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Published: June 12th 2007
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Hello Everyone!
Sorry it has been so long since I last posted. This will probably be my last post while I am still here but am sure I will post a few once I get home. I can’t believe how fast the time has here has gone. It actually seems like a month or so ago that I was sitting with Sarah at home actually freaking out about being gone for 6 months and now I am headed home in 9 days and have no idea where the time has gone. I am excited to get home to see friends and family again and to get warm!! (it is actually winter here, snow on the mountains and everything, except there is now heat in the flats so I have been freezing my arse off!) But I am really going to miss the life that I have built here. It is so strange but life here has become my norm and I have noticed myself without hesitating saying New Zealand phrases and even caught myself feeling weird about seeing an American movie with the car on the right side! I am lucky because many of my friends here are from
the States and some even go to Colby, so we have already talked about catching up in the fall which will be good. I have, however, gotten to know a bunch of New Zealanders whom I am really going to miss, particularly my flatmate Scott. He has become like a brother to me, we joke and fight and talk just like siblings. He has really helped to make my experience hear awesome. I have gotten to know many of his friends, whom I know consider my friends, who I hope I can remain in touch with. Scott’s family has been great to me as well. It is really sad to think about leaving and not seeing them all for a very long time. However I have also seen how friendships can stand the test of time, in catching up with friends from summer camp, some of whom I hadn’t seen in six years!!! After a few awkward moments we were all able to pick up right where we had left off. I hope the dame holds true of the other friends I have made.
It is not as if I have been sitting around feeling sad about leaving though
I have managed to get in a few last amazing trips and experiences in the last month. Starting with a trip that my study abroad program set up for us to Te Anau and then to Doubtful Sound for an overnight cruise. It was an awesome break away and was really nice that it was planned for us. We saw dolphins swimming in the wake of the boat, kayaked, and we fed like kings on a really quaint sailboat. It was pretty foggy for the whole weekend but the waterfalls in the Sound were much better because of the wet weather and we got to see an incredible rainbow on the way back.
The two weeks following were spent finishing up my last weeks of classes and hanging around in Dunedin, enjoying both the nightlife and city. We had the chance to go see one of Scott’s rugby games which he didn’t end up playing I but saw some of our other friends play and also got to see the one game where Anton Oliver, now an All Black, came back to play for his old club, which was really exciting. Susannah’s parents were also here for a visit
Dolphins playing in the wake.
Ok so this one is kind of blurry but you can see it right? and we all toured the Cadbury Factory and went out for a really nice meal which was a lot of fun. Yvonne, Susannah and I headed off to the Fordland’s for a 3-day backpacking trip on the Hump ridge track in the Fordland’s. It was hard and scary at times but overall was amazingly worth it. The views on the first night were amazing. While we hiked in the rain the second day the track was still pretty gorgeous. The huts we stayed in were also really fun, one of which was an old school house converted into a hut. The third day we got to walk along the beach, which was pretty amazing. The tide did trap us though after an hour or so on the beach and had a scary couple of hours seemingly lost in the woods but managed to keep our heads cool and connect up with the inland trail that wasn’t along the beach.
After arriving back in Dunedin late Sunday night I spent the week in the library cramming for an exam on Wednesday and one on Friday. The exams here are worth up to 70% of my final graded and all university
proctored and very formal but actually ended up going pretty well. I have 2 left to go before I head home. Early Saturday morning Scott, Ally, Scott’s friend Jonesey and I headed to the airport to fly up to Wellington to see the All Black test match against France. For those not familiar, the All Blacks are literally the best rugby team in the world. They are who my team watches to learn the beauty and skill of the game…this may make some chuckle but the game is actually beautiful when you see them play. We stayed with Scott’s friend, Dean, who is a teacher just outside of Wellington. I sat with Ally and my friend Jo from Wellington who I went to camp with. I was in absolute heaven the entire game. It was amazing. They beat France 61 to 10 but even though it was a blow out it was still a very exciting game. The atmosphere was unbeatable and I even got to see the haka (a Maori war chant performed before the game). We got to experience the nightlife in Wellington and got to see the school that Dean taught at and then spent the day
at Jo’s house relaxing and catching up. We flew home Monday morning and I have been studying, packing, and working on a video of our time here since then and have actually just returned from a Brewery Tour of Speight’s Brewery the most famous beer in New Zealand which is just in Dunedin.
So needless to say I am keeping myself busy and trying to experience every last minute to the fullest before I come home. I can’t wait to see you all. Thanks for reading. ENJOY!
ALL MY LOVE AND KIWI KISSES!!!
Em
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Michael Wooooooood
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Hi Emily. I am sooo sooo sooooooo happy for you. Everything you have done down under has amazed me and I've honestly never heard of someone take advantage of life and what life has given them in the way that you have during the past 6 months! I'm so glad you've enjoyed it all and though it's sad to leave, you'll be back, I can tell in the way you talk about everything! Enjoy your last bit of time there, soak it in and safe travels home. Can't wait to see you! -Michael Wood (said in my reg'lar accent)