Forest & Rangitoto

This morning started out rainy and cold and I almost made the group late because I forgot my raincoat. On any other day this would have been perfectly fine but we had a public bus to catch and we had no idea where we were going. I was very excited for hiking because I love nature and blah blah blah but I think I would have enjoyed the whole experience a lot more if we would have had a set trail. We were going back and forth and turning around right in the middle of trails with no set direction. But otherwise, the forest was beautiful! A much needed escape from the smell of sulfurous rotten eggs. Besides all contact with the buses (many minutes waiting on the sides of the roads in the rain) the rest of the day got so much better. I feel like my whole trip to New Zealand was complete when we were able to go meet the Rangitoto College students. The whole set up they had for us was so inviting and they all were so excited  to see us. I love that they had teenagers perform their native Haka for us because it made it feel so much more like us! Their Maori group was a little but segregated from the rest of the group which makes me think that while they are being welcomed into New Zealand with recognition and preserving their land, they are still outsiders in their own country. Even with all of that, it was an excellent party. All the foods and treats were made by the students and the whole room was decorated. You could tell how much effort they put into all of it and trying to please us.I don't think any of us has experienced this from foreigners before, but it was good for us to see this other side. I would love to come and house with any one of these students because they all were wonderful and have a good name to their school and country.

Our day started out a little iffy in the freezing cold and rainy forest. It wasn't even hiking that was bad but the bus stops in the cold that got to everyone. Almost our whole day consisted of travel though beyond the forest and ended with our stop in Auckland for Rangitoto. Probably one of my favorite parts of the whole trip was going to their school. They do things so differently but think nothing of it. It was just great overall to meet these people that we had been talking to in person and finally be able to see them.