Day 4- Long Bay Beach Trip

Today was one of the most relaxing days ever! We got up early and headed to Long Bay beach, which is about a half an hour up the north island, on the east side. It was beautiful! Nice sandy beach, blue green water, and the sun even came out for part of the day! The waves were gentler there than they usually are in Connecticut, but a few were great for bodysurfing. Kids were also playing soccer, volleyball, and passing around rugby balls and footballs. We also had a barbeque choice of either chicken patty, veggie patty, or hamburger. They use pre-cooked frozen hamburgers that you only have to throw on the grill for a minute to get it warmed up. Not as good as home! They also had potato salad and coleslaw. Then, they had sausages and bread, which is what they eat in place of hot dogs and buns. I didn’t have a sausage, but maybe another day I’ll try that. They also had a cooler full of “freezies,” which are those kool-aid tubes that you can freeze. They never supply scissors so we’re always biting off the tops! Swimming in the water today was SO wonderful, warmer than Connecticut water but cooler than Florida water, it was perfect. There were also cliffs to either side of the beach as well as islands off in the distance. Beautiful! I also tried L&P today, which is a famous New Zealand drink, called Lemon & Paeroa, which is like lemonade, sugar, and carbonated water. It was very good, they should think about selling it in the United States.

I got SO sunburned, even though I put sunscreen on at least my face. I also got to pick up a few neat shells that we don’t have in Connecticut. Going to the beach today brought back a very strong urge to figure out the scuba club (first meeting is a week from today) so I can start diving!

Later on today I did a load of laundry- 2$ for the wash and 2$ for the dryer! So expensive! And my clothes weren’t even all the way dry! I have some semi-dry clothes hanging in my closet.

New thoughts for today:

I’ve got to try wheat-a-bix, which is a granola bar shaped cluster of flake cereal that you set into a teeny bit of milk and it kind of dissolves.

I feel like I’m starting to talk like a Kiwi… especially when I talk to Kiwi’s. Not a bad thing, they sound more proper to me, possibly because they sound more
British. However, when I talk to non-kiwis I feel myself talking normally again.

I got asked by a Kiwi about UConn basketball! He was rooting for Kemba Walker as well! Go huskies!

You get on the bus on the left side, not the right, because that’s where the driver is. Makes sense, as they drive on the left. They also pass on the right side.

Auckland is beautiful when you look at it from the water-side.

A ton of US movies and shows are super popular here, like Black Swan, The King’s Speech, Dexter and Family Guy. There’s a New Zealand movie “Boy” that just came out that I’m going to have to download and watch. For more info about that, click here: http://www.boythemovie.co.nz/

I can download things “legally” because the residence halls all have connected internet, so file sharing is possible and highly encouraged.

Honestly, it doesn’t feel like I’m all that far from home because I’m so connected and things are different but not too different.

Also, I've added a few photos from the scavenger hunt under the post below, let me know if you want to see videos!