Well, I have been in NZ for one week already! Amazing! It has been a full on but great week. Here’s a look into this past week:

*Sunday*
Flew into Taupo- all flights went well- Praise the Lord!
Was picked up by Scott and a crew from Wanganui and then we had Pizza Hut, walked around the city of Taupo and then did a bit of siteseeing.
Here’s a pic of Lake Taupo

Headed to Easter Camp where the crew from Wanganui had been
Went and met Greg and Judy Tichbon and their family and had afternoon tea- it was good to meet them.
Headed back to Easter camp for dinner, then a round of Apples to Apples with some of the kids before the evening session
Feeling the jetlag and hit the sack a bit early (around 9pm)

*Monday*
Breakfast and clean up
Morning session
Pack up and travel with Gillian and Ashley to their home in Auckland.
Beautiful drive to Auckland with great conversations with the couple
Spent the night with them- they were so hospitable! They made me feel like a princess!

*Tuesday*
Picked up by a group from AIM to go to Whangerai to go on the On the Road camp with YFC Whangerai
Arrived in Whangerai
Traveled with a group of 43 to Dargaville and spent the night.

***Side Note Begins**
-On the Road Camp is a camp that YFC Whangerai puts on for kids 11-13 years old. From Tuesday through Saturday we travel up to the Northern most point of New Zealand staying in different churches, seeing some really beautiful parts of Northland and sharing the gospel through the daily programmes that they put on for the kids in our group. It’s crazy to eat on the road, stay in a different place every night, and travel in fairly old vans on windy roads but it was a great time! Here are some highlights from the trip…
***Side Note Ends***

*Wednesday*
Packed up and traveled to Lake Kia Iwi for a swim and lunch….what a lovely spot!

Then we stopped to see a 1,500 year old tree- Tane Mahuta! Soooooo big!

Then we were on to Rowene for the night.

And another shot of this beautiful spot

*Thursday*
We were so supposed to go on the sand dunes the next morning but it was pouring down rain! We rode a ferry across and then stopped for morning tea before going to Kaitaia. Once in Kaitaia we went to the Kauri Kingdom where they have a gigantic Kauri tree staircase, did a service project and a group of about 30 of us went to 90 mile beach and rode a couple of quad bikes (4-wheelers). It was a fun filled, full day!

*Friday*
We went to Cape Reinga- the most Northern point of on NZ. It was the windiest place I have ever been! You could practically lean over the cliff and the wind would keep you from falling!

And another view…

After that we went down the road a bit to an area with sand dunes. Several people went on the dunes but I didn’t join in but helped set up for lunch. After that we went back to Kaitaia to pick up the trailers and luggage van and then went off to Piahia. Before we came into Piahia we stopped at Mangonui to have fish and chips. Here I am with my biggest catch ever!

Good times! After our stop over we came into Piahia for a good but short sleep.

Saturday
We had a fast paced morning to get ready to go on The Excitor for an hour and a half boat ride through the Bay of Islands. It was fun and windy!
Here’s a shot of Piahia before getting on The Excitor…beautiful!

After that we came back for the morning program, then to Waitangi (the place where the English made the peace treaty with the Maori), and then back to the church for lunch before making the drive back to Whangerai.

What a full several days! It was busy and tiring but so rewarding to spend time with the kids and serve! I am so glad to have gone!

Since Saturday I have been in Whangerai where I will be until Thursday when we head to Wanganui (where I will be living) to do SURGE (a community service weekend put on through YFC). I am staying with Scottie and Renate Slykerman and their adorable 10-month old son Jesse and enjoying some down time before I dive into life in Wanganui. Lord willing, I will share some more tomorrow about things that I have been learning here including things I love about this new place, things that are different and just little insights into the culture. Catch ya later!

Thank you for your prayers and support! I miss you guys and love you dearly! Heaps of hugs and love!

~Mel