Good Times In The City

This week could easily be classified as a city living, as I enjoyed many magical parts of Auckland. The weather is starting to slowly get warmer and the rain is far less frequent- almost to the point where I forgot how much it actually did rain throughout the last 2 months! Some mornings remind me of those “track mornings” while others definitely smell like Metamora Football- it’s not something you can pin down… but it brings back great memories!

So the majority of the week was spent studying/organizing my life. BUT, I was able to concoct a wonderful, tasty pot-pie. It was beautiful and flaky- especially considering the limited resources. Only one baking dish/knife/bowl and no measuring devices- not "Top Chef" worthy. Some substitutions were made, such as philo dough for the pie-crust, but the majority of the recipe was easily fulfilled. Mmmm…. Next up is the attempt at apple pie.

Since I ate so much pot pie- spinning class was another important component of the week. I tried it last week, but attended two classes this week and got an amazing work out each time. The room is Amazon hot, but you all know how much I love to work out and sweat. Hopefully this week will be just as hard!

Thursday brought a new discovery that kept me laughing for a considerable amount of time- the Warehouse Karaoke CD. I had randomly picked it up due to the “Do you think I’m sexy” song title on the back [it’s a personal fav], but I did not expect the jankness of this CD- it’s a real Karaoke CD with words that light up on beat. What knocked my socks of was the high quality backgrounds. “Do you think I’m sexy” featured two random koalas, while “teenage dirtbag” was placed in front of a random lion statue. Random is a key word. But at 7am in the morning when I decided to watch it while getting ready for class- it was the funniest thing I’ve seen in a little while.

Friday I ran errands, and completed the shopping list that I had for over two weeks. My roommate, Kaitlyn, and I got to play on the swing set… specifically the tire swing and teeter-totter. We both agreed that the merry-go-round was the best playground accessory, and a playground isn’t complete without one. That night we explored Ponsonby, another section of Auckland- and I had my first “hard drink” of 42 below and Apple Juice. The crowd was a little more sophisticated than the Irish Pub scene, but it was refreshing to not have people dancing on top of the bar. What was not refreshing was the pain inflected by new high-heels. I don’t know that the FBI currently uses for torture…but maybe they should look into making people walk up and down Auckland hills in high-heels. Ouch. One of the highlights was stopping in a gas station for a late night pie, only to stand in the candy isle and pretend to do the escalator, elevator, and a personal favourite inspired by Helen… the abseil.

On Saturday I attempted to study, but found myself frustrated with the gloomy weather. My other roommate Sarah and I ended up getting rush tickets for a Check opera, a cappuccino, and a beer from an 18 year old with a mullet at Father Ted’s. I actually don’t mind the taste of their local beers, but after few sips, I was satisfied and passed it off to others in the group. It was great to spend some time with the Boston girls, who met up with us, and dance to some live music.

Sunday morning I enjoyed a lovely art deco walk with the Art Deco Society- put on by the heritage festival. Due to day light savings time, only one other women showed up- so I was instantly adopted by two elderly women as their “American granddaughter.” The cool thing about the walk was that it pointed out buildings that I pass by daily and never take time to appreciate. The tour guide had lived in Auckland her whole life, and was anxious to share how life was “back in the days” when she was a girl. Pictures will be up soon! This week I hope to take the cemetery tour and the wharf tour… somehow I feel I will be doing something like this after I retire… In the evening I went to church with my friend from my theology class, Jess. She is the head of the Youth ministry at C3 [Christian City Church], and it was so refreshing to be in the community of God again. We ended up going out to coffee after with thirty other people, and apparently my “accent” was something that people “just loved” haha- I have to admit that I love my American accent, and I will never complain about not having a cool accent ever again.

Well, I’m currently working on a massive amount of emails- and I should get back to work, but Skype times have all moved up an hour- so they should be Sunday at 3pm and 8pm for Butler and 2pm and 7pm for Jess/Betsy/Meg/Parents. Night!

Be-Lay On

The remainder of the week sped by, and the essay was turned in without anymore traumatic book bag moments. This past weekend was IFSA Butler’s “Adventure Weekend”, which flew by equally as fast as the week.

On Saturday we had an absolutely gorgeous drive down to Waitamo Caves, and had a short little bush walk before the caving. It all happened really fast- but caves are stunning. They are still, but yet vast and alive. It’s awesome that something that large and vibrant can exist underground. We did see a bunch of glow worms that are actually not worms- but its too long to explain. With our headlamps off it looked just like staring up into the sky - full of millions of little shiny lights.

Our guide- Pauly- was a 19 year old boy that was really excited to interact with real, live girls. Some of the comments were unnecessary, but I personal favourite was when I accidentally touched his knee in the pitch black cave, and he responded with “That’s my knee, and I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t move it [my hand] down any further.” Ok buddy- I’m 21, I’m in a cave with no lights [our headlamps were turned off], I’m in a wetsuit, and I am a little cold. I am in no way, shape, or form coming on to you, and I don’t even want my hand anywhere around your knee. Sorry to burst the bubble.

Pauly’s random comments continued throughout the trip, but we all got out alive. We then headed out for a nice dinner and some beautiful star gazing on the trampoline. The next day brought about some outdoor rock climbing and abseil. I figured out that I'm not as in shape as I thought, and that I'm not the biggest fan of the sport. It was pretty, and fun, but not something I want to continue back in Indiana.

Other news: a] Congrats to my cousin and his wife for their new baby girl! b]I am getting worried about returning to search for an internship/job. I was supposed to come to NZ to figure everything out: where I wanted to live, what I wanted to do, when I need to move, etc. What I really figured out was that I will be doing this alone, and I’m scared. All my friends are pursuing their own dreams [Which I love!], and mine are very different. So, I have no clue where to look or what companies even want to hire someone with this kind of economy....

Back to studying/emailing. Sorry if it has taken me a while to get back to you!
Have a great week!

I'll Laugh About This Tomorrow

So today I had a flashback to 6th grade; not the carefree moments of having no responsibility but to tell the girls at lunch who you though had the cutest toosh, but the moments where you were so embarrassed due to the realization of your true destiny in life- dorkiness.

Ok- details. I am writing a paper that I hate, despise, and frankly want to take on in a cage fight. It requires a lot of books [most which have been recalled, but I'm not returning them in protest and to tick off my classmates that recalled them while I was on my peaceful vay-cay in Tonga and have already cost me $9], and my book bag is not exactly military strength. So, for the first time in a long time I actually put more than 5 seconds into getting ready [aka I am feeling kinda cute in my little black skirt], and the sun is shining, and its warm, and I'm strutting my stuff down the Auckland street and WHAM!! My backpack strap flings off [in slow motion], and my book bag- lab top included- go smashing to the ground. Everything is okay- fine, undamaged, but I couldn't help spinning around in amazement of what actually just happened, and unsure how to pick up all my books. So, I bend down to pick up the bag.. discreetly... and my other bag pours out all kinds of pens, post-its, and basically the rest of my life becomes one with the street. After I scrambled to grab everything I realized, "Wow- you're sweating, you have to carry your book bag to the library like a baby in your arms, and you flashed a solid three cars that drove by in your matrix-style panic. Classy."

I'm now currently still trying to avoid doing the paper, and thought you all would enjoy my embarrassment. Every time Alicia falls I always tell her that "One day prince charming will be there to catch you." Well, Prince Charming needs to get a pager, because I definitely tripped about three times earlier throughout the day and he could have helped. Especially in this last episode.

Ok- now back to teams and bureaucracy [that is one hard word to spell].

A Tan in Tonga

"Tonga?" That was the normal response to the plans for the end of my semester break. The Kingdom of Tonga is in the middle of nowhere, so don't feel bad if you have never heard of it before.

It’s rare that you get a chance to vay-cay on an island/paradise where you are technically [in Kaitlyn’s words] “Unreachable”, and I couldn't have had better travels buddies or a better time! Upon arrival, the heat felt so good compared to the Auckland chill/massive amounts of rain. The island is still uncommercialized, showing the raw reality of living where the only supplies available are shipped over every other week/month. It became a joke throughout the week, but it seemed that instead of choosing between option a, b, or c… it was option a or nothing. As we passed through the town full of laughing kids, pigs, dogs, chickens, and tropical flowers, I felt memories of Jamaica and Acuna slipping back into my mind. Our resort was 5 minutes outside of town, but we headed straight into town to get food and find out what was going on throughout the week after dropping our bags off.

The Aquarium Cafe soon became our second home, due to the fact that it had amazing food and the hook-up with everyone on the Vava’u island. We booked a sailing trip and swimming with the whales [with much hesitation from me], and found out about some great beach spots for Thursday. That night we attempted to grocery shop, but came to the conclusion that it would be better to visit the local restaurants... lots of "option nothing". After contemplating life together on the dock, we hit the sack under bug nets that made me revert back to when I was 6 with a canopy on my bed… those were the days : ].

The next morning we headed into town for breakfast [again, the Aquarium] and our long day of sailing. I hadn’t touched saltwater since I was about 13, so I was a little nervous, but the owners of the sailboat made us feel right at home. I’m trying to find the words to adequately describe the water, but I’m honestly still trying to process the breathtaking beauty. The water was crystal blue- the kind you see on the back of the Fiji water bottles- and everything seemed so untouched. We sailed out to a snorkeling spot, and Kaitlyn was the first one in the water. The girl is basically part mermaid, and it made me so happy to see her giddy over being around water again. Most of you know that I am not the biggest fan of deep water [thank you Jaws movie], but I was not going to miss this chance to see the coral. After a while we hopped back onto the boat, ate, and then headed off to another snorkeling spot. This one had a beach, and it was at this point in time that the scenery took my breath away. I was so incandescently happy that I just started laughing and jumping up and down with the girls. The sand was pure white, and our sailing guides pointed out the hermit crabs that we soon began to race. After a while of playing around on the beach, we swam back to the boat, ditched the flippers and began cannon-balling into the ocean. I definitely nailed a school of fish, but they seemed pretty cool with it.

Our next stop was Swallow’s Cave, where I got to kayak into a cave that I still can’t wrap my mind around. I could see straight to the bottom, even with the small amount of light. The girls and I took full advantage of the sun warming the deck on the boat, and we docked right around dinner time. We ate $2 tacos at Tonga Bob's and then returned back to our room, which was changed to the bigger cabin with multiple rooms. After a visit from a cockroach- well, 3 cockroaches, we talked about life for a while until we all passed out.

The next day we went to get suited for a wetsuit before boarding for our whale watching adventure. "Suited" is really a loose term, since it was definitely a struggle that I would never wish on anyone else. Although not as bad as the freefall extreme suits... equally as entertaining. Everyone was really nice on the ship, and one of the guides was actually from North Carolina. We had eavesdropped on a Whale info session the night before at Tonga Bob’s, so we knew a little about whales, but Paul filled us in about the sleeping patterns of whales after we found a whale that was apparently sleeping. The only come up every 25 or so minutes for air and then fall back asleep. We saw a Mom and calf, and followed them a little until we were instructed to get in the water. This water was very, very choppy and deep.. oh about 300 meters [ya- thats deeper than my little heart every needed to swim in]. Only 4 people were aloud to go at a time, and I was the last of our group in the water- so I missed the calf, but I was just happy that I was able to swim in that deep of water and not completely freak out. Just a day before my heart sped up Indy 500 style out during snorkeling, and I was honestly thinking about backing out, but again.... didn’t want to miss this opportunity. Tonga is the 'hub' for all the whales to cross through when Antarctica gets too cold. If I was a whale, I would just hang out here for life... Antarctica is just a few degrees too cold, but I've heard its pretty. After the whales swam away, we boarded the boat and went searching for calmer waters. There were a few times that I thought we were going to flip the boat, but we were relieved to find calmer waters and hit up a great snorkeling spot. The fish were all different colours and sizes, and we even found Nemo! We saw a bunch of dolphins and enjoyed the rest of the day, but no more whales. We headed back to shower up after realizing that we all smelled like wetsuit, and chowed down in our last dinner by candlelight at the Aquarium. It was at this point in time that I realized that I had almost every crepe on the menu. We were also introduced to the awesomeness of the tomato ketchup dispenser- it’s the little things in life. It was so interesting to watch the different travellers know that they all had unique stories- some had travelled the world, others needed to get away for a week, and randomly sailed down to Tonga.

The next morning we traveled to the beach for a few hours before heading into town for our domestic flight. It felt so good to build a sand castle, soak up some sun, and enjoy the beach. The travels home were interesting… including a few moments where we were seriously scared about our flight, but we ended the night by making friends with an awesome family that stayed on their own island. They had two sons that reminded Vaness of her little brother, and we made a date for meeting up in the future. And how could I forget getting stuck in security- twice for me and three times Vaness- due to the fact that she had a "torch". Here is a little snapshot of what happened:

"Ma'am, do you have a torch?"

"No."

"Ma'am! Do YOU have a torch?"

"No"

"Ma'am- You have a torch"

"Torch?"

"Yes, Torch." - It was at this point I had to walk away from starting to laugh

-He searched through Vaneffa's bag and pulls out her flashlight. He then angrily took out the batteries. "No battery."

I was laughing, and then got herded over to the trash can where I had to show my water bottle was empty- twice. Point of advice- don't laugh during security when you don't speak the native language. Good thing to keep in mind.

It feels good to be home in Auckland, and today Vaness and I visited the markets and ran errands. We didn’t need a jacket today, and I can’t wait to see the city warm up! Tomorrow I’m attempting to catch up with emails and life in general, and also enjoying the last rugby game of the season!
To all my Thetas- have a great Grill Off!! Raise some money for those awesome CASA kids!

p.s. Happy B-day Brinks!!

The Day I Stopped Trying To Fit the World Into A 3x5 Picture Frame

Wow! So much has happened over the last 3 weeks- lots of travels, funny stories, and personal growth. There is a lot to cover, so I decided to separate this blog into categories to make it a little easier to handle:

Finance:
I spent the entire week studying at Esquires [coffee house], but all my efforts couldn’t help the test from approaching. On Friday I turned in my other two assignments, and then found a little cubby in the Law Library until my 6 o’clock pm exam. The test was taken in a different lecture hall than normal, and I found myself being forced into a line of about 115 people [ok, I counted] in alphabetical order. No, I wasn’t last- I was second to last. I didn’t know anyone, so I tried to make a friend with Mr. Yu behind me. He was really nice, and he tried to understand my jumbled explanation of a Liberal Arts degree at a US university. Anyway, I soon found out that Mr. Yu already had 3 degrees, and a MBA. Seriously?!? I secretly wanted to tell him to get out of my finance class so he wouldn’t break the curve, but I didn’t, I just smiled and tried to find out how hard he found the material. I went into the hall, put down my bag in the front of the room, and then found myself in a ten minute “reading” period, where I was not allowed to touch the test. The test wasn’t easy, it actually falls under the category of utterly impossible. But, I couldn't wait to hop into our manual car named Malachi to head out to the Bay of Islands with a Red Bull Sugar Free in hand. Oh ya- I can’t forget the chocolate fish, a miracle of New Zealand.

Bay of Islands Weekend
My travel partner-in-crime, Helen, and I made our way north to Whangarei, which flew by due to the sweet mix Helen made for us, and we woke up to a beautiful morning. Our hostel, due to great planning by Helen, was right next to the “Most photographed waterfall in NZ.” After a homemade breakfast, we tackled that bad boy. This waterfall was massively beautiful- and we walked around the park and through the canopy walk to discover how awe inspiring the forest can be. NZ is crazy in the way that it can change climates in about 2 seconds. We can be walking in rolling hills, and then stumble on a forest, which leads into wetlands, and then ends up at a beach. Crazy, but I love it. We then headed up to Russell, a historic little town you have to take a car ferry to reach. Oh, and I almost forgot we saw the World’ Largest Sundial on the way. In true NZ fashion, it rained, but it was peaceful. I found a Cameo in one of the antique stores, and Helen and I enjoyed a lovely lunch on the port. One of my goals of studying abroad has been to find out what I truly like, and this break helped me recognize what actually makes me happy- not complacent, since I’m easy to please- but what truly gives me joy. I’m not expecting my life to go exactly how I want it, but I do have to confront the reality that I am graduating in about 6 months, where I will have to make some life- changing decisions. If you want me to continue more in depth, shoot me an email. I would love to hear what you enjoy too!
So, we travelled to the west coast, and stayed the night at a lovely hostel- where we had the place to ourselves. We woke up to a clear morning, and took a quick drive to the beach, but also found out that Vanessa missed her bus to come meet us in Paihia. Luckily, she found a later bus, so Helen and I found a scenic highway to enjoy the aqua blue Tazman tea. The next stop was Waitangi for another bush walk, and we found it to be a lovely walk that travelled through clay hills, wetlands, waterfalls, and forest. We travelled to the next town over for Fish and Chips , then met up with Vanessa. We had some time to kill, so I learned how to drive a manual. Yes, on the right side of the car, driving on the left side of the road. Malachi was on the road to Dargaville when we hit some bumps in the road- literally. The road was basically a mirror image of the crazy curvy roads in the “Zoom Zoom” commercials, and we found Malachi got a flat tire right in the center of a 'hairpin' curve. Vaness and I whipped out flashlights, only to discover that the hubcap was zip-tied to the wheel. Two guys drove by before two men- very large men- stopped to help us. We tried to explain the zip-tie, but the man grabbed the hubcap and ripped it off. I tried not to laugh when Vaness said, “Wow, Um, that’s one way…Wow”. After the men changed the tire in 2 seconds, we jumped in the car too eager to get to our hostel. What I completely and utterly forgot was my cell phone on the top of the car. Nevertheless, my phone became phonekill on the middle of the road. The vacation wrapped up by Vanessa getting confronted at the hostel due to Helen and I’s snoring, fixing the flat tire, and stopping by Helensville so Helen could enjoy the town that has one of the coolest names out there. Back in Auckland, I got my phone sorted and life semi-organized before the morning flight to Christchurch.

Christchurch
I woke up to my Mom’s lovely voice, and she called to catch up before the next round of adventures. My two roommates, Sarah and Kaitlyn, and then Vaness and I all headed to the airport for the quick flight to Christchurch. Kaitlyn, Vaness, and I still had to sort some stuff out with out Tonga flight, so we headed over to the Pacific Blue counter for some “customer service”. After explaining the details of our problem, the service rep looked back at us and said, “Ya.. um…. I don’t know.” I asked if we could get on the line with the International unit and got the response, “Ya, I don’t know the number.” Me; “To the international terminal?” Her: “There is a shuttle out of gate 4.” Me: “Okay. Um, do you know the international code for Tonga?” Her: “I would check the phonebook at the payphone over there.” [Yes, flashback to the episode in Marsh in Jeff] So, we didn’t get any questions answered, but we did get safely to Christchurch, where we were greeted by some awesome friends in Lucille, the camper van that they lived in for the last 12 days on the South Island. It was great to see the girls again from orientation, and hear all their stories. Christchurch was a historical European city with an awesome art culture. The four of us went around town, and that night we had way too much fun with the sleep-deprived Vanessa at an Irish bar. It was sing-along night, and although our group was the youngest and most sober, you would have guessed we had already gone through a couple rounds. I can’t sing, and I understand that- but I don’t think I’ve grasped the idea that other people don’t want to hear my singing. Oh! And I almost forgot- I had my first drink in a bar! A Bailey’s and coffee- yummy! The next morning I got a tour of the Canterbury campus from Dana, and we then headed into town to Kayak down the river in the botanical gardens. It turned out to be a sunny, beautiful day, and the daffodils were stunning. Being adventurous, the girls and I headed up a vertical slant called a “hill” to the Christchurch lookout. After being passed up by people three times our age, we reached the top. NZ hills may all look similar, but they never cease to amaze me. It took equally as long to get down the hill, and we ended the night with fish and chips, a visit to see my other roommate- Jasmine- in town, and the movie “You Just Got Served.” That movie was so bad it was funny, yet the title is way too easy to quote at random moments. The next morning we headed to the airport, and Vaness and I went to Wellington, while Kaitlyn headed home for some studytime.

Wellington
It felt so good to be back in Wellington. I surprisingly remembered where everything was, and Vaness and I went to my favourite café for lunch. We were also staying in the same hostel as I had a year and a half ago, so that really helped the navigation. Te Papa, the national museum, provided the entertainment for the afternoon and shelter from the miserable rain. For dinner, Vaness and I opted to use the coupon at the bar next door for dinner, where we ran into one of the most entertaining situations ever. We sat down, not hoping to meet anyone, but backpackers always want to talk, so we were cornered by two guys that were rated 15% on the man scale. Some of my favourite lines from the night were;
“You’ve got to try the pickles, they’ll knock your socks off.”- multiple times Me:"I really don't want to try the pickles." Him: "Aw come on, you've never had these pickles before."
“Those Dutch [talking about himself], they can swing their child bearing hips.”- while trying to dance/seduce us; followed by my comment “I have never been so disappointed of my heritage”.
“You must be from a rural town” Me: “Not exactly.” Him: “Where are you from?” Vaness: “New York. Its as big as they get.” Him: “Oh, wow.”
Vaness and I noticed people around us laughing, and soon I couldn’t help myself… I just cracked up. They asked us repeatedly to join their ‘Bar hopping’ but Vaness and I gratefully declined. We planned to hit the town, but found out that we were more tired than planned.
The next morning, we visited Ernesto’s, the IFSA Butler staff, and shopped up and down Cuba Street. The night brought about clear skies, and Vaness and I attempted to roller skate the harbour- attempt being the key word. We then took the trolley up to the top of the hill, and then to ‘The Lanes’ for dinner. The Lanes were described as “sophisticated bowling” and Vaness and I soon found out that it was basically a club with bowling lanes. But- we found real ketchup! The NZ version is pretty sugary, and really not enjoyable. But, Vaness and I asked for two serving of it and I think I texted everyone in my phonebook.
Vaness left the next morning for home, but I stayed on to spend some time with Kara, my friend/Bible study leader from Butler. I spent the morning in the Art Gallery and the Library, and before I knew it- sunshine!! Kara and I caught up over hot chocolate, and it was so encouraging to chat with her! Not only was I able to catch her up on Butler life, but we were able to talk about things that had really been on my heart. It was one of their roommate's last nights, but I was welcomed into the house for a goodbye dinner and the gripping movie 'La Vie en Rose'. On Sunday, it was refreshing to go to Church with the girls and to a great lunch before heading back to Auckland in the evening.

Tonga
Arriving in Auckland was exciting, but the sleepless night that followed made travel a little more difficult. We had an early morning flight to the capital city in Tonga, and then a domestic flight to Vava'u. We found that our names had been changed to the correct spelling... from Vaneffa Yu to Vanessa Yu and Kaitlyn Shacklepon to Kaitlyn Shackleton.