Hungry for a change of scenery and weather from chilly Dunedin, I decided to spend a weekend visiting a friend who is studying in Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city located on the north Island. The first thing I noticed about Wellington was the humidity; the air felt damp and the plants carried a heavy aroma…
Category: New Zealand: TEAN at Otago
Adventure Capital
At this point, just wow. From exploring incredible cities like Wellington, to climbing cliffs at beaches, to a camping weekend filled with stars, mountains, (and too much John Mayer), to finally experiencing the thrill of a lifetime bungee jumping back in Queenstown, this has by far been an adventure to never forget. I can’t believe…
Adventures
New Zealand is awesome. I’ve been going so many incredible places and doing so many amazing things in the past few weeks. Two weekends ago I visited some of my friends in Wellington. It rained the whole time which was unfortunate but I still managed to have a good time! We built a blanket fort…
Ben Lomond Tramp
50872592165__8974438F-4B88-4870-A8A6-3845ECB25AD9 During orientation week in Queenstown, Brandon, Kendall, and I went on a supposed 8 hour tramp up the Ben Lomond Trail. Luckily, we are freakishly healthy young men who were able to get the peak in under 3 hours and we were able to save our energy reserves for the trail down. The…
New Zealand West Coast: Hokitika Wildfoods Festival
Hokitika is a rural town in New Zealand’s south island where the locals hold an annual festival, Hokitika Wildfoods, which brings the small population of the West coast together to celebrate their culture and the signature “wild” foods of the West Coast. So my flatmates and I hop in the car and drive nearly 10…
So far so good :)
It’s crazy to think I’ve already been in this incredible country for just about a month, it’s stunning! Besides feeling like I’m living in google images, one of the best parts so far has been meeting a ton of new people and friends. Being able to wake up each day and think “where will today…
A month in New Zealand
It’s been almost a month since arriving in New Zealand, and I’ve already done so much here. My week-long orientation in Queenstown was jam-packed with cool activities such as hiking to the top of Queenstown Hill, luging, kayaking, and jet boating. After jet boating up the river, we “funyaked” back down it in these inflatable…
New Zealand: Growing Pains of a Student Abroad
So I’ve been in New Zealand for a little over a week now- and I don’t think ever want to go back. Yes, of course it was overwhelming at first. After growing up in South Florida around so many foreigners and international students, I just assumed assimilating into a new culture in a land that…
Predeparture Blog
I used many adjectives to describe my identity in the study abroad application. A few of them being; brother, American, student, and Christian. Those words help create a framework for who I identify as but they do not completely define who I am. My individual identity allows me to experience the world as a free,…
Arrival in New Zealand
It’s funny noticing the similarities and differences between New Zealand and home. I never felt like I grew up with a strong focus on culture and tradition, but after being in a foreign country, it became clear that all the little things we do form a culture. I immediately stand out as American because of…