Money (That's What I Want)

As I was standing in line at Thomas Cook in West Vancouver this morning, I couldn't get this Beatles song out of my head. I got to my computer and hit the Wikipedia and found out that the Beatles weren't the only ones to record this Barret Strong song -- including the Rolling Stones, The Doors, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Smashing Pumpkins, and even Hanson. There's your dose of trivia for the day.

I marveled at the ease in which my Canadian dollars could be turned into New Zealand dollars. Magic -- and they cost less! Once I got home, I pulled the bills out of my wallet and began to study the money I'll be using for the next several months (the Cook Islands also operate on the New Zealand dollar -- more about that later, when I debrief all of you on the Coles Notes version of Cook Islands history, culture, and economy).

Here's the skinny on Kiwi currency, courtesy of the Wikipedia:

Coins exist in .10, .20, .50 and $1 and $2. (In July 2006, old coins were replaced with newer, smaller coins, and the .05 coin is now being phased out completely).

Bills exist in $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100.

Each bill presents a historical figure on one side, and a native bird on the other.

Bills are pretty -- colourful like Canadian money! (And, like Canada, NZ has phased out $1 and $2 bills in favour of more pocket change...)

The bills also have a neat security feature -- two "see through" windows, one with the denomination embossed, the other with the signature NZ fern.

They bills are NOT made out of paper, but rather a type of polypropylene plastic.

Here's a brief history of NZ, as told through the currency:

$5 Sir Edmund Hillary, a Kiwi Mountaineer, who became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He's one of few living people (excluding royalty) to be featured on currency. Also features the hoiho, or Yellow-eyed Penguin, one of the world's rarest penguin species.

$10 Kate Sheppard, the most important figure in the NZ women's suffrage movement. Also features the Whio (Blue Duck), a rare bird from the country's mountainous regions.

$20 Queen Elizabeth II. Unlike the Canadian version, this queen looks a lot like my grandma Polowick... Also features the Karearea, a.k.a. NZ Falcon.

$50 Sir Apirana Ngata, a prominent Maori politician who worked to protect and regenerate Maori culture. Also features a type of Kokako, a rare NZ bird.

$100 Lord Rutherford of Nelson, a NZ born scientist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1908). He performed much of the early work on the atom. Also features the mohua, a bird found in certain areas of the South Island.

All for now.

L.

Here's the Plan

In less than 8 days I will be on a plane to begin my much-anticipated adventure.

After a serendipitous conversation with my friend Carlee, the two of us planned a rendezvous in Los Angeles that will include California sunshine, Hollywood, sushi, and most likely, Rodeo Drive. What more could a girl want? Couldn't be in LA with a more fun girl. I sincerely hope I win the MasterCard "Win Your Purchases" contest. Icing on the cake.

On January 10th I will depart LA for a much-anticipated (and much-deserved?) vacation in the Cook Islands. I've been interested in the Cook Islands since I listened to one of my grade seven teachers tell me all about her sailing adventures in the Islands. I don't have much on the agenda at the moment -- but likely details of snorkeling, hiking, and sunbathing will find their way into my journaling. Cross your fingers and wish me good weather!

After discovering that the Cook Islands are on our (as in North America's) side of the International Date Line, I rearranged my inter-island flights so that I could, in fact, find my way from Rarotonga to New Zealand on January 21. Could have been a good start to an interesting disaster.

You can expect to find me in Christchurch, New Zealand (South Island) from January 21 - June 15.

I plan to meet up with my best friend, Erin, in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) around mid-June to embark on a tour of South East Asia that will include Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. I'll be heading to Hong Kong late-July to spend some time with my friend Ilona and her mom.

ETA in Canada will be August 7th. I hope my mom has a comfy bed ready for me!


Email me for a mailing address and/or telephone number if you'd like to send chocolates, money, or any news from Canada. While in NZ, I'll be checking my larissa.polowick@uleth.ca email address regularly. Drop me an email to keep my homesickness at bay.

L.

Choose Your Own Adventure

I've been postponing my first post because, honestly, the first entry is a little intimidating -- after all, the first post has to capture and hook a broad audience of family, friends, professors, colleagues, roommates, acquaintances, and all the other people who have expressed an interest in following along with my travels. So, with all "first post" jitters aside, here goes:

Why New Zealand? Why now? Many questions stand behind my desire to embark, but perhaps the most fitting answer is: change. Something different. Something new. The world is a big place and I've only seen such a small part of it. From the moment I became a student at age five, I knew I wanted to be a teacher. Any time I considered an alternate career path -- journalism, photography, marine biologist, financial advisor, Prime Minister of Canada -- I always returned to teaching. The idea of teaching overseas first entered my 14-year-old mind, sparked by my grade nine math teacher. Ever since, I've been twirling the globe and studying the Atlas, dreaming of schools abroad.

New Zealand became a destination of interest sometime between high school and college. Friendly people and landscapes abound were among the first attractions, but later research suggested an experience in NZ schools would be an interesting challenge. I began looking more closely at the education system and curriculum, focusing on what the country had to offer in terms of English Language Arts studies, and from there, things began to look much clearer.

Once I realized I was hooked on NZ, I began looking into places to teach. I explored the country's cities from the distance of cyberspace, and made many inquiries wherever a helpful ear may be present. I settled on Christchurch after falling in love with all the pictures and first-hand confirmations of the city's beauty. Little did I know that four other student-teachers at the U of L were also thinking the same thing.

In less than 10 days I will be leaving everything that is familiar, comfortable, and routine. I'm spending a few days in Los Angeles, then ten days in the Cook Islands, and by January 21st, 2007, I will be in Christchurch -- standing in a country that I've been thinking about for a very long time. I hope all of you who are reading will become regular visitors to my blog.

This blog has a dual purpose -- to delight and instruct. It will serve as a venue for reflecting upon my teaching experiences in Christchurch, while facilitating a professional dialogue between myself and my professor(s). It will also be an online gateway for family and friends to follow along with my experiences overseas. Many exciting things to come.

Thanks for reading...

L.