After taking my finals at the University of Otago, I got to meet up with my parents and tour the South Island for a week before coming home. We spent a lot of time in the car but we saw a ton of the island. I got to go back to Queenstown and see the beautiful mountains one last time. I also got to visit Christchurch, Te Anau and Milford Sound - three places on my NZ bucket list that I hadn't seen yet. It was so special to share my last week with them.
During my last full day in NZ, I took a leap. Literally: I went skydiving! I am horribly afraid of heights, but I wasn't very scared... until I dangled my feet out of the airplane. 9,000 feet in the air. That was unpleasant. But as soon as we were falling I had a blast. We (it was a tandem skydive, I had an expert strapped to me who ran the parachute. I was just along for the ride!) free fell for about 30 seconds then floated back to earth for a few more minutes. It was exhilarating! I will go again some day for sure.
And suddenly, it's been two whole months since I left NZ. I've started up classes for the spring semester at ISU. There are a few things about my home school that I never noticed before taking my semester abroad:
It's really nice to be home. The phrase "distance makes the heart grow fonder" surely rang true for me while I was out of the country. It was great to reconnect with loved ones I hadn't seen for months!
Now, though, my heart yearns for NZ. I miss smelling ocean air and hearing unique bird calls and not wearing 4 layers to class. I miss sugar free PB, bacon and banana pancakes, and espresso!!!!
There's a funny thing that happens when you study abroad. Everyone that hasn't studied abroad asks what your favorite part was. Everyone that has knows that it's just about impossible to sum up five of the most amazing months into two sentences. No fault to them, of course! I enjoy talking about it. But I think the question is interesting.
(For the record, my answer lately has been whale watching in Milford Sound.)
There were a few times throughout the semester that I got homesick. I missed my friends and my family and I was ready to come home. Now that I'm back, though, I wouldn't change anything. I loved being abroad and figuring things out 8,000 miles away from home. I loved having the opportunity to tackle challenges (like the time my bus dropped me off ~30 miles from my accommodations) (or the time I had to hike up Devil's Staircase) (or the time I navigated a city of 2 million by myself for a day). What a semester. I am so happy that I went abroad.
Without further delay, here's a few of my highlights from the semester:
During my last full day in NZ, I took a leap. Literally: I went skydiving! I am horribly afraid of heights, but I wasn't very scared... until I dangled my feet out of the airplane. 9,000 feet in the air. That was unpleasant. But as soon as we were falling I had a blast. We (it was a tandem skydive, I had an expert strapped to me who ran the parachute. I was just along for the ride!) free fell for about 30 seconds then floated back to earth for a few more minutes. It was exhilarating! I will go again some day for sure.
And suddenly, it's been two whole months since I left NZ. I've started up classes for the spring semester at ISU. There are a few things about my home school that I never noticed before taking my semester abroad:
- Iowans walk SO QUICKLY compared to Kiwis.
- Weather impacts activities here - if it's cold we stay inside and cancel plans. In NZ brisk, rainy weather doesn't seem to dampen much. You just throw on another layer and go for it.
- We have just one library at ISU, compared to four (plus one or two that I never found) at my school in NZ. It's nice to have all the resources contained in one place here, but it was convenient to pop into a library when I was nearby to go and study for an hour or two.
- I find it really easy to switch between American English and UK English. This was helpful for all the papers I wrote abroad; it's also convenient for this semester and re-adjusting to ISU (though I still write the date "wrong" by American standards!)
It's really nice to be home. The phrase "distance makes the heart grow fonder" surely rang true for me while I was out of the country. It was great to reconnect with loved ones I hadn't seen for months!
Now, though, my heart yearns for NZ. I miss smelling ocean air and hearing unique bird calls and not wearing 4 layers to class. I miss sugar free PB, bacon and banana pancakes, and espresso!!!!
There's a funny thing that happens when you study abroad. Everyone that hasn't studied abroad asks what your favorite part was. Everyone that has knows that it's just about impossible to sum up five of the most amazing months into two sentences. No fault to them, of course! I enjoy talking about it. But I think the question is interesting.
(For the record, my answer lately has been whale watching in Milford Sound.)
There were a few times throughout the semester that I got homesick. I missed my friends and my family and I was ready to come home. Now that I'm back, though, I wouldn't change anything. I loved being abroad and figuring things out 8,000 miles away from home. I loved having the opportunity to tackle challenges (like the time my bus dropped me off ~30 miles from my accommodations) (or the time I had to hike up Devil's Staircase) (or the time I navigated a city of 2 million by myself for a day). What a semester. I am so happy that I went abroad.
Without further delay, here's a few of my highlights from the semester:
1. Tramping along the Ben Lomond Track, Queenstown - this morning walk brought me to an amazing view along with some amazing friends. We ate lunch looking out at the beauty that is Queenstown - not a bad deal!
2. Nugget Point, Catlins - this is the second scenic view I saw waaaaaay back in July and it literally took my breath away. There was a little seal out there, the water was perfectly blue, and it really highlighted the diversity of the islands to me.
3. Clock Tower, University of Otago - this was my school's clock tower. It chirps at a different pitch than the Campanile (clock tower) at ISU and it took me a few weeks to get used to - what a strange thing to notice! The Scottish influence on this campus in the valley made for a pleasant, beautiful walk no matter the season. My semester's weather ranged from snow to 87 degrees but I always enjoyed walking around and exploring new buildings.
4. Hobbiton - over my mid-semester break (spring break since I was in the southern hemisphere), I took a trip to the North Island with a quick stop to Middle Earth. Hobbiton was so fun! I've never been on a movie set so that by itself was neat. Later, it was fun to re-watch the first Hobbit movie and say "hey, I've been there! And there!" The attention to detail was really impressive. And the Green Dragon did not disappoint ;)
5. Skydiving in Ashburton - I overcame a lot this semester. My time in NZ made for one forgettable experience.
So thanks, everyone, for joining me in this adventure. I hope that I'll be back someday to see all of my favorite sights again. Until then, I'll be living vicariously through all my friends that are studying abroad this semester!
So thanks, everyone, for joining me in this adventure. I hope that I'll be back someday to see all of my favorite sights again. Until then, I'll be living vicariously through all my friends that are studying abroad this semester!