Category Archives: Australia/Pacific Islands

Mt. Tamborine

This weekend I visited the Tamborine area Northwest of Gold Coast. Our first (stumbled upon) stop was at the very top of Mt. Tamborine, at a lookout point off the side of the road that showed a beautiful view of the land below. You could see far off to the mountains, giving an actual skyline view of the surrounding area.

View off Mt. Tamborine

View off Mt. Tamborine

Tamborine National Park

Our first planned stop was at the Tamborine National Park to spend some time swimming in the natural rock pools. I was expecting them to be enjoyable, but it turned out to be one of my favorite experiences so far! I also went to a rock pool last weekend, and these rock pools were much different but still amazing.

The rock pool I went to last week is an area carved out of rock right up against the ocean, near the border of Queensland and New South Wales. It had walls built up in a square, a flatter bottom, and was built right next to the ocean. Waves would crash on the side of the structure and even periodically spray past into the pool!

To get to these pools, you walk a little ways into the park, then follow a trail down the side of a small mountain canyon to where the rock waterfall starts. As you make your way down to the rocks you can start to see the pools, and a lot of people were there! The pool area starts with a waterfall at the very top, which flows over the rocks down about six or seven tiers, each with their own rock pool. The pools were various sizes and depths, and we spent time at the pool furthest down the canyon. This pool was not so crowded, the water was deeper, and there was even a small cliff jump and rope swing into the pool. It was a bit of rock climbing to get there, but such a great experience to carefully make my way into a pool that is literally natural fed with water, with rocks of various sized covered in algae lining the floor.

According to locals, during heavy rain the area has more water flowing through, so the waterfall is stronger and the pools larger, and when there is little rain the area dries out more. Luckily, when we visited there was just enough rain to have a smaller waterfall running and still nice pools. I wish I could have gotten a picture of the whole canyon, but due to the way it’s carved out, you could only see two or three tiers at a time. An aerial view would be beautiful to see. Unfortunately this must be a hard picture to get, because even Google couldn’t find one for me! However, in real life it looks like a scene that should be featured in National Geographic.

Top of rock pools

Top of rock pool canyon

One of the rock pools

Second tier pool, waterfall in the background

One of the rock pools

One of the rock pools

Mt. Tamborine Glow Worm Caves

For lunch we stopped at a local café, where I had one of the best veggie burgers of my life, and got to see the local lifestyle. Then we headed around the corner of the block where the Mt. Tamborine Glow Worm Caves were conveniently located! This has been an attraction I had wanted to visit since before I arrived in Australia, and since we happened to be so close by, we decided to check it out. Prior to the tour, we stopped by the beautiful pond they have on property and walked through a self guided frog house tour. The most unique part about this was that it was a relatively large pond, and while it was manmade, it was amazing that it stayed in such good condition despite the fact that it was placed directly on the very top of a mountain.

Pond on Glow Worm Cave property

Pond on Glow Worm Cave property

While this property has a man made cave used for educational purposes, glow worms are a unique animal only existing in Australia and New Zealand. They are born, transform from egg to larva, pupa, then to an adult mosquito-like insect. Glow worms are the larvae, and the only stage in the insect’s life when they are able to glow. Adult flies only live for two days (females) or six days (male), and are not able to feed, so glow worms must consume enough nutrients during their larval stage to essentially get them through the rest of their life! In good conditions, larvae live for around one year.

Glow worms make silk threads that capture small insects for food, and get their name because of their special character trait of bioluminescence, or light produced by a living organism. A pigment called luciferin reacts with the enzyme luciferase and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and the oxygen in the air to create the blue-green light that the glow worms emit. In nature, the lights can actually be so bright that they light up the cave enough to see where to walk. When standing in the cave, it looks similar to looking up into a night sky full of starts. Theoretically, the glow worms have adapted this way to make it look like a night sky, so potential prey will try to fly upwards and get stuck in the silk threads of the glow worms.

Another fun fact, our eyes are so trained to filter out extremely bright lights that when you look directly at the very tiny glow worms, it “disappears.” In comparison to the dark room, our eyes are unable to detect the light when looking directly at it, however you can still see them in peripheral vision. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos inside the cave, but look below to see the best photo I could find online that looked like the cave we were in.

Example of a glow worm cave (Source: Peter Clark, Bioluminescence, Pinterest)

Example of a glow worm cave
(Source: Peter Clark, Bioluminescence, Pinterest)

This week is full of midterm exams, so it was nice to enjoy the weekend before lots of studying! Being able to spend time outside at such beautiful natural places has been one of my favorite parts of being in Australia. I am definitely planning on finding and checking out more places like this along the way!

Greetings From Down Unda!

I’ll be starting this long overdue blogpost with two memes that capture what my 7 weeks in Melbourne, Australia have been like: soamazing.jpg amazingmeme.jpg Melbourne is Amazing! I’ve been struggling to find a word to describe what this city feels like, and the one word that constantly comes to mind is “home”. There’s an aura about Melbourne that just grabs you, and makes everything feel…easy. It’s unexplainable to be honest, but if you can think of that one happy place in your mind, Melbourne is the one…to me at least. You could blame it on bias, but all of the wonderful friends I have made here share the same sentiments. In Aussie time, it’s been exactly 7 weeks since I arrived here, and it’s terrifying to think how quickly time flies. I’m trying to grab as many memories as I can, and writing this blog helps keep them all in perspective. I don’t want to forget anything; this feeling of home, it’s something I haven’t felt in a long time. But before I get into that, I want to properly introduce myself. About Me: My name is Lynn Onyambu, I am 19 years old (20 next month!), and a senior in Penn State/University of Melbourne. I was born in Nairobi, Kenya, but i’ve lived in the US for 12 years of my life. My father is Kenyan, and my mother is Zambian. So even though i’m half blood (Harry Potter PUN-DEFINITELY-INTENDED), i’m still 100%, all around African. I speak Swahili fluently, and a bit of Spanish (barely, but definitely more than the casual “Hola, Yo Quiero -insert name of restaurant chain- “). I am majoring in Media Studies, International Communications, and minoring in International Studies. I’m not a Pennsylvanian native, but I’ve lived there longer than I have lived anywhere else, so I guess you could call me an adopted native. I bleed blue and white, but that’s a given cause PENN STATE, DUH! Why I Chose Melbourne: I honestly ask myself the same question. I always had dreams of doing an exchange program in London, but one day Australia just popped into my mind, and I ran with it (Chris Hemsworth may have been a slight motivation). I researched the best communication schools in the world, and the University of Melbourne was one of them (and also the top university in Australia!). I was hooked before I even clicked on the website, and my Google search became even better once I noticed their school colors were similar to Penn State’s. I found out that Penn State did in fact have an exchange program with Unimelb (gotta use the nickname to up my street cred), and it was all set from there. Months later, here I am, in the greatest city in Australia (sorry Sydney!), possibly even the world. I am studying in a university where I don’t feel overwhelmed, doubtful, or even scared. I’m in an environment where everything reminds me of home, and Penn State, and that’s more than I could have ever asked for. Goals: I only have two goals that I want to accomplish while I’m here.

  • To be the very best version of myself, morally and academically.
  • To live. I sometimes get stuck in keeping myself in a comfortable routine of complacency where I don’t challenge myself to see more than what’s beyond the surface. But i’ve got my night goggles, telescope, and binoculars this time around, so let’s do this!

Pic of Advice: cover1.jpg I have found my happiness here in Melbourne, and for those of you who will read this, I challenge you to do the same. It’s certainly not that easy, different trials and tribulations will factor in, but it’s also not impossible. Every journey begins with the first step. Ps. Here’s a picture of some of the friends i’ve made in Melbourne. No worries though, more pictures are coming soon. I have so much to share with you all! Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for blogpic1.jpg Stay lovely, Lynn


Location: Melbourne, Australia

Mid-terms are over…time to breathe…

Wow, hard to believe that I actually survived this past week.  I feel pretty good about almost all of my mid-terms, so it’s a huge relief to be done with them.  Now it’s time to plan for finals in 1 1/2 months.  But, before I do that, I took some time this past weekend to just relax and walk around some off my favorite areas of the city:  Montmartre, Ile Saint Louis and along the Louvre.

I finally figured out how to take pictures with my phone so they don’t come out sideways; I have to turn my phone sideways, in a certain direction.  Probably not how it’s supposed to work, but hey, I made it happen so that’s all that matters; it’s just a little bit redneck.

I took some better pictures of the artist’s square and I’m going back next weekend to have a picture drawn of my daughter.  It’s actually not a bad price, 60 euros, for an original drawing that is spot-on.  I hope she likes it.

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Mime was actually the first form of theater and you will find plenty of them around Paris.  Montmartre has two regulars that I know of:  this one is Paul and he definitely works hard for his money.  He had a good-sized crowd this afternoon and he did a bang-up job!

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It’s that time of year for the warm chestnut stands to be open.  I love these!  The chestnuts are delicious and hit the spot when you’re walking around and it’s chilly.  Nummy-noms!

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Recently, Montmartre had it’s annual wine festival in the streets all day and evening.  It was absolutely packed, but there were a ton of wine and champagne vendors and you could walk around and sample the wines and champagnes for anywhere from 1-5 euros.  And you got a real glass champagne flute to keep.  Was an absolute blast and the night was beautiful.  This is me and my friend from school Nadya. 

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After I left Montmartre, I decided to head down to Les Halles, which is a partially underground shopping mall.  The original Les Halles was also underground and began as a horse market in the 12th century.  After much degradation and reconstruction, it was finally demolished in 1966 and moved to it’s current location.  Now it’s a huge mall with all of the normal mall stores, but it’s fun to walk around and window shop (and maybe buy a few things…).  However, I forgot it’s Sunday and almost everything is closed in Paris on Sundays, so I decided to head outside and walk from the beginning of Rue de Rivoli to where I live, which is where the Champs-Elys�es begins.  I took this picture of the Louvre because we were just talking about this in my architecture class.  The left and right sides of the Louvre were constructed over 100 years apart, but you would never be able to tell.  The architects were so precise and so attentive to detail to maintain the symmetry of the building, that it appears it was all built at the same time.  Little bit of trivia for you there…:)

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If you look closely through the doorway in the center, you can see the glass pyramid that was built by American architect, I.M. Pei.  I noticed as I was leaving and thought it was a neat shot.  On the other side of that doorway is the main entrance to the Louvre and the big and little glass pyramids.

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Well, that was my week, folks.  Not very eventful except for the milestone of mid-terms.  Whew!  This coming weekend we have 5 days off for fall break, so we’ll see where my travels take me. 

Toodles for now,

Mary


Location: Paris, France

Back Home – Goodbye

Well, sadly, my computer finally did die and I’ve been unable to write until it was fixed up.  So an apology is necessary, yet I hope understandable. 

Where to begin?

My last few weeks in Australia were, yet again, some of the most life changing and awe-inspiring experiences.  There was a road trip which changed my life and I’ll never forget the things I say on the road for 11 days.

If there was one city I could spend the rest of my life in, I would have to choose Darwin.  A fun city in the Northern Territory which loves country music and really has the way of life I’d missed living in Sydney.  What can I say?  I’ll have my country roots til the day I die, and that’s one thing I’m glad will never change.

I was a foot away from a crocodile,kangaroo, and koala (all in the wild, a much more entertaining experience than a zoo, I believe).  I witnessed a scorched Earth ceremony driving through the Outback . . . I also changed a blown out tire in the middle of the Outback and had amazing Australian hospitality while pulled over, the Australian people might be the friendliest people on the face of the Earth, and there’s nothing like a man who was at least 6’6″ with a mullet pulling over and saying, “Need a little help, mates?”

Devil’s Marbles are in the middle of nowhere while driving through the Outback yet is a site everyone has to stop at.  A barren landscape with these large stones somehow being the only noticeable landmark.  My friends and I spent longer than we should have climbing these rocks, and somehow made it to the top of the largest round stone, surprisingly with no injuries given the manner in which we climbed; more or less jumping from slightly lower rock to higher rock.

I also was traveling during the election season which opened my eyes to the global perspective of how important American politics are in Australian life.  I was asked countless times who I thought would win, and also who I hoped would win.  I was shocked how important our election was to them and questioned why, and learned that ever since WWII and a tiny split between U.K. and Australia that the United States had become their chief ally and that given their relatively small population size the United States was an important component to the Australian way of life.  Another thing I learned was they frowned upon just exactly how much money was spent on the U.S. election throughout the year; and many were taken back that I believed a free market should conduct themselves that way and that money helped further businesses in advertising, marketing, etc. Yet, each has their own opinion, and I was interested in seeing all of their views in life.

Uluru was an amazing sight, sadly I didn’t climb to the top yet perhaps that is for the better.  The mountain is best described as a religious site to the Aboriginal people, and only the men would climb it as an initiation passage to manhood, and therefore the Aboriginal people whom frequent the land don’t enjoy that part of their culture being taken as a “tourist activity”, and understandably so.  The Aboriginal people I spoke to also said that those who have died during the climb hurts them as a people, for it is their belief that those who walk on their lands are the responsibility of the Aboriginal people.  A sadly touching belief system for those who were the original owners of the land. 

Barossa Wine Valley . . . beautiful countryside, amazing wine.  Wish I could remember more about it.

Melbourne was an amazing city.  Very artistic and hip, yet I only spent a few hours there and wish I could have spent longer in the city to truly explore.

That more or less composes the road trip, there was so much more but there will never be enough space to write all which I learned or saw. Which brings me to the part where I headed home, after a final week of saying goodbye to all my friends and the long flight.

The goodbyes were by far the worst experience about Australia, yet I do have tentative plans to visit: Boston College, Illinois (oh how they hated watching the Penn State vs Illinois game with me at 4 a.m.), Texas, Duke, UPenn, and so many more.  Not knowing the next time you’ll see someone that you spent an amazing few months with, and truly became great friends with is a disheartening occurrence.  The more disheartening being “if” you will ever see these people again.  Even typing this paragraph now brings along familiar faces whom I miss and wish I was still near. 

Yet, coming home has brought back the familiar faces of friends and family.  On my 20+ hour flight home Hunter S. Thompson used Mansfield (a town quite close to where I live) and Sydney in the same sentence . . . and all I could think about was how much things had changed since I was last home, and how much I had changed since that time.

Sadly, it seemed I had changed more than anyone else.  Everyone I knew was the same person I had remembered since I left, and only the height of my little sister was the shocking thing.  Perhaps it was the experience of truly being on my own literally half way around the world which changed me, yet there was so much I accomplished in Australia that made me feel like a brand new person in the best way possible. 

It was amazing to come home to my loving family and having an amazing home cooked Thanksgiving meal, yet sitting around only has made me stir-crazy and I can’t wait to get back on the road again; hopefully visiting those I met on my experience abroad.  I was pleased to find out just last night a friend of mine from UNSW will be studying abroad at Penn State in the Fall of 2013, sadly I’ll have graduated by then.  Yet, I am so unbelievably glad she will be studying at Penn State and experience the greatest university in the world.

Well . . . I guess this comes down to my final words, something I’ve never been all too great at.

Someday, I would like to go home. The exact location of this place, I don’t know, but someday I would like to go. There would be a pleasing feeling of familiarity and a sense of welcome in everything I saw. It would remind me of the length of my absence and the thousands of miles I had traveled in those restless years. Winter would come to this place of welcome, this place I would know to be home. Winter would come and the air would grow cool, dry and magic, as it does that time of the year. The trees and the falling leaves would welcome me. I would look up at the moon, and remember seeing it in countries all over the world.


Location: State College, PA

Another Phase Complete

I have to admit, I have been procrastinating this post. Of course, part of this procrastination comes from being overwhelmed back in the US. But, most of all, it comes from denial. Writing my wrap-up blog post is just further confirmation that my semester abroad has come to an end. There’s so much in NZ and so much in the US that I have to be thankful for, but I can’t help but long for my NZ life a bit each day during this transitional period.

 

Sometimes, I have to stop myself from saying or writing “end of the experience,” instead of “end of the semester.” There really is a huge difference implied.

 

In my view of things, study abroad is really a bunch of phases. “Phase One” consists of pre-study abroad ambitions and planning.” This one seems to have a definitive end.

 

Phase Two” is the actual semester. Of course, there are plenty of sub-phases consisting of hesitations, doubt, excitement, travel, discovery, and much more. Again, this phase has an end.

 

I’m not sure how many phases there are after this point, but I’d say even more sub-phases compose the grand “Phase Three.” They’re marked by any situation we encounter and view or approach a new way based on what we learned while abroad. Other sub-phases include reunions, continued contact, and updates. Ultimately, “Phase Three” should be ongoing because we stay in contact with our friends and hold onto our lessons, memories, and experiences.

 

I think it’s a shame to view the end of my semester abroad as the end of my experience. Really, it has opened up the door for many things to come.

 

In reflecting upon my experience, here’s some further advice I have to give:

 

-Take initiative:

Don’t let your major limit your options to study abroad. Don’t let class restraints stop you from trying to enroll. Don’t wait for someone to organize a trip for a place you want to go. If you want to make the most of your time in another country, you must be a leader and make plans. This is definitely a long-term perk as well: leadership development!

 

-Be independent:

Similar to taking initiative, but stemming from specific observations…Initially, I was disappointed I was doing an “exchange” and not a “study abroad program.” In other words, I was mostly on my own (though the education abroad advisors are an excellent help!!) to figure out classes (the petitioning process is not easy; start early!!), housing, trips, etc. I thought I wanted more support.

I ended up being one of the first students in my housing and made many European friends. A few days later, Americans on a program bombarded the dorm. I was slightly embarrassed; they were on a program with their own trips and orientation and stayed to themselves. I thought it was a shame to see many of them not branch out of their program bubble and even made Americans look a bit close-minded. I do think these programs can be great, but definitely be aware and try not to get sucked into the exclusive nature I observed!

 

-Make a list:

Do some research before you leave of things you MUST do. But, don’t do too much research or facebook stalking or you’re just going to ruin that “wow” moment that comes from seeing things for the first time. I made a list with my friends near the beginning of the semester and it was fun to check things off as we went along, or look to it on a weekend we were at a loss for what to do. A general list is good, because, in the end, the unplanned and unanticipated things are going to be some of the most memorable.

 

-Put the camera down:

Take some pictures and then stop! Things you see will never look as great the second time or on a 4×6 so don’t lose the moment trying to capture it. Sit, stand, walk, swim, do whatever you have to do  to truly appreciate what you’re experiencing.

 

-Immerse yourself:

Befriending other exchange students is awesome. It’s an excellent opportunity to meet a wide range of people. However, take a step away sometimes from the “international student” role and try to just be a student like everyone else. Befriend locals, chat with professors, and talk to other students in classes. In my opinion, investing myself in the university made my experience that much richer!

 

-Don’t save big things for your last trip:

This may not apply to everyone, but my the end of the semester, my friends and I were all so physically and emotionally exhausted (more than we anticipated) that we didn’t have the gusto for a huge trip and were grateful we had a chill, go-with-the-flow, last trip.

 

To those of you still abroad, enjoy every minute! I’ve enjoyed reading your posts throughout the semester and look forward to continue reading about your experiences!


Location: Auckland, NZ

One More Week Livin the Kiwi Life

How time flies!

Tomorrow, I have a pretty huge final in my most challenging class here…so, thought I’d take a quick minute to blog. Makes sense, right?

Anyways, I’ve been preoccupied studying for my other finals (one of which was this morning). The last two weeks have been a bit of a blur of studying, socializing, shopping, and exploring-not too much structure.  I really just wanted to post because today marks one week until my flight back to the states. It’s weird starting to say goodbye to people, such as my friends at uni and some of the faculty I’ve bonded with during my stay. I try to keep goodbyes quick and casual because, I, like many people, hate goodbyes. My friends left for a mere day trip yesterday and I thought it was terrible. It’s insane to think in just a week when I say bye to them, I won’t get to hang out with them the next day. But, back to the moment, there’s still so much I have to look forward to and appreciate with my friends here in New Zealand!

Something I found interesting is that most of the European exchange students are staying here an extra month and traveling here, Australia, Fiji, or anything of the like. On the other hand, most American students are heading home about a week after finals end. I thought this was an interesting difference. I don’t know if it’s financial, cultural, academic scheduling, or what, but it makes me wonder about the value and perspective different cultures put on travel. 

Now, not to get sappy, but it seems like I was just counting down one week until I left for my study abroad and now it’s almost over. It’s mind blowing how much this feels like my normal way of life. With my final tomorrow and then travel, I may get a quick blog entry in before I depart, but, most likely, the next time I blog will be from California…ah. My friends and I all fear that when we return home the semester will seem like it was just a dream and didn’t really happen…I hope we’re wrong!

 

 


Location: Auckland, NZ

Finals Weeks

Last week started final exams. It’s a weird time here because we’re still abroad, class-free, and yet we’re not free to just soak in the sun all day. Finals kind of loom over our heads; it also doesn’t help that my friends and I all have completely different finals schedules over the next two weeks. Nevertheless, we have been very careful to make sure we are not pre-maturely ending our study abroad experience.

 

During the week, I spent lots of hours studying more than I have in a long time. My final was on Friday and was hard as anticipated. Finals here are three hours! I don’t think I’ve had an exam that long since AP exams in high school. Also, no one uses pencils. Oops. I definitely find finals here more stressful than at home.

 

As a study break, I met with Robyn, the women in engineering equity advisor at UoA. I did a sort of interview and just casual conversation with her. She has been helping me out all through the semester and is just an absolutely lovely person. I admire how she handles her position and her mission. I appreciate her saying she hopes her position doesn’t exist in five years-the percentage of women in engineering shouldn’t be an issue and they shouldn’t need a person to provide academic and all-around support.

 

Yesterday, we went out into the city to look for gifts and souvenirs for friends and family back home. We took a nice trail into the city and the sun cast itself perfectly through the trees. We hadn’t taken this trail together since the first week or two of the semester. It was nice to take it again with those same two people I met from the start. Who knew those two people would be my best friends for my months here.

 

Anyways, souvenir shopping- easier said than done. It’s incredibly awkward and difficult to buy souvenirs when you have lived somewhere for a semester. It feels like sending souvenirs from my hometown in Ohio…why would I do that? Not to mention, buying gifts for people is always so hard (more so with a limited suitcase volume and weight and money running out!). Nevertheless, it was great walking down Queen Street, a main street downtown, full of people on the beautiful Saturday afternoon. People were shopping, playing music, dancing…it was a great atmosphere.

 

On the way back, we stopped at an adorable gelato store off the main road in a quaint little alleyway. We pass the sign for it all the time and realized there was no better time than this lovely day. The woman behind the counter was beyond friendly and served me up the most delicious double chocolate gelato I could ask for. The cone was even fresh.

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We then stopped in a nicer store that sells traditional Maori jewelry and art. It was so nice to be here after spending time in cheesy tourist shops. The woman who worked here was also so sweet and certainly made me want to go back to support her work.

 

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I have been staring at the wall of my room where I have printed calendars posted. I printed out one for August, September, October, and November to keep organized and note important dates. I have been crossing off the weeks as they pass and it scares me that I’m already on the last of the four printouts! At the same time, though, everything, including time, has been just right.

 

When I first met my flat mate, Joe, I was excited to learn he was a runner. He told me he was training to run the Auckland Marathon on October 28. I was excited for his goal but remember thinking, October 28…that’s forever away. Yet, just a few hours ago, I returned from watching him run. As a high school runner, being back in the running environment made me so incredibly happy. Strangers cheering on strangers and overall good vibes filled the air. It was a great start to the day. And of course, Joe did well, which made it better.

 

It’s nice how beautiful weather puts everyone and everything in good spirits…I don’t mind.

 

 

 


Location: Auckland, NZ

Venturing North

To celebrate the ending of classes and provide a bit of relief before studying for finals, my friends and I took a trip up to the north of the north island. We left Friday right after my last class and arrived at our hostel right off of Ninety Miles beach around 9. We were warmly greeted by Arthur, who we’d spoken with many times on the phone due to some booking complications. Him and his wife, Heather, who run the hostel were beyond sweet.  All of the hostels we have stayed in have had such great hosts and I absolutely love their kind hospitality. We unpacked the car and headed straight to the beach to watch the stars, moon, and admire the waves. It was so peaceful and serene. I appreciate how safe most of NZ is. There is little reason to fear being at such a place at night. Though, of course, I wouldn’t do it alone!

 

The weather the next morning was perfect as can be. We stopped at two incredible beaches on our way up to Cape Reinga, the northern most point of NZ. It really offered a feeling of closure; we had been to the southern most point of NZ over semester break and now we were at the opposite end…we’ve covered it all! I cannot describe the magical color of the water or how it perfectly sparkled under the sun. Here’s a peak:

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It was hard to leave. After admiring the beauty around us, we went to one of the bays we overlooked. The water was by no means warm, but we swam anyways. There is nothing like swimming in the clear blue of the Pacific; a bit of cold water shouldn’t stop anyone!

 

That day we also went sand boarding-it’s essentially sledding on sand dunes. This was quite the experience! We climbed a dune bigger than I could fathom. When my friend initially proposed going to the top of it, I didn’t think he was serious. We had to take many breaks before getting to the top and we’re a rather fit bunch. It was such a physical challenge! Two of my friends got down gracefully but the other two of us successfully wiped out and ate our fill of sand. Nevertheless, it was fun and thrilling. It was crazy to have the sea to one side, forest on the other, and vast sand dunes all around. It really did look out of place. I love the immediate diversity of NZ’s landscapes-it’s truly incredible. As always, the drive was an activity in itself.

 

Admittedly, with many hours in the car (1100 km covered), I was given a lot of time to think and became a bit homesick. To my surprise, I really hadn’t felt homesick until the last few weeks. I would’ve expected it in the beginning of the semester, not the end! When big events happen at home, you truly realize how far away you are. Now, I am nervously awaiting and preparing for finals that are 60-85% of my grade! Still so much to do and see before finals finish and before my final trip around NZ!

 

On a side note, while waiting outside my professor’s office, I met an American student pursuing his PhD in mechanical engineering here at University of Auckland. We had a great conversation; it’s always nice to unexpectedly meet new people you have things in common with…even if it’s just both being from America! Between my discussion with him, and my flat mate applying to graduate schools, I have become more fascinated by the idea of enrolling in graduate school abroad. I honestly have no idea whether I want to work or continue to graduate school after senior year, but definitely want to continue international pursuits! I think interning or pursuing a master’s abroad is a great way to do this. So many possibilities!


Location: Auckland, NZ

The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Northern Gentleman

Yes, the title is a complete rip-off of Hunter S. Thompson’s, “The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman”. 

The book chronicles Hunter S. Thompson’s early correspondence with family, friends, and loved ones along his journey in life, and therefore I found a similar resemblance to my recent conversations with those I cherish in my life.  Life takes you on a strange journey, Thompson never imagined himself in the military while he was in high school and I never imagined myself to be living halfway around the world for a few months of my life while I was in high school.  Yet, no matter where you go in life you always remember those you hold dear to you and those you love: so with that said I dedicate one of my final posts to those who I love, both my Penn State family and my family back home whom are reading this. 

This will be one of my final posts due to a massive trip I have planned, though I am currently done with school (apologies for this mentioning to all of those currently still pursing their studies) so I wish I could use the time to write more.  The trip currently is as followed: 

Day 1: 1) Crocodile River tour; 2) Lichfield National Park; 3) Stay in Katherine
Day 2: 1) Kayak @ Katherine Gorge; 2) Visit Daly Waters Pub; 3) Stay at Tennant Creek
Day 3: 1) Drive to Devil’s Marbles; 2) Drive to Alice Springs; 3) Visit Royal Flying Doctor Service
Days 4 – 6: Major Uluru stops
Day 7: 1) Drive to Coober Pedy; 2) Sleep in Underground City
Day 8: 1) Flinders Ranges, Sleep in Port Augusta
Day 9: 1) Barossa (wine) Valley; 2) Visit Adelaide
Day 10: 1) Leave early and go to Grampians National Park
Day 11: 1) Finish Great Ocean Road = 12 apostles, Arc George, etc; 2) Get to Melbourne @ 5pm on the 7th.

An arduous journey driving across Australia, but an experience which can not be lived by many; the whole thing tends to make my eyes water with the sudden eruption of ambition which is included in this trip.  Perhaps, this trip will even further the cleansing of my soul of the “good and simple life” idea.

If there is one thing this trip has taught me it is that I don’t want to pass through life like a smooth plane ride.  I don’t want to go with the smooth skin and the calm brow.

For every moment someone hated their job, cursed their wife and sold themselves to a dream that they didn’t even conceive.  For the times their soul screamed yes and they said no. For all of that.  For their self-torture, I hope to remain on the road doing what I love and seeing places which I used to only dream about.

With this either being my final or one of my final entries I will also address anyone who is contemplating the idea of studying abroad at this time: I beg you to travel.  If you don’t have a passport, get one.  Take a summer, get a backpack and go to Delhi, go to Saigon, go to Bangkok, go to Kenya, go wherever you have a desire to go.  Have your mind blown.  Eat interesting food.  Dig some interesting people.  Have an adventure.  See your country differently, see your president differently; no matter who it is.  You’re going to get a sense of what globalization looks like.  And so there are lessons that you can’t get out of a book that are waiting for you at the other end of that flight.  So go.

As I stole the name of this entry from Thompson, I find it only necessary to borrow from him again when I ask, “Who is the happier man, he who has braved the storm of life and lived or he who has stayed on shore and merely existed?”

Wheels and wings, the ride is everything.


Location: Coogee Beach, Australia

One Month?!

Tomorrow marks one month until I land back in the US. This thought absolutely blows my mind.

 

My apologies for skipping a blog the past week; school has been very busy!! I was overwhelmed with the last tests, projects, and presentations for the semester. I am glad they are all over but nervously await finals preparations and finals exams. Here, they are worth 60-80% of my grade….I have never had that before.

 

Anyways, after one stressful week, my friends and I went camping near Bay of Islands in the northern part of NZ. It was nice getting out of Auckland again, one of our first times since semester break. When we pulled up to our campsite I was just in awe. It was quiet, just another camper or two parked right next to the bay. The sun was setting and the waves were thrashing and I just cannot describe how happy it made me. I soaked my feet in the chilly water right after putting up the tents (no easy task given the 20+ mph winds but that didn’t phase us), and then explored the beach. The next morning, we went tramping around the campsite; it was so serene and isolated. I had no idea that we were surrounded by so much forest at our beachy campsite. That’s one thing I love about NZ; you can have beaches, forests, and mountains all at once.

 

On our way back to Auckland, we stopped at Ocean’s Beach and played some ultimate frisbee after swimming in the ocean.  It was great and extremely tiring! This was one of the first times the water has been “warm” enough to swim in since arriving…it was actually ice cold and we were the only people without body suits but it was so worth it.

 

This past Friday, we took a ferry across the harbor to a neighboring town. This was just a little thing we decided to do and that’s what made it even more amazing. Seeing Auckland’s skyline as the sunset and once it got dark just made me feel so warm inside. I really have grown to love this city. My friends and I got some coffee in this cute town and just had a chill night enjoying each other’s company.

 

As I hit this one-month mark, it is so incredibly hard not to get prematurely sentimental and reflective and think about the future. I’m sure many of you will/are going through this as well! There’s so many “lasts” it seems that I want to ignore. This is the last week of lectures. I already feel like I’m going to miss my classmates. I am meeting up with my engineering group again (not to work on our project thank goodness) but instead to just be social. Needless to say, I am baking a lot this week for my friends, groups, and classmates.

 

Things ending makes studying even more difficult, that’s for sure! This weekend my friends and I are heading to the northern most point of NZ, Cape Reinga, before we crack down and study. The final plans are to do a 4-day trip including Lake Tauopo, the Tongariro Crossing, and Mt. Taranaki. Then it will be time to go.

 

Ech, that was weird to put in print.


Location: Auckland, NZ