I just recently returned from Thailand where I spent my “fall” break in Chiang Mai, Krabi, Phi Phi, and Phuket. The past week and a half that I spent in Thailand were some of the best days of my life! Prior to this trip, I had never before been to Asia and it was quite…
Category: New Zealand: TEAN at Otago
Te Anau, Millford Sound, and the Southern Alps
A few weekends ago, a friend and I drove to the west coast of the Southern Island of New Zealand where we camped in Te Anau, and then traveled to Millford Sound the next day. We had horrible rainy weather the entire time, but it made for some of the most beautiful sights I have…
Loving my Kiwi Life!
So far, things are going great! Last week I found out I made the University of Otago Women’s “B” basketball team, and I am so excited to play basketball competitively, in New Zealand! I also recently traveled to Christchurch where I hiked “Taylor’s Mistake” trail. It was an absolutely amazing experience and I kept having…
Soso is in Ruins
These past few days have been hard. The village I visited in Fiji, Soso; which I blogged about in my previous post, was completely destroyed in Cyclone Winston. When I heard about the destruction of the village I had come to love, I was speechless. I saw many of these people, literally days before they…
Bula! Happiness in Fiji
On my way to New Zealand, I made a detour and stopped in Fiji along with multiple other students who would be studying abroad in New Zealand this semester. Fiji is by far one of the most beautiful countries I have ever been to! We stayed on the remote island of Naviti which is a…
10 Days until New Zealand!
I am so excited to take off for New Zealand where I will be studying at the University of Otago in Dunedin! I have traveled internationally quite a bit, so I am not too worried, however, I have never lived in another country for more than about two weeks, so I think this experience will…
The Aftermath
The day had come for my departure and sure enough, this optimist tried to have adventures until the very last minute. Truly, staying up until 20 minutes before your departure for your flight seems like a great idea, until you decide to take a nap which you almost missed your plane for. Nevertheless, I have…
Sydney & Shelly
I had a few days after finals were over and I had not visited Australia. I really wanted to visit my awesome friend Shelly over my semester break, but plans had to change. It was my last week and I needed to have one last adventure. On the night of November 1st, I had bought…
Spring? Anyone?
Don’t be fooled. New Zealand is COLD. Especially for a Floridian, and ESPECIALLY in the South Island, in Dunedin. Way too close to the South Pole for my comfort zone. I thought it would be okay, three layers a day for half the time here, not bad. Just last week, it snowed on the Kepler…
Finals are going to happen
So finals are spread out over a month after classes end. It’s pretty easy to fall into a blanket of false security if your finals are like mine and all at the end of the month. So with so much time what to do? Travel! If you play your cards right, you can get a…