Hello, Hive!
I just came back from a week-long trip, which means I have more travel content to share with you! But before that happens, I will continue with my New Zealand series first. In my last post about this trip, I talked about Day 1 of the Research Conference I attended and spending time with my friend at a place called The Secret Spot.
On my fourth day in New Zealand, I attended Day 2 of the Conference and visited the Blue Lake in Rotorua. I also got some much-needed Filipino food.
Finding a Fellow Filipino
I was staying at my friend's place and she kindly offered to drive me to the conference venue before she went to work. My mornings in New Zealand were cold and crisp, but my trip was in February which is summer. It usually got quite hot at noon until late in the afternoon. I decided to dress a bit casually, no coat and jacket. I was purely an audience for this day.
My friend dropped me off at the venue quite early. She took a few snaps of me before she saw her boss inside the venue. Their company was a sponsor of the event and her boss presented one of their research. She did not want her boss to see her, so she took off for work immediately.
I planned out which sessions I was going to attend for the day. I just read through the titles and highlighted which ones sounded interesting and useful to me. I also had one objective during that day, which was to find another Filipino attendee. I went through the roster of the presenters' names and one stood out. Marilou, a common Filipino name. Her family name sounded Filipino, too. So, I made sure to attend her talk. True enough, when I saw her, I knew I was right. I made sure to ask questions after her talk and planned on approaching her during one of the breaks.
There was one more session I wanted to attend. I met another conference attendee during the Maori Village tour I had attended on my second day in New Zealand. He was from Germany and he specialized in hydrogen production. I was pleasantly surprised at how engaging and goofy, even, his presentation. He likened doing simulations to cooking, and it was quite fun to see the analogy.
During the break, I looked for Marilou and talked to her. I was so relieved to be able to see a "Kabayan." We talked for a bit and shared how we ended up being in New Zealand and attending the conference. We exchanged some infos, and decided to talk more during the Socials Night the next day.
Beautiful Vulnerability at Blue Lake
I had to leave early because I still had an online class to teach, and my friend said she was taking me to Blue Lake. During the entire drive, I was on Google Meet talking to my students. I finished my class just as I arrived at the lake. I only caught glimpses of tall green mountains that we passed by. We parked the car and got out.
The sight of the lake was magnificent! I immediately knew why they called the Blue Lake. It reflected the clear blue sky above. And it was expansive. We don't have a lot of lakes in Cebu, so seeing one so big is always a new experience for me. We moved closer to the edge of the lake. The water was clear and looked quite cold.
My friend told me a story about her early days in Rotorua. They had this ritual for newcomers to dip themselves in the freezing water of the Blue Lake. She did not want to do that, so she had to do an alternative task. I think it was dressing up in tribal clothes and doing a dance number. Personally, I would have just dipped in the cold water than dance.
We walked around the edge of the lake and the ground was covered in grass that was cut and well-maintained. There weren't a lot of people during our visit because this was on a weekday and it was already late in the afternoon. I had zero plans of going swimming during this trip, so I didn't pack any swimming clothes. Had I known about these lakes, maybe I would have prepared myself to do some cold swimming. But I just contended myself to walking around the water's edge and enjoying the view.
At the lake, my friend and I spent some time talking about stuff. She shared some of her struggles with living alone in New Zealand, and what she really wanted to do in the future. I also talked about the challenges I faced back at home. And so thinking about Blue Lake reminds me of vulnerability and personal struggles. But the place itself is so beautiful. The thought then becomes 'beautiful vulnerability.' Struggles can be messy, but they can also be beautiful and magnificent.
On my second day in New Zealand, my friend introduced me to another Filipino. She called her Chef. Chef told my friend that she should bring me to her house and try some of her cooking. There is a close and strong Filipino community in Rotorua, my friend told me. And Chef is considered a leader. After staying for four days in New Zealand and eating mostly salad and vegetarian options at the conference, I wanted some rice and Filipino food.
Feasting on Filipino Food
We left the lake and headed back to the city. I could now see with full attention the route we had taken. It was what I'd always imagined New Zealand to be, full of green rolling hills, a mountainous paradise.
We stopped by a store for some drinks. I wanted to buy some beer but my friend told me that alcoholic drinks were not allowed at Chef's place because she was a recovered alcoholic. I thought that was really smart, having no room for temptation.
We arrived at Chef's place and the smell of Filipino food embraced me. It was a Filipino household. I had to help a bit in the kitchen and set up the table. We even prayed together for the food. I was so happy to see so much rice. Chef had prepared the most Filipino food I could hope for, "Tinolang Manok" and "Sisig." I feasted on that dinner. We shared some stories and the best thing was that people knew how to speak "Bisaya," which is my local dialect. I understood how Chef was seen as a leader in the community. She took in Filipinos who came to New Zealand and offered them lodging and food until they found a stable job, afforded a car, and got their own place to stay. What a wonderful way to help people.
Everyone still had work the next day, so we ended the night and my friend and I returned to her place. It was still past 8 in the evening and we could still the sunset. This day was so good. I got to meet a Filipino at the conference, I saw Blue Lake, and I ate good Filipino food.
That's it! This trip is almost coming to an end. It's a bit sad. But I am also happy I get to reminisce about the things I did during this trip. I hope you enjoyed reading this blog. See you in the next one. Cheers!