Orientation

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I arrived in New Zealand on July 1st. Butler orientation was held at Shakespear Regional Park on the Whangaparoa peninsula, located 1.5 hours north of Auckland. We (50 students from all over the US) spent a relaxed three days there getting lots of moe (sleep), eating kai (food) and doing "stuff". The "stuff" included mountain biking, hiking, sea kayaking, learning how to play rugby and cricket and learning about the Maori culture.

On the third day we traveled to the Tauranganui Marae south of the Bombay Hills on the Waikato river. We were presented to and accepted into the community during the powhiri (a ceremony involving speaches, songs and hongi (pressing of noses)). The Maori women cooked a wonderful meal for us, a group of men and women performed the haka and poi and then we played touch rugby with the kids and went to sleep in the whare runanga.

The next morning we ate breakfast and left the Marae early. On our way back to Auckland we stopped at a cemetary and went tramping. As Sarah and Robert (Garth's, the orientation leader, kids) and Bryce and I emerged from the forest it began to rain... we got soaked on our way back to the "airbus".

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Photos

Shakespear Lodge
(and cricket field)

Shakespear Regional Park
Ander and the picture frame on our mountain biking adventure

Waikato River
A view of the river in the morning from the Marae

Whare runanga
This is the sacred meetinghouse building where funerals are held, and where we slept. The name for the inside of the building, when translated, means womb.

Ancestors
The poles in front of the main building are carved to represent Maori ancestors.

HAKA!
shirtless butler guys performing the haka

POI!
butler women doing the poi

Friends
Robert and Bryce

Butler
Andrew, Garth, Lauren, Tim

Tramping
Beautiful sunbeams captured by Bryce.