Chocolate Penguins

The nights are cool, but we are still having beautiful sunny days -perfect for touring!

I have always associated Dunedin with Speights, Jeff Wilson and drunken students, but really it is so much more as we discovered on our tour there.

The first stop was the Cadburys Chocolate factory. This is always popular with the women on the tour,and the ladies from Thailand and Korea were excited as we arrived. We also had four me from Saudi Arabia with us and they were just as excited to visit the Chocolate factory.

Everybody enjoyed the tour very much and we all came out of the shop with lots of chocolate treats.

Baldwin street is the steepest street in the world, and this was next stop on our itinerary It was a hard walk to the top but it was worth it, we got some very nice photos.

After a quick lunch we left Dunedin and went to the peninsula to see some of Otagos famous wildlife. We were visiting the Yellow-eyed penguin colony but as we were a little early we had time to go to the end of the peninsula to see the Albatross. We could see many flying in, it was amazing.

We only saw three penguins but they were very cute. By the time we finished it was getting a bit cold and dark so we went back to Dunedin for a well deserved hot meal and cup of tea.

On Sunday some of us went out to see Larnach castle, while the rest of us went to tunnel beach. Tunnel beach is my favourite place to visit in Dunedin. It is little beach that you have to walk 30 minutes to get to, then go down a short tunnel. Its very private, and very beautiful. Well worth the visit.

All in all it was a very good trip. We were very tired when we got back to Christchurch, it was very hard to get up on Monday morning.

Next week, dolphins at Akaroa!

Kaikoura

On the weekend we had a very nice tour to Hanmer and Kaikoura. It was a small group but a good mixture of students. We had a Mother and daughter from Malaysia, a Brazillian,a Thai girl, a Swiss student, and Kazuyoshi from Japan.

Kazuyoshi was very interesting. he was 71 years old and retired. He has come to New Zeland to improve his english. We spoke alot during our two days awa, to help his conversational english, but I think I learnt more from him than he learnt from me. Kazuyoshi particully enjoyed sitting on the beach at Kaikoura and the smell of the sea. Very different from Tokyo!!

The first day we went Hanmer where most people went swimming in the hot springs. Virginia and Vivian are from Malaysia and have lived in New Zealand for five years. They decided to go Horse trekking instead of the hot springs.
The ride to the horse trekking farm was very exciting, very bumpy ride in the van and we had to drive through the river several times. It was a wild and exciting place to be. The horse trek farm was surrounded by beautiful hills and forest. It was more beautiful than I could of imagined. Virginia and Vivian went horse trekking for an hour, and you should of seen their faces when they came back, so happy, both of them couldn't stop smiling.
Virginia had ridden a horse before but it was the first time for Vivian. She said she wasn't scared at all and definitely do it again.

Sivana and Julia goto school together at Languages International. Julia has only been in New Zealand for four days and she was very enthusiastic about seeing some New Zealand scenery. Both her and Sivana loved the Lord Of The Rings films, and this was one of the reasons they chose to come to New Zealand. They were very happy to see amazing mountain scenery from Hanmer to Kaikoura, but they both agreed the highlight was going Whalewatching on Sunday, when they saw two whales up close. Amazing!!

Pinttira has been on 3 tours with me know, she is enjoying seeing New Zealand and travelling with us very much. For her seeing the Dolphins was the highlight. She was a little sick on the boat but she still managed to take many photos of the dolphins. I know she had a good time because she said she would be joining us on the Wine tour this weekend!

This week I'm off to see penguins in Dunedin, but thats a story for next week. See you then!

A two week update

Hello again,

it is two weeks since our last update, so I have alot to say.

On the weekend we had a ski trip and also a tour to Kaikoura, both on Saturday. It goes with out saying that they were both a huge success. Brett took the ski trip and it was a very nice day. Brett is learning to snowboard this season, and he is having just as much fun as the students he takes up there. Mt Hutt was good for skiing on Saturday, and we were again lucky as it was closed on Sunday.

Hamish took a group up to Kaikoura to go whale watching. It was a good day, and all the time we spent on the bus was well worth it once we saw our first whale. We had a really good mixture of students and all of them enjoyed the day. We were so excited about seeing 4 whales, and a pod of 500 dolphins that we took very few photos, it was one of those moments where you just want to look with your eyes.

The previous weekend we had trips skiing, as well as a tour to Mt Cook.

The trip to Mt Cook was particularly important as it was the first tour for our new guide Hamish. The tour was brilliant, it was a great group of people and the weather and scenery was spectacular. Some of us went swimming in the hot pools at Tekapo, very nice on a cold night :)

We saw Mt Cook, Lake Tekapo, Lake Pukakai, Tasman glacier, the clay cliffs, and brought fresh Salmon on the way home. What a very busy weekend we had.

Over the next few weeks we have more ski trips, a trip to Wellington, and another tour to Mt Cook. Things are getting very busy indeed as spring approaches.

Keep up the hard work, but dont forget to look at the world around you.

See you all soon

Hamish

Snow, snow and snow!

What a good ski season we are having. Our trip to Mt Hutt last Saturday was fully booked, and it was a brilliant day. There was a lot of fresh snow at the ski field, and the conditions were very good. It was the first time most of the students had seen snow, and they were all surprised how cold it felt. I think I would like snow alot more if it was warm too.

Sunday we had to cancel our trip, the weather was bad. The ski field did open later, but the weather wasnt very good. But on the positive side much more snow fell, so there will be plenty of fresh snow this weekend. We already have a full load of keen skiers on Saturday, and only a few seats left on the Sunday trip. Fingers crossed we get good weather.

We also have our Mount Cook trip coming up on July 24th - july 26th. We have about 10 seats left, so you still have a chance to join us. It should look extra pretty at the moment with lots of extra snow in the area.

We have started our design a T-shirt competition which is keeping us busy at the moment as well. Everyone on our mailing list would of heard about this, we are looking for a new design for our T-shirt. You can email us for more details, or ask at your school reception.

Hope you are all well, Ive enjoyed meeting lots of new students in the last few weeks.
See you all soon.

Early July Update

July is only a few days old, and already at Hello New Zealand we have had alot of adventures.

The weather was against us for the ski trip to Mt Hutt. Mt Hutt ski field was closed on Sunday due to bad weather conditions. Although we had to cancel the trip, this is still good news for us as bad weather equals more snow for next time!

Both Hamish and Brett took advantage of the day off. Brett was finally able to sleep in on a Sunday. He spent the rest of the day baking cakes (Really!) and making his girlfriend happy on her birthday. Now he is relaxed and all ready for the next week of ski trips.

Hamish travelled to the westcoast. There was a lot of snow, especially in Porters pass, and Arthurs pass. The bus he was on got stuck in snow just by Castle Hill and the passengers had to be transported by other means to Arthurs pass. The 5 hour journey to Hokitika eventually took 9 hours, a long tiring day.

This weekend we are looking forward to another ski trip to Mt Hutt. Snow boarding is very popular this season, and Brett is getting better at it every weekend. Lots of people are having their first snow experience, and ski experience with us, its a lot of fun for everybody.

We are also doing a horse trek and farm tour on Sunday. This is a good chance to experience a real working New Zealand farm. We see alot of farm animals, and get to shear a sheep. And then we go horse riding, which everybody seems to like, except for me. Im a little bit scared of horses. Must be some childhood trauma in my past.

Sorry there is no clever finish to this today, its dark and late. See you all next week,

Hamish

Weekly Update

We had another successful ski weekend here at New Zealand. The weather was fine on Saturday and we took a full bus of students to Mt Hutt. Everyone went snow boarding and had a very good time.


Sunday morning was fine at the ski field, but in the afternoon it started snowing, which was exciting for the Saudi students, but it made for a trecherous drive down the road - we needed chains on the way.


Another bus driver at the skifield fell ill so we rescued some of his passengers to take to Methven, so Sunday afternoon was quite exciting, one way or another.

Our ski trips are proving to be quite popular, the conditions at Mt Hutt are very good at the moment. We have plenty more ski dates avaliable, so we hope to see you all soon.

Last week we visited some schools, mostly to introduce Hamish who has just started at Hello New Zealand. We visited Seafield School of English, Aspiring, and International English Institute.Everybody was very friendly and nice, and we look forward to visiting you all again soon.

Despite the cold weather we have many tours to look forward too. This weekend we are doing two Ski trips, and also an overnight trip to Punakaiki. Punakaiki will be especially good as we get to eat pancakes at pancake rocks, everybodies favourite.

Hope everybody is studying hard, we will see you soon.

Monday morning, but exciting news

This was going to be a short 'hello' for Monday morning but already I can see its going to be so much more. I can just feel it, there is plenty to say but not enough time to say it.

Let us begin with the weekend, our first ski trips of the year. After a week of miserable weather ,we were worried here in the office that it might not be too good on the weekend for skiing. Were we wrong!! Mother nature really turned it on for us, and both days we were met by clear blue skies and sunshine, lots of sunshine. Fantastic ski conditions.

It was an early start on Saturday for poor Brett, as he had to get up just after 5am to prepare the bus for the trip. Its not easy being a tour guide, despite what you might hear. The passengers had a little snooze as Brett drove towards Mt Hutt, while Brett sung quietly to himself to stay awake. (have you heard him sing? He really does have a lovely voice)

We had a quick breakfast at Rakaia, where we saw the big fish. Fish was not on the menu for us though. Then we continued on towards the ski field. The drive up the mountain was spectacular, there was some amazing views, and lots of photo opportunities, especially when Brett stopped to put the chains on the tyres. This is normally a difficult job but luckily another passenger helped him. Another good experience for the trip.

The weather at the ski field was even better than on the plains.Some of the students with us had never seen snow before, and there was much excitement as we reached the ski field. Everybody chose to go snow boarding, which proved to be an excellent choice. We all had a lesson, and everybody learnt a lot. Then it was free time on the mountain. Some of the brave students went to the very top of the mountain, where the view was...well... I cant describe it. It was beyond words, one of the most amazing views in New Zealand (And there is a lot of amazing views in New Zealand!)

As an extra bonus we saw a glider who was flying very close to the ski field. What a way to travel, so high up, and so silent. I am sure the pilot was jealous of us as we zoomed down the slopes. Well, not of of us zoomed, some of us spent alot of the day sliding on our bottom.

Kelly from CCEL was with us for the day, and she had a fantastic time. She doesnt have much experience on snow, but she made up for it with enthusiasm and energy.

The day passed very quickly and as we came down the mountain we saw a colourful sunset, which some of us managed to take a photo of. Everybody was exhausted as we drove home and Im sure we all slept very well on Saturday night, hopefully after the rugby -not before!

Now this is where we should all feel very sorry for Brett, because he had to get up early the next day and do it all again! Even though he was tired from the day before, Brett was still awake and on time to pick up the students for the Sunday trip. Unfortunately not everyone was so good at getting up early and we had to wake one student up at this house. I dont think his host mother was very happy about having a bus of 20 students coming to her house early on Sunday morning!

Again we had lovely weather at the ski field. This time half the students went snow boarding and half went skiing. A good mixture of styles. One day we will have a race at Mt Hutt and see which is faster, snow boarding or skiing. Brett is a very fast skier, and we have met plenty of students who are fast on snowboards.

While we were skiing we saw the rescue helicopter come to the skifield twice to take injuried people away. We all skiied very well and none of us had to be flown off the ski field, so thats a good start to the season.

The day seemed to pass by very quick, except for Brett who was still stiff and sore from the day before. Everyone was pleased to get back in the warm bus for the drive home.

So here we are Monday morning. Brett will be in the office after lunch. No, he isnt having a sleep in, he has gone to see Aaron off at the airport. We both seem to be at the airport alot recently, there is always somebody arriving or leaving. Hello and Goodby are our favourite words.

The other news is we have a new staff member. We would like to say hello and welcome to Hamish, who started in the office last week and will be taking tours this weekend. (Actually its Hamish writing this, the new guy gets all the good jobs!) Hamish has recently arrived back in New Zealand after living overseas for 6 years. He cant wait to travel around beautiful New Zealand and share it with you.

Last Friday Brett took me out in the bus and I learnt how to put the chains on. It can be a dirty job, but we managed to do it pretty easily. Now Im looking forward to doing it for real.

This weekend we are having another two ski trips, and a day tour to Akaroa. Its good to be busy. Even during winter there is plenty to see and do around the South Island. We are very busy, but come in and say hello anytime. We love seeing peoples faces, and hearing about your experiences.

See you all soon

Hamish