I'm a Hopeless Wanderer

So excited about the new Mumford and Sons album that just came out, so I named this blog post after one of my favorite songs.  Plus, the past couple times we have hired a car, the vehicle lacked an ipod jack and only came equipped with a Japanese radio system, and this was the only CD that we had…so naturally we have listened to it over a million times!  But, before I get ahead of myself…

I had my first exam last Wednesday and it was pretty easy and I felt good about it so I was happy to have one down.  The next two days, I studied/pretended to study with people in the library and took my second exam on Saturday afternoon.  Annoying to have a Saturday exam, but I hung out with Werner beforehand and had my first teza (iced tea sort of thing, but nothing like sweet tea) and after my exam, I went to a BYO at Indian Spice and then hung out with friends that night, so it ended up being a good day!

Sunday, Erin and I went to George Street for a sushi lunch date and then we relaxed in the Botanical Gardens lying in the grass and soaking up the warm sun!  Werner met up with us later and taught us how to properly throw a rugby ball so we tossed that around for a while.  It’s a lot easier to throw than the football!  Afterwards, I went to the gym and then went over to Liz’s for a girl’s night complete with endless episodes of Gilmore Girls, pizza, and laughter!

And Monday, we set off on another study break trip!  Werner and I picked up the rental car and tent and then we set off!  Poor Werner was the only guy, as Kelly, Erin, and Rachel were with us as well!  Our first stop after endless Mumford: Lake Tekapo.  And after numerous attempts to properly pronounce this place, I finally have it down!  The weather was absolutely gorgeous without a cloud in the sky; and wearing a flannel shirt and chacos never felt so good!  There is not much in the town except for the lake so we headed down there and hung out on the rocks.  Maybe it was just the perfect weather and setting, but Lake Tekapo is definitely high up on my list of favorite places!  The snow covered mountains that surrounded the lake were stunning and so mesmerizing!  We spent hours skipping rocks/teaching people to skip rocks and splashing our feet around in the water.  There is also a beautiful small historic church in front of the lake that we visited.  I decided that if I were to ever get married in NZ (although the chances of that are very slim so don’t worry Mom and Dad), I would hold the ceremony in that church! 

Soon we found of stomachs growling and drove down the road to find some food, but I guess in a small tourist town they can make everything twice as expensive, so we ended up with pre-made sandwiches from a convenient store, but we were content eating beside the lake.  After dinner, we headed to the campground to set up our tent.  The rates were a little pricey since they were per person, so we may have only actually checked in two people, but it worked out fine!

After setting up the tent, we hopped back in the car towards the lake to watch the sunset…which was perfect!  There was also a full moon that night, which was amazing to see.  Unfortunately, my camera is not capable of properly capturing any of this!  But here are a few pictures!  Once it was dark, we headed to the town tavern for some water and while there, made a list of everything we need to do/accomplish before leaving…which is a lot!  So I am going to be super busy my last week or so here!  But I still have another month and a half before I leave J

 

 

The next morning, we woke up at 5:45 to watch the sunrise.  We probably did not need to wake up quite so early since we had to wait for it to come over the mountains, but the extra time gave us a chance to drive down to the perfect viewing spot by the lake.  The sunrise was not full of colors, but the picture painted of the sun casted upon the mountains and green hills was completely worth the little sleep.  Once back to the campsite, we packed up, grabbed some desperately needed coffee, and after an embarrassing moment when asking for directions (just me being stupid since, as most of you know, I lack any sort of internal navigation system), we hit the road toward Mount Cook (Aoraki).  It was about an hour drive, but the views of Lake Pukaki on the way kept us glued to the car windows! 

 

Once we arrived at Mount Cook Village, we stopped at DOC (department of conservation) to ask them the best hikes in the area.  We had initially planned to actually tramp in the area into a hut a couple weeks ago, but that trip was canceled due to avalanche danger and the danger was still severe, so we just decided to go see the area.  But, we ended up hiking the Hooker Valley Track, which was the perfect choice for another stunningly beautiful day!  I was super excited to be hiking in shorts and a t-shirt!  We set off around noon with a view of snowy mountains surrounding us and a pale blue river running along the trail.  We took a quick detour to see Freda’s rock and monument.  She was the first woman to hike Mount Cook in the early 1900’s…and she did it in a skirt!  So legit!  I declared her my hero for the trip J  We even witnessed/heard a few avalanches in the mountains high above us. 

The hike was a perfect meander that was very pleasant and not too strenuous.  It took us about an hour or so to reach our destination: a beautiful lake with Mount Cook, the tallest mountain in NZ, rising behind it.  We snagged a giant rock to hang out on and eat our packed lunch.  We spent an hour or so soaking in the sun and exploring the area a little.  There were even a few mini “icebergs” in the water, which we surprisingly entertaining to watch change and break apart.  We really lucked up with the weather, as we were able to see the very top of Mount Cook!  One of my friends who previously visited it was unable to see more than a fifth of the mountain.  The whole mountain, especially the top peak, looked exactly like the mountain in “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”  Eventually we reluctantly headed back to the car, and only then, did we realize that we were all beginning to turn a little pink/red (some more than others) from the sun.   We had not seen weather like this and had completely forgotten sunscreen.  NZ also receives more rays due to the ozone hole over the country, so my pale skin was certainly not ready for that!  But we all survived!

After the hike, we regrouped and drove down the road a few minutes to the blue lakes (which were actually green?) and then walked up a short path to an overview of a Glacial lake and the Tasman Glacier.  Afterwards, we hit the road toward Omarama.  Once to town, we drove out to the Clay Cliffs.  And the instant I saw them, I had to remind myself I was in New Zealand.  They are very reminiscent of Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah!  But very unique and interesting nonetheless.  So once we explored the cliffs, we hopped in the car and I drove us to Omaru, where we stopped at a KFC to eat dinner.  But basically, we just took all of our leftover lunch food inside and only a couple people bought anything.  They were probably not too happy with us, but oh well!  After we were full, we stopped to buy some aloe for our sunburns, and after a minor explosion when opening the bottle in the car, we set off for Dunedin.  Once back, I dropped everybody off and while getting ready for bed, locked myself out of my room.  Being too lazy to call Campus Watch that evening, I walked over to Erin’s and slept at her place because we were planning on waking up early the next day anyway.

 

So the next morning, out alarm went off at 5:15am!  Yikes!  But, it was totally worth the effort to get up and see one of the most beautiful sunrises (two in a row)!  We took the car up to the top of Mount Cargill and watched the sun rise above the ocean and Peninsula.  Absolutely gorgeous!  We also took pictures by the Dunedin city sign and then headed back to our flats to sleep for a couple more hours.  But of course I was still locked out, so I called Campus Watch and a guy came to let me in, but he grabbed the wrong set of keys and so he had to go back.  And he woke up all my flatmates with his super loud radio at 7am!  But once into my room, I took a nap and then returned the car and tent with Werner later that afternoon. 

And yesterday was also Halloween!  So we dressed up as the plastics from Mean Girls (because it was cheap and easy) and went to a small party at a friend’s house!

Happy Halloween everyone!  Sad I’m missing Franklin Street Halloween festivities, but I hope to see pictures soon!  Have fun J

Organic Living: Yummy Food and Great Company

Yay for a post that is on time this week!  Unfortunately that mans that I am procrastinating from studying for exams…go figure right? 

The end to last week was great!  I enjoyed a wonderful dinner with Werner at unicol Friday evening and then packed up my bags for a great adventure:  WWOOFing.

WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) is an international organization that links volunteers to organic farmers around the world.  Basically, you live on an organic farm, from anywhere between a week to even a year, and work in exchange for food and accommodation.  I had never heard of this before until I arrived in NZ, and since I am interested in sustainability and organic foods, I decided that it would be a great and very unique experience since I had plenty of time to kill before my first exam.  Plus, New Zealand is said to be the best place to WWOOF in the world!  So one of my friends from my urban geography class ,named Celine, and I decided to wwoof together!  That way we could study for our exam too (bet you can guess how well that studying actually went)!  So we found a great farm and signed up!

Saturday morning we woke up at 6am to meet our host at the Dunedin Farmer’s market!  It was pouring rain and not the most pleasant 20 minute walk carrying all of our bags, but our excitement kept us in good spirits.  I also killed my second umbrella that morning.  Not even going to attempt to purchase another one.  Anyway, all we knew was our host’s name, Shaun, and that he had a big white van.  Luckily it did not take us too long to find him, as he spotted us looking a little lost and greeted us with a big smile.  And then we went right to work helping him unpack his produce and set up the stand.  He is famous is NZ for his orange carrots, but he grows a large variety of veggies, including beets, leeks, parsnips, white carrots, chard, all kinds of lettuce, purple sprouting broccoli, garlic, Jerusalem artichokes, spinach, and even more that I can’t remember right now.  He stand is pretty popular so we aided in sales the rest of the time there and, in between customers, learned a lot about his organic farm and the veggies he grows. 

Once the market ended, we hopped in his van to head to his home in Clinton, which is about an hour and a half south of Dunedin.  On our way, we had some good conversation and were happy to hear him say that we would fit in great on the farm!  Once to Clinton, we settled into our house truck (like a campervan), became acquainted with the farm, and met the other WWOOFers there.  There was a girl from Brazil named Jamila, Miguel from Spain, Matilda from France, Ying from Malaysia (also an international student at Otago) and two girls from California who were traveling around the world for a year, but they left the next day (only mildly jealous of them)!  That night we hung out getting to know each other over dinner and snuggling up near the fire in the station (where all the WWOOFers hang out). 

Sunday was our first real day of work on the farm.  It was raining a good bit so we ended up working in the greenhouse all day, but that didn’t bother me.  It was mostly weeding around lettuce and chard.  After four hours of work, we made some lunch and hung out that afternoon.  That evening, Celine and I cooked dinner for everybody in the station.  On the weekends, the WWOOFers cook for themselves, but during the week, we all had dinner in Shaun’s house.  Monday pretty much consisted of the same routine with lots of weeding again.  Shaun cooked us potato and leek soup that evening with leeks that he picked that day! 

Tuesday brought a little more weeding around the pumpkins with Miguel and then a group effort clearing a large patch inside one of the greenhouses.  I attempted to study a little that afternoon, but ended up putting the books down for a cup of tea and great conversation!  Shaun made us a great spaghetti dish that night!  Wednesday we started harvesting for the market so in the morning Miguel, Ying, and I picked heaps of parsnips.  That afternoon, Celine, Matilda, and I worked in the garden and used a hoe to weed around baby carrot plants.  And the sandflies attacked.  I have so many bites on my arms and back it’s not even funny.  I remember at one point looking down at my clothes and seeing at least 20 sandflies all over me!  So itchy now!  Wednesday evening I also milked a cow for the first time ever!  Celine and I looked a little goofy in the field trying to round it up, but once she was in the milking area, Shaun showed us what to do.  It’s actually a lot harder than it looks.  But so cool at the same time!

 Thursday we picked purple sprouting broccoli as a group and then Ying and I sorted garlic for the market.  Thankfully garlic is a natural insect repellent so the sandflies avoided us and the inside of the cloves also provides instant itch relief!  That evening, Celine and I made artichoke and cauliflower soufflés.  I have never really eaten much artichoke, but I discovered that I absolutely love Jerusalem artichokes! 

 

 

And Friday, Celine and I picked lettuce and spinach in the morning and then worked in the packaging room for the rest of the day.  This day was definitely my favorite as I witnessed everything that went into preparing for the farmer’s market on Saturday.  Lots of washing, weighing, and packaging, but I honestly loved every second of it.  Shaun was an amazing host and I learned so much from him!  That afternoon, we all walked to “downtown” Clinton (it’s literally the epitome of a one horse town) for a bottle of wine to celebrate because everybody was leaving the next day.  That night Shaun whipped up his famous artichoke lasagna after much convincing/pleading from Celine and I.  That night we stayed up late chatting and hanging out with our wonderful new friends. 

 

The next morning, we said goodbye to the farm and Miguel, Celine, and I caught a bus back to Dunedin.  Last night, I went out with some friends (and even did a little swing dancing!) before cracking down to study today!  I have been in the library most of today…so lame, I know, but it needs to get done!  Missing my Starbucks pumpkin spiced lattes to help me study though.  And this blog was my study break, so I guess I need to get back to the books.  Have a wonderful week!

LWOC: Making Memories with Amazing Friends

Where did the semester go?  This week is the last week of classes.  I feel like I was just sitting in my first Otago class trying to figure out how the grading system worked here and now I only have one more class left!  I am definitely not okay with where the time went!  But anyway, enough stressing about that as I make the most of the time I have left here, which is still a little over two months!

It’s been a little bit longer since my last post than usual, but I have been pretty busy lately.  I don’t think last week was too exciting.  Tuesday, after class, I hung out with Werner for a while at my flat and then went to get ice cream with my mentor!  That night I watched the original Footloose with Rachel and her flatmates.  Most of you know that this is one of my favorite movies, but usually when I show it to people they think it’s a little weird.  But, Rachel loved it, which of course made me super happy!  We also booked a flight that night for after exams!

Wednesday was a typical day.  I had one class because my tutorial and my other lecture were canceled for the day!  I then had $3 lunch at clubs and societies on campus.  That night I watched the second Lord of the Rings with scenes filmed at the locations we visited last week!  It was cool to see the lake and where the buildings were in real life and compare it to the film. 

Thursday I skyped Kelsey!!! Yay!  It was so great to see her and catch up.  I also had my last God and Ethics lecture because my professor canceled class for the last week.  I think I have had more classes canceled here in the past two weeks than I ever had at UNC!  But I am a little sad that class is over because it was super interesting, the professor was amazing, and I learned so much!  That evening we went over to Anna’s flat and hung out for a while and then went to town.

Friday was was a pretty lazy day because we went to bed super late the night before.  In the afternoon, I visited a Maori marae through an organizied afternoon trip for international students .  It is a communal and sacred meeting place for the Maori.  Once there we had to be invited onto the land, take off our shoes before we entered, and introduce ourselves by touching noses.  The women sat in the back, behind the males.  Guests also must designate one male Maori speaker (somebody who is in the language class now spoke for us) who introduces the group and then sings a song that pertains to our culture.  After this introduction, they provided afternoon tea and explained the history of their ancestors and the marae.  It was very interesting and a great cultural experiemce!

 

Saturday we went to the Farmer’s Market, like we do any Saturday we are in town.  I love it so much and I think I am going to have to find some people to go to the one in Carrboro with when I get back!  After the market, it was a little rainy and very windy outside so we went to the gym and then just shopped around on George Street for a while.  That night, Erin, Rachel, and I made lamb stew.  We figured we should actually try some lamb since it is the main industry in New Zealand, so we found a super easy recipe for stew.  The last time I had lamb was probably about ten years ago and I remember not liking it, but I absolutely loved it this time.  It was an Irish stew with lamb, potatoes, carrots, and beer (terrible picture below).  When I first arrived here, I was nervous about cooking for myself and other people, but I have actually really come to like cooking and experimenting!  And everybody seems to like what I cook J  The stew that night was very filling and afterwards I had some friends over to hang out.  We were being so goofy and I laughed so hard.  And eventually we went to town for a little while!

 

Sunday we woke up to a bright blue sky and decided to take advantage of it.  So we ran over to Wynton’s to borrow his (American) football and then caught a bus headed to St. Clair Beach.  I was wearing jeans, but it was so nice and warm!  We took a nice walk along the beach, breathed in the warm air, buried our toes in the sand, and laughed and shared stories.  We found a nice warm sand dune to lounge around on and then we passed around the football for a while.  It was a perfect day J  After the sun began to set and the temperature started dropping, we walked back to the beachfront shops, sipped on a cup of coffee, and then grabbed the bus back to the university.  Once we got back, Erin and I returned a jacket that some random guy had given her on the street the night before.  She looked cold apparently, so he insisted she take his jacket to town.  Afterwards, we went over to Wynton’s to return his football and hang out for a while.  And he even gave us some of the shrimp he had made.

Monday, I mailed in my absentee ballot, which was super exciting.  It’s my first time voting in a presidential election!

This week, we also celebrated LWOC!  At UNC, the last day of classes (LDOC) is always a crazy day filled with silliness and hanging out with friends before everybody buckles down before exams.  So we decided it would be a great idea to have LWOC (last week of classes) and make the whole week a big celebration.  We also know that once people start exams and begin to travel/go home, we will never be together like we have been over the semester, so we wanted as much fun packed into one week that we could get!  Monday night I went to Indian Spice for a BYO with Rachel, Erin, Scott, Katie, Anna, Emma, and Nicole.  The curry was great, but the friendship and laughter was even better.  After dinner, we went to The Bog for trivia night and met up with Marvin, Wynton, and Chris there too.  This had been something we had wanted to do all semester, but it just never happened, so we finally made ourselves go!  Our team name:  Quiz in my pants.  And we did not lose!  But we may have come in second to last.  In our defense, however, a lot of the questions were related to random NZ facts that we would have had no way of knowing!  I mean, they were asking us to identify NZ chocolate bars and all of their Olympic athlete flag bearers.  But we made up some pretty funny answers for the questions we didn’t know.  And I think the team that came in last was a group of internationals, so at least we have learned more than them in our time here!  That night, Wynton and Erin came back to my flat and we hung out for a while. 

Tuesday, I had my last Urban Geography class.  It was kind of boring because we just went over exam preparation, but helpful too.  After class, I had coffee with Werner at the Otago Museum.  Our coffee dates are always so great!  That night I made chicken pie and potatoes for my flat and then we went to The Bog again for Open Mic Night.  This time it was only Marvin, Erin, Anna, and Liz. 

And finally yesterday.  I did not have any classes, because, like I said, professors really like to cancel classes during the last week.  They say they do it to give us more time to study for exams, which is a really ironic concept to me anyway.  I am used to having five exams within a week, with more than one in a day even.  It’s a week where I don’t leave the library, live off of coffee, stay up to unheard of hours, and am not ashamed of wearing sweatpants every day.  Well, here it’s the exact opposite.  The exam period lasts a whole month.  Meaning I have only three finals in a month.  What in the world?  I don’t even know what to do with myself.  My first final is not even until Oct 24!  Kiwis seem to be stressing over them (more understandable since I am just on pass/fail credit), but luckily I am still relaxed!  I won’t even be in Dunedin for the next seven days!  I won’t tell you what I am doing now, but it should be a very unique and exciting experience!  Anyway, so yesterday I went to the final mentor get-together, where we were fed pizza and honored all of the mentors.  Mine has been so great!  After dinner, we went over to Anna’s flat and hung out and then we all came back to my flat and hung out with Sophie, Bob, and some of their friends.  We also went to the last Pint Night of the semester at the campus bar called Refuel and then met up with Wynton and Marvin at The Cook for a little silly dancing!

And this morning, we walked up the George Street for brunch because Erin and I had a 2 for 1 coupon.  Yay for saving money!  And now I am just about to head to my last class at Otago.  I am not sure I am entirely okay with that!  Okay, enough nostalgic moments.  Hope everybody in Boone is not having too much trouble with the water!  Miss everybody J Cheers!