Stapler Update

Update: they do, in fact, have staples available in the business centre staplers. I can breathe easier now. Other update- my Christian Theology course is actually designed for people who are going into ministry. It is a diverse class, since members are from all sorts of backgrounds, including two pacific islands. We started off the 3 hour course with a prayer, and then shared what we enjoyed most about our experience with faith/community. The Mouri and Fijian members of the class have very different perspectives, since they grew up in a village. Overall, it was a great class and I am very excited to see where the discussions will take us.
This weekend my roommates are going on a tramping trip, so my friend Vanessa and I are planning to attend the International Student Barbecue, do the street luge, and then climb and inactive volcano.Hope you all have a great weekend. Cheers!

Algie… Is that a building?

Hello from Auckland Uni again! I have successfully completed 3 days of class, and been to three of my four “papers” [a.k.a. lectures]. All of the classes are interesting and a little intimidating, but the biggest change is the lack of interaction with the professor. With 250 students at one lecture, the professor doesn’t really notice you. I do have to vent about one small issue here… staplers. Pay for printing- fine. Getting caught in the rain every five seconds- kind of fun. Having no way to keep my notes/handouts together- problem. I have always underestimated the convenience and organizational magic of just one staple. Now, I don’t really watch the stapler market, but I have a feeling that they are not $35 for a simple, ordinary stapler is a tad overpriced. And like salt in a wound, my dad removed my mini magic stapler from my luggage because it wasn’t needed. Honestly, its not that big of an issue, I just embarrassed myself today when I fought through a crowd of people trying to buy coursebooks only to find that the stapler was glued to the table. [Believe me, it was superglued- I tried to get it off]. It was also embarrassing when I tried all of the four staplers on the table only to find out that hey- you have to buy your own staples and bring them with you to the stapler area. No worries- I will get over it in the next 5 minutes, I’m just in shock.

Oh, and one of my classes is in the Algie theatre. They don’t write the names of the lecture halls on the maps, so you can imagine how awesome it was to ask people where “Algie” was.
I absolutely hate missing everyone’s 21st! I hope everyone had a great time- and I’m already creeping on pictures! It looks like you all celebrated in style : ]

You will all be happy to know that I did significantly better at the pub quiz in Devonport. Surprisingly, the movie quote category was my best area [and I have never seen any of the movies]. Devonport is such a cute Victorian town, with great food markets and houses. Majority of the people there move down from England- and the last house sold within 48 hours for 5.4 million. Hopefully, I will be able to go back during the day to take pictures and post them soon.

Thanks for all the emails, conversations, and MAIL!!! They all brighten my day and remind me that you don’t forget about me!

Tomorrow is the Big Day

Tomorrow I start classes, and I have to admit that I am oober nervous. I am taking Financial Management, Understanding Organisations, Competing in the Global Marketplace, and The Christian Community. All of the classes have around 230 other students, but The Christian Community has oh, about 16! I have a feeling we will all get to know each other well. After the locals find out that I am going to “Uni” I either receive the comment, “Oh, no worries- it’s easy” or “Really- 4 200 levels? U can handle that?”... so I’ll have to see how this goes.
International orientation offered a few social events, including Pub Night and a Quiz Night- where I flashed back to the good old scholastic bowl days. I swear, I have never felt so stupid in all my life. There were questions about regions, flags, landmarks, and a ton about geography. Honestly, I didn’t even know the name of some of the countries, much less their national landmarks. My team was composed of a Norwegian girl, German Law Student, and another American who didn’t trust anything I said after I slipped up and called Indonesia a city. Pub night was just as interesting considering we were all supposed to dress up to represent our home country. I was tempted to pull out the wooden shoes, but I knew I was supposed to represent America, not my Dutch heritage. So- I grabbed a men’s jersey from the second hand shop, used a little masking tape, and whoo-la... A baseball player! What is more American than baseball? Don’t answer that- the point is that I walked down Queen Street in spandex, tennis shoes, and a painted face to find that the majority of the International Students were not partaking in the costume part of the night. I made friends with every other person in costume, and ended up dancing the night away. Hopefully the other International students enjoyed my rendition/interpretation of “I wanna dance with somebody”. It was also very, very interesting to see/compare the different dancing types. Trust me, other cultures move their hips more(especially men)... I think America just that title because the alcohol is stronger out of the country.
Other activities include visiting the Zoo, watching Yong @ Heart at the film festival, Mission Bay, and hosting game night. We also tried out an Irish Pub, and although I only got a glimpse, I know why Irish people are so much fun. The average age was probably about 35, but I definitely knew more words to “Sweet Caroline.” Not on tune- but with gusto. I also met up with a Gamma Theta that lives down here and works for Student Life- nifty, huh? It felt really good to see a friendly face.
Love you all, and I’d love to hear from you soon!

Good Times in the City

Hello again! I have had time to settle in and get acclimated to the “City of Sails”. Auckland is the biggest city in New Zealand, with about 1.3 million people. Each region has a unique stereotype, including everything from “posh” to “the people who wear Moterhead t-shirts and drive SUVs”[a personal favorite]. We live in Central Business District, and I’m always finding hidden cafes and distinctive buildings characterized by their architecture. The price of food is much higher here, even with the exchange rate- but my unique creations with the roommates are often the highlight of my days. You would be amazed with what can be cooked with just one little saucepan! We looking forward to getting our last roommate, so we can finally get everything situated. Days are full of running errands at Foodtown and The Warehouse [Our version of target], but I have managed to see a Kiwi film at the “Auckland 40th International Film Festival”. It was a documentary about the South Auckland school system that was focused on the hard, but caring Mr. Peach. The real treat was having the film introduced by both the director and the producer, and then the question-and-answer session following. My friends and I have explored the city’s nightlife, and I introduced the Kiwis to the Pancake dance. And Adrienne- yes, they wear hoops down here… I might just have to wear them three times a year now. This next week is International Orientation, which will help us all sort out the issues with classes and credits. I attached a picture of my room, so you can see what I see everyday!

Orientation #2- Bring it on

So one orientation is done, and now I am successfully moved into the Unilodge Auckland. My international student orientation starts next week, so I plan on spending this week getting acclimated and dotting all the I, crossing the Ts, etc. I am rooming with one great girl from my group, but one girl that I really had a great time with is going to Christchurch for school, so she had to leave earlier today. The rest of orientation was filled with a unique type of scavenger hunt known as ROGAIN [yep, Rugged Outdoor Group Activity In Navigation], Mountain biking in the hail, rugby lessons, Mouri briefing, academic stuff, winery tour, and an actual visit to the Maure[Mouri compound]. All events were great experiences, but most of the time my camera was safe in my room- so I won’t be able to prove my hard corness. I really hope you all had a great 4th of July and I want to pass along my contact info incase you would like to send me any love:
Bethany Yonker
Apt 503B UniLodge Auckland
138 Anzac Avenue
Auckland Central , 1010
Mobile: 00649-0210-297-2256 [all in-coming calls to Auckland are free, so check your calling plans to see how much international calls are!]
School email: byonk004@aucklanduni.ac.nz [activated July 9th]
byonker@butler.edu
Bethany.yonker@gmail.com
Any of the three above will work!
Miss you all!

Coldness + Wetness = Funness (Just invented those for ya)

Well, I just got back from orientation and a lot has happed to catch ya’all up on : ]. SO first- Taupo was a cold, but beautiful place. The little city was a huge contrast with the urban Sydney, but the views were breathtaking. We drove up to one of the volcanic mountains and there was about 2 feet of snow. Dad [against the advice of the very smart woman at the information booth] drove our little Mazda up the ice path of doom- no worries, its not really named that, I just thought it was fitting- just to take a picture. I forbid him from skiing… and trout fishing…and other manly stuff. I’m all about Christmas in July, but not large amounts of coldness and wetness. The next day we went bungee jumping and I really wish I had a recording on the whole ordeal… but basically Dad went first and wanted to touch the water. I went second and didn’t want anything to do with water. Guess who got the wetness? Yep- me. I had no idea I was physically capable of making that kind of scream. After I told the nice bungy man that I wasn’t ready, I found myself falling 148 m toward a beautiful blue aqua stream. [Berkley girls- you know I wish I was doing a reenactment rather than typing this.] It was tons of fun though, and I can’t wait to go again. Any takers? Lake Taupo was so beautiful and the little shops were great. The third day, unfortunately, was not the best. In true Yonker family fashion, we hiked in the rain for an hour. Again… coldness and wetness. But, after we soaked in the mineral hot springs and it was almost too hot to handle [If I could insert a little audio clip of the great MC Hammer’s “You Can’t Touch This”, I totally would]. The next day [July 3rd] we headed for Auckland very early in the morning and got acclimated. I finally admitted to myself that I am in love with the NZ version of the sweet potato, Kumara, during dinner. But honestly, the city is awesome from what I see- I found a few sushi places and cafes that got added to my Auckland to do list. The next morning I needed to meet my group at 6:30. Any guess what time I woke up? 4:30- that’s not the point. The point is that I was on time and everything was great until we could not get out of the Car Park. So we drove up and down, and up and down and swiped credit card after credit card and coins and oh wow- there is no word to adequately explain it [Ash- maybe you could help me out?]. The solution came when the security guard used his badge to let us out after the wrath of Momma Yonker. [p.s. I totally know you were thinking that I woke up late, but “Apple Bottom Jeans” never fails]. We got the airport in good time, and I met up with all the staff even before the rest of the group got through customs. There are two schools and this orientation- the University of Auckland students and the Christchurch students. Everyone was jet lagged/tired/wanting sleep, and then there was me- wide eyed and ready to make friends. Well, I can’t say I made tons of friends, but I did meet a really nice girl from Gettysburg College and a few buddies during a standing up in the kayak exercise. We went for a hike, went kayaking, and went to this hot pools area where they actually had a Movie Pool! I tried a slide, and called it a night. Everyone was in bed around 8:30, so I spent some time catching up on journaling and writing this. Thanks for taking time to read this, and hope the Fourth of July was a blast!! [Get it… blast… haha]. Cheers!
Oh- p.s. I met a girl whose brother had my mom for a teacher in Spring Grove, PA. Ya, we laughed about that one for a little while.