Crystal's Semester in New Zealand: March 2014

I'm surprised that The Catlins aren't more of a "must-see" here in New Zealand! I suppose it is quite a lot of driving but you see so many natural wonders! My time here has allowed me to appreciate natural beauty. I am thankful for the conservation efforts here in NZ that have allowed myself and following generations the ability to see and experience these remarkable landscapes Mother Earth has crafted. The dedication put forth by environmentalists and citizens to preserve the pristine views does not go unnoticed. Over the duration of my trip I could not help but notice how there is a understood respect for these beautiful places, you will not find graffiti, garbage, or destruction of any kind. The pictures I am about to show you do not give NZ the justice it deserves! I can't wait to see what else she has to offer...

Nugget Point


You can't see them, but down on the rocks are a bunch of fur seals!

The Lighthouse

Kaka Point

Jack's Blowhole. I don't think the waves and/or tide was high enough to produce the "blow hold" factor we were hoping for. The cave you see to the back is a tunnel that leads to the coastline.

I've never been geocaching before, but I came across this one near Jack's Blowhole. Such a neat concept!

Purakaunui Falls

Purakaunui Bay Campsite

Slope Point car park

Notice how strong the winds are from the trees

Most southern point on the south island (Stewart Island is farther south, and then there is ANTARCTICA )

The rarest breed of penguins--yellow eyed. Saw this little thing at Curio Bay, amongst the petrified forest.

Curio Bay

Cathedral Caves

Excited about New Zealand's beauty. (Carina, Abbie, Noelle, myself, and Melissa)

McLean Falls

I could get used to this life

Breakfast of champions

Horseshoe Falls

Matai Falls

Just the strangest thing...

Surat Bay

Cannibal Bay. We saw a ton of fur seals, some were even fighting right on the beach. Unfortunately, I only have video.

Tunnel Hill. This was a man made tunnel for a railroad that is no longer in service. It was really cool to go through with and without a head lamp.

We stopped on our way home to treat ourselves. This never tasted so good!

What a great experience this was! So much beauty along the southern coast, it's unbelievable.

CHEERS!

Now that classes have started, I have a bit more of a routine and feel less like I'm on vacation. I am enrolled in four papers (courses) while I'm in Dunedin: Athletic Injuries, Prescribing Exercise, Medical Aspects of Physical Activity, and Maori Society. Class is going well, there's not a big difference in the way material is presented (PowerPoint slides, lecture notes, pre-labs). One of my professors is actually from Canada and it took me a while to realize I wasn't hearing the NZ accent! I crack up a little every time she says about, out, throughout... -ou's in general. It gives me a little taste of the U.P. right here. I'm finally starting to know my way around campus and throughout the city.

One big difference in the courses here is the grading system. There aren't any exams throughout the semester. I have lab assignments and a few papers to write. The finals, however, are usually worth over 50% of your overall grade and take place over a 3-week period--intimidating!

I couldn't believe my eyes when I came across this gem on the grocery store! Almost the same ingredients.

There is so much right around Dunedin to do it amazes me, you just need to be willing to walk a wee bit.

The other day we went for a hike to Mount Cargill. It is supposed to be an hour walk to the trailhead and then a 4 hour return hike. The directions to the trailhead were simple, walk down this street go straight and it's on the left. Nope, not simple enough! Instead of going straight, my friend and I followed the same road we were on (it didn't look as simple as it sounds now) and ended up...far far north of Dunedin. We climbed hills and saw all sorts of animals, I even had a conversation with a sheep. It took almost two hours before we realized we were extremely lost. Instead of giving up we decided to make an adventure of our own. We hiked up a side road which led to some type of logging trails, we believe. In a few minutes we found ourselves on a walking path filled with blackberry bushes and blackberries to feed a family. There was never any type of sign to indicate it was private property so we had ourselves a little snack before continuing on. We ended up coming out meters away from the side road that lead to the Mount Cargill trailhead (5 hours later). After deciding it was much too late in the day to start the hike we headed home, but now we know where we have to go next time.

We spent the night at Long Beach this weekend which isn't too far from the city. It is filled with these amazing caves you can sleep in, no tent required. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. I swam in the ocean, played soccer and Frisbee, and had a fire with s'mores and "hot-dogs". The sausages here are weird, let's just put it that way. It was everything I could want out of a beach weekend. Although, I did find a dead sheep in the bushes which was mildly disturbing. We are pretty sure it had fallen from the cliff above; it was really sad (no pictures). BUT, the view from the beach is incredible. Here are a few of the views I was able to capture.