On our way to the beach we stopped at a giant bottle of Lemon & Paeroa, commonly known as L&P, a New Zealand fizzy drink (soda). It has a unique flavor that I can't describe, but it's a soda I definitely enjoy.
Keith dropped us off at the beach so we could take a few pictures before settling in
We walked over to the house and took a small tour of Keith and Yvonne's place
And then went to a local pub for some fish and chips (which were quite disappointing, but the company was great)
Myself, Candace, Brooke, (the blond behind Candace), Linda (the one behind Brooke), Yvonne (across from Linda), McKenzie, Averil (McKell's host mum), and McKell (across from me)
After a restful night's sleep, Brooke and I went for a walk along the beach. We had a great time trying not to get too wet and taking some fun pictures. The clouds moved rather quickly and cast some beautiful light on the water. It was a gorgeous walk along the beach, that's for sure.
Couple of cool shots
We found some sand that caused us to sink a little bit. We had quite a lot of fun playing in that bit of the beach.
Notice that the water is half-way up Brooke's legs and I don't have any ankles.
Keith volunteered to take us fishing...ON THE OCEAN! I hadn't ever been fishing on the ocean before and I was quite excited for this experience. I knew that fishing boats were small and that the ocean was big and the weather wasn't superb so the water would be rough, but even after knowing all of that I don't think I knew what it was really going to be like.
Myself and Brooke
Couple of cool shots
We found some sand that caused us to sink a little bit. We had quite a lot of fun playing in that bit of the beach.
Notice that the water is half-way up Brooke's legs and I don't have any ankles.
Keith volunteered to take us fishing...ON THE OCEAN! I hadn't ever been fishing on the ocean before and I was quite excited for this experience. I knew that fishing boats were small and that the ocean was big and the weather wasn't superb so the water would be rough, but even after knowing all of that I don't think I knew what it was really going to be like.
A not-so-great shot of Keith's fishing boat
At first, I was quite nervous because the ocean is so big and you can feel absolutely everything on such a small boat. I was also nervous because Keith didn't offer any of us life jackets and I am just not accustomed to boating without one. I got over the no-life-jacket-thing and eventually felt comfortable skimming over the top of the ocean's swells. We drove around for a little bit. Keith drove us past this island which is hollow and on good days, when the weather is pleasant, some people will kayak out to this island, tie up their kayaks, and go inside where there's a little beach.
I learned that you don't use worms for bait when you go fishing in the ocean. You use a fish!
The hollow island
After going a little farther out, we put down our anchor and started fishing.
I learned that you don't use worms for bait when you go fishing in the ocean. You use a fish!
At one point, I even got brave enough to bait my own hook! It was odd touching the raw fish but I much preferred it to using a worm. Within the first five minutes I caught the one and only catch of the day! I don't have a picture of it on my camera; the picture is on McKell's camera and we haven't exchanged pictures yet, but trust me. It happened. It was small and orange/salmon colored and it was sharp! I touched it and stabbed my hand. It was a pretty ugly fish but it was an exciting moment for me!
We took the boat out farther but the swells were just too much for good fishing so we headed back to the harbor to fish in calmer water without any success. It sure was a fun experience, though. Keith was so good and patient with all of us. We learned that when Keith says "Are you hanging on?" he really means it. It isn't just an expression; it's a real warning. There were a couple of times that he asked and we were like "Yeah. Sure." And he took off and we all got rocked! (but not off the boat which is good because we weren't wearing life jackets)
We took the boat out farther but the swells were just too much for good fishing so we headed back to the harbor to fish in calmer water without any success. It sure was a fun experience, though. Keith was so good and patient with all of us. We learned that when Keith says "Are you hanging on?" he really means it. It isn't just an expression; it's a real warning. There were a couple of times that he asked and we were like "Yeah. Sure." And he took off and we all got rocked! (but not off the boat which is good because we weren't wearing life jackets)
After I was feeling more calm on the boat
About halfway through I was feeling quite sea sick, but I dealt with it because I was having so much fun! There were a couple of times that I just wanted to up-chuck over the side of the boat but it never happened. After we got back to land my stomach eventually settled and we had a delicious lunch before heading off to town for a little shopping.
That night we had a dinner party at one of the beach houses. The girls in my program all thought it would be a great idea to go skinny dipping in the ocean in New Zealand! They all got really excited and giggly and headed to the bathroom to grab towels and strip down. I declined the invitation. (If you knew me you would know that I prefer to keep my clothes on whenever possible)
While the girls were gone, I went into the bathroom and stole their clothes. I ran up the stairs and asked the remaining host mums what I should do with them. "Hide them! Hide them!" So I did. I scattered their clothes all over the second floor. A few behind one door, some behind another. I threw a few bras and a couple pairs of pants behind a couple of chairs, etc. It didn't matter whose clothes were whose, they all got hid and they all got separated. It was great fun. The best part was when they all came back inside screaming for their clothes and I didn't get any of the blame-the host mums did! Fabulous! Absolutely fabulous!
McKenzie, Darnie, and I drove back to Hamilton for church the following day. It was weird to think that everyone back home was watching General Conference and we were participating in the normal Fast Sunday routine. New Zealanders get to watch Conference the weekend after it actually happens because of the time difference. Crazy, eh? I still haven't seen it because I was traveling with Aunt Evelyn over the weekend. I hope it was great!
FYI: the time difference has changed a couple of times during my time in New Zealand. It started out that I was one day ahead but four hours behind so if it was 2:00pm on Wednesday in Hamilton, then it was 6:00pm on Tuesday in Logan. And then everyone in Logan had daylight savings time (it's spring there so "spring forward") so the time difference turned to five hours. So if it was 2:00pm on Wednesday in Hamilton, then it was 7:00pm on Tuesday in Logan. And then I had daylight savings time in Hamilton (it's fall here so "fall back") so the time difference is now six hours. So right now it is 11:15pm on Thursday and everyone in Logan is sleeping because it's 5:15am on Thursday.
It'll be nice to get home and make phone calls whenever I want instead of having to do some math first.
That night we had a dinner party at one of the beach houses. The girls in my program all thought it would be a great idea to go skinny dipping in the ocean in New Zealand! They all got really excited and giggly and headed to the bathroom to grab towels and strip down. I declined the invitation. (If you knew me you would know that I prefer to keep my clothes on whenever possible)
While the girls were gone, I went into the bathroom and stole their clothes. I ran up the stairs and asked the remaining host mums what I should do with them. "Hide them! Hide them!" So I did. I scattered their clothes all over the second floor. A few behind one door, some behind another. I threw a few bras and a couple pairs of pants behind a couple of chairs, etc. It didn't matter whose clothes were whose, they all got hid and they all got separated. It was great fun. The best part was when they all came back inside screaming for their clothes and I didn't get any of the blame-the host mums did! Fabulous! Absolutely fabulous!
McKenzie, Darnie, and I drove back to Hamilton for church the following day. It was weird to think that everyone back home was watching General Conference and we were participating in the normal Fast Sunday routine. New Zealanders get to watch Conference the weekend after it actually happens because of the time difference. Crazy, eh? I still haven't seen it because I was traveling with Aunt Evelyn over the weekend. I hope it was great!
FYI: the time difference has changed a couple of times during my time in New Zealand. It started out that I was one day ahead but four hours behind so if it was 2:00pm on Wednesday in Hamilton, then it was 6:00pm on Tuesday in Logan. And then everyone in Logan had daylight savings time (it's spring there so "spring forward") so the time difference turned to five hours. So if it was 2:00pm on Wednesday in Hamilton, then it was 7:00pm on Tuesday in Logan. And then I had daylight savings time in Hamilton (it's fall here so "fall back") so the time difference is now six hours. So right now it is 11:15pm on Thursday and everyone in Logan is sleeping because it's 5:15am on Thursday.
It'll be nice to get home and make phone calls whenever I want instead of having to do some math first.
2 comments:
So you caught the only fish, eh? Sounds like the last trip to New Zealand. You must be the lucky one! How was Australia???
Jalayne sounds like fun! Carl Hartley emailed Michael for your contact info. I'm not going to give him anything until I talk to you. Hope you're having a blast!
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