Isle aux Canards

What a fanatastic day we've had today! We were down at the beach by 8.30 ready to take the water taxi over to the island. It is only a 2minute ride and we had a perfect day for it. The sea was like glass and the sun shining so that everyone was ready to hit the water as soon as we arrived! Throughout the day the kids snorkelled along the set route over a coral reef, swam and went paddle boarding, or else just lay on the beach relaxing. Sophie snorkelled away happily too and overcame her fear of the little fish she thought might be man-eaters!

                                                        Isle aux Canards (Duck Island)
 Even I had a go at paddle boarding this year and quite fancied a turn around the little bay we had told the kids they could practise in. I was fine for a few minutes and then suddenly my legs got shaky and I disappeared over the back of the board out of view!  I must say I provided the main entertainment of the day for those watching Madame!  there happened to be a couple of helicopters hovering above at the time and Ollie told me that they were surely there from TV3 and that everyone at home would get a replay! Carrie laughed so much she could hardly stand!

We finished up there and began the walk to Mariotti at 3pm to meet the billets. They had a great day and it is so nice to see how pleased they are to greet their billets now at the end of the day. Caitlyn said today that she can't believe how scared she was last week but now she knows she won't want to say goodbye on Thursday. 

We look forward to our day at Phare Amedee tomorrow with more snorkelling and swimming but with the odd sea snake thrown in for good measure for a change!
Au revoir!
The TIS team

The New Week

We had a wonderful day yesterday, although it was long and the kids were all very tired as they waited for their hosts to collect them at 4pm yesterday. The Deputy Mayor received us in Council Chambers as the Mayor wasn't there. We also met the guy in charge of education in New Caledonia, and we will return his hospitality in September when Jean Mariotti come to Taupo with him, Madame Mezouar, their Principal, and the french ambassador to NZ from Wellington. Our kapa haka group I'm sure will do us proud with their powhiri! A few of them spoke yesterday morning, and once again showed how they emphasise the importance of the sister city relationship between Noumea and Taupo, and how vital it is to show kids from a young age the importance of tolerance between cultures, and the sharing of knowledge, expertise and understanding between our cultures. The kids sang and the boys did their haka which was great.
The bus then collected us and took us to the north of the city to Daniel Talon primary school. As a first time visitor, Carrie found the experience moving and it certainly made a impact ono our kids. The whole school of about 200 kids was sitting outside on mats in their shingle playground as we arrived. They are so cute and mainly kanak kids. Each class sang songs for us that they had been practising and were so excited to have us there. They are a 'high priority' school in New Caledonia, which means they get a lot of government assistance because the area is one of the poorest in Noumea. One teacher was telling us that 70% of the kids come from extreme poverty with many of them just living in huts.  They look forward to the annual visit from the kiwis, as they call us, and wear their best clothes especially for us. These amount to a colourful collection of second hand clothing that often doesn't fit properly, but worn with pride as they appreciate how special the day is.  After we performed our waiata, the boys did the much awaited haka. It is so funny to watch their faces - they just love the haka. Baz and the boys taught it to a class later on and we saw the boys walking around pulling faces and slapping their chests as they really got into it, and reciting the words. One little boy even had one of those black tee-shirts we can buy with the Maori and English words of the haka on the front. Goodness knows where he got it from!  He was a proud little chap yesterday! The kids spent the rest of the day in classes making kanak masks and bookmarks with indiginous designs on. They looked great. As we left, the whole school came out to say goodbye, and as usually happens, our kids feel like movie stars, moving amongst the cheering, yelling crowd!  One gorgeous little girl of about 6 came up to me and said au revoir as she kissed both cheeks and gave me the necklace she'd been wearing. I had commented on how beautiful it was earlier and she wanted me to take it home. I was very moved.
The bus took us back to Mariotti and the kids were duly collected. All have had a good weekend, although Aly got to share a family experience that wasn't what we normally expect - a funeral, but as we told her, it was just another experience to add to her list. She was a bit sore after falling off the swimming raft but we gave her something to rub on it and some panadol and she was fine when she left us yesterday. Hannah's cold is much improved and everyone else is fighting fit!
We went to the supermarket after that to buy lots of baguettes to fill this morning for everyone as today we are spending the day over on Isle du Canard -Duck Island. It is about $11 each to buy one filled so we're doing our own in the apartment before we meet the kids this morning!
Carrie had a special birthday yesterday and I'm sure it's one she won't forget. We went to a restaurant for dinner to celebrate and were too tired to face the blog when we returned at 10pm - hence the early morning composition!
The day looks beautiful as dawn is breaking so I'm sure it will be another memorable one for the kids.
The TIS team

Gastronomie!

Bonjour!
We were lucky to time our free day with a food and wine festival on in town today!  There were lots of things to taste and wines to sample and amazing gadgets to buy. I was pretty happy with my new Kenwood mixer I got earlier in the year, but I'm afraid it is nothing on the $2,500 jobbie I saw today! I've not even seen anything like it in NZ!
The weather was great today so we swam and relaxed and even napped to catch up on some sleep after a fairly sleepless night. There was a big demonstration not far from us last night to do with the referendum New Caledonia is having in 2014 regarding the kanaks getting independence from France. There was so much noise and LOUD music til 5am so most of us slept very little. We've discovered though that Baz can sleep through anything! Carrie and I felt as though we were sleeping on the actual dance floor, it was so bad! Poor old Bill had to be downstairs for his shuttle to the airport at 5am so he wasn't impressed.
We saw Tegan and Emma at the beach today, and they were both all smiles and were enjoying their weekend. We are looking forward to seeing them all tomorrow morning and hearing all their news.
Carrie is enjoying her immersion experience and even thinks she forgets English words at times as she gets the languages muddled!
We had a fabulous french meal at Madame Mezouar's last night. Her husband is Morrocan and does most of their cooking, and it was very cordon bleu! Carrie wasn't too keen on trying the raw tuna but discovered it was beautiful - marinated with lemon juice, olives and spring onions. of course we just about had to restrain Bill from devouring the lot! That was followed by NZ lamb then a large selection of cheeses and then to-die-for desserts! The french do food sooo well!
Tomorrow is a big day with brekky at City Hall and then out to Daniel Talon primary school. Hope the weather remains as good as it's been over the weekend. Tomorrow night hopefully this internet connection will let us load some photos of the kids.
Au revoir!
The TIS team.

Baie des Citrons

Girls changing French style at the beach on Friday! The top shot was taken outside the Aquarium.

Beach babes at Baie des Citrons!

Enjoying the raft at Baie des Citrons!

Great under water shot!

A Day in the Country

We enjoyed a sleep in today till 7.30am. Our first port of call was the markets where we saw Harry, Sophie and Brittany buying gifts and looking at all the amazing and different things there.
We headed North to Bourail to visit the New Zealand Memorial Cemetery. It is situated in the most beautiful peaceful setting looking out over the valley. It is very well maintained. As we walked around the graves a sadness was felt for all the families who lost such young boys who were buried so far from home. Baz then felt like checking out the surf beach so we ventured a few kms out to the coast. This beach is also where the Turtles come to breed during the wet season which is November to April. It was then time to make our way back to the city as there are no cafes or other such civilised places up there!
We had a lovelt traditional Bougne at one of the teachers houses last night and tonight we have been invited for dinner to the Principal Madame Mezouar's.
Bill heads back home to NZ tomorrow morning with an early start. He is not looking forward to facing the cold in Taupo.
The Tis team

A Day in Town

The day dawned with beautiful blue skies and rising temps. We headed into the city to the Morand chocolate factory. It is supposedly the best in town and we all agreed it must be!  Chocolatiers are real artisans and his decorations and garnishes were absolutely amazing! Aly, Saxon and Harrison all tried their hand at making chocolate shells and didn't do too badly.

We had a look around a few shops after that and I wandered in to a beautiful linen shop for a browse. The prices are always off-putting though, and I was very strong and left without purchasing anything. A few seconds later the friendly lady from the shop called out to me and asked me to come back inside. I thought she must have something else to show me, but she closed the door behind me and asked me to open my bag! An older 'gentleman' had come in while I was browsing and apparently had told her I'd stolen something! He didn't think I could understand french and was busily telling her it was hidden in the front, and then when they saw it wasn't there, he said I must have it in the front pocket! She was very apologetic as I repacked my bag and in my very best french, I asked the 'gentleman' if he was sorry as well! He rudely just looked the other way and didn't reply. ...my first experience in Noumea of french arrogance!

We then had some lunch in the shade on some grass as the kids were starting to wilt in the heat!  We rested there for an hour, then headed up to the dance studio. They had a great afternoon performing with some fantastic teachers. The studio is run by professional dance instructors but owned by the Council. It is open after school hours for young kids to attend a wide range of classes from the various arts, and is all free.

We saw them off with their families after numerous hugs and instructions to use sun block over the weekend!

Tomorrow we teachers hope to drive further North and visit the NZ war cemetery. New Caledonia was the hospital base for the Pacific during the war and of course  quite a few NZ soldiers died here. We will spend more time trying to load photos tomorrow seeing we don't have to go to school early in the morning. 

Experiencing French Education

We always look forward to the morning after the first night!The kids are excited and so keen to share what they've seen and eaten that is different! This morning we were greeted with big smiles and all were happy and ready to face the day. Some were sporting necklaces and earrings that were gifts for them, but loved hearing the messages from home. Breakfast produced a few comments. Some had cereal ( which is usually with some form of chocolate) but others had biscuits dipped in chocolate milk! Harrison couldn't get over that his host brother just ate half a packet of biscuits for breakfast! Working in a french classroom is a shock for them and they all commented on the fact that they were bare with no wall displays. There were bars on the windows. They also couldn't get over the fact that as soon as the bell rang, everyone just stands up and bolts, even if the teacher is still talking.... very americaine! They are so going to love their own kiwi classroom when they get home!
At recess they were surrounded by the hosts and a heap of interested Jean Mariotti students and were all talking to each other. Not speaking fluently in the same language is never a barrier to communication with kids, which is great to see. Some finished school at 10.30am while most finished at 11.30am for the day and were going off with their host brothers and sisters to do a range of activities.

It is interesting to note that the education system here is interested in having uniforms like we do. At present it's all mufti. Bill and I had a lunch meeting with Council staff to discuss the implementation of uniforms in some schools here as a start. They are not expecting it to be a smooth transition.We also met with the President of the New Caledonia Rugby Union to discuss the inclusion of Under 15 Taupo players participating in the annual International tournament here.
It was cloudy first thing this morning but began lightly raining about 12pm. It is still warm though, so not unpleasant.
The forecast is for fine tomorrow so we are expecting to be able to have a day walking around the bays and swimming and snorkelling.
Keep those fires burning at home!

Au revoir
The Tis Team

PS Sorry there are no pictures as we have internet issues tonight.
PPS Bonjour ma classes! Comment ca va? Je vous manque et je vous aime! I loved your message aussi!