May 2, 2002

Who was it that advised me to bite off more than I can chew … then chew like Hell?

I know he had not tasted Vegemite! 🙂

Well those of you still duped by the myth of the Christian work ethic can sleep soundly knowing that I am working hard — 6 days / week, about 35 hours / week on the floor. The club administration is excellent so the focus of my job is working directly with gymnasts and coaches.

It has been good fun and an interesting challenge to connect with hundreds of new people Down Under.

We planned my arrival here in time for the big club trip to the hot spring spa in Hamner, 90 minutes out of Christchurch. We played gymnastics games in a park then raced up a mountain (I finished second). The hot pools are great, the most elaborate I have ever seen.

En route home some idiot jumped off the bridge. New Zealand claims to be home of bungie jumping and they love all manner of extreme adventure sport here.

My only other trip was to Dunedin, about 5 hours south of Christchurch. It is a University town like Saskatoon and a large percentages of Kiwis got educated there. It is famous for old architecture and student pubs. I arrived late on a Saturday night and the natives were restless.

Everyone likes Dunedin. It has character.

Locals confided to me that Dunedin is the one city in NZ where being eaten by a shark is a real likelihood. About one resident each year was devoured here until shark nets were strung to protect swimmers.

Green and hilly, Dunedin is home to Cadbury’s and the world’s steepest roadway. Students were killed joy riding in a trash bin last year. It gets interesting here on the rare occasion when snow falls. Last winter the gravel truck slid down an icy steep hill wiping out all the cars parked below. The driver jumped to safety.

As Spring is sprung in Canada it is Fall here. August is the coldest month but days are shortest in June.

– Kiwi Rick