Kia Ora! .. more orientation..

Today I woke up at 5:30 and watched the sunrise. I saw something run by in the distance, which very well could have been a possum. I also came across a bird (later identified as a magpie) that had the most interesting song! We did more orientation today... including driving to the town of Thames! There we did a 200m swim test, and basically raided the local public swimming pool.

Speaking of locals, everyone is so nice! Some of the people at the pool were asking us where we were from. Then helped us along by yelling, "stroke! stroke! stroke!" They've got an interesting sense of humor.. mostly dry!

We did an hour of shopping too. I bought more adequate hiking boots for our hike this weekend. I also bought a floppy white hat (kids sized). The suncreen here is so expensive! I learned that the UV index is so extreme here because of the lack of pollution. Isn't that ironic? The stores around here close around five too!! Crazy!!

The garden here is so cute! We spend around two hours a week working on it. Currently, there is an excess of zucchini, so maybe I'll make chocolate zucchini cake (thanks Isaac!) They have a bunch of fruit trees! plum, passion fruit, olive, banana, guava...

Dinner was a delicious combination of vegetable or meat quiche, grilled zucchini, potatoes... and for dessert, fresh fruit and ice cream! I swear, everything tastes and smells better in New Zealand!

After dinner, my friends Alexa, Steph, Elise and I went for a bike ride down the road. Every time we go on a bike ride, we are required to wear an orange vest and a helmet. See photo for an accurate visual :) We rode down to a large oyster catcher statue and a playground.