Posts

NZ: Week One of Univeristy

The first two weeks of university have passed quickly, very quickly. It just goes to show how fast the next four months will pass as well. They have been two intense weeks, though much more comfortable than I had expected. Victoria University of Wellington is easily five times the size of UH Hilo, and this sometimes is what I struggle with most. With around 20,000 students, it’s not the largest of universities, but compared to Hilo it’s a seething metropolis. During the day the masses of students fill every gap of the halls and any surface that can be sat on has a student perched on it from about 9 until 3. I have to wander through every crevice of the library and often several floors of it to find an empty computer or reading space. Lines for the cafes seem miles long, and when classes end the streams of students exiting the lecture halls create a flow that is hopeless to fight and so I must flatten myself against the wall and hope for the best. Of course, this is all probably very ...
Post a Comment
Read more

NZ: The Tongariro Crossing

Image
At 3:30 am my alarm went off. Startled out of deep sleep but oddly awake at the same time, I scrambled out of bed. I stood there for a minute in the middle of the room, collecting my slowly awakening thoughts and waiting for my head rush to subside. After a few seconds I smiled to myself, thinking of the day ahead. Today would take us south into the heart of the North Island to Tongariro National Park where we would hike the Tongariro Crossing. The Tongariro Alpine Crossing is one of the most famous hikes in New Zealand and well known all over the world. It’s one of those hikes you read about it National Geographic’s lists of best hikes in the world that you know you probably will never be able to do but sigh over the beautiful photographs. It’s an iconic trek through a mountain pass complete with alpine lakes and lots of stairs. It’s also where they filmed many Mordor scenes from the Lord of the Rings and one of the two mountains that frame the pass was Mt. Doom. (Side note: not ...
1 comment
Location: Tongariro Alpine Crossing, 4691, New Zealand
Read more

NZ: Arrival in Tauranga

Image
I arrived in beautiful New Zealand on January 22 for a semester exchange program through the University of Hawaii. I will be studying at Victoria University of Wellington on the North Island for about four months and am planning to return home around mid-July. At the moment, I am staying with some wonderful family friends in a city called Tauranga for a few weeks. I will join my parents later in February for a trip around the North Island before starting school in early March.  Tauranga is a beautiful city of around 120,000 people about a three-hour drive from Auckland. It sits on the Bay of Plenty; a stretch of sunny beaches and lush farmland that swoops down from Coromandel and extends eastward. The city itself rolls across green hills above sandy beaches and has much to offer from a nice shopping district and beaches perfect for surfing and swimming to waterfall hikes and a variety of community events. It’s a relaxed, welcoming place that perfectly melds the feelings of goi...
1 comment
Location: Tauranga, New Zealand
Read more

HI: Pōhāhā I ka lani (From Spring 2017)

Spring 2017: Waipio Valley There are many beautiful places on the Big Island of Hawai'i, but not many come close to Waipi'o Valley. This incredible place is the first of many deep and lush valleys that slice through the northern most cliffs of the island, stretching from Hamakua up into Kohala. Many of these valleys are only accessible by foot, they are considered some of the most remote locations on the island. Their steep sides plunge thousands of feet from the top of the plateau down to the flat valley floor, covered in dense foliage and wide streams. These stretch deep into the island, giant waterfalls pouring over the cliffs. The valley walls run right to the edge of the ocean, making trekking along the coast impossible, forcing hikers up and over the soaring plateaus dividing the valleys. Not only do these valleys hold beauty, but history and culture. One of these isolated valleys was the birthplace of King Kamehameha The Great, and the ruling chiefs of Kohala live...
Post a Comment
Read more

HI: How Cockroaches got to Hawaii (From Spring 2017)

Image
Spring 2017: Volcano National Park  After being here in Hawai'i for some time now our trips and weekend outings have become increasingly involved and adventurous. We have driven to a remote valley on the island’s northern coast, hiked through the scorching lava fields of Kalapana to see rivers of lava flowing into the ocean and gone snorkeling at beautiful coral reefs on the southern coast. In the spirit of these great adventures, this last weekend my friend and I decided to try our luck with backpacking. Our destination: the remote high country of Volcano National Park. I spent a good week researching the area, the campsites and cabins, the procedures and the routes. I knew how far we would hike, how long it might take, the supplies needed and how to obtain the right permits and passes. I scrolled through countless images of the area and read other hiker’s stories from their trips. However, no matter how well you prepare for something, the execution can be a very differen...
Post a Comment
Location: Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI 96718, USA
Read more