Picture 2: Auckland view from ferry
Picture 3: shops in Devonport
Today, we drove to downtown Auckland to see the city. Brittany and I woke up before sunrise again, but we took late showers and were rushing when it was time to leave. It was about a half hour car ride. We parked in a parking garage, booked my bungy jump, and then headed up to the observation deck. I was able to see all of Auckland. It is a very big city and there are two bodies of water on each side. After spending about ten minutes on the deck, we headed up to Orbit. Orbit is a rotating restaurant at the top of the Sky Tower. I was able to see a few people bungy down which made me really nervous for my jump. Orbit was very expensive. I ordered waffles which had raspberry sauce and clotted cream on it. I got pavlova for dessert because it is a famous New Zealand dish. It had a very interesting taste. It reminded me of astronaut food or cotton candy, because it was very light and it condensed in my mouth. The meal cost me $32 NZ dollars, but it was really fun rotating around the city.
After we ate, we went back to the bottom of the tower where I signed up for Bungy jumping. I was with a group of four teens from Christchurch. We got out suits on and they put harnesses on us. Then we were sent to the top of the tower. I jumped second. The scariest part was walking to the edge and making myself jump off. Surprisingly, I was not scared when I got to the edge. I love roller coasters and thrill rides, so I was excited for the jump. The fall was really fast. It takes about 12 second to land on the ground. I bought the picture and the dvd of my jump so I will get to show people when I go home. Everyone was waiting for me at the landing pad, and the kids were really excited to watch me jump.
After the Sky Tower, we took a ferry to Devonport. We went to a lot of little shops. Brittany and I are so shocked at how many cafes there are in New Zealand. There was one about every five shops. all the shops were very expensive ($50 dollars for a little metal ring!) so we didn't buy anything. We did stop for gelato on the way back because we had been dying to try some. I got lemon and she got green apple flavor. It was really good, and it reminded me of the lemon ices that I get when I go to baseball games. There were a few shops in the ferry building, and I bought a t-shirt. Also, I got my dad a New Zealand souvenir for our curio cabinet at home. I still have to get a lot of souvenirs for my family and friends, but hopefully we will be going to shops that are not so expensive.
We took the ferry back to Auckland, got our car, and drove back to the house. For dinner, we had baked potatoes. Afterwords, Brittany and I caught up on some homework. Tomorrow is our first day in a school. We are going to Sofya and Robert's school, but since the funeral is tomorrow (Dr. Lindsey's uncle passed away right before our arrival), they may or many not go to school. I am really excited to observe. I got a little sense of the school's atmosphere when we visited on Friday, but I can't wait to get in the classroom. By looking around, you could definitely see that reading is a priority. I am sure that I will see a lot of great things. Although I am nervous since it is the first school, I am looking forward to learning from the teachers and seeing how the New Zealand education system works. It is exciting that we are starting to get into what we really came here to do (although I can't complain about all of the wonderful sightseeing!). I will probably go to bed early again tonight, because we will be getting up early to be at the school around 8.
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