Ready to go

As most of you have probably heard, Christchurch is still being shaken by aftershocks. The latest batch came this Monday, the first Monday of the final exam period. As I sat by myself studying in a big empty room on the bottom floor of a rather tall building, I survived a 5.5 and a 6.3 not even thirty minutes apart as well as close to 20 other smaller quakes. Immediately after the quakes, I was okay, but once the shock wore off, I began to freak out.




With the ash cloud causing cancelled flights and being so close to when I'm scheduled to go home, these quakes really messed with my head. After witnessing what happened during February quakes first hand, it is hard not to think about getting trapped or crushed by buildings that you once felt safe in. Turning for physical comfort, I baked nearly all evening long and ate myself to the point where I thought I was going to be sick. Around midnight, one of my pod mates and I decided that we couldn't sleep in our rooms because we didn't feel safe with only one exit so we brought our sleeping bags into the kitchen and set up camp for the night after making the kitchen "earthquake proof" (aka putting everything on the ground so it couldn't fall off, creating easy exits, setting up a shelter under the table). We then started watching silly movies to try to make us fall asleep. We couldn't have been asleep more than 45 minutes when a small aftershock startled us awake and out the kitchen door faster than you can imagine. Traumatized once again, we went back inside and huddled on the floor trying to watch my childhood favorite "Peter Pan" to cheer us up.



Needless to say, when the beautiful Miss Judy, our cleaning lady/mother found us on the kitchen floor the next morning, she was rather concerned. Knowing that I love to bake, they sent me to the dining hall kitchen where I had a pass to bake whatever I liked and help wherever I wanted to from 8am-5 pm. I thoroughly enjoyed being on my feet and working all day because I hardly noticed the constant quakes. It was also good to get my mind off of things and have a job to do. I will be forever grateful to the staff here at Lincoln Uni that have taken care of me very well throughout my stay!



At the end of the day Tuesday, my adopted kiwi family, the Butchers, took me in there home and put me to bed for some much needed sleep. 11 hours later, I woke up still tired but ready to try to go back to campus. Once on campus, I got my paperwork filled out so that I would not have to sit any of my exams. Instead, my final grade for my classes will be calculated with an Aergrotat, which from my understanding is when the professors look at the work you've done throughout the semester and assign a grade based on this work when you can't take your final. With my finals being on the 4th floor of a 7 story building, there was no way I was going to be able to take them.



But now that I am done with school, my only job is to say goodbye to those I have met and love here and get ready for the journey home. Slowly but surely I have been packing up my room in between aftershocks and naps (as I am also sick), stuffing the material things from the last 4.5 months together to get a 23kg suitcase. While it's not an easy task, the end goal makes it well worth the effort.



I will be headed home in four days, 19 hours, and thirty minutes from right now <3

Why I'm here........

While I have failed at producing a blog for several weeks now, I just thought I would take a study break (aka procrastinate a little more) and let everyone know that I am still alive and well in the land of the kiwi bird.


Ever since Easter break, I have been learning why I am truly here in New Zealand. Yes, I am here to further my education and learn about another part of the world. Yes, I am here because this wonderful couple that I love dearly correctly bragged about the beauty of this land and its people. Yes, I am here because I decided it would be the best semester to miss events going on with my little sister back home. For these and other reasons, I decided that coming this semester was best, but since arriving I have had this feeling that I am here for a bigger purpose. I now believe that the reason God wanted me in New Zealand, this year, this semester, at this point in my life, was to court me and change me into who I should/want to be.

Now let me explain. I have been raised in a Christian family all my life, and for that I will be forever grateful. Like all people however, I have had my struggles. Through what I would call "the tragedies of earthly life" I have questioned God's love for me and even His existence. I have tried to pretend like he didn't even exist only to be drawn closer to Him because He refuses to give up on me. I have tried to hurt Him like I was hurting only to be shown how deep His love goes by His continued goodness towards me. I tried to walk away from him only to fall into His loving arms. I tried to fill the hole in my heart with other things than Him only to discover that the things of this world can only fill the hole for a moment and then drain out like a sieve. But God has been showing himself to me here in New Zealand.

What started off as a "lucky" encounter of me spying in on a student playing the piano in the Union has turned into the first real discipleship relationships of my life. Since I can remember meeting Drew, this musically inclined classmate of mine (with impeccable fashion sense), God has been using him to help me fall in Love with God and work out a lot of issues I have been carrying for years now.

Here's just a few things I've been learning about:



1. God delights in me!!!!! -

Now all my life I have been singing the song "Jesus loves me" but until the last month or so, in my heart I had always thought "Jesus loves everybody else all the time, but sometimes I mess up and I don't deserve his love so he doesn't love me". BUT I WAS WRONG! The bible specifically says........

-I am a treasured possession (Deuteronomy 7:6)

-I am an excellent one from which God gets all his delight (Psalm 16:3)

-The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear Him, In those who hope in His mercy which includes me so I bring him pleasure (Psalm 147:11)

-He chose me before the foundation of the world, that I should be holy and without blame before Him in love, because he predestined me to adoption as his daughter by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made me accepted in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:4-6)

-He does not treat me as my sins deserve or repay me according to my iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, He has removed my transgressions from me. (Psalm 103: 10-12)

To cut a long story short......... He loves me! And he doesn't just love me sometimes. He loves me, he likes me, he REALLY likes me and he REALLY loves me constantly and forever and ever no matter how bad I screw up or how far away I run because He chose me (and YOU) way before the creation of the earth to be the one thing in the world that delights Him. Now that's powerful!



2. I love my family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

While I have always loved my family, we have not always gotten along ( aka we're just like every other family out there). Being in New Zealand however, and learning about God's incredible love for me has really driven me to want a better relationship with my family in particular. In order to do this however, there are a lot of things I have been doing to prepare to go home and build these relationships up . First of all, I've been letting go of the baggage I've carried around with me. I've been truly forgiving my family for things in the past and have been seeking forgiveness and repenting from the hurtful things I've done to them. I've been breaking judgments that I've placed on them and praying for blessings for them. Throughout this whole process, God has just been showing me more and more how AWESOME my family is. He's revealed to me so many acts of love that they have done for me that I have over looked.

For example, my mom loved me so much that she taught me how to cook and bake, sharing all the family recipes and secrets that make her food THE BEST. She wakes up earlier than everyone else and goes to bed late after working all day long to keep things at work and around the house running smoothly. She taught me how to do my own laundry (which some college students still don't know how to do). She forced me to stick out hard situations to grow stronger and then allowed me to move on when she realized I needed a change. She has learned how to use facebook and skype because she wants to be a part of my life even when I'm on the other side of the world and no matter the hour, she always makes time for me..... and those are just a few.

My dad on the other hand, has also been showing me his love in lots of ways that I have over looked. Like my mom, he works hard at work to provide for the family and then comes home where he runs the farm not for a profit, but so that us kids would be able to have animals, be in 4-H, and build that good work ethic that only comes from farm life. He builds amazingly beautiful things out of wood that adorn our house and the community, and I am confident that he could build/fix anything. He gave me a baby goat when all I wanted to do was cry in my room all day/everyday even though he didn't want a goat on the farm. He "streaked" with a sign that said "I love Eliza" not just to embarrass me, but to show his love to me.... and so much more.

I have also overlooked how my sisters have loved on me. They've picked on me to make me stronger while at the same time defended me to everyone that's ever talked bad about me. They've let me cuddle, cry, hold their hands, hug, wail, tickle, and laugh even when it's been uncomfortable for them and not what they wanted to do. They've let me invade their rooms and their houses when I've needed to get away. They've sent me mail, hidden cute notes, and left random messages just to let me know they're thinking of me. They've been there to listen when nobody else was. No matter what, I know they will be there when I need them because they always show up.

I love my family and I am super excited to see them when I go home. New Zealand has really made me appreciate how outstanding they are and how great their love is for me and each other. I've also learned a lot about the 5 love languages while I've been in New Zealand.... which everyone should know! (Check them out at http://www.5lovelanguages.com/ . Take the assessments and have your family do them too. It'll change the way you look at the world!)

Alright.... so I should probably cut this short now since I REALLY need to get back to studying, but I am doing Fan-tab-u-lous! Please be praying that my finals go alright, and I will be back to DIA June 22 at 10:30 pm!!!! I can't wait to see you all!!!!!


Loves and Blessings,

Liza <3 p="p">

Young Farmers!

As you can probably tell from my lack of blogging, classes are now in full swing here at Lincoln. During the week, I try to attend 17 hours of class, workout five days a week (so I won’t have to buy another plane ticket to fly home), eat (a lot), sleep, study, occasionally wash a few pieces of clothing and oh yeah… enjoy this B-E-A-U-tiful country and the wonderful people that call New Zealand home. With all of this going on, I’ve found it hard to keep my blog up to date on my activities but… I just had to take the time to blog about THE SOUTH ISLAND AGRICULTURAL FIELD DAYS!

This year, the Lincoln University Farm played host to this one-of-a-kind, three day event. For the last 60 years, Field Days have been the place for farmers and city folks to find out what’s new in the industry. From machinery to chemicals to effluent storage tank dealers, every aspect of farming is represented at the field days. They bring their A game, too; I was almost talked into buying a pair of stylish overalls made specifically for women that had a sweet zipper so you could go to the bathroom without having to take them off! There was also several areas where they provided live, life size demonstrations of processes such as direct drilling, bailing/wrapping and ploughing (yes… that’s how you spell plowing in New Zealand). There was also a booth giving out ancient bird poo (I still don’t understand why…. Something to do with nitrogen….maybe), and a place that was selling bull whips that made a very distinct sound as they broke the sound barrier that brought me back to the days of watching “Man from Snowy River” with my sisters.

At the end of the day however, the most spectacular part of the farm show for me was the Regional Young Farmers’ Competition. Young Farmers is a club at campuses across the nation that is very active in the agricultural industry. As a member of the young farmers club, students are provided with leadership opportunities as well as opportunities to get involved with other agriculturalists. Members also have the chance to participate in the young farmers’ competition, a competition that tests students on their well-roundedness in the agricultural field.

As part of this competition, contestants had to participate in several practical challenges. The one shown here is a where each contestant must follow their given directions and make a pitch fork from scratch. It was sweet as!

There were other practical challenges that included fencing (aka building fence), hanging 12 foot long metal gates (with no assistance), sorting/crutching/medicating/tupping a group of sheep and setting up a sprinkler system. After a day of doing this, the contestants finished their day outside with the Agrisports competition.

This competition was intense!!!!! At the sound of the blow horn, contestants had to put on their protection shaps (because everyone wears stubies [aka rugby short shorts]!), assemble a chain saw and saw the branches off a tree that was lying on the ground.

Next, they had to saw the pole of the tree into smaller pieces. From there they put the back to wheels on a quad bike (aka a four wheeler) and then place two logs on the ground that they had to park the quad on without it rolling off.

After parking the quad, contestants had to attach four pieces of the tree they cut off at the first section of the race to the bottom of a flower box and plant an assortment of flowers in this box. From there, they moved on to the instruction reading section where they had to put together a pump sprayer by following the instructions on the box.

Next they had to wrap two bails with plastic and then run to attach their tap to a trough to build up a decent amount of water. Next, they had to throw straw over a string line above their heads (with the pitch fork they made earlier in the practical) so it could be set on fire by the local fire fighters.

They then had to put the fire out with the water they had collected in their trough. Once the fire was completely out, they had to throw enough water onto a slip’n’slide so they could slide to the finish line and hit their buzzer!

The contestant from my Uni, Reuben Carter, placed second in the Agrisports challenge and first in the practical challenge. That night, the contestants participated in the "night show" where they had to give an extemporaneous speech and buzz in for quiz question points.  Reuben finished 2nd, losing by only 3 points!

At the end of the day, I left the Uni Farm feeling rather satisfied that my time and money (it was only 10 NZD) had been well spent. New Zealand Ag is a very innovative industry; they know what works here and what doesn’t. As I’ve been learning in my dairy and plant science classes, systems that work in other countries, don’t always work here. That is why it is important for Kiwis to do some of their own research and then promote their findings to the rest of the country at things like the South Island Field Days. New Zealand farmers are very open to change and hardly ever “do things like dad did” so these events change the industry and will continue to make New Zealand farming stronger and stronger every year.

Oh! And I almost forgot!!!! I did bring home something from the field days…..

A funny looking, rather sunburn faced, ginge (aka red head in Kiwi slang).

Kia Kaha Christchurch

There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

-Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Looking back on yesterday’s National Christchurch Memorial Service in North Hagley Park, this passage is the best way I know how to describe the events that have occurred here over the past month. 100,000 people gathered under a kite reading Rise Up Christchurch in the park yesterday, each with their own story as to what they had been doing when the quake hit at 12:51, February 22, 2011, and yet, each had felt the desire to gather together to morn for the loss that not only effected Canterbury and the country of New Zealand but the whole world.

Just before 12:30, Bob Parker, the mayor of Christchurch introduced a previously unreleased video that showed the extent of the damage caused by this horrible quake three and a half weeks prior. Click here to watch the video.

After this solemn video, many people, myself included, sat in awe of the destruction that had ripped through our city as the ceremony began with the sounding of the Pūtātara (conch shell) and a Mihi Whakatau (a Maori [the first people in New Zealand] welcome). This welcome was followed by the voices of the crowd singing “God Save the Queen.”

As the voices cleared the air once more, Reverend Peter Beck, Dean of Christchurch Cathedral, addressed the crowd and then at 12:51, led two minutes of silence. Although I was not in the ceremony, it was a very eerie feeling as the entire nation went silent, all sounds disintegrating in a black hole except the rustling of leaves as a gentle breeze continued on its way, unaware of Rev. Becks word, “Let us be still”.

When the two minutes of silence were over, the mayor again addressed the nation about the destruction and the hope for Christchurch before introducing His Royal Highness, Prince William of Wales. The Prince, appearing on behalf of the Queen conveyed the royal families deepest sympathies to the nation that was hurting so much and passed along her words that “grief is the price we pay for love.” (You can watch the entire speech by Prince William HERE )
After a short reading, John Key, the Prime Minister of New Zealand addressed the crowd, recounting the destruction that “left scars that will never be erased from our land and our hearts” and urging those who are suffering to unite with the families in over twenty countries that had lost love ones in the quake. He went on to assure these families that their loved ones would not be forgotten because they were not kiwis, but that they had become part of the New Zealand family and part of the story of our city. The Prime Minister also reached out to those in Japan who were suffering from the double hit of an earthquake and a tsunami. John Key then addressed the hope for Christchurch that has been fed by the undying love for others that has spread throughout the country and around the world while thanking those that have rushed to help us in one of our darkest days. Even in our darkest days however, he reminded us “this city will rise again.” (Click HERE to watch John Key’s speech )

Following the PM’s speech,Dave Dobbyn performed the song Loyal, and the Leader of the Opposition, Phil Goff, addressed the crowd about not letting this be just a time to grieve but also a time be grateful for the work of the rescue teams and for the “kiwi community spirit”. (Full speech is available HERE ) Then, the leader of the Christchurch Search and rescue team read Psalms 23, The Lord is My Shepherd.

The emotions continued to build as Dame Malvina Major sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and then two of the student volunteer army leaders lit the flame, symbolizing the presence of God. After that, the whole crowd joined in the singing of “How great Thou art”. This beautiful rendition was sang first in Maori and then in English, and brought many to tears.

After several other addresses and reading from community members that were affected by the quake, I heard the most beautiful performance of “Amazing Grace” by New Zealand’s own Hayley Westenra. It brought me to tears as I sat there listening to her angelic voice in the commons area of my hall back at the Uni, but I was not the only one. As they panned across the crowd, you could tell that this song, perfectly performed by Miss Westenra, had tugged at the heart strings of many people throughout the lawn. (This is a must see video! So Beautiful! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLVTdyZaUQs )

This performance was then followed by a reading of one of my most beloved passages, John 14:1-3, 27. The stage was then opened up to a part of the ceremony that was called “The Prayers of Many Faiths.” This was an amazing section to me because it showed how people could coexist as representatives of the Buddhist, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu and Bahá'i faiths each offered their prayers for Christchurch and its people; It was beautiful.

After the prayers, Malvina Major and Patrick Manning sang “Pie Jesu”, followed by a blessing from leaders from various denominations.

Then, the Choir of Christchurch Cathedral sang! In their right red robes, it was not only a beautiful song but also an amazing display of how Christchurch is going to rise from these ashes like the boys and men who stood upon the stage singing to God while there Cathedral lay in ruins in the central business district. To continue in this uplifting spirit, a video that showed the “birth of our hope” was then played on the screen. It showed people jumping on the opportunity to help others, people giving of their own resources to feed and clothe others, student volunteers taking to the streets, children helping to raise funds for victims and tractors clearing liquefaction from the streets. ( Click here to watch the video! )

As the ceremony closed and thousands of people rose to sing “God Defend New Zealand,” I cried once more. It was beautiful to see the people join together and sing out their deepest wish, the hope that their home would be protected.

God of nations, at thy feet,
in the bonds of love we meet;
hear our voices we entreat,
God defend our free land!
Guard Pacific’s triple star
from the shafts of strife and war,
make her praises heard afar;
God defend New Zealand!

Please continue to pray for this battered nation as they look for the strength and support to rebuild.

Kia Kaha Christchurch; Be Strong Christchurch. <3

SH + cool = School :)

After returning from our 10 day road trip around the south island, I FINALLY got to go back to school this week.  Coming from an American school system, it is crazy to have a three month Christmas vacation.  For many Universities back home, their first day of spring break was my first day of school.  As most of you know, this is because of the horrible earthquake that rocked Christchurch on Feb. 22, a tragedy that continues to be a part of our life everyday even as the aftershocks begin to fade.

On my first day of classes, the most important thing that every professor covered was earthquake protocol. Drop-Cover-Hold on.  Drop-Cover-Hold on. Drop-cover-Hold on.  This procedure was repeated in every class, just another example of how Lincoln Uni’s number one concern is for its student’s safety.  They also made sure to remind us that there were resources around campus that could help anyone deal with the stress and anxiety of the quake.  Lincoln Uni is taking very good care of its students as well as those who have displaced and relocated here for the time being.

My first class, Animal Science 272, Dairy Systems, is going to be great!  Throughout the semester I am going to learn about how and why the New Zealand dairy system works.  Over here in NZ, most of the dairy farms run Frisians and Jerseys on pasture and very minimal supplements.  Although they do not give the volume of milk that’s required from US cows, dairies in New Zealand are very profitable, especially right now when milk prices are at $8 per Kg Milk Solids.  Although there are a few dairies that milk all year long to supply milk to New Zealand, the majority of dairies have a synchronized breeding program so that they calve and dry up at the same time to match the lactation curve with the pasture growth curve.  While this system is very different from the ones I’ve seen back home, it works amazingly here.

My next class is Management 203, Agriculture systems and Sustainability.  This class, which is traditionally made up of about 40% international students, is going to give me a spectacular overview of New Zealand agriculture and the problems it may face in regards to sustainability.  So far, this class has focused on looking at the deer and dairy industries to give us a bit of background on the industries, but we will also look at international markets, water rights, land tenure and various other subjects to make this a very well rounded “paper”.  (Kiwi’s often call classes “papers”.)

With two animal science focused classes, I also chose to balance it out a bit by taking a marketing class, which I already know I’m going to enjoy.  The professor, Dr. Sharon Forbes, is a wonderful lady with a passion for students and her field.  She has traveled around the world and then returned to New Zealand because Canterbury is the only place she could call home.  Her class, Consumer Behavior, is full of real life examples and constant interactions between the students and the professor.  Add in the fact that she has a red tint to her hair, and it’s easy to see that this is going to be a fun and practical class.

The last class that I am signed up for this semester, Plant Science 204, Plant Production Systems, is likely going to be the most challenging class for me because I have no background in plants outside of my work in the wheat genetics lab at CSU.  In the coarse schedule (which Americans would call a syllabus) following a list of 70 plant names it says “Students who cannot identify at least half of these plants will probably fail.”  So yes, I am very worried about this class especially after my first lab in which we were let out in a field and asked to match the marked plants with a description of the plant and its name.  As you can imagine, descriptions using words such as sheath, ligule, and auricles were like a foreign language.  I was having so much trouble with it because of my non-plant background that at the end of the class, the professor felt sorry for me and gave me the paper with his key.

All and all, this is going to be a very educational semester, but it’s also going to be a blast.  Lincoln Uni is full of wonderful professors and staff that have a passion for what they do. Add in the typical Kiwi attitude of helping others and it’s easy to tell that the next ten weeks of classes are going to be one of the most inviting opportunities to learn. 

All I can say now is…. Let the Knowledge Flow! I’m Ready!

Road Trip

One week after the earthquake that rocked Christchurch and the surrounding area, about 100 Lincoln Uni students, R.A.’s, sponsors and two wonderful bus drivers set out on a tour of the South Island.  The Uni paid for the buses and transportation for this 10 day trip to try to help get us students out of the halls to make room for policemen, rescue workers, embalmers, and funeral directors that needed a place to sleep at night.

Day 1

On the first day of this epic adventure, our bus journeyed to Hamner Springs, an inland city that is known for its hot pools.  Upon arriving, we set up our three person tents at the Hamner Forest Camp outside of town.  This camp was able to host us because the schools that had booked this site had cancelled their event due to the earthquake.  Throughout the cabins that lined the tenting area, there were several “fragile” families that didn’t have a safe home to return to.  I also came across multiple families while I was walking around town that wanted to tell me their earthquake stories.  One mother I talked to said she had been separated from her children and had to wait over six hours to be reunited with them at a local park.  “It was the worst feeling in the world not knowing where they were, or if they had been injured,” she told me, and I could see from her eyes that she was telling the truth.  Another woman told me about the scene that occurred earlier that day during the national two minutes of silence.  The community banded together in the center of town, surrounding the refugees with loves, hugs and hands to hold, reiterating the fact that New Zealand is like a giant village where everyone is there to help their neighbor out.

I also had the chance to go on several short hikes around Hamner Springs before walking back to the camp site for a night of learning how to play cricket, listening to guitar playing and an introduction to sand flies (aka mosquitoes but 100 times worse). 

Day 2

On day two we traveled from Hamner Springs to Nelson.  Along the way however, we were met by a two hour delay due to a rockslide.  Being curious, several of us walked up the road to try to see what was causing the hold up.  We walked, and walked, and walked on a “wee” little hike only to be met by a police officer that told us that the rockslide was still 3 Km up the road and almost cleared.  It was a beautiful walk and a great break from sitting on a bus. 

By the time we arrived in Nelson, it was early afternoon so we set up our tents to dry out at Tahuna Holiday Park.  This campsite was extremely generous.  They allowed families displaced by the earthquake and our group to stay there free of charge.  This camp site is also right along the beach so we were able to spend time in the sand before the sun went down.

That night, I met a group of guys from University of Canterbury who had been helping with the student army and decided to get out of town for a few days to take a break.  We talked for hours and hours about the earthquake, the current situation, the relief efforts and what they expected to happen in the future.  It was a really good chance to talk to locals my age about the quake and see what they were thinking.

Day 3

Contrary to my previous acts of physical endangerment for an adrenaline rush, I DID NOT skydive in Nelson, but a group of about 30 students on our trip, including Shelby (the girl I did my traveling with at the beginning of this trip)and J.C. from CSU did.  Instead, I spent my time on the ground in Able Tasman.  While I had hoped to do some hiking in the Able Tasman National Forest area, our bus ended up at the Kaiteriteri beach so I settled for an amazing photo shoot with Pete the dragon.  We walked in this area that made me feel like I was in Mermaid Lagoon from Disney’s “Peter Pan”, one of my all time favorite movies.  It was gorgeous.

After our afternoon at the beach, we went on a private tasting and tour of Stokes Brewery.  This “craft brewery” made an assortment of products from cider, to beer, to fruit drinks (one of which tasted like an Orange Julius). 

After this mini stop at the brewery, we returned to the camp where I found my very first hedgehog.  He was pretty cute, but I decided not to let him into my tent even though he was scratching at the edges of our tent trying to get in.

Day 4

After another rainy night in the tents, we loaded up our stuff and headed for Hokitika.  As always, this was an exciting ride because the fifty people on my bus made it that way.  Along the way, I got in a very heated conversation with a guy from Idaho about dairy breeds. (BROWN SWISS are the best!!!!!) 

We also had the chance to stop at Punakaiki pancake rocks and blowholes.  As you can see from these pictures, this is a very unique area, especially if you come at high tide.  It also gets rather loud with all that water crashing hard against the rocks.

From there we continued on to Shanty town where we were able to take a tour of an old mining town that was set up a lot like “Old Town” back in Burlington, CO.  Part of the tour also included panning for gold which caused several guys on our trip to go out and buy a pan so they could search for their own fortune.

After that we went to our camping site which was right next to a milk bottling plant.  After setting up our tents on already soaking ground, I wondered into town in search of something.  I wound up finding just what I was looking for; a church.  With all the chaos of the past several weeks and the upcoming hard days of March, I needed to feel the comfort of God surrounding me in a physical form.

Day 5

Feeling rejuvenated from stumbling across the church the day before, we did a little shopping at the Jade Factory before heading to the bus to continue on our road trip towards Wanaka.  Being a rather long bus ride, we had to make several stops along the way.  The first one was at Thunder Creek Falls.

From there we continued down the coast, stopping at several places for pictures on the beach, one of which had stacks of stones with messages on them (and the worst sand flies ever!).

We also had the chance to stop at Fox glacier although the walk up to it was closed due to unsafe conditions.

The bus ride was rather educational as well.  I was seated next to a student from Canada, Eric, and an RA from the south island who were both rather anxious to help me learn about Rugby.  Since understanding the basics of Rugby is one of my goals while in New Zealand, I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the basics of New Zealand’s national sport.

When we finally arrived in Wanaka, I was exhausted from traveling and quickly took a shower and headed to bed in hopes of going hiking the next day.  P.s. The YHA hostel in Wanaka is amazing.  Do NOT stay at Base Wanaka; stay at the YHA!

Day 6

On day six, I went hiking!  Mike, one of the sponsors from the Uni, who also serves as a coach/trainer led a hike up and around the Stack Conservation Area.  For over two hours, we climbed up rather steep paths to try to make it to a viewing point.  It was beautiful and tiring at the same time…. And I loved it.  I even had the chance to walk in New Zealand snow and catch it on my tongue when I got close to the top!

After going back down the hill, (which I thought was harder than going up the hill!) we loaded the bus and continued on our trip to Queenstown, the adventure capital of the world.  Upon arriving at Base Queenstown, I set off to some of my favorite shops that I had found during my last trip here a few weeks before.  It was great to know where I was going and what to do. 

The only new thing I found was the Kia Kaha Canterbury Benefit concert.  This concert was held right next to the wharf and helped raise money for the Red Cross, yet another sign that this country would pull together to help each other survive this horrible disaster.

Day 7

After my 4.5 hour return hike the stack conservation area in Wanaka the day before, I went to the DOC (Department of Conservation) at 8:30 am to work out a day hike.  Having already bungee jumped four times in Queenstown, I really didn’t have any desire to spend more time or money inside the city limits.

With the guidance of the DOC representative and a friendly e-mail from the Frasiers back in Colorado, I set out to try the Ben Lomond Track.  I started out by ascending gondola hill by way of the Tiki Trail (which I had done during my last visit to Queenstown to get to the Ledge Bungy) for one hour.  From there, I looped around the back of the hill to the start of the Ben Lomond track.  Along the way, I got side tracked and took several less popular paths to look out points over Queenstown.

After returning back to the well traveled path, Pete, my walking sticks and I made our way to the saddle.  From a quiet bench that was seated at the top, you could see the valley that was nestled on the other side of the hill and it was just gorgeous.

Now at this point, I was pretty tired but it was only 12:30 and I was determined to reach the summit of Ben Lomond so I packed up Pete and continued up the hill.  When I finally reached the summit at 2pm, the view took my breath away.  It was absolutely gorgeous, even with some cloud cover.  The most amazing part was being able to see Moke Lake from the summit because until I reached the summit, it was not visible.  It was stunning and recharged me for my walk back down the ridge which was mighty beautiful as well.  When I made it back to my hostel after my 8.5 hour hike, I climbed the stairs of the hostel feeling completely exhausted, ate supper and “took a sleep” that felt more like a comatose state. 

Day 8

After waking up early to capture some day old bread from the local bakery that I had grown quite fond of, I ate my last Fergburger and jumped on the bus headed for Dunedin.  Still pretty tired from the day before, I slept most of the way to Otago Uni in Dunedin.  When we arrived however, I was fully charged and ready to go.  I had a “cowboy dinner” with at Arana college, our host for the night, before being shown into our commons area where we were to sleep.  Although we were sleeping on mattresses scattered around the floor, it didn’t take long to realize that this was a pretty “flesh” (new, sharp, cool, stylish) university… with amazing showers!!!

All cleaned up and ready to go, I met up with the other Lincoln Uni students to head to the function Otago had organized for us off campus.  This “function” was a trip to the local bar where they had brought in a popular live band call KNIVES AT NOON.  They were pretty good AND THEY TURNED AROUND AND DONATED THE MONEY FROM THIS GIG TO THE CHCH RELIEF FUND.  We also played a trivia game at the bar from which I walked away from with a very nice Otago Uni hoody for knowing Tiger Wood’s real first name.  From there we wandered to Captain Cook where I found a place to dance and sing and meet several locals as well as a few Americans that were out celebrating Fat Tuesday.  This was a great time to let loose and let go of some stress through dance, a stress outlet I had been missing for over a month due to the distance I am currently from the Sundance in Fort Collins.

Day 9

Filled with an amazing pancake breakfast, we were dropped off in town for an hour to wander the streets of Dunedin before heading to the Lake Tekapo Campsite.  Seeing as how I love sweets, I decided to use this time to look around the Cadbury World in downtown.  When I walked out of the store/factory a half hour later, I had Chocolade (a  “sparkling chocolate” drink), an assortment of cheep candy bars, and Turkish Delight!

Now I have been waiting to try Turkish Delight since one of my teachers (Mrs. Moore) read me “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe back in middle school and I must say, it was definitely not good enough for me to betray my siblings and become a prisoner of the evil witch for.  It was great to finally try it though!  The Chocolade was interesting as well.  It tasted similar to a vanilla coke but had a very sweet/rich chocolate aftertaste that lingered in my mouth.

Full of sugar and sweets, we headed off to Lake Tekapo, where we able to camp in our tents for one more night (but it didn’t rain!!!!!!)   Upon arriving, I grabbed some tempura from the Japanese restaurant and headed to the Church of the Good Sheppard.  This building is a beautiful church that is positioned right next to Lake Tekapo. 

I then returned back to camp where we hung out chatting until a midnight dip in the lake (partially because we were boycotting paying 2 dollars for a ten minute shower, partially just because it sounded like fun).

Day 10

Excited to finally get back to campus and start school, I jumped on the bus the morning of March 10^th to head towards my home at Uni.  Several hours and miles later, we arrived safe and soundly back at campus.  While I did arrive home to find that someone had been eating my food and a trashed kitchen, it was great to be back in a stationary, dry room with my own personal space.

That night after dinner though, I was reminded why I had gone on the trip in the first place.  Just after 8 pm local time, another quake shook my desk.  This rather shallow 4.5 quake seemed to roll on for what felt like ages and after ten days of no shaking surprised me to the point that I was afraid that it was going to be another disaster.

The Christchurch area is still in need of your prayers.  While most people have now had their electricity turned back on and things are slowly getting back to a-new-sort-of-normal, it is going to be a long, long time before things are okay here.  Over 160 people were killed in this quake and with a close knit island country like New Zealand, the entire country is hurting… and the world is hurting for them.  Please continue to keep the Kiwi’s in your prayers as they start on the estimated 30 billion dollar rebuild project.

Road Tripping!

After several days cleaning on the streets around Christchurch, I had to take a few days off to allow my hands to heal.  Although I felt guilty for taking this break while others still searched through rubble in hopes to find their loved ones, the blisters and splinters in my hands would not allow me to even wash my hair, let alone spend another day shoveling without gloves.

I am very grateful for my blisters though because they mean that I am still alive.  I was very blessed not to have been in Christchurch on the day of the earthquake.  One of my friends had asked me to accompany him into town to buy shoes, but since I was going shoeless for a week, I turned him down at the last moment to save my soles the pain of walking on hot blacktop all day.  Had I not, I would have been in the center of town when the earthquake hit, shaking the foundation of many of the historic buildings and toppling them to the ground.  God works in mysterious ways but I am very grateful for the way he protected me on February 22.

I am also very grateful for some things now that I took for granted before this experience.  Among this list are: running water, electricity, flushing toilets, basic food needs such as bread and eggs, petrol (gas), bus transportation, and family & friends.  All of these items are things that people in Christchurch are living without at the moment and may have to do without for several weeks or months, and yet, they still share everything they have with the volunteers as we help them clear their streets and yards.  Being here during this clean up stage has also made me very thankful for the gloves, wheelbarrows and covered handle tools that I know I would have back in the states.

Christchurch is still in shambles but the help continues to pour in.  As of today, Lincoln Uni is housing police officers and rescue workers from three different countries.  With all these additional people, the university had to find something to do with the students who arrived early for school.

And that’s why we’re going on a road trip.  As of this moment, the first day of school has been moved from February 28 to March 14^th.  In order to get the students off campus, Lincoln has asked the Kiwi students to go home if they can and organized a bus trip for the halls students around the south island.  This is an awesome opportunity for us because the uni is paying for the 2 buses and the transportation fees for the 100 students that signed up.  They have also purchased tents so we can camp in camp grounds/on the beach and arranged other accommodations at ridiculously low prices in backpackers/hostels.  Furthermore, we will have the opportunity to stay at the Otago Uni in Dunedin where their staff has arranged for a live band and large get together with their students which is sure to be a good time.

During this trip, we will go up to Kaikoura (B), Hammer Springs (C) and Nelson (D), Over to Hokitika (E), then down to Wanaka (F) and Queenstown (G) and then over to Dunedin (H)and back up to Lake Tekapo (I) before returning to Lincoln (J) on March 10^th. 

Please continue to pray for the people in Christchurch as they are still in desperate need of help. 

See ya again when I get home!


Cheers!