New Zealand

Hello all! Happy Valentine's Day!

I am having a great time here in New Zealand. I arrived on Feb 7 and met up with friends in Christchurch, which is on the south island. On the first day I was here, we met a man who works at UW and an alum (they didn't know eachother either). They noticed my friend's Wisconsin shirt and talked to us. Small world! After getting our bearings for a day, 3 friends and I rented a car and drove up to Nelson Lakes National Park. We spent the night on the beautiful Lake Rotoiti with mountains in the background. The view made up for all of the sandflies that were trying to eat us! The next day, we drove up to Abel Tasman National Park and hiked there for 2 days. The trail we were on ran along the coast and through the trees you could see bright blue-teal water. All of that walking and driving required multiple dips in the ocean! Near Abel Tasman, there is a rock called Split Apple Rock just off of the coast. It is a perfect sphere split in half and propped up by other rocks. It was amazing to see and we even swam out to it and stood between the two halves!

After our adventures at the Parks, the four of us drove back to Christchurch. Everyone else had to fly to Australia for school, but I have a couple of days in Christchurch by myself. So far I have seen a lot and I feel like I am getting to know the city. Everyone here is very nice and helpful. I am staying in hostels and exploring durring the day. There is a beautiful botanical garden, an art museum, a history museum, and outdoor markets, all which I have been to. I really enjoy the native Maori art and jewelry. The numerous bakeries and cafes here are totally my style! I think there must be a strong Asain influence on this city because there are more Japaneese resaurants than anything else. Also, today I was sitting in a park and there was a show of Chineese lanters starting. It is a big celebration with lights and entertainment celebrating the end of the Chineese New Year. It hasn't been as warm as I thought it would be for summer here. Most mornings have been cold and damp, but brighten up to be nice afternoons. I am here for 3 more days before I head to Australia for school. When I settle in and get my computer running, I will be able to add pictures of everything I have talked about! Tomorrow I am going up the coast for whale watching. I am really excied, so hopefully the whales want to see me too! I miss you all and wonder what everyone is up to, although usually when I figure out what time it is at home, chances are you are all asleep...

Cheers! Tracey