JAFAs, Dairy, Volcanoes and What Have You...

Ever Been in a Volcano

Ever Been in a Volcano before?

It has been exactly 10 days since I set foot in AOTEAROA. "Land of the Long
White Cloud" according to the Maori people here. Maori's are the largest minority
group in this predominately European descent populated island. (Actually its 2
islands but if you want a history and Geography lesson, go to Google)

In the ten days since I have been here, I have learnt much more about the
dairy industry, rolled all the way down into a volcano and found the coolest
apartment this far south of the hemisphere!

The Volcano Story...

AIESEC in Auckland has a tradition used to welcome trainees to the country.
Usually, trainees are driven straight from the airport to this 'activity' but
luckily for me, it was raining when I arrived in New Zealand and they were a
bunch of other trainees arriving on either side of me. So they decided to wait
for the weekend. Good thing they did too! After flying 27 hours and they took me
to this 'activity'...I reserve my comment!

So, the Saturday dawned bright, crisp and cold. I met up with Cristiane and
Carina, both from Brazil and the Philippines respectively and both new interns to Fonterra as well. We went to look at what has become our new apartment (more on this later) and all three of us joined up with AIESEC in AUckland members at the University.

I had been trying to fathom what sort of shape or form the reception activity could possibly take and I was imagining whipped cream in interesting places, or marsh mellows stuffed into the mouth... but my pitiful imagination could not have prepared me for what it actually was.
We were driven to the top of Mount Eden, a young volcano which only erupted some 500 years ago (I think). And although there was a clear sign at the rim of the volcano saying no one was allowed to go into the crater, there were already a bunch of AIESECers waiting for us in the volcano and a another bunch at the rim.

And yes...you guessed it... we were supposed to roll down into the 80ish degree, over 100 meters slope of the volcano.

With the JAFAs (Just Another Fucking Aucklander) urging us on, we dithered, complained, made excuses but eventually yours truly took the lead, dropped my scarf and hat and commenced to make my way down the slope. (Fine thing it would be if I commenced to break my neck in my first week in Auckland!) but not before we got told off by some conservationist lady who called us little kids for destroying a national monument for the sake of tradition (apparently the volcano crater is fragile hence the warning on the
rim). Below is a picture of me defying NZ laws and my natural predilection for self preservation. ( I am in the lead)

We did the NZ roll call in the crater of the volcano (This is the way we shear our sheep... shear our sheep... shear our sheep) and then we had to skedaddle out of the crater as someone screamed out that the cops were on the way! This turned out to be a false alarm. We had a Weetabix eating competition in which I came second and had the damn stuff stuck
in my teeth for the rest of the day! Never eat it dry ladies and gentlemen, (but it is fantastic with warm milk and fruit for breakfast as I have come to find out!)

The view from the top of Mount Eden is absolutely fantastic and you can see the whole of Auckland for miles and miles. Wouldn't be a bad place to propose undying love and devotion to your soul mate. (I wonder if they have one of those in New Zealand, especially for young bucks like me!) Below is a picture of me proclaiming new found love to the drink of the land. L&P it is called and you have to taste it to understand...And you can also see the wonderful landscape I was talking about, behind me.

Twas a pretty chilled out day the rest of the day. We went to the beach afterwards, the beach (or some sort of water) is never that far away in Auckland. Just Like in Stockholm! But in Auckland, you can have a fun filled day in the sun on the beach IN WINTER! Which
was exactly what we did. Fish and Chips and Movenpick ice cream provided fare for the afternoon!

Work has been absolutely....overwhelming! I have learned more about the Dairy Industry in the last one week than I have in the last five years. I work with a really great bunch of people and one of my colleagues is I swear a re-incarnation (or twin sister) of Lucy Morgan! "Oh My God Its Amazing" and the personality and the happy atmosphere....sheesh! The floor I work on has 150 odd people and since it is a customer service for the largest company in New Zealand dealing with all regions of the world, its a pretty diverse atmosphere. Just
like...hmmm...reminds me of a similar organization I was involved with recently at leadership level...hmmmm (heheheheh)

Middle East Team which I work on has kiwis, Mexicans, an Iranian, a Swede, 2 Indians and an Englishman on it. Then there is the USA team, Latin America team, Asia team, Oceania team, Brands team, Inventory team....Gosh! I am still working my way through them of course trying to meet people. And there are of course 7 AIESEC interns (that's the name of that organization!!!) on the floor, Eunnie from Korea on Asia team; Christina
from Germany and Tanya from Russia on Europe team; Cristiane from Brazil and Anna from Ecuador on Latin America team; Carina from Philippines on USA team and of course me!

And there will be Mialy from Madagascar joining us in August. She
will be on the middle East team with me and also be sharing the apartment with Cristiane and I. Does anyone out there know any Madagascans? Below is a picture of all the AIESEC interns in Auckland. (I should always remember to face the sun) The guy next to me is Jerone from the Netherlands but he works in Ernst &Young.

(From Left:
exchange student from Germany; Ina-Philippines; Jerone-Netherlands;
Ladi; Anna-Ecuador; Christina-Germany; Eunnie-Korea and Cris-Brazil. Tanya from
Russia is missing)

Shoot!

Now I have to run. A couple of colleagues of mine are coming to help us move our stuff from the LCP's house to our new apartment. YAY! Us, being Cris and I. Tell you all about the apartment in the next post! Have to run now!

Kiwiland. At Last!

No 9, Almorah Place Epsom, Auckland.

I am sitting in the study of this charming, elegant and stately house. It is home to David Benjamin's family (LCP of AIESEC in Auckland and a really nice chap to boot!)

And I never want to see another aeroplane again ever!

23 hours flying time, 27 in total for the trip from London to Auckland and I am finally here in Auckland. The longest trip by plane I have had the pleasure of taking and if I dont get on another plane for a year, that would be just fine. Downside...only those who TRULY love me will be convinced to come and visit me in the coming couple of years!

But first how did my trip go? Emirates is a good airline but I defintely think the hype surrounding them is a bit over the hedge! I went to pick up my ticket on Thursday July 15 at the Emirates office in London and it went without a hitch. I had been a bit anxious because my flight was the next day Friday and I had been informed that I could pick up my ticket at the airport if I wanted. So it was a sense of relief that I got the paper ticket in my hand.

But come Friday night, I got to the airport with all my lugagge and my big sister in tow and was informed by the check in officer I couldnt board the flight!!! Why? Apparently, the flight was transiting through Australia and I needed a transit visa to land there. I took a look at my ticket again and pointed out that this itinierary was not reflected on the ticket... and why didnt the dude who took my money at the Emirates office inform me of this. He took a good long look at my passport when he issued the damn ticket!

The nice Emirates officer in charge was very nice I have to say, but powerless to help me. The best she could do was re-book me for Monday night July 17 (when i was supposed to start work) and advise me to go to the Australian High Commission on Monday morning and try and get the transit visa!!!

Bollocks, Buggger, Goddamnit...were some of the milder words that came to my mind!

Anyway, I made my back with my sister on the Gatwick Express and spent a very LONG weekend in London. (Except for the one pleasure of meeting up for a family dinner on Sunday where I met up with a whole bunch of cousins including one I hadnt seen in 5 years and who got married earlier this year. See you in the US soon Eni and Ryan!)

On Monday morning, I was at the Australian High Commission at 9am and it went without a hitch again! The consular did ask me why the Melbourne transit was not reflected on my ticket (Good Question!) and she had to call the Emirates office to confirm this. For a supposedly World Class airline, isnt their reputation built in such mundane details? Especially when some of their customers hold a Nigerian passport and need such details?

The folks in New Zealand were understandbly upset when they got my message on Friday to say i had been denied boarding. We (I and the other interns) were supposed to start on July 10. Amy, MCP New Zealand was very emphatic in urging me to action and not to feel sorry for myself... hehehehehehe... You meet a lot of hedges on the way when you are moving across the world and have only a month to arrange it all I guess! (Forgive the constant reference to 'hedge'. Just saw the movie)

Anyway... I got to the airport nice and early on Monday evening and good thing I did too! In trying to check me in...the system again refused to print my boarding pass and lugagge transfer tag. I spent another half hour waiting while the Emirates ground staff called Australia and got the immigration office in Canberra to override the automatic block on the system. Apparently, because the transit visa had been issued earlier in the day, it hadnt been registered properly in their systems. But eventually it was cleared and i got my boarding pass!

And so began the trip.

LONDON TO DUBAI - 6 hours 50mins (You were right Toyin, it IS NOT 10 hours)
TRANSIT IN DUBAI - 3 hours (I have to go back for a holiday in Dubai! What an airport!)
DUBAI TO MELBOURNE - 12 hours 55 mins (Sat beside a nice teenage girl who's an ardent Spurs fan! And didnt manage to get through the 500 channels on my personal TV screen!)
TRANSIT IN MELBOURNE - 1 hour 30 mins (NO ONE even looked at the DAMN Transit Visa)
MELBOURNE TO AUCKLAND - 3 hours (Not a lot of weekend trips abroad i guess)

I arrived in Auckland International Airport bum weary and slack eyed! Immigration went pretty fast but then i got to customs and was asked some seemingly routine questions,
'Did you pack your bags yourself?' - YES
'Are you bringing in any food?' - NO
'Are you bringing in any plants...' - NO

And so on...but then the blonde pretty girl directed me to Aisle 4 and to walk along the Blue Line. The Blue Line took me to a customs area where i got a further shock! There were passengers with their lugagge on these metal tables and with customs officials going through their stuff. When i say 'going through their stuff', i mean taking each item of clothing and shaking it out one by one!!!

I watched with mounting disbelief as the same questions as above were asked to the passengers and then some. I started racking my brains to see if any my sisters might have packed some foodstuff or organic material into my bags. I felt secure as I specifically remembered saying No to my eldest sister when she tried to press some preservatives and stuff on me! But i still couldnt believe the detailed searches that were going on in front of me.

Eventually after staying about an hour on the queue, it got to my turn and i put my stuff on the table and subsequently wasnt allowed to touch them anymore. I had to sign a declaration form stating that i wasnt carrying any contraband and i guess this would have served as a basis for prosecuting me if they did find anything!

The customs officer then proceeded to ask me a lot of immigration sounding questions all over again. Where had i lived for the last one year? What was I coming to New Zealand for? Did i have any documentation proving this... Eventually, he only poked his hands into my laptop bag and retrieved my documents from Fonterra, made some copies and then asked me to put my lugagge back on the trolley and come with him.

I was spared the indignity of having my underwear strewn all over the airport but still had to put my bags through an X-ray machine where I got another fright. The X-ray machine showed up three ball like items and they asked me again if i had any food on me and what were those three balls. I told them i didnt have a clue and we would have to open up my suitcase. I did and suddenly realized what the three balls were a split second before we got to them. Herbal Soap. I wondered if this fell under the list of contraband items and had a 10 second period of adrenaline rush. Eventually, the 3 customs officials just said, 'Ah, its just soap..', asked me to zip up my bag and wished me a pleasant stay in New Zealand! PHEW!

I came out to the arrivals hall and had 2 AIESECers there waiting for me with a gift pack from AIESEC Auckland and some Newspapers.(Not really sure myself heheh) The grand reception they had planned for me on Sunday fell through as this was Wednesday and most people had classes. I stepped into the wet, rainy day, into the car and chatted with Franklin and Riduan all the way to David's place. David was at school himself but his nice mum showed me to my room where i had a shower and i checked my email in David's room afterwards. Apparently, Cristiane arrived on Monday and Ina is arriving tomorrow (today) as well. We all start on Friday so i have the whole of Thursday to try and beat this Jet Lag.

So now it is 4:20am NZT, but obviously still after 5pm in London. I have slept for some 8 hours already and will try and get through Thursday without sleeping again. It has been a roller coaster of a trip and I have to send out emails now to people that I have arrived safely. Already there is some sort of party on Saturday for us all and i am looking forward to meeting all the AIESEC and Fonterra people!

Kene left me with some advice on Thursday last week, 'Approach all new ideas and experiences with an inquiring mind...' I intend to do just this in my new country of residence!

Hello Kiwiland!

Ode to Stockholm...

This is not my real tribute to my home for the last one year.


Rather this is more of a nostalgic post. I am sitting on the couch in the living room in the MC apartment, working on Aron´s Mac. My Bag is packed (I hope it is less than 20kg), I had my goodbye chillout yesterday (very secretly pleased at the number of people that showed), hugged Maria goodbye this morning as we both got lumps in our throat and watery eyes.

My plane to London leaves in a few hours and i am getting such mixed feelings. I had my application for visa to the UK denied last Friday after almost 3 weeks, i re-applied on Monday and got it the same day! My flight from London to Auckland should be paid for now... I will have a few days to spend with my sisters at least and i am thankful for that.

Good bye Stockholm... I will miss you... I will miss the winter (Believe it) I will miss the summer (glad i have the enduring memory of Stockholm in summer) and most of all i will miss the people. Friends, colleagues, trainees, strangers on the subway.... All such beautiful people!

Requiem for a Dream!
PS
Let the kiwi adventure begin!!!

Bored? Go to BlogThings...

What can I say??? I should be out on this lovely day exploring Stockholm even more but herei am stuck indoors taking 'BlogThings'!

Again this particular BlogThing puts me in a fair bit of positive light which is why i am posting it here at all. I would recommend the site if you are bored and have nothing better to do. I certainly dont at this moment

Good news. My UK visa will be approved today and i can pick it up first thing tomorrow. Need to make a few phone calls....

Your Values Profile

Loyalty: You value loyalty a fair amount. You're loyal to your friends... to a point. But if they cross you, you will reconsider your loyalties. Staying true to others is important to you, but you also stay true to yourself. Honesty: You value honesty a fair amount. You're honest when you can be, but you aren't a stickler for it. If a little white lie will make a situation more comfortable, you'll go for it. In the end, you mostly care about "situational integrity." Generosity: You value generosity a fair amount. You are all about giving, as long as there's some give and take. Supportive and kind, you don't mind helping out a friend in need. But you know when you've given too much. You have no problem saying "no"! Humility: You value humility a fair amount. You tend to be an easy going, humble person. But occasionally your ego takes over. You have a slight competitive streak - and the need to be the best. Tolerance: You value tolerance highly. Not only do you enjoy the company of those very different from you... You do all that you can to seek it out interesting and unique friends. You think there are many truths in life, and you're open to many of them.

The Five Factor Values Test

Kiwiland Beckons

So I am supposed to start work on Monday July 10 in Auckland!

We (me and the other AIESEC interns) got a letter from Fonterra informing us where to report to on the morning of July 10. Right down to the exact location of the ground floor of the lobby of the Fonterra Group Headquarters!

However, delays with visa will not let me start on time and that makes me sooooooooo pissed! Aaaaaarggghhhh! So here i am wanting to hit the ground running and i will be late for the induction! Bollocks! My NZ visa IS ready but as i will be flying through London (the cheapest flights from Europe) I have to re-new my UK visa which expired in May.

The UK embassy which is normally so efficient has taken over 2 weeks to process this renewal now! I had submitted my application on June 15 expecting the visa to be issued before all my documents for the NZ work visa were ready. It wasnt. And i got quite a scare this morning when i was told i had to book an appointment online to re-submit my documents. The next available appointment was for July 20!!!

My charm worked and i got in and handed in my passport. If things were perfect, the visa would be ready by tomorrow, i pick it up catch the next flight to London and leave onFriday night.

Alas, things are not perfect so i will probably get it latest on Monday (boo hoo!) I intend to leave on the next available flight (if it doesnt cost an arm and a leg)!

Now i am really getting excited! There have been the cutest posts from the LC members of AIESEC in Auckland welcoming me and i was bouncing up and down in my seat just reading them. I am also supposed to be reading up on Fonterra, but seeing as i already did quite extensive research when interviewing for the position.... But you never know too much, right?

I need to arrange a goodbye chillout and invite people to it before i leave Stockholm, that oughta be fun!

My only regret is that I will not be able to go via Lagos to see my sweet-heart and future mother of my children Temitope! I am not sure when next I will see her but we will see if I can make it at Xmas. I miss her so much!

New Zealand here I come!!!!!

Vacation in Stockholm

Stockholm is a beautiful city with beautiful people!

Before i came to Sweden, I had heard that Swedish girls are some of the most beautiful in the world. I have been here for a year and I completely agree!

Blonde hair, blue eyes, pouty lips, lots of attitude and such an eye for fashion! And its the same with the guys as well. The guys are even more concerned with their looks than the girls are...or so the cliche goes. Its a REAL pity that I am not naturally attracted to blondes and Scandinavian looking women in general. I am more into the Latino look, dark hair, curves and the drama to match! I never thought i would say it, but i miss the drama that an African woman gives, none of all that drama in Sweden where equality is the byword and no one is expected to take all responsibility in a relationship...but i digress...

So i have been on vacation since Monday, the new MC team took over and its really nice just to wake up in the morning and not have to worry about making it to the office on time! No more conferences to worry about, exchange figures to boost, LC visit to plan... Its the end of a time for me truly! But maybe AIESEC Auckland will have some expectations on me... who knows?

My original plan had been to leave for London yesterday but since i only got my passport back from the New Zealand embassy today and i still have to renew my UK visa so i can fly through London.... I am supposed to start work in Fonterra on Monday July 10 and i would have had to leave on Friday July 7 to do that. There is still a chance of leaving on Friday but it ALL depends on the UK embassy. If i get my passport back same day tomorrow, then MAYBE i can make it...the downside is that I dont get to spend ANY time with my sisters. But still i have informed AIESEC New Zealand of all this. Let us see how it goes. I will be at the UK embassy first thing tomorow and see if i cant work some magic and charm there...

On Monday, while walking and exploring Stockholm, i came across so many interesting things. There was a live band marching through the City Center with a lot of fanfare, there was a con artist who was betting 1000SEK that onlookers couldnt pick out the ball from three revolving cups he was constantly moving around (I picked it out correctly three times but didnt take his money) and I flirted with this one girl so much on the train... its a wonder i didnt get her number. (BUGGER!)

Today Tuesday, I have spent the whole day on the beach lying in the sun (obviously not for the tan),sleeping and ogling the swedish girls in their skimpy bikinis. What a vacation!

Anyway now...I have been dispossesed of my computer as my successor has taken it over but he was nice enough to lend me his personal one. So I should be able to stay on top of my emails at least!

Its been a magical year in Sweden, now i am heading to New Zealand! New place, new time zone, new challenges! Bring it on!

Distraction on My Last Day as an MC member

Okay okay...

I know I know...these 'tests' are a dime a dozen on the internet and dont give a truly accurate description. I take these tests quite a lot but usually just raise an eyebrow (even if that) and then close the window.

But today is my last day as an MC member and the close of a chapter in my life. It is harder than i thought on this last day and i have been trying to distract myself from dwelling on this fact. The fact that i am having to do the first draft of my MC team's goodbye message to the country is not helping.

I am right now listening to Shakira's "My Hips dont lie" featuring Wyclef, (Maria Lucia Uribe has the video on her blog click here) and this test is so positive about me that i just had to post it here.

Those of you that know me, is there an iota of truth in this?!

Your Seduction Style: Au Natural

You rank up there with your seduction skills, though you might not know it. That's because you're a natural at seduction. You don't realize your power! The root of your natural seduction power: your innocence and optimism. You're the type of person who happily plays around and creates a unique little world. Little do you know that your personal paradise is so appealing that it sucks people in. You find joy in everything - so is it any surprise that people find joy in you? You bring back the inner child in everyone you meet with your sincere and spontaneous ways. Your childlike (but not childish) behavior also inspires others to care for you. As a result, those who you befriend and date tend to be incredibly loyal to you.

What Kind of Seducer Are You?