200117jb04bop.JPG William Simmonds, 10, and David Chang on rocks around Mauoa.
An eight-year-old Chinese television star clambers onto a rock and spreads his arms as waves crash onto the beach around him.
He squints up towards the summit of Mount Maunganui, and he smiles.
His name is David Zhang, and he is cast member of Hubei Province children's show Nine Buddies. The programme follows a group of pre-teen youngsters to travel destinations that, until recently, were based entirely in China.
There are some language problems, but David does seem to understand when asked his favourite thing about New Zealand.
"Hamburger," he says.
The cast and crew of up to 25 people spent yesterdayin Tauranga as part of a week of filming in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato.
Co-organiser Sophie Wang said the crew had filmed one episode in the United States that focused largely on house interiors. For New Zealand, she wanted to go outdoors.
"In China, the students have a lot of pressure," she said. "So I want the children to see the real nature. We went to the farm and played with the little sheep, and the students loved that."
The Bay of Plenty Times watched the United States episode and was unable to understand much of what was going on, although it appeared there was some dissatisfaction with a Western-style bathroom. The youngsters spent a lot of time hauling carry-on luggage around various residences and listening to speeches.
Cartoon sweat-beads were added to the brow of one boy who appeared nervous while introducing himself in English.
The programme did look as though it would be good advertising for the places featured.
And that's why yesterday's events were great news for Anne Young of Education Tauranga, who is keen to foster growth in the Western Bay's foreign student sector, and who helped to arrange the visit.
"China's not our biggest market," she said. "But it is growing, and we've also been doing more and more marketing there."
Mrs Young had to endure some anxiety about the weather forecast, but the sky behaved itself as the youngsters played in the sand.
Other events planned for the day were volleyball, swingball, walking to Mt Drury, a picnic lunch of fish 'n' chips and a demonstration of calligraphy at Mt Maunganui Primary School.
Chinese students
34,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) Chinese studied in NZ last year
140 of them were in greater Tauranga
An additional 35 student groups visited here for 2-4 weeks
Tauranga had 1450 FTE students of all nationalities
Education is NZ's fourth-largest export industry