Friday, September 16

            Today, I watched the All Blacks play Japan. I met Rayce and a friend from his hostel at Hunter’s Lounge, which is a café/bar on campus. We got there at 6 because we wanted to eat dinner there, and we also wanted to get good seats for the match. It turned out that we didn’t have to get there that early; there weren’t that many people there. But it was still nice to sit and talk to Rayce and his friend. A few people from Rayce’s group and a few people from his friend’s group joined us to watch the match. A couple friends from my hostel came later, too. The match itself was very one-sided. The All Blacks did not play their top players, and they still won 83-7.

Saturday, September 17

            This morning, I met my friend, Misty, and we walked down to the town hall to watch a multicultural concert. It is part of the Festival of Carnivale that is going on during the World Cup. It consisted of performances from different countries. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to stay for all of it because I needed to get work done. I stayed from 10am to 1pm and then went back to my hostel to work on my linguistics assignment.

            On Thursday, Nat invited me to go to a play with her that was showing at Bats Theatre. They are known for their amateur plays, and I was very excited to go. We ate dinner together and then walked to the theatre. The play was called ‘Sketch’ and is about a woman who is terminal who asks an artist to build her a room to die in. The woman turns out to be the daughter of the owner of the art museum that her room is displayed at, and the play revolves around trying to figure out if the woman is really dying and why she wants to be on display. The acting was very good, and I enjoyed it a lot.

Fire Alarm

            I hope you all have enjoyed reading about my mid-semester holiday. It was fun to write about, but it was also a little overwhelming. That, combined with the work for my papers, kept me from posting about my first week back at uni until now. Hopefully I will get back on a more regular schedule with my posts after this. Also, I do not have any pictures from this week, so I am going to post a couple more from holiday.

Monday, September 5

            My first day back at lectures went well. I think the second half of the semester will be busier than the first half. Or maybe it just seems that way because on September 30, I have two essays and an assignment due. That’s going to require some serious planning and working ahead. I hope I have enough motivation to actually spread out my work so I’m not cramming at the last minute.

           

Tuesday, September 6

            This afternoon, I met Rayce so we could share stories about our holidays. It was really fun catching up with him and hear about his adventures in Australia. It made me even more excited to go there after the semester is done.

            I had choir practice tonight (altos only). It went really well, and I think we’re getting in form for the competition. I like the songs we’re doing; it helps that ‘Grease is the Word’ is a relatively simple song so we can focus more on ‘Adiemus.’

Friday, September 9

            Today after lecture, I walked into town to buy some things at the store. I had just gotten back in my room and was putting things away when I heard a siren go off. Then an automated voice said ‘Please evacuate the building using the nearest fire exit.’ I poked my head out of the door and saw that two other people on my floor had done the same. It was hard to tell if it was an actual alarm because the siren seemed to go off in different parts of the building at different times, so we only heard it intermittently. 

            I went downstairs and waited with Nat and a couple of her friends. I didn’t keep track, but one guy said it took the fire trucks 15 minutes to arrive. After waiting around for a bit, we were told that there was no fire and we could go back inside. We got an email later in the day saying that a maintenance worker had accidently set off the alarm.

            Today was also the start of the Rugby World Cup. I watched the All Blacks play Tonga in one of the TV rooms in my hostel with a group of friends. The first half was very entertaining, but there wasn’t as much action in the second half. The All Blacks won 41-10. I am excited to watch them again next week.

Pancake Rocks

Saturday, September 10

            So, one of the reasons I don’t like being in NZ is because I can’t watch video of US Open matches because they are not supported here. Fortunately, I am still able to listen to the radio broadcast of the big matches. This morning, I listened to the Nadal/Roddick match. It was a pretty dismal match for Roddick, but I still enjoyed hearing about tennis. After the singles match, I listened to the mixed doubles final, which wildcards Melanie Oudin and Jason Sock won.

            I spent the rest of the day working on my linguistics assignment and reading ‘Autumn Term’ for child lit. It is a pretty entertaining book, and once I’m home, I may try to look up some more novels by Antonia Forest.

South Island Holiday Part 2

Monday, August 29 – Franz Josef to Queenstown

            Today was a very long day on the bus, but totally worth it because we made it to Queenstown. Our bus did a 40-minute lake hike in the morning before leaving Franz Josef so other people could see the water reflections.

            About a half hour outside of Queenstown, there was a place to go bungee jumping, and Bev decided to do it again. She was the only one on our bus doing it that day, so we all watched her.

            Our backpackers in Queenstown was really nice. We had a seven-person room with Nina, and we had our own bathroom. Unfortunately, there was a motion-censored fan in the bathroom that was very loud. It also didn’t turn off when the person left the bathroom but ran for about five minutes after.

            For dinner, we met people from our bus at The World Bar for $10 pizza tasting and reduced priced drinks. The World Bar is known for their teapots; they are mixed drinks served in teapots. People said they are deceptively strong because they don’t taste like alcohol, and it is easy to drink too much. We hung out until about 9:40 and went back to the backpackers when the others decided to move to a different bar.

Tuesday, August 30 – Queenstown

            Today was one of our rare non-travel days. Queenstown is a really neat place to explore, and there is lots to do… as long as you have better luck than Bev and Ashley.

            Our original plan was to go skydiving at 8:30, get done around lunchtime, and then have the afternoon to walk around and shop, go to the kiwi-bird sanctuary, or possibly make our way to the Puzzling World museum an hour and a half away. Instead, when we woke up, it was sprinkling rain. We walked to the skydiving place anyway, and they said they had a hold until 9. When we returned at 9, they said they were delaying trips for another hour. We went back at 10, and they said they were still waiting but it looked like it was clearing up. Bev and I originally decided to reschedule for an afternoon trip, but then we changed our minds and signed up for 11:30. Just as a precaution, we went back at 11 to see if the trip was still on, and they told us it was and was looking good. We killed time between trips to the skydiving place by walking around the shops. Finally, we went back at 11:20 to get briefed for our trip. We paid for the trip, signed our lives away, and were watching the introductory DVD when one of the guys came into the room. He said that he just got word that it was too windy to go skydiving. Everyone waiting was very disappointed. When we were leaving, I saw the van that was supposed to take us to the site drive off.

            Bev and I still wanted to do some sort of activity, so we went to an information centre to see what we could do. We decided on doing a jet boat trip. When the lady was booking our tickets for us, she said that we were the only two signed up for the time slot so far, and they needed at least four people for the trip to happen. There were still a few hours left, so we were told to check in closer to the time and see if anyone else had signed up. We were pretty worried that we would be in Queenstown, adventure capital of NZ, and end up not being able to do any activities. Bev and I ate at a fish’n’chips shack by the water, and the food was absolutely delicious. We walked around looking through more shops. Both of us ended up buying a good amount of gifts for people. It actually worked out well that we had walked around in the morning because we got to see what was offered and compare prices.

Photo credit: Kawarau Jet

            When we checked in with the jet boating people about a half hour before our trip, we were told that we were still the only two signed up but to check back in about 15 minutes. We ended up losing track of time and got to the jet boat place five minutes before our trip was going to leave. Four other people had signed up, so we were good to go. The jet boat trip was so much fun! The water was a little choppy on the lake because of the wind, but once we got to the rivers, it was calm. Jet boats were invented in NZ and can travel over water as shallow as 5 centimetres. However, it cannot stop in water that shallow. We did a few spins that were really fun. At the beginning of the trip, Bev and I got our picture taken together, and pictures were also taken of our boat. They actually turned out really well, so Bev and I bought the photo package. It also came with keychains, which we were really excited about.

Photo credit: Kawarau Jet

            For dinner, we decided to cook with Elise and Nina, two people from the bus. Bev and I went to the store and bought spaghetti, a pepper, a carrot, mushrooms, a zucchini, and a packet of stir-fry sauce. It turned into a very tasty meal. After dinner, we played two games of Skip-Bo, and then we taught Elise how to play Set.

Wednesday, August 31 – Queenstown to Dunedin

            Today Bev and I were able to find a great spur of the moment activity without the help of Magic Bus. We left Queenstown in the early morning and arrived in Dunedin around lunchtime. On the bus, we listened to music, including the Avenue Q soundtrack. Bev and I checked into our backpackers and had sandwiches before going out and exploring.

            Our backpackers didn’t have Internet, so we found an Internet café. On our way out, I noticed a flyer that looked like it had cartoon characters on it. I took a closer look and realized they were characters from Avenue Q. A local theatre in Dunedin was performing the show! Bev and I immediately became super excited and went to an information centre to find out the location of the theatre. It ended up being only a short walk from our backpackers. We went to the theatre and asked if there were any tickets left. There were three sets of two seats available, one in the front row just off-centre. What was even better was that the price was cut in half for us because we were students.

            After we sorted that all out, we went on a tour of Cadbury World, which is a NZ chocolate company. It was a pretty interesting tour, and we got candy if we answered questions.

Old cars at Cadbury World

            The performance of Avenue Q was really well done, and both Bev and I had a really good time. I am really glad that Bev got to see it. What are the odds that we listened to the soundtrack in the morning and went to see the show in the evening? It was also fun because we got to do something that I don’t think is “touristy” because most tourists wouldn’t know about it. Most of the audience was made up of young adults, and  it was really fun seeing the show in that type of setting.

Thursday, September 1 – Dunedin to Lake Tekapo

            We arrived at Lake Tekapo around 3:30. The backpackers was right next to the lake and a playground. Obviously, Bev and I had to play on the seesaw and the elephant-shaped jungle gym. After, we walked to where there were hot pools, ice skating, and a snow/ice slide, but we decided it was too expensive. Instead, we got Bev’s camera and took pictures at the lake.

            Earlier on the bus, Bev and I signed up to go to an observatory. Our bus driver, Cam, and his friend signed up, too. When we were waiting outside to get picked up, Bev and I were really cold, so we started doing jumping jacks. It actually warmed us up, as well as made us laugh a lot. It was really interesting seeing the stars from the southern hemisphere. I got to see the Southern Cross. There were several telescopes set up and a few workers available for explanations and such. It was a great experience.

Friday, September 2 – Lake Tekapo to Christchurch

            We finally made it to Christchurch! We arrived around lunchtime and made fettuccini with Alfredo sauce for lunch. After that, we went to the store and bought a LOT of food. We were both very excited to make a meal that wasn’t pasta and marinara sauce (though neither of us got particularly tired of that meal).

This is how Bev chose to stack our cookies

            When we got back from the store, we literally stayed in the kitchen cooking all afternoon until we ate dinner. We made mashed potatoes, chocolate chip cookies, and chicken Parmesan. The cookie and chicken recipes came from a cookbook published by Bates Commons. Later, we made Milo and ice cream cookie sandwiches for dessert.

Saturday, September 3 – Christchurch

            Today was a very fun, relaxing day with Bev. We watched “Becoming Jane” in the morning and had leftovers for lunch. In the afternoon, we baked one batch of peanut butter cookies and one batch of chocolate chip cookies. For dinner, we made fried rice and teriyaki chicken. It turned out really well.

           

Sunday, September 4 – Christchurch to Wellington

            Today was a sad day because I had to leave Bev and return to Wellington. We had planned to make even more cookies (we made over 100 in two days) but in the end decided against it. We again had yummy leftovers for lunch, and we went to the store so Bev could buy more milk and I could get some money from an atm.

            My flight back to Wellington was short and uneventful. I used the time to read a bit more in “The Bone People” which we will be discussing in NZ lit in a couple weeks.

            I am so grateful for the opportunity to travel around NZ with Bev and see so many amazing places. I am slightly sad that I have to start going to lectures and tutorials again, but I am also excited to see my friends and hear about their holidays.

South Island Holiday Part 1

Friday, August 26 – Wellington to Picton to Nelson

            This morning, Bev and I got up early so we could catch the ferry to the south island at 8:25. The trip was very nice. Bev and I spent some time outside on the upper deck enjoying the sun and being out on the water. We also walked around the ferry. I’ve never been on a boat for an extended period of time, so my sea legs were not very stable. Every few metres I would either have to pause or stumble. But it was still fun and a nice way to spend the morning.

View from the ferry

            When we landed in Picton, Bev and I got on the Magic Bus to continue on to Nelson. Our bus driver was named Cam, and we were on his bus until we reached Christchurch. He actually didn’t drive from Picton to Nelson though because it was his last day of holiday; he was just along for the ride.

            Shortly after we pulled away from Picton, we found out that we were stopping at a lace that had wine tasting for $2. Bev and I had toyed with the idea of going wine tasting somewhere, and this sounded like the perfect opportunity to us. We were able to try four wines, three white and one red. This was Bev’s first time having alcohol, and we both agreed that we are not very keen on wine. But it was a fun experience, and we learned how to properly taste wine.

            Another activity we found out about on the bus was scenic microlight flying. It sounded really fun to me, so Bev and I signed up to do that. We arrived in Nelson around 4 p.m. and we got picked up for the microlight immediately after we checked into our backpackers. Cam, our bus driver, and Nina, a girl on the bus, came too because they were going skydiving, which was right next to the microlight place.

Photo credit: Bev

            Bev and I thought that we were going to go in the same microlight glider, but no, they are only made for two people, the pilot and a passenger. We decided that I should go first. I put on a flight suit and a helmet with a headset. The flight was about an hour long, and we flew along the coast and over the Tasman National Park. The scenery was beautiful, and riding in the microlight was so much fun! I would totally do it again if I ever got the chance.

Photo credit: Bev

            We got back to the backpackers around 7. We didn’t have food for dinner, so we walked to the store to buy food. It didn’t take us long, and then we started back to the backpackers. The store was just a few blocks away from the backpackers, and after a bit, we realized that we should have already passed the backpackers. We were told that Nelson is not a big city, so getting lost should not have happened, but it did. However, we turned around and discovered that we’d forgotten the entrance to the store was around the corner from the street we had used to get there. We made it safely back to the backpackers and made dinner.

            After dinner, we found a whiteboard in the common area. We started playing hangman, but we were not very good at thinking up words. Bev and I ended up doing continuous hangman and played for at least half an hour without him dying. When we were done playing hangman, we noticed a dartboard on the wall. We started playing (not keeping score), and it turned out to be really fun. It entertained us for at least an hour, and we tried all sorts of different ways of throwing the darts: left-handed, under the leg, backward, etc. The most exciting part was that we each got a bull’s eye! It’s pretty impressive considering we both also missed the board on more than a handful of occasions. By the end of the night, we were getting a little hysterical.

Saturday, August 27 – Nelson to Greymouth

            The trip from Nelson to Greymouth went well. On the bus, Bev and I found out about a tour of Monteith’s Brewery. Even though Greymouth is extremely small, a taxi picked us up and drove us to the brewery. A lot of other people on the bus came, too. The brewery was undergoing renovation, so we didn’t actually get to go in. We watched a DVD about the production line. Then we went to a bar area and got to taste their seven different kinds of beer and their crushed apple cider. Bev and I learned that we like light beer better than dark, but apple cider was our favourite.

            Our brewery tour included a meal voucher for Railway Hotel, a bar. We all went there and ate dinner. There was an All Blacks game that night, so we stayed to watch. Bev had started losing her voice (she was sick), so we practiced signing to each other so she didn’t have to yell above the music at the bar. It actually worked out pretty well. The All Blacks played Australia and lost 20-25. It was not a very good game, but hopefully they will do much better in the World Cup. It was also fun hanging out with the people on our bus.

            We were staying in a six-person room at the backpackers with four other people from our bus. We all left the bar at the same time to walk back. And lo and behold, we get lost, as a group, in Greymouth, a place that people should definitely not be able to get lost in. It didn’t help that we were all trying to follow each other. Luckily, we figured out where we were and made it back to the backpackers.

Sunday, August 28 – Greymouth to Franz Josef

            On the way to Franz Josef, we stopped in a town that had a lot of jade jewellery stores. The pendants were very pretty but also expensive. We stopped at a place where we could pan for gold, and a few people did that, but Bev and I did not.

Franz Josef glacier

            We arrived in Franz Josef around 11:30. Bev and I originally planned to sign up for the half-day glacier hike of the Franz Josef glacier, but then we found out that we could do a kayaking trip on Lake Mapourika. We opted to do that, and I am really glad we chose that trip instead. We were still able to walk to a lookout to see the glacier (it is scary to see pictures of the glacier in the past and see how much has melted).

Photo credit: Glacier Country Kayaks

            It turns out that Bev and I were the only ones who signed up to go kayaking, so we got a personal trip with a Canadian guide named Greg. The water was a bit choppy going out because of the wind, but it turned really calm. My favourite part was paddling through an estuary and seeing the crystal-clear reflections in the water; they were breathtaking. Bev and I did get stuck a couple times, but we managed. We also managed to run into each other more than once in the middle of the lake.

Photo credit: Glacier Country Kayaks

            The backpackers we stayed at was really nice. When we got there, there were cookies made especially for Magic Bus travellers that were delicious. There was a hot tub (which we didn’t end up using), a nice kitchen, a big TV room with lots of movies we could borrow, free popcorn, free vegetable soup at 6, and Bev and I got a four-person room to ourselves with an en suite bathroom.

            Two girls from our bus invited us to watch “August Rush” with them. Bev and the two girls had never seen the movie before, and they all liked it. 

North Island Holiday

Saturday, August 20 – Wellington to Rotorua

            Our first day of travel started with a 6 a.m. wake up to make sure we were on time for our bus. Bev and I walked to a backpackers (hostel) to catch our first bus. The driver was really friendly, and we learned throughout our trip that Magic Bus does a good job hiring personable, friendly, and knowledgeable drivers.

            On the way to Rotorua, we stopped at a few places to take pictures and stretch our legs a bit. Unfortunately, I did not catch the names of every place we stopped, but I did get some of them. Two of the stops we made the first day were at Lake Taupo and the Haku Falls. We made these kinds of stops on all the legs of our journey, but I will not mention all of them.

Haku Falls

            We hadn’t anticipated this, but our bus driver was able to book our accommodation and certain activities that we wanted to do en route to our destination. It turned out to be very convenient and useful because we found out about a number of activities that we were not aware of previously that turned out to be really fun. One such event was a hangi (dinner) and concert at the Tamaki Maori Village. We were able to walk through a ‘village’ and talk to Maori about carving, housing, games, etc. After, we watched a concert of dancing and singing, and then enjoyed a delicious dinner.

            For better or worse, I was again reminded that I look like an Asian foreigner and not an American foreigner. When Bev and I were walking around the village together, there was a man talking about carvings. He asked where we were from, and Bev said, “The States.” He turned to me and asked where I was from. I also told him I was from the States, and his response was, “Okay then.” Apparently that was not what he was expecting. Later, I was buying a souvenir from the gift shop. The woman at the cash register started explaining that she didn’t have enough bubble wrap for my purchase. She put it in a bag and said that it wouldn’t get damaged this way, but then she said, “Oh, you probably don’t understand anything I’m saying.” I told her that yes, I could understand her, but I’m not sure that she picked up on my American accent.

            When Bev and I got back to the backpackers, we went in the thermal pool. It was really steamy and warm and felt really good after sitting on a bus all day.

Sunday, August 21 – Rotorua to Taupo

            This morning, we got on our next bus with a different driver and rode down to Taupo. We’d actually passed Taupo on our way to Rotorua. Our original plan was to go to Rotorua and go zorbing (going down a hill in a giant hampster ball), but it ended up not working out.

            On the way to Taupo, there was a place to go bungee jumping, and Bev decided to try it. I, on the other hand, am not keen to bungee jump. I agreed to go skydiving, and I am excited for that, but bungee jumping has no appeal to me whatsoever. Bev had a good time though, and she bought a shirt that says, “Why live life on the edge when you can jump off?” It suits Bev very well.

            Once we got to Taupo, we walked around and found a few souvenir shops. One of the things I bought was an All Blacks shirt. I am excited to wear it during the World Cup (which starts this Friday) and also back at home where nobody follows rugby.

Monday, August 22 – Taupo to Waitomo Caves

            Today our bus ride was very short, only a couple of hours. The Waitomo Caves are pretty isolated from big towns and cities because people only go there to go in the caves and look at glow-worms.

            The backpackers we stayed at was really nice. It was on a farm, and walking up the driveway, we were greeted by a cow on one side and two pigs on the other. There were a couple tables outside and the weather was nice, so Bev and I spent the day outside. We even took our lunch outside to eat. It was so nice to be sitting in the sun and hear the birds.

Tuesday, August 23 – Waitomo Caves

            Our first big planned activity was today. We went on the Black Abyss tour of the Waitomo Caves. It was a 5-hour trip, and there were seven of us plus two guides. Our guides were really energetic and fun. The trip was different than what Bev and I were expecting. We thought the majority of it would be black water tubing, but in reality, that was only a portion of the trip.

Before heading off, we were outfitted in a thermal top, a wetsuit, boots, and a helmet with a head torch. First, we abseiled down to the cave, and in the process, I managed to get a pretty nasty rope burn between my thumb and pointer finger on my right hand. It looked pretty impressive for a few days after that. We walked a bit through the caves and then did a mini zip line to where the tubes were. At this point, we were given hot chocolate and a cave cookie. After jumping off a platform on our tubes into the water, we tubed a short distance to see the glow-worms. That was probably the coldest point for me. Eventually, we were told to get out of our tubes, and they were thrown up on a ledge. We walked and swam a ways before stopping for hot tang and chocolate. Then we continued walking and ended by climbing up two waterfalls. When we got back, they gave us hot tomato soup and bagels. Our guides had taken pictures throughout the trip, and Bev and I bought a CD of the pictures to share (one of them is my profile picture on Facebook).

Back at the backpackers, we spent more time outside and also talked to the woman who was working there. She had some pretty funny stories about the people who have come through the backpackers. She told us that we were cool Americans, so that was good. Bev and I do not want to contribute to the dumb American stereotype.

Wednesday, August 24 – Waitomo Caves to National Park

            We didn’t get picked up from our backpackers until after lunch, so in the morning, Bev and I walked to the Discovery Centre. We learned a bit more about the caves and glow-worms. For our last bit of time at the backpackers before we left, Bev and I played on a trampoline that was outside, and that was really fun.

            It turned out that the bus that picked us up from the caves was the same one Bev and I had from Wellington to Rotorua. There were more people on the bus than when we left it in Rotorua, and we could tell immediately that this group had bonded more. We found out that a number of them would be on the same schedule as us until we reached Queenstown, and one girl, Nina, would be traveling with us until we reached Christchurch.

Thursday, August 25 – National Park to Wellington

            Today we completed our loop of the North Island. We did not make it all the way up to Auckland, but that may happen during our study week before finals. I do not know how anyone could study for a whole week before finals, and both Bev and I do not have finals until the second week anyway.

View from Mt. Victoria

            When we got to Wellington, the driver took us up to Mount Victoria so we could take pictures. On the way down the mountain, he had to take a very tight corner because there were cars parked on one side of the road and a tree on the other. The side of the bus scraped against the tree. It ended up causing one window to spider-web and the two windows behind it break completely. Since it was safety glass, the whole window did not fall apart but chunks of it did. Bev and I felt really bad for the driver because it wasn’t his fault; there was just no room for him to drive. 

One of the broken windows

Rain, Wind, and Milkshakes

As you may have noticed, I did not get this blog entry published before I left for my holiday travels. Though the week before holiday was not very interesting, I will post this anyway. Internet was sometimes hard to come by in the backpackers (hostels) Bev and I stayed in, so I have not posted for quite some time. Over the next few days, look for my recounts of all our amazing adventures!

Sunday, August 14

            Today turned out to be a pretty busy day. After lunch, I met my friend from linguistics class at the rec centre, and we played table tennis for an hour. It was a fun activity to do since it was raining outside. When we were done playing, we walked to Lambton Quay to a sushi place, but it ended up being closed. I planned to go to St. John’s, but when I got there, at the same time as Rayce, we realised that there was not a service tonight. So I walked back up to my hostel (in the wind and rain) and went to Te Puni choir practice instead. The traditional song we are doing is ‘Adiemus.’ I haven’t heard of it, but so far, I really like it. We still don’t know what our modern song is going to be.

Monday, August 15

            After a week of really nice weather, winter came back with a vengeance. The temperature dropped, and it rained off and on during the day. In the afternoon, it snowed, which a very rare occurrence in Wellington. By dinnertime, the weather was truly foul: windy with a wintry mix pelting the windows of the dining hall. The gas shut down, so dinner was late and the rooms were left with no heat for a period of time. Throughout the night, the lights flickered every so often, but the power never went out completely.

Tuesday, August 16-Thursday, August 18

            The weather continues to be more like winter than I have experienced so far in Wellington. It’s cold, the wind has picked up, and it rains off and on all day. I’ve been using my electric blanket every night. Though it isn’t fun walking to lectures with the wind blowing rain in your face, the Arizonan part of me still enjoys watching and listening to the rain from my window. However, now that holiday is only a few days away, I am fervently hoping that the weather will turn agreeable again.

            On Thursday, we had another choir practice, our last until after holiday. We worked through about half of ‘Adiemus,’ and we decided to do ‘Grease is the Word’ for our modern song.

Friday, August 19

             Bev is finally here! Today was spent getting ready to leave on our holiday travels through both North and South islands.

            After my class tango class, I waited for Bev to arrive. She was going to take the bus from the airport to uni and hopefully get here about the time I was done with tango, but her plane was late. She made it to Wellington Station on the bus, and then decided to walk the rest of the way instead of wait 25 minutes for the next bus. I started walking toward her, and we met somewhere in between the two points. It was so good to see her again!

            We had planned to meet Rayce for milkshakes, partly to celebrate the end of tango, but getting Bev and her things to my room ended up taking longer than we anticipated. We met Rayce and ended up joining him and a few of his friends from his program for dinner. We ate at an Indian restaurant, and it was very good food. We went for the milkshakes after, but Bev and I couldn’t finish ours because we were so full.

            Bev and I spent the night in my floor’s common room playing games and listening to music. We played five games of Set in a row, which is a new record. A couple people from my floor came by and played for a bit. It was a great start to our two-week holiday together.