Road Trip

Where to start? Well, I am laying in my bed on a Saturday afternoon editing my photographs from my recent excursion through New Zealand. Looking through my pictures is hard work, as most of the pictures look like one another, but I just couldn't stop taking pictures...I felt the need to document the magnificence repeatedly. The road trip was absolutely amazing, all due to the amount of beauty that God gave New Zealand.  I am pretty sure I said 'Hellooooo gorgeous!' more than enough times to appropriately give thanks! Although, it is the oddest thing because for the first time my flat feels like 'home' to me. I am guessing other people know of the feeling to be gone away for a bit of time, and feel the tiniest bit of relief to be home in the comfort of your own bed.  Do not get me wrong, I loved every moment of exploring NZ...it just feels good to be completely warm under all my blankets.  It goes to show bliss comes in many different options!  Good thing I don't have to pick just one. ;)

We picked up our rental car that almost immediately got named 'Princess Cherry' due to its red color, and deathly low engine power.  She took her good old sweet time going uphill!  I drove it a few times...on the opposite side of the road!!! The first destination was Lake Tekapo, located near the center of NZ.  Crazy beautiful!  The water looked even bluer in real life than the pictures let on...

The rocks had a chalky layer thus appearing white

We walked on this barren path in the middle of nowhere.  It felt very Sound of Music-ish, and I may or may not have sung 'The hills are alive....'  I am not even going to attempt to use all the thesaurus options to describe all I have seen...it would still not do it justice.  Enthralling, captivating, glorious, etc. are semi-credible word choices.

The path.

An inlet of Lake Tekapo.

:)

Mount Cook National Park was the next stop, it is at the start of the mountain chain known as The Southern Alps.  Sir Edmund Hillary climbed this mountain several times to prepare for his Everest summit.  I sadly do not have the mountaineering gear needed to scale such a mountain, but the area still offered plenty of trails and views.  I saw my first glacial lake, and tasted it.  By far the best hydrogen and oxygen combination there is.  We had to climb down a huge pile of rocks to get there...but worth the trip!  It was so warm I even took off my winter jacket (gasp!).

Mount Cook NP from afar.

Tasman Glacier is in the middle...creating the lake.

The water had icebergs...and a thin covering of ice.

Hooker Valley. Stunning.

Mount Cook is slightly clouded over.

The other view of Mount Cook...the clouds spewed over it.

It took me awhile to figure out how to wash my hands here...

A statue honoring Sir Edmund and his achievements.

We were originally going to go skiing the next day, but the resort was closed due to a recent lack of snow in that area, so we ended up exploring the coast.  There, I saw my first seal, and penguin!!!! And other things...

Near Oamaru

Some of the floral arrangements..

A baby seal...I was literally this close and didn't see it for awhile.

The Moeraki boulders. Strangely smooth and spherical rocks.

Sunbathing...I got a little bit closer than the recommended 10 metres away.

Coastline never gets old.

Princess Cherry was here.

A trail along the coast.

We made our way south on our last day with the car, to the Catlins.  I have never seen so many signs for scenic reserves...holy!  Every 5 km, I swear!  At the end of the day, I had my first fish and chip experience and will definitely participate again.  Ahh, how I have missed seafood and fried food in general...it made me think of the MN State Fair.  Anyone know the newest food that was fried there this year?!  I think in past it was spam or something...

Nugget Point

I wonder how much erosion has happened to these rocks..

Purakaunui Falls

Stopped in Gore, the brown trout fishing capital of the world.

New Zealand preserves their natural environment beautifully and that was evident.  Everywhere you go, the slogan 'Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints' was in effect.  This song and this song wrap up my overall sentiments right about now.  Hope everyone has a great weekend, I have a lot more things to blog about stuff I did before I went I went on the road trip...that will have to wait though!

Tramping in the Dark

Ladies and gentleman, it looks as if I am in a silly mood again.  It has been happening a lot lately, and I believe I am annoying everyone around me...I have been named World Wide Adventurer Porangi Korito by my WWA friend Rhondiggity (her blog on the sunrise hike is here).  It is Maori for crazy/insane blonde.  I am slowly accepting the fact that I am indeed crazy. Surprise!!!!!!  I already am well aware of the fact that I am blonde...so no shocker there for me.  For extra clarification so I don't sound like a complete fool, I will define my crazy as obnoxiously loud and free spirited and blonde as my hair color ONLY (in NOOOO way am I referencing the stereotypical personality of a blonde).

Alright story time.  Once upon a time, three people woke up at 5:00 am.  They were going to meet some people from the tramping club at the base of the trail to see the sunrise.  Due to freezing temperatures, the walk took more time then expected so it turned out to just be the three of them.  Using headlamps, they trudged through snow and mud and hopped over streams of ice cold water in complete blackness.  It took about 2 hours to reach Butter's Peak and the view was heavenly.  At one point the beautiful blonde woman (hahahahahhaha) declared, "I love hiking for the reason that the beauty makes you forget all the pain of hiking up."  True, right?!  Man, I am such a genius.  Please, remember me in your bibliographies.  Contact me if you need additional information on that quote at....ah never mind.  I refuse to give out my phone number on a public blog. Psychhhh (I refuse to make it that easy to get my number). The hike was quite painful though as the snow was such a bbbbbb------bad dog. Here's photos:

Highlight (no pun intended) of my week. tee hee

The sunrise tasted delicious, in case you are wondering.

So that is all!  I could rant on about how much I love it here forever and ever, but I will spare you the agony of 'hearing' my voice.  It went up a few octaves since the last time you heard me most likely.

Roger that folks.  Ooooo, one last thing!  For dinner one night, my flatmate Ann made a beautious Austrian dish called kaiserschmarrn (kai-zer-shh-marn).  I told her that when I travel through Austria on a train (which is on my bucket list), I am going to order that and think of this moment.  The recipe can be found right here...if you make it, tell me what you think and EAT IT WITH APPLESAUCE!

Kia Ora!  

Peanut Butter and Wheat Biscuits

While it is on my mind....

So, my obsession with peanut butter has grown to the point where I can put it on anything and it tastes good. My flat mates are the same way. I think it has something to do with the climate?! Anyway, my Kiwi host is always like "you crazy Americans and your peanut butter!!" Apparently it is just us USAans that feel the urge to purchase Costco-sized jars of peanut butter every few weeks! I also discussed the possibilities of grocery stores restocking their supply before the school year to suffice the needs/cravings of all the exhange students from America with my flat mate. Could be true!!

These things called wheat biscuits as a breakfast cereal are popular over here. I have never heard/seen of them before but they look good. I tried them out and I am just slightly confused as how to eat them. It sounds extremely blonde, but the first morning I just put about 4 in a bowl and poured some milk in. Only to discover that the biscuits (more akin to a wheaties bar) get soggy really fast. I only ate about one before the texture of really soggy food disgusted me. I could not finish the rest. I talked with people about this, and they said that they eat them with oatmeal, or eat them soggy. Ummmm, no and no!! I now just dunk them in a glass of milk like I would graham crackers, or a cookie. It works! Although one morning my Kiwi host comes down, and says something along the lines of... "You are so weird to be eating wheat biscuits plain. To punish people we have them eat biscuits plain." You win some, you lose some!

Edge of Glory?!

After a long weekend of rain, hail, and pitiful attempts of crystallized snowflakes, I am finally feeling the warmth returning to my body.  I can now say that I have seen the worst weather conditions.  There is something so gruelling about having hail, rain, and snow all at once falling from the sky.  Combined with wind and fog, I played it safe.  It was comforting to listen to it all wrapped in my blanket reading for the weekend.  I finished TWO books!! I was so proud of myself for getting back to my bookish self.  I haven't read a book for pleasure in such a long time, and it is with great honor to state that I have not lost any of my profound reading skills! Lots of movies, friends, and card games also occurred!  Oh, and I also checked out the student gym with some of my neighbors.  It was kind of eerie and old, but I am in no position to complain about anything… I am in New Zealand for goodness sake!

I am glad I do not wait for the weekend to do things.  I went for an early morning walk with some friends to the beach early in the week.  The ocean.  I will never forget the moment when I walked over the sand dune to see the frigid waves and endless water.  It was the kind of thing that took my breath away…as if nothing else mattered in the world except where I was.  I have seen the ocean before, but it has always been crowded with boats or people.  Since it is winter and it was the morning, there was nothing but the waves.  We ran in the sand for a little bit before our feet started to get numb and the tide started to come in.  At the very end of the beach, they have a heated pool that is open in the summer for the surfers to relax in between catching waves, and is literally right in the ocean (I forgot to take a picture of it…but it is there!).  I dropped my camera in the sand when the lense was open, and it stopped working for a little bit.  I am beyond relieved that it started to work again; I do not want to buy another camera!

The sun had just risen a few moments prior...

Old posts from a dock that has seen its days...

I did go in the water if you must know!

Just slightly pretty :)

I also explored the peninsula a bit; there are huge cliffs and little paths that wrap around and above them.  I had to climb up this wall of rocks to get to a muddy path that led to a plateau right on the edge of the cliff.  The rocks were so slippery from the waves that clash against the cliff walls.  Since I was alone, I had to be really careful not to slip, but I could not resist the temptation of edge.  My heart was racing so much but it was worth it to feel   as if I was on the Edge of Glory (as Lady Gaga would sing)!  I couldn’t stay there for too long though…as rational thoughts won over my adventurous spirit.  Ahh one of the coolest things I have ever done!  There was all sorts of paths, and I just kind of followed random ones.  One of them led to the top of the cliff and they had a little bench and lookout area.  It’s funny how you forget how much money you spend to see these things when you see it in person.  Definitely worth it.  I have SO much more to see here, and everywhere else in the world.  I remember my mom telling me that I “got the travel bug” after flying for my first time.  It will not stop here, that is for sure! Why not see it all?!

I hiked around the this cliff...pure beauty!

At the top of the lookout.

This is kind of random, but blog-worthy I guess.  I went for a run on Friday I think, and I ended up in some botanical gardens.  These gardens seriously span a huge area and the hills and beauty provided for a good workout area!  I can’t wait for all the flowers to bloom (glad I don’t have to plant them though…) Check it out:

The entrance area to the gardens.

Just a little duck pond.

Some color!

The whole tree kind of had a painted effect to it...

Yoga anyone?!  I sat here for awhile to ponder...

It's a fat bird!!!

My mid-semester break is coming up in a couple weeks.  On my to-do list is ski or snowboard (it is highly debatable at this point and would love input).  How many people can say that the first place they did either (on a serious level) is in New Zealand?  Exactly why I want to cross that off!!!!  Also on my list is to see Milford Sound, and visit my Kiwi host’s house in the northern part of the southern island.  Sweet as!!!!!  I seriously say that all the time now, sweet as!!!!  Yay, I am morphing into an accidental Kiwi!

Gosh, I feel like I am pouring my heart out, so kudos to you that made it this far in the reading!  If you are exceptionally intrigued, I added some powerful quotations that I live by on the right hand side of this blog to spice it up a lil’ >>>  Other than that, I hope you have enjoyed my endless spew of words and pictures!  Until next time!

My Birthday and more...

I had the immense pleasure of celebrating my birthday in the winter this week!  My mom pointed it out to me that this will probably be the only time it will happen (for a while at least).  Indeed, I had to wake up and put on my winter jacket to go to class, instead of the usual summery clothes I get to wear back in Minnesota on my birthday.  Must I say that swimsuits are overrated! J  I had a pretty low key afternoon of skyping friends and family back in the states. Later, I had a little pizza and game party and then had cake with a bunch of my friends!  I learned how to play Jungle Speed…and let’s just say I was not as talented as I normally am (hahaha).  They didn’t even show me compassion on my birthday as I lost quite frequently…good thing I am not a sore loser!!! It’s basically a game of really quick reaction time based on shapes and colors.  Whoa and epiphany right here!  The guy who won that game was colorblind, just goes to show that anything is possible!  Then, several of my friends and I went to this café on the campus for a DJ competition.  It was a very nice way to ring in my 19^th year of living!  I don’t feel so much like the baby here anymore…and everyone reminded me that this is the best year, because next year will be twenty (EEEK!!!).  I still sometimes think that I am in no way mature enough to handle twenty, but I still have 300+ days to come to terms with that.  I appreciate everyone thinking of me on my birthday anyway! 

The lovely chocolate cake Ann made for me!

Take one...group photo.

Much better! Take two.  

I received some mail this week!!! I have been waiting for it to come forever and I told all my flat mates to look out for it.  Chelsea came into my room with a letter and my face just lit up!  My little sister Brynn wrote me the randomest letter ever, drew me a birthday picture, and sent along a quarter (I’m rich!).  I got a little teary-eyed…it made me miss her!  Other than that, I haven’t really gotten a bad bout of homesickness yet.  It’s been almost a month here…so crazy how fast time goes by!  I don’t think I will want to leave here in 4 months.  Time REALLY needs to slow down!!!

Yay! I was so happy :)

My neighbors and I also played some rugby this weekend.  We met up with a bunch of people at the local high school high school field, and I was one of 3 girls so it was pretty competitive.  I had absolutely NO idea what I was doing, but it was fun nevertheless.  Later, we played a game of soccer and my team won. Sadly, it wasn’t because of me!  I am so glad I grew up with a lot of brothers because I got run over right away.  It is safe to say I accumulated quite a few bruises, and new friends. J How heartwarming!

Hmmmm. My life story here continues with another epic story.  I was writing an essay on Friday night (yes, I actually do work here), when my flat mate comes in my room and asks me to go meet up with our friends to see this local musician perform.  I am SO glad I went, as the musician, Jeremy, was an absolute delight (I am laughing at myself for my word choices, by the way).  He played lots of good songs such as Yellow by Coldplay, Hallelujah, When you say Nothing at All, some John Mayer, and more.  Our German friends we met up with had seen him play the previous night and personally requested that he play the song “500 Miles” by the Proclaimers 3 times.  He did, and it was so funny to see how much they got into it every time!  Ahh great night!

It was really rainy this whole weekend and the perfect opportunity for me to write up two essays due this week.  I was slightly bummed that I wasn’t able to hike anywhere because of the weather.  It will be warming up down here in about a couple of weeks, so I am stoked to discard my winter jacket for a while…only to wear it again when I return to the states.  Well, that is all for now.  Oh and the New Zealand All Blacks beat Australia in rugby this weekend as well!  Go Kiwis! In conclusion, relish in the warmth that August brings, and don’t forget to live for the moment!  Hahaha, is anyone else feeling as inspired as I am??!  I am no way in a serious mood right now, so I apologize for the sheer cheesiness of all my expressions!  Way to keep it light, Katelyn!

For the First Time

This past week I have experienced plenty of new things.  First of all, I got a snow day because an inch of snow fell on the ground!  Since the snow they get here never stays (besides in the mountains), the Kiwis do not really know how to drive in it.  Therefore, a snow day is completely understandable!  And I was not complaining…

I also gladly participated in a round of karaoke this week!  My flat mate Ann and I along with several eager men went to Thursday night karaoke at a place appropriately named The Baaa.  There were only a handful of people there, so I wasn’t that afraid to sing.  Of course, I had to sing a song by Enrique…which I was pleasantly surprised they had!!  I hope I did some sort of justice to that song (which I didn’t)…anyway, it was great fun to overcome my fear of public singing (and to cross it off my bucket listJ)! 

We also had a great plan to see the sunrise on top of Mount Cargill this weekend.  We got up bright and early at 5 to walk to the top by 8 am to catch it.  The only problem was the rain, as we thought it would clear out by the time eight came around but it didn’t.  Four of us all walked to the base of the mountain, and then some friends met us there with their car.  Quickly, we decided that we would rather be in a warm car driving to the top than braving the cold rain and darkness of the trail.  Eagerly, we all piled in a car named Sally and drove to the top.  We had about an hour of time to spare before we could potentially see the sunrise.  Ann had the brilliant idea of creating a reality TV show of some sort while we wait.  Since we were all overtired, we went through with the idea.  Some highlights of the episode include:  A cat fight between two girls, rationing food, hiding food, a contest in who can stay outside the longest, a secret lover, and the saying of “world peace” in every possible moment.  One can say we bonded over silliness.  Sadly, the clouds did not depart before 8.  We saw glorious fog and nothing else!  Oh well, I guess I will have to save that for another time!

There was the annual Cadbury chocolate festival this weekend, and that includes a very exciting Jaffa race. Jaffa’s are colored chocolate balls trademarked by Cadbury.  About 50,000 people participate in this race by buying a Jaffa ball for $1 NZD.  There is over 10,000 dollars’ worth of prizes for the top finishers…the balls that make it down the steepest street in the world (where the race is held).  They close down Baldwin Street, put up nets to protect spectators from flying chocolate, and have people at the top of the street with a huge box of Jaffa balls ready to release them.  It was definitely a spectacle to see 50,000 red and purple balls falling down the street at a decent speed.

At the bottom of the street

Covered in chocolate

The Jaffas rolling down!

And again...

Here is a video I took, I apologize in advance for my friend's language at the end...

It’s still really hard for me to believe that I am so far away from home, either it hasn’t hit me, or this is feeling like home?! I am unbelievably blessed to be experiencing this, and I am so glad that I have the support of my parents and family.  Sometimes I smile randomly when I think about how much my life has been altered for the better in the short time I have been away.  If I hadn’t come, I would not have met some amazing people and seen beautiful things.  Everyone has a different story, and I find it so intriguing how we can all bond because of this shared experience.

Just for your information: some Kiwi terms that I have noticed to be quite prevalent in the great country of NZ!

Boot-trunk of a car

Lift-elevator

Muesli- granola (cereal, bars, oatmeal…)

Sweetas- their way of saying “Cool!”

Wee- replaces the word little for everything

Keen- apt to do something

Shoveling-flirting (They get creative and say stuff like, “are your arms getting tired from shoveling?”)

Papers-classes

Cheers-always said in place of “Have a nice day!”

I hope to make it out to the peninsula soon to see some penguins!!  My flat mates and I are also planning a camping trip if the weather is nice for an upcoming weekend, so I am looking forward to that!  Might as well pretend its summer here...

Dear Diary

I am kidding...this is not my diary, I just was having a difficult time coming up with a title for this blog post! Anyway...

I have noticed that you cannot go 5 kilometers without setting your eyes on a rugby field here.  New Zealand’s national team, the All Blacks, is represented with upmost prestige and honor.  They played Fiji at the new 200 million dollar stadium in Dunedin, built specifically for the Rugby World Cup this fall (their spring), on Friday.  I didn’t get the pleasure of attending the game, but me and two of my flat mates went to a restaurant to watch it instead. We ordered dessert, and I tried kiwi pavlova.  Pavlova is New Zealand’s national dessert.  It reminded me of cotton candy because it just melts in your mouth aka VERY GOOD! It’s a meringue cake, typically topped with berries.  Mine had a side of kiwi flavored ice cream which added a perfect touch of tropical!  My first food review!! J

Not my picture...but what pavlova looks like. So good!

 Even though the game was totally dominated by the All Blacks, it was certainly fun to catch on to one of NZ’s favorite pastimes.  It is crazy how rarely the trainer has to come out onto the field considering how aggressive they are!! (Side note: BK and JP, you wouldn’t have to remind them to be aggressive, be be aggressive haha!) It will be fun to watch the actual World Cup versus Australia (the archenemy)! On a partially similar note, I am not ruling out a pick up rugby game if I ever get the opportunity…

Before the game, I hiked to Flagstaff Mountain, which is directly west of the city. It started out quite sunny, and by the time we reached the top it clouded over and the air turned crisp.  The scenery was not as drastic as Mount Cargill, but I believe if the clouds were absent, it would have opened up a whole new world!  Nevertheless, it is always worth my time to get out of the flat and explore!  We hiked up the Pineapple Track to get to the summit, and the beginning of it was so jungle-like, I swore I was in Brazil or something!  Hence the name Pineapple, I am assuming?!  Toward the latter end, there was this huge, steep ridge and seriously the incline would NOT stop.  My pace drastically declined to a snail’s pace by the end of the hill.  Pain is beauty though, as my pain brought me to more beauty in the natural world! 

This trees reminded me of California.

Jungle!

On the way up!

LOVED LOVED the frosted tips!

Looking onward...

Me and my awkward posing...currently in training to become slightly  more modelesque!

The marker at the top.

I think I have seen the city from all angles now!

On our way back, we got sidetracked by the cutest sheep I have ever seen!  They are so fluffy this time of year, and the little ones are at a melt-my-heart level of cuteness.  Which is…making me consider getting a pet sheep.  I think my dad won’t mind one bit!! J

This little thing posed for me! :)

Even though they speak English here, there are definitely some differences.  First off, the accent.  It is slightly British with a touch of Australian.  Whenever I am speaking to a Kiwi, I mentally pick up the accent and then when I start talking back…it turns into a mess of things.  I sound like a complete idiot because I say some words with their accent and then I say some words paying homage to Minnesooooota (which I get teased for relentlessly by other Americans).  I don’t purposefully sound like them…it just slips off my tongue because mentally, I remember the pronunciation of how they state the vowels and then it just doesn’t switch off until they ask me…”So, where are you from?”.  Then of course, I realize how foolish I presented myself after I answer “the United States”.  I probably come across as a wannabe actress!  Which of course, underneath it all, I am just DYING to be!!! Practice makes perfect! ;)

Update on school is not anything that I would consider breaking news…but just some highlights this week:  I am taking a Maori language class and it is by far my favorite class here.  BUT, I embarrass myself daily in this class.  We go through words by flashcards as a class, so I think that I am sounding everything out okay.  Then we get to the end of the class, and my teacher has us pronounce a word before we leave.  I wait my turn in line praying that I get an easy word so I don’t mess up.  I get an easy one, and of course I mess it up!! I immediately get frustrated and my face gets red and my teacher feels bad for me so she gives me another one and helps me pronounce it…which irks me more because I know I can do it by myself!  Next time, I swear I will get it!!  I am really glad that I am taking this class though, it is definitely my favorite!  Otherwise, I am analyzing tourism on different scales, finding ‘truth’ in media (yay!), and discovering the Pacific Islands!  In one of these classes (guess which one), I made my to-do list for while I am here. 

Sorry for the lengthy post.  I hope everyone back home is enjoying the humidity and warmth…it is currently snowing here and there is about an inch on outside my door!

My reality:

Minnesota in contrast to NZ

Okay, really going to go now!  Have a fantastic, heart-warming, fun, exponentially epic, and smiley week! :)

Weekend Bliss

Oh, the places you can go with two feet!  This weekend, I partook in my very first tramping excursion in New Zealand.  My friend Brady and I hiked Mount Cargill, which is located northeastern of the city centre of Dunedin.  We walked to the base of the trail, which is about 2.5 miles from my flat.  It was interesting to see a different side of the town, which is less commercialized and has touches of farmland and rolling green hills.  First, we had to hike through a gulley, then it turned into the steep incline that I missed so much.  It was such a relief not to have to be on the lookout for wildlife, as this area doesn’t really contain many predators on land.  There are quite a few birds though, and their cheerful songs kept me going…not really but in other words I wasn’t that annoyed by the chirping.  The summit was so chilly and the winds were so strong that you couldn’t stand still and enjoy the view for very long.  So we quickly snapped some photos and praised the scenery, and headed back down.  We took a different route back and it ended up coming out to this road that was about 3 miles from the place we went up the trail.  It was kind of a good accident, as we took a little countryside stroll through sheep farms, cattle land, and old buildings.  I kind of wanted to hitchhike for my first time, but figured I better save that for later when there is a little bit bigger group…mom don’t worry I still have some common sense left! J We made it back in 5.5 hours, with 13 miles of walking/tramping complete!  All in all, it was beautiful, fulfilling, and tiring.  Too bad my little sisters aren’t around to massage my feet!

My current favorite picture...

No camera can capture what the naked eye sees...

We met up with my neighbor and his friend near the top!

The Otago Peninsula

On our way back through the country part of Dunedin

These yellow flowers are prevalent here

Today, I took advantage of the day of rest and slept in.  Then I looked outside my window and was a bit disgusted with myself for wasting a BEA-U-TIFUL morning!  There was not a cloud in the sky all day and the temperature reached above 50, which is warm considering it is winter here.  So to make up for it, I got a group of people together via Facebook for a casual stroll up Signal Hill.  You would think with 7 people, we could have easily found our way to the trailhead, but that was not the case.  So thank the kind people of Dunedin for explaining to us a couple times how to get there! We ended up walking up a very steep road to get there, and then taking the trail back down.  It was definitely worth all the trouble.

The view from the top of Signal Hill

Fun people I met up with to hike!

I started school last Wednesday, and it is going just dandy!  All of my lecturers are enthusiastic and so much more fun than US professors.  My Maori lecturer said to “shout things at him whenever”.  I am not so excited to buy the books for the classes though…they are even more expensive here.  Life in my flat community is fun, and I have met a lot of cool people! We are going to start cooking dinners for each other about 4 nights a week, to ensure a healthy lifestyle without our mother’s home cooking!  In fact, I made the first dinner tonight and to be honest I was quite nervous.  Not to be partial or anything, but I thought it tasted pretty dang good!!

The meal I made--I needed to take a picture because I don't think anyone will believe that I made it! ;)

The first week has proved to be successful and I cannot wait to experience more of Dunedin and beyond!  Happy Sunday to all in the states…and to my family: We should have another joke night on skype soon J  Miss you! Kia Ora (the equivalent of Aloha here in NZ)!

New Beginnings and Such

Even though I am miles away from home, it still hasn't hit me that I am.  It feels like I am on vacation! The initial goodbye to my family and friends was hard, but once I took off from LA, I wasn't nervous at all.  I feel like I am meant to be doing this right now. I made it to my home safely, with hardly any problems.  Although, I almost forgot my sleeping bag at one security checkpoint...after thoroughly embarrassing myself at that same location.  I bet security was glad to see me back!! The plane rides from Auckland to Dunedin were just as I pictured it to be...huge green hills next to the ocean!  I also saw a couple of mountain ranges, freshly topped with snow.  The people are so gracious here, and I first saw that with the flight attendants; I have never met such open and friendly people.

I arrived in Dunedin to snow (!!!!), although it didn't stay.  It is quite chilly here, but nothing compared to a Minnesota winter!  My flat does have heating, although we only put in on before we go to bed because electricity is so expensive here.  I met all my "flatties" (roommates) and we attempted to have our first dinner together last night...but jet lag hit me and I fell asleep on the couch.  I felt so bad, as my Kiwi host made a delicious pasta with chicken and mushrooms.

As soon as I find a plug adapter, I will post some pictures of my plane ride and of the view I have from my driveway!