This past week brought along a lot: nice weather, heaps of chocolate, confirmed class schedules, and new involvement. I can sum things up by saying this week was full of fun and great news.
Wellington is an extremely windy city, but despite the random bursts of wind, Wellington was beautiful this past week. It was wonderful to see the harbor full of sailboats. New Zealand is entering into winter currently, which means the nice days will become less and less. Just like the crazy winter we've had in Wisconsin, New Zealand has had a summer full of rain. The beautiful days here are rare. Saturday was probably the nicest day that I will ever experience while in New Zealand. In honor of the hot sun, I went to the beach. I also completed my version of a Wellington initiation inspired by my roommate, Casey, of jumping of a plank along the harbor into the ocean. I would say it was about a 15 foot jump, so enough to give a person an adrenaline rush. I will admit I got scared as I inched my way away from safe land onto a plank with a beautiful ocean beneath me. I did this with my other Wisconsin friend, Ashley, and we drew quite the crowd. Since I was sort of panicking in front of all these people, someone told me to run and jump, so I did it. I figured that I couldn't stop myself if I changed my mind. It was such an awesome feeling. I'm glad I did it. And I hope I have another nice day to do it again.
I will admit, my last post was quite negative, but I did manage to get things straightened out with school. I had some other bumps which included: swapping classes more than once and worrying about the status of my financial aid and enrollment at UW-La Crosse. Even though I had difficulties, I was able to figure things out. To make a long story short, I am now taking a class on Business Tourism. It will unfortunately only transfer back as elective credits, but it will be a fun course to take while here. I'm anxious for it and feel it may end up being my most favorite course here. Don't worry, I won't be switching my major for a sixth time.
This week has also blessed me with a lot of chocolate. From ice cream, to cookies, to chocolate bars, I have dove right in to enjoying the wonderful selection of sweets this country has to over. Before I left I thought that I might lose some weight because I wouldn't be eating as much sweets. You see, the problem with this is that there are so many different types of sweets here and I am determined to try them all. Everyone hear says "heaps" instead of "a lot" or "tons." So, this week I have had heaps of chocolate. My favorite discovery has been Tim Tam's: "the most irresistible chocolate biscuit." Side note: (New Zealand word for cookie = biscuit). They are a delicious cookie that come in a variety of flavors. They are expensive, but worth every penny to me. Plus, they are currently on sale! I went to the grocery store on Wednesday and $9 of $45 bill was dedicated to chocolate. I think I have a problem.
Lastly, to top off this week I joined the Tramping Club. No, it's not what it sounds like. Tramping is hiking, rock climbing, or mountaineering. It only had a $20 joining fee and has weekend trips or daily hikes every single weekend! This is exactly how I want to see New Zealand: by foot, outside, and surrounded by beauty. It was an easy decision to make. In fact, this weekend I am attending the "Fresher's Trip." I am so anxious to leave and I am glad I came prepared with hiking boots, a sleeping bag, and a backpacking backpack. I forced these things into my suitcase so I could go on my own weekend hiking adventures. Now I have a club full of people who share my passion for hiking to enjoy New Zealand with. I am so excited about this opportunity!
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