Christmas
Christmas was very different this year. Since NZ is in the southern hemisphere, it is summer here. We had an average temperature of 25°C (75°F). The stores would still play the regular Christmas music, like "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" and "Let it Snow". That always felt very ambivalent. Kiwis (people from NZ) love Christmas. Everything is decorated. One store I was at had buoys with Christmas trees on them, which was funny. Most of CBD is decorated with lights and Christmas balls. A lot of houses also go full out, similar to the US, with Christmas lights, fake icicles, and figures,... Because it was so hot, and I had just arrived in NZ, so I never really got into the Christmas spirit. Kiwis celebrate Christmas on the 25th, but I decided to celebrate Christmas on the 24th, anyways.
A friend of mine from Austria and I wanted to spend Christmas Eve together. We decided to go to Waiheke Island. I went there earlier than her. When I was waiting for the bus on Waiheke Island, I met a somewhat older woman from the US. Her name is Neena. We started talking and decided to explore the island together. We went to Onetangi Beach. She told me a lot about her life, which was very interesting. She invited me to her hotel the next evening to celebrate Christmas Day a bit. My friend, Marley, arrived at Onetangi Beach. The rest of the day Marley and I spent at the beach. It was so cool to spend Christmas at the beach. That was exactly how I imagined how I would celebrate Christmas in NZ. In the afternoon we headed back to Auckland. Marley invited a couple she had met at the airport to go out for drinks with us. We went to a bar at the harbor. It was so cool to spend Christmas with people from all over the world.
On the evening of Christmas Day, I went to Neena's hotel. We cooked some Indian food, which was delicious, and talked a lot. We enjoyed each other's company very much.
This Christmas was indeed like no Christmas I ever celebrated before, but it was a blast.
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