Category: 2018-19

Kia ora!

If you have ever thought about coming to New Zealand and like me, are an outdoorsy person, you may have looked into doing a great walk. In all of New Zealand, there are a total of 10 great walks. The walks comprise of multi-day tracks that end at huts or camping grounds and are usually situated in a place with spectacular scenery. Because the great walks are sought out by people around the world, New Zealand has what’s called the Great Walks season. The season runs from October to April, when the weather is warmer, and a cost is set to however many nights you decide to stay at each hut. The great thing about being at Otago for the winter term is that it is out of the Great Walks season, meaning that the cost of staying a night at each hut is lower. Though it would add to the experience to be doing a great walk during the warmer months, the cost between the on and off season is substantially different. For international visitors, it costs about NZ$130 per night during the on-season, while it only costs NZ$15 during the offseason.

A list of Great Walks found in New Zealand can be seen here:https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/things-to-do/walking-and-tramping/great-walks/

The Kepler Track is a 3-4 day track and in total, a 60 km loop. Because we were in the colder months, the risk for avalanche in most areas of the track was higher. We also only had the weekend available since school started on Monday. The combination of these two factors led us to decide to only stay for one night on the track and not do the entire loop.

Ami, Patrick, Kevin and I started from Dock Bay and made our way to Mt Luxmore Hut. With our heavy backpacks strapped tightly to our backs, we set off along the bay. This part of the track was forested and there were multiple signs along the way warning us that we were in Kiwi territory. Within the first 10 minutes of the walk, I was already beginning to get hot and the view of people swimming in the bay did not help my want to stop and take a swim. Despite this, we swiftly moved along near the edge of the bay, only stopping once to take a swig of water before the sandflies swarmed us. About ¼ into the track, I began to notice that the track had increasingly gotten steeper. With shoulders aching and calves burning, we decided to stop and take a breather. After a couple of minutes, we set off again. We repeated this cycle multiple times along the hike. It was far more challenging than the Copland track that I had completed a few weeks ago. As the steep incline of the hike took us higher into the mountains, we were soon above the bush line and could see the tops of the trees and the view of the bay from which we started.

Tracks like this reminded me that tramping is a mental challenge just as much as it is a physical one. Just as we were about to take another break, we spotted a sign that stated that we were 20 minutes away from the hut. Once we saw this we started booking it and practically power-walked the rest of the way there. At this point, we were above the bush line and the view was absolutely stunning.

This was one of the most challenging walks I have ever done but the people and the view made it worth it.

Best,

Mehana

Kia ora!

Now that I had gotten my first ever tramping experience over with, I was feeling very confident to plan one without the help of the tramping club. From the mid-semester break, I had also made the realization that I loved camping and wanted to go on more camping trips with friends.

The Catlins is an area about two hours south of Dunedin. Many people, especially surfers, travel there during the weekends because of its popular surf spots. Plus, with its close proximity to Otago, it was an easy trip to make. Me and three of my friends, Jen, Sam, and Ailisa, decided to plan a spontaneous girls trip to the Catlins. We loaded the car with our sleeping bags, tents, and most importantly, hummus, crackers, and chocolate, and set-off on our two-hour journey to the Catlins.

We arrived at Purakaunui, a popular camping spot in the Catlins, close to dark, and most of everyone there had already set up their tents and made their fires. Ailisa, who had camped there previously, showed us the perfect camping spot that was already equipped with a bench and fire pit, and high cliffs that shielded us from the wind. It was a clear sky, and the moon was bright enough that we could still see the waves and cliffs in the distance. Ailisa ventured off to look for more firewood, as we had only bought one bag of kindling, and the rest of us began making dinner. For dinner, we made bacon and pesto pasta topped with cheese. Though the bacon ended up more boiled than crisped, it was still a delicious meal and we were all very proud that we had not opted out for buying already-made food. We sat near the fire, eating our pesto pasta, sharing sweets, listening to music, and talking. We joked about how brave we were to go camping without a big group of people and laughed at the struggles we faced as girls peeing in the wilderness. When our conversations about life died down, we simply looked up at the stars and moon and then decided to head to bed.

Like any time I’ve gone camping, I’ve always tried to wake up for the sunrise. Keyword: “tried” because sometimes we’re all too tired or an alarm just doesn’t go off to wake us up. This was one of those times. However, we still awoke to the sun still low near the horizon. We walked along the beach then packed up our camping gear and headed out to explore the rest of the Catlins. As we were leaving, we could spot a group of five surfers running into the surf and more vans had pulled up to the beach to scope out the waves.

We spent the rest of the day exploring Purakaunui Falls, Curio Bay, and Nugget Point.

Overall, the Catlins is a beautiful destination in the South Island. I would suggest anyone who decides to study abroad at Otago to spend a weekend here, especially since it’s so close to home.

I’m loving it here in New Zealand!

Best,

Mehana

Kia ora!

The past two months spent at Otago has been simply incredible. Other than going on adventures every weekend, I have also been thoroughly enjoying my papers (papers are what they call courses here). My courses include Māori society, Pacific Societies, Plants: How They Shape the World, and Understanding Environmental Issues.

My favorite paper so far has been Pacific Societies. The class focuses on how different societies in the Pacific Ocean arrived at each island, why they decided to migrate, and overall the history and culture of specific countries. Most papers have a lecture and a tutorial or lab you also have to attend. One of my favorite things about the classes here is that most of the lectures are recorded and posted on blackboard. In this way, if you miss a class or are gone for a trip, you are still able to watch the lecture. This has become especially useful for my science course since many of the lecturers go through the slides faster than I can take notes. The other interesting thing about papers here is that all of them have more than one lecturer. Lecturers will usually only teach one or two topics and then switch to another professor when the topic changes.

About two weeks before our mid-semester break, we had midterms. Overall, I had three tests and one essay to write. All of the information about your test and essay is included in the course outline you receive on the first day. Tutorials, which are usually required, go over everything that will be on the test. Even some of the practice questions that we answered in tutorials were on the tests. Most exams here are taken outside of class time and are organized by last name or tutorial time. Unlike Linfield, scantrons and all test material are provided by the class. The other interesting thing about school here is that there are minimal assignments throughout the school year. Other than my science course that has a lab due each week, the remaining classes only grade by participation in tutorials, and the required essays, and exams. Though the workload is a lot less substantial, it causes the big assignments to be worth more. Depending on how well you are at writing essays or taking tests, this factor could either work for or against you.

The huge class size here at Otago has made me appreciate the small classes at Linfield. So far, I have not even spoken to any of my professors since TA’s are the instructors for tutorials and labs. Even with this, I still feel that I am learning just as much as I would at Linfield.

Overall, it has been easy getting used to classes here at Otago and I’m thankful that I get to experience a different university. I’ve really enjoyed taking more cultural classes here and I’m looking forward to learning more in the last few months.

Best,

Mehana

Kia ora!

Wow! Time has flown by so fast this past month. Here are just a few things I’ve done over the course of my first few weeks here:

Kayak Polo:

My “kiwi host” is heavily involved in Kayak polo. If you’ve never heard of it, I suggest looking up a video on YouTube as it’s quite the sport to watch. You are basically strapped into a single person kayak, given a paddle, and are to throw a ball around just as one would do in water polo. Because of my “kiwi host’s” enthusiasm towards the sport, he made all of us play a game one night. Though our team lost badly, we still had the best time trying to figure out how to balance on a single-person kayak and throw a ball at the same time.

Surfing at Aramoana:

Two of my flatmates, both from Spain, were both so excited to hear that I was from Hawai’i because they had recently gotten into surfing. To their disappointment, I wasn’t a very experienced surfer. However, this didn’t stop me from going out and surfing with them a couple times.  I have seriously regretted not going surfing more back at home. Especially since it’s so cold here that we have to wear thick wetsuits. My most favorite memory surfing has been spotting a penguin swimming just ten feet in front of me!

Skiing in Cardrona with OUSSC:

During orientation week, I went to a club fair where I joined a couple of clubs on campus. One of them happened to be OUSSC (Otago Uni Snow Sports Club). It’s one of the most popular clubs on campus and sign-ups for ski/snowboard trips usually fill out in less than ten minutes. Luckily, my friends and I were able to make the sign-ups on the first trip. We weren’t able to ski the first day at Cardrona due to weather, but the next day we were able to ski a full day. Even as a beginner, I had the best time and am already planning on going skiing again this weekend.

Overall, this past month has been so incredibly fun! I’ve met so many great people, seen the hidden gems of Dunedin, and am now looking forward to exploring the rest of the South Island. Even with all of this, I am still able to attend tutorials and labs for classes. Reflecting back on this past month, I’m feeling so grateful to be here and can’t believe that a whole month has already passed.

Best,

Mehana

Kia ora!

On June 28^th, I started my journey to the University of Otago. I couldn’t believe that after more than half a year of planning and talking about studying abroad I was finally going to be there. Prior to leaving, I had run into a couple of Kiwis at the restaurant I work at over the summer. They were so excited to hear that I was studying abroad in New Zealand that they even gave me their number just in case I ran into any problems during my stay. From this experience and simply hearing other people talk about New Zealand, I couldn’t wait to finally experience it myself. Though the overall excitement of getting there, I also felt anxious about finding my way there. I was mostly worried because it was my first time traveling internationally and I was doing it alone.

The flight to Dunedin was simply beautiful. Because it was an early flight, the sun was just rising behind the mountains on the North Island and the sky was engulfed in an orange glow. Despite the scenery, I fell quickly asleep knowing that in just a few short hours I was going to be arriving in Dunedin. When I woke up, we were flying over an array of snowcapped mountains which I soon learned were the Southern Alps. Simply put, it was beautiful. The sun was just starting to rise above the peaks and it revealed the snowcapped pointed mountains of the Southern Alps and the clear blue sky above.

I was the first one of my flatmates to arrive at my apartment. It was a two-story apartment that was less than a minute walk from campus. If I could describe it in one word, it would be “homey”. My room had a window just above the bed tucked into a cubby hole that was big enough for two people to sit inside. I decorated my room with pictures and tapestries I had brought from home and settled into what would be my new home for the next five months.

The next week was spent meeting my flatmates, friends, and finding my way around Dunedin. On the first full day I spent in Dunedin, my “Kiwi host” took me on a tour of the city of Dunedin. He showed me all of the top tourist destinations in Dunedin including Signal Hill, St.Clair beach,  The Octagon, Baldwin Street, and the Dunedin Botanic Garden.

Everyone here has been so nice and everything has been so beautiful that I can’t believe I’ll be living here for the next few months! I feel so lucky to have this experience and I’m looking forward to my time here!

Best,

Mehana