For the Longest Time

Wow, it's been a while, eh? In fact, it's been just over a month since I last checked in, and not coincidentally, a month since I got back to the US. It's a bit strange that I haven't wrapped up until now, and I'm sure that no one's even reading this anymore, but in case anyone stumbles across this in the future (maybe other students thinking about studying abroad in NZ, perhaps?) I think it's best that I sort of finish this blog up.

Leaving Dunedin was a bit strange, if only because it was so surreal that my time in New Zealand was over. I was able to pack all of my stuff up (no small feat) with time to spare, and was left wondering where everyone had gone - by the time I left, most others had already embarked on cool trips to the North Island, Australia and Fiji. Of course, no packing experience for me can go off without a hitch, and I managed, the night before I left, to put my passport through the washing machine. This was not fun, but after a reassuring phone call to Butler, I felt good enough that I could beg US Customs for forgiveness and to let me into the country if I had to. In the end, it all worked out and my tattered, warped passport didn't ever get a second glance.

The flight back to the US was, like my flight to NZ, fantastic. It was probably only half-full, which meant I had a seat between me and the other guy in my row. And despite the many rumors I had heard to the contrary, I was indeed served complementary wine (twice!) at dinner. Air New Zealand, you rock.

By far the highlight of my first month back in the States was my five days at Pomona, spent variously driving around on the right side of the road, playing beach volleyball, wearing only shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops, and enjoying the company of good friends. I really couldn't have asked for anything more. The flight from Ontario to Salt Lake City, by the way, may have been my favorite of all time, if only for the scenery. We took off flying west, oddly enough, but then rose up to about 15,000 feet as we banked right and flew directly over the San Gabriel Mountains going northeast, and the views we had of the Mojave were spectacular...once again I could see the awesome lava flows at Pisgah Crater, as well as the cinder cones in the Mojave National Preserve. Good stuff. [Note: those are old pictures, not from that flight.]

Anyway, one of the big things Pomona and Butler mention in their study abroad guides is 'reverse culture shock,' which is pretty much the same as culture shock, only now you find your own culture abhorrent. Maybe it's just me, and I knew what to expect coming home, or maybe it was the fact that I was in an English-speaking, Western society, but I haven't been at all surprised or dismayed by things at home. I love, among other things:

• central heating
• fast Internet
• cheap CDs, movies, electronics, books, alcohol
  
• dining hall food
• calling and NOT texting
  

I swear there are more things than that, but at the moment my mind isn't being very helpful. And of course, there are things I miss about NZ, including pies, good beer, poker night, jazz night, and of course, the entire, beautiful country. But that's to be expected.

So there you have it. I realize this isn't much of a post to summarize my thoughts and feelings about it all, but if I had to really sum it up, I'd say that I really had the time of my life over there. I did well in my classes (unbelievably, it's true) while still having a lot of free time on my hands to travel around and see as much as I could of a country on the other side of the world. And while I didn't get to meet and hang out with as many Kiwis as I'd hoped, the tons of Americans I met more than made up for it, and besides, Americans are ideal there because they share similar goals (i.e. having fun and traveling) and can keep you connected in some ways to the culture you left behind at home. I liked that. And I loved New Zealand - the people, the mountains, the roads, the tramping tracks, the sheep, the rocks - all of it. And this much I know: I'm going back.

A general welcome

So this here's my blog. I know it's corny. I even hurt a little on the inside when I say out loud that I have such a thing. But I don't really like mass emails, and I figured this is an unobtrusive way to share my travels and thoughts with those who care to know. I may decide to publish some or all of the posts to Facebook too, but we'll see about that. Feel free to comment to your heart's extent, and let me know what you think.

End of the Line

The title isn't supposed to sound depressing; rather, it's more about the fact that I have the Traveling Wilburys song stuck in my head. It's pretty awesome, you may recognize it from the Knocked Up trailer.

ANYWAY, that doesn't have anything to do with anything, except that I leave home in about 30 hours. I have (thank god) made significant progress since my first post - I got a great 5000 cu. in. backpack from EMS. We'll see how that holds up when I actually try packing all of my crap later. The bigger news, of course, is I know where I'll be living for the semester. I'll be at 687 Cumberland St (the green arrow on the map). For some perspective, my flat is about 6 1/2 blocks from the Octagon (lower left), the center of city life, and literally across the street from the University. On the map (which is a little blurry) the school is the block of larger buildings without streets going through it, just east of the green arrow.

According the email I got about housing, I'll be living with 1-2 Kiwis (and no, I can't just throw them away if they're bad - I've already heard that joke before) along with 2-3 study abroad students. I haven't heard from anyone living with me yet (nor do I have their contact info) so I can only hope that it goes as well as the day I got to Pomona and saw that I had a roommate - not a single - who also happened to be from Texas and have a weird-ass name. Turned out to be the best thing that could've happened for me!

Some other predeparture info:

• I have Skype, and you all should too. If sitting in front of your computer and talking isn't your thing, I've got SkypeIn, which means I have a regular, U.S. phone number that anyone can call (like any other normal number) and if I'm signed on, it'll ring on my computer and I can talk to you. If I'm not online (or worse, don't like you) it'll just go to my voicemail and I can listen to it later. Even better, if I want to harass people, I can call your phones too. I like. I guess it would be nice to give my number: (802) 659-4786. And no, that's not a coincidence.
• On a related note, I will not have my cell phone in NZ. I might get one there, but it won't be the same, so don't bother calling me on that number. Keep it though, I'll use it again with I get back.
• I don't know for sure whether my address above is my mailing address too, so until I say so, I wouldn't send anything there (not that I'm expecting you to or anything).

Since I do want to do something in relation to the title, I'll leave you with this picture I took at Sumner Falls in North Hartland today, with Mary and Amy. There are waterfalls there, and I thought this little one was cool. (Click for full size)

At home

Note: Yes, I admit that I posted this weeks before anyone even knew about this blog. I think we can all learn from this and move on. -6/25

Well, I'm at home now, working in Preservation Services at the Dartmouth College Library. It's a pretty sweet gig, especially compared to my former job at Quizno's. I have (functioning) AC, no pressure, no one depending on me, and all of the glue I desire.

It's a great thing that I have a laid-back job, too, because I don't think I could otherwise handle the fact that I'm leaving for New Zealand 3 weeks from today. Among things for me to figure out:

• where I'm living
• what to pack
• what to buy

Sound vague? Of course it is. As far as living, I'm waiting for my program to let me know where my flat will be and who my flatmates are. With any luck, it'll be somewhere near The Octagon, which is pretty clearly the center of the city. As far as packing, I guess that depends on what I buy - I need to get some sort of pack - but the number of choices feels daunting.

As much as it may sound like I'm complaining about all of this, I'm actually really, really excited about the trip to NZ. I just have nothing better to do. The Sox blow right now; they're down 3-0 in the 6th against the A's - I blame Dan Johnson:

And there you have it.