Saturday, 14.03.20, Day 118

Onewhero Domain, Onewhero

Today is a special day, of which Arnd knows nothing yet. Under the pretext, we drive to Auckland, where Eileen and Nicola surprise him with a rugby match at Eden Park Stadium for his birthday in two days. When we finally enlighten Arnd, he is thrilled, he never expected this. With a beaming smile, we explore the big stadium, where different stands are set up and we get some fan merchandise. The game between Blues (Auckland) and Lions (Wellington) starts at 4:25 pm, which can be seen particularly well from the front row. With a cool beer in hand, we explain the rules of the game based on the first few minutes and with the help of the internet, and it quickly becomes clear that it is a very physical sport with constant scrums. After 40 minutes, the first half is over, so the Haka is traditionally celebrated. That alone is an experience in itself! At the end of the second half, we leave the stadium, overjoyed.

This gift has brought great joy to all three of us.