Catch up!

Alright I know it has been a long time since I have posted so I am going to try and do a quick catch up! So two weekends ago I stayed in Dunedin! On friday after class a few friends and I headed out to the outskirts of dunedin to the base of Mt. Cargill. We did the two hour hike up the mountain expecting to see amazing views of Dunedin, but instead we got to take some great pictures of being inside a cloud.. While it was sad we didn't see the views it was cool being on the top of the mountain and seeing the huge radio towers and satellite dishes, and because the clouds were so low it felt like we were looking out on the edge of the world into nothing! It was a weird feeling, but still super cool. On that saturday I had a field trip for my marine vertebrate class. I went out on a research fishing vessel and got to see first hand the different methods of commercial fishing and the ecological impacts of them. It was really cool! The class left from the Otago marine biology lab out on the Otago peninsula in the town of Portobello! We launched the boat from there and headed out to sea. I got to have an amazing view of the harbor and peninsula, seeing seals, sea birds, a whale, dusky dolphins and a few blue penguins! I also got to dig through fish and invertebrate specimens that we caught! It was a a really good time and a great learning experience I am glad I got to be a part of. The next day I went with the tramping club to a nearby river to do a bit of training for our fiordlands trip(which I just got home from). It was really fun, we learned how to properly cross large/ fast moving rivers safely, we also got free hot chocolate and cookies so I was quite content! When I got home from the rivercrossing training I went to tunnel beach in Dunedin. It is an amazing beach with huge cliffs, and a tunnel that goes straight down into the cliff and takes you down to the sand and water. We hung out, took some pictures and relaxed in the sun. I then went home did some homework and had a regular week at school!!

The Routeburn Track!

Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in a few days so I'll try to catch you all up! So last weekend 3 friends and I packed up the car and headed off to Queenstown! We had about a 4 hour drive until we were in beautiful Queenstown! We walked around the city and I showed them around to the sites, because I was the only one that had been there before. We then of course had a Fergburger, the best hamburger in the world, got directions to the campsite and drove off into the wilderness! But actually though.... We were in the middle of nowhere. And we got lost, very lost. It was pitch black outside, we hadn't seen civilization in about an hour and we couldn't find the camp ground. We ended up driving 40 minutes up into the back country of Mount Aspiring National Park to where the Lord of the Rings filmed in the Fangorn Forest and Isanggard. That was pretty cool, but we eventually found our way down sketchy back country dirt roads to the Lake Sylvan camp ground. We pitched our tents and settled in for some well deserved rest. At around 1:00am we were gently awakened by the rest of the tramping club showing up on their buses and setting up their tents for another hour. The next morning we got up early and headed to the start of the Routeburn track which is one of New Zealand's famous Great Walks. It was raining a little but nothing too severe so we kept on. We hiked about an hour to the Flats Hut, one of the first stops on the Routeburn. We took some pics and had a snack and continued on. Then the track changed dramatically. Before the track was a rolling up and down with nothing too bad but all of the sudden we were going straight up. We kept walking straight up for about two and a half hours until we finally made it to the Routeburn falls hut, the second stop on the great walk. We again stopped briefly to take pictures and fill up our water bottles. The falls were a beautiful sight with bright blue water cascading down into lush green rainforest. Once we moved on from the falls we were at a high enough altitude that we were above the tree line and into the alpine scrub forest. This landscape was nestled in a high altitude valley with small kettle lakes from glacial run off all over the place, and high peaks of mountain on either side. We scampered over boulders and across rivers, with the occasional stop to fill up our water bottles straight from the stream! We finally got up to the Harris saddle, the mountain pass that on one side had Mount Aspiring national park and the other looks down at Fiordlands national park. There was a small shelter there to stop, get out of the wind and have lunch at. We then moved on to climb straight up onto the top of one of the peaks to Conical Hill. We climbed up and spent an hour just looking out at the view and taking funny pictures. Then we began the long journey down the mountain. The sun finally came out as we began climbing off the mountain, so I had to stop every few steps to retake all of my previous pictures. Once we were back down beneath the bush line the trail became more well managed and so naturally I ran down! It was so fun and actually much easier! Once we were back down to the river flats we stopped and changed into swim suits. I jumped right into a glacial river! It was freezing!! But so much fun, I loved it! The rivers are just so clear and blue! We eventually made it all the way back to the car and drove back to the camp site. That night was so much fun. There were about 90 students all in the tramping club there, we had a cooking contest, worm wrestling (Where two people have to put sleeping bags on and then cant use their arms to wrestle, it was comedy), and of course beautiful star gazing. Out in the middle of nowhere there was an amazing view of the stars, the southern cross and the milky way! Everyone eventually went to sleep, and I slept like a rock! After an 11 hour hike I was exhausted! We got up around 9 the next day, went to Queenstown for some breakfast and made the journey home. So far my best weekend I have had since being in New Zealand!

First day of classes!

I had my first day of class today! I can already tell I am really going to like the ones I have choosen. I am taking a marine mammals course and right now we are learning about all kinds of fish and their behaviors, then later on in the course we will discuss sharks, rays, sea birds and large mammals like dolphins and whales! We also take a really interesting field trip on a research fishing boat so we can see first hand the types of fishing that are used in commercial fishing and the environmental complications from them. I cannot wait. This is right up my ally! As I go to more of my classes and learn about them I will keep you updated! Cheers for now!

O week

This has been a very eventful week! So much to do! The day after my adventure in the Catlin's I took a train trip into the Taerie gorge just outside of Dunedin. The train trip was offered for free to all international students! It was a great way to just hangout and relax with my fellow study abroaders. The views of the gorge were also so stunning, and it was fun to chat with new people. IT was a really fun day. That night I went to town with some of my friends, and it was the craziest thing, on our way home just outside of my house on the street there was a small student riot where they were burning two couches! (They do this just for fun and to be a little crazy! no harm done, all though the police and fire departments don't much like it). The next day I attended my first ever RUGBY MATCH!!! WOOOO! There is a big stadium right in Dunedin where we cheered for the home team, The Otago Highlanders! Even though they didn't win :( it was still a really fun experience! We got all dressed up and I got to learn the rules to a sport very new to me! What fun! The next day a few of my friends and I took a trip to the north part of Dunedin to visit Baldwin street. It is the steepest street in the world according to the guinness book of world records! It was really hard to climb up but it was such a fun experience! And the views of north Dunedin were amazing! Today some friends and I took a trip out to Aranowa beach! There was a beautiful rock formation that has a whole in it that looks just like a heart! It was pretty cool. There were also some very big sand dunes, that of course I had to climb, and I jumped and leaped all the way down to the bottom. I also got to sit in the sun for awhile and climb some rocks. We then stopped in the little port town on the opposite side of the peninsula and stopped for some fish and chips, or as the Kiwis say if "fush and chups". All in all I have been having another amazing week. I start class on tuesday so I am pretty excited about that! Hope to hear from some of you! I always look foreword to emails! Cheers!

The Catlin's!

Today was an interesting day.... Some of my friends and I took a day trip down from Dunedin to the Catlins! Its is beautiful down there, we drove along the coast and stopped at Nugget point, Pukaterie falls, and Cathedral caves. Nugget point was awesome, we took a little hike out to a lighthouse that had stunning views of the cliffs and a seal coolony. We then went to the falls where we waded in the pools, climbed up the falls and crawled in and out of a rotted tree stump. We then went to Cathedral caves. It was this beautiful set of caves that were carved out by sea water! They are only accessible during low tide and we were super lucky to get there just when it was low tide. We had to wade through the water a bit but it was so worth it! It was awesome. Then came the interesting part. Just as we were about to leave, Catherine locked the keys in the car! We didn't know what to do because we were in the middle of no where! There was no cell service so Catherine and I had to hitch a ride from some random Canadians to the nearest town so we could call a lock smith to come break into the car! After two hours of waiting and chatting with the lady that runs Cathedral caves finally someone showed up to let us into the car and we were able to drive home :). All in all it was a crazy eventful day. One for the books!

Beach Days!

The past two days we have had the most beautiful weather in Dunedin! I finished all of my course approval stuff on friday and monday so I am all set to start classes on monday! Because we have been having the most amazing weather my friends and I have gone to the beach both days! It is so amazing. The water is so blue and it is fun to see all of the surfers! The water is freezing but I went in both days! I figure what the hell! I live in a place where I am 10 minutes from the ocean, why not take advantage of that and go swimming! miss you all!

Around and about!

I still haven't started classes, I wont for another week and a half!!! But I have been doing some fun things! I took a trip to the reservoir today. It was a little hike to a lake nearby the city and a bunch of the international students went together! It was quite funny, we looked like such tourists! I also went to the farmers market a few days ago. Dunedin has one of New Zealand's best farmers markets, with fresh fruits and vegetables, baked goods, sweets, eggs, and meat. It is all so delicious! It is in Dunedin once a week at the train station, so I will for sure be getting my food there every week! I have also had to do some things that aren't as fun like setting up my New Zealand phone, opening a bank account and applying for a license to prove I am of legal age!! I have been having tons of fun though, and will get to pick my courses in two days! I am going to try and get at least one if not two days off so I can have a lot of time to travel!! Exciting! I'll try to keep everyone updated! Cheers!