Another week done and another weekend adventure finished. This week was by far the toughest week I’ve had in Wellington and my first week where I actually felt a little homesick. My week started out with the combination of bad luck, bad timing, and just bad weather. Not sure if anyone was following the world weather reports, but there was quite a large storm in New Zealand on Monday. Wellington didn’t get hit that badly but we did get a lot of rain. This meant I had the pleasure of putting my raincoat to good use. My bad luck was with my plans for my mid-term break kind of got mucked up and now I’m in the process of frantically trying to find other plans, so it was just a stressful start to the week. You can add on too that my homework assignments have kicked into gear this week so I have to start pumping out more school work. It was also the first week I craved the comfort of home. The week wasn’t all bad though it actually went in a much better direction starting off with Wednesday evening. Wednesday my friend Michelle and I went to the Little Waffle Shop and I got to eat one of the most delicious waffles of my life. It was called a Cheeky Chocolate! Yum Yum, this waffle was packed full of chocolate chips, syrup, and powdered sugar. It was just what I needed as a pick-me-up from this week! I’m glad it was getting better too because I was leaving Friday afternoon for a weekend adventure.
My Kiwi adventure weekend we we’re all set to go on our Action packed adventure with IFSA! It was beyond my wildness dreams. It started at with a beautiful ferry ride across the ocean to the South island. It was my first time going to the south and we were headed for this quaint little town called Picton. It had this small town feel to it. The ferry ride there was about 3 hours, and it was gorgeous because the sun was setting as we were going. This was my first time on a ferry and really on a boat of that size. Never have been on something so large while traveling in the water. It was an incredible experience and I’m so glad I had the opportunity!
We arrived in Picton kind of late so we got to our hostel and unpacked and had a nice reuniting with the Christchurch students. Our hostel was adorable too! This was my first time staying in one and I had a lot of assumptions but it looked like an adorable colorful house, filled with hot tubs, tree houses, and acetic paintings. I would definitely go back if I ever found myself in Picton again. We had an early morning call time 7:30 am to start our day and the day started with swimming with dolphins!
We arrived in Picton kind of late so we got to our hostel and unpacked and had a nice reuniting with the Christchurch students. Our hostel was adorable too! This was my first time staying in one and I had a lot of assumptions but it looked like an adorable colorful house, filled with hot tubs, tree houses, and acetic paintings. I would definitely go back if I ever found myself in Picton again. We had an early morning call time 7:30 am to start our day and the day started with swimming with dolphins!
When I heard we were swimming with dolphins I thought it would be your typically in a preserve, dolphins come we pet them and it will be an interesting time but what we did was so much better. We first suited up into our wet suits and headed out in the ocean in search of wild dolphins! It was a beautiful day outside and we were very lucky because we found dolphins almost as soon as we got on the water! They were beautiful bottlenose dolphins and so we hopped in with masks and snorkels and let them swim around us. It was a little scary at first because this heard of dolphins were swimming right toward you but they were absolutely beautiful creatures, just so graceful. We were lucky enough to not have just one close encounter but two close encounters that day. I just never thought I’d get the chance to swim with dolphins. On our sea adventure we came across a fair amount of other sea creatures too like blue penguins, seals, otters, and even some native birds. It was beautiful weather and a beautiful day in the Marlborough Sounds.
After the swim and ride we got some fish and chips and relaxed around the town on Picton for a bit. At this time little did I know I’d be eating one of the most delicious meals of my life that night. That night we went to a winery called Scott Base for a three course meal and some wine tasting. The dinner started out with a beautiful salmon appetizer followed a beef filet and finished with some delicious cheesecake. I’m not sure when the last time I had that much meat in one meal was. The cheesecake really put the cherry on top of a wonderful first day in our weekend adventure.
Sunday came and I just couldn’t believe it! It was another early morning call time and today we were headed for some kayaking around the sounds. It was another spectacular day out so we so fortunate. We suited up into our boats and began the journey. Personally I’m a huge fan of kayaking because I find it incredibly peaceful. There is something about being on the water in a kayak that makes you feel more at peace with your surroundings. We were extremely lucky this weekend when it came to seeing dolphins because while kayaking we encountered a baby and her mother, whom decided to follow us around. It was absolutely incredible to see them so close to our boat. Wow just wow. I didn’t take my camera on this trip because I didn’t want to get it wet and there’s something special about being less connected when kayaking, but my boat buddy Megan did have a Go Pro so that was the extent to our picture taking. The weekend ended with another ferry ride home back to Wellington. This trip came at the perfect moment in my semester because of the stressful week and missing home and it was the best way to take my mind off my thoughts.