So I think the first thing I did after getting back from break was go kayaking at Milford Sound. It was probably one of the most beautiful place I've ever been in my life, and kayaking was so cool. I went with Katie, Kevin, Conor, and Eli and we had a great time. Kayaking is definitely the best way to really see everything up close. We saw some seals and a beautiful waterfall and the water was so gorgeous! It kind of rained on and off, too, so there were rainbows everywhere. That was a great day. On the way home we decided to take the Southern Scenic Route down around the bottom of the south island. It didn't take too much longer and we got to pass through some cool towns and we even drove through snow! We had a snowball fight with some random kiwi guys which was really funny too. It was definitely a fun road trip.
After that, I went ice climbing on Fox Glacier with Katie, Kevin, Conor, and Tristan. That was probably one of the coolest things I've ever done! It was an all day trip out to the glacier with two guides and we got to wear crampons and carry ice axes! We actually just climbed ice walls all day which was so fun. There were a couple funny mishaps, like where I almost killed Conor and he almost cramponed my face, but I was never actually worried for my life or anything. It was really awesome being on top of a glacier, surrounded by rainforest, with an ocean view. Very surreal! It was really challenging and exhausting but totally worth it.
The weekend before we had final exams, 8 of us went to Abel Tasman National Park to walk the Abel Tasman Track. We decided to do it in 3 days and stay in the huts for the 2 nights. We had to take a water taxi (boat) to the starting point, then walk back to the town where our cars were parked. I was so happy when we got up there because it was sunny and warm! I even got to wear shorts which was amazing. Abel Tasman is really beautiful. There are amazing beaches, the water is perfectly turquoise, and there's rainforest all around. It was a really nice 3 days of walking, and the track wasn't challenging at all (except when we had to cross mud flats without shoes). The huts were also amazing, with gas heaters and mattresses and everything! It's really nice that they have those available to people here. It only cost us $12 a night to stay in them too. It was an extremely long drive there and back, since it was all the way up the south island, but definitely worth it. It was nice to get out and hike before I had to get back and study for exams.
I had 4 final exams, and they all went fine. I was able to study enough and I tried not to get too distracted by my friends whose exams didn't really count for anything. It's not fair that my grades count! But I made it through, and after final exams it was Katie and Claire's birthdays, so we celebrated for the next few days. Then Mom, Dad, and Blake came down and i traveled around with them. We went to Queenstown first, where we did some snowboarding/skiing, and I got to hang out with my friends there because they were staying there for a week before they went home. After that, we traveled up to Blenheim where Dad did some work. It was pretty boring there because it was raining the whole time, but we tried to make the most of it. After that we went up to Abel Tasman again and hiked, which was cool, even for the second time. Then, we went to Farewell Spit, which was my favorite part of the trip. We got to see a lot of stuff there that most people don't get to see, so it was really cool. We got to see the northernmost tip of the south island, too, which was pretty sweet. We flew back from Nelson to Dunedin, and I said bye to the fam on July 5.
The next day my friends came back to hang out for a while before leaving me. I'm the only one out of my close friends that's staying for the year, so it was really hard to say bye to everyone. It's so much harder when you're the one staying. I became really really close with everyone, they were like my family for the past 4 months. I was especially close with Katie, Claire, and Conor and I really miss them right now. It's especially hard having to say bye and meet new people at the same time, since I'm feeling sad but I also have to put on a happy face and make new friends. I've also had a terrible cold which has set me back quite a bit. It's been about a week and it just keeps lingering! The new people here seem really cool though. Most of them ski/snowboard so I'm glad I'll have people to go to the mountains with. I'm sure I'll be just as good of friends with them when I leave, but it's hard to imagine right now. A bunch of us are going up to Wanaka this weekend to go to the snow, so we should hopefully bond and have a good time. I'm definitely looking forward to it.
Anyway, I think that's about it for now. It's been a lot to catch up on and I'm sorry. I'll try to be better about this from now on. I really miss you all I wish you could come visit!
