Rachel and I have been in New Zealand for over a couple of months now, with us currently residing (if you want to call it that) on the North part of the South Island. The plan is, well... there isn't much of one at a moment, but I'll give it a go. I've been waiting on teaching registration for a couple of different countries but various bureaucracies are taking their sweet time mailing certain documents. The three months I spent in the Bering Sea are mostly to blame though. The plan at the moment is to take our "if we have to" round trip ticket back to the states in the middle of February. We could stay for up to a year on our working holiday visas, but in the name of being responsible (*shudder* that word gives me the willies) it would be better to try and find jobs in our respective fields. So, we're headed home unless something happens, which I've learned usually does. Ambiguous enough for you?
The first month here, Rachel and I lived in our student housing flat in Christchurch while Rachel finished up her nursing practicum. We had a cool little pad right next to Hagley park and downtown. During that month, we went on a pretty epic backpacking trip which Rachel summarized wonderfully on her blog. Check it out! It's worth a read. Near vertical talus slopes with grass for holds is almost always a recipe for some tasty awesome.
On another trip down south in December we were able to check out the little blue penguin colony in Oamaru, as well as some of the rare yellow eyed variety. They come ashore in the evening, and as the flash of cameras scares them we weren't able to take any pictures. So I'll have to describe them for you: think of the cutest thing you have ever seen and then imagine something cuter than that. Yeah. Pretty cute. The little blues were quite social, running around in groups, squabbling and calling to each other loudly.
On the same trip, we managed to head out to Mt. Cook national park for a bit of hiking in a torrential downpour. Out standing scenery, here's a few pictures. I'll post more the next time I get an internet connection.
On the hooker track. There is never enough time to see all that you want to see.
taking a page from my brother's book on a suspension bridge
New Zealand mistletoe, it was the Christmas season at the time after all
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