Here is a picture that Natalie took of the side of the road during the drive -- typical New Zealand.



This is a photo from a lookout off the side of the highway -- not too shabby.



Above is a shot of McLean Falls, one of the two waterfalls we saw on Saturday. The next several photos are from Cannibal Bay and our visit with the sealions - quite a cool spot.






And finally, if you're reading this, chances are that I'm missing you.


My friends, Whitney, Natalie, and I took a mini-road trip this weekend. We left Friday afternoon for the Catlins, a gorgeous area about 2 hours south of Dunedin. My wonderful "kiwi host", Kate, graciously lent us her car after giving me a brief driving tutorial (and adding me to her insurance plan) and we were on our way. Luckily, the NZ roads are fairly isolated, leaving the main distractions to the sheep on either side of the road and the gorgeous views in every direction. The other beauty of New Zealand is that there are very few highways -- and by highways, I mean two-lane roads with little traffic, thus making it easy to leave for a trip with no directions - zilch, nadda, zippola. To add to the excitement, we had no hostel booked, campsite reserved, or any other form of lodging for the night -- clearly the ritual of leaving every weekend and the burden of planning that goes along with it is beginning to take a toll on us.

New Zealand is well-marked and has frequent signs for lookouts, bays, etc. to turn off on along the way. With no clear destination, we decided to take advantage of all that we could. We turned off to go to Kaka Point (mainly because of the name) -- after about 5-10 minutes of driving on gravel roads, we turn around the bend only to find a breathtaking view of an absolutely deserted beach. You go, Kaka Point.

Our next stop was another spontaneous turn to Cannibal Bay. And yet again, after a few kilometers of unpaved road, we reached another gorgeous, deserted beach...or so we thought. At this point, it was getting close to sunset so we decided to have a picnic dinner on the beach. About ten minutes after we dug in to our food (the only planned portion of our trip - we have our priorities right), I noticed an animal several feet down the beach. After walking closer, we proceeded to find about 15 sealions enjoying a nice Friday afternoon. Let me tell you -- they're bigger than you would think and they also have quite a loud grunt. Nonetheless, another memorable NZ experience to add to the books.

We decided to park and spend the night in the car just a little ways off from the beach. Looking back, Friday's night sleep might be the most uncomfortable I have ever endured -- but again, another NZ experience.

We woke up Saturday to another gorgeous day. After cleaning up at a local gas station, we made our way down the road again to more gorgeous views and a couple short hikes to waterfalls before making our way back to Dunedin -- another weekend well spent in New Zealand.

XOXO.

George St. in downtown Dunedin -- lots of cute shops and restaurants.


A helicopter landing on the rugby field for halftime!


Andrew, myself, Matthias, and Jeremy walking to the rugby game -- my wonderful three male flatmates. Below is another shot of the more historical part of Dunedin.



I started to make a list yesterday of everything I've learned since I stepped foot off the plane and onto New Zealand ground just a little over a month ago. I won't bore you with details, but just to name a few...

1. I have learned that I don't come close to fitting in as a Kiwi. As much people-watching and stalking that I do, I haven't been able to figure out the style here just yet; however, there is one thing that I do know -- I am NOT it. Saying that I stick out like a sore thumb would be generous. As far as their style goes, the girls tend to wear baggy shirts, high-waist blue jean shorts or skinny jeans, black tights, keds, lots of faded denim, and the hair is typically thrown up in a messy bun. Many of the outfits are actually a flashback to the 80s. Somehow, however, it works. The boys mainly wear capri pants, skinny jeans, and "stubbies" -- Rugby shorts that fall quite above the knee, shall we say. Nonetheless, I've accepted the fact that I have "American" permanently stamped on my forehead.

2. I have learned that I am completely ignorant of the world around me. If this trip has motivated me to do anything, it is to brush up on my world knowledge. My German flatmate, Matthias, informed me yesterday that the U.S. was voting on the Healthcare reform bill, while my other flatmate, Andrew (whom, might I add, was accepted into Oxford at the age of 16), puts me to absolute shape in world geography. Let's just say I have my work cut out for me.

3. I have learned that Kraft peanut butter is just something I have to splurge on. As of now, I have tried every peanut butter at New World (our local supermarket) and have yet to find one as satisfying as the NZ$4.89 small, plastic container of deliciousness that is Kraft crunchy peanut butter. I cringe every time the expensive little sucker gets swiped, but it has proven to be a necessity here in Dunedin.

There are numerous others, but that is all I will bore you with for the time being. In other news, we have finally decided on tentative plans for our mid-semester break that is week after next -- eight of us will be doing a South Island sweep. We will be driving up the east coast making several stops along the way, spending some time in the north hiking in Abel Tasman National Park, then heading back down the west coast. I've heard the views from the northern coast are breathtaking, so hopefully the weather will behave!

Here are some photos from this past weekend in Dunedin -- around town and rugby!

XOXO.

Here's a picture of part of our group outside of Emma's party. From left: Matthias, Your's truly, Natalie, and Jeremy -- some of my closest friends in Dunedin.



Another shot of part of our gang in Christchurch -- a beautiful and well-kept city. From left: Your's truly, Matthias, Tara, Natalie, and Jeremy.



The manly man himself! Emma's dad cooking on the "barbie"!



The tents we slept in at Emma's.



The inside of the gorgeous Christchurch cathedral.



A gorgeous shot of the snow-covered mountains on the way to Mt. Hutt.



My kiwi-host, Kate, Natalie, and me at the Mt. Hutt overlook.

I have enjoyed a beautiful and relaxing Monday back in Dunedin. The weather here is still pretty hard to beat -- usually 60s and sunny with a few storms and a little wind thrown in. It gets a little cold at night, but fortunately hasn't been too bad yet.

We had a great weekend in Ashburton and Christchurch. Natalie, Katie, Kate, and I left Thursday night for Ashburton, Kate's hometown. It was fun to meet her mom and experience a typical Kiwi home. We went for a nice drive up Mt. Hutt on Friday before the other part of our gang arrived Friday night. We all left Saturday morning for Christchurch, the biggest city on the South Island. It was a great afternoon of exploring Christchurch cathedral and the downtown market. After several hours and small purchases, we headed about 45 minutes north of Christchurch to the birthday girl, Emma's, house. Emma's family lives on a farm so it was an awesome experience. I continue to be amazed at how hospitable everyone is here. Her family had tents set up with cots in them for us upon our arrival. Even though the drinking age is 18 here, the 21st birthday is still a big deal and a huge family occasion. They rented out a hall, had an open bar, speeches, etc. It was so much fun to be a part of. On Sunday, her dad (arguably the manliest man I have ever met) cooked us sausages on his home-made "barbie", complete with a beer cap as an end marker. We started our 5 hour trek back to Dunedin in the early afternoon and arrived home Sunday night.

Some folks have asked for my address here in Dunedin, so it is as follows:

Ginny Wescott
2A Forth St.
Dunedin, New Zealand, 9016

I believe that's all for now. If you are still reading at this point in my journey, I think it's safe to say that you all are the dedicated readers and I appreciate it so much.

XOXO.

I apologize for my few posts recently -- my flat has been without internet access for over 48 hours now, making my nightly blog updates before bed a little challenging. As many of you have heard and experienced, the internet access at my flat (even when it is working) leaves much to be desired. However, I have since gotten hooked up to the wireless network here at the library, which is great. I hope to do most of my skyping and catching up here now so as to avoid the constant call drops that we all love so much.

The days continue to fly here in Dunedin. Classes started last week and have been keeping me quite busy. I'm still figuring out the most efficient ways to get around, where to get books, etc. but I'm finally getting the hang of things. Overall, the classes are pretty similar to those in the U.S. The biggest difference I've noticed so far is that there are fewer assignments and the final exam is worth more, typically about 60%. I don't pride myself on my test-taking skills, but hopefully it won't be too bad.

Last Saturday, Matthias, Natalie, and I went with two of Matthias' visiting German friends to the nearby Tunnel Beach and Moeraki Boulders, which was really fun. We went to Tunnel Beach (about 20 minutes away) in the morning, went back to the flat for lunch, then to the Moeraki Boulders in the afternoon (about 45 minutes away). There are so many places and things to see and do here. I was told that any weekend spent in Dunedin is a chance wasted, and it is so true. Every Monday, we regroup from the weekend and start thinking about where we want to go next.

On Sunday, we had a program trip to the Taeri plains, approximately a 45 minute bus ride from Dunedin. We were given wetsuits and then jetboated to another part of the river, where we would be for the rest of the day. We were put into random teams of 7-8 and participated in team challenges all day. They consisted of rafting, swimming, cliff jumping, running up mountains, and more. It was a very fun, but tiring day. As corny as this sounds, there's something about New Zealand that makes you feel like you can do anything.

I am realizing more and more how much healthier my lifestyle is here than in the U.S. I'm much more active, eating healthier, and relying on my cellphone and television much less. I'd say I'm averaging about five texts a day -- and that's being generous.

We are off to Christchurch this weekend, a big city about 4-5 hours north of Dunedin. My kiwi friend, Emma, that I met through my kiwi host, is a twin and is celebrating her 21st birthday this weekend. Her parents are throwing a party for her and her sister and we got an invite! It will be fun to be a part of a New Zealand family and experience Christchurch.

The pictures above are from this past weekend at Tunnel Beach and the Moeraki Boulders. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get pictures from our Taeri plains trip because of all of the water activities involved, but my program adviser took plenty so hopefully I'll be able to get my hands on them.

XOXO.

Hello to all!

I don't have much new information to report, but I was able to get Matthias' pictures from the weekend in Wanaka -- our hike, our pseudo-skydiving experience, and other photos that I thought you might enjoy.

I'll write again soon! XOXO.