1. Woche in Titirangi

Hi everyone,

I have now decided to create a little blog and upload some pictures and stories from my time in New Zealand. On one hand, to let you be a part of it and share my impressions with you. And on the other hand, because I don't want to write things multiple times... even though I actually prefer to be more individual and personal in contact. But I have developed a feeling that I sometimes lack the time to write as extensively as I would like to.

Four weeks have passed, it went by so fast. At first, everything felt a bit slow and I thought, how am I supposed to survive the 7 months alone. But over time, the days became fuller, the contacts increased and everything became more lively and fast-paced.

I spent the first week with Jaqs in Titirangi. An outskirts area of Auckland, which is practically located in a small forest area. In addition, her house was at the end of the street and only 2 minutes away from the sea. I slept in a cozy little wooden hut on her property and shared the house with her. She is an architect, historian, author, craniosacral therapist, warm-hearted, humorous, intelligent, energetic, highly volatile, and slightly cryptic. She was feeling a bit heartbroken because she had a fling with a famous architect through TV shows, but he wasn't contacting her anymore. With my very limited English language skills, she made me feel helpful in her processing even though all I did was listen. In the mornings, I worked for her in the garden for about 4 hours. It was a bit challenging because she kept coming up with new ideas for tasks for me, so I felt like I started 5 tasks but never really finished any of them. Another sign of her loving crypticity was that she would suddenly disappear during our joint work, and I would wait for her and then see her happily dedicating herself to other tasks shortly after. I refrain from making diagnoses, but it was apparent that certain character traits described in the ICD-10 influenced her everyday life. In the afternoon, she showed me around the area and we went, for example, to the city center to visit the art gallery, met a friend of hers who gave me a little tour, went on small hikes, and she showed me Piha, a charming beach with enchanting paths and views. Looking back, I have a very pleasant feeling and I am very grateful to her for this relaxed and warm introduction to my time in New Zealand.