Category: Study Abroad

  • Stereotypical Floridian: Excited for Snow

    Stereotypical Floridian: Excited for Snow

    May 28, 2013 Another travel day along the West Coast. We started our morning with a free day in Hokitika. They are know for punamu (or jade) stone. We got really excited when we walked along the beach because we thought that we were finding some, but it was really just sand molded together that […]

  • Blowholes and Pancake Rocks

    Blowholes and Pancake Rocks

    May 27, 2013 Right now, we are in a travel-heavy portion of our trip. Since we’re trying to cover the main spots of the South Island in a short period of time, our time on the west coast is pretty brief. We’ve been only spending a night or two in each location and there’s been […]

  • What Was the Mushroom’s Pickup Line at the Bar?… I’m a Fun Guy!

    What Was the Mushroom’s Pickup Line at the Bar?… I’m a Fun Guy!

    May 26, 2013 Well, today marks the halfway mark of our trip. We are 12 days in. I can’t decide if I have felt like the days have gone by really quickly or slowly. For the most part, our days are quick and by the end of the day I’m exhausted. We traveled from Motueka […]

  • Hiking and Kayaking in Abel Tasman National Park

    Hiking and Kayaking in Abel Tasman National Park

    May 25, 2013  This was a great day! We got up early and headed over to the Abel Tasman Park. We split into two groups and half of us went kayaking while the others hiked to the beach where we kayaked to. After lunch, we switched places. It was a perfect day: the weather was […]

  • “Oh yeah, this is a six credit class”

    “Oh yeah, this is a six credit class”

    May 24, 2013 Today was a day of lecture and travel. We went to the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT) for a couple lectures on risk management and leadership within adventure tourism. Then we traveled to Motueka and had a couple more lectures. Sometimes, I forget that I’m studying abroad because we’re doing all […]

  • A Short Day in Nelson

    A Short Day in Nelson

    May 23, 2013 It was another pretty laid back day for us here in Nelson. We got up early and went to the Brook Waimarama Sanctuary. We learned about the invasive species in New Zealand and how these species have single handedly taken out certain populations of species that were not prepared to defend themselves […]

  • Welcome to Nelson

    Welcome to Nelson

    May 22, 2013 Today was a travel day with a surprise! We moved on from Kaikoura to Nelson. Along the way, we stopped for this short hike up to a waterfall. At the top were hundreds of baby seal pups all playing in the water. They were curious and came over to us and said […]

  • Don’t Forget You’re In a Foreign Country…

    Don’t Forget You’re In a Foreign Country…

    May 21, 2013 Lesson #1 of the day: Remember to use the power converter for EVERYTHING except cameras, iPhones, and iPads… I think I fried my toothbrush charger. I completely forgot about the power conversion. I know I saw a light when I plugged it in but then it’s supposed to flash while it’s charging. […]

  • Seals on the Kaikoura Peninsula

    Seals on the Kaikoura Peninsula

    May 20, 2013 Good Evening from the Future! (It’s Monday night here.) Our itinerary today included a lecture from Dr. Devlin, a brief tour and lunch on the town, and hiking around the Kaikoura Peninsula. In our lecture, we got an overview of New Zealand and how it came to be in about an hour. […]

  • Maori Haere Mai (Maori Welcome)

    Maori Haere Mai (Maori Welcome)

    May 19, 2013 Today we arrived in Kaikoura. It’s a coastal city on the north eastern part of South Island. It’s a beautiful coastal town where you can see the mountains and beach at the same time. I’m not used to that in Florida! As soon as we got there, we were greeted by a […]