Henning's Blog
The week before Christmas I visited a New Zealand Rebound (older Exchange Student), who lives in Waiuku and who was in Germany in my District, so I knew her already. Her Birthday was one Day before so she, her friend and I went to the Karioitahi Beach. There I got my first and hopefully last New Zealand Sunburn on my front!
On Thursday night I went to the Elf Night at my first Hostfamilies place. WHAT Elf Night!?
Yeah my family make every year with their cousins a night where one room is decorated like a Winter landscape and then they wear Elf Costumes and watch the ELF Movie.
Sunday was then Christmas evening, I really didn't feel like Christmas but we had a nice dinner with some friends and nice food! :) In the Morning of the Christmas Day my cousins came around and we unpacked our presents. Then we visit my cousin and his first baby.
On the evening of the 27th I took the Intercity Bus to Wellington, where I arrived in the Morning at 7 o clock, from there I travelled on the ferry to Picton. I watched out for the landscape and met the first scouts from NZ. In Picton I met a other scout who was the whole time at the camp in my group, we both got picked up by scouts and got droven to the campside. The Next 10 days I helped at a Rock Climbing and abseiling Wall to get the scout down or up the wall. That was pretty exiting for me because I never did stuff like this. We had also two days off where we went on tours around the camp in the bus. The weather was so good the whole tim, it was hot and a little bit windy.
I met scouts from New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, Kenya, Hong Kong, Samoa, Cook Islands Indonesia, Thailand and the U.S..
After the camp I got picked up by Andy and Mary Ann.
I stayed with them for 3 days on their boat, during these days we sailed through Queen Charlotte Sounds and we went to Nelson where I did some walks around the Waikawa Marina.
At the 11th Morning I came back from the big tour.
Thanks Rotary Club for that nice experience and fun!
Thursday evening we flew than in a little Cessna (12 seats) from Auckland to Great Barrier Island. It was a really good filght, because we flew low over Auckland and Glendowie and over my School, so I could take pretty photos. From the Airport in Great Barrier we drove like 45 min in the Car to Orama, there we ate with the Comunity. After dinner we went to my uncel's house in a Bay nearby Orama. That is a Paradise! Their own Bay, view on the sea and a big property.
Next Morning some friends came around and stayed for some hour there. We rode with them on the boat to Port Fitzroy and afterwards we went canoeing and had than a Nice dinner with fresh fish!
Saturday we walked up the stream nearby the house, went canoeing, Stand Up Paddaling with a Windsurfboard and at the end we went toboggan behind the boat. That was so much fun! At the evening we went with a friend couple out for dinner in Tryphena. That was my longest way to get some food (90 min.). Afterwards we went to a 1970s party! Yeah! :)
Sunday was the last day on Great Barrier Island or also called Aotea, so we walked on a beautiful beach with white sand and bright blue water and afterwards we walked to Natural Hot Pools in the forest, where we realxed for some time.
Today I woke up at 7:45, because we must left the house, because Ann Marie and Paul tried to go with the boat to Auckland. We spend the day eating, driving around beautiful places and going in Art Galleries and a Museum and at 5pm we flew back to Auckland.
Thanks Heather and Blair for that nice oportunity and thanks Ann Marie and Paul for that hospitality!
Henning's Fact for the weeks:
The cities of Aachen, Regensburg, Frankfurt-am-Main, Nuremberg, Weimar, Bonn and Berlin have all been capitals of Germany.
Henning's phrase for the weeks:
"Those who would surrender freedom in order to gain security will end up losing both"
Benjamin Franklin