Because
of the way that this student teaching placement fell within the school year, I was
fortunate to have a two-week holiday break. These holiday breaks occur every
8-11 weeks (depending on the term)., and having
such a long break allowed me to see all parts of the South Island of New
Zealand!
Our
trip officially began Monday, April 17.
·
Monday:
The day that was much anticipated finally arrived, and we hit the road around
11 A.M. for our first destination: Moeraki Boulders. We also went to a lighthouse,
saw some seals, and hiked the beach.
o
Stayed
the night in Oamaru
·
Tuesday:
After leaving Oamaru, we headed to Waimate in the hopes of petting wallabies.
Unfortunately, the day we decided to go had special hours, so we could only see
them through the gate as opposed to hold/pet them. It was still a super cool
experience, and something I would definitely recommend! Then, we made it to
Christchurch, and we spent the night walking around the city, seeing the damage
from the earthquake, eating a fancy meal, and treating ourselves to some ice
cream.
o
Stayed
the night in Christchurch
·
Wednesday: We checked out the adrenaline forest in Christchurch. (This was essentially a high
ropes course including climbing, ziplining, etc.) Then, we drove from
Christchurch to Nelson. (We had hoped to stop at the hot springs and stay the
night there, but it was too expensive so we decided to keep driving)
o
Stayed
the night in Nelson (in our car, in a grocery store parking lot, as we got to
Nelson late at night)
·
Thursday:
Spent the day in Nelson walking two different beaches, shopping, and GETTING
ENGAGED!
o
Stayed
the night in Nelson
·
Friday:
Went back to the beach to take photos from the night prior, and then began the
journey down the west coast. We first stopped at Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki and
then to Graymouth for the night.
o
Stayed
the night in Greymouth
·
Saturday:
We drove from Graymouth to Haast, stopping at Hokitika and Franz Josef Glacier.
(Hokitika is a super cute beach town with a bunch of tourist shops!)
o
Stayed
the night in Haast
·
Sunday:
Completed the last leg of the first part of the trip by driving from Haast to
Queenstown. We stopped at Jackson’s Bay and the blue pools along the way.
o
Stayed
the night in Arrowtown (in a tent, might I add)
·
Monday:
We headed to Queenstown one last time before our own departure to drop off
Bill. Then, we returned to Alex to reboot for the second leg of the trip.
·
Tuesday:
Spent the day/night in Alexandra.
·
Wednesday:
Departed for the southern part of the South Island. First, we traveled to Gore
(stopping in Roxburgh for a famous Jimmy’s Pie). Then, we headed to
Invercargill and Bluff.
o
Stayed
the night in Invercargill
·
Thursday:
Headed to Dunedin for the second time in preparation for the rugby game on
Friday. On the way, we stopped at the Catlins Coastal Rainforest and a beach in
the hopes of seeing some penguins. (We ended up seeing some really cool
waterfalls and a petrified forest instead.)
o
Stayed
the night in Dunedin
·
Friday:
Spent the morning shopping and walking the city before the game at 7:30. We
went to Otago University and the world’s steepest street. Then, we met some
other teachers from the school at Lone Star and walked to the game with them.
o
Stayed
the night in Dunedin
·
Saturday:
Drove home to Alex for the last time!
School starts back up on Monday, May 1,
and I will spend Monday and Tuesday there before heading back to the United
States on Wednesday!
