A Short Stop at Little River Cafe by Maria

I have quite an extensive bucket list for this trip. We have so many opportunities to experience things that are impossible in the States. The first one I crossed off was stargazing. New Zealand has significantly lower levels of light pollution making it much easier to look up and find the constellations every night (but they’re a little harder to find since they’re upside down). The second item on my list was discovering new flavors of coffee. The first place to help me with my mission was Little River Cafe. 


On January 11th, on our way to the beach town of Akaroa, we went to a small shop and cafe to get a quick breakfast and caffeine fix. The little coffee shop was set in a valley, surrounded by a ring of mountains so tall they cut through the clouds. This small shop was then bombarded with around 40 hangry, uncaffeinated, college students that only had 30 minutes to order and eat. The scenery was idyllic and a perfect place to stop and get some breakfast. Inside there were a surprising number of options like berry and chocolate muffins, lox bagels, croissants, and what I got, an egg and bacon pie. This was an adventure for me since I am an extremely picky eater, but I took the chance and tried something new. It contained thin layers of bacon, egg, and crust which brought smooth and crispy textures to the meal. Alongside the pie, I got a nice iced latte to go down with every last bite. After a quick 30 minute breakfast, we had a bit more time to walk around the few shops that were selling keychains, jewelry, blankets, paintings and other handmade crafts. My favorite section was the jewelry made out of pāua shells, which have lovely shiny colors of green, purple and blue. Even though the stop was short, everyone was successful in getting a delicious breakfast and tasty cup of coffee to start the day refreshed, awake, and of course caffeinated. 


I’m happy to have checked off another bucket list item with a spot as unique in menu and location as Little River Cafe. Even though there are so many more adventures to be had and items on my list to check off, the next one I think should be getting my first tattoo. Sorry mom ;)


Little River Cafe

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Scavenger Hunt by Evyn and Camryn (the TAs)

Image
On the second night of our stay, 38 American students took to the streets of Lincoln, linked arm-in-arm for a scavenger hunt. Expectedly, locals took notice.  Groups competed to find the most locations on the 11-item list and document the place in the most creative way. The hunt took them all over the small town’s notable landmarks: The Famous Grouse Hotel, the library, grocery store, and urgent care (just in case). Enjoy some of our favorite flicks below. Nicole, Olivia, Fiona, Yasmin, Sean, and Anna at the “dairy” (AKA convenience store) Drew, Caroline, Cecelia, and Natalie getting the locals involved at the fish and chip shop Alex, Andrew, Becca, Tara, and the Sydneys (K. and S.) acting CPR outside the urgent care Hanna, Shay, Leah, Maria, and Brielle milking Bethany outside the dairy. Julia, Oliver, Dominique, and Skylar relaxing at The Famous Grouse Hotel Rachel, Max, Thea, Izzy, and Shaw saving Arianna at urgent care Ciara, Mia, Chrissy, Nick, Caroline, and Claire on an invis...
Read more

Our Journey Begins by Thea

Image
This New Year’s Day, I traveled with a group from UD’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources to New Zealand. Over the next four weeks, we will be studying sustainable farm management and international animal agriculture on the South island at Lincoln University. Just hours after celebrating the New Year, we began our long day of travel. We were ready to explore a new place, meet new people, eat new food, and learn the kiwi approach to life. Our 34-hour travel day was one of the longest of my life, yet filled with so much anticipation. After meeting and talking with the people in our group, I became even more excited about the program ahead. We went through five airports, four flights, three layovers, two airlines, and one bus ride before reaching our final stop. During layovers, we explored new airports, played card games, and stocked up on airplane snacks. While in the air, people took naps, watched movies, read books, and played games. We started our day at the Philadelphia ai...
Read more
Image
  Students on and in Cave Rock, Sumner Beach, Christchurch On the first day of the new year, 42 of us departed on our journey to Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud, home of Bilbo, Frodo and Gandalf.  To learn about hoggets, two-tooths, tussock and tucker; manuka, bees, and kiwis; possums and pests; soil, water, wind and rain. To eat Pineapple Lumps and pavlova and to drink L&P and a flat white.  To wear jandals and gumboots. To see takahes and tuis. To tramp in the bush and climb wee hills on stations. To wonder at the awa, maunga, roto, and whangas. Ma Te Wa (until we meet again)
Read more