Warriors 50 - Raiders 16

 
Saturday we went to the Warriors rugby league match. It was an exciting game as they had to win to stay in the top 8- and they did! 50-16!!

It was a really cozy stadium and we sat really close to the south endzone, so it was easy to see even the expressions on the players' faces as they made a try (4 points). Above is the general sequence of the game- work the ball down the field, touch the ball in the end zone for a try (4 pts), kick the ball into the posts from the 22m line in line with where the ball touched the end zone (2 pts). At least that's what I understood, :-P

After all that, the team who just scored gets the ball kicked back to them and gets to start the process again! This custom seemed a bit backwards to me at first (dare I say antipodal), but once I saw how tricky it can be to get the ball all the way down the field I understood it a bit better. We did see a few long runs though that were pretty impressive and contributed to the large score difference.

The stadium wasn't too big- it was pretty full and 15,000 people were in attendance. We sat right next to this little drum group, which made it feel a bit like a high school or college game having them so close.

Another funny thing was this little 4-wheeler who rolled onto the field to bring the tee in and out for kick offs. Even though someone else was usually running onto the field to place the ball, he still had to drive on with the tee.

Overall it was a great game and a fun atmosphere. I hope the next rugby match (rugby union this time, a slightly different sport in ways still beyond my comprehension) is as entertaining.

Fairy Falls

This weekend we went for a hike in the Waitakere ranges again, this time to Fairy Falls. It was a good 2.5 hour hike that was well worth it. It had great views of the city and the waterfalls were really tall! The trail was a bit muddy, but not too bad. We got rained on partly through the walk, but I actually enjoyed it- it was a nice misting and wasn't too cold.




We also saw a kauri tree that was over 7m diameter. It was hidden pretty far in the bush so I couldn't hug it, but we did see another one on our hike that I tried to hug and couldn't get even close to wrapping my arms around it. They aren't quite as big as those trees you can drive through in California, but I think they're the biggest trees I've seen up close.

Working World

I got a job! I am now the newest member of the Community Transport Schools team at Auckland Transport. Business cards and company phone yet to arrive, but everything else is pretty well settled. So far, I'm really happy with the mix this job gives me between schools and office life. I get to visit lots of schools and work with the kids, but still do a lot in the office and work closely with the transport engineers too. It's a good mix.

A few things I've noticed since starting:

KARAKIA
I went to a meeting with one of my schools and the engineer to discuss some possible projects to be done around the school, and the principal started the meeting with a karakia- a traditional Maori prayer/chant. It was unexpected for me, especially since he was the only person in the meeting who could understand it! It sets a nice tone for the meeting though and is very interesting to see how the Maori culture mixes with the NZ culture.

This was also done before meals at the early childhood centers I subbed at.

National Anthem
This seems to be sung often at school gatherings. We presented one of the schools with a certificate and sign to welcome them to our programme (yes, I'm trying to adapt NZ spelling, bit by bit) at an all school assembly. It started with the national anthem sung in Maori and English, accompanied by one of the teachers playing his guitar. It was a really nice environment, and I was extremely impressed with the behavior of the kids- almost no talking!

Every day I learn something new and this job gets me out to see a lot of Auckland and the people and the schools. It's a great fit for me! :)

New Photos

For those of you who are subscribed to this blog, I just wanted to let you know that I updated the "Volcanic Rocks" post to add photos if you want you should check them out!

Broken Roads

So this weekend we went to Rotorua for a weekend away. The drive down reminded me a bit of Route 66 as it had a few diners and buildings with big old-fashioned signs and such.








Once we arrived in Rotorua, we started in the town to see some of the geo-thermal activity in town. One thing that was most striking was how the steam seems to emanate from every crack in the hot spots. Apparently in some areas the ground can be solid asphalt one day and an erupted steam hole the next. Pretty insane to think about all the activity that goes on beneath our feet. I even saw a drain gutter that had glowing red rocks and steam rising from it!

Just next to the hospital, there's a small park full of mud, tiny lakes and lots of steam. As soon as we walked onto the boardwalk in the park, it felt as though we were in a sauna. You could barely see 10 feet in front of you at sometimes due to all the steam and the sulfuric smell was overwhelming. Later on we stumbled upon a 'geo-therm landscaping' park overrun with a tourist bus and then found the weekend market where we bought a small morning snack.





After the park, we walked through the small town and ended at the government house and blue baths, which have some beautiful lawn bowling greens in front of them.






 





After walking around town, we hiked through the imported California redwood forest (only about 100 years old) and caught a glimpse of Geyser Pohutu shooting water. It really was a neat area to see so much activity happening underneath the earth.







We finally got to see some splattering mud up close that so far I'd only seen in post cards and heard about in the guide books. It was fun to watch it gurgle up and explode at random intervals. A Haiku inspired by the mud pools:

Sploosh, splash, splosh, kerplunk,

Gurgle, bubble, splurt, glip-glop,

Geotherm mud pool

 

We ended the day with a relaxing dip in the hot springs. We stumbled upon this pool driving to the mud pools and stopped by to check it out. It wasn't too crowded when we arrived, but got busier as the sun started setting. What a wonderful way to end a day full of geo-therm adventures!







On Sunday, we went to church at St. Faiths. The service was in Maori and English and all the songs were in Maori. After the service, the congregation met in the hall for morning tea and fellowship. It was a really nice group of people. I hope to find that soon in Auckland as well!

After church, we went to Lake Okataina and did some hiking around. We found a trail that went by two small lakes nestled in the craters of old volcanoes. It was a beautiful hike and looked like a rainforest or jungle.






After the jungle hike, we drove a few more kilometers around Lake Rotorua to a waterfall popular for rafters and kayakers. We got to see a group descend the falls, but not before stopping to see the old power station for hydro-electric power. Apparently, Rotorua was the 4th city in New Zealand to get electricity.

Watching white water rafters down 7m waterfall

Our little gnome Jack at the old power station

Some Haikus inspired by our trip home:

Sheep graze green pastures
Rainbows appear around curves
Leaves fall, flowers bloom

Oncoming traffic
Fifty-five mile per hour turns
Bumpy road concealed

Rolling stones play on
Driving home from Rotorua
Rolling hills pass by

Volcanic Rocks

Today we took the early bird ferry to Rangitoto, the nearby volcano that we can see from our window. The views from the ferry were great, and it's only about 20 minutes ride from the downtown.

 

Our apartment is the white spot you can see farthest right on shore

 

It was really nice to hike up the volcanic rock and get a different perspective on the city. Apparently, Rangitoto is the newest volcano in the region at only 600 years. It's kind of scary to think about the people 600 years ago who were going about there daily business when suddenly this molten explosion burst up out of the middle of the sea, creating a volcanic island only meters from the one they were living on!




 



We walked around the crater and then hiked through some lava tunnels, which luckily weren't very long so we could see through them without a flashlight (as we didn't have a flashlight).

My favorite island from a new angle (I can see it on my run)

We also walked through the native kowhai tree forests and saw some of the old baches from the 1920s and before. Since 1927, no building has been allowed on the island, so no one lives there anymore.

PICTURES COMING HERE!!!!!!! :)