Sorry for taking so long to update this, I switched host whanau back in labour weekend (26 Oct) and they haven’t been able to find the password for me to access their internet.
School ended for years 11-13 on 11 November but up till December they had to take the NCEA exams. I didn’t have to take them, being an exchange student and also because I had the rotary south island tour the 15th-30th. The south island is the most beautiful part of New Zealand, and also the least inhabited. It’s also where most of Lord of the Rings was filmed.
Day 1- I met up with the 9 other exchange students in Wellington and we did a scavenger hunt around the city and then stayed in the youth hostel.
Day 2- We took the ferry down to Picton and bused it to Motueka, where we stayed the night in the Top 10 Holiday Park.
Day 3- We took a scenic cruise along the Abel Tasman National Park coast and spent the day at Medlands Beach where we swam and tramped up the bush. Then we headed south to Punakaiki and stayed at Te Nikau Retreat, where we stayed in lodges out in the bush.
Day 4- On our way to Greymouth, we stopped at the Punkakaiki blowhole and pancake rocks. Then we went to Shantytown, which is a replication of an early 1900’s town, and we got to pan for gold and dress up like the era. There, the Greymouth rotary prepared dinner for us (dad-this is where I had my first hamburger in years and actually loved it).
Day 5- We took a short drive to Hokitika where we stopped at the Jade factory. According to the Maori belief, greenstone can only be given as a gift, you can’t purchase it for yourself, and each design has a meaning and brings good luck if blessed. Then we drove down to the Franz Joseph Glacier where we did a half day walk and spent the night.
Day 6- On our way to Queenstown, we drove through the picturesque Haast pass and stopped at Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawera.
Day 7- We got up early and did the Kawarau Jetboating on Queenstown’s Lake Wakatipu. Afterwards, we took the Skyline Gondola up to Bob’s Peak where we had a lunch buffet overlooking Lake Wakatipu and Queenstown. After lunch, we got to go on luge rides on top of the mountain. The rest of the day was spent souvenir shopping in Queenstown.
Day 8- Today we did the Kawarau bungee jump! It’s the world’s first bungee and it goes 43m off a bridge. Out of everyone that was there, I was the only one that screamed. That was one of the best parts of the trip though and I definitely want to do it again!
Day 9- We got up early today and took a long bus ride to the Milford Sounds, stopping along the way to take heaps of photos. We stayed on the Milford Wanderer Cruise over night. On the ship, I met a couple from America. They talked and talked and talked about their kids and travelling. Americans are annoying. Also on board, we got to go kayaking in the sounds and see seals and penguins. It rains 2/3 of the year so the first day was rainy, but when we woke up the next morning, the clouds cleared and there was a perfect rainbow in the mountains.
Day 10- Today was a long day in the bus. We were supposed to take a scenic flight out of the sounds and then take a scenic train ride to Dunedin, but the flight was cancelled so we had to bus all the way to Dunedin (which was actually only 6 hours, but for New Zealand, that’s a long ways) . We spent the rest of the day on the beach; it was so beautiful. The beach went on for ages and there was white sand and barely any people.
Day 11- We went to Tunnel Beach, which is a beach that you can only enter by climbing down a tunnel. It was so incredibly windy though, we didn’t stay for long. Afterwards we went back into Dunedin and walked to the Cadbury factory (girls’ choice) and the Speight’s brewery (boys’ choice).
Day 12- On our way to Oamaru, we climbed up Baldwin Street, the steepest street in the world according to the Guiness Book of World Records. Then we stopped at the Moeraki Boulders, which are a bunch of huge spherical boulders along Kohekohe beach. When we arrived in Oamaru, we sat and watched the Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony return to shore.
Day 13- Today we travelled north to Christchurch and spent the day in the International Antarctic Centre. We got to go for a ride on a Hagglund on a terrain course, which was awesome. There was also this room that replicated a blizzard, because most people here have never been in a blizzard, let alone even touched snow. They raised the winds a little and the temperature dropped to 10 degrees. I was standing there waiting for it to get really cold while everyone else was huddled up shivering.
Day 14- This morning we explored Christchurch and then headed off after lunch to kaikoura, where we spent our last night.
Day 15- We had to get up real early to go swim with dolphins. We got on our wetsuits and then they took us out to sea. There were thousands of wild dolphins everywhere, it was so mean! We swam with them for at least an hour then just followed them around on the boat. Afterwards, we drove back up to Picton and returned on the ferry to Wellington.
Now that it’s summer vacation, I just go to the beach or go shopping or hang out at friends every day. On Christmas eve, we didn’t do much. My host dad is against church and he says all people that go to church are hypocrites, but he took me to the midnight mass anyways, so that was a little uncomfortable. It was an Anglican church too so it was real different. There’s no Lutheran churches in the Wellington area at all, they’re mostly Anglican and Baptist, and only very few. I’ve only met one person here that goes to church. So Christmas isn’t a religious holiday at all here, it’s more of a party-and-drink-with-your-friends holiday. And because kiwis are just relaxed people, there are few decorations and people don’t tend to go out of their way to do things…unless it has to do with alcohol, they have a bad drinking culture. On Christmas day, we woke up and opened presents. From my host whanau I got lollies, tshirt, NZ towel, tickets to Big Day Out, a 50$ gift card, and a greenstone necklace. Then at about 12 we left to go to the bach on Hokio Beach, about 1.5 hours away. Upper Hutt was real sunny and hot, but as soon as we got over the Akatarawas, it was overcast and cool. That’s NZ weather for ya. It can be hot as in Upper Hutt and then windy and cold in Lower Hutt, it changes so quick. The beach was nice though, despite the weather. But it didn’t feel like Christmas at all, everyone was in a real bad mood. My host mum is kind of spastic most of the time…and she was freaking out about everything, which was making everyone else freak out. But once she went to bed, my host siblings, dad, and I had a huge bonfire in the sand dunes. That was real fun, we didn’t put it out till 2. The next morning, we had breakfast early and then went home. I attempted to make spritz cookies, but they turned out tasting more like shortbread. The flour here is really rough apparently, and the shortening was weird too. At 4pm I went to Anne’s daughter’s place for a Boxing day bbq. That was fun, I get along better with their family. 
School ended for years 11-13 on 11 November but up till December they had to take the NCEA exams. I didn’t have to take them, being an exchange student and also because I had the rotary south island tour the 15th-30th. The south island is the most beautiful part of New Zealand, and also the least inhabited. It’s also where most of Lord of the Rings was filmed.
Day 1- I met up with the 9 other exchange students in Wellington and we did a scavenger hunt around the city and then stayed in the youth hostel.
Day 2- We took the ferry down to Picton and bused it to Motueka, where we stayed the night in the Top 10 Holiday Park.
Day 3- We took a scenic cruise along the Abel Tasman National Park coast and spent the day at Medlands Beach where we swam and tramped up the bush. Then we headed south to Punakaiki and stayed at Te Nikau Retreat, where we stayed in lodges out in the bush.
Day 4- On our way to Greymouth, we stopped at the Punkakaiki blowhole and pancake rocks. Then we went to Shantytown, which is a replication of an early 1900’s town, and we got to pan for gold and dress up like the era. There, the Greymouth rotary prepared dinner for us (dad-this is where I had my first hamburger in years and actually loved it).
Day 5- We took a short drive to Hokitika where we stopped at the Jade factory. According to the Maori belief, greenstone can only be given as a gift, you can’t purchase it for yourself, and each design has a meaning and brings good luck if blessed. Then we drove down to the Franz Joseph Glacier where we did a half day walk and spent the night.
Day 6- On our way to Queenstown, we drove through the picturesque Haast pass and stopped at Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawera.
Day 7- We got up early and did the Kawarau Jetboating on Queenstown’s Lake Wakatipu. Afterwards, we took the Skyline Gondola up to Bob’s Peak where we had a lunch buffet overlooking Lake Wakatipu and Queenstown. After lunch, we got to go on luge rides on top of the mountain. The rest of the day was spent souvenir shopping in Queenstown.
Day 8- Today we did the Kawarau bungee jump! It’s the world’s first bungee and it goes 43m off a bridge. Out of everyone that was there, I was the only one that screamed. That was one of the best parts of the trip though and I definitely want to do it again!
Day 9- We got up early today and took a long bus ride to the Milford Sounds, stopping along the way to take heaps of photos. We stayed on the Milford Wanderer Cruise over night. On the ship, I met a couple from America. They talked and talked and talked about their kids and travelling. Americans are annoying. Also on board, we got to go kayaking in the sounds and see seals and penguins. It rains 2/3 of the year so the first day was rainy, but when we woke up the next morning, the clouds cleared and there was a perfect rainbow in the mountains.
Day 10- Today was a long day in the bus. We were supposed to take a scenic flight out of the sounds and then take a scenic train ride to Dunedin, but the flight was cancelled so we had to bus all the way to Dunedin (which was actually only 6 hours, but for New Zealand, that’s a long ways) . We spent the rest of the day on the beach; it was so beautiful. The beach went on for ages and there was white sand and barely any people.
Day 11- We went to Tunnel Beach, which is a beach that you can only enter by climbing down a tunnel. It was so incredibly windy though, we didn’t stay for long. Afterwards we went back into Dunedin and walked to the Cadbury factory (girls’ choice) and the Speight’s brewery (boys’ choice).
Day 12- On our way to Oamaru, we climbed up Baldwin Street, the steepest street in the world according to the Guiness Book of World Records. Then we stopped at the Moeraki Boulders, which are a bunch of huge spherical boulders along Kohekohe beach. When we arrived in Oamaru, we sat and watched the Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony return to shore.
Day 13- Today we travelled north to Christchurch and spent the day in the International Antarctic Centre. We got to go for a ride on a Hagglund on a terrain course, which was awesome. There was also this room that replicated a blizzard, because most people here have never been in a blizzard, let alone even touched snow. They raised the winds a little and the temperature dropped to 10 degrees. I was standing there waiting for it to get really cold while everyone else was huddled up shivering.
Day 14- This morning we explored Christchurch and then headed off after lunch to kaikoura, where we spent our last night.
Day 15- We had to get up real early to go swim with dolphins. We got on our wetsuits and then they took us out to sea. There were thousands of wild dolphins everywhere, it was so mean! We swam with them for at least an hour then just followed them around on the boat. Afterwards, we drove back up to Picton and returned on the ferry to Wellington.
Now that it’s summer vacation, I just go to the beach or go shopping or hang out at friends every day. On Christmas eve, we didn’t do much. My host dad is against church and he says all people that go to church are hypocrites, but he took me to the midnight mass anyways, so that was a little uncomfortable. It was an Anglican church too so it was real different. There’s no Lutheran churches in the Wellington area at all, they’re mostly Anglican and Baptist, and only very few. I’ve only met one person here that goes to church. So Christmas isn’t a religious holiday at all here, it’s more of a party-and-drink-with-your-friends holiday. And because kiwis are just relaxed people, there are few decorations and people don’t tend to go out of their way to do things…unless it has to do with alcohol, they have a bad drinking culture. On Christmas day, we woke up and opened presents. From my host whanau I got lollies, tshirt, NZ towel, tickets to Big Day Out, a 50$ gift card, and a greenstone necklace. Then at about 12 we left to go to the bach on Hokio Beach, about 1.5 hours away. Upper Hutt was real sunny and hot, but as soon as we got over the Akatarawas, it was overcast and cool. That’s NZ weather for ya. It can be hot as in Upper Hutt and then windy and cold in Lower Hutt, it changes so quick. The beach was nice though, despite the weather. But it didn’t feel like Christmas at all, everyone was in a real bad mood. My host mum is kind of spastic most of the time…and she was freaking out about everything, which was making everyone else freak out. But once she went to bed, my host siblings, dad, and I had a huge bonfire in the sand dunes. That was real fun, we didn’t put it out till 2. The next morning, we had breakfast early and then went home. I attempted to make spritz cookies, but they turned out tasting more like shortbread. The flour here is really rough apparently, and the shortening was weird too. At 4pm I went to Anne’s daughter’s place for a Boxing day bbq. That was fun, I get along better with their family.
Sorry for the lack of photos, it takes so long to upload them, but I have more on Facebook.
These are just random photos from the trip: milford sounds, abel tasman, dolphins, and me bungee jumping.
