Student Bloggers

Currently Studying at: University of Otago, New Zealand

Homeschool: Wofford College

It is kind of funny how every day is almost completely up in the air. For example, Monday through Thursday I have my normal class schedule. I try to go to the gym at some point every day. Other than that, I have no idea what I am going to eat or where I am going to go or what I am going to do. In addition, I have a rough outline of our Arcadia outings, and now I have a schedule of the tramping club outings. But the thing is, each day there are multiple parties, there are plenty of activities, too many clubs to join, too many places to go eat, and too much to choose from. So planning pretty much goes out the window, and you cannot have a fear of missing out, because there is always something to miss, some decision that has to be made. I think I have done a pretty good job of balancing the things that I would like to do with my schoolwork and duties. So, this is how my week ended up looking, even though I didn’t plan much of it!
Monday was pretty chill; I got a lot of homework done, wrote my previous blog, and ended the night watching Harry Potter with some friends. The next day, I joined the tramping club and met a couple of people at their meeting. Afterwards, I headed over to the Baa again to play trivia! On Wednesday, I went to the Taieri River with the tramping club to do a river crossing course. Afterwards, the Uni Flats office hosted a speed meet, so we had two minutes to get to know someone before moving on. It was really interesting, but I did end up meeting some people who I actually stayed in contact with and with whom I have been making plans. On Thursday, I took my chargers to the hub to get them electrically tested (a requirement for every student living in Uni Flats) and both of my plugs passed the test (woo!) On Friday, a group of us hung outside of a flat and played cards. It was a beautiful day so we spent hours soaking in the sun next to the Leith River (the one that runs through campus.) Four of those friends went in on a van together, so we drove it out and around the peninsula. The views were breathtaking and just driving and listening to music was such an incredible experience with some amazing people. That night, I stayed in and watched a documentary with one of my flat mate’s and my Kiwi host.
On Saturday, Arcadia took us out to St. Clair beach for a surfing lesson! We surfed from 10:30 till 1, and when we came back up, the surfing company offered another two hours for just twenty dollars. So around ten of us paid the extra twenty, ate some lunch, and headed back out to the water. I had such an incredible time! I have always loved the water, so just being in the ocean for that long was awesome. Add to that the adrenaline rush and feeling of accomplishment when I got up on the board after catching a great wave and you can imagine how excited I was. We took the bus back, showered, and four of us went to this amazing restaurant named Reburger. Sunday, some of us took the van and went out to tunnel beach. There are caves and huge rocks all overlooking the ocean. It was beautiful, even for a cloudy day, and we all want to go back as soon as we can. After tunnel beach, we drove to the Royal Albatross Center. We saw some seals sunbathing and then on the other side of the center we saw an Albatross flying overhead. These birds have huge wingspans and they are pretty incredible creatures. We came back to Uni and I ended up spending the evening playing cards and listening to music with my flatmates.

I cannot emphasize enough how much fun I am having here. I have not had a single bad experience and I am so grateful for this. Obviously, study abroad is something that each person must make their own, but it also has so much to do with the people that you choose to surround yourself with. And thus far, I have met some great people. I am looking forward to each moment and I know that no matter what I choose to do with my time, I will not regret it. I’m currently sitting in my room, listening to Lauren Daigle, drinking some strawberry mango tea, and loving every second of it. I have come to appreciate the small moments to myself, such as this one. I do not worry about the coming day because I know that whatever is supposed to happen will unfold exactly how it is meant to.

Kia Ora,

Liesel

P.S. Jason is pretty much the best person to make friendship bracelets with, ever.