I have a month and a half left of school and then my students will be able to enjoy the fine relaxation of the summer holiday. Sure, I’m contractually obligated to do the summer camps, but I’m looking at the prize at the end of it all: New Zealand. That’s right. I’m planning my trip to the Land of the Long White Cloud. Or would “Middle Earth” sound better. Either way, I am beyond excited to go as it has been on my list of places to travel to.
I haven’t bought my plane tickets or hotel stay because I don’t know when my school is going to do the summer camps. In fact, we still waiting for the Education Bureau to confirm everything for us. In the meantime, I’m going to check out the reviews for the gay village in Auckland and understand both the naughty and nice side of the Maori and Kiwis. I hope that wasn’t offensive.
I understand that it’s expensive to tour there due to the imported food and taxes. I’m sure there are more reasons, but those were the two major reasons. So, I’m going to do the same thing that I did in Spain. First, I’m going to look for a hostel that has breakfast included. Remember, hostels are always cheaper than hotels. I would use Mister BnB; you know, commonality between gay men, but I want a little more security and all that jazz. I also need to research what I CAN do in the city. Well, specifically, I want to check out the hiking trails. I’m going to be visiting for two weeks so being cheap is a necessity.
Oh! Speaking of being cheap, I’m going to act like a local. While in Spain, I would speak to the locals and ask about decent places to eat on a budget – usually because they may be on a budget, too. It’s nice, simple, and it allows me to avoid tourist traps that many tend to fall for. Indeed, a lot of research is required and I can’t wait to get started. Now, of course, I have to my grad work to do (2 classes), but I’m going to make sure that most of them will be done before I arrive – just like Spain. This is going to be so much fun.
Please don’t forget to follow me on my social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads) on my web page’s right side. Also, I love hearing suggestions of what books to read outside of my norm (Science fiction and Fantasy) as I am a part of the Goodreads’ reading challenge for 2024. For this year, my goal is 150, and I’m already at 83 (55%). Given that I’m in school and teaching English, I will blast through this challenge.
