Akaroa and the Drive to get There by Caroline McGrath

Upon getting on our bus to Akaroa, we were only certain of one thing: the bus driver was instructed to take the scenic route. From what we have come to expect from that phrase is a lot of beautiful, winding, tiny roads through the hills and mountains of New Zealand. We headed out of Lincoln towards our first stop at Birdlings Flat. Birdlings Flat is a small town on the coast known for its shale rock beach comprised of polished stones washed in from the sea and off the mountains. It is a tradition for our program to go to this beach, typically within the first few days, but due to the weather we just got the opportunity. After wandering around looking for many varieties of colorful, smooth, or fun-shaped rocks, we laid in a line and looked up at the sky. This practice originated from Neil Gow, a former professor at Lincoln University who was instrumental in creating our study abroad program. Professor Gow wisely told Delaware students to use this opportunity to shift their perspective. We are all used to being physically on top of the world with our American perspectives dominating our mindset. Now we have the chance to look up at the rest of the world from the Southern hemisphere. With this shift comes a reminder to keep an open mind for what will come in our month abroad.






Use looking up at the Southern hemisphere

Next, we headed to Little River, the town we would be stopping in for breakfast and coffee. We all eagerly flooded into the single cafe in the town to order a range of food from pastries and coffee to meat pies. I have to admit, 40+ Americans all entering the same small store to grab breakfast was quite a sight to behold! Breakfast was as delicious and it was fast. Soon after, we were back on our way to our main destination for the day, Akaroa. 

The View from the Top of the Hill

Little River was conveniently located at the bottom of Summit Road, which climbed steeply up a hilltop where many other steep, winding roads all lead to various peninsulas. The views heading up and down were absolutely breathtaking, with hills lining the edges of the roads where we could see far into the distance. We even spied some sheep and cattle nestled into the various lush, green pastures. After a quick photo op at the top, we crested the hill and began our descent into Akaroa. As we started back down, we all decided that a fun way to pass the time and even distract ourselves from the steep winding roads would be to sing (much to our professors' delight). Taylor Swift, Bohemian Rhapsody, and many other songs (Disney included) echoed around the bus until we arrived. After getting off the bus in the rain, which seems to be a running theme for us, we all split up to explore the town of Akaroa. Filled with shops, cafes, a local farmers market, some well-known fish and chips, and an old lighthouse, there were plenty of things to fill our day. Some stayed in the town while others hiked or went sea kayaking, which I can say from experience was very cool. This was certainly another day for the books!

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