I arrived in Wellington on Sunday afternoon. It was a waiting game at the airport for my shuttle, but it was well worth the wait. I arrived at my flat around 4 and met two of my three roommates right away. Casey is from Arkansas and Dan is from Pennsylvania. So far, they have been great and I'm looking forward to getting to know them more. My last roommate arrived later Monday evening. His name is Zane and he's from New York. I haven't talked to him as much as I have talked to Casey and Dan, but he is very friendly and excited to be here.
A lot of the people I met during the BCP last week were jealous when I told them that I'd be living in Wai-te-ata. Supposedly they are the best international student accommodations offered through Victoria. Since being here for only a few days, I can see why people were so jealous. I have also learned that I am also in the best flat because it has the best view. It's incredible to walk by my living room every morning and see a sunrise and every evening to see the city all lit up. I feel blessed and I know I will already miss that view when I leave in July. Also, to make things even better, I live right next to the campus gym and right next to the campus where all of my classes will be. Can life possibly get any better for me here?
Wellington is a beautiful city and there is so much to do here. I have spent this week becoming acquainted with the city. I have already discovered some cool shops and delicious cafes; it feels as though I already have my favorite places to eat and shop. Everything here is steep, and when I say steep, I think steep is an understatement. I think I am going to have calves and buns of steel by the time I head home to the states. I am debating if I even need to join the gym since I have over 100 stairs to climb from my level of the city to the bottom level of the city. There are various staircases that can be taken into the city, or very steep hills that aren't fun to walk up or down.
It has been tough to accept the differences of prices of basically everything compared to the USA. For example, the cheapest I have seen shampoo has been about $6, mascara is $20-25, and food is at least double what it is back home. For example, my cereal costs me about $6 for a box. Luckily, this week is O-week (orientation week) and I have been able to get a lot of free food at events around campus, including two ice cream cones most importantly. On Sunday's there is a huge farmer's market. From what I hear I can get my week's supply of fruits, veggies, breads, and cheeses for about $20 to $30. I had to brave the grocery stores this week since I didn't arrive on time. Plus, a local bakery drops off day-old bread on campus every Wednesday and Friday. The longer I am here, the more comfortable I am getting and the less worried I am about the cost of living because of all of these random deals I keep hearing about. There is also a way to have groceries delivered which is supposedly much cheaper and convenient to not have to carry them 30 minutes up hills back to my flat each time.
As I mentioned, this week is O-week. I had an international student orientation on Tuesday where I was able to learn about different things the campus has to offer and register for my classes. NZ is about 5 years behind the USA in terms of internet (or so I hear) so I had to wait in line for 2 hours to register for classes. It wasn't too bad, but I felt bad for the people who had to enter in class’s student after student. It is crazy to think that I am officially a student here at the Victoria University of Wellington.
When planning to study abroad, I was focused on making this journey in my life a simple one. I spent a week and a half without my cell phone and loved the lack of stress that came with it. Since arriving in Wellington, I noticed how basically everyone had a cell phone. Despite not wanting to purchase one, I decided to get a pre-paid phone because it is hard to communicate with people without one. I spent a lot of my first couple days here on Facebook waiting to hear back from people to coordinate plans. The phone reminds me of the phone I got in 7th grade, and I haven't had to charge it once in the 4 days I've had it--I still have a full battery! It will be nice to have so I can easily make plans with people as well as feel a little safer when I'm out and about.
I start classes on Monday. Currently there is a severe weather warning due to heavy rain and 50+ mph winds. I do not think I will end up doing a ton this weekend because of the weather which saddens me. I'm looking forward to starting my classes and will post another blog in about a week to talk about how classes are going for me.
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