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Monday, April 22, 2013
Vidal Wines
A great meal spent with Cheryl! For our last dinner together (just for a while) we went to Vidal Winery and had sirloin steak and Syrah. It was lovely! Dessert was beautiful as well :)
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Saturday, April 20, 2013
I Couldn't Be More Thankful
My time here in New Zealand and at Frimley School has been very possibly the best experience of my life. I am so happy I got to experience New Zealand and wouldn't have changed a thing. The last week at Frimley was great! I am so thankful to all the staff and students at Frimley for welcoming me into their school and making me feel at home when in reality I am SO far from home.
It was a busy week. We did quite a bit of science, finished up marble mazes and I got to observe some of the other teachers at Frimley teach and help out in their classrooms.
Friday was a great day. First of all, at the Friday morning assembly my cooperating teacher gave me a certificate along with two children from each class. I was shocked when I heard my name announced but I walked up and received my certificate from the principal and followed suit with the other students as I stood on stage with my award. It had to have looked pretty silly, me standing there with a bunch of students, but it meant a lot to me!
Then during morning tea, the staff enjoyed my mom's famous caramel bars as a thank you from me as the school (principal) gifted me a Frimley mug and a Jade necklace in the shape of a Maori Koru. The spiral shape represents a new silver fern leaf, and when the spiral shape is gifted to someone it's symbolism means new beginnings, harmony and growth. The people of New Zealand always wear their Koru "close to their hearts", one Frimley teacher told me. Receiving this necklace meant so much to me and I'm so happy to bring something home that will always remind me of the great memories I have of Frimley School. When I got back to my classroom after morning tea my students were excited to see the necklace and one students asked me, "Ms. Maurer, do you know why Mr. Dixon gave you that necklace?" "Why?" "Because you are special!" It was the sweetest thing and I had to try my best to keep my tears back.
Lunch time was the best lunch I've had as a teacher. The staff played against the students for the last game of Capture The Flag for the term and it was hilarious. All of the teachers dressed up as super heroes and as we walked out of the hall to take on the students we walked in style while playing Eye of the Tiger on a boom box. I could not stop laughing, the students thought it was great! We dominated Capture The Flag, even as the principal kept telling students to join. I'm pretty sure there were well over 100 students playing against maybe 15 teachers... but that didn't faze us, we made a great team! Everyone had a blast and it was a great way to spend my last lunch at Frimley.
The end of the day was a challenge. I did so well at keeping my tears back while the students all read their Merit Awards to me. "Thank you Ms. Maurer for helping us when we were sad" "To Ms. Maurer for helping me with my math" "Thank you for leading the Great White's reading group" "To Ms. Maurer for encouraging me" "Thank you Ms. Maurer for helping me when I was upset" "For being a cool teacher" "For helping us" and even "Thank you for taking the roll" :) The Merit Awards were great, thanks to Luke for helping the students with that, it means a lot! I received many other gifts from students and even one sweet girl wrote on rocks for me. They are very pretty rocks and it was so sweet of her to think of me but... not sure if they will fit in the suit case home. I'm sure one will make it home but I will probably give the rest to Cheryl for her garden, or hide them there for her to find one day! I held it together throughout the whole day until I tried to say for the last time "Good afternoon Room 15" and all the students said back to me, "Good afternoon Ms. Maurer, awww (as they saw the tears start to form in my eyes)". They started to cry, I cried, it was just a mess! I will never forget Room 15 and all of the wonderful 30 students and my great cooperating teacher Luke. It has meant so much to me to be in such a loving classroom, to receive helpful feedback and to bounce ideas off of an excellent teacher. Thank you Luke!
After school the staff had a drink to celebrate the end of term one, where I had to say goodbye to many of the teachers and staff members I have gotten to know so well during my ten weeks at Frimley. Thank you so much to all of the staff for welcoming me to Frimley, into your classrooms and inviting me to events outside of school. You are one of the funnest staffs I have ever worked with, keep up the hard work you all do! Especial thanks to Sophie for toting me all around Hawkes Bay and for including me into various activities :)
It was challenging to say goodbye but I am proud of myself for keeping it together, well at least until I got into the parking lot and Cheryl's car... the tears started flowing again!
Cheryl and I are both trying to ignore the fact that I leave here very soon because it is just too hard to talk about. Cheryl, I couldn't be more thankful for the friendship I have formed with you. You have made me feel at home here in New Zealand and I have loved hanging out with and getting to know you. I can't wait for you to visit Seattle, we will have a blast and I owe you a "showing around" because I am so thankful for all you have shown me of New Zealand and for driving me around for three months :) Thanks Cheryl, can't wait to Skype!
One last big thank you to my family, friends and David back home! Thank you so much for being patient and supportive of me as I leave the life I know in Seattle to travel about 7500 miles across the world to teach. I couldn't have done this without your support, thank you so very much! I love you all and I will see you very soon :) (Sister see you in a couple days in Aussie! Woo)
Cheers!
It was a busy week. We did quite a bit of science, finished up marble mazes and I got to observe some of the other teachers at Frimley teach and help out in their classrooms.
Friday was a great day. First of all, at the Friday morning assembly my cooperating teacher gave me a certificate along with two children from each class. I was shocked when I heard my name announced but I walked up and received my certificate from the principal and followed suit with the other students as I stood on stage with my award. It had to have looked pretty silly, me standing there with a bunch of students, but it meant a lot to me!
Then during morning tea, the staff enjoyed my mom's famous caramel bars as a thank you from me as the school (principal) gifted me a Frimley mug and a Jade necklace in the shape of a Maori Koru. The spiral shape represents a new silver fern leaf, and when the spiral shape is gifted to someone it's symbolism means new beginnings, harmony and growth. The people of New Zealand always wear their Koru "close to their hearts", one Frimley teacher told me. Receiving this necklace meant so much to me and I'm so happy to bring something home that will always remind me of the great memories I have of Frimley School. When I got back to my classroom after morning tea my students were excited to see the necklace and one students asked me, "Ms. Maurer, do you know why Mr. Dixon gave you that necklace?" "Why?" "Because you are special!" It was the sweetest thing and I had to try my best to keep my tears back.
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| Koru Jade Necklace, Certificate, Mug and Pencil! |
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| We mean business |
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| Here we come!! |
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| Room 15 kiddos! |
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| Merit awards, gifts for students and my rocks! |
It was challenging to say goodbye but I am proud of myself for keeping it together, well at least until I got into the parking lot and Cheryl's car... the tears started flowing again!
Cheryl and I are both trying to ignore the fact that I leave here very soon because it is just too hard to talk about. Cheryl, I couldn't be more thankful for the friendship I have formed with you. You have made me feel at home here in New Zealand and I have loved hanging out with and getting to know you. I can't wait for you to visit Seattle, we will have a blast and I owe you a "showing around" because I am so thankful for all you have shown me of New Zealand and for driving me around for three months :) Thanks Cheryl, can't wait to Skype!
One last big thank you to my family, friends and David back home! Thank you so much for being patient and supportive of me as I leave the life I know in Seattle to travel about 7500 miles across the world to teach. I couldn't have done this without your support, thank you so very much! I love you all and I will see you very soon :) (Sister see you in a couple days in Aussie! Woo)
Cheers!
Tea Bag Science Experiment
Great fun in Room 15! The students predicted, observed and explained (P.O.E.) this experiment.
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Friday, April 12, 2013
Nothing like DJing the School Disco!
Sophie and I were DJs for Friday night's school disco. It was a lot harder than I thought but still fun! I think I will be sticking with the teaching career however.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Five day Easter break: Rotorua and Taupo
For the five day Easter break I traveled back to Rotorua, spent two nights there and then went into Taupo for two nights. I traveled with Randee, who is a IU Hoosier, who just arrived at Frimley two weeks ago and two other girls, Tyra and Colleen, who are Hoosiers as well!
After an early morning bus ride we arrived in Rotorua and explored much of the city that I didn't see the weekend prior. We walked through a small thermal park and came across public hot water foot baths...? Not sure what they are called but it was pleasant and relaxing to soak our feet. That night the girls went to a Maori culture experience at Mitai, which I had done the weekend before, so after a relaxing dinner I spent the evening at the Polynesian Spa. At the Polynesian Spa there were six different pools, ranging in temperature. I spent the majority of my time in the second to hottest one over looking Lake Rotorua.
Day two in Rotorua was adventure day, as we called it! After a quick McDonalds breakfast we hopped on board a shuttle that took us to the Kaituna River to go white water rafting! We rafted on a level 5 out of 6 grade river and down a 7 meter (22 foot) waterfall! It was amazing! Just the four of us girls were in a raft along with Gordy, our tour guide and we were a team of champs. Our raft was the only one that didn't flip or have people fall out on our way down the large waterfall. However, our raft went completely under water and we came back up completely soaked. I loved it, and would do it again in a heart beat. After the waterfall we jumped out for a swim and then floated down the next small waterfall with nothing but what we were wearing, it was just like a natural water slide, amazing!
After getting back to town after white water rafting we only had time to grab a snicker bar and a quick beer before catching a city bus to go zorbing! Zorbing is when you squeeze into a giant inflatable ball with water inside and roll down a hill. I chose to go down the zigzag track not thinking it would be anything like it was. I was thrown all over the place and got pretty dizzy but it was a great laugh and a lot of fun!
That evening we went out to a nice dinner at the Pig and Whistle. After, we went out on the town and met some neat people from various places around the world. We got a kick out of all the 90s music playing at the Lava Bar, the Backstreet Boys even made an appearance over the speakers!
Day three started off with luging. After taking the gondola up the hill/mountain we went down various tracks on three wheeled luge carts that went really fast if you wanted them too. It was a very scenic ride down to the bottom and a peaceful ride back up in the chair lifts.
Rotorua, check! Off to Taupo.
Our first afternoon in Taupo we walked to a hot water beach and soaked in the warm water by a waterfall. On our walk there we took a few detours and ran into a place where people go bungy jumping and on giant swings across the river. We watched a few brave ones jump, maybe that will be my next adventurous activity one day... We will see!
We had a chili dinner at our hostel (Taupo Urban Retreat) and a beer. We met people from Argentina, England and the Netherlands. We chatted and played cards until bed, it was a lot of fun.
The morning of day four Tyra and Colleen headed back to Hawkes Bay and Randee and I set off to hike the Tongariro Crossing which included Mount Ngauruhoe (about 7500 feet high), better known as Mount Doom from The Lord of the Rings. Climbing Mount Doom was by far one of the hardest, if not the hardest "hike" (more like actual rock climbing) that I have ever done, not to mention we weren't harnessed and belayed to anything. The side of the mountain is all volcanic rock and very loose sand type material which made it hard to climb because you would "climb" four step and not get anywhere because you would end up sliding back down some. As we were climbing we also kept in mind that we had to make it down the mountain also, which proved to be almost more challenging than the hike up. Trying our best to not go tumbling down and to not land on our bums too many times we finally made it to the bottom safe and sound! We looked behind us and couldn't believe we actually climbed the mountain. I'm not sure what we were thinking when we set off to hike up Mount Doom but I couldn't be more proud of Randee and myself for climbing up and making our way down without needing a chopper...
Oh! And on our way down we ran into many random people from all over the world when one girl asked where we were from and I told her Seattle, she told me she was from Idaho but went to Western!!! I couldn't believe it, that has to be the most random place to run into someone that goes to the same university, crazy!
After climbing Mount Doom we continued on to climb the rest of Tongariro Crossing. We saw natural hot pools and smelled of sulphur, super smelly but beautiful! What an experience this was. We hiked a total of 25 kilometers (15.6 miles) and the vast majority of it was up hill and very steep! Lets just say, I'm very sore today and my knees are killing me! However, it was worth it. I have never seen a more beautiful place, words and pictures can't come close to explain how beautiful it was.
That night we rewarded ourself with fish and chips and a trip to the spa to soak in the hot pools. Thankfully it was a very early night for the two of us.
Easter break was a very adventurous, rewarding and beautiful five days. I love New Zealand and am so thankful for every experience I have had here. I will definitely come back here one day to at the very least visit.
I only have 22 days left here and it's bittersweet. I'm excited to see everyone at home but I'll be so sad to leave. This week I have my last observation, wish me luck!
Sending love back home, missing you all!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
After an early morning bus ride we arrived in Rotorua and explored much of the city that I didn't see the weekend prior. We walked through a small thermal park and came across public hot water foot baths...? Not sure what they are called but it was pleasant and relaxing to soak our feet. That night the girls went to a Maori culture experience at Mitai, which I had done the weekend before, so after a relaxing dinner I spent the evening at the Polynesian Spa. At the Polynesian Spa there were six different pools, ranging in temperature. I spent the majority of my time in the second to hottest one over looking Lake Rotorua.
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| Boiling Mud |
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| Polynesian Spa |
After getting back to town after white water rafting we only had time to grab a snicker bar and a quick beer before catching a city bus to go zorbing! Zorbing is when you squeeze into a giant inflatable ball with water inside and roll down a hill. I chose to go down the zigzag track not thinking it would be anything like it was. I was thrown all over the place and got pretty dizzy but it was a great laugh and a lot of fun!
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| Inside the Zorb - super dizzy in this pic :) |
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| Not me, but this is zorbing! |
Day three started off with luging. After taking the gondola up the hill/mountain we went down various tracks on three wheeled luge carts that went really fast if you wanted them too. It was a very scenic ride down to the bottom and a peaceful ride back up in the chair lifts.
 |
| Safety First! Luge |
Rotorua, check! Off to Taupo.
Our first afternoon in Taupo we walked to a hot water beach and soaked in the warm water by a waterfall. On our walk there we took a few detours and ran into a place where people go bungy jumping and on giant swings across the river. We watched a few brave ones jump, maybe that will be my next adventurous activity one day... We will see!
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| Hot water beach |
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| Taupo Urban Retreat - 16 person room, great hostel! |
Oh! And on our way down we ran into many random people from all over the world when one girl asked where we were from and I told her Seattle, she told me she was from Idaho but went to Western!!! I couldn't believe it, that has to be the most random place to run into someone that goes to the same university, crazy!
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| Good morning Tongariro Crossing |
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| Mount Ngauruhoe - I climbed that... |
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| Panorama View - Doesn't come close to what it actually looked like but that's an idea! Ignore random man who happened to be from Evergreen State College in Olympia... weird! |
That night we rewarded ourself with fish and chips and a trip to the spa to soak in the hot pools. Thankfully it was a very early night for the two of us.
Easter break was a very adventurous, rewarding and beautiful five days. I love New Zealand and am so thankful for every experience I have had here. I will definitely come back here one day to at the very least visit.
I only have 22 days left here and it's bittersweet. I'm excited to see everyone at home but I'll be so sad to leave. This week I have my last observation, wish me luck!
Sending love back home, missing you all!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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