14 Months of Christchurch, as Told by 9 Photos

Cam and I are leaving Christchurch in about 36 hours, so we spent a lot of the weekend packing. At some point I found myself making a photo collage of my Christchurch photos, and by the time I was done, I realized that each of the pictures held different memories, so I thought I'd write a post about them. Hope you enjoy :)

Rapaki Track, October 2014 -

Rapaki Track, October 2014

I love this photo. On my first Saturday in Christchurch, my friend Sarah (who was "my coworker Sarah" at the time) came and picked me up from the motel to take me on a "hill run" - which turned in to a steep uphill walk surrounded by sheep.  I regretted not having my camera the whole time!

The next Friday, I found my way back to Rapaki Track alone, this time with my camera, and captured this gem. 

I had a really nice time on that walk, learning about Sarah, her family, her religion, her new boyfriend (now fiance!!) and walk/running Rapaki track with friends became kind of a tradition in Christchurch. I've  spent many a night after work with different friends - Jen, Jess, Sarah, and even Cam.

Hagely Park, November 2014 -

Hagley Park, November 2014

When I first came to Christchurch, it took a little bit of time to bond with my coworkers. One of the ways I first connected with my workmates was through running, and this remained true for my whole time here. After two corporate challenges, some Tuesday night 5k's in the park, and a half marathon, I have spent countless hours running (with and without my friends) around Hagley Park. This photo was taken one warm night around 8 pm, when I was feeling grateful for the park and the sunshine and the ability to get outside. Near the end of training for the half marathon, I started to believe James's statement that "Hagley steals your soul", but truly, I'm thankful for the miles, the memories, and the sunsets.

Rapaki Track, October 2014 -

Rapaki Track, October 2014

A duplicate location and time - oops.  This was taken on that same first solo Friday. I captioned this photo, "You keep amazing me, New Zealand <3" Little did I know, I'd be amazed for 14 months to come.

Taylor's Mistake, January 2015 -

Taylor's Mistake, January 2015

Ah this photo. While it may appear to be a beautiful beach photo, it holds so  many more memories. 

First off, Taylor's Mistake is a hike around Christchurch, just out past Sumner Beach. I did this hike on one of my first weekends, I think the day after the above Rapaki photos. 

When the new year came, I decided I would go out to Taylor's Mistake for a run after work one day. I hadn't done much trail running, so this was tough. Especially because the way I decided to go included some serious switchbacks, which makes consistently running very difficult. 

But the funniest thing about this photo, is that on my way to this run, I drove slowly past Sumner Beach and who did I find but my new boyfriend, Cam, changing in to his wet suit next to his car. It was a total coincidental run in (well I knew he was going to be there, but I didn't intend to see him), but needless to say, the friend he was with thought I was a total crazy person. 

Lots of memories.

Bridal Path to Lyttleton, October 2015 -

Bridal Path to Lyttleton, October 2015

As the weather got warmer, Cam and I tried to spend more time hiking, especially the local tracks. One Saturday morning, we parked at the base of the Christschurch gondola, hiked the gondola route, saw this view, then walked down the other side of the hill and in to Lyttleton for the market. We drank flat whites, ate meat pies, and then paid $3 for the bus back to our car. 

The Lyttleton market has always been one of our favorites, so as one of our many farewell events, we took James and Jess with us to try it out. After eating the aforementioned pies, they asked us what we do next and we just said, "hmm we normally look at that booth next." 

It's funny to realize what a routine you have at places like this. That you always go to the same booths, buy or not buy the same items, and then leave. While it was funny introducing someone to the routine, it was really fun to share it with our friends. Walking back to the car, Cam and I started to realize that it was our last time in Lytttleon, until the next time we visit Christchurch. We will really miss you, Lyttleton.

Wonderbar, Lyttleton, February 2015 -

Lyttleton, February 2015

This one of those photos that missed the blog in February 2015 because I was too nervous to share with the internet/people I knew about all the fun I was having with my new boyfriend.

This photo was taken from the first date night that I planned for us. It always makes me laugh because a couple weeks before, the weather was meant to be stunning on a Sunday. As work talk goes, this was prime conversation. James slipped in a comment, "Well that's one of those days that you get a beer and sit at wonderbar." "What's wonderbar?" I asked. "Oh it's this cool little bar over in Lyttleton."

So when Cam decided that it was time for me to plan a date, I chose a trip to Wonderbar. Then I accidentally told James that I had gone  and dodgily left out who I went with. #earlydays. Since then we've spent many a good night in Lyttleton, and as I said in the last photo, I will miss it so much.

Taylor's Mistake, October 2015 -

Taylor's Mistake, October 2015

I posted this photo on Facebook to mark my one year anniversary in Christchurch. I also took it on my one year anniversary, so no need to question it's authenticity. This night I met up with Jess to do a training run for our upcoming half marathon. While parts of it were downright frustrating, the moment I turned around and saw this shot, definitely made my night. The views that night were stunning, and I spent a lot of the run obsessing over the lambs on the side of the road and celebrating how much had happened in the span of a year. I can't even list them all here, but this year has been life changing. Maybe see my one year anniversary post for more details because if I start here, I'll never stop. Let's just say, a sheep, a sunset, and a run with a friend was the perfect way to celebrate an amazing year in Christchurch.

Sumner Beach, November 2015 -

Sumner Beach, November 2015

Fireworks in New Zealand are illegal for the entire year except for "Remember, Remember, the fifth of November," Guy Fawkes Day. (I pronounce it "fox", which Cam finds hilarious.) They do a pretty big fireworks show out of New Brighton Beach, but the traffic in and out of the beach can be atrocious, so Cam had the idea of going out to Sumner, climbing up a giant rock to get a good view of the fireworks. 

We met Margaret on our way, so I felt like I had a gang. I'm pretty sure I lost any "cool girl" appearance I had going on by saying "I feel like I'm in the OC." But I did. And I will really miss being twenty minutes from the beach and drinking beers with friends on the top of a rock at sunset. 

When Cam and I first started dating, we went out to Sumner on a couple Sunday nights and I looved those times. I love that Cam can go surfing after work any day the weather's good. So this is yet another place that I will really miss when we leave. Cam said we can go out to the Rockaways in New York, but it's definitely possible it won't be the same. 

And finally, Sumner Beach, December 2015 -

Sumner Beach, December 2015

One more view of Sumner Beach. This photo was taken just last week at a work holiday barbecue. We got so lucky with the weather, and enjoyed a really nice send off from work. 



And that's it! I'll miss you Christchurch. All the cafes, bars, parks, tracks, beaches, hills, and even maybe sort of the office. I've had so many good memories in Christchurch, and when the sun is shining, Christchurch can be such a beautiful place. I can't wait to see how the city is doing in a few years - I have no doubt we'll be back.

Until then, 
Erin

Laziness on Labour Day

Hello blog readers! Only 35 days to go until I leave Christchurch! Which means less than two more months of this blog. I have some big insightful posts coming up. I've been reading some non fiction books and have been inspired to share my knowledge! 

After we leave Christchurch, Cam and I are driving up to the North Island and I'm flying home from Auckland right before Christmas. I'm really happy to be going home to family and friends, but sad to leave New Zealand and also sad to leave this blog. It's been fun to share my experiences and think about them in a story telling way :) 

But more about that in "less than two months" when I sign off one last time.

Flying past Kaikoura on my way to Waiheke Island
These are the beautiful glacial braided rivers of Canterbury!
(Stay tuned for that post)

This post is actually a follow up from my previous one. I mentioned at the end of my post about Lions, Tigers, and Sheep (Oh my) that I was going to be swimming with seals the following weekend. Well I went up on Labour Day Monday and we did it. It was definitely cold, but it was so worth it and SO much fun.

The seal swim was up in Kaikoura about two and a half hours north of Christchurch. I had only been to Kaikoura once (!) and it was actually about this time last year. I just drove through with two coworkers on our way to Golden Bay, got a coffee, and kept going. I remember thinking it was stunning, and I knew I would have to go back at some point to actually check Kaikoura off my bucket list.

Kaikoura last year - not my best photo, but you get it

Luckily I'm addicted to instagram and several NZ Instagrammers including Youngadventuress and ChristchurchNZ have been really promoting these excursions recently. I asked my friend Jess if she wanted to try it and then she, I, and two other friends signed up.

And here begins all the photos that are not my own..
Sucker for instagram advertising apparently. Oops.

We got so lucky with the weather and Iona and I had an awesome drive up north - stopping to eat brunch at an outdoor cafe - and made it to Kaikoura right on time. We met up with Jess and her friend, Naja, and thats when the fun started. 

The guides at Seal Swim Kaikoura sized us up and gave us really serious wet suits to wear. Those things are HARD to get on. Iona, being the tiny lady that she is, had to wear THREE wet suits. And I thought my life was hard.

 Once we were all suited up, they instructed us to "strut down the street to the van". Unfortunately they also told us not to bring any phones or cameras unless they were waterproof, so I missed the opportunity to document us in our wetsuits, strutting through Kaikoura.

Maybe that's us on the boat?
Side note - Cam and I watched Castaway the night before
and I made him promise not to get stranded on any island
when I left the house that morning .... and then I found myself
on this boat...

On the way to the boat, which would take us to the seal swim area, they told us a little bit about the nature and history of our excursion, which I really liked. Turns out that the seals we have in Kaikoura (look at me, taking ownership of New Zealand's wildlife) are New Zealand fur seals, which means they have two layers of fur to keep them warm. He said its basically like they're wearing a wet suit AND a sleeping bag. This allows them to go 200 m below the surface of the water. They overheat out of the water, so they have to go deep under water to regulate their temperature and they evolved to do that at night so that they don't have to go thaaat deep - 30 m I believe. (I think this is what he said, but I can't remember exactly why they have to go down at night). At any rate, his point was that while the fur seals look really lazy, they actually just do their active time opposite to us. Turns out they're not that lazy!

They also told us that the cliffs in Kaikoura are made of limestone, which erodes really nicely, leaving the bays and platforms for the seals that they like so much. Another reason Kaikoura is perfect.

This is the peninsula that we drove around on the boat.
See all the areas for seals to rest?

Another fun fact - I was home watching David Attenborough's Life Story (It's his latest series and if you haven't watched it you totally should. Each episode is a stage of life, so the first episode was ALL baby animals taking their first steps, and the second episode was learning to be independent from their moms. So good! Can't wait for next Sunday at 7:30. Anyway...) and one of the last animals they featured were the New Zealand fur seal babies IN KAIKOURA. I was so excited. 

He was talking about how the first time the baby seals try to enter the ocean in Kaikoura, there are so many dangers, so the fur seals in Kaikoura actually swim upstream about 20 kilometers to a little pool of water at the base of a water fall. Then they all hang out until theyre ready to go back - also I think until they get hungry, because there can't be much to eat there. 

The guide on the seal swim told us that the seals are pretty territorial (on the rock I think because they were fine in the water ) and they like to hold an area. They aren't considered "socially mature" until they can defend their own area. I guess they don't have this problem at the pools.

David Attenborough highlighted the fact that noone knows how they find this pool, because they make the trip once - so its not like they see other seals coming and going all the time. I thought that was pretty awesome and was so happy that by the time I watched this special I had already seen the baby seal pool and swum with big seals in the wild!

So anyway, now that you know all the background information, I'll give you a brief summary of what its like to swim with seals.

Just one more photo of the beautiful place that is Kaikoura

First of all there were eight or nine people in the group so they managed to find two areas that were perfect for observing some seal activity and let us split up in to the groups we came with. We each got a guide who helped us spot the seals and he swam with a giant kick board that Naja got to hold on to, so that was really nice too.

The seals didn't mind us in the water and swam around us for the most part. A few of them swam a few meters a way but a lot of them came within a meter of me! As we swam a little longer we started to notice that a lof of them were chasing each other. Our guide told us it was "that time of year" so it was mostly boys chasing girls. I don't think many of them were very successful.

We floated around (wet suits let you float) and put our heads under when a seal came near and stared at them, and swum with them. It was pretty cool. But just as we were all getting a little cold and a little tired the best thing happened! The biggest seal I had seen all day, swam right up to me, maybe a foot a way, and just stayed there. Kind of moved its backside in circles so it could stay relatively in the same spot and we got to really look at the seal in the wild. Those eyes! They were so big. Honestly, even if I had my camera I was way to excited to take any pictures. After that happened we knew it wasn't going to get any better, so we hailed down the boat and got out of the freezing cold water.

THOSE EYES.

And as if anything could top an up close encounter with a New Zealand fur seal..... They let us pour hot water down our wetsuits. This is a feeling you'll never understand til you do it. Just do it.

And that was it! Then we took the boat/van back to Kaikoura, shared a pizza,  did a little souvenier shop, and drove all the way back to Christchurch.

"Those mountain layers..."

I hear ya, Young Adventuress. And that's why I bought.. THIS.

I love you seals, maybe I'll see you again one day!

Also thanks, Instagram for the idea and the photos!

Lions, and Tigers, and Sheep, Oh My!

I'm really not sure what happened to me since coming to New Zealand, but I love animals more than I ever have in the past. According to Buzzfeed, this is all totally normal (See their recent article on why we want to squeeze cute things)

This week was full of wildlife and it made my heart full. 

This guy.

The first was on Thursday when my friend Jess asked me to go for a run with her workmates. When I first heard the route I was pretty hesitant. I had hiked part of the route around this time last year, and tried to run part of it last (New Zealand) summer, but realized it was a tough trail to run.

I could tell Jess really wanted to go, so we went for it. After 1 mile of flat ground it was straight up hill. I was questioning our decision, but when we got to the top.. Sheep! And not only that - So many lambs. I kept thinking "I wonder what Cam would say if I came home holding a lamb and just said I got us a pet?" He might not be so thrilled.

Almost to the top!

So we kept running and a minute later while I was getting distracted by the scenery and the sheep on the left side of the road, I stumbled upon these two cuties on the right. Melt my heart.

Hey guys!

If we just stay still, maybe she won't see us.

And finally, after we started heading down I turned back to the top of the hill and saw the sillhouette of a single sheep and snapped this photo that made me happy.

The rest of the scenery wasn't bad either.

Yep the running route was from the beach, up this hill, and back. At least there were views :)

Always a classic - Port Hills to Bank Peninsula

Finally going down to Taylor's Mistake

After one more hill and a few more miles, we were back at the starting point. 8.5 miles and according to my iPhone health app, 107 flights of stairs climbed.


This Saturday Cam and I went out for a much more intentional and less tiring animal experience. 

My friend, Jess (same as before), is a volunteer at Orana Wildlife Park. They have an amazing lion encounter we had been meaning to go to. We chose this Saturday to bite the bullet and go. We showed up around noon in time to feed the giraffes, then walked around the park for a couple hours, saw the tiger being fed, and finally made our way to the lion encounter.

Tiger being fed - Apparently oppotunistic eaters, they eat whatever they can,
 whenever they can.
Don't want to cross one in the wild.

We mainly went to the giraffe encounter because Jess was there, but this ended up maybe being my favorite part (hard to beat the lion encounter but the giraffes were so funny!) I had imagined giraffes as beautiful elegant creatures without much personality, but at least the ones at Orana were pretty cheeky. I found them to have so much personality!

That face.

First of all their heads are just so big. And they stretch their neck to wherever the food is which just seems unnatural. They chew these crazy weeds that are rough and pokey, definitely not a plant that any human would ever want and once its in their mouth it was crazy to see how big their chewing muscles were. One muscle above their eye was literally pulsing.

I'll have that.

That's mine too.

They were not messing around at the feeding - any food they saw was well within their reach and they were going for it. One little girl was holding her branch, not ready to give it up, and was a little bit out of reach for the giraffe's large head. So Zuri (that's the giraffe's name) just stuck her white-ish-gray-really-rough tounge straight out of her mouth and took the branch from the little girl's hand. Needless to say, she stared crying. While everyone around was laughing, Zuri was just not phased. She was on to the next branch.

Mine please.

Before we left I got to know the other giraffe. We bonded. It was great. I want to go back again and see these giraffes before I leave.

True love.

And finally, the LION encounter.

The lion encounter was everything I dreamed it would be. Basically, you go in a cage in the back of a truck, which drives in to the lion enclosure, and the keepers feed the lions meat, which encourages them to jump on the sides and top of the cage. Luckily for sharing this story, my friend Jess watched the encounter from outside and snapped some photos.

That's me looking scared, and Cam taking the photos. What a guy ;)

From the inside it looked more like this:

Lion on top of the cage!
(I accidentally wrote "cafe" at first, but i guess that works too)

LION KING!

Feed me!

In case you couldn't tell from the photos the lions are HUGE. I mean look at that paw. (There seems to be a theme today - animals are much larger in real life than they appear on TV. Turns out the camera doesn't add 10 pounds)

And that HEAD.

The interesting thing about the lions at Orana is that they were snipped when they were young because they are all related and Orana didn't want any inbreeding to occur. So these lions don't have any manes and the main way to tell if they're male or female is just how giant they are (slightly giant = female, seriously giant = male). I'm not sure if this lack of testosterone affects their roar, but it wasn't the most intense roar I ever imagined. I call this video "Working on my ROAR".

These lions are also a bit on the chubby side as lions go, since they get fed a ton at the wildlife park. Daily visitors and shows mean they get a good bit of food. Apparently the park lets them gain some weight for the cold New Zealand winters but theyre currently beginning their diet. So, I think a real safari is in my future - gotta find some skinny lions with manes to get the full experience - but the lion encounter was one of the coolest things I've ever done, and probably one of the most unique encounters of most zoos.

Clearly, I loved it. Lion in the background is not so sure.

Next up - swimming with fur seals in Kaikoura next weekend. It's the capital of whale watching in New Zealand, but I've been whale watching many a time in my life (not that I wouldn't go again) but my friend Jess (who I've now mentioned multiple times in this post) and I decided to try to swim with seals. Stay tuned for that!

Also Orana had ducklings!
I've never seen so many ducklings that just wanted to say hi.
And their mom (luckily) didn't mind!

Five Hundred, Twenty Five Thousand, Six Hundred Minutes

How do you measure, measure a year?

This Thursday is my official one year anniversary with New Zealand. What. A. Year. It was approximately TODAY a year ago that I found out I would be coming to New Zealand at all - just until Thanksgiving, maybe Christmas. Well a year later here we are. I have experienced, learned, and grown so much over the last year it's almost hard to put it in to words, but I'm certainly going to try.

First and foremost I learned a lot about myself - I learned who the people are in the world who matter the most to me. I learned what I truly and honestly like to do. I learned what habits were a product of my environment and which were activities I would enjoy doing in one of the furthest places from home. I discovered who I am as an individual and how to stay true to that self.

I learned how to travel. To be honest I'm still working on that one. If you've been reading my blog, you've seen all the missteps I've had on weekend trips here and there. Over the course of this year, I've discovered there's more to traveling than booking transportation and accomodation. It takes an incredible amount of planning, direction, and a willingness to change your mind. My first weekend here I drove to Hokitika to discover that it was a much smaller town than expected, and I basically had a beer in a bar, decided not even to try to see Pancake Rocks or the Hokitika Gorge (which 10 months later would become one of my favorite trips) and without cancelling the accomodation I had booked, turned around and drove back to Christchurch. Throughout this year I've learned the things to look for in a smaller city and how to enjoy the road- even if it's bumpy, and rainy, and probably not the best idea I've ever had.

Traveling in Style

I met Cam. Life has been an amazing adventure ever since. I owe about 90% of my knowledge of New Zealand to this guy. Thank you for teaching me the merits of surfing, lolly mixtures, and salt and vinegar chips.

I gained friends who I will treasure my whole life. Without getting too sappy, the TTNZ community is made up of an incredible group of people, and I am certain those people will be in my life for the long haul.

The Girls of TT New Zealand

I rediscovered the flat white. Plain and simple- New Zealand makes the world's best coffee.

So how do measure, measure a year? According to the cast of Rent - Measure in Love. I can truly say I have loved this year - this opportunity, these friends, each trip and every experience. Work has been hard, and missing friends and family pushed me to tears a couple times - but what a year full of love I have had. I am so grateful for everyone who has been a part of that.

To wrap it up, I've been thinking recently about all the adventures I've had and wanted to do a couple superlatives:

Best weekend trip: Akaroa for the Queen's birthday or Nelson Wine Tasting with my mom
Best day hike: Queenstown Hill
Favorite City in New Zealand: Queenstown
Favorite blue water I've seen - there's a lot here: Lake Pukaki (I'm always driving and have never taken a photo but just look - Thank you Google Images)
Hardest thing I've done: Routeburn in the middle of a blizzard
Craziest thing I've done: Bungy Jumping in Queenstown

And finally, I made a map with all of my trips - red are completed, green are on the calendar to be finished by December, and purple is Christchurch. I've seen a good bit of this country - but honestly, it keeps surprising me.

I wish I could make this more interactive and tie markers to photos/blog post links..
maybe with a little more internet research time :)

Cam and I have been enjoying Christchurch, our friends, and being outside in the spring weather, but the traveling will pick up again in the end of this month. Next stop: Waiheke Island (it's that green marker next to Auckland)!

Staying home's not too bad, when home looks like this.