Happy Easter

Happy Easter familia and amigos!

Hope your day is filled with yummy chocolates and springtime joy. It's strange to be celebrating Easter in autumn here in New Zealand. I'm staying at my friend Ruby's place and we enjoyed a nice Easter breakfast this morning. Ruby, Henning, Christa, and I just returned from our adventure in Samoa a few days ago. It truly was the trip of a lifetime. Here are some pictures.

Missing you all on this holiday. I am looking forward to the next chance I have to see YOU!

Samoa

Pictures!

Queenstown, Dunedin, Palmerston

Leaving Wanaka

Two days ago I said goodbye to Wanaka. I am really sorry to leave and am now having a really hard time coping with the idea of leaving the south island. It really such an amazing place. Right now I'm in Christchurch getting ready to head north through Kaikoura and Blenheim. Teddy drove me to Christchurch and yesterday we visited a town called Akaroa, where we went swimming with the dolphins. They were Hector's dolphins, the world's rarest dolphins and it was amazing. You may be able to check out our picture at this link:
myestory Black Cat Cruises album - www.myestory.com

Updating web albums =)

Fiordland

Making beds and sipping wine

Today was just another day at work with many, many beds to make, bathrooms and kitchens to clean. When I finished, however, Teddy and I trekked out to Rippon Vineyard and enjoyed a free wine tasting. Rippon is located next to beautiful Lake Wanaka and is famous around these parts for the yearly summer music festival that takes place there. They had a nice Riesling and Pinot Noir. Teddy and I opted to bring back a bottle of their Osteiner, a white, hybrid wine... new to me, and enjoyed that with a pasta dinner. All in all, a good day.

Surfing in the Catlins

Had an epic adventure with Teddy a few days a go. We took a few days off from work and drove south, way south. We made it to the southern most point in New Zealand and explored the Catlins, a region full of beautiful coast, yellow-eyed penguins, sea lions, and waves. We decided to try to catch a few waves and took a really fun surf lesson at Curio Bay (alongside dolphins and sea lions). I swallowed about a gallon of salt water, but had an awesome time attempting to surf and even managed to stand up a few times. I am really beginning to love this endless summer routine. My routine working at the hostel is going well. We had a staff party tonight at our house. I have some great co-workers and will be sad to depart from Wanaka in a few weeks to carry on with my travels. Abrazos from Nueva Zelanda!

Wanaka, New Zealand

Hi all! My life in Wanaka is fully up and running, so it's about time I update my blog! Wanaka is a small town, surrounded by stunning mountains, on a lake, and is simply a wonderful place to spend the month of February. In the winter Wanaka turns into a ski town and is a nice, quieter alternative to nearby Queenstown. I live in a little "batch" next to the YHA Purple Cow hostel, where I work cleaning rooms. (don't worry Middlebury amigos, I'm still a Panthers fan through and through, despite working at the Purple Cow! ) It is not the most flash job in New Zealand, but it is definitely helping my pay the bills and slow down my travels for a bit to just enjoy life here. I have a great roommate, Teddy, originally from New Hampshire. Recently we took a trip to Mount Cook, the highest peak in Australasia (although I'm still not exactly sure of what countries that consists of)and had fun hiking around in the area. The color of the glacial lake was out of this world and the mountains were awe-inspiring. That's Teddy in the picture, enjoying some smoked salmon we had picked up on our way home from our Mount Cook adventure, outside our wee house.
More pictures and stories to come soon. Miss you all!