Author: Caitlyn Blumenshein

Kia Ora,

My last couple of weeks in New Zealand can only be described as bittersweet. Dunedin had become a second home to me and when it was time to leave, I realized how comfortable I had become living there. I knew my way around the city well, I was closer than ever with my flatmates and I was full of desire to keep exploring the country. As sad as I was to leave, I’m so grateful for the opportunity to study abroad in New Zealand and I will always treasure my time and memories there.

The hardest goodbyes were to my flatmates. We had become super close through the semester playing card games every night and bantering all the time. Two of them left on the same day and the other is still there since he’s staying for the second semester. We’ve been trying to talk every day but it’s difficult with the time change. However, we have made plans to try and meet up again in the future.

Two of my other friends and I also got in another road trip before leaving. We went to Lake Tekapo, the Blue Pools in Wanaka, and the Wanaka tree. Lake Tekapo was amazing since the wild lupins had begun to bloom. It was one of my favorite things I saw! We also got lucky with really nice weather so the mountains were clearly visible from the lake. The blue pools in our opinion weren’t worth it unless you were already in the area or doing one of the hikes it’s connected to. The water was just as blue as other lakes and rivers so while it was beautiful, we thought it wasn’t one of the top things to see in New Zealand. We ate at Red Star one more time and then went to get pictures of the Wanaka tree during sunset. The day was very long but totally worth it for one last road trip to see the countryside.

My last day in Dunedin we took tourist pictures and went to Doctors Point beach. Doctors point ended up being beautiful and very tropical. We walked through tunnels to get there and as we walked out on the other side of the beach I felt like we were transported to the north island. I was disappointed when I didn’t get to see Cathedral Cove on the North Island, but Doctors Point almost had a similar look to it and the pictures looked similar. It was a perfect last beach day getting some sun and soaking in my last day in Dunedin. That night Santi, Madi I played games until we had to go to bed and say our goodbyes. I left the next morning at 6 am when my shuttle picked me up outside my flat, which I booked online for a student discount.

I was excited to go home and see my family but it was really hard to leave. I had a great time abroad and wasn’t ready to leave yet. I got lucky on the plane leaving Dunedin with great views of the peninsula one last time. My journey home was very long and I was grateful to see my parents when I landed in Spokane.

The next couple of weeks I spent trying to adjust back to my normal life. The time change was hard to get used to, especially since I felt no motivation to fix it. It was also much harder than I expected to adjust back to the right-hand side. For so long I was repeating “left-hand side” in my head that it became natural. In the San Francisco airport, I almost walked onto the wrong side of the moving walkway until I realized it was coming toward me! Also at the airport, I almost got into the driver’s side of the car instead of the passenger side. After that, I focused more on changing back to the right side but I still find myself walking on the left side sometimes. My brothers came home for Thanksgiving, also making it easier to adjust to being home.

I would recommend to anyone even thinking about it to study abroad in New Zealand! It was a breathtaking country with friendly people and a super safe environment. I made memories I will never forget and friends that I hope to keep forever. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity like everyone always says. I hope to help others wanting to study abroad there and I know I will be going back again someday as soon as I can!

Caitlyn

Kia Ora!

When I first got my finals schedule I thought there was no way it was accurate. Finals at Otago last an entire month! Most people have 3-4 finals within that time frame and have a decent amount of time in between. This allows for lots of last-minute traveling and hanging out with friends. I’ve fit in a trip to Milford Sound, another trip to the Catlins, and lots of beach days taking advantage of the warmth before I head home to another winter.

My favorite paper this semester was Pacific Health. We learned about Pacific cultures and customs and the history of their migration to New Zealand. The last lecture for this paper was bittersweet saying goodbye to the lecturers that I’ve come to know enjoy. We had a talanoa, a talk, about what we enjoyed through the paper and what we would recommend for next semester, we ate Sapa sui, a traditional Pacific meal, and created a facebook page for the class to stay in touch for the future.

Finals at Otago are very different than at Linfield! My first final was Environmental History of New Zealand, consisting of two essay questions. There was one overall question relating to the entire course objectives and the other question was more specific about one of the main learning outcomes. My exam started at 2:30 pm, so everyone was expected to show up at 2. At 2:15 the proctors opened the door and gave you a number indicating where you must sit. All bags had to be left at the front of the room and you weren’t allowed to wear a watch, have any electronics on you, or have anything at your place other than your student ID and two pencils. The front page of the exam had a place to bubble in your student ID and write your name and at 2:30 you were allowed to begin with two hours to complete the exam. No one could leave within the first hour and no one could leave within the last 15 minutes. After the 2 hours, the proctors picked up your exam, checked your student ID and were very strict about no talking. The atmosphere for the exams is much more stressful and formal than exams at Linfield, adding, I believe, more pressure on the situation.

My second exam was Maori Society and a different format than my first one. This exam had 40 multiple-choice questions about lecture content and then 30 multiple-choice questions about two provided readings. The first 40 questions were only .25 points each and the other questions were worth 1 point each. The readings were also given to us before the exam so we could read and interpret them. My final exam is a combination of the first two, consisting of multiple-choice questions and two essays. All of the exams are also worth a lot of your final grade. My first one was worth 60%, the second 40%, and my last 50%. This made me very stressed considering I don’t always test well and the exam score could make or break my final overall grade in the paper.

On a more exciting note, I finally got to see Milford Sound! We had tried to do a cruise on the sound before but it got canceled due to weather, and many other people also had their cruises canceled due to weather. We went to Te Anau the night before, stayed in a hostel, and left early the next morning for our 12 o’clock cruise. The cruise we did was 2 and a half hours long and described as the best one there is. It definitely didn’t disappoint! The weather wasn’t the best that day so there weren’t too many people on the boat making it more comfortable to move around and enjoy the scenery. As we were leaving the harbor a couple of dolphins came up and swam next to us for about 30 minutes. This is probably one of the coolest things I’ve seen while being here! The tour guide said there were one male and two females and they usually don’t come into the harbor as they did. They were much larger than I was expecting and I loved watching them play in the water doing jumps and just gliding along. They eventually swam off and I finally took in the scenery around me. I felt so tiny on the boat surrounded by huge snow-capped mountains on both sides of the sound that looked never-ending with the fog. Pictures don’t do justice to how big the mountains actually were! The cruise went along both edges of the sound going right up to the waterfalls. The first waterfall we stopped at was one of the “smaller” ones and the boat went right under it! We stayed on the upper level and got a little wet from the mist, but the people on the lower level got soaked. They also put out cups that got filled from the waterfall and we got to drink the water! It was some of the most refreshing water I’ve had! We then went to the end of the sound and the came back along the other edge. On this side, we saw baby seals and went under the biggest waterfall. We stayed on the upper edge again but we all got soaking wet! I wore jeans that got soaked through and all of our hair was dripping wet. It was so worth it though, it was so much fun! After the cruise, we stopped at Te Anau for dinner and dessert and then made our way back to Dunedin.

Another trip I’ve gotten in is to the Catlins with my flatmates. We left in the morning and made our way to Nugget Point. We hiked up the hill overlooking the lighthouse and took in the views. After Nugget Point we stopped at a cafe to eat lunch where I got fish and chips. Our next stop was Purakaunui Falls and after that, we went back to Matai and Horseshoe falls. During the car ride, we played games and listened to good music.

Another quick trip was to Queenstown. Victoria and I boarded the bus, which only cost 20 USD, at 8 am and got to Queenstown at 1 o’clock. We ate the best Mexican food I’ve had in New Zealand and then walked around looking for souvenirs and taking in the scenery. We also made a stop at Patagonia Ice Cream since the line wasn’t as long as it usually is. The next day we studied in our hostel and at a Cafe then boarded the bus back to Dunedin at 4 pm.

I really love Dunedin itself so I’ve also spent lots of time just walking around and trying to take it all in before I leave. One of the things I really enjoyed was renting bikes and riding around the peninsula. It cost 30 NZD for 4 hours, so we went at sunset and enjoyed the beauty of the city.

St. Clair Beach is the closest beach to Dunedin so we’ve spent lots of time there the past couple days with the nice weather. Some of the best ice cream I’ve ever had is from Patti’s and Cream ice cream truck! Their truck is usually at St. Clair and the best part of going to the beach. We also celebrated a couple of early birthdays at the beach the other night with all of our friends. Many of them are leaving soon so it was probably one of the last things we’ll get to do together. We brought burgers from ReBurger and ate it on the beach while watching the sunset, playing games, and hanging out with fun people!

Caitlyn

Kia Ora Everyone!

Last weekend my friends and I went to Brewster Hut and had the best time! Brewster Hut is located in Mt Aspiring Nation Park, the same park as my trip with the tramping club. I was so excited to go back because the area was so beautiful! This tramp, however, was very different than my one with the tramping club. The 6 of us squeezed into our friend’s van and Juliet had to sit in the back seat surrounded by all our packs. We were originally going to camp Friday night close to the trailhead but it was raining pretty hard so we instead stayed at a hostel in Wanaka.

When we got to Wanaka we went to Red Star Burger again and then to get groceries. At the grocery store, we ran into another group from Otago who was also going to Brewster Hut. However, their group alone consisted of 15 people and the hut only has 12 beds. They also rented crampons and we did not. We got a little worried even though the DOC said the conditions should be safe. The DOC is a great source to use, similar to the Forest Service. Their job is to know the tracks and advice you on the conditions. If you ever have any questions about safety and knowledge of the track, don’t hesitate to call the DOC! We tried to find a rental shop for crampons the next morning just in case, but when we couldn’t find any we decided we would just asses the situation when there and if it was dangerous we would turn around.

The next morning we left Wanaka and drove another hour to the trailhead car park. We parked, strapped our packs on, and headed out! The first part of the tramp entailed a river crossing past our knees. None of us wanted to hike 4 more hours with wet clothes so we took our pants off and crossed in our boots and underwear! It was definitely a bonding experience for all of us! After crossing the river, we put dry clothes on and climbed up this huge rock to actually get to the trail. We immediately realized this hike would be very difficult and a steep climb. For 2 1/2 hours, we were climbing up the beach forested mountain over tree roots and rocks. Many times we had to use roots and shrubs to help hoist ourselves up. The track was also slippery and very muddy. We had sunshine, rain, snow, and very strong winds in those couple hours. I was definitely losing motivation after a while and ready for a change of scenery when we finally broke through the tree line. The view was worth it as you realized you were tramping surrounded by mountain peaks! The track continued to climb up a ridge with lots of rocks and eventually got to the snow line. Luckily you could walk to the side of the snow and wasn’t dangerous at all. When I finally reached the top of the last hump I was so grateful to see the hut! It was a beautiful location, with this bright red hut surrounded by snowy mountain peaks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There ended up being 30 plus people trying to stay in the 12 bunk hut. It was very crowded! When we got to the hut we warmed up inside, played cards, and then explored around the hut outside. During the off-season, winter, there is no gas provided in the huts so we brought our own stove burner and gas can. During the off-season, there is still water provided outside the hut collected from the roof, an outhouse that doesn’t stock toilet paper, and a first-come-first-serve standard.  Since its first-come-first-serve, you do not have to book a bed but the DOC still suggests paying $10 NZD to help keep the facilities up to standard. To be safe the water should also be boiled before using. Some of the people at the hut used the water and were fine, but one of our members drank the water without boiling it and felt sick to her stomach when we got back.

For dinner, we boiled water and made gnocchi with tomato sauce. After dinner, everyone at the hut grabbed their sleeping bags and sat on the deck watching the sunset. It was so much fun to talk and laugh with everyone as we watched the sunset and the stars appear while being surrounded by native Kea Birds!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning I woke up for sunrise, which wasn’t as good as sunset but still amazing!

In the morning, the outside water facet was frozen so we collected snow and boiled it to make oatmeal. The tramp down was much harder than the way up! It was really hard on our knees, hips, and muscles because it was so steep and uneven. It took a little less time to get down, but everyone’s legs were so tired at the bottom and we were so ready for lunch! We ate lunch in Wanaka and then made the long journey back to Dunedin. We all slept amazing that night and woke up the next morning barely able to move because of sore muscles!

Sincerely,

Caitlyn

Kia Ora Everyone!

My time abroad is flying by and I’ll admit my flatmates and I are in denial that our time together will come to an end. Uniflats hosted a farewell dinner for all international students on the 1 of October even though we still have little over a month left. This made reality really hit us that we have to leave this paradise and our new friends soon. However, my flat is already planning when we’ll come together in the future! We have one week of lectures left and then the month of final exams begins. I have three final exams, on the 24 of October, 31 of October and the 9 of November. I hope to do lots of traveling the two weeks before my first final and studying in between trips.

A couple of weekends ago a group of 11 of us went to Mount Cook National Park. It was the most beautiful place I’ve been so far! We did lots of tramping and I was continually amazed at the views! We left Friday afternoon and drove 3 and 1/2 hours to get there. Along the way, we listened to lots of good music and made a couple of stops at the blue lakes. The water was SO blue, none of us had ever seen anything like it!

When we got to Aoraki/Mount Cook the first thing we did was hike to the Tasman Glacier, only about a 1-hour roundtrip. As we left we watched the clouds and the mountain peaks turn pink from the sunset. We went to our hostel to check-in and make dinner. The next morning we woke up at 4:30 to do the Hooker Valley track for sunrise. We started our tramp in the dark while using our phone flashlights to see the trail. It was so amazing to watch the mountain peaks rise out of the dark and the clouds and watch the valley transform with the sunrise. The valley and clouds turned pink and the views were breathtaking! We made many stops along the way and took lots of pictures. When we made it to the glacier lake at the end of the track we sat for a while and just took in the views.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We slowly made our way back to the hostel not wanting to leave the beautiful valley and made breakfast. I would definitely recommend doing the Hooker Valley track for sunrise since it was beautiful and other people weren’t out yet. The Hooker track is the most popular tramp and very easy, so everyone does it. When we were leaving so many people were just starting the track and we were very thankful for getting to enjoy the valley by ourselves.

After breakfast, we were all really tired so we took a two-hour nap before our next tramp. After napping we made our way to the Red Tarns Car Park. This hike was a steady climb uphill and had views overlooking the Mount Cook Town and valley. This hike was kind of a let down since the tarn wasn’t red and the views weren’t the best ones. We went back to the hostel after hiking down and made spaghetti for dinner. When we got to the hostel we discovered three other girls from my complex were sharing a room with us! That night we played games and prepared for the challenging hike the next morning. We were taking on Sealy Tarns, known as the stairway to heaven due to the 2,200 steps to the top.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sealy Tarns was very difficult but absolutely beautiful! The entire climb to the top is overlooking the Hooker Valley and the surrounding mountains. It was my favorite tramp even though it was difficult. When we made it to the top we ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and took in the views. We stayed on top for about an hour until others began making their way up. The way down was so steep and everyone’s legs were shaking by the time we got to the bottom. We rested and stretched our legs before making the journey back to Dunedin with a short stop at a Cafe for dinner along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This last weekend we got to spend in Dunedin. Friday night we decided to go camping at Long Beach in the caves. It was so much fun making s’mores and sleeping with the penguins. We got to the beach late and set up our two tents in the dark and started a fire to warm up. Once again we had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner along with some other snacks like s’mores with Tim Tams and belVita crackers. Halfway through the night, we saw a penguin run to the back of the cave where they sleep. We also went out to the beach and admired the stars and their reflection in the wet sand. We could also see the bioluminescence in the sand when you touched it! After the fire went out we climbed into our sleeping bags in our tents and went to sleep. Throughout the night you could hear the penguins screeching until they left for the water early in the morning. We woke up early enough to watch the sunrise through our tent window turning the inside of the cave and the water an orange tint. We then packed everything up and made our way home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next night, we went to the Fleetwood Mac concert as a spur of the moment decision. We bought the tickets half an hour before the show started, and I’m so glad we did! The concert was in the school stadium and it was packed since one of the band members is from New Zealand. The concert was so good and totally worth it! One of my favorite songs is Landslide, and they performed that one and many other good ones.

Sincerely,

Caitlyn

Kia Ora!

At 7 am after mid-terms week we finally got to leave for our mid-semester break! Juliet, Juliet’s flatmate Victoria, another girl from their complex and I were finally leaving for the north island for a week off of school. Our flight took about 2 hours to arrive in Auckland which we all slept through since we’ve been busy with mid-terms. When we got to Auckland we took a bus to our Air B&B to check into our room. Our room was in an apartment building and was really nice with a balcony that had views of the city. We then went to pizza for lunch and got groceries for the rest of our time in Auckland. The rest of the day was spent exploring the city and hanging out together.

The next day we went to black sand beaches and waterfalls. Our first stop was the Karekare beach and waterfalls. We walked along the beach for a while admiring the black sand then hiked to the waterfalls. The first waterfall had a little blue pool of water and continued to the next waterfall. The next waterfall was much bigger and beautiful. We were the only ones there for about 20 minutes so we got to enjoy the waterfall and the scenery without others. We then hiked back to the car and made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch with oranges, trail mix and salsa lime chips made in New Zealand.

The next stop was Piha Beach and Lion Rock. It was really windy at Piha but the sun came out and it was beautiful! We walked along the beach to Lion’s Rock and decided to hike up the rock to the top. However, to get to Lion’s Rock we had to cross an inlet of water that was really cold! We all rolled up our pants and removed our shoes to cross but Victoria wouldn’t cross since it was cold so Juliet carried her across the water on her back! The climb to the top was steep but the views were so worth it and we had great views of the black sand.

After Piha Beach, we went to Bethells Beach. We parked in the wrong car park and had to hike through sand dunes and thick brush to actually get to the beach. When we finally got to the beach it started raining and storming. We still walked to the other end of the beach looking for the cave that we were supposed to be able to walk through but realized it was high tide and we couldn’t reach the cave. We stayed long enough to see the sky turn pink and then went back to our Air B&B where we made breakfast burritos for dinner and played cards and watched a movie. For dessert, we went and got rolled ice cream. The ice cream shop also had crapes so I got a strawberry sugar crape with caramel rolled ice cream and whip cream on top!

The next morning we woke up early and drove to the Hobbiton movie set! One of the cheesy reasons I chose to study abroad in New Zealand was because of the Hobbit and Lord of The Rings movies being filmed here. Since they are some of my favorite movies the movie set was a must-see for me. The movie set wasn’t a let down either, it was so much fun!! We had an awesome tour guide who told us all about the filming techniques used and we only had 9 people in our tour giving us lots of time to look around and take pictures. This was a highlight of not only spring break but my whole study abroad experience so far! I would recommend everyone to visit Hobbiton even if you haven’t seen the movies because it is such a New Zealand tourist attraction.

That same day we also did a tour in the Waitomo Glow Worm Caves. The best part of that tour was when we left it was dark outside so the cave walls were covered in glow worms! The next day of our trip we flew to Wellington, the capital of New Zealand.  In Wellington, we visited the zoo and saw a Kiwi bird, the national bird, and kangaroos. While there we also rode the Wellington cable car, walked along Cuba street, went shopping for souvenirs, and ate at a really nice Italian restaurant where I ordered a calzone that was so big and delicious! We stayed in a hostel while at Wellington which was not nearly as nice as our Air B&B. We got two rooms that had bunk beds and the bathrooms were pretty gross so we bought crocs to use as shower shoes.

Our final day of being on the north island we had to get up at 4 a.m. to go to the airport. We flew to Christchurch where we had a 12-hour layover until we flew back to Dunedin. In Christchurch, we went downtown to a coffee shop and explored the botanical gardens. We went back to the airport early and ate dinner there before finally flying back. It felt so nice to sleep in my own bed and sleep in the next morning. The last event our mid-semester break was on Sunday when Juliet ran a half-marathon! We all went to cheer her on at the finish line and then went out to get pizza afterward!

Sincerely,

Caitlyn

Kia Ora Everyone!

It’s time for mid-terms at Otago and everyone is spending lots of time in the library! I had a foundations exam, a 2,000-word essay, and two 1,500-word essays. The exam was for my Maori 101 class and since there are so many students in that class they split the groups into 5 different test locations. My location was for students that had last names starting with A-B and had about 200 students. The exam had 45 multiple choice questions, and the questions were shown on a powerpoint presentation for 30 seconds each. You also had to bring your student ID to prove you were currently attending the University.

At a study break one day we went to a rugby game. The game was really fun even though I had no idea what the rules were! It was so impressive to watch them tackle each other without any padding and not get injured. The game was for a trophy between the Otago team and the Southland team. The stadium was pretty full and got really loud with the cheering! The atmosphere was very similar to a professional football game in the U.S.

The weekend before mid-terms my flatmates and some of our other friends went to Te Anau. We left Friday night and drove through a rainstorm to get there. It took about 3 and a half hours and then we checked into the Backpackers Lodge located right in front of the lake. We stayed up playing cards and listening to music before separating into our different rooms to sleep. The next morning we were supposed to go on a cruise through Milford Sound but it got canceled due to weather conditions. Instead, we went to Queenstown, which was beautiful! The drive there was amazing and worth the whole road trip. The road was winding through the mountains and along the river until you pulled into Queenstown where you were surrounded by mountain ranges.

When we got to Queenstown we went to a park along the water and made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. After that, we took a Gondola to the top of Queenstown and rode luges. Luges are similar to a one-person sled with wheels and brakes. It was beautiful to ride the luges down the hill and see the views of the city!

Before heading back to our hostel we got dinner at a really good restaurant in the K-mart parking lot. And when we got back to Te Anau we went to a gas station and got ice cream as dessert. The next morning we got up early and made breakfast in the kitchen before checking out and driving to the Kepler Track. We ended up only hiking for about two hours since it started snowing pretty hard. However, the forest became even more beautiful as it got covered in snow and was totally worth it!

After hiking we went to the grocery store to get more food for lunch and then made the road trip home. When we got back we bargained for who got to shower first and then we all went to bed early that night.

The thing that is getting me and others through mid-terms is knowing mid-semester break is coming! Juliet, some other friends and I are going to the North Island for some warmer weather hopefully!

 

 

Sincerely,

Caitlyn

Kia ora everyone,

It’s my third week of classes at Otago and they’re very different from Linfield! I have one lecture with about 100 people and another with over 300 people. Assignments being turned in only have your student ID number and attendance in tutorials are taken by ID number. My other paper is very fun and I am really enjoying it so far! The paper is about Pacific Health and the culture of the Pacific Islands. The lecturers are from Samoa and very laid back and funny. Last week we learned how to say Hello in Samoa, Tonga, and the Cook Islands. We also learned from a guest lecturer how to do part of the traditional welcome dance in the Cook Islands. All of my papers also have tutorials led by tutors to discuss lecture content and prepare for exams or assignments.

During the first week of school, I signed up for the tramping (hiking) club and the winter sports club. The tramping club has lots of members so to attend a trip you have to put your name into a raffle and people are selected randomly. For the first trip, about 100 people were signed up and only 57 could go. Juliet, some of our other friends, and I were all lucky to get into the Lord of The Rings themed Bushball trip! We left Saturday morning at 6 am on a big bus and drove 4 hours to Wanaka where we ate at Red Star Burgers for lunch. The burger was huge and the best one I’ve had in New Zealand! During the bus ride, we did speed dating where the person in the aisle had to move to another seat for 5 minutes and then move onto another seat. I met lots of new people from Denmark, Norway, New Zealand, and the US. We drove another hour to the car park after lunch where everyone was shuttled to the trailhead. The tramp was about 5.5 miles and only took 3 hours to get to the Mt. Aspiring Hut. Along the way, we played sword limbo and other fun games! When we got to the hut the group leaders made us dinner and the rest of the night was a dance party until 1 am. All the bunk beds were taken so Juliet and I had to sleep on the floor in the main room along with 20 other people. At 8 am the next morning we were woken and ate breakfast before we packed up and cleaned everything. The 3-hour tramp out was beautiful since there were clear skies and no rain like the previous day. We stopped in Wanaka again for dinner and made it back to Dunedin around 9 pm.

Another trip I’ve done so far is with one of my flatmates and some of her friends to the Catlins. We left Saturday morning and made many scenic stops along the way to Slope Point. Our first stop was at Nugget Point and the sky was still pink from sunrise making it so beautiful! We then went to tunnel hill, Horseshoe Falls, Matai Falls, and Curio Bay. We spent the night at a backpacking hostel on a farm where my flatmate got to feed the sheep! The next morning we went to Slope Point, the furthest southern tip in New Zealand, and almost got blown away from the wind! Next, we went back to Curio Bay and saw the petrified forest and did the penguin walk. Sadly we didn’t see any penguins but it was still a pretty walk. It was raining pretty hard at this point so we decided to head back to Dunedin. We stopped at a cafe along the way and got some really good hot chocolate and lunch to warm us up.

Sincerely,

Caitlyn

Kia Ora Everyone,

I’ve now been in Dunedin for over a week and my semester abroad has already been full of adventure! I arrived in Dunedin on June 29 after almost 20 hours of traveling time. I flew from Spokane to San Francisco to Aukland and finally to Dunedin. When I arrived in Aukland my checked bags were not at the airport and my carry-on was too heavy for the Air New Zealand carry-on weight limit of 7 kg. The airline is very strict about this weight limit so I was forced to check my carry-on. Luckily when I arrived in Dunedin my recently checked bag was there but my other checked luggage was still missing. So I grabbed my carry on, hopped onto the shuttle I had booked through my school, and finally made my way to the University. Luckily it only took two days for me to receive an email from the airline saying my bags were ready to be picked up.

I was the second to arrive at my flat but the other girl was very jet lagged and sleeping. It was a little lonely moving into my flat without others there and very little of my belongings but another flatmate showed up a couple of hours later. We tried going to the store but everything within walking distance was closed so we ordered food to be delivered. I had only gotten a couple of hours of sleep on the plane so I went to bed as late as I could manage and woke up very early the next day. I spent most of the day with Juliet (who also goes to Linfield) exploring Dunedin and the University even though many things are closed on Sunday. When another one of my flatmates arrived we made our way to the grocery store where I barely recognized anything! There was a much larger variety of fruits and vegetables, a small selection of American brands, eggs were not stored in the refrigerated section, and everything was more expensive. I made very little purchases that trip but got the necessary supplies for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!

I spent the rest of the week exploring nearby beaches and meeting lots of new people. We went to Tunnel Beach, Sandfly Bay, Allans Beach, and Long Beach. Tunnel Beach had a really steep walk down but the views were so worth the difficult walk back up. At the bottom of the track, you could walk through a tunnel right to the shore to watch the waves hit the rock cliffs. Sandfly Bay also had a steep walk in sandy dunes to the beach but we got to see Sea Lions! At Long Beach, we went during sunset and I collected lots of small pretty shells. Long Beach also had caves that we explored and plan on camping at in the future! But out of all the beaches I’ve been to so far Allan’s beach was my favorite. We walked for a couple of hours along the shore and watched the biggest waves I’ve ever seen come in and hit the rock cliffs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I finally adjusted to the 19 hour time change after about 4 days but am still trying to get adjusted to sunset being at 4:30. I’m also still adjusting to it being mid-winter and 50 degrees when its nice and sunny at home. My flat is now full of food and all my flatmates are here getting along really well so far! Our living complex has had multiple functions to meet all our neighbors and hopefully, I continue to meet more people and explore the beautiful country!

Sincerely,

Caitlyn Blumenshein