Timmy said Josh coped well eating with chopsticks and never complained about anything. “The food was quite different for him, but we only went to McDonalds once – in Beijing.” One of the highlights for the boys was being part of the festivities for the 70th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Republic of China – which included watching a movie of the history of the Chinese republic – providing insight into the formation of the Chinese state. Josh said the distances he travelled in China and the scale of the country were staggering. “I’ve realised how amazing it is that these guys fly back every holiday, and then have to get used to their life in a boarding House again on their return.” Travel is definitely on both Josh’s and Ollie’s agenda for the future. “It’s incredible – it just makes you want to do more.” Exploring Spain It is a long way to Spain, but boarder Nathan McKenzie and dayboy Armando O’Shannessey didn’t hesitate when Richards House boarder Alberto Benito Santisteban invited them home with him for the September holidays. The three boys flew to Singapore, Zurich and finally Málaga, to spend three weeks with Alberto’s family in the coastal city bordering the Mediterranean Sea. “I invited the others because they are good mates, and I often stay at Nathan’s dairy farm at Rakaia,” says Alberto, prop for the 2nd XV, who came to College two years ago, drawn by the prospect of playing rugby. Little wonder then that one of the coolest things the boys did together in Málaga was play a game for his local club team.
From left: Ollie Blackburn, Timmy Li and Josh Garland
“ Now I can see what it’s like overseas … and can begin to understand something of what these guys are going through adjusting to life in New Zealand. ” Ollie Blackburn
After a week experiencing everyday life and about halfway through the holiday, Timmy and Josh flew to Beijing to join Ollie for a four-day tour of the Chinese capital and a visit to the Great Wall of China. They then went by train to Zhejiang where Timmy’s grandparents live. “This is my mother’s family. There are lots of other family members living there, too,” says Timmy. “An aunty speaks English and is a high school teacher so that was helpful for Josh, and a cousin came from Hong Kong for a visit with her Canadian partner, so that meant someone else for Josh to speak English with.”
When Josh was invited to Shenzhen for the holidays, he didn’t hesitate. “We flew to Hong Kong and then bused the two hours to Shenzhen, with a whole bunch of people talking all different languages,” says Josh. “Timmy’s Dad welcomed us at the bottom of the apartment building where they live on the 32nd floor. It was pretty amazing to see even taller buildings all around us. And the temperature really hit me like a bus. It was so humid, and when we arrived there about 9pm I was still wearing clothes from home, and sweating hot.”
College Issue 38 2020
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