Saturday: November 11

After some lunch, Marie, Lasse, Roman and I hiked up to the lookout point on Mount Victoria. Mount Victoria is approximately 643 feet tall and overlooks residential areas as well as the airport. The view was beautiful, but I especially enjoyed the conversation on the way up.

I hadn’t gotten to know Lasse or Roman by this point so it was a great opportunity for all of us to talk and bond a little more without having all the roommates there. At least I think it’s easier… sometimes I talk too fast so I have to repeat myself or come up with other words they know in English. The latter is rare though as everyone knows most of the English words I use.

Anyways, Lasse is from Germany and Roman is from Belgium, both are 18. They are taking a gap year to figure out what they want to do with their lives. I can relate and I’m 29!

While walking we talked about an array of things from World War II to recycling in our homelands. We stopped off at a Lord of the Rings site (see below- can you tell which scene this is from?). I saw a quote on a nearby bench that read “Not all those that wander are lost. -Gandalf”. I’ve always loved this quote, but I thought this quote was from Chris McCandless (known from the book Into The Wild). Marie and Lasse confirmed that Lord of the Rings was written in the 1920s or 30s so this quote was indeed NOT created by my favorite real life character but by the author of Lord of the Rings. I need to get with it!

We could see our destination, but we came across poles that had a nearby sign that said to climb up, walk across polo-to-pole, and pretend to be a bird like the one pictured on the sign. The sign read something like that… I should have taken a picture. Marie and I thought it seemed too dangerous, especially with how windy it was and gets. The boys did not (see below- top is Lasse and bottom photo is Roman). Oh to be young again.

After that mini adventure we headed up the hill to get a view of the city from Mount Victoria’s lookout point (see below). Per usual, it was really windy.

We stayed up there for about twenty minutes then headed back to the house. Once we got back, we relaxed and hung out with the rest of the roommates. Some of us took naps, played on our phone, or watched the tv show How I Met Your Mother.

Coco is a volunteer here, a character I have yet to share anything about. She is 21 and also from Germany. Not only does she provide depth in conversation, but she can cook! She coordinates all the meals and runs the kitchen. Sadly she leaves in four days and I’m not sure what we are going to do without her.

My first night she made salmon. I ate it! Not a big fish person (at all), but I had to try it and enjoy the dish for the experience. I can now say that I have legitimately tried salmon.

Yesterday we had a barbecue. Ben and Roman grilled chicken, steak, and lamb chops. Marie and I had a honey mustard salad with a side of grilled vegetables. It was delicious… right up my alley! Pictured below is everyone staying in the house except Nicholas- he was out on the town with some of his Wellington buddies. (Left to right: Lasse, Marcel, Marie, Raul, Roman, Coco, and Ben).

It’s been fun getting to know everyone. I’ve enjoyed helping them with their English. They all want to speak perfect English so they ask questions about spelling or what something is called. Lasse brought up the words flower and flour… I can understand the confusion.

Sunday: November 12

I ordered my very first New Zealand latte and it was…. So, so, SO GOOD.

Marie, Lasse, and l went to the Te Papa Museum in downtown Wellington. Like all museums, this one also holds tons of information. It was overwhelming! We visited two of five floors.

The first exhibit we looked at was “Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War”. We went on a journey through the eyes of soldiers, physicians, and nurses who told stories about their life on the battlefield. After leaving the exhibit, we shared what we thought was most interesting or what we took away from the large exhibit. I had to agree with Marie, there was a part of the exhibit that gave detailed examples of what living conditions were like on the battlefield. It is easy to forget how lucky most of us are to live in such comfortable living conditions.

Below are photos from the exhibit. Preceding each “part” of the exhibit, you are greeted with a human structure which is 2.4 times larger than the size of an average human. It took over 24,000 hours to make these statues. The detail was amazing… Look at the hair on the hand! The hair would even sway during drafts.

The other exhibits we walked through were New Zealand animal life which had a preserved colossal squid (I love deep sea creatures- see squid below) and the impact of humans on New Zealand land. All I gotta say is I wish I could have been around when the moa existed.

There was so much to see that we decided we would have to make a second trip back.

We got back to the house after lunch and relaxed some. Before we knew it, dinner was served and we were eating a delicious spaghetti dinner thanks to CoCo and Ben. After dinner, all of the roommates headed to the living room to make a grocery list for the following week. The organization we are volunteering for provides all the groceries. Quite nice.

I’ve never been part of a group like this before. Sure… I’ve worked on a team before, but this is different. I look forward to reminiscing about these times of cohesiveness. It’s been a true delight getting to know these individuals.

Lastly, I was in my first earthquake. It was only a 4.8 on the Richter scale (considered little to moderate), but I certainly felt it.

It was 11:30p when it took place. I was laying on my top bunk when all of a sudden, I heard some loud sounds coming my way. It sounded like someone was watching a movie with surround sound on in the next room. A second later, the house started to shake.

Ah! It all happened so fast. Right after the shakeup, I hit up Google and searched Wellington earthquakes. Sure enough, one had a occurred two minutes prior at 11:28p.

It was a neat experience to be in the presence of such power. Knowing the entire house got (slightly) rocked was a realization that I was also going to be rooming with Mother Nature. I don’t know how to explain it. I was scared yet excited at the same time.

I feel very fortunate to be out here. From Mother Nature’s beauty to her pissed off self, I’m experiencing it. Just bonds us together that much more and makes me want to work harder to keep her healthy. Go Conservation Volunteers!