Cerulean.

One cool thing: Traveling alone sometimes makes me really anxious. For some reason this time, I wasn’t. Was it because I was going to a country where I already spoke the language? Maybe. Was it because I haven’t actually flown with anyone else in years and am just getting used to it? Maybe. But I actually enjoy it sometimes. (Note: those sometimes do not include the Detroit or Miami airports. Bleh.) A perk of flying alone is that it’s much easier to meet people. This time, I met Marcus, an Aussie who was flying home from a trip to New York and stopping over for a week in Auckland. I met him in line for boarding in LA, and whenever one of us needed to stretch our legs during the flight, we’d go find the other and chat for a while. Probably the fourth time this happened, we realized he was sitting in front of Anberlin. Go figure.

One weird thing: I have not been jet lagged at all. I was tired the first morning in NZ, when I was still traveling from Auckland to Christchurch, and waiting in the airport to be picked up, but as soon as we started driving north I came wide awake. There is too much to see to be tired. I went to bed the first night and woke up normal time the next morning, and I have been on New Zealand time ever since.

One fun thing: On Thursday we were all assigned bikes to use for the rest of the semester, and then in the afternoon we rode into town for a scavenger hunt. My group was amazing and so much fun, and we had to find a bunch of things like gum boots (rubber boots) and paua (abalone shells). The library was probably the best find and the pictures we took that day are amazing. There is also a single screen cinema that is bright pink and shows everything about a month late. They give you tea instead of soda and have an intermission in every movie when they switch out the reel. Perfect.

One awesome thing: Yesterday we went to the Top’s farm. Never has a name been so accurate. They are sheep and cattle farmers, and their 4,000 acre bit of land is some of the steepest farmland I’ve ever seen. We hiked up slightly past the treeline, and could see all the way to the ocean. The rolling green hills and the mountains behind them were so incredible; picture sort of a combination of Rohan and Switzerland. We ate lunch high up and then came back down to watch Kevin Top shear two of his sheep, one with the machine, and one with the shears. Those latter things are terrifying. Nine inch long blades that come apart and together with satisfying metallic swishing sounds – like nothing so much as a sword being drawn out of a scabbard. I hoped Kevin could see what he was doing. I certainly couldn’t. The sheep at least seemed to trust him. But then the wool all fell away and there was this hilarious looking southern Suffolk who waddled away to eat the flowers near the house.

One beautiful thing: I wish I could tell you what color the ocean is. I sat next to it on Thursday, trying to decide, but I only know a few of the countless shades of blue and green present. Near the shore it is a light parroty green, and then it fades through until it becomes a muted royal blue on the horizon. It is the clearest and most beautiful ocean I have ever seen. One of the fantastic things about Kaikoura is that the mountains are right next to the sea. They actually continue on under the water for a few km, and we can only see about a third of each mountain above sea level. This is why the town is so famous for its marine mammals. They can come right up close to the shore because the floor drops off so quickly, just like it did at Lime Kiln last summer. Apparently no where else on the South Island (the Waka) do the peaks come so close to the water. We went on a walk around the outer edge of the peninsula yesterday and watched the New Zealand fur seals lounging around on the rocks, trying to picture what it would look like in another few million years when the silt on the bottom of the ocean will be added to the peaks of the mountains.

Hopefully this will get a little more regular as things calm down over here. Orientation is a bit exhausting and we've all just been going from one thing to the next as fast as possible. Today we are going to be formally welcomed by the Maori community in what's called a Hangi, so I must dash for now. Love you all!

Cyan.

I'm about to depart. I have packed and come to Chicago and repacked and realized something I forgot, and said goodbye to almost everyone and triple checked my itinerary.

It's been odd to be back at school knowing I'm not really coming back. Everyone is moving in and locating friends and rearranging rooms like we do every year, but this time I get it all from something of a distance. And I have to locate people with a sense of urgency, and the hugs we exchange are the last we will for a while. I'm so ridiculously excited for the next three and a half months, but I am going to miss people here.

Anyway, my ride to the airport has arrived, so I must away. Next time: from NZ!

Teal.

Eight days. That's all that's left.

I acquired a couple of last minute things yesterday and finally started packing everything I think I will need for the next three and a half months and that's when I realized - packing is hard. Especially for someone like me who compulsively plans and wakes up in the middle of the night making lists of things that I might need in any given situation. I just... like to be prepared.

Some things are really easy: Sleeping bag? Shoved in the bottom of my Osprey. Leather bound copy of Lord of the Rings? Not remotely coming with me (sadly). Nikolai? Tucked under the seat on the plane. But other things are more complicated: Raincoat. In my carry-on? Will I need it as soon as I arrive? Right now the forecast just says cloudy, but can I really trust it that far in advance? Would it make more sense to keep it in my checked bag until I get there? Should I actually be checking Christchurch's weather, instead of Kaikoura's to make this decision?

I realize that none of this is a life or death decision, and I'm doing pretty well if these are the kinds of agonizing choices I have, but it's what's keeping me restless right now.