International :: Epsom Girls Grammar School

"It's a tiddler." Slowly I wound in my fishing rod. We have been out on the boat, fishing for huge beautiful snappers, which we were going to cook in batter on the barbecue for dinner. Our chilly bin was already completely filled but the fishing was just too much fun to stop and go swimming in the lovely lonely cove, we discovered the other day. We went snorkelling, spear fishing and collected mussels which we cooked on a fire. We have had just another awesome day of our camping holidays at Papa Aroha, a tiny village at the northern point of the Coromandel Peninsula.

When I had wound my fish halfway in, the tension on the line became bigger. Maybe the fish wasn't that small after all. Maybe it was a keeper. It was definitely not a kingfish. I knew what that felt like! The day before I had had a fight with a massive one, which pulled my rod right underneath the boat. I lost it when the line broke but it was so exciting and so much fun that it didn't matter. And we had had enough fish and scallops for dinner anyway. Our dinners were real feasts. But the fish on my line was really starting to get heavy. No, act

ually it was fighting me, trying to swim away. So I played with it. Let the rope out, pulled it in again, until it slowly came to the surface. "It's a shark! Jana caught a shark!" my host sister called out.

We got the approximately one metre long Bronze Whaler in a net and my host dad held it tight, while I tried to unhook this scary big fish, which was shimmering in lovely green, pink and gold colours, with a pair of tweezers. That was just another exciting experience I shared with my host family, the Knights. There were many before and I am sure that there are more to come. I am happy to have found a second family here in New Zealand.

Extract from Clara’s South Island Holiday

Clara went on a Stray-travel tour. This tour is a minimum of 18 days and the maximum is 12 months. You can use your pass/ticket for one year. It costs about $1400 in total.

Why do you think others should do it?
There is a lot of flexibility and you can stay longer at places if you choose. Accommodation is guaranteed in hostels and backpackers. You can see a lot of nature, get special deals on activities, you can cook your own meals or buy them, you meet a lot of people and see lots in a short time.

What did you see?

I saw heaps of things! Hahei and Hot Water Beach in the Coromandel, Raglan and stayed in a jungle Lodge in the bush and went surfing. Stayed at a Marae and saw the haka performed and learnt poi. Went to Taupo via Rotorua. Saw the Huka falls and my friend went skydiving. Did the Tongariro Crossing which was superb. We thought that we were just going for a walk but it was a serious 18 hour tramp. The weather was perfect and warm but there was also snow on the ground. We went to Wellington and had 3 days there. It is a lovely city with lots going on such as the Te Papa Museum and the Beehive. In the Abel Tasman National Park we went kayaking. I liked this area in the South Island best of all. At Barrytown on the west coast of the South Island we saw seals and the Pancake rocks at Punakaiki. We visited the Franz Josef area but not the glaciers as the walks were expensive.

29 November 2007
…They booked me on another tour. The guide told us about the landscape and 3 rules; follow the guide, stay in the centre of the river and I don’t remember the third… and some hand signals. When we arrived at the hut we got all the equipment for river boarding; a kidney belt, wetsuit pants and jacket, lifejacket, helmet and fins and last but not least, a body board. We got back on the bus and drove to the starting point. We had a quick introduction in a calm area of the river and then we entered the actual river. The Kawarau is very swift and flows through rocky valleys. It was exhausting to keep your body up and not to just lie on the board but was great fun. At the end of the rafting we could do a slide and swing into the water and were picked up by a jet ski.

We headed out of Christchurch and passed by Lake Pukaki and Lake Tekapo and wondered about the sky blue water. It is that blue because of the minerals in the water help to reflect the blue of the sky. It took us 2 or maybe 3 hours on the bus to get to Kaikoura. On the way I decided to do whale watching. We played cards (split) until I was tired of losing then it was 3 o’clock and time for whale watching. I was early to the meeting place and walked along the stony black beach for a while. We were told that only 1 whale was around so it took a long time in the boat until the captain found him. It was a sperm whale and it tired after only a few minutes but it came up again and everyone got a nice tail shot except me as my camera was strange. Well $130.00 for nothing! It was very informative….

Just a Part of my Dream – Juliane Groeper

Silence, just the rush of water. Was it in my dream or was it reality? 6:30am the generator was turned on and we had to get up. My hammock was on top which made it hard for me to get out of it and to put it back on the wall for the day, but there was someone to give me a hand and together it was no problem.

A couple of minutes later we were in our togs, towels and a t-shirt on the main deck. We had to walk around it until everyone was there. It was freezing. We warmed up with the so called Banana Game. We had to jump and sing and clap. After that we jumped in the sea and swam as fast as possible to the next ladder. I was more than just awake after that. Quickly everyone got changed and lined up for breakfast. For the first time I ate porridge. I didn’t know how to have it, but the others showed me how to put heaps of brown sugar on top of it.

On the aft deck we lined up in watches. I was a proud member of Starboard A. the flag got raised with the bell striking at the same time. Someone was reading the weather out loud so that we were able to discuss today’s plans. As we were planning to live on our ship for 10 days we had to clean it. On the first day it seemed a bit strange to us, but we got used to it and knew how to make it fun.

After lunch we, of Starboard A, were responsible for the Main Sail. It was hard work at times, when we had to change the direction of the sail really fast, but we all enjoyed it. Pretty quickly 5 boys and 5 girls from different social backgrounds and not knowing each other, had to work together as a team. That wasn’t always easy but I guess that was one of our biggest achievements on this trip, as well as getting to know ourselves.

In the afternoon I had to challenge myself quite a lot. I was supposed to climb up the mast with 3 others and 2 crew members to get the main sail back in and tie it up. It was really windy and the ship was still sailing. I used to be afraid of heights, but I wanted to do it. We were standing on this thin rope, leaning over the mast, trying to get the sail

in, but it was constantly blowing away. I felt so weak. We tried to help each other and after half and house we final got it. I was shaking when I walked down to the aft cabin where the others were preparing for some team games. It helped me a lot to be surrounded by all those people who were sharing my fear and I felt even a bit proud. The games we played were heaps of fun.

After dinner we had to introduce ourselves to the rest of the group. I think some people were as nervous as I was on the mast and so everyone has a part of the trip that was a challenge for them.

Every day we sat together in our groups and found out a little thing to improve and we grew together as a team.I spent ten days as a trainee on the Spirit of New Zealand. What you just read was the first day of Voyage 511. I can’t describe how much I enjoyed it. It was just AWESOME (I only learnt this word here!)

"herzlichen Dank für die Info. Den Text von Herrn Verner kannten wir in der Tat noch nicht, haben aber ausgezeichneten Kontakt zu den lieben Mitarbeiterinnen von EGGS, insbesondere zu Sharyn Goodall und natürlich zu Jana´s Gastfamilie, den Knight´s, die Jana in ganz liebevoller Weise wie ihre eigene Tochter aufgenommen haben. Wir skypen oft mit den Eltern und Kindern und werden uns bei nächster Gelegenheit gegenseitig besuchen. Für Jana ist sicher ein Traum in Erfüllung gegangen und die positiven Erfahrungen wird sie ihr Leben lang begleiten. Aber von Zeit zu Zeit versorgt sie auch ihre alte Heimat mit Info´s, die jedes Mal mit ganz viel Spannung von den hiesigen Menschen verschlungen werden. "

AIM FOR AMBASSADOR

From “Study In New Zealand” DOROTHEA SCHRIEVER

BORN: Germany

ASPIRING: German Ambassador

STUDYING: Epsom Girls Grammar School

Ex-EGGS student Dorothea with Prime Minister

Upon the decision to leave the comfort of one's home to study in a foreign country, one must face the fact that life in a different country is neither better nor worse, but different. When I packed my bags, 15 months ago, to start the adventure of living and learning in New Zealand, I had a slogan in my mind, but I have found that it has only been since I have experienced life in "the land of the long white cloud" that I can really understand this expression.

This life changing experience started on a humid summer day in July 2003 when I, as a 16-year-old girl boarded the plane in Frankfurt/Germany to make my way to the opposite side of the world. What I knew about New Zealand was that it was as far from home as I could get, that it was famous for its breathtaking nature and the friendliness of its people, that biculturalism was very important and that the word 'kiwi' described three very different things.

An enthusiast for all kinds of activities, from physical to academic, I became very involved in co-curricular activities. At this point, I have to add that attending one of the finest state schools in New Zealand made the pursuit of my personal development a lot easier due to the great variety of activities that are offered to the students. I joined the rowing team and travelled parts of the North Island while attending regattas. Thus, I got to know students from all over New Zealand who shared the same passion. As the season was nearing its end, I took up my passion for athletics again and represented my school in the finals of the Auckland Secondary Schools Track and Field Championships. My involvement in academic pursuits was thriving so I attended the MUNA 2004, a Model United Nations Assembly held by the Rotary Club Auckland as part of the debating team. I represented Chile while arguing with some 500 other 'delegates' from Auckland schools about current issues of international politics. Our efforts were rewarded in winning the prize for the best country of the Americas Block. The prizes were awarded by the Prime Minister Helen Clark. I made myself known on a smaller scale also. I was a member of one of the 20 best school choirs in New Zealand in the final of the 'Big Sing' and gave service to my school through peer tutoring.

When being asked about my decision to come to New Zealand I can honestly say that it has been the most rewarding experience of my life and the best decision I ever made to bring me closer to my dream of being part of a global community.

About News Curriculum Co-Curriculum Enrolment International Foundation Old Girls Epsom House Intranet Contact