Maura's Adventures with Kiwis!

First week of classes is done! And it was a breeze….except for Spanish 200 that is! On the first day my professor learned that I was from New York, and subsequently has been able to remember my (and mostly only my) name. This means I get called on 9237892357 more times than anyone else! I have two American professors, and am always amused by their generalizations and explanations of “the states” to the Kiwi class. Case in point, my Anthro lecturer pointed out his Patagonia fleece vest as all the rage in America, as is fly-fishing in the Tennessee River.

On Wednesday I only had one early morning class, so some friends and I headed out to Waiheke Island, about a half hour ferry ride from downtown Auckland. We couldn’t have asked for better weather and were so excited because we had heard you could rent bicycles to ride around. We found the rental place immediately after disembarking, and were informed that the beach we wanted to go to (rated the 9th best in the world by National Geographic) would be about a 40 minute ride. That was at 12pm. Needless to say, we made it to the beach around 6:30. Seems our guide forgot to mention the hills, the highway and the heat factors! Or perhaps he was using Lance Armstrong as a parameter for time. We ended up stopping at two other beaches along the way for a break. They were gorgeous and I was able to go in for a long swim at Palm Beach. The water was completely clear and warm(ish). We had a great time despite the difficult ride, and after finally arriving at the last beach we figured we could just hop on the bus back (somehow biking back was just out of the question). Who knew bikes weren’t allowed on the bus????!! So out came the ten-pound lip as we begged and pleaded the bus driver to take pity on our poor tired clueless American selves. He caved and was an absolute savior driving us back to the rental place, where we ditched the bike and then ran to catch the ferry with exactly two minutes to spare. It was a memorable day.

This weekend I am off to the Ranges for an orientation weekend with the Tramping (Hiking) Club, of which I am a proud new member. The club has their own hut and I hear its good fun!