EASTER BREAK: Part 1

DISCLAIMER: This post is really long. But it's also really cool.

Naked Bus: Taking me all over the North Island with style.

   Friday commenced my Easter Break. I woke up early to catch the 9 AM bus to Waitomo. I found the bus stop no problem, hopped on the bus, and we were off! I had a connection in Bulls 2 hours in, so I switched buses. From Bulls to Waitomo I was stuck in the same seat, on the same bus. Did I mention it took 7 hours to go from Bulls to Waitomo? It wasn’t that bad until like 4 PM, when I started to get hungry and tired from sitting so long. The drive was gorgeous though. This country is amazing. It really is as beautiful as it looks in all the photos. The consequence of all the pretty picturesque hills is a steep, windy drive. It was terrifying! These people are crazy to drive like they do! It seemed like the bus driver was going so fast, but I’m sure he’s used to the roads and knows what he’s doing. But that thought did not comfort me at all during the drive! I made conversation with the man next to me for a ways to try to get my mind off the insane driving, but he kept asking me some silly questions, such as “Do they have Easter in America?” and “How many miles are there between each state?” Anyways, 9 hours after leaving Wellington, I finally arrived at Juno Hall Backpackers in Waitomo. I relaxed for the rest of the evening before going to sleep.

   I had caving planned for Saturday. I did the Black Abyss expedition, which is an action packed 5 hour underground adventure! IT WAS AMAZING. I have no words! Looking back, it’s all a fun, adrenaline, cold, wet blur. But I’ll try to explain it.

Just practicing some abseiling. NBD.

The caving group, ready to go!

   I got to the café pretty early, so I had a while to wait before our group departed. I kept getting more and more nervous the longer I sat there and thought about it. But 10 AM finally rolled around and we were ready to get in the caves. We all got suited up, with a wetsuit, neoprene booties, a neoprene jacket, a thermal layer, a headsock for the ladies, and a helmet. It was a lot to get on, and it was all cold and wet! Once we got all our apparel on, we put our harnesses on and got in the van. We drove a little ways down the road to get to the cave, and before we started we practiced abseiling a bit. Abseiling is where you’re repelling into a big hole in the ground, basically. We all mastered it, and we were ready to go! I was kind of freaking out. I was so excited but also nervous and scared!

   The group, with our 2 awesome tour guides, were ready to descend into the Ruakuri cave. I walked out onto this teeny little walkway over the hole, got hooked up, and then sat back in my harness, and I was dangling over a big hole in the ground! It was a little nerve-wracking at first. I abseiled down a 35 meter hole in the ground, and it was no problem! I was nervous for nothing.

Abseiling 35 metres into the ground!

   We then all walked down a ways, until we found a zip line. It was SO much fun! The zip line was pretty short, but the guides made everyone turn out their head lamps while we did it. And of course, I was the first one to go, so I didn’t know what to expect! Although it was pretty scary jumping out into the darkness, it was a lot of fun. Once we all got done zip lining down, we sat for a bit and had hot chocolate and biscuits before we kept on. It’s pretty cold underground, and the water was a balmy 12 degrees C, so we needed to warm up before we jumped in! After our snack, we grabbed some intertubes and jumped off the edge into the cave’s river. It felt like a pretty high jump, and the water was SO cold! Even with all the wetsuit gear, I was shivering.

Jumping into the underground river. Very cold.

  We pulled ourselves upstream a ways with some ropes on the cave wall. It was amazing to see the glow worms everywhere. Then, we all linked up by putting our feet under the arms of the person in front of us. Our line of tubes floated back downstream, and we got to observe the glow worms a little more. We got to see them up close too! Anyways, after our tubing excursion, we got rid of the tubes and walked through the cave. We walked in the river that went through the cave. We saw a baby eel along the way! In some parts, it was only ankle deep, but in others we had to swim! We walked a ways before going down a little slide over a waterfall, headfirst of course. After that we trekked some more, before taking a little path that would lead us out. After we got onto the path, we stopped for another hot drink break. This time we had tea, and some chocolate-yum!

Casual snack break 60 metres underground...

   We got going again, and had to climb 2 waterfalls. We were basically rock climbing with out the ropes. Luckily the waterfalls weren’t that tall! It was still a little scary to be climbing up with all this water rushing down at you, but so cool! After waterfall # 1, the cave began to narrow. It was all very big and wide open the whole time we were wandering around. Now, it got a little smaller and we had to do more crawling. There was one point where we had to struggle through a pretty tiny hole. At least the water wasn’t very high! After waterfall #2, we were on the home stretch. Just a little more crawling, and then we saw daylight! We finally made it out! We had a short walk (albeit uphill) to get back to the van and drive back to the café. Once we got there, we struggled to get all of our wet gear off, then got a hot shower. It felt so good to be in warm water for a change! After our showers, we received free soup and bagels! It was nice to be out in the warm air, eating hot food.
   

4 hours later.. daylight!!

I relaxed in the café for a while, then caught a ride into the village from one of the couples on the cave tour. They had rented a campervan that had been painted. They have those all over this country, and they’re so cool! I got on the bus to Rotorua soon afterwards. I arrived to Rotorua at 9ish, walked to my hostel, looked around at all the weird tex-mex décor, and eventually crashed.

The weirdest hostel of all time. Tex Mex? Star Wars? Jail? I don't know.

   The next morning, I had nothing planned. My bus out of Rotorua was leaving at 1230, so I had some time to kill. I asked the hostel owners what was fun, cheap, and quick, and they told me about a few walks I could do. I ended up walking down to Kuirau Park, which had heaps of thermal stuff. It was like what my family and I saw before, but free!
   

Not showering has never looked so good.

   I wandered around there for a while before walking a path along Lake Rotorua. The walk was beautiful, and there were black swans everywhere! I also saw some more thermal lands.
   

"The coffee pot." A popular bathing site for early settlers.

   After that, I walked back to the hostel to collect my things for the bus, and walked to the bus stop. The bus ride was short, and I arrived in Whakatane by 2 PM. The owner of the hostel picked me up, and I explored the hostel a bit. Then, I decided to explore town. I walked around for what seemed like ages! Whakatane isn’t very nice, and there’s not a lot to look at. Even the river running through town isn’t pretty. But it was good to get out and get moving. I've just been relaxing in the hostel this evening. The radio is playing some sweet tunes, it's not very crowded, and it's really nice!

   So far, this vacation has been AMAZING. I can't get over the caving expedition! Tomorrow is the tour of an active volcano though, and I can't wait! Be on the lookout for my Part 2 post soon  : )

Some Kiwi Vocab.

   Here's a short list of some words I've come across while I've been here. Yes, I have started saying some of them. It'll be a hard habit to break when I come home!

aubergine: eggplant.
banger: sausage.
biscuit: a cookie. not bread.
boot: trunk of a car.
brekkie: breakfast
car park: parking lot
cheers: thanks, bye, anything really.
chemist: pharmacy.
chips: french fries
chippies: potato chips
chilly bin: cooler
chocolate fish: chocolate covered marshmallow. usually given as a reward.
chur: like cheers, but shorter. because cheers is too much to say?
courgette: zucchini
dairy: convenience store.
eh: typically used at the end of a sentence to indicate that it is a question.
feijoa: a really yummy fruit.
flash: something really cool or good looking.
good on ya: good job, congrats.
heaps: a lot.
hokey pokey: vanilla ice cream with honeycomb toffee bits. delicious.
hundreds and thousands: jimmies/sprinkles.
jandals: flip flops
jug: electric kettle.
jumper: sweater/jacket.
keen: eager, enthusiastic, ready.
kia ora: hello, welcome.
L&P: Lemon and Paeroa. a lemon-y tasting soda. also delicious.
lolly: any candy. not just lollipops.
Maori: the indigenous people of NZ.
nappy: diaper.
Oz: Australia. Also called Aussie.
pakeha: non-Maori, NZ Europeans.
pissed: very intoxicated.
pram: stroller
prawn: shrimp
pudding: more like lava cake than pudding.
serviette: napkin.
she'll be right: it's all good, no problem.
sunnies: sunglasses
sweet as: cool, awesome, sweet.
ta: thank you.
tea: as in afternoon tea, evening tea; a generic term for a meal.
tramping: hiking
trolley: shopping cart
togs: bathing suit
torch: flashlight
windscreen: windshield.
world famous in...: things around here usually claim to be world famous in new zealand.

Another Wellington Weekend

   What a fun weekend! I stayed in Wellington this weekend, but I sure was busy! Friday night, Hallie and I went to go see a movie. The cinemas we were at had couches with pillows in the theatre. So comfy! We saw Amour, a French film. It was so beautiful and heartbreaking. Go see it!

Taking the cable car to the top of the hill. You can see why we didn't want to walk! 

   Saturday was a busy day. We headed to the Botanic Gardens first thing. We took the cable car up, because the botanic gardens are at the very top of one of Wellington’s hills. We wandered around the gardens for a while. There was so much to see, and everything was beautiful! The Lady Norwood Rose Garden was spectacular. There were over 300 varieties of roses! After exploring the gardens, we headed town to Parliament, which is right near our flat. Unfortunately there were no cameras allowed on the tour, so I couldn’t get any pictures of the awesome architecture and decorations inside the Beehive and Parliament Houses.

One of over 300 types of roses!

The Beehive and Parliament House. Only a couple minutes from my flat.

   Saturday night, Hallie and I had tickets for a roller derby bout. It was SO awesome! It was really intense, and the score was close the whole time. I loved it! Afterwards, we were feeling like pigging out, so we bought ice cream, cones, jimmies, hot fudge, and cookies. My belly hurts just thinking about all that we ate…

DERBY!!!

   Sunday.. what a day! I had heard that Denny’s had a breakfast buffet on the weekends, so I tried to go to that this morning. Turns out Denny’s is closed for construction, whoops! I had planned to go to the airport today, so I hopped on the bus and rode out there. It was my first time riding a public bus and it was so confusing. Once I got to the airport, I saw the huge Gollum statue that is hanging from the ceiling. It was bigger than I expected! It’s so cool that New Zealand embraces the Lord of the Rings lifestyle. I also got a quick bite to eat at Donut King, which is sort of like a Dunkin Donuts. I miss Dunkin so I was anxious to try it! It was good, but not like DD. I wandered around the airport, and decided my route home. I wanted to walk, which I knew would take me a while. It only took 20 minutes to drive there and it ended up taking 3 hours to walk home! But I took my time and I stopped along the way. I walked along the beach and the Meridian Wind Sculpture Walk at Evans Bay on the way home, which has a bunch of huge wind sculptures. They were really cool, and I loved how they interacted with the wind! A ways later I walked through the Mount Victoria Tunnel. It was really hot in there! And loud! I suppose it’s tradition that everyone honks their horns while going through the tunnel.

Gollum in the airport. He's 13 metres long and weighs 1.2 tonnes!

At the beginning of the Mt. Vic Tunnel.

   I love exploring Wellington. There is so much to do here! Even just walking along the waterfront never gets old. As much as I like it, I am so excited to get away for a week! Easter break is starting this Thursday, and I'll be all over the North Island for a week. I'm heading to Waitomo to go caving, White Island to explore an active volcano, and Taupo to go parasailing. Does that sound awesome or what?!

Just an update.

   I haven't done anything lately that can compare to swimming with dolphins. But I have done some fun stuff!

   The Thursday before I left for the South Island, there was a free day at the Te Papa Museum. It's free admission to get in, but you have to pay to go into certain exhibits. On that day, they let all Wellington residents into the Game Masters exhibition. It was all about the history of video games, and was really cool! They had over 100 free games to play, ranging from arcade games, to consoles, to computer and ipad games. I spent over 2 hours there! It was convenient that it happened to be on a Thursday, since I have no class that day.

   Speaking of class, I've switched around my schedule quite a bit. I'm now taking Topics in Environmental Science, Photography, and Spanish. I have a pretty sweet class schedule!

Click on it to make it bigger!

   In my Spanish class, I volunteered to be the Class Representative. They have them for every class here at Victoria, and they serve as the link between the class and the lecturers. If there are any problems, people can talk to me about it first and I can try to help them. I really had no idea what I was getting myself into when I volunteered! I thought it would be a good way to get to know my class, though. And apparently, it's not a hard job. One of the perks is that I get to plan a pizza party at the end of the semester. What college kid doesn't love free pizza?!

   Last night, Wednesday, I went out for the first time in Wellington. I had been out to a bar before, but this was different. Hallie and I met up with our Kiwi buddies, and some others. We went to a few different bars and had some drinks. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of walking! And it is so expensive here, that a night out can really add up! Luckily I didn't break the bank, but I had fun and met some new people.

   I'm excited for this weekend - Hallie and I are going to see a roller derby bout, and we're also planning to explore Wellington as much as we can. Should be fun!

I had a bad day.

   I'm feeling hopeless. It's hard moving to a different country where I don't know anybody. It's hard to feel so lost in this city, and to feel so lost with who I am.

   I recently switched into a Photo class. I've never started a class late before, and I've learnt it's tricky to get caught up. I know it's my own fault for signing up late, but I have so much to do. It doesn't help that this class is held on the Te Aro campus, not the Kelburn campus. Te Aro is a 15 minute walk from Kelburn, my usual campus. I don't know my way around Te Aro, and it's frustrating to be so confused.

   As if today wasn't bad enough, it rained. I woke up early to get a head start on work, and got soaked on my way to campus. My feet were wet all day. I was freezing all day. I could complain forever!

   I guess it's a good sign that I've been here for a month, and today was my first really horrible day. I'm just realizing how hard this whole experience is, and how much more I have to endure. It's fun and rewarding as hell, but I'm putting a lot of effort into it.

   I often catch myself daydreaming of home, and it's getting tough. I know this is just a phase, and it will pass, but this bad day is getting the best of me.

MY AMAZING WEEKEND IN PICTON.

   It really was amazing. The ferry to the South Island, swimming with dolphins, tramping, oh my!

Hallie and I on the Interislander.

   Friday, Hallie and I caught the Interislander ferry to Picton, NZ, right at the tip of the South Island. It was HUGE. There were 5 different levels on the ferry, some for cars, some for trains, and some for people. We spent over an hour of the 3 hour journey exploring! The ferry had a bar, a food court, a movie theatre, and plenty of cozy seating areas. It was SO cool!
   We left Wellington at 2:30 Friday afternoon, and arrived in Picton at 5:45. From the ferry terminal, we walked straight to the hostel we had booked for the weekend. It was a short walk, and we got to see the little town of Picton.
   Once we got to Sequoia Lodge, we explored a little bit. The hostel had a TV room, a hot tub, free bikes to rent, and a full kitchen. It had everything you could ever need! Don't let me forget to mention the free pudding (cake) and ice cream every night at 8. After relaxing in the hot tub for a half hour, the pudding and ice cream was such a treat! I really liked our hostel. I met so many interesting people from all over the world.

Free pudding and ice cream!!

   Saturday morning was the big day for dolphin swimming! I woke up early to get to the harbour for 8 AM. At the dolphin headquarters, they briefed us on what to expect, and gave us our wetsuits and snorkels. Soon enough, we were on the boat, and we were off. The captain took us out into the Marlborough Sounds quite a ways to find the pod of dolphins that had been hanging around the area. Along the way, we saw blue penguins, seals, and tons of native bird species. Very neat!
   At last, we found the dolphins. We were ready to swim! There were about 15 of us on the boat, and the first swim was rather hectic. We all knew what to do, but I think the excitement took over. We climbed in the water and all started singing. The tour guides told us that singing attracted the dolphins, because they were such curious animals. It must have sounded so silly from the boat - 15 people singing underwater! I didn't see any dolphins on my first swim. I was still getting used to using the mask and snorkel, the cold water, and what to do when I got down there.

Beautiful!

   The group swam 4 times that day. We would follow the dolphins, and get out when they seemed to stay put. I saw dolphins all but the first time. It was amazing. I have no other way to describe it. So surreal! The 2nd swim, I saw two dolphins swim right under me. It was weird to have dolphins appear out of nowhere, and then be so close to you. The 3rd and 4th swims, there were dolphins everywhere. They were swimming beside me, under me, and all through our group. I looked up and saw fins coming towards me, and then I'd look down and dolphins would be whizzing by. I can't even explain what an amazing experience it was. Imagine being thisclose to wild dolphins!

We really were thatclose.

   At one point, a mama dolphin and her calf swam under me. It goes to show how curious and trusting they are. The crew that brought us out never pushed any limits with the dolphins - everything was on their terms. If they didn't want to interact with us, we wouldn't force them, or harass them. It was really cool that they swam all around us on their own.

Dolphins everywhere!
(I'm on the left with my head up)

   An interesting fact about dolphins: they really like the song The Final Countdown. I think that's what attracted them to me so much. I sang it on the last 2 swims and they were swarming!
   After our 4 swims, all 15 of us got back on the boat and enjoyed some biscuits (cookies) and hot cocoa. We cruised for a while before heading back, and spent some more time observing the dolphins. The pod we were following had about 70 dolphins in it. Some were far away, but some were swimming right under our boat and right beside us. I still can't get over how marvelous the whole experience was!
   On our way back to the harbour, I made a new best friend. The captain's daughter, 4 year-old Sophia, braided my hair the whole way home. She was so sweet, and so cute with her accent!

My hair stylist, Sophia.

   Hallie and I were back on land by 12:30. What could we do for the rest of the day that wouldn't seem lame after swimming with freakin' dolphins?! We walked around town on our way back to the hostel. There were tons of little shops and cafes to stop at, and we took our time walking back. Once we made it to the hostel, we rented out the bikes, and biked around Picton. We really explored that town!
   After biking for a while, we decided to go for a short tramp (hike) on Tirohanga Track, up to a nearby lookout. It took us about 2 hours, and it was so worth it. The view was breathtaking! At the hostel that night, we took advantage of the free pudding and the free hot tub again. What a wonderful day we had!

The view of Picton from the top of the Tirohanga Track. Look at the size of the ferry!

   Sunday was St. Patrick's Day. What better way to start out our day than go to an Irish bar? I was tempted to get a Guinness, but since I would be tramping all day, I thought better of it. Plus, it was 9 AM! Instead, Hallie and I got coffee and a Guinness pot pie. So I guess we did have our morning Guinness after all. Happy St. Patty's Day to us!

Picton from above. That green peninsula is the Snout Trail. Yes, it is as long as it looks.

   The Marlborough Sounds are comprised of hundreds of peninsulas, islands, and other cool stuff, at the top of the South island. Right off of Picton is a trail called the Snout. I knew it would take most of the day to complete it, but I had no idea how intense it would be! Hallie and I were carrying all of our stuff, since we checked out of the hostel that morning in preparation to leave in the evening. Luckily, we packed light! The Snout Trail took us at least 4 hours in total. At some spots it was nice, flat terrain, but it was mostly steep uphills or downhills. It was an incredible workout, an incredible experience, and an incredible view from the top! It sprinkled for most of the day, but the rain was never hard enough to ruin our adventure. I'm so glad we did it, even though it was really hard!

We made it through the rain and mugginess to the top of the Snout Trail!

   While we were resting at the top, Hallie got a phone call from the ferry office saying that we were bumped from our 6:30 PM ferry back to a 10:30 PM departure. Ouch! I didn't want to get back to Wellington at 2 AM! There was nothing we could do about it, so we kept on tramping. When we finished our hike around 2:30, I was beat! Since Hallie and I still had 8 hours until our ferry left, we wandered around town again. What were we going to do for the rest of the day?!
   We must have good luck, because the ferry office called back that afternoon and we were back on the 6:30 ferry! I was so grateful. We scurried back to the terminal to catch our ride home.
   On the way home, Hallie and I took advantage of the on-board cinemas and watched a cool Welsh film called Hunky Dory. It was interesting, and it made our trip home fly by. We arrived back in Wellington at 10 PM, walked home, showered, and went right to bed. I was so exhausted after my big weekend! I am so lucky to be here, and to have the opportunity to experience such amazing things.

So exhausted after an eventful weekend.

A Wellington Weekend

   In comparison to how awesome Friday night was, the weekend was pretty tame. It was still a lot of fun though! Saturday, there was a Barista Championship right in Wellington. The top baristas of the area competed in coffee and espresso making. The winner will go to Australia to compete. I had no idea coffee was such a big deal!

The enthused crowd watching coffee being made!

New Zealand's silver fern in my coffee.

   Saturday night was very chill. Hallie, Paul, and I went out for a drink at a bar called the General Practitioners. There was a lot of old medical memorabilia, and it was really cool! Gotta love flatmate bonding.
   On Sunday, I walked around all day barefoot. Although Wellington is a city, it's really clean, and no one cares if you wear shoes or not. I loved it! Hallie and I went to a farmer's market. We bought a lot of cheap veggies and got some henna done before heading over to the beach for the rest of the day. I got a sunburn :( It's so easy to get burnt here! The ozone is not as good, so UV rays are really strong. Sun screen is a life saver.

   Overall, it was a wonderful weekend - very low key. I'm liking this place more and more!

Some Things.

Some things I miss:

•  my family and friends. it's hard to be in a different country with no one!
•  snow. yes, snow.
•  my job. it is so strange to have so little to do!
•  having an oven. living in a flat with no oven makes you a little more creative though.
•  Wells' dining hall. I buy and cook all my own food now. it makes me appreciate being able to go down to the dining hall and get prepared food!
•  the quiet. Wellington is always busy. It's not too loud, but it is definitely a city.
•  the 2 minute walk to class. It takes me 20 minutes to walk up the hill here.

Some things I don't miss:

•  snow. yup.
•  television. I have so much free time now that I don't own a tv!
•  how small Wells is. I kind of like this new found anonymity!
•  my cell phone. I haven't suffered from phantom phone once.

Some things that are different:

•  the accent. just because they speak English doesn't mean I can understand them.
•  the government. I live right next to the Parliament building, and one day I'll learn how it works!
•  driving on the left side of the road. it still scares me.
•  cost of living. everything here is SO expensive. the minimum wage is $13.75 to compensate for living costs.
•  the outlets. they all have switches. you turn on each outlet when you want to use it. it must save heaps of energy!
•  the time. I'm 18 hours ahead. I'm in the future!
•  fashion. the people here dress so well! all the time!
•  the mood. "no worries" is a way of life, not just a saying.
•  I walk everywhere. seriously everywhere. although Wellington is a city, it's pretty small and concentrated.
•  shops close early! the city closes right up at 5 PM.
•  the money. they have $2 coins and no pennies. so hard to get used to!
•  the sounds. the environment sounds different. crickets don't sound the same as they do at home (they must have an accent too). there are different kinds of birds chirping. it's almost unsettling how weird the sounds are.

An unexpected Friday.

   FRIDAY! I survived my first week at uni without getting lost, missing class, or getting beat up by the big kids! I’m starting to like going to a big school in a big city.

   This afternoon, I was part of a freeze mob! It’s like a flash mob, but you just stand still. The group Generation Zero put it on to demonstrate the move away from fossil fuels. How cool! We even got on the news!!

MY FREE TICKET!!!

   OH. MY. GOD. Friday just kept getting better! I was sitting in my room yesterday evening, and I had no plans for the night. I knew Ed Sheeran was playing at the TSB Arena downtown, so I decided to take a walk down to see if I could hear anything from the outside. I could. I listened to the opening act, Passenger, for a while (so good!).

   As I was standing around outside the arena, a man came up to me and asked if I wanted to buy a ticket to go in. The way he said it made him sound like security or something, so I fibbed and told him I was waiting for someone. About 20 minutes later, the same man comes up to me again, and says he had two tickets, but his wife was very sick, and they were going home. He said he gave one away already, and had one left. He wanted me to have it. For free. I thanked him a million times, waved to his wife in the car, and wished them well. In I went!

   I can’t even describe the things that were running through my head, or how I felt. It was so amazing! I thought for sure I would get stopped on the way in because the ticket was fake. I got in though, and headed to my seat in the nosebleeds. The arena was small enough that even the nosebleeds weren’t too far away though. I was seriously speechless at this point, and I couldn’t stop smiling!

   The girl sitting next to me was on the phone when I sat down, telling her friend about how she got a free ticket. She was the other one! We chatted instantly, and throughout the night. I rocked out to Ed Sheeran with a stranger and it was so much fun! He was an awesome performer, and the whole show was spectacular. I am SO lucky.

   After the show, the stranger Carlie and I walked around downtown for a while and eventually went to a quaint little place called Boon Brothers. We got a fancy crumpet to celebrate our luck. I guess we were both just in the right place at the right time.

   The guy that gave me the ticket reminded me how awesome people can be. He just lost $200 by not going to the show, and he was just giving tickets away. I'm so grateful. He definitely has good things coming his way!

Flatmate lovin'

   Wednesday morning I walked up the hill once again for class. I think I’m getting used to it! I’m finding different routes too, which is really cool ‘cause it makes me think I know how to navigate the city. I also think I’m getting used to my classes. At first it was weird to be taught by someone with an accent, in a room full of people with accents, but after a couple days I’m quickly settling in. It’s also weird that my classes are so big! My largest class has probably 200 people. So different! I think it’s neat though and I’m so glad to have the opportunity to experience something different.

The Flying Picnic Table of Almost Certain Death! At Fuse Circus' Campground Chaos.

   Wednesday evening, Paul, Hallie and I had dinner together and went out for ice cream. Our first flatmate bonding! The ice cream was delicious, and we had a lot of fun on our walk home (as you can see from the facebook photos)!! We also stumbled upon a circus act on the waterfront. It was so cool, and free! I love that there is always something going on in Wellington, and a lot of times it's free. I can tell this will be a good semester :)

First day of hell. I mean class.

   Okay, it wasn't really that bad...
   Hallie and I woke up bright and early to head up the hill towards Kelburn campus. We live about a mile downhill, and it is rather steep! I don't have class until 4:10 on Mondays, but I had some things to sort out and I wanted to explore. There were sooo many people! It's really overwhelming to go to a real university after attending Wells. The vibe was really cool though - the end of summer, music playing, and barbeques on campus.

A serious hill. And this is only like 1/4 of our journey.

   After hanging out all day, I headed to my Spanish class - the only class of the day. It was pretty basic, and I met some cool people. After we were done for the day, it was time to walk back down the hill. The walk down is much more fun than the walk up!
   My second day of class did not go so well. I had two classes - Topics in Environmental Science and Earth Structures and Deformations. Besides the two 50 minute classes, I also had labs which I didn't know about! Each class has 50 minute sessions, then 100-ish minute labs each week. I had no idea the 3 classes I'm signed up for would take so much time! It didn't help that my Deformations Lab today was wicked hard.

My schedule so far. Not too bad!

   It feels nice to be back in school. It's a little weird to be taught by a kiwi, in a room full of kiwis, but I like it, and I'm getting used to it. These 4 months are going to fly by!

   Today was Census day. How ironic that the first census I fill out is in a different country! I supported gender diversity with this census by ticking both the 'male' and 'female' boxes. It's time we start recognizing all the different genders out there!

Census time!

   In other news, my family arrived home at 7am (my time) Monday morning. That equates to almost 55 hours of travel time! Ouch!

My new address!

   I could definitely use some letters from home!

Letters:

Molly Baillargeon

Apartment 0933

Stafford House

PO Box 8050

Wellington 6143

Parcel:

Molly Baillargeon

Apartment 0933

Stafford House

40 The Terrace

Wellington 6011

My family is gone :(

   I woke up today without my family! After spending two whole weeks together, every second of the day, it was kinda weird! They departed from Wellington at 6:40 this morning, and should get back to Bangor at 2 pm Sunday, Maine time.
   While they were flying Saturday, Hallie and I had a busy day. I unpacked a little more in the morning, then we headed to the Oriental Bay Beach to meet up with Elysia, Hallie's 'buddy.' The school sets international students up with buddies that already attend Victoria. Elysia was really nice, and we talked a lot.. about everything! We also walked around downtown Wellington for a while, and went to a few vintage-y flea markets. So cool! I can already tell I'm going to be walking for 4 straight months.
   Hallie and I decided to get groceries Saturday evening. We looked for all the stuff that was on sale, and we bought a week's worth of food for a steal! I'm so proud of us. It's like we're real adults now! When we got home with all of our groceries, Paul called us Americans! I guess they don't stock up on food here like we do in the States...
   Today was the laziest of days. I stayed in my pj's all day today! I'm taking advantage of my one last chance to relax before classes start tomorrow and I get super busy. I'm excited to start school- I've been on break since mid-December! It's so weird that US students are almost on Spring break since I haven't even started my semester yet.
   I skyped my family during their travels today. They have been traveling since about 4 am Saturday morning. It's now Sunday at 8 pm and they're still going! They'll be getting to Bangor in 12 more hours. What a long haul! I'm so lucky they traveled around the world for me!

They've been traveling for over 24 hours. Can you tell?

   Hallie and I cooked our first dinner together tonight. We decided to make tacos, and I think they turned out pretty darn good!

They tasted better than they looked.

   After we got the stove to work, that is. All the electrical sockets here have switches on them, so you can turn on the whole outlet, or just the plug that you need. We forgot about this small detail, and waited about 20 minutes for our stove to heat up! Oooops!

Soo happy about the tacos!

   We also went downstairs to an ice cream social for Stafford residents. So much ice cream! And so many people!

   Today was a good lazy day, but I'm ready to be busy. Wish me luck on my first day of classes!