Final days in the land down under

So the time is finally winding down, and I'll be leaving the land down under on July 2. It's a bittersweet feeling, I've made some really close friends here, visited breath-taking places, and NZ is no longer just a place on the map. It's full of crazy memories. However, on the flip-side, I'm looking forward to spending my summer in Columbia soaking up the sun after living in unheated flats in the winter right now.

Alexis and Peter were the first to leave- and although I know I'll see them again, it makes me sad thinking about how fast the time went by. David left a few days ago- it was devastating saying bye...we became so close this semester, and its sad to think that the only times I'll be seeing him in the future are on vacations, instead of living together. Rachel and I are here in NZ for a bit longer, and it won't be as bad saying bye to her because Joe and I are going up to Chicago in late July to go to the Cubs/Cardinals game with her. (she's from Chicago) In terms of goodbyes, I guess rather than loathing on the fact that I won't be seeing some of the close friends I have made for a while, I should just think about all the crazy nights and fun trips we went on...or look at pictures.

As far as uni goes, I have one last final, Maori, and it should be pretty easy. I got A's on all my essays here, so hopefully that will equate to A's for my final grades. My Hinduism and Buddhism class was the toughest, and it's also changed a lot of my views on religion. I learned the most probably in Governing Bodies, my gender studies course.

Steve Lagle, a friend from Mizzou in Phi Sigma Pi with me, who is studying in Wellington right now flew down last weekend to ski in the south island with me. Unfortunately for us we didn't end up doing any skiing/snowboarding b/c Coronet Peak in Queenstown didn't have enough snow, and Dobson and Mt. Hutt up north were too windy and the chair-lifts weren't running. Boooo. We then drove to Mt. Cook to do some day hikes, but when we got there it was cloudy and raining, so we made the disappointed drive back to Dunedin. We did however go on the Taieri Gorge Railway the following day, which departed from the Railway station in Dunedin, and went through a scenic gorge, and pretty hillsides for 4 hrs.

I'm planning on hitting up the slopes when my parents come this Tuesday. I miss snowboarding so much and I'm psyched!?! Here' s the breakdown of our roadtrip of the South Island:

Tuesday June 20
Parents arrive, Commodore hotel, Penguin/Peninsula tour, Tunnel Beach, Botanic Gardens, World's Steepest Street, Larnach Castle (not a legit castle though...), Tull's for dessert (restaurant named after Jethro Tull that has delishdelish desserts!)

Wednesday June 21
Hike Mt. Cargill, Cadbury Chocolate Factory tour, check out Otago campus, Art Museum, Geoff Weston's wine tasting at his house/winery, Speight's Brewery tour, Ale House

Thursday June 22
Drive to Queenstown, fly to Milford Sound, do a cruise of Milford Sound and boat out to the Tasman Sea, fly back to Queenstown (4 hours total), gondola, mountain luge, ice bar, Pinewood Lodge

Friday June 23
Ski either at the Remarkables, or Coronet Peak in Queenstown, wohooo!!

Saturday June 24
Visit Kawarau Bridge where hopefully one of my parents will bungy jump, Drive to Wanaka

Sunday June 25
Day hikes in Wanaka (Iron Mountain Reserve hike), Puzzle World, drive to Fox Glacier

Monday June 26
Heli Hike in Fox Glacier (3 hours, you take a helicopter up to the glacier and hike for two hours) http://www.foxguides.co.nz/helihike.asp , possibly Sky Dive

Tuesday June 27
Day hikes at both Fox Glacier and Franz Josef, drive to Hokitika or Greymouth.

Wednesday June 28
Monteith's Brewery tour in Greymouth at 10am (beer for breakfast!), Pancake rocks, Drive to Arthur's pass and do a day hike, continue on to Christchurch.

Thursday June 29
Tranz Alpine Railroad from Christchurch to Greymouth and back (8am-6pm) -OR- hang out in Christchurch (gondola, Antarctic Museum, Kiwi Encounter, Crater Rim, Arts Center, Hammner Springs)

Friday June 30
Make the boring drive back to goold ole Dunedin, stopping at the Moeraki Boulders along the way, say bye to my wonderful parents!!!

July 2: Leave Aotearoa, "the land of the long white cloud", and fly into St. Louis where Joe (who I've missed dearly) will pick me up!!! Stay in MO for a few days, fly home for a few days, and then spend the rest of the summer in Columbia getting residency. Yep, that's the story.

Oh, I highly recommend seeing 'World's Fastest Indian' with Anthony Hopkins. Its a good one, and even better, he's a kiwi in the film.