This week was full of new discoveries. We discovered weekly 5ks in the park for $5, which include a free sausage at the finish line; I learned what a "busker" is and attended the world famous Buskers Festival right here in Christchurch; and finally we discovered an amazing New Zealand travel blog, stoked for Saturday and enjoyed an amazing Saturday of hiking, dining, and dance-partying.
There isn't much to say about the 5k except that we ran it, so I'll start with the buskers festival. CPIT, a university in Christchurch, actually has a circus school, so the busking/street performing culture is really big here. Once a year all the top street performers from around the world come to Christchurch for 10 days to perform. There are many free acts all day in the park, but the headliners cost $10-$20 in venues at night. The prices are really reasonable considering that when the performers have shows in London they charge anywhere from $40 to $80/show. On Wednesday a group from the office went to see three standup comedians and a hilarious Australian MC at the casino. I believe they were all British, and they were pretty funny. The first comedian had a joke about the way kiwis say "eh?" at the end of their sentences as if they're asking you a multiple choice question. Example: "the weather's great today a)?........ Or b) the weather fucking sucks" I ran this one past Cam, my resident kiwi expert, and he said that is, in fact exactly what they mean. Good. Thought so.
The comedians were so good, we decided to go to another show. We had heard that one performer, "the boy with tape on his face", was particularly good and wins this festival all the time -- this was also verified by my resident kiwi expert-- so we bought tickets to see him. His show, which here costs $15 NZD, goes for $40 pounds in England. That's $82 New Zealand dollars! He's essentially a mime with a production team so there's a good amt of music and lights that go along with his act and the show is 90% audience participation. It was really entertaining but I think I preferred the stand up comedians.
Those two buskers events kept the week moving really quickly. The last thing I wanted to do early Saturday morning was to get out of bed and go on a massive hike -- but hey, when in New Zealand.
We found a blog this week called Stoked for Saturday- written by two engineers who moved to New Zealand, work during the week, and explore the country on weekends. Sounds pretty familiar eh? (Or b) not at all). This weekend we didn't have a trip planned but couldn't let a gorgeous weekend go, so in true #stokedforsaturday fashion we had a really epic Saturday. Mike and I met Jen and Keith at their house Saturday morning and we drove about two hours in the the center of the country.
The hiking crew -- Same group minus Nick who did the Routeburn
The New Zealand Southern Alps run up the middle of the country, but you can pass through them by using either Arthur's Pass or Lewis Pass. I drove through Arthur's Pass early in my time here and had been wanting to go back for a hike, so was thrilled when my coworkers suggested doing Avalanche Peak this weekend.
Arthurs Pass back in October
The hike is meant to take 4 hours to get to the top of what is called "Avalanche Peak", so five minutes in when I was climbing a nearly vertical rock wall, I was nervous. I had expected a much more well maintained track, like the Routeburn we went on in November, but if I've learned anything in NZ, it's that nothing is going to go as planned. We continued on and made it to the top in two hours. DOC time estimate crushed again :) .
The first thing you see coming out of the bushline
The views at the top were amazing. I couldn't believe we were on top of the mountains and we could see the tops of all of them as well as the Devil's Punchbowl Falls.
Found a Kea!
Avalanche peak actually had has two paths to the top. The first, Avalanche Peak Track, which is steep and rocky is the one we took up. The other one is Scott's Track, longer and less steep but with better views. We took Scott's track down, as as promised the views were awesome.
By the time we got to the bottom, all of us were exhausted and so we quickly got in the car and rode home.
It's rare for us to come back to Chch on a Saturday night after being away, so we were all in group-travel mode and wanted to keep hanging out.
Kentucky Sours making us feel right at home
We went to Boo Radleys, the bar above Tequila Mockingbird (Get it?) for a cocktail and Keith put a $2 coin on the table in case anyone wanted to play pool. Instead, I suggested we save the coin for the Dance-o-Mat that I had been to with Cam and his friends the night before. All of my friends said they had seen it but never tried it,so we decided Saturday was going to be the night. After some amazing mexican food we went down to the Dance-o-mat.
What's a dance-o-mat? Just another reason to love Christchurch. (Skye, I wish we had gone!!)
In one of the abandoned lots in downtown Christchurch, right next to the partially collapsed cathedral, there is a dance platform with a laundry machine and when you put a $2 coin in, lights come on to light up the dance floor and you can play music from your iPod for half an hour! When we stumbled upon it in Friday, Cam's friends didn't go for my tswift suggestion, so my friends and I started the dance party with some "Shake It Off." Jen DJ'ed for a few more songs until the Christchurch curfew turned off the dance-o-mat -- definitely not the city that never sleeps.
After a busy day and a busy evening, I was ready to walk home and fall asleep. Pretty awesome week if I do say so myself. Can't wait for the next one. #stokedfornextsaturday
Just one more thing... Christchurch and it's port hills/mountains were beautiful this week.
Christchurch from an early morning run in the porthills
2015 is off to a great start so far, and gearing up to be a really great, really warm year. After two days in Pittsburgh, two weeks in New York, and one week in Irvine, I have arrived back in Christchurch, New Zealand for #TTNZ Round 2.
80 and Sunny in Southern California -- Not bad for January.
The decision process was a bit of a whirlwind, but through conversations with coworkers in both New York and New Zealand, I'm now committed to staying in New Zealand until May 1st! See what I mean about a warm 2015? My first week back has been great. There's been a lot of time spent with friends, and a lot of time spent in the ocean -- or trying to get to the ocean. I'll start, though, with my very last day in New Zealand in 2014. On my last night here, I told my kiwi friend, Cam, that I wasn't sure what to do before my 7 pm flight the following day. Cam suggested we head over to the Lyttleton markets. Lyttleton's just on the other side of the port hills that run along the south side of the city, so you either have to go up and over the hills, or through a tunnel. There are alcoves in the port hills that create smaller bays, and Lyttleton is located in one of those. Lyttleton is, in my opinion, the closest you can get to "classic New Zealand" without leaving the greater Christchurch area.We had a great time looking at the markets and and ended up getting juices and enjoying the views by the harbor for a good part of the afternoon.
View of the Lyttleton Harbor from the top of Rapaki Track in the Port Hills
When I landed in Christchurch last Sunday, it was nearly 80 degrees and pretty sunny, so Cam and I went back to the Lyttleton area and went for a swim in one of the other alcoves. The water was pretty cold (because we're so close to Antarctica), but the 360 view from the edge of the swimming area was amazing. It was the perfect welcome back to New Zealand. The weather was less than ideal this week -- cloudy and windy, as is unfortunately typical for Christchurch, but this weekend, the sun came back out in a big way. It was over 80 degrees with hardly a cloud in the sky, all weekend long! Cam loves to swim and I wanted to hike, so on Saturday we decided to go to Bottle Lake Forest Reserve, just northeast of the city. Bottle Lake has a series of horseback, mountain bike, and running trails, leading through a forest and out to a beach club. We decided to go out there for a swim, but unfortunately we got a little lost in the forest reserve and never found the ocean. The trails were really nice though -- I think I'll go back for some training runs, and maybe then I'll find the ocean. We eventually gave up on the swim, and Cam settled for showing me a classic kiwi summertime treat - Goody Goody Gumdrop ice cream. It's weirdly green but tastes like bubble gum and has chewy lollies in it. Kinda weird, but apparently all kiwis love it, so I had to give it a go. After our little walk, I still had some energy to get out, so I went for a long run up in the port hills. I had never gone on any of the port hill tracks except Rapaki, so I was a little nervous about finding my way. I ended up running up the top of the hill, and unexpectedly finding a really cool hiking path overlooking the Lyttleton side of the hills.
Once again the classic New Zealand feel amazed me. If I weren't halfway through a long run, I could've stayed there for ages. I felt so lucky to be all alone, near the top the port hills, with this gorgeous view that I had just stumbled upon. I went back to the city to spend the night with friends, feeling so refreshed.
Another View of the Lyttleton Harbor from the top of the Port Hills
On Sunday, I didn't have any major plans, but since it was 90 degrees and BEAUTIFUL out, I had no choice but to go to the ocean twice. I first drove out to Taylor's Mistake beach.Taylor's Mistake is a small bay with the most gorgeous water color. I had gotten to the beach on one of my first weekends in Chch, but by way of a hike starting from the top of the port hills.
Taylor's Mistake Beach from the hike I did back in October.
That day I was the only person on the beach, and it seemed so remote. Today I drove directly to the beach and it was PACKED. I found a spot and relaxed for a couple hours until I was really hot and starting to get nervous that the hole in the ozone layer (over Australia/ New Zealand) was going to give me too much of a sunburn. The drive there and back had gorgeous views of both Taylor's Mistake bay and Sumner beach, but unfortunately the road was narrow, windy, and full of cars, so I wasn't able to take any pictures.
Only picture I took today... really should've taken more of the actually scenery since it was so beautiful!
After a little rest, I met up with Cam and we decided to go for another swim. We went out to Sumner Beach, where I had also been early in my time here, but that day was actually cloudy and not so nice.
My first time at Sumner when it was cloudy and cold.. so much nicer this weekend!
Today was an entirely different experience- The tide was low so we were able to swim way out in the ocean. With the sun nearing sunset, the port hills and the cliffs looked absolutely beautiful. I really need a waterproof camera so I can capture our swims. Cam started diving for Pipi, which look kind of like clams, but they are found exclusively in New Zealand. Apparently you can bring them home and boil them and eat them -- so we should do that soon. Cam made sure I dove for a few as well so I can say "I went diving for Pipi in New Zealand". We jumped a few waves, threw the pipi so they skimmed on the water, and just had heaps of fun. Being back in familiar territory also came with a familiar face from New York. One of my best friends from study abroad in Sydney was traveling Australia and New Zealand with her sister and her mom, and they decided to stop in Christchurch for a night.
Skye and I on a Sheep Traffic Cone - basically the epitome of Christchurch.
It was so nice to welcome someone I love to a place I love. I took them to C1 - a really cool cafe where they serve sliders in a pneumatic tube. The sliders get delivered to the closest tube to your table. It's a really fun way to get your food and the food is really delicious. After dinner Skye's mom and sister wanted to go to the botanical gardens, so I drove them over there and showed them a few of my favorite parts.
Fountain at the Entrance of the Botanical Gardens
They all just kept saying, "I can't believe you get to live here and run here every morning". It was so nice to have someone see Christschurch and love it as much as I do. I wish you could've stayed longer, Skye, but thanks for taking the time to see my little city! So, needless to say, it feel great to be back. I'm really happy I came back and that I get to stay a few more months. If this first week is any indication of the rest of my time in New Zealand, I think it's going to be an amazing few months Can't wait for more visitors and more adventures. Stay tuned...
My last few weeks here have been insanely busy and so I haven't had time to blog, so here goes..
QUEENSTOWN
After getting home from Sydney, I had a couple not-so-quiet days of work before my mom came to New Zealand. She had a nice few days in Christchurch and then the two of us went on a vacation to Queenstown. I was told by everyone who had ever been to New Zealand, that Queenstown was a must, so I thought a trip that consisted of more than stopping by for a burger (as good as fergberger was) on the way back from the Routeburn Track was in order.
We landed Friday night to some sunshine and warm weather and enjoyed the feeling of being on vacation. Work at TTNZ is really busy and between adjusting to daily life in a new country and squeezing in trips every weekend, I was really ready to just relax.We had an amazing dinner on the water as the sun was setting behind the mountains, and just sat back to take it all in.
The view in the opposite direction of the setting sun
Did I mention dinner was awesome?
On Saturday we drove to Arrowtown, a small historic town about 20 minutes from Queenstown, and then on to Wanaka, a more quiet version of Queenstown, but equally as beautiful. It was a bit cloudy but the drive was nice to show my mom some of the classic view of New Zealand.
Mama loving the view on the way to Wanaka
Back in Queenstown after our day trip
Evening at the base of the Remarkables (covered in clouds), the mountain range in Queenstown
The real excitement came on Sunday, though. I convinced my mom (or maybe convinced her that she didn't have a choice) to climb Queenstown Hill. One of the main attractions in Queenstown is a gondola up to the top of a hill where you can then paraglide, zip line, bungee jump, or ride a luge to get down. My mom took the gondola on her last trip in 2009 so she knew how high it was. The hill we climbed was next to the one with the gondola, and the summit was much higher. Starting out, my mom had some doubts, but with a little coercing she made it to the top! We had so much fun - may have turned my mom in to a hiker!
The Gondola is at about the height of her hand (and we're not even at the top!)
Queenstown!
Love those colors!
Next up was the bungey jump. New Zealand is the home of the bungey and the bridge I jumped from was the location of the first commercial bungey! Before coming to New Zealand, one of my coworkers, who had studied abroad in NZ, told me I HAD to do it... But I wasn't convinced. My middle sister told me to do one thing out of my comfort zone while I was here... And I definitely didn't think this would be it. But when I went to Sydney and talked to Charlie, he said he would be disappointed if I didn't do it and if he came to NZ (which I'm still hoping you do!!) he would do it. So after all the encouraging words, I decided that I too would be disappointed in myself if I went home without doing it and had to tell everyone I wasn't brave enough. I put off signing up until the night before, but once I hit confirm, I knew there was no turning back... Until I was on the ledge.
Not. Letting. Go.
I went to the bridge, super confident that I could bungee jump and not freak out. I was all harnessed up and standing on the edge when I made the biggest mistake you could make, I looked straight down. Instantly I started shaking and rethinking my decision. The guy working told me to wave and smile for the camera... and to take my hand off the handle. I was so scared I would fall or that he would push me (which if course they won't do) that I couldn't let go.
I'll wave but I won't let go. #grassrootsgear #thetribebungeyjumps
A few deep breaths later, we had our final dialogue:
"See that bridge out there. Just look at that. Don't look down"
"I already looked down."
"Do whatever you need to do to get yourself off this platform. Scream. Jump. Anything."
"Oh my god I'm so scared"
"I'm going to count down from 3"
"Can you start at 5?"
"3"
"Oh my god oh my god"
"2.......1..BUNGEY"
"AHHHHHHHHHHH"
And without thinking, I did it.
Yep, that's me screaming.
And it was awesome.
There was a life boat at the bottom, so they came out and got me and I walked back up to find my mom who had watched the whole thing.
After the jump I had a celebratory drink and enjoyed a quiet evening before going back to Christchurch. The legendary Queenstown, also known as adventure town, definitely lived up to is reputation. I loved it so much and can't wait to go back.. But maybe not to bungee jump.
NELSON
The next week at work FLEW by and before I knew it I was on a plane up to Nelson to find my mom again.
Jen and I at our Christmas Party - Part of what made the week go by so fast
It was a funny to see my mom waiting for me at the airport and have a dinner place all picked out, as I had been the host the week before. We had a really nice dinner (again) on the water in Nelson. The water there is just the most gorgeous shade of blue. We spent all day Sunday traveling around the area which is known for both their craft beer and their wineries!
Neudorf Vineyard
We stopped by three wineries for a tasting, an A&P show (kind of like a state fair) to see what it was like, and finished with lunch and a glass of wine at a vineyard close to the airport, before flying back to Christchurch.
Waimea Vineyard
The following day my mom hopped on a plane to Sydney and began her trip back home. It was so nice to have her here! <3
2015
I was sad to lose my visitor and even more sad when I started to realize it was my last week in New Zealand. I have really gotten to enjoy my life in here, though it is a true 180 from my life in New York, which I also love and miss. But my time here just didn't feel complete. There's so much more I want to do and I wasn't ready to say goodbye to my friends. So Wednesday morning, when the head of my office said "Doesn't it just make sense for you to come back?" I had to agree. I did have my objections and reasons why I should stay home, but by the end of the conversation it was decided - I'm going to spend a week in Southern California with my manager and some of the team who have been helping us from the TT Irvine office, and then my manager and I will be flying back to NZ. I'll stay for three weeks until I have to go home to move apartments! Then, I promise, I'm home for good.
Why stop when you're having this much fun??
So the adventures in NZ continue. I will likely get one more trip in. I'm hoping to go to Milford Sound or Franz Joseph Glacier or Mount Cook on my last weekend here. I'll keep you posted :)
Thanks for reading and supporting me for my time abroad. I really needed it in the beginning and I still love it in the end. Now, let's all get home safely for the holidays!
Ah, Sydney. I love this city - the feel of the city, the unique suburbs, and, of course the beaches. It's easy to get around, plus the people are happy, the sun is nearly always shining, and you never seem to get over the view of the bridge and the opera house. If it weren't so damn far away from the United States, I would move here tomorrow.. In fact, after this weekend, if TT had a Sydney office I'd move here tomorrow. (Can someone please start working on this??)
My love affair with Sydney started three years ago when I studied abroad here. I mentioned this briefly in my first post, but to review, I came to Australia for 4 months in early 2011 to study at Sydney Uni. I made great friends with a few American girls, my Australian civil engineering friends, and a few of my sister's friends who hadn't gotten enough of Sydney on their study abroad, two years prior, and were back for a little more. I was so happy with my little group of friends, but near the end of my stay, while Skye, Steph, and I were skipping our program's farewell dinner and hanging out at the Uni bar, we met Charlie, a horse riding Aussie in an Elmo shirt. Of all my Aussie friends, Charlie ended up being the one I kept in touch with the most.
I saw Charlie last year when he came to NYC, but wasn't sure if I would see him again for a long time. When I first got to New Zealand I sent him a message to see if he wanted to come visit. He didn't have any free weekends for the entire time that I would be in Christchurch, but said he could probably free up some time if I wanted to come to Sydney. Come to Sydney?! I hadn't thought I would do that in my time in NZ, but now that the offer was on the table, I couldn't possibly turn it down. So I decided to do it. Picked a weekend when Charlie could miss a horse show, and booked a ticket to Australia. I was a little nervous that maybe I had built the idea of Sydney up in my head over the last few years, but sitting in the airport, on my way back to Christchurch, I can honestly say I had not. This weekend was amazing, everything I remembered and more. Charlie and I were crazy busy - I think (know) we could both go for a nap right now, but when you only have three days in the best city in the world there's no time to rest.
Friday morning, I woke up SUPER early and flew to Sydney, landing at 8 am. Charlie had to work until mid day so I spent the morning on the beach in Manly (not a bad way to spend a morning). I got hooked on that Serial podcast (anyone else addicted!?) on the plane over, so I know that I was only laying down for 23 minutes and 55 seconds, finishing an episode, before I realized I was probably getting sunburnt. I was right- I looked in the mirror and found that I had already gotten a pretty bad sunburn on my face, my chest, my legs... basically all over. I informed Charlie of my lobster status, and hopped on a train to meet my long lost Aussie friend.
Manly Beach
Just South of Manly Beach
We spent the rest of the afternoon adventuring around Sydney and ended the day with some Jamaican food in Surry Hills. I was so excited to go back to Surry Hills, where two of my friends had lived during study abroad. I used to love that neighborhood so much. We got Charlie's favorite gelato after dinner, and then drove about an hour west of Sydney to Charlie's farm.
Little Collins Street!
I hadn't been out to the farm during study abroad, so I was so excited to see it. After showing me the house, Charlie told me he doesn't actually live there. He moved to his own shed behind the house when his little brother was born, so he has his own little unheated area. After the unheated hut on the route burn track, I was skeptical, but, hey, when in Australia...
Charlie's Room
It wasn't nearly as cold as the Routeburn Track, so I survived just fine. In the morning, Charlie made us some eggs on toast with eggs fresh from the chickens running around outside and a mango smoothie with fresh mangoes. Delicious! He drove me around the farm - definitely necessary since it's a few hundred acres - and introduced me to his 3 week old foal. I think I got the full service farm experience :).
Morning on Charlie's Balcony
Spike!
Feeling full, we drove down to a student of Charlie's, who lives on the south coast. She asked us if we were up for a hike, to which we said yes, and we all headed on much more of a hike than any of us expected, along a trail that was barely visible at some points.
Burning Palms from the Top of the Hill
After spending five weeks in a country without a single animal that can kill you, I had my guard up about the deadly animals in Australia. I have to admit I was a bit nervous about snakes and drop bears (just for you, Charlie). Just as I was thinking that the difference between Australia and New Zealand is that the kiwis prepare for hikes with hiking boots and packs and well maintained tracks, and the Aussies just grab their surf board and flip flops and go in search of a good wave, Charlie asked me "So Erin, is this what you thought you'd be doing in Sydney this weekend?" Nope, but I loved it. When we made it to the beach there were almost no other people around, so we stayed there for a bit and tried to surf, before making the difficult trek back up the hill.
Made it to the Beach
Afterwards we went to see a couple more hidden gems of the south coast. Jared, Charlie's student's friend, had grown up in the area and knew of an old train tunnel where, when it was pitch black, the tunnel was lit up by glow worms, giving the allusion of the Milky Way in the night sky. We took our torches (Aussie/kiwi for flashlight) and walked in to the tunnel far enough that the glow worms seemed to go on forever in each direction. It was absolutely amazing, and one of the best parts was that we were the only people there.
To get my engineering fix of the day, and to kill some time until it was dark enough to see the glow worms, we went to see Sea Cliff Bridge. Despite all the cliffs in Australia, this is the only bridge that runs along them and spans over the open ocean. It curves along with the shape of the cliffs and looks really cool. During the day you can even see the sting rays below it. Charlie said he had seen the bridge in photos but never knew where it was, so I'm glad we went to it.
It's hard to see but the bridge runs along the cliffs out there...
Sunday morning, we drove back in to the city, to Rose Bay, where they do kayak rentals. We were able to get a couple and kayak through the harbor with views of the CBD, the bridge, and the Opera House. The view really doesn't get old.
Stopped for a rest on the beach
After returning to Rose Bay, we drove in to the city to see Ruthie, a Hopkins friend here on study abroad, and MY MOM, who had just flown in to Sydney on her way to see me in New Zealand. It was the perfect way to end my weekend in Sydney, surrounded by family and friends, kangaroo pizza, and some wedges. After lunch, I made my way back to the airport, and finally back to Christchurch.
Im so sad that my weekend in Sydney is over and that I really don't know when I'll be able to come back, or when I'll see my Aussie friend again. But I can assure you, I hadn't overhyped Sydney in my mind, and sincerely hope I will be seeing both Charlie and Sydney again soon. Thanks for such a great weekend, Charlie. You were seriously the best host!
By the time we got to the bottom, all of us were exhausted and so we quickly got in the car and rode home. 
In one of the abandoned lots in downtown Christchurch, right next to the partially collapsed cathedral, there is a dance platform with a laundry machine and when you put a $2 coin in, lights come on to light up the dance floor and you can play music from your iPod for half an hour! When we stumbled upon it in Friday, Cam's friends didn't go for my tswift suggestion, so my friends and I started the dance party with some "Shake It Off." Jen DJ'ed for a few more songs until the Christchurch curfew turned off the dance-o-mat -- definitely not the city that never sleeps. 
