The final countdown

Thursday Nov. 11:  All day was spent with Stephanie on a flight from Cairns to Melbourne and then Melbourne to Christchurch.  We returned late at night and Courtney and Cathy picked us up in Court's parents rental car.  It was so good to see them again!!

Cathedral Square

Stocking up on Tim Tams

Friday Nov. 12:  My last full day in New Zealand!!!!  Steph, Courtney, Cathy, and I ventured shoeless into the city for the last time and shared stories of our past week.  It was a beautiful sunny day and we went souvenir shopping and hung out in the square.  We also went to the grocery store and stocked up on Tim Tams to take back to the States with us.  I bought ten boxes so hopefully they will last me through my depression from leaving NZ.  I tried to take in and appreciate as much as I could.  As I turned my head away from Cathedral Square for the last time I didn't know what to do or how to feel.  I couldn't handle that I was leaving behind everything I have known for the past five months.  I was leaving home.

Banana Pancakes

Love these girls

That night we hung out in my room.  We made chocolate chip banana pancakes and homemade hot chocolate, did Tim Tam slams, laughed till our sides hurt, took self-timer pictures, and reminisced on our amazing life journeys together.  I am going to miss these girls dearly.

That night Steph and I snuggled up and had the hardest time falling asleep.  This was our last night.

Flatmates!

Springtime in Christchurch is so amazing

Tuesday, Oct. 19:  2031 earthquakes and counting!  Had a huge one today - 5.0 but it was so shallow that it had an intensity of 7.0!!! http://www.suite101.com/content/the-christchurch-earthquakes-continue-a-stocktake-and-update-a298478

Thursday, Oct. 21: Today was my last day of classes in new Zealand! Now I have three finals starting next friday.  Ugg, wait,  I actually have to study here?

And now for Courtney and my amazing Christchurch adventures.  Instead of gallivanting around the country, we decided to stay in Christchurch and explore our home town more.  Spring here is absolutely beautiful and we definitely have a greater appreciation for "The Garden City" and its super friendly atmosphere.

Greatest smelling flower at Mona Vale

Punting on Avon River

Gondola

Saturday, Oct. 23:  I had an amazing day with Courtney!! :) ...  We did the Christchurch Grand Tour!  We hopped on the bus at Cathedral square and our first stop was Mona Vale - a historic Christchurch homestead surrounded by beautiful gardens.  We mosied around the gardens along the Avon river and stopped to watch the ducks, smell the flowers, and take in the beautiful sights and fragrances around us.  We got some amazing pictures of the flowers because I have never seen flowers so vibrant!!  And one pink flower was the best smelling flower I have ever encountered.  I want to figure out what it is!! Then we went punting down the Avon river through the botanic gardens.  It was so comfortable and incredibly relaxing.  I love all the baby ducklings that splash around in the clear water.  Then we drove up really high to a lookout point where we could see all of Canterbury.  Usually you can see the Southern Alps in the background but it was a bit too cloudy.  The view was still incredible though!!  Then we drove along Evan's Pass to Sumner.  The views from Evan's Pass were stunning and Sumner was awesome as usual.  Courtney and I ate lunch at Joe' Garage.  I had a delicious mushroom dish and chocolate ice cream.  We then drove through New Zealand's longest road tunnel carved through the crater wall of the extinct volcanic caldera that forms Lyttelton Harbour.  Here we rode the Christchurch Gondola.  We were lifted 1500 feet to the top of the Port Hills where we had amazing views across the city, Canterbury Plains, Southern Alps, Banks Peninsula, Lake Ellesmere, the Pacific Ocean, and Kaikoura Peninsula.  I got an amazing book in the bookstore called "Smile" by Anders Blomqvist and Gerar Toye.  It's full of amazing pictures of people smiling from all over the world and really cool quotes about happiness...

"There are hundreds of language in the world, but a smile speaks them all."

Tribute to the Firefighters

We rode the gondola back down with a friendly Australian couple who talked to us about cool stuff to do in Sydney.  On the way back to Cathedral Square, we stopped at an awesome sculpture on the banks of the Avon River called "A Tribute to the Firefighters."  It is 5 steel girders from the WTC that was gifted from the NYC to Christchurch to be used as a tribute sculpture to firefighters worldwide.  The suspended component or "spear," in its red hot state, fell from the 102nd floor of the World Trade Center Tower Two, piercing the subway below. 

Once the tour finished, we decided to use our tram ride ticket the next day and go to the free Band Togther concert in Hagley Park!  It was a gift to lift the morale of Canterbury due to the earthquakes. 130,000 people attended!  Court and I chilled in the grass, listened to music, and ate our free sausages.  Such an amazing day.  Wow Christchurch, I love you.

Band Together Concert

IES Abroad Orientation Week

July 5:  I can't believe we finally made it to Christchurch!! After all these months of planning and waiting my study abroad semester at the University of Canterbury has begun! The first thing we did was check in at Ilam Apartments where I got the keys to my new home.  It is also my first apartment ever!!  I love it!  I live with four other freshmen Kiwi girls who are all super nice.  We each have our own big rooms and we have two bathrooms, a cute kitchen, and common t.v. area.  After unpacking and stocking up the fridge and cabinets with food, I met with Eunice and the thirteen other IES Abroad students from America.  Eunice is our amazing program director - she is like a mother to us.  The first thing we did was split into groups and venture on a scavenger hunt around the university campus.  The campus is really nice.  It kind of reminds me of Ithaca with the buildings and trees, except it's very flat and a bit bigger.  Afterwards we went out to dinner in town at Riverview Buffet Restaurant where we ate and got to know each other.  Excellent first day!

July 6:  The next day we all ventured into the city.  After a nice lunch at the Botanic Gardens Cafe, we ran around Christchurch on an even bigger scavenger hunt.  This was awesome because I was able to navigate my way around and find a lot of cool places like Cathedral Square, Arts Center, the Holy Grail Sports Bar (where they play all the rugby matches), the bus exchange, nice shops, and a ton more. 

July 7:  Today I attended the International students' orientation.  They introduced us with a traditional Maori welcoming.  They spoke in Maori and also sang for us!  It was awesome.  I love the Maori language.  Fun Fact - The Na'vi language in the movie Avatar is based on the Maori language.  The director had visited New Zealand and loved its flow and melody.

Castle Hill

July 8:  Today I enrolled in my classes!  I am taking 'Science, Maori, and Indigenous Knowledge,' 'Kapa Haka Maori Performing Arts,' 'God, Mind, and Freedom,' and 'Sport Nutrition.'

July 9:  Today the whole IES group left for our overnight trip in Springfield!  We stayed at a youth hostile called Smylies.  The drive was incredibly scenic and we ended up at Castle Hill.  We hiked up the hills and there were so many crazy cool limestone boulders and amazing views.  This place is  near where the battle scene in the Chronicles of Narina: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was filmed.  After an amazing dinner at Smylies, we went out to a small pub and hung out with the locals.

Castle Hill

July 10:  After a delicious breakfast at Smylies we visited a cute little farm.  We learned all about the sheep, sheep dogs, and alpacas.  Alpacas looks like llamas and have incredibly soft wool.  I loved watching the sheepdogs chase the sheep, I'm pretty sure I want a sheepdog as a pet.  They are so smart!!  We also got to try sheering the sheep.  The best part of this day was jetboating!  It wasn't as epic as the Queenstown Shotover Jet but it was still fun!

Sheep sheering

Antarctic storm room!

July 11:  Today, Sunday, was our day off from IES activities so I hung out with my family.  It has been really nice having them here to help me get settled.  We went to the Antarctic Center located at the Christchurch International Airpirt.  This is where many Antarctic missions are organized.  We explored the gallery area which had many displays about modern day Antarctica, including the Antarctic Treaty partners, the human impact on the continent, the wildlife and plant systems, and Antarctica’s effect on the globe.  We watched a sound and light show called "Beyond the Frozen Sunset" which showed absolutely stunning footage of the continent.  Then we got to experience a simulation of an Antarctic storm.  We threw on heavy jackets and shoe covers and went inside a room with an igloo and snow.  The lights dimmed and the wind picked up as people started talking over the intercom of a storm headed our way.  The sound effects were awesome.  But it was so windy and freezing that Lindsey and I wondered why we were doing this to ourselves after about three minutes.  We ran out when they opened the doors and were very thankful we were not actually stuck in an Antarctic storm!  After that we got to see Little Blue Penguins!  The most exciting part of our Antarctic experience was the Hagglund ATV ride.  The Hagglund we rode had actually been in Antarctica!  We rode up and town rough terrain, hills, and pools of water.

July 12:  Classes begin!!!