Page 109 - NHS Beyond the Classroom

slowly filled up the bus - they were all so very
proud of us - and we were finally on the road.
The trip to Wellington was long’ We had a
flash ‘Luxury Travel’ bus and to get rid of the
boredom we had integrated TVs and, of course,
our ‘munchies’. All the way there we watched
‘Nacho Libra’, ‘Grease’ and a few Kapa Haka
DVDs as well.
We arrived at Silverstream Retreat and it
looked really scarey! We shared the whole Retreat
Centre with Hamilton Boys and Girls High Schools
whose tutors are whanau to ours.
The building we stayed in was Stonewall
Lodge. Apparently it was an old mental hospital
and an old people’s home. One of the buildings
even said ‘Blood Pressure Unit’ - pretty freaky if
you ask me!
From late nights laughing and buzzing out
that we would be performing real soon, to waking
up ridiculously early (between 4:30am and
5:30am) preparation for our stand was getting more
and more heart-pounding.
The Powhiri on Tuesday morning was
FREEZING! But thanks to our new “slick” number
one uniform, the cold wasn’t as bad as it really felt.
Our new uniform consisted of white blouse/dress
skirt, black skirt/pants, the green woollen school
jersey, a black tie (optional) and our new black
school blazers! Looked pretty fancy too.

Jordan Tukere

Once the Powhiri had finished we headed
back to Silverstream for a few hours rest then
returned to the TSB Bank Arena to tautoko our
whanau, Hamilton Boys & Girls High Schools.
As Tuesday’s programme came to an end, we
headed back home once again to do one final
practice before getting on that stage! Just sitting on
the bus on our way home made me feel more and
more excited. It was less than 12 hours until we
were up and getting ready for ‘D Day’.
Wednesday. Waking up at 5:30am we were
all so excited! Showers were running, power plugs
occupied with hair straighteners, and makeup was
everywhere! Getting ready for the performance
was, in a way, fun but also nerve-wracking. We all
looked so beautiful and handsome once we were
ready.
Before we jumped on the bus we formed a
circle and sung through a few songs and did our
breathing exercises.
Before we knew it, an hour later we were in
the holding bay doing touch-ups and putting on our
korowai. Twenty minutes ‘til stage time!
One of the stage crew members called us in
to go to the final holding bay - Kaitataki lead the
roopu through. I thought we were going straight on
stage!
Rimutere Wharakura