traveling kiwis

We finally started school today. My class schedule is amazing!!! We have only one class a week, and by Friday the class is OVER. Class is from 9 am to 12 pm, then we have a second session from after dinner to 9 pm. Afternoons and weekends are free to do whatever. So basically the last two weeks were just fun in the sun.

my new friends (^_^)v

This past weekend we had student trips. Everyone traveled to Christchurch. The drive there is terribly curvaceous and I get motion sick every time we go over the mountains. But once we got there it was sunny all weekend.

On Friday we checked out the art museum, botanical gardens, the infamous Christchurch Cathedral, and just walked around the city. Lots and lots of walking. My buns hurt :[ Friday night was my first experience at a pub. Beer and conversation!!! I had my first full glass of beer, yum cider beer. Mind you, it's completely LEGAL [drinking age is 18 here]. And it was done responsibly, so don't worry.

Saturday I went snowboarding on Mount Hutt with Tommy, Amanda, and Allison. It was the perfect day for snowboarding. I'm actually pretty good at it. I really want to get on the snow again, but the seasons gonna be over by the time we arrive from Samoa.

that's actually me!

just a tiny part of the Alps

When we came back at night we watched the Rugby game at the Holy Grail. Rugby is flipping amazing!!! I guess the lack of sports at Westmont got me really excited to watch a team game. It was the New Zealand "all blacks" against the Australian "wallabies." We won ^_^ the sports bar erupted in cheers. We all felt like true kiwis. Because we're horribly poor college students we went fast food hopping after the game. McDonald's ice cream cones cost $.33 american.

We went to Catholic mass on our last day in Christchurch. The day was beautiful!!! I'm actually pretty lazy right now so I'll let the pictures speak for themselves!

the cathedral

the river at the gardens

playing in a field of daffodils

Its stinking beautiful outside. It gets a wee bit chilly at night but I'm finally able to wear shorts and leg warmers to breakfast. At night our house kitty, Minou sometimes snuggles in bed with me at night. Its always startling though to feel something moving in my bed because supposedly our room is haunted. Did I also mention our internet isn't unlimited? So after a certain amount of usage we get dial-up.

Oh, I also left my journal on the bus back to Kaikoura. I hope someone reads, writes, draws in it and I'll get it back someday. I don't know, the people who backpack through New Zealand are funky like that. And this is what "tramping" through New Zealand looks like.

Ka kite bro!