Soil squishing and pebble counting...geography field trip

It's currently Spring break over here so I'm rather lonely in the house at the moment; my house mates have gone to Australia, Fiji and the South Island and pretty much everyone else is either travelling or has gone home. I'm not currently off travelling because I just got back from a 3 day field trip but I'll be off to the South Island on Saturday!
Most of the past week and a half has been spend finishing off assignments and preparing for next week's trip. However on Tuesday I took time out to go to the international Potluck dinner where I got to try a range of dishes including New Zealand's pavlova, Lamingtons (coconut covered sponge cake) and their famous L and P drink (don't really see what's so special about it myself).

More Kiwi stuff: on Friday evening there was a big Rugby match (All Blacks vs. Wallabies) in Wellington; a group of us watched in in a local bar where there was a great atmosphere, especially when we won!
As I mentioned I've just got back from a field trip which took place around Otaki (1 hour North of here).
We spent the first day studying evidence of past climate change before retiring to our accommodation which was basic but comfortable enough where the chef had cooked enough food to feed an army!
Second day was spent looking at soil and wading through the Otaki river which was rather chilly. That evening after huge portions of Lasagne the lecturers took us to the pub for a few hours. The third day was extremely windy (I'm used to this by no living in Wellington) we profiled and sketched numerous beaches before returning to uni...exhausted.
All in all I had a great time on the trip and I got to know lots of Kiwis much better; especially Ella, James, Kayt (pictured above) and Tara who I was sharing a room with.
I'm sure my next post will be full of numerous stories after my trip to the South Island... watch this space.

More shaking and caving

Yet more shaking in Wellington; magnitude 6.5 this time. It was quite a different experience to before, until now I'd always been alone in my bedroom for them; this time I was near the top of a 400 person lecture. There was a small rumble then a huge jolt accompanied by a huge scream and everyone disappeared beneath their desks, I quickly followed suit.

A group of us went into the city afterwards, I've never seen it so busy! Everyone had left work but couldn't leave the city as the transport system was down. 

Yesterday (Sunday) a group of 9 of us hired to cars and drove to Martinborough to visit the glow worm caves. In order to enter the caves we had to walk through very cold water and squeeze through a small gap. Once inside we turned off our torches and it was like looking at the night sky only the stars where slightly blue; it was beautiful. Sadly I couldn't capture them on camera.

Once out of the caves we clambered along a gorge then a group of us made our way (past many sheep) up the surrounding hills where the views were fantastic; everything is such an intense green here in New Zealand. Again I was frustrated at how things never look quite the same through a camera. Ho hum, you can kind of get an idea of what it was like from the picture below.

A quieter week

No trips this week but still plenty of fun and activities to keep me occupied. 
Currently in the process of planning our trip to the South Island for the 1st week in September with Lexi, Lisa and Juliette (pictured to the left along with Matilde). We had a meal together last night to discuss activities such as kayaking, sky diving, tramping and of course much eating :)

I've had a pretty cultural week; went to a VIX film event last Wednesday which had us all thinking about what we can gain from the different cultures here through watching 3 short films. Then on Saturday, as part of Wellington's film festival, Ricarda, Matilde, Max and I went to see 'La Grande Bellezza' (The Great Beauty); a fantastic film which despite it's lack of plot managed to keep me captivated through its use of beautiful shots and brilliant acting which transported me back in time.
Discovered a few more of Wellington's gems, such as 'The Library', a cocktail/ dessert bar which is set up just like an old fashioned library with big squishy arm chairs and book covered walls, it also does the most scrumptious 2 for 1 cocktails; looking forward to 2 for 1 desserts on a Tuesday!

So Wellington is still exceeding my expectations; if the South Island does the same I'm in for a treat!

Almost a month in...still loving it

Can't quite believe I've been here for nearly a month now, how time flies! I'm still having an extraordinary time and constantly meeting new people and trying new experiences.
Since my last post I've got a job cleaning for a lovely couple, tried my first proper Spanish sangria and tortilla, visited red rocks, planned a trip to the south island, eaten yet more free food and met a whole host of new wonderful people (some of who are pictured to the left and below).

 As mentioned on Saturday a group of 13 of us took the bus 20 minutes to just outside Wellington and some incredible scenery (and geology). After walking for around an hour, admiring fantastic views and climbing up many rocks we reached the 'Red rocks' (pictured to the right). These rocks are pillow lavas formed 200 million years ago under the ocean and they contain iron oxides making them red. On and around these rocks were loads of seals, lying out catching the rays from the unexpected sun.

On the walk back we were fortunate enough to see a full bright rainbow right across the bay; a great finish to a fantastic day out.
I'm looking forward to more great scenery on my trip to the south island during spring break with Lexi, Lisa and Juliette which we are currently in the process of planning. 
I hope all is well back in the UK, if the rest of the year goes as fast as the past month I'll be back in no time!