so i left buffalo on tuesday, feb 19, and it was snowing so we had to de-ice, but there was no delay. i got to dulles just in time, my flight started boarding as i was walking up to the gate. at lax i had longer, which was good because i had to find a different terminal and get a new boarding pass from air new zealand. i still had plenty of time though. i talked to a couple on the lax terminal shuttle with a little girl who were going to samoa, and they had a blanket over the little girl's stroller so she could sleep, which looked really funny.
the airplane for the long flight (which was actually only 12 hours, not 20 like i thought it was) was super nice, very new and quite roomy. i think it was a boeing 777-something, in case anyone cares. there were 3 seats, an aisle, 3 seats, an aisle, 3 seats. i was right over the wing, and had the window seat (i picked the "a" seat on all my flights, to ensure i got a window, but by the end i had a sore neck from looking the same way all the time. i should have put the middle flight on the other side). it seemed like the end of the wing was really high up, compared with other planes i've been on, and i remembered how michael parker told me to watch how much higher the wing is when you're in the air than on the ground.
it seemed like most of the people had boarded and no one was in either of the seats next to me, but at the very end a couple came and sat down, but they were really nice. they were coming from detroit and had missed their first flight and gotten switched, so if they hadn't i might have had all 3 seats to myself!
anyway, we got dinner (chicken, veggies, roll, salad, and orange cheesecake - all pretty mediocre, but i was starving at that point). and then i discovered that one of the movies we could watch was across the universe and was really excited, but i fell asleep pretty quickly, and slept on and off for most of the flight. i played tetris for awhile, and watched some nz tourism videos, and went to the bathroom and walked around once. i really didn't get bored at all, those personal tvs are really nice. then 2 hours before landing we got breakfast, which was a "cheese omelet" which was really more a roll of scrambled eggs, with mushrooms and some little cake things that might have been sausage or might have been potato, or might have been something else, and a blueberry muffin, and strawberry yogurt. at first i thought i didn't want the omlet, but eventually i was hungry enough, and it really wasn't bad. as breakfast was ending the sunrise became visible on the horizon, rising behind us, and it looked really cool. i took a lot of pictures, but most of them did not come out very well.
then after we landed (45 minutes earlier than scheduled) we had to wait awhile for the plane at the gate before us to leave, and finally got off. i made it through passport control fine (and got a stamp!), and went to wait for my bags at the carousel. and waited. and waited. and waited. and finally i asked an air nz lady if i should be worried if my bags weren't there yet and she said to go see baggage services. so i did and after checking the computer they told me my bags were still in la, but would be arriving at 5 or 6 am tomorrow morning, and that they would be delivered to my residence, only i did not know the address. so i got some paperwork, and went thru customs, and came out into the main part of the airport, and there a bunch of college students and a guy with a sign that said 'university of auckland' called me over, and a kid named lee who goes to the u of r who i did not know introduced himself, and i said hi to sean, whose bags were also lost. there were 2 other boys and 4 girls who i didn't really talk to, and they all left on the shuttle to their apartments (which are kinda far away from campus i guess), and the driver guy (martin, he was really nice) was like, do you mind holding the sign while we're gone, there's supposed to be one more student arriving, so i did even though i felt really silly.
but no one had come over by the time he got back. so he said he'd watch my stuff so i wandered around and called the airline and gave them the street where i'm living (martin had told me), and filled up my water, and came back and he was still waiting, and he looked at the list and was like 'it's an asian name, and i can't tell if it's male or female' and i laughed and he explained how he can usually pick out the students, because they have trolleys with lots of bags, and laptops in the front part, while people 'on holiday' have bottles of duty-free alcohol in the front. and the american students always have way more bags because i guess the rest of the world's airlines allow only 20 kg of luggage (we get about 40kg).
so finally an asian boy came over and saw the u of auckland sign and was really excited, and martin told him he was going to huia house, which is pronounced "wee-ah" martin said he is from south africa originally, and he had to ask the locals how to say it too. the kid practiced pronouncing it a bunch of times it was cute. and martin was talking to another driver guy for awhile, so i made small talk. the kid's name is 'mo' but i think he said that's his last name, and he's from hong kong. he had a lot of trouble repeating my name (bc l is a hard letter for native asian-language speakers), but he was nice.
then we went outside and martin got the minivan and the driver sits on the right side of the car! that weirds me out more than the driving on the left side. it was about a 20 km drive to the school, and martin said that should take about 25 min, but there was traffic (it was around 9 am at that point) and he said it was because that's when the schools all start so kids were driving or being driven. he said auckland has pretty bad rush hour traffic, and the only public transport is busses. he also told us that 1.3 million people live in auckland, out of a total of 4 million in all of nz, and that the city is growing really fast. (i also learned from one of the video's on the plane that auckland is second only to la in terms of urban sprawl). we saw "one tree hill" which is this hill with a monument on top (kind of the shape of the washington monument), which martin told us is sacred ground to the maoris, and up until about 10 years ago there was a lone tree at the top, but a maori guy cut it down with a chain saw about 10 years ago as some sort of protest, so then they built the monument there. he said there's a good view of the city from the top, but it's too far from the uni to walk to).
he also told us that the "winter" season means rain, but not necessarily all day, there are lots of "4 seasons in one day" days. and that the north and south islands are like different countries. the north island was created mainly by volcanoes, while the south island is from one tectonic plate being pushed on top of the other.
one of the girls from the previous load called and did not have her bag, although she had had it when they loaded them at the airport, so we took a detour to the parnell appts where the boys (all 6 of them) are all living, and sure enough sean and another kid were sitting outside with the bag, so we got it, and took it to the girl who lives in the wellesley appts. the parnell ones looked like little cabins kind of, and they are across the auckland domain (big park), which martin said is a 30 minute or more walk to campus. i didn't really see the wellesley appts.
then we dropped mo at huia house, and martin went in with him to make sure he was checked in ok, and then finally he brought me to international house. it's at the end of whitaker place, which goes down a steep hill and turns. there's a little courtyard and sort of a school-looking brick building, about 4 stories tall. we went into the office, where the man in charge gave me my key and had me sign a form, and then brought me up to my room. i'm on teh third floor, and you have to wind all around through the building to get to it. the corridor doors are locked at night, but there's a little key fob that you just tap to open them, it's really nice. my actual door has a real key though. we went past the cafeteria, which is all brightly colored and looks like a cross between a high school cafeteria and some sort of lodge, and we can just eat there whenever we want (when it's open), there's no card swiping or anything.
my room is about the size of my single in anderson, but its carpeted, and has lots of nice storage space, like the closets in sue b. there was bedding folded on my bed which the guy told me is now my property, and i am in charge of keeping clean. there is an internet port right by the desk, and i registered my computer (i think it said it's $7 a week for internet, but that's fine, i need to have it here). the bathroom is down the "hall" but the halls here have like, windows with no panes, so they are semi-outdoors. it seemed clean, and there are 2 toilets and 2 showers so i don't think too many people share it. (i hope)
it was really hot and i was pretty sweaty by then, but of course, my deodorant was in my checked bags. i made my bed, and read through all the paperwork in my folder, which has a list of all the ies kids and where they are living, orientation schedules, contact numbers etc.
martin had told me that travel insurance might reimburse me for anything i needed while my bags were gone, so i found the ies paperwork but it didn't say, so i went back down to the office to use their phone. the lady i finally got ahold of said they give up to $1000 (nz) if the bags are gone more than 8 hours, but she also said something about $100, so i dont know if that means the first 100 is my responsibility? i also called air nz, and gave them the whole address and phone number for international house, and the guy said they pay for stuff if the bags are gone more than 24 hours, which i think it will be slightly under if they arrive when they said they would.
the guy at the desk who had helped me with the phone said "is everything sweet-as?" and i was like huh? and he was like "oh sorry, everything ok?" and then i figured out what he'd said, because i remember from the last time i was here that they say "sweet as" all the time for "ok" or "cool".
i asked the people in the office (i'm not sure if they are students or adults, they all seemed to have kiwi accents) where to go to get a toothbrush and stuff, and they said just go down symonds (pronounced like simon's) st, which is the main street i'm off of, and that martin said the uni buildings are further down. so i went for a stroll (by this time it was 11-something am), and decided to find the westpac atm where i can use my bank of america card to get cash without a fee, and that was on queens street which is a couple blocks over from symonds. queens street is pretty city-ish, busy, lots of stores. i felt really icky in my comfy pants, sneakers, and big less than jake shirt, but i really don't have anything else and i won't see any of those people ever again so whatever. i found the atm, took out $160 (nz) and then walked back toward campus. i considered going in some shops to find clothes but it was too overwhelming.
i walked the length of the campus on symonds street, it's really not far at all from where i live, martin said 10-15 min walk which isn't any worse than walking to the med center from towers. symonds street is pretty busy, with traffic and people and stuff, but there are trees and it just feels bigger and more college-y than queens st did.
on the way back i stopped at the student union, and went in the bookstore and school pharmacy. supplies at the pharmacy seemed limited and i assumed was overpriced at home, so i went back toward IH to the convenience store they had told me to go to, but when i got there i discovered prices were more than at the school. i bought a bottle of water, a toothbrush, bread, and peanutbutter though. all the deodorant there was either spray or roll on, and i had seen regular dove at the school pharmacy, and i was certainly not short on time, so i went back and got that (for $8.90!) and a contact case because although i had a new set of contacts and soln with me, i had no case. i also got some eyeliner so i don't look completely disgusting when i meet all the ies kids tonight.
then i came back to IH, and here i am. it's now 2 pm, and we meet at 3:40 for our first orientation thing, so i may take a short nap.
cya
linnell
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