Rainbows!

Auckland may be rainy, but I love the rainbows! 

Tiritiri Matangai Island

Tiritiri Matangai is a world renowned bird sanctuary and one of the world's most successful volunteer conservation projects in the world. It took about a 90 minute ferry ride to get there from Auckland and we spent the whole day hiking and experiencing some rare wildlife. One bird that we were very fortunate to get up close to is the Takahe (Porphyrio mantelli), which is an endangered and endemic bird to New Zealand. They are only about 250 living today and about 10 of them live on Tiritiri Matangi Island. 11 other new Zealand birds and 3 reptile species also inhabit this island. Definitely a pleasure to experience even though we all fell in the mud at some point (well, except for Amanda). 

To see more pictures: Tiritiri Matangai Island

Takahe

Hunua Ranges

Spent the Weekend with the Auckland University Tramping Club in the Hunua Ranges. There were multiple groups, and I went with the group that hiked for about 6-7 hours. Some parts of the trail were rather challenging, but it was hard to notice since the forest was so beautiful. I met a lot of really cool people and look forward to doing more hikes with them in the future!

To see more pictures: Hunua Ranges

Rangitoto Island

Rangitoto Island is a volcanic island and is a short ferry ride away from Auckland. I can see the volcano on my walk to classes and it is visible from many places in Auckland! We (Katie, Savanna, Amanda, Martin, Matthias, and I) hiked to the summit (850 ft) and walked around the gigantic crater! Then, we ventured into the old lava tubes, which were awesome, but really dark and all we had were camera flashes and the weak flashlights on our new phones. So navigating was a bit tricky, but we made it out and back to the bottom of the volcano in time for our ferry back to Auckland!

To see more pictures from Rangitoto: Rangitoto Volcano

Waiheke Island

We went on a weekend trip with IES (our program sponsor) to Waiheke and stayed in a Marae, which is communal place in the Maori culture. While on the island we received a traditional Maori welcome, went kayaking, did some incredible sight seeing with gorgeous views of the Hauraki Gulf, made bracelets using a plant called the New Zealand Flax, went wine tasting, and got to know the rest of the people in our program. Overall a great first weekend in NZ!

To see more pictures from Waiheke Island: Waiheke Island

From Chicago to Auckland!

After months of preparation and paperwork, I've finally arrived in New Zealand! The time difference from Chicago is 17 hours so I want to sleep at all the wrong times, but hopefully that will pass soon! I'm living in a small village of flats called Parnell Student Village. I live with 5 other students (Emma, Carol, Ty, Billy, and Scott) but we each have our own room. Ready to explore all that NZ has to offer!

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