Oh my word. There is so much to tell you guys, I don't even know how I'm going to put it into words. Right now I'm a little crazy because of jet lag, so forgive my strangeness.
We had orientation back at Bethel for two days, it was really great to meet the rest of the group. Lets be real, it was super awkward at first. But after a few meals, some classic ice breakers, and team bonding...we began to feel more like a team.
During orientation they had a lot of great sessions teaching us about culture adaption and the culture shock we would go through and how to adjust and appreciate the changes etc. It was all pretty common sense, but definitely necessary to address before a trip like this.
Then there was a session on spiritual warfare, which really challenged me to work out some things in my own life before the trip began.
The next two days were spent entirely in airports. It was kind of dramatic because one guy found out he didn't have a ticket so we weren't sure if he was going to make it at all, then some man started having a heart attack in front of us during security. We had to separate on the first flight into two groups, but then met up again in San Fran for our 13 hour overnight flight to Auckland. Many movies were watched, and barely anyone slept because of the strange time difference. I've never gone through customs faster in my life so that was great, and as soon as we stepped out the doors of the airport we were greeted by the most beautiful sunny summer day. We all pulled out our sunglasses and basked for a few glorious minutes. After an hour in the vans we arrived at our home for the next 6 weeks, Laidlaw College in Henderson, Auckland. It's a pretty small college but right in the middle of a lot of great stuff. The drive to it was beautiful, there are so many beautiful trees. It looks kind of beachy, but it also reminds me of Kenya somewhat, at least the mountainous parts. The houses are all small and surrounded by lots of trees and brush and pretty close together. The cars are small and European looking with the sweet license plates. Best of all, its summer time, and flowers are everywhere and everyone is in cute summer clothes. Also, the style here rocks.
The college here is really cool too. We all get our own room, all on the same hallway with a bed, desk and closet. They all look out into a courtyard with a basketball court, and there are lots of community rooms with awesome decorations that connect to more courtyards with fountains or just an open green or shaded over with beautiful trees. I mean, its kind of unreal how pretty it is. We're about to eat lunch so that's all for now. We explored downtown earlier, but tonight we're going out to eat somewhere nice and sight see. basically, I'm extremely happy, and I may consider moving to New Zealand.