Well I am here in Christchurch, New Zealand, also known as the Garden City. I woke up this morning in Auckland, went to the gym, and then boarded a 1 hour flight to the South Island fo New Zealand, where Christchurch is located. Christchurch is a much smaller town than Auckland, with a very small town type of feel. The people here are extremely friendly as well and we had a bit of time to explore this city before heading out to dinner.

We went punting on the Avon River. Now you may ask, “What is punting?” Well, I am glad you asked! I made a special video just for you…take a look!

Click here to view Eric Punting

We had a blast going down the river and they even let me try! I sort of beached us on the shoreline by accident, but I must say that the Punting Man said I did a very good job for a beginner! Punting by the way is similar to a gondola ride in Venice.

After the punting experience we went to a small arts building, where they had tons and tons of shops. Of course the highlight for me was the fudge shop and waffle stand. Here is a pic of myself and Caroline (our Camp Counselors USA representative) enjoying a chocolate covered, whipped cream waffle!

As eating is clearly the theme of this and all of my around the world journeys, I am off to dinner now! Stay tuned though, because tomorrow I will be taking pictures at the botanical gardens and they are ranked in the top 10 worldwide…

Arrival in Auckland vlog!

Woke up this morning and went to the gym. After such a long flight the day before, it’s nice to move around a bit! I had about an hour before the fair so I took a quick visit to the pool and then got ready for our fair. I took a picture for all of you to see of what the Canadensis table looks like at our international staff recruiting fairs. Unfortunately I can’t travel with a lot, so it’s pretty bare looking, but it definitely does the trick.

At the Auckland fair, there were 12 camps and approximately 40 applicants. I hired 2 new counselors for us this summer and both are really excited about the new adventures. Chris Kemp (TK) from the Hondas program, who is coming back to camp in 2009, showed up to help me recruit the staff. Chris made a brief video for all of you to watch, enjoy!

Chris Kemp (TK) vlogs from the camp fair!

After the fair was over, Chris took me to his family’s house, which is just a few minutes walk from the beach at Mission Bay. His family was so nice, warm, and welcoming and I got to see his really large and intimidating motorcycle and the jumps that he built for biking. After we spent some time with his family, he drove me up Mt. Eden which overlooks Auckland and the surrounding towns. I had a true 360 view of the area and the islands surrounding Auckland, which are absolutely spectacular.

For dinner, we met up with Euan McKee (a counselor from the wall/ropes for 4 summers) and we had a great time in the Viaduct area, overlooking the marina where all of the superyachts are docked. We had a nice time catching up on camp and life in general in New Zealand. We sat around for hours and then it was bedtime for me.

Thanks so much to Chris “TK” for helping me out today and showing me all around Auckland.

Tomorrow is my next flight out…so you have a few more hours of guessing where I am headed next!