Update before I leave on holiday!

So I hate to leave you all with nothing before I head off on my next adventure. Tonight a group of friends and I are leaving on a week long roadtrip around the South Island for Easter break or "holiday" as they call it here. I promise I will have lots to share with you after that trip! Some of the highlights I'm looking forward to: wine tasting, skydiving, glacier hiking, kayaking, hiking, and more hiking! It's going to be an awesome trip and all of us are very anxious to leave. Not much has happened since I last updated you, I've been busy trying to get ahead with school work so I can enjoy my break without stressing about school. This past weekend my friend Tara who goes to school up in Auckland came to visit for the weekend. I tried my best to show her the best of Dunedin even though the weather ruined most of my plans. Rain, rain go away! I took her to the Farmer's Market which takes place every Saturday morning (I wrote a blog post previously about it) and I finally tried my first meat pie. WOW. It was amazing. New Zealand is know for their meat pies which didn't sound very appetizing to me but Tara insisted I try one. I went for the chicken, brie and cranberry pie which was absolutely delicious. Meat pies are similar to pot pies only smaller, handheld, and flakier. Let's just say it won't be my last one! Later in the day we decided to explore the local museum. I live about a blocks from it and had never been inside. It was a fun activity for a rainy afternoon as we checked out the exhibits and they even had a butterfly forest. It was pretty cool although the butterflies looked like they had taken a beating from some children, lots of torn wings..

Other than that things are going really well over here. It's officially fall and some days I think it's winter but I'm slowly getting used to the cold. The student flats in Dunedin are known for their poor insulation and lack of heating so it makes it really hard to get out of bed in the mornings when you can see your breath in your bedroom. I am very excited to get away for awhile and see some other places (hopefully warmer?) I have yet to visit. And when I return from break it will be May already! I cannot believe how quickly time flies. Exactly two months from today I'll be packing up and heading back home. However, I'm not sure if I mentioned it already but I'm taking a detour on the way home. I'll be making a stop in Fiji for 5 days. Yesssss! I cannot wait to bask in the tropical sun, lay in a hammock on a white sandy beach while sipping a fruity cocktail. It's really all I think about when I pile on layers of jackets and scarfs. I'll officially be back in California on June 29th if all flight plans go smoothly. But for now I'm trying to get in as much NZ time as possible. Time to head to class, miss you all and check back here in about a week and a half when I return!

A few pictures:

 Outside the museum, I LOVE the fall colors!

 Tara and I had fun in the museum...

The butterfly forest:

Weekend at Mt. Cook recap

Hey everyone, sorry I have taken awhile to update this. I've been pretty busy with schoolwork and haven't had much free time to do this. Since the last time I updated, I went to Mt. Cook (New Zealand's highest mountain) for a weekend trip to go hiking/backpacking. A group of us rented a giant 12 person van (even though there was only 6 of us!) and we left last Friday afternoon. The drive was beautiful as we passed numerous lakes and valleys and we pulled over to take scenic pictures frequently. We also drove a little out of the way to see Lake Tekapo which was a beautiful lake that was the brightest blue I have ever seen! We had dinner at a sushi place right on the lake which was deeelicious. Some pictures:

 Our van we named the Dreamweaver

 Scenic views

 Lake Tekapo

Once we arrived at the base of Mt. Cook we had to check into the campsite for the night. Our plan was to get up early and reserve a spot to stay the night in Mueller Hut for Saturday night which was located at the top of the mountain, at the end of the hike. We wanted to save money so instead of staying in a hostel for the night, we camped out in our van. Unfortunately this was probably the worst decision ever as it was freezing and VERY uncomfortable. But we made the best of it and laughed all night about our awful situation. Since we were in the middle of no where we stood outside for awhile to star gaze and were blown away with how beautiful they were. I couldn't stop staring! After what seemed like forever the clock finally turned 7:30am and we got up to reserve our spot in the hut. However, the workers informed us the weather was supposed to be awful Sunday morning and they did not want anyone staying the hut Saturday night. They lady told us we could still do the hike but had to make it in a day trip. At first we thought, oh no big deal we can do that. She said it would take about 6-8hours. We had heard the hike was uphill the whole time and we didn't think it would be too hard. Hills can't be that bad right? Wrong. The Mueller hut route had to be the hardest hike I have ever done in my life. It was uphill, WAY uphill for 3 and a half hours straight. The track consisted of stairs that went to my stomach, rock climbing on all fours, and absolutely no flat parts. I was exhausted! However, with every foot I climbed I felt more awesome. The higher we got up the mountain, the more beautiful the view became. Mt. Cook was gorgeous! It was covered with a little snow and looked untouched.

 First view in the morning, some of the glaciers surrounding Mt. Cook

 Sunrise from the campsite

 Some of our group

 Getting higher..

 The tip of Mt. Cook to the left!

 I can conquer this mountain.

View of the valley below which apparently was used to film the opening scenes of Lord of the Rings 2!

After some more climbing and hiking we reached one of the points, Sealy Tarns, and decided to stop and rest to eat lunch. It was beautiful! The views were spectacular.

 Mt. Cook to the right!

 And again

 Still going strong?

After lunch we decided to hike for another hour or so. Eventually we stopped feeling our legs and collapsed on a rock for awhile to take in the scenery. We had about another hour to the hut but we were exhausted and felt accomplished with how high we had climbed! It was challenging and I don't think I have ever panted so hard from a hike. It was definitely worth it though. After a few hours to hike down we decided to stay in the hostel for the night since the thought of staying in the van again made us cringe. In the morning we were all sore and tired but wanted to see some glacier run offs. We went for another small hike and eventually found some:

 glaciers! normally covered in snow but winter hasn't hit yet..

pretty view of the valley again.

Soon we had to get back into the van and head back home. It was an amazing weekend of hiking and outdoor adventures. We definitely want to go back when more snow arrives to see Mt. Cook look even prettier. 

As for last week, it rained every single day and the temperature dropped quite a bit. Not a fun week :( However, the sun finally came out yesterday (Saturday) and a group of us decided to go to the beach to try some surfing. Sadly, the guy we wanted to rent gear from didn't show up that day! But we made the most of our beach day, ran into a sea lion, sun bathed and enjoyed the warmer weather. As for today it's back to work for me...essays to write, books to read...it's really a pain when I'm trying to travel. Only two more weeks until we have a semester break and get a whole week off. A group of us are planning to roadtrip around the South Island to see some places we have not been too. I am really looking forward to that so I can barely wait. 

Bye bye!