Written by South Pacific Students, Ash and Clivia
What’s New in Our Journey?
After a few wonderful weeks in Australia, we continued our journey by hopping on a plane to New Zealand! We flew from Cairns to Auckland, and then from Auckland to Wellington. We crashed in Wellington for the night, after wandering aimlessly through the streets in search of dinner at midnight. Thankfully, KFC saved us all.
We then began our eight-hour road trip to Raglan, a short two-hour drive from Auckland.
We were warmly welcomed to Manu Wairua by the lovely Rangimarie and her husband Rob and stayed there from Monday to Friday.
During our time at Manu Wairua, we participated in a sweat lodge, a Native American ceremony passed down from Rangimarie’s ancestors. This was a new experience for all of us, giving us plenty to reflect on and process over the following week.
We’ve been learning some Māori, with the help of our guide, Tiaki, who has also been teaching us about different rites of passage and guiding us through some of them. We’re incredibly thankful for him and the way he’s brought us into his culture.
We spent a day at a rites-of-passage campsite, helping to take down tents and host a BBQ with our new friends and Tiaki’s family.
Now, we are staying at the Marae Kokiri, and thanks to Tiaki and Kimo, we’ve been learning Māori songs, history, and forms of art.
We’ve met so many new people over the past week, all with a story to tell and something to teach, and we are amazed by the kindness they’ve shown us.
Top Three Highlights of the Week:
- On our way from Wellington to Raglan, nine of us squeezed into a hot tub meant for four. It was definitely a challenge, but we made it work!
- During our free time, we visited a hot spring. Expecting a large, natural hot spring, we were instead greeted by an abandoned waterpark. A unique adventure, to say the least!
- Elder Matutaera took us on a walk, teaching us about Māori history, showing us interesting art pieces, and patiently answering our many questions.
This Week’s Challenge
This week, our group felt a bit like Victorian children—dealing with bouts of illness and a few encounters with mice. Five students and two OEs managed to stay healthy, though Gabe was the first to catch a bug. As for the rodents, Clivia kept hearing sniffing and chewing sounds, and everyone tried to convince her it was just Susannah rummaging through her backpack. However, when we found teeth marks on Clivia’s backpack, we all started to believe her!
Gratitude and Growth
This week, we’re especially grateful for the mentorship we’ve received from elders in the Māori community, as well as from Mary and Sushi. We’re learning to adapt to a culture different from our own, discovering so much about the history of New Zealand, Māori arts and culture, and ourselves.
A Few Extra Highlights
- Uno Statistics: Clivia is still very much winning at Uno, with Ash close behind. Leaders of the week on top!
- Sprite Count: JT’s Sprite addiction continues to be a concern, with our current trip counter at 59 Sprites.
- Speed Grocery Shopping: We’ve done a lot of quick grocery runs this week and practiced adaptability in cooking. Sometimes, we cooked for double the people expected, and other times, we found out about a BBQ the day before it happened. But once again, we made it work. YUM!