Hemispheres: June 2006

June 14th 2006... Brisbane to Christchurch

(The dots on the map are of UFO sightings in Australia and New Zealand... Dont laugh!)

June 15th Akaroa - June 16th Mt Cook - June 17th Queenstown -

June 18th Milford Sound - June 19th Christchurch - June 20th Hanmer Springs -

June 21st Picton - June 22nd Wellington

Me at Lake Pukaki (It is a glacial lake which gives it the distinct colour)

On the way to Milford Sound, up in the clouds!

Milford Sound

Brief Comments

So far the journey has been pretty awesome. New Zealand received a very bad snowfall on the day I got here. It was laughable compared to Canadian standards of snowfall, but it was one of their worst in 30 years. On the south island there are people still without power. They had to call in the military. There were many road closures and we had to fit chains on the tourbus at some icy points. It was beautiful to see the country blanketed with snow, but the driving was quite treacherous. On the south island there are sheep everywhere. 45 million sheep. I am currently in Wellington hanging out with my cousin. Next up is Auckland and then Fiji with some stops in between. I'll try to update as I go. Rew and James- I took some pictures of some rare shoes I came across in Christchurch, remind me and I'll send them to you. Rew, I also have a picture that I want you to show Sully. I hope to talk to everyone soon.

A Small Apology

Long time no post. I'm sorry for that. I havent forgotten about this, and I havent been uninspired. I dont have an excuse really. It's just something that's been pushed aside, but only temporarily.

Teaching

I've been teaching for about 2 weeks now at a primary school called Robertson State School. It's a primary school which goes up to grade 7. I have a very bright and intelligent grade 7 class, and a wonderful mentor teacher who gives me amazing tips and feedback. She has 19 years of experience under her belt, so I feel prety fortunate to learn from someone who knows what their doing. She puts on the act of being the "bitch" teacher. And she does it well. I've learned a lot from her about how to discipline kids.

I started off a little shaky, but I have definately felt my confidence improve by the day. I've been doing lessons on English grammar, poetry writing, and descriptive writing. Also I've been teaching the Australian Parliament and Government to them. I've been having to learn as I go. It's a lot of fun, and the kids make me laugh on a daily basis. I thoroughly enjoy working with them. Even though this does mean constant behavioural management. I've had kids leave in tears on some days, whereas on other days I get the most enthusiastic "Bye, Mr.Gandhi! See you monday!" "bye mr.Gandhi, have a good weekend". It's really really nice when you know you've made a connection with a student. I've chosen the right profession, and if you want to hear some of the funny stories from so far, I'd be glad to share them further in conversation.

Halfway point

The halfway point of my journey is soon approaching. It's flown by, and to neglect thinking about this would be missing an amazing opportunity to reflect on how I've changed as a person. This is hard to talk about too, because I dont want to indulge in all this "feel good" type of stuff. I want to know how I've changed, and be objective about it. I dont want to get bogged down in feelings just yet, because it aint over yet.

The first half of the journey has taught me many great lessons. I've learned how to cook (to a certain extent), I've held my artistic peak for about 9 months (and it isn't about to end), I've gained a lot of self-confidence, I've become a better public speaker, my opinions and ideas have become more clear and developed.

Up and Coming Adventures

Going to New Zealand on the 14th of June. Starting in Christchurch on the South Island, and then working my way up north eventually to leave Auckland by July 5th. On July 5th I'll be heading over to Fiji.

So I'm hoping this lag of the journey fulfils one of the reasons that I came to this part of the world. To get an understanding about who I am, where I come from, and where I fit in (in terms of family). I'm planning to visit a lot of places, and I hope to come to a new understanding of what life was like for my dad growing up. I want to know about why they ended up in Fiji, and i want to learn something about what type of people i come from. This is all very important to me because I hope it will solve some of the fundamental identity issues I've had while growing up. I'll probably come away with more questions than anything though.

And Some Pictures...