Meet The Parents

The Year End Parade (YEP) of the City of Christchurch Cadet Unit (CCCU) turned out quite well on November 10^th, displaying the many talents of young Kiwi teenagers. The CCCU hosted its parade at the Wigram Airfield, located in a neighbourhood called Sockburn. The YEP program ran parallel to cadet parades in Canada: there were inspections, a march past in column of route, advance & review order, and an awards presentation, just to name a few. Since the corps did not have a band, the parade was eerily quiet while the Reviewing Guest, a member of parliament from the region, inspected the cadets.

Unlike Canadian cadet parades, the majority of cadet awards were presented after the parade. Many male & female cadets were rewarded for attendance, leadership, dress, drill, deportment, and corps activeness. After the awards were handed out, families, friends, and officers were treated to a light supper with many tasty delights for the taking. Surprisingly, I was included in the corps photograph despite attending only three training nights. My inclusion spawned many curiosities, leading me to introduce myself to the members of the Parental Committee and visiting officers.

Overall, it was a fun & interactive night reminding me of my cadet experiences back in Canada.

As mentioned in a previous post, my parents began a Down Under & Middle Earth Tour (DUMET) in late October for the purpose of visiting their two sons, revisit the Australian outback, and travel to New Zealand for the first time. They arrived safely in Christchurch this past Thursday and made it to their hotel despite enduring the long queues through Middle Earth Customs. My parents happened to be visiting during an agricultural & horseracing festival, meaning every hotel in the city would be full.

We greeted each other with open arms, having not seen each other for 5 months. After the formalities, we spent the next several hours conversing about life in Middle Earth & back in Canada, and how my parents were enjoying their vacation.

For dinner, we paid a visit to a nearby restaurant named Trevinos. Because my parents were not present on my birthday in October, they decided to use this occasion to celebrate it with me. Since my parents were paying, I decided to go all out by ordering a nice juicy steak which tasted great, as well as enjoying the white house wine. Living on a student budget makes it a challenge to afford such fancy meals so this was one opportunity I wasn’t going to pass.

Night had settled over Christchurch after dinner, and we decided to get much needed rest because tomorrow would be a busier day. My parents went back to their hotel room and I returned to my residence at the university. Tomorrow would be a busier day.

To Be Continued . . .