Bluff

Sterling Point Sign

Bluff is a tiny fishing and port town that is on the outskirts of Invercargill. Bluff is also the home of this famous landmark located in Sterling Point.

Avalanche Peak

Avalanche Peak is a spectacular tramp (hike) in Arthur's Pass. The entire hike up is essentially a rock scramble that winds along a river that has several waterfalls as you hike up, out and back takes about 6 to 8 hours. As you come out of the tree line you can see massive views for miles of the other mountains and peaks of Arthur's Pass. To actually get to the top of the peak requires a good bit of effort, but nothing that is too crazy.

Fergburger

The Big Al Burger

Fergburger might be the best place to get a burger in all of New Zealand. Not even kidding. I might have thought that it was the best because it was the first real food to be eaten in 10 days while on my University of Waikato's semester break... anywho, this gem of a burger joint is right on the main street in the adventure capital, Queenstown on the South Island of New Zealand.

Nikau Cave and Cafe

Nikau Cave and Cafe is by far the best cave tour that I have ever been on. The cave is chock full of glow worms, stalactites and stalagmites all that shine with an eerie pale glow from the flashlights that are given to you.

Able Tasman

Separation Point

As part of the University of Waikato's semester break, we drove to the Abel Tasman National Park which is on the northern part of the South Island. While someone could spend at least a week in the Abel Tasman, we only got to do one night and day.

University of Waikato's Maori Graduation

I got the awesome opportunity to see a traditional Maori graduation. The event was entirely in the Maori language (I did not understand a single word) but none the less it was pretty cool to see. This post is from an international student's view, I am so glad that I got to see this.

Coffee Shops of New Zealand

As a general rule, cafes in New Zealand serve high quality espresso based beverages, such as a flat white, or a long black. Most cafes carry sandwiches, New Zealand quality Maketu Pies pies, and bro's like Andrew "the most 'fetch' barista in town".

Castle Hill/Kura Tawhiti

Credit: Alexandra Bertin

The Castle Hill/Kura Tawhiti park is outside of Christchurch on the way to Aurthur's Pass. These magical limestone rock formations are not only loaded with fairies, but also world class bouldering and rock climbing. Natures' playground!

Chiefs Rugby Match

Went to a rugby match where the Waikato Chiefs played a home game. The resident director from AustraLearn and friend of mine, Gavin set the whole thing up, another reason to study abroad through AustraLearn. If you get the opportunity to go to a rugby game, go do this.

Blogging for the University of Waikato

So the University of Waikato asked me to blog for them! I am putting the same stories up as on here, but now I am reaching a larger audience! Pressure is on. Any suggestions on what I should blog about? Suggestions on adventures I should do? Check out the blog here: http://www.waikato.ac.nz/international/home-and-away/

Kaikoura And Swimming With Dolphins

Kaikoura is a tiny cute east coast town on the South Island of New Zealand. It is about a two hours drive from Christchurch. The downtown is historic feeling with a cute east coast (but not touristy) USA feeling with little mom and pop cafe's scattered about. Kaikoura is for sure a retirement place just by the feel of it, and the fabric shop was a big hint also. While at Kaikoura my friend Cara really wanted to go swimming with Dusky Dolphins so we called up Dolphin Encounter and signed up for that day. Expect to pay about $170 NZD... ouch.

Jucy

So my friend Aaron has been renting Jucy vehicles for a while now here in New Zealand. So I decided that I would try them out for my University of Waikato's 16 day semester break road trip of the South Island, what a great decision!

Nelson

Nelson is a cute artistic town nestled on the Tasman Bay on the northern part of the South Island of New Zealand. Nelson is the town where the famous "One Ring" was forged... sorry hobbits, it wasn't Mordor after all... the place where the ring was actually made was at Jens Hansen's goldsmiths!

Hot Cross Buns

Remember that song that we learned in elementary school called "Hot Cross Buns" where we spent hours playing that horrible recorder? Here is a video to refresh your memory... sorry for getting it stuck in your head for the next three days: