How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.

Just over two weeks ago we had our farewell dinner as a Lake Forest College group at the Skytower, which is the tallest building in New Zealand. The views of Auckland were beautiful and we ate in the revolving restaurant as the sun set; it was neat to pick out all the areas that we have spent a lot of time at over the past few months. The three course meal was delicious and it was really nice to have the whole group together for one last event before we all parted ways on our own adventures.

The only thing unsettling for me was the fact that it was a farewell dinner. It really seems like not long ago that we were landing in Auckland and going through orientation. I remember feeling that the farewell dinner on our schedule seemed so far off. And just like that we were all sitting there reflecting on the amazing time we had and looking forward to our final travels and returning to our family and friends back at home. 

Unfortunately, this meant it was time to say goodbye to many of the incredible people I have met here. I'm confident I will see many of them again in the future, but it wasn't easy parting ways. I said bye to Martin and Matthias who I had the privilege of traveling with throughout my time here. I hope to visit them in Germany someday. I stayed up all night (eating pizza and ice cream!) with my flat mate Emma until she left for the airport to visit China and Europe before returning home. I also was lucky to go out to dinner with Savanna and he mother before they continued their travels onto Australia. Savanna and I spent our last Wednesday night here as we did our first and many other Wednesdays in between by visiting our favorite bar with our favorite DJ in the Viaduct Harbor called Outlaw Bar. It definitely felt like the full circle was taking place as we sat on the same bench we have for months overlooking the water and shared a teary goodbye to our time in NZ together. I will be parting ways with the rest of my flat mates and other friends I have made along the way this week. I feel so fortunate to have met so many amazing people here and everyone of them will always hold a special place in my heart. 

Amongst all the final events, final nights out together, final dinners, and final days together, I've spent a lot of time reflecting on my time here and what I have learned from the day my airplane landed until now. I have learned so much about myself, my capabilities, and what my priorities are. I learned how important it is to maintain relationships with those that are already in your life and to constantly make bonds with new people. I learned that traveling is so important to discovering who you are and learning about our incredible planet. I learned that the best experiences begin when you leave your "comfort zone" and most importantly, I learned it is far more important to collect moments, instead of 'things'. 

While I can't say I'm having an easy time accepting that my study abroad experience will soon be ending, I'm happy to I chose to study abroad and even happier that I chose to do it in NZ. I still have a few more adventures planned before heading back to the states to my family and friends who I miss very much. Leaving New Zealand will be one of the hardest things I've ever done, but I take comfort in knowing that I will return here in the near future.

How lucky I am to have something that

 makes saying goodbye so hard.

Skytower in Auckland 

Top of the Skytower 

Out to dinner with Savanna and her mom at SPE 

Our bench in the Viaduct Harbor!

Wonderful people of Flat 17!

Guy Fawkes Day

Guy Fawkes day is the only day (well week) that New Zealanders can legally set off fireworks. Emma and I hiked to the top of Mt Eden to watch fireworks being set off all around Auckland. It was really awesome to see fireworks literally everywhere we looked!

"Remember remember the fifth of November

Gunpowder, treason and plot.

I see no reason why gunpowder, treason

Should ever be forgot..."

Auckland Zoo

Savanna and I visited the Auckland Zoo and absolutely loved it! We were able to get much closer to the animals than at zoos in Chicago. We particularly enjoyed hanging out with the Emus, crawling through "meerkat tunnels", watching the otters, and seeing a Red Panda for the first time!

Emu

Love at first sight

Kea

Galapagos Tortoise 

Red Panda

Savanna and I

Piha Beach and Kitekite Falls

As a Lake Forest College group, we took a trip to Piha Beach and visited Kitekite Waterfall! We started the day with a short hike up Lion rock for a gorgeous view of the beach followed by some time relaxing on the beach and frolicking about in the sea! Then, we stopped for a brief lunch and walked a short trail to Kitekite Waterfall, a fall with a drop of 40 meters over 3 tiers. It was absolutely magnificent so I decided to take the plunge (in my dress) into the cold pool at the base of it and swim under the falls. Absolutely liberating!!!

To see many more pictures: Piha

Savanna, Katie, and I swimming around the waterfall! 

Piha, black sand beach

Savanna, Katie, and I at Kitekite Falls

Liberation

Getting out of the falls in my dress!

LFC group

Cape Brett Walkway

This weekend I had the amazing opportunity to hike the Cape Brett Walkway with the Auckland University Tramping Club. We drove to a campsite near the start of the walkway Friday night and camped out in tents. It was nice to hear the rain hitting the tent while falling in and out of sleep, but it's never nice to take down tents in the rain the next morning. Saturday morning, we divided into to groups and had an early start for the hike. It was about a 17K (10.5 mile) hike to the Cape Brett Hut. I was with the first group and it took us about 5.5 hours to complete the hike. The first half of the hike wasn't exactly pleasant since it was pouring rain and was incredibly windy. Whenever we got to what appeared to be lookouts, we couldn't see anything at all since we were basically in a cloud. In the later half of the hike, we were able to see absolutely beautiful views of the ocean crashing into rocks and cliffs. After a lot of hiking and falling along the way, we were happy to see our little hut situated at the end of the walkway with ocean all around. We spent some time reading about the history of the area and enjoying the ocean views. It was so unbelievably windy that we got cold pretty fast and spent the evening chatting inside before enjoying a delicious dinner. After dinner we did yoga by candlelight, which was incredibly relaxing and felt great after a long day of hiking. Before heading to bed, we did some star gazing. The night sky was incredible and it was really neat to see the lighthouse shining its light on the hill above us.

The next morning we took our time waking up since we would be the last group to leave. I ate breakfast overlooking the ocean and then got ready for another 17K hike back to base camp. We were fortunate that the sky was basically clear on the hike back allowing us to take in all the incredible views that we missed on the hike to the hut. The ocean cast so many incredible shades of blue! I wanted to stand there all day and just gaze out; unbelievable beauty. I did manage to see a manta ray gliding though the water, which was really exciting. I was bummed I didn't get to snorkel, but the conditions weren't right this time. I was definitely a little sore after a total of 34K of hiking over two days, but I had an amazing time. It was one my favorite tramps I've done so far in New Zealand.

To see more pictures from Cape Brett Walkway: Cape Brett

The red hut is where we stayed! 

Not a bad view to wake up to! 

Group 1!

Incredible view on the way back!

Whatipu

Spent a beautiful day in Whatipu, a remote black sand beach at the southern end of the Waitakere Ranges. I had never seen a black sand beach before in my life so it was really exciting to see a new type of beach. Martin, Matthias, Savanna, and I spent some time walking along the beach and then hiked the Omanawanui Track complete with stream crossings! The view of the ocean from the summit was absolutely gorgeous and worth the muddy uphill hike. The forecast called for rain, but we were lucky to only get a brief period of rain (I was secretly happy it rained so I could see Savanna in her obnoxious XL red poncho). It was one of my favorite days in New Zealand so far. Great friends with incredible views . . . Doesn't get much better than that! =)

To see more pictures from Whatipu: Whatipu Photos

Tree of Tranquility

Things are definitely picking up in the semester at Uni, but everyday when I see this tree I am reminded how incredible life really is. It may only be for a moment, but it's a moment that brings a bit of tranquility to my day.

"Beauty is nature's tool for survival because we protect what we fall in love with. It opens our hearts and makes us realize that we are apart of nature and we're not separate from it. When we see ourselves in nature it also connects us to everyone of us, because its clear it is all connected in one."-Louie Schwartzberg.