Meet Student Ambassador - Alana Venâncio

Alana is from Brazil and is studying at Kerikeri High School while living with a host family in Kerikeri. She is one of our 2020 Study Northland Student Ambassadors.

We talked to her about why she chose Northland and her experience so far…

I chose Northland because I wanted to go somewhere warm and sunny and definitely wanted a place with beaches. The other reason is that I was looking for a more rural place as I come from a town of 2 million people. One of the reasons for choosing KKHS was their Academic Plus programme. I chose horse riding.

NZ is magic. The people are so open and friendly and the landscape is stunning and very powerful, where else can you find empty beaches in summer! I also love the Maori culture and learning more about it.

My favourite experience in Northland is my trip with my host family to Ahipara and the sand dunes. The landscape is just out of this world.

I love staying with my host family. It is a very good experience for me and I learned a lot from them, especially how to be more independent. I also learned to cook, do my washing and cleaning. It is the simple relaxed lifestyle I really enjoy.

Since coming to NZ I have taken up surfing. This is my new hobby. I am not good at it yet and it is so much fun. I have also tried mountain biking. At home I love reading and writing and singing.

We love hanging out at Café Zest but also often go to the New World Supermarket. It is interesting to see the different foods. In summer we all love to hang out at Charlie’s Rock or at the Wairere Waterfalls. Sometimes the international students meet at the Stone Store for a picnic.

More about Kerikeri High School…