Picture Delay

We finally were able to have our family photo at Anne and Alister's Major Party. They were promoted from Captain to Major. Whoo hoo!

This was on the last Sunday. Alison and I had breakfast in our favourite cafe.

Receivers in the Northlands Mall.

Ron and Ruth were a couple we love! Ruth greeted us from our very first day in this Church.

The Christmas Parade in Christchurch.

Craft night with Anne. We were filling, counting, and wrapping gifts of lollies.

Mainly Music Sunday. This was a kids service. The Brass Band played, but a kid (the one in the red shirt) was conducting.

Coca Cola Christmas in the Park.

Making Pumpkin Pie. So Alister's face shows the NZ feeling of having pumpkin as a dessert. They find it appalling.

Our end result. It was okay, but it didn't look like normal pumpkin pie.

We made Anne and Alister try it. They were being cheeky in this photo, pretending it poisoned them. They ate it though.

Decorating.

Goodbye New Zealand

Okay, so it has been a long time since I have updated, but I don't know how much I am going to update anymore. I am home now (as of 23 December). So, now I will post from the last time I posted till the 23rd, but I will combine everything instead of doing day by day.

Work was getting harder and harder. The kids were getting really noisy and rowdy as it was getting to the end of the year. Most of the primary schools got out early, and I worked straight through the 23, so right before Christmas. I was desperately trying to get stuff taken care of for some of the kids (profile books), since I won't be there next year. We had a couple work meetings, that actually didn't apply to me, but I still went.

On the second to last day of work, there was a party for all the kids. Several kids were recognised since they won't be returning when the preschool opens. Then I was recognised. I received a gift from the staff, which was really special. On the last day, I got so many hugs from the kids. A mum told me that when her son woke up, he was sad and said that it was my last day. Kids are so stinkin cute! It was really hard saying goodbye to so many people.

My allergies were HORRIBLE! It would be bad for so many days, and then the rain would relieve it for a bit. Ah!

So, one of the issues I have not really discussed, but hinted to was the discussion I had with my boss a while back. So, (if you happen to remember) I mentioned in my blog that there were days I didn't want to talk about. So this is the reason: I wanted to come back to New Zealand to teach preschool. I decided to talk to my boss about staying an extra 6 months with them. She was really excited and was working on how to extend my visa. I won't go into detail about what happened, but basically (due to NZ laws), they are not allowed to hire me back, and they actually cannot get a visa for me. They were very willing, but the way the laws are, they would get in trouble. So then I was trying to figure out what to do. I started looking around at different preschools and applied to several. There were two that had me look at the preschool, but I didn't have an interview as they were not working on interviews at that time. Looking at the schools happened the very last week of being in NZ. In other words, I don't think my chances are very good at being hired, since I don't have a visa and I will be in the States when they are going to be doing the interviewing.

So then I had to make a decision. Should I stay in the States and look for a job like I originally planned, or should I apply for another visa and see if I could get work. I didn't end up making any decisions, but decided to wait it out until after the holidays to decide what to do.

As for Alison, she randomly got a good job offer and will be going home and returning to NZ in January. A guy from Church asked Anne if we would be interested in the job. I thought my job would work out at that time. Alison applied, got an interview, and received the job all in just over a week.

Another thing I want to talk about is Church. Things had been really crazy in these couple weeks. There were lots of different services and activities we were involved in. One thing we did was what they call 7-up. It is a Friday night program they do for kids. I guess we were more there for control and interaction. Alison and I participated in carolling. Some of the members of the band (about 4 or 5) would play in a mall and they needed "receivers" to collect money. I was a "receiver". We had a guy ask us if he could sing with us. He sounded good, but he was extremely LOUD! The songsters went to a retirement home to sing some songs. One of the biggest things I worked on was the Christmas Musical. It was so much fun! Everyone seemed to enjoy it, and everyone sounded great. We were all a little nervous when the practise was...less than wonderful.

Anyway, the hardest thing was leaving that Church. We had so many people go up to us. We received several cards and people came up to us to say how well we fit and have added to the Church. They were so supportive and so many people asked me questions about what was happening with me and telling me how much they hoped I would be able to come back. A couple people would say I should just come back in faith that I would get a job. Some people said confidently, "We WILL see you again." It was so difficult to say goodbye. I love them all and they have added so much joy to my life. It is hard to find that relationship with a Church...

Alison left a day before me. It was a quiet ride to the airport, and a quiet ride back. There were sighs from Anne saying we were missing a person after Alison left. The day before, we played games, ate our favourite meal Anne makes and one of our favourite desserts. There was lots of laughter. Chocolate was in the mix, and we even had a late night outing which involved looking at Christmas lights at registered homes.

On the day I left, it made me feel sick. I saw Anne's red eyes and Alister hugged me so tight. I wanted to cry, but I didn't. I sat for a long time and finally left. I went to Auckland first. I had less than 1 1/2 to get to the international airport in Auckland. There was a free shuttle, but it took 30 minutes (they claimed it would only take 10). I had to go through customs. It was frustrating to see a NZ girl go right through without any trouble. As soon as I got through customs, I ran through security. After security, I looked up what gate I was to go to. It said, Final Boarding Call. So I ran to the gate. I made it in time, but I was really nervous. Then I had an incredibly long flight home.

So ends my New Zealand journey of 2010. It has been rough, but it has been an incredible experience. I miss it already, and all the people I have come to know!

Christmas Decorating

Putting up the Christmas decorations. This is Lynly. The tree in the background? I did that. doesn't it look amazing?

Anne and Alison. They are by the tree that Alison did.

26 November to the Present. Finally!

Friday 26 November 2010


I had a nice walk to work today. I really enjoy walking.


Today, a big event was Alison and my attempt to make pumpkin pie. People here don't understand and are actually quite appalled by the idea of making pumpkin into a pie. We wanted to educate Anne and Alister. The problem was, they don't carry pumpkin in a can here, and we hear it just isn't the same with a fresh pumpkin. We obviously had to make it out of scratch. We didn't anticipate having to make the crust out of scratch. We made the crust first. Alison was able to find canned squash, and we put all the ingredients together. It turned out to be a brown colour instead of orange (which apparently, both colours are strange to the Kiwis). We were a bit nervous about it.


Anyway, we let them cool as we got ready to go to 7-up (a kids program for Church). They were going carolling. We got to talk to several people and I met many different kids I have never seen before. There was a little boy who always wanted to sit next to me. There was another cute boy who would ask me random questions like, "Do you like Hot Chocolate?" We went to two people's houses and sang to them. There were three groups of kids and the band split up into three groups. So we sang with one group. The songs were really high, so it was interesting trying to get all the notes properly. It was also interesting trying to get the kids in order. Then we went back to the Church and looked around the Hall. The kids were fascinated with all the decorations. It was really cute. Then we went home and kind of crashed.


Saturday 27 November 2010


We got up later and ate lunch. Then Alison and I went walking. We had plans to meet up with a couple from Church to go to Coca Cola Christmas in the Park. It is a yearly event where concerts are held. We went on a bus that was PACKED. The route was different, so we got off and walked. The couple ended up not showing up, so we stayed a while, and then left. There were two parts of the concert. The first was all about Christmas songs. The second part is entertaining the younger audience. There were HEAPS of people, so we left after the first half. We had to wait a LONG time for the bus to show up. When it showed up, it smelled badly of BO. We felt sick. It took longer than normal. People were very strange on the bus. One guy bought a whole thing of beer and was wobbling down the bus. We got off and heard what sounded like a rubbish bin hitting the walkway. We realised it was fireworks. We both LOVE fireworks and were really sad we didn't know they were going off. If we had, we would have stayed longer. At least we got to see them through the houses.


Sunday 28 November 2010


Today was Mainly Music Sunday. There were kids running up and down the platform at all times. It was cute when a kid got to conduct the band. We met an American couple from Michigan. They were really sweet. They said they have been looking for a Church. When they came in, they were looking for how people welcomed them and how they fellowship with each other. Well, they have come ever since and are now both in Songsters and Brass Band. We understand their enthusiasm for being involved.


Monday 29 November 2010


Today was a hard day. Sorry, but I am not ready to talk about it yet.


Tuesday 30 November 2010


Uneventful again.


Wednesday 1 December 2010


First day of Summer! It was a pretty good day today.


Thursday 2 December 2010


So, I haven't mentioned this in my blog, but there has been a major disaster here in New Zealand. A mine in Greymouth had an explosion. Well, it actually had four explosions. 29 men were down there. One had a fiance. Another was going to be a first time dad. Another was only 17 and wasn't even supposed to work then. Because of all these explosions, there is no way any of them could have survived. So today, there was a memorial service. The entire nation recognised two minutes of silence at 2:00 pm to remember these men who died in the mine. Restaurants were silent (Alison was working). Our preschool was not completely silent, but did pretty well considering. It was a touching time.


Alison has an interview tomorrow for a company. I really hope she does well.


Friday 3 December 2010


Today was fine at work, and then I had a meeting with my boss. I am still not ready to go into detail about why, but I guess it went okay. Alison is not sure how her interview went. We are both a little confused.


Saturday 4 December 2010


I had a lot of trouble sleeping. I guess I have a lot on my mind. Anne, Alister, Alison, and I went to the French Market and looked around. There were a LOT of people there. Then Alison and I went to town and got a few things. then we went to the Gardens and enjoyed the day.


Sunday 5 December 2010


We left early. Alison and I went to a cafe and I saw one of my co-workers there. So Alison finally got to meet someone from my work. Several people from Church told me they were thinking about me. It has been a big struggle. I just feel so confused.

Today was 7-up Sunday. A guy from Tall Blacks (a New Zealand basketball team) came. He is the son of a couple from our Church. I felt like I was meeting someone famous.


After Church, there was a luncheon. Alison and I helped clean up and talk to parents and kids. We were quite the busy little bees running to and fro. We were constantly moving. Today is the Santa Parade, and the Salvation Army Brass Band was on a float (as well as some of the kids). So everyone left the Church either to help drive people to the starting point, or to get a good spot to watch the parade. All except Alison and I. We were finishing up the dishes and made sure the Church was safe. Then Anne came, and we got chairs and picked out a spot to watch the parade. The parade was kind of like the Rose Parade with all the floats and advertisements. There were several bands and cultural floats. The Band was toward the end and went by way too quickly. It was fun to see everything and experience a New Zealand Christmas event. We went back to the Church after it was over and helped set up a Manger Scene. Then we went back home around 4:00 pm. It had been a long, but good day.

Monday 6 December 2010

It was supposed to be 17 degrees, but ended up being over 30. So it was ridiculously hot! We were having trouble being outside. Then, all of a sudden, it got really cold. It happened within an hour. It was crazy. We had a meeting after work, which ended up being longer than normal. So I was really tired.

I came home to an empty house. Anne and Alister were away, and Alison went on a trip to Nelson. She will be gone a couple days.

Tuesday 7 December 2010

It was raining, but I still walked to work. The problem was, my umbrella is completely warped. At one point, the wind blew really hard and turned it inside out. It went back to the right place, but the little metal parts completely came undone. I thought I could figure out a way to put it together, but it is toast. I had to take care of a really sick child. She was wailing and was holding her head and shaking. She eventually calmed down and went to sleep by the time her mother got there.

I got home to an empty house again. I am kind of feeling lonely! I got a lot done (particularly on my blogging).

Wednesday 8 December 2010

Hurray! I am finally caught up! Today was fine. I had to deal with a big injury today, and there was a lot of screaming from a particular child, but I dealt with it.

Now, I am sitting and catching up with my blog. Then I will go to Songsters and have the big practise. That is about it. I am so relieved!

10 November to 25 November

So, now I am finally done with the Australia, Samoa, Fiji trip. Now I have to update what I have been doing this past month. I will try to go quickly.


Wednesday 10 November 2010


I went to work. Yes, the day after our trip. It was not an easy day. I got lots of hugs from work and many kids were asking where I was and telling me I was gone a really long time. It made me feel special. Walking home, a guy on a bike was asking if I would be interested in going to Church. I said I go to Church. He asked if I was a Christian, and I said yes. He continued trying to talk to me, but I couldn't understand him well.


So both Anne and Alison are sick. They both were resting a lot. I went to Songsters and got to see a lot of people from Church. It was so nice to talk to them. The Songsters director asked if I would sing a solo for the Christmas Musical we are working on. I hadn't heard the song, but said I would listen to it and let her know. I am not used to singing solos. I usually just sing the harmony, so I hope it will be okay for me.


When Alister got home (after brass band), he said, "Ah, my three girls." It made Alison and I really happy. We are so happy to be home and back with our family.


Thursday 11 November 2010


I was dead tired. Work was slow. That's about it.


Friday 12 November 2010



Happy Canterbury Day! Each city has a day to celebrate. This is a nice holiday. A day to catch up on sleep. Anne and Alison were still really sick, so I walked into town and spent time in the Gardens and talked to Mom. The Gardens are in bloom. The roses are beautiful! I love this place! It has been too long!


Saturday 13 November 2010


I got up late again. Alison and I played constructionary. It was hilarious. We kind of made up our own rules. Later, I went to one of my co-worker's house for a party. A few girls showed up and we just ate and talked. One of the ladies brought...guacamole! It was wonderful!


Sunday 14 November 2010


It has been really hot, so I thought I could wear a skirt...NOPE! Cold day today. Figures. We got to talk to so many people. It was really nice. We really missed going to Church..Our Church. Anne and Alister said that people have been asking when we are going to come back. Some people thought we just went back to America. For Songsters, everyone moved into two rows instead of three. The thing was, I was left out. No one was moving for me to fit in, so I thought I was just going to have to be in my own row when the director finally motioned for them to move over. How nice. Anyway, as soon as the service ended, the guy behind us tapped Alison and started talking to her. Then he started talking to me, telling me I am a thinker and I need to wait on the Lord or listen on the Lord. He kept going on and on and asking me questions like randomly opening the Bible and words jumping out at me. He said he was Pentecostal. Oh, I know. I have had a lot of experiences with this. I talked to him a while and told him what I believe, and he eventually left.


After talking to several more people, Alison and I left to get something to eat. Alister had to stay for a concert. Anne was at home, sick. She was feeling better later that night. Their youngest son came, so we got to meet him. He is going to a wedding, and dropped by here for a couple days.

Monday 15 November 2010

Work was good. I got to see a few more children I haven't seen yet since the trip. I love these kids!

Tuesday 16 November 2010

It was REALLY hard to get up today. One kid really spazzed out and was trying to beat me up. I had to hold this kid down to keep from hurting me or himself. It was not easy.

Alison helped Anne decorate the Church. The Hall has been decorated for Christmastime. Alison is completely unmotivated to work, but has said that she will work a couple days a week for them.

Wednesday 17 November 2010

I woke up and felt miserable. I steadily declined throughout the day. I stayed at work, and even got a major compliment from my boss who saw me working with a couple girls.

I went to songsters and sang, but continued to feel sick. I even stayed late to help decorate the Hall. It looks really good. I decorated two trees. I went to bed feeling achy.

Thursday 18 November 2010

I felt better, but not the best. Sorry, not much to say.

Friday 19 November 2010

Yesterday, one of my bosses made bread with the kids. Today, one of my co-workers was serving it to them and told me to try it. I got really nervous and licked it. It was SUPER salty. Yup. She mixed up the sugar with the salt. So it isn't just just me! I had to laugh. Several of my co-workers tried it. One did it unsuspectingly, and she ran to get a drink of water. It was so funny! I was so glad it was Friday. I went to bed really early.

Saturday 20 November 2010

It has now been 10 months that I have been in New Zealand! Today wasn't a good day. Well, it wasn't terrible, but I started feeling sick again. I slept a lot and lazed around.

Sunday 21 November 2010

It was another cold Sunday. I was feeling much better. Not 100%, but not too bad. One of the ladies at the Church called us her granddaughters. We talked to several people. Many people started asking us about leaving. Each time we talked to someone, we started feeling sadder and sadder. We realise how short of a time we have left.

Monday 22 November 2010

Today was a pretty typical work day. Once, I pretended to have a car drive on a kid's shoulders or something. He was smiling, then said, "No Mandy. I don't like it. Look at my face. I am not happy." I almost burst into laughter. Wow, this kid must really listen to me. He did all the steps that I do when someone hurts another child. Tell the kid what is wrong. Look at the face...It was a great moment.

After work, we had a meeting. After the meeting, I went to Church. There was a ladies night, so Alison and I helped Anne do what we could to set up. Then we had a devotion and I made a card and ornaments. Then I looked at the Christmas room and talked to several people. It was a nice night.

Tuesday 23 November 2010

Not much excitement here.

Wednesday 24 November 2010

Work was fine. In Songsters, I decided to sing the solo. It was funny, because as I was singing it, the Songster's director said, "Wow, you can hear the Canadian accent can't you?" I told Alister and he said maybe the mixing of the American and the New Zealand accent comes out Canadian.

Thursday 25 November 2010

Happy Thanksgiving! "Thanksgiving is a day to celebrate food by eating as much of it as possible." I love Garfield. My boss threw her arms around me asking if you give hugs for
Thanksgiving. I got several "Happy Thanksgivings." It was sweet. After work, we had a Christmas party, but it was also a party to honour me for Thanksgiving. It was a nice day to hang out with the people I work with and their spouses.

Going Home

Monday 8 November 2010

The air conditioning is so cold! For two nights we haven't slept well because of it. We turned the temperature up, but it still continued to blast. You would think from 16 degrees to 25 degrees would make a difference! I am talking Celsius by the way.

Also, there was a major fight going on in the night. A lady was screaming "HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT TO ME!" over and over. A guy said, "Hey, we are trying to sleep here!" Someone later said, "You have to leave." We don't know what came of it. It went on for a really long time.

We got ready and packed. We went to breakfast, and I had my fourth cup of tea in a row...and my last...hopefully. I finished my juice and poured water in my drink bottle. We weren't sure about the water here, so we bought a lot of water. The problem was, we bought too much. It wouldn't have been a problem if we could board the plane with it. Because it was expensive, we didn't want to waste it. So, we would have to drink it before we went through security. We went in the taxi cab and went to the airport. The taxi driver tried to make us pay more, but we said we were told it only cost $10. He was highly upset, but said he had to accept it. He better. We were told it would only cost $10 and he was making us pay $12. I know it is only $2, but it makes me mad.

We had to wait to check in. While we waited, the Fijian Police Academy came in and played. It was cool to see the Police Academy in two different countries. We finally were able to check in. I had to down 500 mL of water before security. They saw me and laughed. I have had so much liquid today. Probably 1.5 Litres in an hour or two. It actually made me feel sick. We went through and I immediately proceeded to the bathroom. I had to go at least 9 times before boarding the plane. The weather was bad. It was raining a lot, and they kept delaying the flight, because they couldn't refuel. It was really irritating. Our flight was delayed over an hour.

Our flight was very full. Most of the passengers were children. So it was very noisy. My chair was in constant motion as it was being kicked (kind of like many other flights I have endured thus far in the trip). Babies were constantly crying or hacking up a lung or two. It was gross. So...we got a hack, three kicks, crying, two people hacking, chatter, chatter, chatter, hock, kick kick, chatter, chatter, hock, hock, sneeze, chatter, crying, wailing...All 4.5 hours. But wait! We couldn't land!

The weather was so bad in Sydney that we couldn't land right away. So we did circles around the ocean for over an hour. With all the noise, lack of food or water, and the constant circling, we both starting feeling ill. I felt motion sickness and light headed. As soon as we landed, Alison and I bolted out of the plane. We got through customs first, and it was so easy and fast. Then we went to the desk for the shuttle. The girl was talking to someone else and took her time (she was talking to a staff member). When we told her we wanted the shuttle, she kind of brushed us aside and said, "Sit there. It will be a while." The guy said the flights were delayed, so the shuttle would be a while coming. We were getting nervous the hostel would close. We talked to the man, and he said "Let's hope I can call the shuttle in 20 minutes." He wouldn't call the shuttle until there was "enough" people. Planes were being diverted somewhere else, so there were no people coming. We were literally the only plane to land. Most other flights had to land in another city. We waited for a really long time, but two guys had been waiting there over an hour. They eventually left, because it was too long.

Everyone was frustrated. Alison called the hostel to tell them what was going on. We waited about 45 minutes when the guy finally called for the shuttle. He told us where to go. We left and it started pouring. Thunder, lightening...the whole works. The lightning was so frequent, it was more like a strobe light. It was very strange.

We thought we had to cross the street. Just as we did, we realised we needed to go back. Someone was trying to talk to us, asking what we needed. We said we needed to cross the street to gate 32. He kept saying something, but he was wasting our time and getting us wet. We got the shuttle, but we had to switch shuttles in the Domestic Airport. We waited a really long time before the driver left. As we approached our hostel, there were two guys standing in front, in their underwear. The literally lied down in the street on their stomach, and splashed around in the water with their hands as if they were swimming. LOVELY!

We quickly went passed and rang the bell for the reception. The girl couldn't find us on her list. Figures. They were doing construction on the building, so they only had 2 bathrooms in the entire building. How efficient. We said we were supposed to get towels and a free Internet code. She seemed surprised we would want them. We just went straight to bed. We were ready for this day to be over.

Tuesday 9 November 2010

It wasn't raining, amazingly enough, so we got out and went into the city. We went straight to the Opera House. We ate lunch, looked around, and went to the airport. The flight was delayed an hour due to all the problems yesterday's weather caused. We emailed Anne and Alister not to wait up for us. They were planning on picking us up at the airport when we arrived. We were going to come in late, but the delay would make us later.

We started checking in. The gate must have just opened. We were the only ones in line. The guy was in training, I think. He had a lady come over to help him. The lady told us we needed proof of a ticket to leave New Zealand. Neither one of us had our ticket to leave New Zealand. They said we could get it printed off at the Air New Zealand counter. So we went over there, and the lady said it would cost $5 each. She could tell we were upset and said it was because everyone did it. The most we have ever paid to get a printout was 50 cents, and that was outrageous. I'm sure $5 will help the multiple printouts for people to cover the cost.

I was saying something about showing our email, and she said we had to have a hard copy. We got it and went all the way back to the other line, and there was a HUGE line. We were VERY upset by this point. After waiting a while, the lady came over and said we didn't have to wait in line. She said he would finish with the guy and work with us. The guy took FOREVER!!! It actually wouldn't have mattered if we went through the line or not, because the ladies in front of us were at the front by the time he finally got to us. We might as well have waited in line. They did apologise a lot. When we finished, he said, "Do you have different visas? Because you (pointing to Alison) needed to have a ticket home, but you (pointing to me) didn't."

Shocked and appalled silence...

I said, "You mean I didn't need to have proof of a ticket?" He realised his mistake then, because he tried to cover by saying, "You MIGHT need it in New Zealand, so to be safe..." He could sense danger as we said it cost $5 and we didn't even need it. We did not have money to spend, and we would be in the airport a while. I already exchanged all the foreign currency money I had to cover this cost. I had NOTHING. So I spent $5 I didn't need to spend. I was so mad, I could barely see. We walked to cool off. We went through security, and Alison got the explosive test and pat down. We went through and slumped in a couple of seats. We just wanted to go home.

Alison and I were separated by an aisle, so we couldn't really talk. We sat up at the first hint of a decline and waited, hoping it was the descent. Several minutes later, they announced our descent into Christchurch. I cannot even tell you our excitement. We landed and ran to go through customs, which took forever! Alister texted us and told us they would pick us up anyway, so to text him when we landed. Neither one of us had to show our $5 printout. We were a little bitter.

We finally were able to get through customs and walked quite quickly. I saw Alister first, and we started running toward him. As soon as he saw us, he rushed over and gave us big hugs. He said, "Of course we were going to pick you up." Anne was not feeling well and was in the car waiting for us. We gave her a hug and drove home. We gave them snippets of our trip, got home, unpacked, put our clothes in piles, took showers, and went to bed after 1:30 am.
This was in a Sydney bathroom. I got a cup and was trying to clean it out in the sink.

Then I attempted to dry it in the dryer. It wasn't easy.

Our last view and picture of the Harbour Bridge.

Last view and picture of the Operah House.

Fiji

Friday 5 November 2010

We got our breakfast. It was poi, but that is what they called a piece of toast. Sneaky sneaky. We also had tea, guava, and a banana. Then we went back to the room to pack up. Our stuff just seems to grow! We checked out and sat. My legs are still splotchy, so I didn't move until the taxi arrived. He was an hour early. We told him we only had $50 tala. He said that was fine. He was friendly and talkative, but there is only so much you can say on an hour drive. I saw several people carrying baskets on their hip, or a basket on either side of a stick and carried by the shoulders. We got to the airport, and the taxi driver demanded $55. We finally just gave it to him. We also found out that we had a $40 Tala exit fee we didn't know about. We paid AUD instead. In security, both my bags had to be searched.

In the air conditioned and dry airport, my legs went back to normal. Hallelujah! Our flight was delayed quite a bit. We went on the plane and immediately went to the next day. Fiji, here we come!

Saturday 6 November 2010

We got to eat food on this plane! It was the only flight that had free food on. We actually got lunch! None of the other flights provided so much as a snack. We went through customs and asked about our hostel (it had free pick-up). We asked around and they told us to wait for them. They didn't show up, so I tried calling. Nothing worked, so I asked again, and they told us to take a taxi. We did, but fortunately, the hostel reimbursed us. There was another lady in our taxi who told the driver to find a hostel that was cheap and by the bus stop. She had no idea what the name of the hostel was or exactly where it was. I thought that was interesting. The driver did think of a place, and it happened to be the hostel she was thinking of.

Our hostel was the nicest room of our entire trip! It was amazing and had air conditioning! We were so happy. We decided to walk into town. We walked for a really long time, and couldn't find town. It was starting to get dark, and I was getting attacked by mosquitoes, so we just went back to the hostel. Even though we were disappointed, the walk was really nice. Although, the clouds were looking ominous. We got to see an amazing sunset, though. There were so many dogs at the resort. Samoan dogs would leave you alone. These dogs came up to you. I did not care for it.

Sunday 7 November 2010

The alarm went off WAY too early. The town closes at 12:00 on Sundays, so we needed to go into town early. We got a continental breakfast (toast and tea) and took a taxi into town. We looked around Nadi. The biggest tourist attraction is the Buddhist Temple and shopping. It didn't take long to complete the town. We went to a market area, but the guys were jerks.

We went back to the hostel and went on the hammock and relaxed for a while. It took me a good 5 minutes to get on the stupid thing. It was high, and I was falling over a lot. It was quite windy. The ocean was beautiful and peaceful. I stayed there a while, but started getting really hot. So I went under the hut. A couple guys arrived and were setting up for a concert. I did not care for the band. I thought the music was annoying, and the singer was...less than perfect. It wasn't like it was local music either, so it wasn't a cultural experience.

While we were reading, a guy was calling out to us. We just ignored him, but he came up to us anyway. He was kind of disturbing us, and we really didn't want him there. He went to his buddies and said, "Don't worry, I will come back to talk to you girls." He left, and we had no intention of talking to him again. We went to another location, and he came back over to us again! He made us really uncomfortable, but he didn't stay long. He, again, said he would come back. So, this time, we got up and left. He creeped us out.

We took pictures of the sunset. It was amazing! I know these pictures I took will make you think Fiji is so much prettier than Samoa, but it wasn't. Samoa was my favourite of the two. The water was a lot prettier. Fiji definitely had an amazing sunset, but we couldn't see the sunset in Fiji. We were not facing West. Fiji is beautiful, but Samoa is way prettier.

These are all pictures of our first sunset.

Attempting to go into Nadi. On the left are the ominous clouds. Toward the right (even more than the pictures shows), was a cloudless blue sky.

There were chickens and dogs everywhere, and people had their washing out.

The Buddhist Temple,

Those dogs! The one closest here had scary eyes and would always come over to us. I tripped over him several times.

Also at our hostel.

On leaving, we saw the Fijian Police Academy play.

Another sunset in Fiji.

Proof of some of the tea I got. If you put enough sugar in it, it doesn't taste as revolting. I used every bit of my jam and butter. I was so hungry. In case any of you are worried about my Fiji bottle, we bought juice. I put some in there.

Last day in Fiji.