sorry for the inconveniences, it was on private, but now accessible for all of you.
cheers
Autor: newzealandbekka
Video SkyJump
Hey there:)
I now had time to upload the video of my SkyJump on Sept 12th.
I jumped off the SkyTower in Auckland, which is the highest tower on the southern hemisphere (328m).
The SkyJump, which is a form of base-jumping, is from a height of 192m.
My SkyJump (link opens in a new tab)
Week 3 & 4 – South Island Tour
Okay so this is going to be a long post, and I’ll try to make it as easy as possible to read without you falling asleep. For the last two weeks I have been on a south island tour with active planet and supported Nick and Duncan as a tour guide. I was happy to be able to combine working and travelling.
There will be a video of this tour and as soon as Nick has finished it I will put a link in my blogpost, so keep yourself updated:)
Here is a map of the tour just as an overview, I put in as many of our stops as possible.
The last few days before the tour started there was more paperwork to do and also I was able to hang out with Peter and Niklas, as they came over and stayed here for two nights. Another cool thing that happened those days: My IRD number finally arrived! Yippie
On Friday 23rd
6 students arrived here in Pukekohe and stayed the night, as we were about to leave on Saturday morning to drive to Wellington, where the tour officially starts.
On our way to Wellington we had lots of fun in the bus singing and dancing. At the YHA in Wellie we met up with the rest of the group.
Sunday 25th
The first day of the tour started early with taking to ferry to Picton on the South Island. After lunchtime in Picton we drove to Motueka. On the way we stopped at Pelorus river, which is a Lord of the rings – location and jumped off a rock into the river. The water was so freezing, I was happy to get out after I jumped in, even though I was wet! In addition, it had been raining all day long, so it wasn’t a typical day for a swim.
Monday 26th
On Monday we drove to Marahau into the Abel Tasman National Park and wanted to go for a walk. As it was raining, we first went to the pools in Nelson and came back to Abel Tasman afterwards and went on a watertaxi that showed us around the bays.
Tuesday 27th
The weather didn’t seem to better the next day, which was a bit of a shame, as we wanted to take some students skydiving on Tuesday. But because this was cancelled, the students decided to wait a few days until we would be in Wanaka (near Queenstown) for their skydive. (Wait how this will turn out, I will tell you later in this blog post…)
The rest of the day was nice though: We went to see Cape Foulwind, the pancake rocks and stopped in Greymouth for the night and had our dinner cooked on a campfire we made at the beach. The sky was so beautiful that night! It was magical sitting on this beach with a really cool group, hearing the waves of the sea and listening to good music next to a fire and looking up to a sky full of stars.
Wednesday 28th
The tour went on to Hokitika, where we went to the gorge and jumped from a 6m high rock into cold, but beautiful turquoise water. Another stop on Wednesday was the bushman’s café where you can learn about the history of hunting in New Zealand, see a possum, and have a look at other cool stuff there. We also went to the Kiwi House and saw two kiwibirds!
![IMG-20161009-WA0018[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/img-20161009-wa00181.jpg?w=668&h=376)
drive into Hokitika
at the bushman’s café
We stayed in Franz Josef for the next night and went to a bar for dinner and karaoke. The karaoke was so fun!
Before bedtime Nick took the group on a walk through the forest with many many glowworms. It was special because we did not take any torches but all lined up and trusted Nick to find the way along the track. (Of course he did)
Thursday 29th
wasn’t too exciting for me, as I took the students who booked the helicopter flight onto Franz Josef Glacier to their starting point and stayed there until each group was back.
On our way to Arrowtown, where we stayed the next two nights we stopped at Bruce Bay (you can find Greenstone Jade there, but the tide was too high at the time we went there), Haast, another waterfall and Lake Hawea.
On our way to Queensown we saw many rabbits next to the road and this and the following days got many mosquito and sandfly bites.
Friday 30th
That Friday was the last day of the tour for about 10 students of the group, as they just booked the ‘Alpine’ tour, which ends in Queenstown. 10 students left, but another 4 joined the “PenguinArmy” (as you may have noticed: we are all wearing penguin hats, which is pretty awesome and creates a great group feeling) for the second half of the tour.
In Queenstown, which is smaller than most of the students expected, they got free time to explore the town and four students went bungy-jumping. I went to the cookie time shop and bought two big bags of cookies *-* and took the students jetboating on the river, which was quite fun.
Meeting up with the whole group we went up the mountain with the gondola and had 3 luge rides there. The view was beautiful and we even saw a lovely rainbow!
After that we went to the ice bar BelowZero, in which everything is made out of ice!
And not to forget… the skydiving was cancelled another time, as the company in Wanaka had to repair their plane that afternoon…
Saturday 1st October
All that was planned for this day was Milford Sound, which actually takes up almost a whole day. From Arrowtown it is a 3 hours drive through mountains with no town, village or cell phone connection.
Fjordland
the Mirrow Lakes
At this point halfway through the tour, a virus started infecting some students, and it wouldn’t stop until the end of the tour. So there was a lot of garlic eaten, which helped us not to get sick and the infected people to get better.
Sunday 2nd
On Sunday we drove to Bluff Point, through Invercargill and stayed at a farmstay backpackers at Slope Point. This backpackers was really nice, they had lambs and calves and I had an amazing view out of my window.
Monday 3rd
The highlight of this day was definitely surfing! I was so happy to be surfing again after 3 years! I catched some good waves and had a lot of fun. Mostly, there are dolphins at this part of the beach, but unfortunately there weren’t any.
We also went to McLeans waterfall and do the Florence hill lookout, as well as we wanted to visit a guy who lives in this area and does a lot of art with basically everything he can find, like wood, metal, glass, old bikes, … He wasn’t home, but we had a look at his house and some of his artwork.
MacLeans waterfall. the water was cold as
almost ready for surfing:)
Tuesday 4th
On Tuesday we got up very early to be at a beach where there are yellow eyed penguins and watch them get up at around sunrise and go into the water. We saw all three of them, and they are very cute.
![20161004_071858[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/20161004_0718581.jpg?w=1120)
On our way to Oamaru, where we stayed the night, we stopped at the Moeraki boulders. There was no day when we did not get wet on this tour. May it be a waterfall, jumping off a rock into a river or just a beach..
![20161004_154026[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/20161004_1540261.jpg?w=1120)
Wednesday 5th
Making our way further north again we stopped at the Antarctic Centre in Christchurch. It was a weird feeling to visit this place twice in such a short time (I’ve been there when I arrived in Christchurch and waited for my flight to Napier).
![20161005_124726[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/20161005_1247261.jpg?w=581)
Thursday 6th
The next day we did not have a long drive, as we just drove to Kaikoura. It was a lovely sunny day, I bought two pair of pants (similar to those I got in India) and a summer dress. In Kaikoura we saw heaps of seals, two even crossed the road right in front of our bus!
The dolphin swimming and the whale watching, which were planned for the next morning, were cancelled… a storm warning was out for all over New Zealand..
That was a bit of a shame, as the dolphin swimming and the skydiving were the two activities most students were looking forward to the most. (Me as well;))
So after these activites were being cancelled, we had lots of time and went to see the seals again and then drove to Picton.
We stopped at Kekerengu and Nick taught us all how to do a backflip (and some did the frontflip as well) on a trampoline a café there has in their backyard.
Arriving quite early at the backpackers in Picton we went to the spa pool (yes, this backpackers has a spa pool.. and free breakfast with homemade scones!) and the students all wrote notes in each others books or on their flags. I got to write in them as well:)
Saturday 8th
So that was almost the end of the tour. Our last day started with the free breakfast and a goodbye to a girl that stayed on the South Island.
The rest of the day was really tiring. We took the ferry to Wellington, dropped off another couple of students at the airport and then made our way up north to Pukekohe.
7 of the students stayed one more night here. Duncan took them into Auckland today (Sunday 9th) and dropped them off at their homestays, bus stops or ferry terminals.
I got to take one of the students to the bus pick-up in Bombay, which is just 15mins from here. But the car didn’t start and I couldn’t fix the battery, so I was happy that the neighbour was at home and took us there.
Week 2 – Van and Pukekohe
Last Saturday (10th; I know it’s been quite a while) I went up earlier and went to a little surf trip with Jim. We had a look on a close surf beach and he went in for a little surf on Te Awanga beach. It was very cold and started to rain a bit from time to time, but we had a hot coffee and some delicious peanut biscuits (Zibby made them) in the car. I was able to get some good shots of the waves and the surfers. Sadly, the memory card deleted all of them when we tried to load them onto my computer later that day. So here are just some pictures I took with my phone.
After that surfing morning we went back home and had a good read. I am currently reading “The Da Vinci Code”, which is a really good book! I haven’t had that much time for reading for a very long time. After a wonderful dinner and me showing Zibby and Jim some photos from around my home and family, we watched the rugby game (New Zealand vs. Argentinia) online. (Of course the All Blacks won)
The next morning was sad, as I had to say goodbye to Zibby and Jim. I forgot to take a photo with them, so I’m really sorry:(
We got up early and drove to Hastings, where I catched the bus to Auckland at 8am. After 8 long hours I walked to the hostel in Auckland. My backpack is so heavy and full as! The steep streets in Auckland downtown did not make it easier for me. The hostel was quite nice though, but much bigger than the Rotten Apple in Hastings. It was really close to the Sky Tower.
Before movie night started in the hostel I went to the supermarket to get breakfast for the next morning. So here’s a thing I realized on that day: It is so difficult to eat healthy and well-balanced when you’re travelling on your own and only staying at each hostel for a few nights. I just do not have the space in my backpack to store any food to take with me, so I had 2mins-noodles and toast with honey and bought a soup for the next day.
After waking up in an uncomfortable bed on monday morning with a headache I soon then made my way to the Sky Tower for the sky jump I had booked. It was AMAZING! That view above Auckland’s roofs is really cool and the jump itself was so exciting and fun! As soon as I stepped off the edge and fell towards the base I wanted to do it again. I didn’t though. Too expensive 😀
After that thrilling experience I walked around the city and enjoyed a nice day in Auckland.
Back in the hostel I played cards on the hostels’ rooftop with some other girls.
On Tuesday I checked out and went to Mission Bay (20min east from Auckland downtown) with two other girls from the hostel. We spent some hours at the beach there until it got too windy.
Later that day I went to Morgan’s (friend from Havelock North High School) student residence near the uni. She took me to her weightlifting gym that night. I also did some little exercises and it was good to do some sports after quite a long time.
As Morgan did not have uni on Wednesday, we took the ferry to Rangitoto island. It was a really sunny and nice morning but got cloudy when we arrived. We went to the top anyway and had a great view:
On the way up on the volcanic island we saw pretty much volcanic rocks and trees. Further up towards the top there was a bit more forest as well. On the way down we stopped at the lava caves and went through these narrow entrances and took a torch to find our steps. It was a really cool experience!
Thursday morning Morgan had uni lectures again. I had breakfast and then walked to the Auckland Museum. It was cold and raining, so not a good day for Waiheke island (on which I definitely plan on going in the next days). I spent some hours in the museum, learnt something about the natural history, maori art and history, volcanoes and war history and more or less accidentally got into the service on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the battle of Somme in WW1.
After having explored all of the museums exhibitions and galleries I had a vegetable lasagne (Yes, again:D )in the museums’ café and stayed in the atrium for an hour or so and catched up on all the online stuff like emails and online banking which I couldn’t do with my mobile data.
At 5pm I met up with Morgan at her dorm and packed my backpack. I was only allowed to stay for two nights, so I booked a hostel for the next night.
On Friday, Peter and Niklas picked me up with their van from the hostel and we drove to a campsite at Whaitakere Regional Park (southwest Auckland). It was quite adventurous to get there, as the road that goes up the hill and back down again is narrow and could get slippery. The campsite was close to the beach, but we only explored some caves, which also were nearby.
the view
inside one of the caves
the campground from a little distance, Pukeko in the foreground
That night was not really nice though. There were soo many mosquitos in the van! After we killed most of them, there was a huge mosquito cemetery on the roof and there still were so many inside the van to wake us up in the middle of the night.. annoying and awful as!
The next day we woke up to heavy rain and didn’t even had breakfast, as it was supposed to get worse throughout the day. So we left the camping ground quickly and headed towards Auckland for a petrol station. After we did some grocery shopping next we drove southwards and stopped at a campsite (it was more like a little carpark with a toilet, like the ones you find along the motorways sometimes). We spent the rest of day playing golf in way too high grass, making delicious pancakes and hanging out with 2 french couples that were also staying the night at this campground. We also played that card game called shithead, which I learnt at the hostel in Auckland and it is a lot of fun.
Our Sunday startet off with a quick breakfast in the rain (eggs on baguette:D). We then headed towards Paerata, near Pukekohe, about half an hour away from the campground we stayed the night. Arriving at the house I am staying at at the moment, in which the people from a travel agency live in, Peter and Niklas were able to build a shelf for their van! Duncan (director) offered them to use his wood and materials and some hours later, the boys and I finished off the last bits and tadaaaaa… upgraded was the van!
After the guys left (sad:( ) I put my backpack down in a small “house” about 100m away from the “real” house. I am staying at that house “down there”/”at the bottom” as they call it. It is quite nice, has a great view to wake up to and has many beds in it as well as a lounge and everything you’d need apart from a kitchen. (Don’t need that though as I am around the “real” house basically all the time and just go down there to sleep.)
The way to “down there” is muddy so I always take a golf cart to get there, which is real fun.
I will help out around here with all kinds of travel stuff and also with any things that need to be done until the 2 weeks South Island Tour starts on Saturday. I will assist on this tour and help out with the organization. The good thing for me is that this way I will be able to get around the south island without paying any money and get experience while doing this!
Yesterday was full of physical work. After I woke up in the middle of the night because it was so cold and then woke up when the sun rose I had breakfast and then went to go with Nick (Duncan’s son and also working in the business, doing most of the filming and video stuff) to a local high school to film some sequences for a little film clip they do for schools. After that we went grocery shopping and I got myself some new pair of socks. (I unluckily didn’t bring many, I somehow forgot them at home..)
Back at the house we cleaned the bus for the upcoming tour and I water blasted the front area around the house. We had nachos for dinner and I had a good read until bedtime.
Today was the paperwork day. I helped out Duncan with all the booking things and organizing some forms the students sent in. I don’t have much more to do today so I had time to finally update the blog! YAY!
For the next couple of days I will be helping out preparing for the tour. After the tour has finished I will probably stay here until I found work. I really need to start earning money soon! I have already spent so much.
All the best to my friends and family:*
Week 1 – Volunteering at HNHS
So last Saturday I was actually still staying at that hostel in Hastings. As I had breakfast, my seem-to-be-boring day suddenly got changed into awesome.
I went on a hike with 4 other folks (2 Germans, 1 Aussie, 1 British) at Ruahine Forest Park about 80km away from Hastings. So we got into that old hostel car and drove up to the carpark.
2 hours and with heaps of sweat we reached the top and had a rest at Sunrise Hut. Starting at around 20 mins away from the top we had to walk through patches of snow! ![20160903_131638(0)[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/20160903_13163801.jpg?w=1120)
And yes, it was freezing cold. Not just because we were so high off from sea-level, but also because we were sweating on our way up. I wasn’t really used to hikes like that and that one German guy just rushed for the top of the mountain!
The view was worth the effort though.
On the way down, one could feel the temperature change!
The rest of the day I spent at the hostel and had some great talks with the other backpackers, packed my backpack and got myself into a great trip to Rarotonga (Cook Islands) with 5 others from the hostel in December. For about 500 bugs!
On Sunday morning Zibby (teacher-aid at the special needs unit at school) and her husband picked me up from the hostel and we went to the farmers market before heading home to beautiful Waimarama beach. I was to stay with them for the week.
Fern, the dog of the house, greeted me and wouldn’t leave me alone once I started patting her, but in a really cute way. She is a lovely old lady. Also living with Zibby are a cat and two hens.
The view out here is just amazing! So close to the beach and so much space around the house and all that silence is overwhelming. And not to talk about my stay for the next couple of days! Zibby and her husband have a Mongolian tent in their garden and it is GORGEOUS! I could hear the sea whilst laying in my warm and cozy bed and that stunning view to wake up to in the mornings when the sun would come out.
After waking up in that gorgeous tent the next morning and getting read for school we left at around 9 am and drove the 30mins to Havelock North.
My first day in the special needs unit at Havelock North High School was lovely. For the second period, I went to INF (computer skills stuff:D) with a girl and helped her out a little. After morning tea I got to go to RDA (Riding for the Disabled Assid) with another girl. She will do her dressage on Sunday!
For the half an hour after lunch I played Frisbee with a couple of the students.
At 3, after all the kids got into their taxis and vans I popped into the musicianship class of Mr.Throp, an awesome teacher in who’s musicianship class I went in 2013. Was great to catch up and say hello.
I went to Wendy’s (hostmum from 2013) house after that and catched up with her. We went to the pub for dinner, I had a vegetable lasagne, and watched Shortland Street in the evening.
![20160905_175921[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/20160905_1759211.jpg?w=1120)
It kinda felt like coming back home and I sat on the veranda and enjoyed the funny sounds the Tuis make. (birds. Google it.)
In the evening I booked my bus ride to Auckland for Sunday and the Sky Tower Jump for Monday.
On Tuesday morning, Wendy dropped me off at school.
I spent the whole day in the unit. The kids were doing a pic collage of spring, for which we all went outside in that freezing cold wheather for some time to take spring photos with their iPads.
In another period the students at the unit had some maths. Not all students of the unit always stay in there. Some have some mainstream classes and some even go to those by themselves.
After lunch, one of the down syndrome kids was really cute, as he asked if I had a boyfriend and was so sad as I said yes so he even cried. I reckon he got over it by now. 😀
Coming home to Waimarama, I had the pleasure to meet Zibbys sister-in-law who came around for a few days. She had a young puppy with her. That puppy drove us all crazy, as she was jumping all around and on us and was bothering poor Fern (Zibbys dog). She is cute though.
Waking up to a freezing Wednesday (I will probably never get along with those cold mornings and nights. Yes, even inside ..) we left earlier for school and first went to the post office to get my IRD number form sent away.
First period was line dancing for the special needs kids. A dancing teacher came around and we had a little practice of the choreography the kids will show off next term. That dancing was really fun: that country song “Achy breaky heart” was so ridiculous funny and the kids were doing so well with the choreography. (like, actually google for this song ;D )
On Wednesdays, the children will cook their own lunch. This week it was baked beans and spaghetti and egg on toast.
After lunch there was a Cross Country around school so most students got out and watched the participating ones start and reach the finish line after 2.8km. 3 kids of the unit were in it too and they were so done and tired afterwards.
Tainui house won the Cross Country. (At HNHS there are four houses, like in Hogwarts, which run against at sports events like this one.) I was in Rata when I visited Havelock North High School in 2013.
![20160907_134445[1].jpg](https://rebekkaneuseelandblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/20160907_1344451.jpg?w=1120)
There was such a crazy change of wheather when we came home to Waimarama beach that afternoon. It was all sunny and warm so Zibby and I went for a walk along the beach but within 5-10mins it started raining a bit and it got all cold and stormy. My plan to go swimming in the sea died in that moment.
We had a lovely rest of the night by the fire and I moved my stuff from the Mongolian tent to the house as it would be cold as out there.
Today, Thursday 8th of September, we went swimming with the kids. (even the water was cold..).
These special needs children are so much fun around and we are having heaps of laughs, though there are some quite tough moments.
So at the moment I am sitting by the fire watching Jim, Zibby’s Husband on the spinning wheel spinning some wool out of fresh sheep wool.
They will knit me a hat! Both of them are such wonderful people and I am so lucky to be staying with them at this amazing place. At the moment Fern, the dog is warming my feet and has a good snoring going on.
Tomorrow is going to be my last day in the special needs unit at school and I will miss those kids. On Sunday I am going on a bus to Auckland and probably be staying at a hostel for two nights, do the sky jump on Monday and then staying two nights at a friends’ house who is at uni in Auckland.
Arrival and first few hours
With both a sad and a happy feeling I left Germany and had a 24h-long journey waiting for me.
After exactly 12 hours in a really lovely and comfortable plane I arrived at Singapore airport. I had a window seat and I was actually experiencing night and day throughout these 12 hours.
Singapore airport is really pretty: I arrived at Terminal 3, where there is a butterfly garden, a koi pond, and even a hard rock café! (Unfortunately I didn’t have time for the hard rock café so I’ll definitely need to remember it until February). As I ‚only‘ had a short stay of 2 hours at Singapore airport, I also didn’t manage to get to Terminal 2, where they installed a swiming pool on the roof!
My next flight, from Singapore to Christchurch, wasn’t as comfortable as the first one. The plane was an older one and the food wasn’t the best too. Though after another 12 hours I arrived in Christchurch.
As I had more spare time until the next flight I decided to go to the International Antarctic Centre, which is really close to the airport. At the museum I got to experience an antarctic storm, saw little blue penguins and learnt a lot about Antarctica.
Just at around 1pm I was making my way back to the airport to catch my last flight (for now). This time, the flight to Napier was operated by Air New Zealand. You can see a photo of the plane below.
Finally arriving in Hawke’s Bay I was quite amazed and excited how everything looks now, three years after my last stay in the bay. A friend picked me up at the airport and brought me to the hostel „The Rotten Apple“ in Hastings. We grabbed some dinner together that night; I spent the rest if the night in the hostel participating in a quiz night which was fun.
Today morning, that friend picked me up from the hostel and she dropped me off at Havelock North High School. I met up with the international students coordinator and saw some of my former teachers. I also popped into the special neds unit and organised volunteer work there for next week.
On my way back from school into Havelock North village I stopped at my hostmums house from 2013 but she wasn’t there. Apart from that, everything looked so different! I will try contacting her tomorrow.
In the village I got a new zealand SIM card, went up Te Mata peak (mountain in Havelock North which has a wonderful view over the whole bay!) with the friend that got me around with her car yesterday and I got my bank acount all set up at the ANZ branch in the village.
After that was all done, the day was already over and I catched the last bus back to Hastings (yea..last bus at 5:10 pm.. )
Just went to the supermarket real quick and now enjoying a relaxed night at the hostel.
See ya!
Rückkehr ins Land der langen weißen Wolke
Hey zusammen! Kia Ora!
Bald schon geht es für mich wieder los ans andere Ende der Welt!
Diesmal werde ich für 6 Monate mit einem Working Holiday Visum in Neuseeland umherreisen, Freunde und Gastfamilie von meinem letzten Aufenthalt (2013) besuchen und natürlich auch arbeiten und reisen.
Ab September werde ich zu diesem Aufenthalt einige Einträge schreiben und meine Erfahrungen teilen:)
Alles Liebe,
Rebekka
Gastfamilie und Schule
Endlich zuhause!
Meine Gastmutter Wendy hat mich gleich am Flughafen schon herzlich begrüßt und alle meine leisen Zweifel lösten sich in Luft auf. Meine Gastschwester Grace, die Nichte meiner Gastmutter, kam in den nächsten Tagen auch noch, und sie zeigten mir den Ort und meine Schule für die nächsten 3 Monate.
Da die Schule erst nach ein paar Tagen anfing, hatten wir noch Zeit, uns besser kennenzulernen und ich konnte mich etwas einleben. Anfangs war die Stimmung für mich manchmal noch etwas seltsam, ich wusste mich manchmal nicht ganz so gut auszudrücken, aber mit der Zeit kam das Sprachgefühl und auch das Gefühl, ein richtiger Teil der Familie zu sein.
Mit meiner Gastschwester habe ich mich soweit ganz gut verstanden, schade war nur, dass wir in der Schule zwar im gleichen Jahr waren, aber keine Kurse zusammen hatten und so habe ich eher was mit Anderen gemacht. (Ich habe immer noch Kontakt:) )
Mit meiner Gastfamilie hatte ich Glück, denn es gab nie Streit oder Komplikationen. Auch Nana und Grandpa wohnten im Ort und so habe ich auch die ältere Kiwi-Generation kennengelernt.
Wendy hat Grace und mich meistens auf dem Weg zur Arbeit an der Schule abgesetzt, aber wir sind auch ab und zu gelaufen. Die ersten Tage in der Schule habe ich noch nicht wie eine Einheimische erleben können, aber das wäre auch zu viel gewesen, da das Gelände ziemlich weitläufig ist und ich natürlich erst meine Kurse wählen musste.
Zusätzlich bietet die Havelock North High School einige Ausflüge und Aktionen mit den Internationals (Austauschschülern) an, wie z.B. Surfen, Tagesausflug nach Rotorua/Taupo, Ski-Wochenende, Bone Carving, …
In Neuseeland gibt es keinen 5-Tages-Stundenplan wie hier in Deutschland, sondern einen mit 9 Tagen. Man hat in Year 11 nur 6 Fächer, welche man wählen kann und 60-minütige Unterrichtsstunden. Das 9-Tage-System ist folgendermaßen aufgebaut:
Jeder Tag hat eine eigene Anordnung der 6 Fächer, jeder Schultag hat 5 Periods (Unterrichtsstunden). Auf einem extra Jahresplan steht, an welchem Tag des Jahres welcher Tag des 9-Tage-Stundenplans „gilt“. Es klingt komplizierter, als es in der Anwendung am Ende ist 😉
Das ist mein 9-Tage-Stundenplan.
Als Fächer hatte ich Music, Musicianship, Art (Painting), Maths, Maori (später dann Drama) und PE (Sport) gewählt.
Hier sind noch ein paar Bilder der Havelock North High School.
Was mir besonders gefallen hat, ist die Aufteilung der Schüler in 4 Häuser (wie in Hogwarts:D ), die bei Sport- oder Musikwettkämpfen innerhalb der Schule gegeneinander angetreten sind. Im Schulalltag hat man von dieser Aufteilung widerum eher weniger mitbekommen.
Die Häuser an der HNHS sind Kauri (blau), Rata (rot), Tanui (gelb) und Miro (orange).
Die Uniform:
Ja, an den meisten Schulen in Neuseeland trägt man ein Schuluniform. Was die Einen begeistern wird, ist für Andere der reinste Albtraum. Ich persönlich war sehr zufrieden mit der Uniform (im Winter ein Rock, Strumpfhose oder Socken, Schulschuhe, ein Hemd, ein Jersey und wer mag einen Fliespullover, im Sommer ein Kleid; alle Kleidungsstücke sind natürlich in den Schulfarben bordeaux und grau/blau kariert). Zum Schuljahr 2014 gab es eine neue Uniform in den Farben grau und blau.
Vorbereitung
Bevor die große Reise losgehen kann, gibt es viel zu run und organisieren.
Da das ziemlich viel Arbeit ist und oft überfordernd ist, gibt es Organisationen, die verschiedene Auslandsprogramme anbieten und bei der Vorbereitung, während des Aufenthalts und auch danach noch hilfend zur Seite stehen, wenn man sie braucht. Ich habe mich für TravelWorks entschieden, die unter Anderem auch High School Aufenthalte in Neuseeland anbieten.
Zur Einreise nach Neuseeland benötigt man ein Visum, in meinem Fall ein Schülervisum. Dieses musste ich erst beantragen, was eineige Wochen dauerte. Als es dann mitsamt meinem Reisepass wieder da war, habe ich mich gleich ein Stück mehr in Neuseeland gefühlt und meine Vorfreude hat sich noch mehr gesteigert.
Zur weiteren Vorbereitung bietet TravelWorks ein Vorbereitungstreffen an, bei dem man viele wichtige Informationen zu Abflug, Gastland, Gastgeschenk, Rückkehr usw bekommt und auch die Anderen schon etwas kennenlernt, mit denen man fliegen und die ersten paar Tage in Auckland verbringen wird.
Dann kann es auch schon bald losgehen ans andere Ende der Welt..
In Neuseeland angekommen blieb ich mit den Anderen Schülern von TravelWorks ein paar Tage in Auckland, wo wir noch einige Informationen und unsere SIM-Karten fürs Handy bekommen haben. Natürlich kam Sightseeing und Shopping nicht zu kurz.
Nach diesen 3 Tagen hieß es für mich: Weiterflug nach Havelock North, meiner Heimat für die nächsten Monate (oder im Herzen auch fürs ganze Leben).
3 Monate am besten Ende der Welt
Hey!
Ich bin Rebekka, 18 Jahre alt und war mit der Organisation TravelWorks von Juli bis Oktober 2013 in Neuseeland (an der Havelock North High School) zu einem High School Aufenthalt.
In diesem Blog schreibe ich über meine Erlebnisse und Erfahrungen, die ich während diesen ungaublich ereignisreichen und wunderschönen 3 Monaten sammeln konnte.
Mein Aufenthalt ist nun schon etwas her, jedoch sind alle Erinnerungen noch so brühwarm, als hätte ich Alles erst gestern erlebt. Ich habe oft Lust, von diesen Erfahrungen zu berichten und halte sie nun in diesem Blog fest.
Sollten Fragen oder Anregungen aufkommen, freue ich mich über Kommentare. Gerne gebe ich auch weitere Informationen über High School Aufenthalte oder andere Angebote von TravelWorks weiter.
Viel Spaß beim Lesen:)
Erfahrungen am besten Ende der Welt 