An Epic Mistake on Taylor's Mistake

Sorry (Mommy) I haven't posted in a while. Not a lot was super exciting until yesterday when a bunch of us went on our first official hike in ChCh! There's a great little hike right near the beach we all go to. If you take the bus all the way to the end, Sumner, and walk along Sumner Beach, eventually the beach ends and these great rolling hills appear. We were walking along and I had a "how am I ever going to leave this?" moment...You'll see, the pics are unreal.

After a few hours of tramping/hiking, we realized that we were no longer on "Taylor's Mistake" path and we were in sheep pasture land....then we hopped a couple of fences and found ourselves on someone's property with what looked like an abandoned farm house. Interesting. Then we just kept following a path that eventually ended at a barbed wire fence. Also interesting. So what to do? Try and hop the barbed wire? Walk back? Or continue downhill without a path? Yeah, that one. All we knew is that we needed to get "down" somehow. Theeen we reached yet another fence that was completely unhoppable. Sooo we doubled back and had lunch with our sheepy friends :) That was fine by me. I was really pumped about chomping on peanut butter sangwiches while the sheep scoped us out. PS. Sheep are ADORABLE, just saying.

Anyway, we don't know where our mistake was on Taylor's Mistake, but it was a great mistake because I finally got to see sheep! And we saw a beautiful view of ChCh that I'm not sure we would've been able to see otherwise.

Sumner Hills

Proof I was there :) PS. Dickie's basically papparazzi

Gorgeous

193 steps after 2 hours of hiking, Sara's face explains it all :)

Yeah just my summer home in NZ, nbd.

I promise this was part of the path :-\

haha uhhh...

Oy! Sheep!

Sumner Beach

Are you going to Scarborough Fare?

More pics to come of around Uni!

Now I have to figure out my course schedule :-\ Classes start tomorrow and I already have a conflict with my courses. Wish me luck...

"Ozone Layer"

Kiaora, my fellow pakeha!

Today was our second day of Orienteering (goofy, isn't it!?). I kind of know my way around campus, which is right across from my dorms, and I'm getting into a good groove.

Yesterday I finally went into the centre of city with my buds and we got oriented (orienteered?) in ChCh...It was very, very overcast so the picture quality was iffy, but bear with me. I finally finally finally got to see the city I've been dreaming about for 123 days. It was really funny walking around with my friends because they had no idea about HOW much research I actually did..."Oh, the life-size chess set should be around here.....and YEAH! there's the Starbucks in the old bank..." Kind of embarrassing.

ChCh is unlike any city in any country I've been to. It's very small and there are definitely no huge sky scrapers. If we were to be kicking around at night and needed a "north star" (which obviously doesn't exist in these skies, but I'll get into that later...) we'd look for the cathedral and not a building like the Pru. There is a lot of ::cough:: adult-focused entertainment, so walking around looking for a nice bar or restaurant is bombarded with avoiding neon stairways of "Massage!!!" parlors or "Calendar Girls!!!"...Sketch.

Oh! Also, they LOVE cowboy motifs. There were a ton of Dirty Harry posters and an "Old West Saloon" with Drew Barrymore's face on the side of the building. Again, don't ask.

I love ChCh tho, I'm getting totally enamored with this city and even the outskirts. The Ilam area we're in is like a mix between Valparaiso in Chile and Nantucket. Goofy, I know, but imagine this. Adorable ranch-like houses with beautiful flowers and huge fences so you have to be a creeper and peek around, which, don't judge, there was a lot of. And the atmosphere of the houses was sustainability first: solar panels, 5 different receptacles for trash, taking advantage of the sun and lack thereof, and bikes bikes bikes! I should just do a blog post on NZ's obsession with the 3 R's: REDUCE! REUSE! RECYCLE!!!

Ok, here are some pics from last night:

Reminds me of Gringotts...yes, it would.

No comment necessary :)

The Chalice

The Cathedral

And today was the most beautiful day in ChCh in weeks apparently. It was definitely the first time I had seen hours and hours of uninterrupted sun! Super exciting. So after orientation, a ton of us immediately went to the beach. I put on my bikini, lathered up (yes, dad, I promise I lathered up!) and took a 40 min bus ride through the city to the beach. On the way there, our Kiwi friend advised us about the hole in the ozone layer. Apparently there's a HUGE hole in the ozone layer right above the North Island and therefore the sun in NZ is crazy strong. Good thing I brought my SPF 50! By the time we got to the beach, we were all freezing. Definitely over zealous on the sun being out. We forgot about the fact that it was only 55 ish... We got to the beach and the boys, being boys, dove right into the beautiful water. Remember my New Years Resolution was to be brave, so I followed right in! Haha and immediately got out. BRRRRRRRRR! Yes, Boston is freezing so this should be heaven, but eep, it was cold! My little nail beds were blue. No gracias. So my friend Kelsie and I just lounged in our sweatshirts and buried our legs in the warm sand. We bought Diet Cokes (which taste funky) and ice cream. I got my first Kiwi fruit icecream. Oh! Little side note: I told our Kiwi friend that I had "kiwi icecream" today and he goes, "no...that doesnt exist. kiwis are endangered" And after minutes of confusion on both parts we realized I had meant the fruit and he had meant the adorable flightless bird. Never making that mistake again :)

Anyway, so the boys found some Kiwis to play American Beach Football with and the natives were a little confused so to retaliate they "taught" the Americans cricket. Now, THAT, was entertaining.... I wont even try to explain what I learned today. All I saw was two sticks and a lot of running back and forth. Oh, and a smushed baseball bat.

Here are some beautiful pictures of Sumner Beach. PS. When I'm a successful professor, I'm going to have a winter/summer house on these cliffs. Just an FYI :)

My future vacation home!

Cricket lesson

So even with my excessive lathering I still came home with a peeenk face. Grrrrr....I'll work on it, I promise. Damn you "OZONE LAYER."

OH! So random fact about Kiwis: Apparently if you're attracted to someone, you dont approach them. Period. Guys will NOT approach a girl they find attractive and neither will the girls. The boys dance in a circle by themselves and the girls dance in a circle by themselves. One has to wonder: How do they keep the population up? Are Kiwibirds and Kiwipeepz both endangering themselves? Dance together, people!

Hmm...How am I supposed to meet cute Kiwi boys if they'd freak out if I said hi... :(

Keep ya posted on that one.

Another update? Apparently April is a HORRIBLE time to go to Fiji b/c its peak cyclone season...also keep you posted on any potential trip to Fiji-land.

I'm gonna go moisturize my lobster face :) (kidding, Daddy!) ...kind of :-\

xoxo

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy V-day everybody!!

I'm officially unpacked and got internet (although it's pretty expensive :(). I feel a little better that I am connected to life back home. I felt pretty uncomfortable not being able to tell my familia that I was safe and sound in Kiwi-land.

Let me recap my adventures from the past few days. So Dickie and I got to the airport and hung out and said our goodbyes via free wifi (Thanks, Logan!). We were frantically trying to find the last two people in our party. One of whom, didn't have an easily visible facebook account, so we had no idea what he looked like. We were just gonna have to meet him the old fashioned way...So we met CJ who Dickie had had classes with, so we knew he was a cool dude. Then all three of us tried to figure out, in the packed terminal, who Geoff could possibly be. We finally met him on the plane where, in the last row, we all sat down and he goes, "oh hey, you guys go to Northeastern?" For the record, I sniped out "Geoff" before we even got into the plane. I knew it!

Anyway, the three boys, Dickie, CJ, and Geoff, were seated in the row in front of me and having a hilarious time, but little ol' me had to sit behind them with a terrified child and her nervous mother. The flight to LAX was fine...6 hours long and a ton of turbulence, but I watched MJ's "This is it!" and read my million magazines. It was fine. I just wished I had a window seat (or had been near a window at all) to see the lights of Las Vegas as we passed over. Oh well.

When we got to LAX, it was 11:30pm Boston-time so I hurriedly called my loved ones and said Sayonara before it got too too late to call. Our amazing NEU posse tried to find a place to grab dinner because, Thanks AA, we didnt get served anything at all. We found a disgusting mexican place and sucked it up and ate there. PS. My sweater still smells like gross burrito...

The flight to Auckland was also just alright. I handed out my Tylenol PM like it was tic tacs because we were all determined to sleep the whole way. Poor Geoff didn't sleep that much, CJ, well, he can fall asleep anywhere...literally, Dickie was conked out, and I contorted myself into some weird position and fell asleep for the first five hours of the flight.

When we landed in Auckland, it was very very hot, which was great! It was nice to feel summer humidity, but it was the start my of hair being uncontrollable. We grabbed the next flight to ChCh and saw the beautiful mountains as we were landing and, finally, we were there. After almost two hours of waiting for our taxi pick-up, we arrived at Ilam Apartments where we'll be living for the next 5 months.

First of all, the city, is FAAAAAAR. Crap on a cracker! I'm pretty pissed about that actually, it's like a $50 cab ride from Ilam to the center of city. Yuck. Also, Ilam, our little neighborhood is full of cute residences, but nothing really fun to do. Alsooo, beer and wine, which is made just around the corner, is crazy ridiculous expensive everywhere. Lame.

Oh! Duh, I forgot to tell you about my living sit. So my room is me, Dickie, Sara (from NEU) and Shaun from ConnColl, and an unknown 5th girl (I'll keep you posted on her identity). I was kind of disappointed at first when I realized that the people I was closest with were all living with me, but honestly, it's great! It was great to have someone to freak out with and be like, "OMG WE'RE IN NEW ZEALAND!" "HAVE YOU SEEN OUR BALCONY!?!?" "LOOK! MOUNTAINS!" as we were moving in...It's also nice to be like, "yah, you wanna grab dinner?" and not have the awkward, obligatory introductions as you walk and find your way around (especially after 30 hours of traveling and bad, restless sleep).

Anyway, we scoped out the best grocery store, Pak 'N Save, and Kmart (weird)...found an Indian Restaurant (!!), figure out which bus to take (also expensive), and yeah. I have a feeling I'm gonna be doing a LOT of walking. I can't believe the city is so far. From all my research the books made it sound like a nice little stroll into City. Like, say, Fenway area to Northeastern. Oh no...it's like walking from Brookline to the Pru. No gracias.

So you know me, I just wanna dance! No such luck...It's all british pub-style, which is fun (for a few nights) but I need some Sean-a Paul, some Lady G, some BEP...Oh well, I'll figure it out :) If I can find places to dance in Cairo, I can find places in ChCh.

The weather? It's huuuumid! My apartment is sticky, but it's pretty chilly outside. When we went to the store, I wore long jeans, t-shirt, cardi, jacket, and my jandaled toesies were not excited. I refuse to wear socks in the "summer." Burr...Again, oh well! I'll figure it out :) :)

I woke up this morning to my flat mates chit chatting and said, "Happy Valentine's Day!" and Shaun, who looks like a ConnColl version of Dave C. from Atown, said, "Grace, will you be my Valentine?" Kidding, of course, but still, I can officially say, I have a Valentine in ChCh. BOOM! It will be a great cloudy, chilly Valentines in ChCh today.

I'm off to the grocery to get some ... groceries :) Oh, and a phone, so Mom & Dad, dont you fret, I'll be in official contact soon!

So far, ChCh is nothing like I expected, but that's good, right?! Surprises. I'm not disappointed at all about the length to the city centre, or the expensive transportation. Lemons, lemonade. Or I should say, Kiwis? Kiwi-ade :-P

xoxo

It's Here!!

So exactly 119 days ago I decided I was going to Christchurch (ChCh), NZ for study abroad. Ever since then I had been doing excessive research and annoying anyone within earshot with tidbits on Kiwi slang and trivia... "Did you know that flip flops are called 'jandals!?' Like...japanese...sandals...jandals!" I bet my poor sister heard that factoid at least twelve times. Oh well, now the day is here!

After a smooth check-in (and a $50 charge for my gigantic suitcase), I said my goodbyes to the fam and made a completely accidental scene in security when everyone felt bad about the young girl saying farewell. "Oh are you leaving for college?" "Are you moving?" "What are you doing in New Zealand?"

Anyway, I read my sweet notes from my friends and family, and now I'm ready. I've been preparing for this day for a long long time and I doubt there is a way for me to be more organized.

Alright, I have all my good luck charms and my socks from Mom with the secret compartment.

Side note: Dickie is so jealous of these socks. "Aww...now I don't feel cool anymore. You're much cooler than me with those socks."

Damn straight!

My flight boards in half an hour. I've got my kickass socks, full backpack of pretzels and peanut m&m's and umpteen magazines. ChCh, here I come!

Twas the Night Before Chch

Twas the night before ChCh

And all through the house

Not a shoe was unpacked

Not even a pouch

The weather was icky, with snow in the air

But two days away we soon will be there

Whilst watching lotr, I saw the terrain

But for the first week we're there

It will nothing but rain

Although we are anxious with nerves aplenty

We have many planes to sit upon for hours plus twenty

ChCh will be epic and this we all know

For when we get back many ways we'll have grown

This is my final rhyme for this is getting quite old

But in two days time, our tale will be told