Welcome to NYC

Scanned Image

Hello Again! I thoroughly enjoyed the ballet I went to on Saturday. It was the Royal New Zealand Ballet's triple bill show, meaning the production was comprised of three short ballets as opposed to one lengthier one. The show was entitled "NYC" (Standing for New Young Classic). The ballets were all connected, in some way, to New York City. The first ballet was strictly classical and the third was classical as well, though less so than the first because the dance was set to late 30's jazz/swing music. The second ballet of the show was BRILLIANT. It was a contemporary piece- the set was simply the existing stage with all the curtains stripped back, revealing concrete, light fixtures, ropes and sound equipment equipment trunks. Quite a large number of dancers were featured, which undoubtedly enhanced the wow-factor of the breathtaking performance. The dancers began the performance in just black warm up gear- a mixture of shorts, skirts, leotards, tank tops and sports bras, and eventually changed into costume. The performance was meant to emulate the evolution of a show from the first rehearsal to the first performance. NYC was held in the ornate civic theatre in the middle of down town Auckland. What fun it was to dress up and have a night out : )

My Sunday was a lazy day, just spending time with some girlfriends around the house, which was great. It was refreshing to take a break from the books that so dominate my Monday through Saturday existence for a few hours.  Speaking of my current living arrangement, I've been asked to share pictures. The above is a shot of the view from one (one meaning multiple!, isn't that crazy?) of the upstairs balconies. There is a really great park that's just behind the house, hence all of the trees. The park is situated in a valley of sorts and has winding sidewalks and a few little bridges. Anyway back to the house- Its large, extremely sunny and surrounded by trees. It sits on a culdesac at the end of a little private road that diverts off of a popular street in Remuera. Overall, a great place to live!... idyllic one might venture to say even : ) I was just thinking on a run this evening that I'll have to take my camera with me (maybe for a walk) on my regular running route one day... It really is an amazingly beautiful part of Auckland that I live in. My run starts off at the top large hill with a gradual slope from which one can see all of the city to the left and the water and Rangitoto straight ahead. At the bottom of the hill, which is approximately a mile distance from my start point, there is a boardwalk that runs along the waterfront and in amongst some mangroves. From there, I take a shortcut through a reserve, then its a good mile back up a hill towards home. I cut through the park thats near my house and up another side street to arriive back home. The views the entire way really are breathtaking.

I had my first physics and chemistry labs this week! Both are three hour sections that run every other week. My physics class being a level one paper, our first lab was purely an introduction to the lab space, safety and administrative details. I'm taking a year two chemistry course though, so our first lab was full-on. Unfortunately, despite meticulous measurements and direction following, I had some issues. Our directive was to synthesize two products, which we then had to hand in for marking. My first reagents unfortunately did not react properly and my end result was a product with a mass that was roughly a fifth of the amount that other people in the class produced. My second synthesis was more successful, but unfortunately someone who had less success with that part of the lab decided to take my sample from the drying oven and claim it as theirs. Frustrating. On a positive note, I got on really well with two girls whose stations were near mine at the lab bench and we have plans to finish our write ups together. Its always nice to find good study partners. I didnt get to take a picture of myself in (my very own!) chemistry lab coat and goggles, but I was looking quite professional today, I must say (paging Dr. G? haha) : )

Image Via Here

Tomorrow I have a full day of Uni and afterward I'm going to go to the art gallery for a bit to check out a special exhibit that they have on. Its an international exhibit that is organized and sponsored by the National Galleries of Scotland. The exhibit features artists by the names of Monet, Van Gogh, Renoir, Ernst, Magritte and Warhol. It costs $17 to view the special exhibit, as opposed to the "always free!" gallery entry. The ticket cost, however, is well worth it in my opinion. It is, after all, not something one can see everyday : ) ... the show is titled "Degas to Dali". Afterwards, at seven I am going to my second tango lesson! My tango skills at the moment can be described as competent at best, but I felt that I was quickly progressing during the last lesson.

On Thursday I have an even longer day of lectures and tutorials, ending at 6 p.m. I also signed up to go to an event put on by an organization called Chiasma after my final lecture. There will be talks by two prominent individuals in the New Zealand health industry... and free food : ) I first heard of Chiasma today through a lecture. Further research revealed that "Chiasma is New Zealand's premier student-led organisation that fosters connections between science and business, connecting university students to high-tech industries." This certainly isn't my primary area of interest, but it is beyond relevant for so many reasons. I was also impressed with the organization's website- it is extremely well designed and organized. I'm sure you can infer from the above statement, the organization is completely student run and led, which I hold much admiration for. Based on what I've heard and seen about Chiasma, I'm expecting it to be a great event!

Image Via Here

This Friday marks the arrival of the Volvo Ocean Race to Auckland Harbor! The Viaduct events center (seen before in my seafood festival post) is apparently the ocean race epicenter until March 18th! The Volvo Ocean Race first ran in 1973 and is "the longest, most demanding and perilous sporting contest the world had known"... it is essentially a race around the world by fully crewed yachts that cover 39,000 nautical miles and lasts for nine months. That's quite a feat! In celebration of the race, their will be free concerts, performances and various other events occurring in Auckland during that time. I may go down to the viaduct on Friday, just to check things out. I'm definitely planning on returning this Sunday evening for a concert, and on March 16th for the in-port race. New Zealand's team, Camper, is currently placed fourth overall in the race, which culminates in Ireland in early July. I really can't imagine how much mental, let alone physical, strength one has to have to pull that off.

This upcoming weekend brings with it a few outdoor concerts, tennis, a friend's birthday and lots of study I can be sure! But we'll leave that all for another post : )

This evening I was quite efficient and finished my pre-reading and exercise in a timely manner... leaving time to use as I please. An abundance of leisure time resulted in one finished apocalypse survival novel and a copious amount of free online downloads : / You may know that I really enjoy planning things, especially parties and get togethers, which then of course implies an enjoyment of things such as invitations, decorations, thank you notes, etceteria. Silly? Yes. Enjoyable? Abundantly so. I downloaded some new fonts onto my computer and printed thank yous, calenders, and little decoration templates. I also made a pretty desktop background here. Did I just admit to all of that? Oh well... thats my day I guess.  We must not forget that all of my homework was done and I'd been on a 45 minute run ; )

I forgot to mention also that another exchange student has just arrived to stay with my host family and I for a short time. She is from Japan and is here for three weeks to study English. Later on in March, another international student from France will be staying for a few months. The french girl is very near to my age and I'm really looking forward to her coming to stay! One thing about Auckland is that it is extremely international, theres certainly no shortage of culture here! : )

I really enjoyed this post on a blog that I like, here it is if you care to read it! "13 Ways to Live a Dynamic Life".

Thanks For reading!

Until next time,

Lots of Love,
A