AUSTRALIA!!!

Saying goodbye to my class, school, and home stay family was absolutely awful. I promised them I would be back because I have still yet to see the South Island.

Australia was phenomenal! What a perfect graduation present to myself! Justine and I traveled together to Sydney and stayed at Chiliblue Backpackers for four days. Our hostel was not in the best of shape and kinda dirty but the people were so nice and the event coordinator, Simon, really took care of us. One night he even got us hooked up with taking Salsa dance lessons from Brazilian instructors. It was great!! We went to Bondi Beach for two days to lay in the sun and play in the waves. We also took a ferry out to Manly Beach where I met someone who attempted to teach me how to surf. After a few battle wounds, I decided I had enough for one day. I will hands down say that the beaches in Sydney by far beat any other beaches I’ve ever seen. They are huge, the water is bright blue, great waves, soft soft soft sand, and stunning views. My favorite day was when we climbed the Harbour Bridge which is the world’s largest single arch bridge. It is 450 feet tall and we got the climb to the very top. http://www.bridgeclimb.com.au/ On the catwalk when I looked down and saw heaps of traffic flying by made me a bit queasy but the rest of the climb was a perfect adrenaline rush. The view was spectacular, and it gets better- Oprah was in town filming a show outside of the Opera House that very afternoon and we got to see Bon Jovi performing at her show, from the top of the bridge. It was unreal. We also walked around the Opera House later in the afternoon and spotted Hugh Jackman ziplining from the Opera House to Oprah’s stage. I can’t wait to watch that episode since I saw the whole set up!!! I also got my first pair of Ugg boots truly from Australia. Apparently, the Ugg brand that everyone has in the states is a knock off brand and those boots are not actually made in Australia, they are made in China. Check the tags!

I’m on my way home and taking the long way, of course, to make things as difficult as possible. I’m going from Australia, to NZ, spending the night at the airport, then headed back to Australia, to LA, to Denver. My sister and mom are going to pick me up from the airport and we’re going to have our annual girls shopping weekend, this year in Denver. I’m going to get the chance to see Pelzer in Denver as well! I’m so excited to see everyone again : )

Cheers

Bay of Islands

Talk about a fabulous last weekend in NZ!!  Abbe (a year 2 teacher at Forrest Hill) and I drove up to Bay of Islands for the weekend.  We left Saturday morning at 6 and made it their by 9.  On our way up we stopped in Kawakawa to the famous Hundertwasser toliets.  Sounds so strange-I know-but the walls were beautifully made with colorful bottles and pieces of glass and ceramic.  When we got to the Bay of Islands we took the "Excitor Jet Boat" out to the famous "Hole in the Rock" which was amazing.  The boat had 4 gigantic motors on the back and we went up to 53 knots.  It was super windy so our boat would go literally flying up in the air over the enormous ocean waves.  It was like an hour long rollercoaster ride with your stomach dropping and all!  On the way out to the Hole in the Rock we saw small islands, huge rock cliffs,  and the water literally looked like there was food coloring in it.  It was more blue than any other water I have seen in my life!  We also went out to Haruru Falls to see the waterfall and walked along the trails nearby.  Then we went to Waitangi where a lot of the history of NZ is featured and where the treaty was signed to keep alive the Maori culture forever more...?  We also took a ferry out to Russell a small, cutsey town where we walked around and did some shopping.  At night we met up with Justine and Austen who were also up there for the weekend, and we met two very friendly girls from Sweden who were staying at our hostel also. 

On our way back from the Bay of Islands we stopped in Whangarei to go shopping as well as pick up some snorkle equipment.  Our next stop was out to Goat Island to go swimming and snorkling in the ocean.  Yes, I saw the "Rainbow Fish," but he didn't share his shiny scales with me : ( 
 
Gabby, my host sister, came over to visit the other night and we put up the Christmas tree at our house. It's still a little bizarre for me to be thinking about Christmas with shorts on and the windows/doors open!  We also went out for dinner at a Tai restaurant the other night as a family because I have never been for Tai food and it is quite popular here.  I loved it!!

This week is my last week at school....I can't even bare to think about it!!  We had an earthquake drill yesterday where the kids had to get underneath the tables until the bell stopped and then we had to move to the field outside and wait with the other classes.  I can honestly say I have never done that before! My teacher was talking about the seasons in class today and she was talking about December being the start of summer and what kind of clothes you would wear from December to March.  Welllll, all I could think of was that December is winter and you wear hats and coats--hahaha somethings I might just never get used to!

My class is having a shared lunch for me tomorrow, and the teachers have planned a get together at a pub after work.  I'm excited for those things, but am completely dreading my last day.   Tomorrow is also my last day of school which means I'm graduating tomorrow-wow never thought that would happened.  And NO I'm not prepared to grow up yet! 

I'm headed to Sydney, Australia on Saturday with Justine!!

Blackwater Rafting-Waitomo Caves Style

WOW!
This was an unbelievable weekend!! Earlier last week I met up with Lucy who is a true Kiwi but knows my friend that used to work in child psych with me.  They work at childrens camps during the summer together in Iowa, and I got a chance to meet Lucy before she left in September.  It turns out that we live pretty close to each other here in NZ so I met some of her friends and we went to the beach and got ice cream last week.  I also went with her to one of her friends birthday grill outs.  The house was right on the ocean in Devonport, and we stayed outside on the front deck all night.  On our way home Lucy brought me to a look out so I could see Auckland City all lit up at night.  BEAUTIFUL!

Saturday was one of the most thrilling days of my life.  Justine and I took a bus to Waitomo Caves which is literally a town consisting of four buildings. Good thing we had plans before we got there!  We took a tour that went blackwater rafting through the caves.  After getting our wetsuits and lighted helmets on we went hiking to the caves with our tubes in hand.  We walked through the caves, floated where there was water, climbed up waterfalls in the caves, jumped backwards off small cliffs into the water, saw (and swam with) eels, and saw and learned about wetta bugs.  The caves were pitch black except for the lights on our helmets and the speckled blue lights from the glow worms on the ceiling of the caves.  The inside of the caves are made up of limestone, and the outside simply looks like a large hill with forests growing like normal.  At one point we were deeper than a 22 story building below ground.  It was freezing in the water to say the least.   http://www.waitomo.com/black-water-rafting.aspx

My family and I (Christine and Warwick) went out to a nice lunch and then drive to the west coast beach called Muriwai on Sunday.  The sands are black in color, the waves are stronger, and the coastline is much more rugged.  Christine wanted to show me the flocks of gannet birds that lived on the rock cliffs of Muriwai.  They were just at the beginning of hatching their eggs and we got to see a few babies.  Since the weather was gorgeous (about 27 degrees -hahaha) I went to the beach for the rest of the afternoon. 

This week my kids start swimming at school.  We have an outside pool and they race to put on their togs (swimsuits) for their swim lessons taught by the teachers.  We have the school holiday Christmas in the Glade show on Wednesday.  It's unbelievable (but yet a joy) how much Christmas and religion is allowed and encouraged in the public schools here.  The ladies in the office have told me that I have converted to be a true Kiwi because they notice I don't wear shoes around the school any more.  I only have two weeks left- I could cry.

Christmas parties, climbing volcanoes, and Thanksgiving

This country is incredible!

Last Saturday I went along on the Forrest Hill staff Christmas party.  Stephanie, the other American student teacher at my school also joined.  It was held at a winery out in the country and it will also be the venue for my wedding!! haha.  We had an amazing lunch and wine tasting followed by a game out in the field which resembled bocce ball.  There was a bus that took us from the school to the winery and back.  It was Stephanies birthday so her and Justine came over that night, we had champagne and went out in Takapuna.

On Sunday we went to the flea market in Takapuna and got a nice breakfast from the kiosks there.  Then we took a 20 minute ferry out to Rangitoto Island.  Rangitoto is a volcano that errupted about 600 years ago.  I have a perfect view of the island/volcano from the beach by my house and I see it every morning on our walks.  Justine (Iowa), Bridget (Indiana) and Sara (Indiana) went to hike this fabulous mountain.  On the hike we also went through caves which were made from the flow of lava years and years ago.  We were supposed to bring torches (flashlights) but missed that memo so it was extra scary since we couldn't see much!! There is no one living on the island although some people camp there for a few days at a time, and the views from the top crater look out at the entire North Shore and Auckland City.  

Last Thursday was Thanksgiving, and believe it or not it was one of the best Thanksgivings I have ever had.  In my classroom we talked about Thanksgiving and read the book I had brought for the class from home.  We also baked pumpkin bars as a class and before they ate them my students had to write what they were thankful for and read it to the class.  I also visited two other classrooms and shared with them my picture book and my usual family traditions.  After school Christine and I cooked a wonderful feast with turkey, scalloped corn (mom's recipe), potatoes, and pumpkin pie (mom's recipe).  I was a little worried about the pumpkin pie since we used fresh pumpkin instead of canned, but it was absolutely to die for.  Justine came over for our dinner, we decorated the table nicely, and even had paper turkey table settings.  It was such a treat to be able to share all about my holiday with the kiwi's here.  They were eager to learn about it and it made me that much more thankful for being here.

Coromandel and Piha

Stephanie (another student teacher at Forrest Hill from Indiana) and I rented a car and drove to the Coromandel Peninsula on Saturday.  It was gorgeous!!  The drive was extremely curvy going through the volcanic mountains but it was well worth it.  We went to a winery for lunch and then headed to Cathedral Cove.  Cathedral Cove (a large hole in a mountain along the coast) was not as cool as the hike there or the beaches we wandered to.  The views here are indescribible.  At night we went to Hot Water Beach which was also in Coromandel.  Hot Water Beach is a small beach where magma that is still underground heats up water reserves which get pushed to the surface when the tide comes in and people dig baths to sit in.  It was a neat experience but there were too many people in one small space.  http://www.mercurybay.co.nz/activities/hotwaterbeach.php

On Sunday, Justine and I went to the west coast.  I signed us up to go to Piha on a canyoning excursion. http://www.awoladventures.co.nz/canyoning/ Justine was, well, surprised with what I had instore for us.  It was a day full of abseiling/repelling down waterfalls, rock climing, jumping off cliffs, hiking, and climbing into and out of caves.  It was thrilling!! My heart was racing the entire time and I'm positive I asked our tour guide if he was joking about a thousand times.  "Are you joking? I'm not going head first and doing a handstand out of this tunnel."  "You're kidding, right?  I can't jump off of this cliff first!"

We got back late afternoon and I spent the rest of the day lounging at the beach next to my house.  : )

I need to live by the coast, it's official.

I know how to sail!!!

This week was full of studying and test taking-outside of school!  On Monday, Justine and I had a study session.  Tuesday, we took the written part of our waterwise instructor test, which I passed with flying colors.  Wednesday, I went to see my host sister in her lead role in the musical Footloose which was playing at the Pump House Theatre down the street.  I went with Justine my friend from Iowa, Lolo (my families homestay right before I got here) from Belgium, and Raiko (Lolo's friend) from Japan.  It was a fabulous show!!  Thursday night was the night of truth.  I took my practical test for waterwise and passed!! I can officially sail : ) I received a hat and I will get a certificate sent to my school soon saying that I am certified to be a Waterwise Instructor. On Thursday I also found out that I was in the Daily Iowan back in Iowa City.  A girl had emailed me a couple of weeks ago asking some questions and then there I was on November 10ths edition.  I also made it into Forrest Hill's newsletter last week saying that I was doing my student teaching here from America.  I think that means I'm famous now haha. 

I asked one of my students today to take her cap off before she sat on the mat (I'm not sure why I said cap-I never use that term) but she turned to me and went "Miss Bussewitz, we say hat here.  Do you use that word in your world?"  It was so precious!!! They really do believe that I am from a different world than they live in!!!

I head teach next week!! Wish me luck!

Waiheke Island and Devonport

I have been a busy little bee going through my Waterwise Instructor (sailing) course.  We had two classes last week, plus one on Sunday morning and now our tests are this week.  Justine (friend from Iowa) and I have had a few study sessions to get prepared for Tuesday-the written test, and Thursday-the practical test.  Wish us luck!
Last week I also went to a jewelry party with my host mum which was fun but I didn't find anything to buy : (

The weather was gorgeous this past weekend so Justine and I took advantage of it.  We went to Waiheke Island on Saturday which is about a 20 minute ferry ride away.  It is a not so heavily populated island where it is famous for its wineries and vineyards. We had no plans whatsoever and it ended up being an absolutely brilliantly laid out day.  Using a winery map that we found at the information center getting off of the ferry, we walked around the island for most of the morning.  We decided to get lunch and a wine tasting at a winery called Mudbrick.  It was on top of a hill and overlooked the ocean, seeing all the way back to mainland.  It was the most breathtaking view!  On our way up to Mudbrick a shuttle driver pulled over and requested that we call him for a ride when we were finished with our tasting.  His number was easy to remember so we ended up giving him a ring.  Good thing we did-he was a great tour guide for the rest of the afternoon!  He took us to an other winetasting of his friends, to must see picture opportunity spots, a nudest beach : /, and the gorgeous Palm Beach.  It was absolutely phenomenal. I have never been to a place with such luscious green grass, and clear blue ocean.  I wanted to capture the smells and take them home with me.  The entire day it smelled like a Yankee candle with scents of fruits, flowers, and fresh air.  When we returned to the ferry to go home we noticed everyone on one end staring at the water with their cameras out.  There were 4 wild orca whales in the harbour, and even a baby!!! It was absolutely stunning.  I have never seen anything so neat. 

After Waterwise in the morning Justine and I went to Devonport which is a wealthy supburb on the North Shore.  We rented bikes to ride for the afternoon.  We rode around town and up North Head.  North Head is a volcanic mountain that was used in World War II for the NZ army to hide in while awaiting the Japanese.  There were creepy, dark caves that we wandered through where they used to keep supplies and hid during the war. From the top you can see all of the North Shore, the Pacific Ocean, and Auckland City.  Gorgeous!!!

I'm back to school today teaching small reading groups, maths, and phonics.  We also have been working on singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star for the Christmas in the Glade show they have every year.