Day 10: Since Queenstown is the adrenaline rush capital of New Zealand, and probably the world, we figured we’d do something exciting. Last I was here was when I first went bungee jumping, but I thought I’d switch up the activity this time around, so we went sledging. I know, I’ve never heard of sledging either. So basically this sport is pretty much done only in this one river in NZ; it kind of like body boarding. You wear a wetsuit, flippers, a helmet, and basically have this big plastic board thing that you hang onto with your arms while the [View Full Entry]

---

---

A continuation: Day 5: So when I left off last time, I was in the Marlborough Sounds at Adam’s holiday home. The next day at his place we took out his boat and drove around the sounds for a good chunk of the day, checking out various beaches and such. Sometimes we’d just stop the boat and relax in the middle of the water. When we looked at the water surrounding the boat, we ended up seeing hundreds upon hundreds of clear jellyfish slowly swimming about. It was a very cool scene. We then went for another leisurely hike and just [View Full Entry]

---

---

Alas another mid-semester break has passed, and after 10 months of being in NZ I still thoroughly revel in life on the road and all the scenery and random escapades that are thrown my way as a result, both remarkable and otherwise. The roadtrip I just got back from was no exception, perhaps with the adventure level even cranked up a couple notches. Well, that’s probably because my mate Kathleen and I decided to test ourselves and face the unknown by hitchhiking around for the entire two weeks. For the American crowd reading this, don’t freak out, it’s safer than it [View Full Entry]

---

---

This semester has a much different feel than the previous one, because I’m the only American that stayed a year, so all the other exchange students are amazed by what I’ve done and seen since I’ve been here. It’s funny because now they’re the ones turning to me for advice on where to go and what the native slang means...and me actually knowing the answer! It’s a nice switch from me looking to other students for explanations with an obvious ignorance and excitement of so many things here. I’m a bit more secure and amused as I watch the other America [View Full Entry]

---

---

Yea it’s been so long since I’ve written a blog. Blame it on the internet. For the past month I’ve been online twice for maybe 20 min each time. Now I’m back at school and am slowly working through my hundreds of emails. But I’ll come back to all that in a minute. A quick recap of my holidays: I had Christmas Eve with my South African friend Mari and her family. They were nice enough to give me presents so I actually felt included. On Christmas day Mari, Diego and I went to the Bethels beach, another gorgeous black sand [View Full Entry]

---

---

Ohh Auckland Auckland Auckland. Driving all way up here was quite an experience. I’m sure pretty much everyone has heard already that I snuck onto the ferry going from the south island to the north island. It wasn’t really necessary; I guess I got bored..?? And CORRECTION, I didn’t sneak aboard in the boot; I probably would’ve suffocated that way. I lay down in the back seat while everyone’s luggage was packed on top of me. Ok, I guess it was pretty difficult to breathe after 40 minutes, and I started cramping, sweating and getting claustrophobic. It was w [View Full Entry]

---

---

The last three weeks of school were so stressful. For one week there’s no school; it’s a week of “study leave” to prepare for the two weeks of intense finals ahead. I was worried about these exams, because they’re worth 60% of my final grade, so if you mess up your final you’re essentially screwed. With that in mind, I freaked and ended up studying more for these exams than any others ever before, so I hope it paid off. The only exciting thing to briefly entertain me from my robotic state of reviewing was a massive food fight in the [View Full Entry]

---

---

So it’s officially springtime in NZ, meaning no more of that wet winter crap I’ve had to deal with thus far. It kind of crept up overnight, literally. I woke up one day to go to class, and all of a sudden I collide into a cloud of fragrant floral perfumes, and I look around to see the whole university alive with bright blossomed flowers. There’s so much vegetation saturating campus; it’s really quite beautiful. I'll need to take some pictures of it soon (the pics on here are from the Botancial Gardens). Ah and I’ve missed the sun...winter here is [View Full Entry]

---

---

The finals days of my adventure: Day 11 The next day on the farm was entertaining, but made me feel more like a city girl than ever… First, I got to feed a 2-day old lamb some milk from a bottle---aww it was so damn cute! After, Cassie and I went on the back of a four-wheeler (like the one I drove in Hanmer Springs), which was pulling a container with lots of hay in it. We drove all around the farm and up the roads (it was a big farm…) to the bulls, deer, and horses and threw them their [View Full Entry]

---

---

A continuation of my escapades: Day 7 The next morning encompassed another big breakfast and hot shower outside before Cassie and I said our good-byes and hit the road once again. This time we started to make our way south, and stopped for a while at Nelson Lakes National Park, whose rocky shore was spotted with snow. It felt as though I was in a different climate. Up north there was nothing but warm, sunny weather by the ocean, and now it’s all cold, overcast, and drizzly with a snowy ground. The day mainly consisted of driving, with the occasional stop [View Full Entry]

---

---