I don't have too much to share about this week so far. I am starting to feel the workload of some of my classes. One of my classes, Maori Health Issues and Opportunities, is giving me somewhat of a challenge. The class has all kinds of Maori terms, concepts, history, and ideas that are all new to me. Some of the material is expected to be common knowledge among New Zealanders. At times I am confused, possibly embarrass myself, but I ask and catch up on what I am missing out. The class is all essays, which makes me really uneasy.
I am hoping all will be well with plenty of visits to the instructor's office. I do, however, find it very interesting despite the challenge. I am learning about the health issues of the minority and how to address them. This will be very useful for my degree in Health-Promotion Wellness. New cultures and new ideas in the class excite me, just not so much the workload.
The Mid-Semester break is coming up soon around April 12th! I am getting very excited for that. I would love to go to Fiji, Cook Islands, or another tropical Pacific Island for almost a week, and then fly to Auckland and explore as much as the north island as I possibly can. Auckland will definitely happen, it is just Fiji I am still working out. I don't know when or if I ever will be this far away from home again so I definitely want to take full advantage of it.
Tonight I found my way to a recreation center a short bus ride away from the University and joined a Men's Volleyball League. I am excited and slightly nervous at the same time. I have never played competitive volleyball before and I am not very familiar with the positions. I just smiled and nodded, pretending to know what was going on. It seemed to work perfectly haha! I couldn't understand what must people were trying to tell me because of the mumbling and dialect differences. Hopefully next week I will make my way to a team! It will help keep my active in a social environment. I am so excited.
Lastly, I have to briefly mention my trip to Taylor's Mistake two and a half weeks ago. I became busy, forgot, and need to have some sort of pictures on this blog! Taylor's Mistake is about an hour bus ride away from the University to Sumner Beach. From there you have to hike a ways up a very steep incline. For those not use to hiking, this will be quite the treck. Several of us were quite sore after, but it was so worth it. We also were kind of lost getting there, but that makes it all the more fun. Some of the common trails were closed down. I would just recommend looking firstor having someone who knows where they are going.
When we got there it was so rewarding. It was a nice sunny day and the water was the deepest blue. The ocean was blue like wine is red; so rich and bold in color. The air was slightly breezy and not too warm. The ocean laid flat as glass. It is really some place you should see while here. Highly recommend it. Enjoy!
Take Care
-Scott
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