Exploring

I know, I know, I haven't written in awhile. My apologies. It has been a rough transition back into life in g-vegas. However, after a rough patch, my sister got home and a few days later we both went to the Greenville Humane Society and each got a puppy. In fact, we adopted sisters! So, I went from not wanting to write while sad to not writing because I was having too much fun playing with my new best friend. My sister's dog (Goose) will live with her while she finishes law school and mine (Koru) will move out to Colorado with me while I finish school out there. So even though they have to be separated, at least they'll still get reunions.

I've been nervous about how Koru will enjoy the snow and the cold. Luckily, I got to test out how Koru would like snow when my Grandmother got snowed in North Carolina and I got to drive up to rescue her (my car is the only one in the family that has 4WD). I took Koru up with me and her reaction to the snow was priceless - she pounced on every shadow, ran up hills only to slide down them, tried to eat the snowballs thrown at her head as they dissolved, and overall never wanted to leave. Seems like she'll fit right in.

I wish everyone a wonderful night and day tomorrow (whether you are celebrating Christmas or not). The best part about all of this Holiday madness is that it reminds us about how time, understanding, and fun with the family are important to happiness in life. I give everyone my love and cheer. Y'all deserve only the best.

My Christmas presents for your eyes are these amazing Flikr photostreams: Bladerunner, Lightmechanic, BlaisOne, Tackyshack, & Biskitboy. This is also cool: Space Collective.

Also, I'm pretty sure these are mandatory to watch every Christmas season: PC Xmas, 12 Days of Christmas - Straight Chaser, & Improv Handbells.

New Zealand Christmas Tree

A pohutukawa tree outside of Auckland.

Run & Jump

While my parents were planning their trip to visit me in New Zealand, I made sure that they put Wellington on our itinerary. After all, since learning all about Peter Jackson in my New Zealand cinema class, I felt the need to stalk him (with the hope that we would meet and he would discover how passionate I am about good films and decide to give me a job... as you may have guessed, this occurrence only happened in my dreams). My parents patiently stopped by the Weta Cave with me as I drooled all over the displays (I feel like this happens a lot - the staff was ready with mop in hand). Then they wanted to go to Te Papa, the national museum of New Zealand, so I fulfilled my daughterly duties and went with them. Don't get me wrong, I am all about learning new things, they just need to be either (1) on the discovery or history channels with cool graphics and reenactments or (2) interactive. I soon discovered that Te Papa is highly known for the latter :) I took this photo near the end of our adventure through the museum. It's an interactive map of New Zealand that shows one how each part of the islands was formed when one walks over certain locations (you can see my lovely parents in the background pointing out Wellington). Call me a nerd, but it was awesome.



Now for some cool links, I know I haven't posted any in a while, so I hope these make up for it:

(1) Watch this interview by Rachel Maddow; it's a few days old, but oh so good. She schools a well-spoken but utterly simplistic thinking (is idiotic too harsh?) man: Click Here

(2) There are no special effects in this video yet it's better than half the special effects infused blockbusters. Crazy, aye? Click Here

(3) Another reason I love my generation is because of websites like this (most of us have a good sense of humor)!

(4) If anyone is concerned for my future in filmmaking, this article may not be for you... but don't worry, I'll change it all when I get there... :/

Flying Into Wellington

I counted my photos today and all together I took over 27,000! I agree with you, that is was too many! However, that number includes multiple images of the same subject as well as experiments with exposure settings. In truth, most of the images I took will only be viewed by my eyes because I took them to remember the moment: instead of writing everything down, I take photos of it all... perhaps too many, but I'd rather have more than less photographs.

Light In Our Darkess

With only two hours left in the day, I was finally able to reach my computer to post an image. However, it has been a hectic day, so let me explain just a bit. Photography is not something I consider myself to be overly passionate about, but it is something I care a great deal about. I always took photos of everything growing up, but they weren't good (although, like any kid, I thought I was a genius at the time). However, a community service trip to Tanzania the summer after my sophomore year of high school changed things. I began to concentrate on photography as a serious hobby, going to every website I could to get tips on aperture, shutter speed, photoshoot ideas, and photoshop shortcuts. However, I also began to concentrate heavily on film, it was what really got me excited (and still does), so I underestimated my love for photography for a while and got bored.

Senior year came around and I became good friends with a guy who loved music, film, and photography, as did I.... his amazingly artistic interest in photography re-sparked my interest. No matter how much I knew, he always challenged my knowledge and knew 10 times more than me. He encouraged me to see photography as I saw film: a lens through which to view the world outside of normality. I began to use photography to cope with my emotions surrounding common high school occurrences: issues with friends, feeling different, "the great college search", etc. Little did I know that the photography my friend got me re-interested in would be one of the devices I used (then and now) to cope with my despair after his death in May 2007. He had challenged me to challenge myself when I got bored of what I loved. His birthday also happened to be on December 10th. Instead of celebration, it's been a day of tears, yet I have confidence his artistic talents, rare and pure kindness, as well as his bare hugs live on in the lives he touched.

He is continually missed and loved.

"Goodnight Sweet Prince"

Clear Day At Cape Farewell

I decided to be on time with the photo for today... check back later for more about this beautiful day at the South Island's northern-most point.

Paikea's View

I did say regular updating, didn't I? Oops. The past two days have been full of sleeping, organizing, catching up on the discovery and history channels, figuring out the next step in my life, and shrieking every time I ride in a car and think I'm on the wrong side of the road. I know you wanted to know all of that. I plan on putting together a book of my photos, but it has been slower going than I thought the process would be because of the high volume of photographs that I now have to conquer. For the post today, I asked my mom to name a place and/or activity of which to post a photo because it would have taken me another two days to go through and finally pick a photo to show y'all (and we wouldn't want that, would we?). I took this while on a whale watching tour in Kaikoura. What you see is the view from our boat, Paikea (name may sound familiar if you have seen Whale Rider), as a sperm whale is about to dive deep into the ocean.

You First... retake

Wow, it has been awhile since my last post, 23 days to be exact. My bad. Since then, I explored the Auckland CBD many times while searching for souvenirs and saying goodbye to my favorite spots, my American friends headed off to travel or to go back to the states, I traveled all the way to Cape Reinga and back to Auckland, my parents came and I packed up and moved out of my apartment, I hung out with my kiwi friends for the last time (not really though, we'll see each other again), then I traveled around New Zealand with my parents for two weeks, and I arrived back in the states (last night). Many more things went down, but I'll share more details with you as I search through my photographs post them.

If you cannot tell, this photograph was taken at the same spot my last posted photograph was taken... just a few months after and with a tad bit different weather. I insisted my parents take the drive from Queenstown up the west coast (eventually ending in Hokitika) because it is absolutely spectacular. Yet, the weather wasn't quite as good this time around. However, even with clouds smothering the area with their chilling grasp, it was still a gorgeous winding ride full of the famous ferns that cover New Zealand and many dramatic waterfalls that one's eye could follow all the way from the snow on top to the forest below.

I apologize for the extended break in posting, but traveling in New Zealand means lack of internet. On the good side though, I added many more photographs to my collection, so even though I'm back in the states, you will still get photos from New Zealand. Expect regular updating from now on.

You First...

This is another image from my spring break trip to the South Island (seems like only yesterday... or 2 months ago...what?). I took this somewhere between Franz Joseph and Makarora. Though it's beautiful, the West Coast is barely populated because of its ruggedness (yea, I want to see you trying to make it down to that beach...). I was reminded of this photo because my parents are coming to visit on the 21st, but only have two weeks to hit the best spots in New Zealand. You see, I haven't planned a trip since I've been here, I've just pointed at a map and headed in the correct direction (thank goodness for isites!). However, now I have to be a giver of advice and it have become more complicated than I anticipated. Apparently my subjective opinion is acting as an invisibility cloak over reality. Where is my enthusiasm from my arrival back in Auckland after an amazing two weeks in the South Island? I wanted to show my parents everything then, yet now I find myself being overly critical and selective. Yikes! (did studying change me that much!?!) I think my issue is that I want to be outdoors, tramping, taking photos, and letting the earth calm my soul before I just back into the excessive culture that is the states. Yet my parents are more keen on seeing everything possible (who can blame them though, this country is amazing).

My solution: come back to New Zealand after graduation with a friend who wants to live out of a campervan for a bit and do some real tramping and camping... any takers? please?

PS: I'm free! Exams are over! Time to let off the steam built up from cabin fever! However, I had a "poetic" moment (as Ben C. put it) yesterday when I took my last exam (for my favourite class, Politics and Media) in the same lecture hall that we had International Student Orientation in... I began and ended my sweet as semester at Auckland Uni in the same room... choice, bro.

Also, I'm very much looking forward to this documentary (and I don't say that often): Anne Perry - Interiors

No Worries

Continuing with the animal theme... these are some pretty chill seals outside of Kaikoura. If I had a wall of water coming at me I don't think I'd be scratching me ear (maybe that's just me). At any rate, I was delightfully and gently woken up today by the WSA fire alarm (sarcasm heavily intended). Note to whoever: when a fire alarm goes off, "fire alarm activated, stand by for further assistance," is probably not the best automated advice to give over the intercom. Something along the lines of, "fire alarm activated, get your butt outside," might do the trick.

Oh well, these made me feel better for having to wake up so early: Graphs of Favourite Songs

Critter

Today over skype I asked my mom what she type of photo she wanted to see today. She had a choice of a landscape, animal, or person. She chose animal, next she had a choice of a bird, seal, or crab. I guess you already figured out which one she chose. It's chilly and cloudy in Auckland today, making it easier to study... yet reminiscing of an adventurous spring break with Ben in Abel Tasman and a certain song that is completely stuck in my head are making it a bit hard to keep my head down. Here's a link so you can enjoy "My Delirium" too: You Tube. 1 exam and 2 days to go... :)

Stradbroke Shade

The rest of my Stradbroke Island posts had a double "S," so I thought this one should too.

Hard to Resist

I was feeling a bit nostalgic last night while looking for an image to post today, so I peaked back into my orientation folder (we spent time the first 3 days overcoming jet lag and shock in Shakespear Regional Park). It's hard to believe that my semester at the University of Auckland will be complete in 2 exams and 4 days, and I'll be departing the land of the long white cloud in 27 days. This is when I ask myself, "wtf?" Where did all of the time go? I loved glancing at a few of the photos from the first days in New Zealand because I remember taking them and being so overwhelmed about standing on land all the way around the world (on the edge of the world as I've learned New Zealanders view it) with completely new people and knowing I was going to be here for what seemed like an extremely long time. Now I'm sitting here wondering, what the hell was I thinking? 5 months is an extremely minuscule amount of time. Thinking about everything that I still want to do is making it harder and harder to get myself into the land of hardcovers and silence (aka the library). I never actually knew what studying was until I came to AU and met some kiwis, they motivated me for a bit when classes got out, but I'm quickly losing steam; the 21 year-old American in me is saying, "who cares about studying when spring is upon us?" (Is this perhaps why we're called "lazy Americans"?) In addition, this video is highly distracting: They Just Turned Life Into A Musical

The Clock Tower

I promise the building itself isn't crooked... If you couldn't tell by my lack of updates, exams have started. 2 down and 2 to go so far. I took this image from Albert Park, the best place to take a break from the library when it's sunny. Sadly though, it's been cloudy/rainy over the past few days. Anyway, my updates will be sporadic until December 4th or so. My last exam is on Wednesday and on the 21st, my parents are coming to visit! I'm really excited to start traveling again and to see my parents, but I'll be less than enthusiastic when I have to leave the friends I've made here.

On a much more positive note, here is the like to Joey L, a 19 year old photographer who is better than most people twice his age: http://www.joeyl.com Enjoy!

Fitting Together

I couldn't decide which photo I wanted to post today, but then I saw how much was going on in this image and I knew I had to post it. The tetris costumes, the zombie taking a picture of the witch, the guy looking at the man riding away, etc. This was actually taken the day before Halloween during a study break in Albert Park. Out of nowhere, hoards of masked figures road up to the center of the park on their bikes. Needless to say, it provided to quite the entertainment. Other than this incident though, I didn't see that many costumes out and about in Auckland :( It made me appreciate the go-all-out celebrations on Halloween in the States. How was your Halloween?

Look at this beautiful and inspiring photo blog: http://someoneoncetoldme.com

Stradbroke Silhouette

Today's image is from Stradbroke Island. While Katie was taking a nap, I managed to go exploring and find the perfect place to take photos of the sunset/stalk people playing on the beach.

Here is a brilliant short film in the spirit of Halloween: http://artisticthings.com/between-a-short-film-by-tim-bollinger/

Reflect

This photograph was also taken the weekend I went to Rakino Island. I took it while on a water taxi on the way back to Auckland (notice the Skytower and the CBD on the horizon). Last year, it was Meredith's and my goal to make a movie a block, but we never did it because we got too busy with class. Well, after reading an article about Johnny Otto, somehow I think saying "I'm busy" isn't going to cut it anymore: check out his film project here. Also, I read and interesting article today about net neutrality.... would you pay to access certain sites (think cable packages)? Click here to read the article.

Lone Dock

I took this photo while on Rakino Island a few weeks ago (remember my post about it here). The bright light above the hill is from Auckland. I tried to capture a few night photographs while I was on the Island, but the cloud cover and bright lights from Auckland hindered my ability to capture the stars trails. Oh well, I'll keep trying. However, I wanted a quick shot of the island dock and this is what I got.

Last night I found post on the Paste Magazine website (it, along with Nylon, is my favorite indie pop culture magazine) that listed several up-and-coming bands that are amazing. Even though the post is from August 9th, 2008, the few bands I sampled last night were worth a listen to, so I'd highly encourage you to check it out! Look at the post here.

PS: I added one-click quick reactions (try saying that 3 times fast) at the bottom of each post. Let me know what you think!

Splat

My internet was not cooperating yesterday, so I was unable to upload an image. I don't think today's image is anything special, but I decided to post it because it makes me happy. Last Thursday, I decided to celebrate with some friends because it had been last day of classes. One of those friends was Andrew, who is an amazing artist. He uses ink, nail polish, and straws to create beautiful works of art and he decided to teach Angel and me how to do it. As you can see, we got off to messy start. I never quite mastered the technique, but I plan to keep trying and incorporating it into my photography project that I started last winter break and continued through this summer while at home in South Carolina. It was a bittersweet night though because I was looking forward to finally being able to have some time to relax and catch up on work, but I was also sad that there was a limited amount of time left to hang out with these amazing people in this environment. However, what can you do but keep moving forward? I have confidence we won't lose contact with one another - after all, I do get block breaks once a month at CC.

Hazy Window

The other weekend I hiked to the summit of Rangitoto Island, a volcano in the habour outside of Auckland. The weather was typical of Auckland - raining one minute and completely sunny the next and the cycle continues... As you can see, the haze never completely went away, so I couldn't get a crisp and clear image of Auckland, but I was happy with this photo nonetheless, mainly because of the random pirate ship in the corner. The beach and two small volcanic cones are part of Devenport (remember my previous posts from Devenport: Beautiful Day, Bay View, and Old Wood). Here are some other views of Auckland's CBD: One The Way, Sunny Over the CBD, Sail On, and Made It).

Here are some truly disturbing images of our world that I believe everyone should see: http://gigapica.geenstijl.nl/2009/05/mooi_milieu.html -- nothing can just disappear.

Bouncing Colour

Another spring break photo for today. I took this photograph while on a boat tour of the Milford Sounds. It was a pretty cold and rainy day, but that didn't diminish the wonders of the area for a second - in fact, it may have made the sites even grander. It was quite possibly one of the most magnificent places I have ever been (even if there are way too many tourists), so I didn't think any of the images that I took did it justice. Therefore I decided upon posting this photo simply because it shows the atmosphere of the day and I liked how you can see the picture that he is taking on the back of the camera (any one who knows me knows I love taking photos of people taking photos).

Uni

Today's image isnt' that special, it just made me really excited. I took it in Albert Park, right off of campus and for the first time this semester, it actually looks like a campus! Yesterday was the last day of classes before semester, so everyone was taking advantage of the beautiful day and celebrating. I had the option of going on a hardcore tramp this weekend, but I just wasn't feeling it. So, instead I stayed in Auckland... and I don't regret it one bit. Last night I went to dinner with some kiwi friends and then ended up having one of the best nights yet. After dinner, we came over to my apartment, had some beers, and talked until 5am (hence the unltra late post today). In the group were kiwis, a german, a south african, and me (an American). We talked about tons of word issues mixed with some light hearted conversation... the kind of night I love. It was choice to hear everyone's points of view and the differences in our countries as well as our upbringins. It was an amazing way to the end the semester and start finals. Today, I woke up late, went to lunch at a sweet as burger joint with some friends and hung around K'Rd for a bit going through some vintage shops. I also managed to find a Colorado belt buckle to add to my collection (I mean, how could I really pass up finding a Colorado belt buckle in New Zealand??). Life is beyond good right now!

Walking Along

I took this photo over spring break while in Queenstown. The afternoon we arrived I dropped my bags off at the hostel and immediately headed out to see the town. I ended up finding the beautiful lake shore and a path that took me into a park. I was expecting to explore, but I wasn't expecting to have such a spiritual experience. There was just something about the town that made me beyond ecstatic. The beautiful lake, the mounains rising straight out of it, the great people all combined to make me peacefully happy and never want to leave the place. However, it could have also been the fact that by this point in time I had already signed up to jump off a 134m platform with nothing but a rubber rope tied to me the next morning...

Stradbroke Shark

So, Kaite and I thought that the Aussies on Stradbroke Island were just trying to see how gullible two Americans could be when they told us that a shark had washed up on the beach. Well... apparently, there actually was a shark down the beach from us. We finally saw it and marveled at it on our walk into town. The back half of its body was gone, as well as its eyes and all of its teeth (people had taken them I presume). At one point I did see one of its teeth still in and I got closer to grab it, but then.... the smell hit me. Ten times worse than anything my nose has ever encountered before. I couldn't handle it and therefore backed away without the tooth, oh well. Needless to say, this encounter made us really eagar to get in the water... oh, wait... haha

Spring Up

I apologize for not updating this past week. It has been a hard week for me, there has been a ton of work to do for class because this is the last week of class before exams and I found out some not quite so good news from home. As classes wind down, it's a bittersweet time. I am so happy to not have as much work now, but I actually loved some of my classes. I'm also excited to get back home to South Carolina and to uni in Colorado; I miss my friends, making films, and, as shallow as this may sound, my American brands (what's a vegetarian supposed to do without Amy's or Annie's?). However, part of me wants to throw everything out the window and move to this brilliant country and hang out with my kiwi friends till I graduate from uni (after all, I could call up Peter Jackson and maybe he'll let me make some films with him...). Well, I haven't been responding to anything anyone has sent me this week, but I've finally decided not to let my conflicting emotions drag down my last month or so in New Zealand - that would be pointless, let alone not so much fun. At any rate, I vented my frustrations by getting obsessed with a new TV show, writing a webseries, watching youtube, dancing the night away, and going around Albert Park to take a few photos - this is one of those photos. I liked it because you can see the Skytower, the landmark of Auckland, in the background but it's not the main focus. Anyway, tomorrow is my last day of classes - yikes!

To make up for my lack of updating, here are a few links to cool things I've found:
The New Civil Rights Movement - intersting article, I'd love to hear what you think about it.
World Animal Day Photos - great animal pictures, I'm really jealous of #30, that's never happened to me paddle boarding!
Alice - absolutely amazing editing, trust me, the 2:44 is worth it. (If you like it as much as me, check out this remix)
And finally, a friend of mine from CC has recorded an album and it's now avalible to download. It's really good and I'm not just saying that because Will's my friend. Several Girls Galore

Stradbroke Sunset

I had a wonderful five days at Stradbroke Island in Australia. My friend, Katie, and I happened upon it via google earth and just decided to go (the rest of our friends are taking a short trip to Fiji later). It was a great place and not the least bit touristy. Still catching up on reading emails and doing work that I missed, so it may take me a day or two to get back in the swing of things (once again). I took this photo at sunset one day, the sky had just cleared up after raining all afternoon and I enjoyed the silhouettes of people playing on the beach. I chilled on the beach for about two hours to watch the sun go down and the stars come out.

Water

I've been pretty slack this week on posting images, but it's been hectic around here. Every time I think it's going to calm down, the work load just picks up again. It's hard to believe that I only have two week left of classes (although, my last exam is not until the 11th of nov.) I took this image outside of Makarora, on the South Island over spring break. I liked the reflection on the lake as well as the steam rising off of it. It also ties in nicely to a link I want to share with you. I check the blog http://artisticthings.com weekly, it has some pretty out there stuff on it, but I always find something on it that absolutely blows my mind. Today I went searching the blog and landed on a link to Elena Kalis Photography. Her skill and creativity astounds me, I cannot stop looking at her photographs. Anyway, I just had to show y'all the link.

Unfortunately, the slack in updates is going to continue until Wednesday, because I will be just outside of Brisbane for the weekend. My main mission: to hug a koala. I hope you enjoy the links and I apologize again for being so lazy with updating!

Rope And A Hard Place

While exploring the island on the Stray Bus, we took a day hike/climb on the Franz Joesph Glacier. Once fully equipped with crampons, we made our way up the glacier, zigzagging along. It was tons of fun and an awesome way to get a work out. The ice and surrounding mountains were beautiful... but we did get in a few situations. I can see why they don't allow this in North America, but they definitely should. Why play it safe when you can have fun?

As beautiful as New Zealand is, you can only find these landscapes in the States: Huffington Post. I feel so fortunate to have visited all but 3 of these parks (thank you Block Breaks!)

On The Way

This weekend I headed to Rakino Island with a couple of friends. It is situated right behind Waiheke Island. There are 100 houses on the Island and only 16 permanent residents. More about it later!

Mirror Image

Mirror Lake - can you guess where it got it's name?

I promise longer posts next week, but this week has been crazy! So much work to do... it's hard to believe I only have 3 weeks left of classes and then 2 weeks of exams. I can't wait for classes to be over, but I'm really no where near ready to leave yet.

Left Behind

Makarora

Please keep Samoa, Tonga, Indonesia, and Vietnam in your thoughts for today.

So Flash

Somewhere in the Golden Bay region.

Simplicity

Nelson

The Good One

I took this image in Christchurch while we were waiting for the Stray bus to come pick us up on the start of our journey (for the 2nd week of spring break at least). It was the first time in my life I could say that I was happy to be in Christchurch and meant it (although every time I said it I shuddered at the thought of being back at that other Christ Church in my life). I didn't get to spend much time in the city, but I am hoping to go back with my parents and visit the areas surrounding it.

Cheers

The internet was out all day today and yesterday I went on a day trip back to the Coromandel Peninsula. Anyway, here is the photo for today. I am sad to say I don't know exactly where I took it. I just know that I took it out of the window of the Stray bus on our way from Makarora to Queenstown (closer to Queenstown) while on spring break.

Koru

I don't have much time to write today because I have two papers due on the same day next week and I want to write one today (have I mentioned how much I miss the block plan - having Mondays and Fridays off are great, but having 4 different subjects at once is not). Anyway, this is an image I took while tramping in the Abel Tasman National Park. I like the fact that you can see the fern in the background as well as the spiral in the foreground - both national symbols of New Zealand. I promise to post more landscape images soon, but I took over 5,000 images so I'm still sorting through them and I haven't had much time lately. Anyway, I hope you have enjoyed the ones I've put up so far!

Bogan

So, the last few posts have been named with New Zealand saying that have caught on with us Americans - or, at least we've tried to get to get in the habit of saying them. All I can say for boan though is to just look it up. I took this photo at Wharariki Beach (remember my other post here). In the photo is Ben again. I took this as the sun was setting and we were headed back to the car. You can see how rough the waters were that day, which made the whole expierence of Wharariki even more profound. We literally just sat and walked around the empty beach for 2 or 3 hours - losing track of time completely. With the elements extremely strong that day, everything seemed to be against us, but the beauty and isolation of the place kept us there. It was by far one of the most spectacular places I have visited to date. As Ben said, something about that day on that beach just made us understand a little bit better how the world works.

Dodgy

Oops, I forgot to update this morning. This is yet another image that I took through the car window on my IFSA-Butler adventure weekend (I promise we didn't spend all of our time in the car). More photos from my spring break are still to come!

Cheeky

You may recognize Mt. Doom (LOTR) in this photo, but it's really just Mt. Ngauruhoe. It had a lot less snow on it than a month ago when I went skiing, which hopefully means summer is coming fast to the North Island. Just like yesterday, this photo was taken from the car window while traveling on our adventure weekend... Now for Sunday, we woke up bright and early, had breakfast, packed up, got geared up, and headed out to a gorgeous river to do some white water rafting. Our guide said the water was murkier than usual, but I still thought it was beautiful (I swear this country has the most beautiful water I've ever seen). We rafted all morning and into the early afternoon, I had never done it before but I was awesome. The rapids were pretty mild, but still got us soaked sometimes. We also came to some gentle water where we were allowed to swin - er, to put more precisely, I was thrown into the water (apparently it's customary to throw the birthday girl into the beyond freezing water). Well, eventually everyone in our raft ended up in the water and it was refreshing even if I couldn't feel my hands or feet for a while afterwards. Overall, the river was absolutely gorgeous as were its surroundings and I had blast. Anyone up for rafting with me when I get back to the states?

Choice

I know I have barely posted any photos of my spring break yet. However, I had to take a break from sorting through them to show you a photo from this weekend. I took this out of the car window while driving through Taupo on the way back from our IFSA-Butler adventure weekend. In the background you can spot Mt. Ruapehu and Mt. Ngauruhoe (left to right).

We left Friday night to head down to the Tongariro National Park region for our adventures. On Saturday we were supposed to do the Tongariro Crossing; however, the weather had other plans for us. Instead we did a less intense tramp, but it was still fun (however, I don't have many photos from the tramp due to clouds & very numb hands). After the tramp we went caving, which had to be one of the coolest experiences I've had in NZ so far. We split up into small groups and headed into a cave with a guide. We had to use our own flashlights and we got to see glowworms without other tourists breathing down our necks (like Waitomo). However, the best part was when our guide left my group in the cave, telling us to find our own way back (by following the water). We had to crawl through minuscule openings and extremely cold water. Gratification was ours when we managed to climb up a waterfall in the dark and through the smallest opening I think I've ever gotten my body through and saw light. We ended the day with a soak in some hot pools (as we do after every event), some homemade pizzas, and great conversations. As for Sunday, I'll write about that tomorrow.

PS: You may remember my other posts from skiing at Whakapapa: Blessed, Look Directly Into It, Break Time, Perfect, An Ad, Drama, and Watch Out.

Layers

Another short post today because I am way way too busy. This photo was taken at Wharariki Beach, in the Golden Bay area of the South Island. I won't be able to post this weekend because I'll be off tramping and white-water rafting for IFSA-Butler's adventure weekend.

High Tide

So, Ben and I missed the water taxi we were supposed to take in order to do a day tramp, but instead of freaking out, we just took a few photos and then found another place to head off to (the Golden Bay area, which turned out to be absolutely amazing). This photo was actually taken during high tide, but during low tide, the tide falls back so much that you can literally drive on the sand for quite a distance. I'm pretty sure the sign was talking about the street, but I'd like to think that there are some people who would attempt to camp on the sand, only to wake up to waves. I guess I just enjoy amusing mental images.

Picture Frame

There are several well-known tips for always getting an interesting photograph. One of those is to frame your subject, so I did that here. Actually, I wasn't wondering into the cave just to frame these cool rocks on the beach; I just wanted to explore. However, when I turned around to walk out I realized I could get a great shot. I took this on Stilwell Bay in the Abel Tasman National Park. On this day, Ben and I tramped a little over 12km to the Bay and back; it was absolutely unspeakably gorgeous.

Park Bench

This is a bench in a park in Queenstown. I want to move there - it's the perfect mix of adventures, skiing, and water. Absolutely wonderful. Now I have to awake from daydreaming and get to class.

Model Pose

On our way from Nelson to Christchurch, Ben and I stopped to spend a night in Kaikoura. I instantly fell in love with it (you'll read that statement a lot in the coming posts). Once we got there, we met up with two other friends, Lauren and Jill, and went to a seal colony to hang out and take photos. Then, Lauren, Jill, and I decided that we wanted to wake up to see the sunrise - one of the best decisions made during my break. We woke up the next morning - not so bright, but very early - and went back to the seal colony. I'm a skier in Colorado, which means I get to see my fair share of sunrises in the rocky mountains on winter mornings that I didn't think could compare with anything else. However, I was wrong. Not only did I get to see snow capped mountains turn to gold, I also got to expierence the waves crashing at their bases while seagulls and seals wondered why we were disturbing their peace. It sounds like a scene from some Disney princess movie, but it was ten times better than that. On our way out of the parking lot, we noticed a group of very large (to say the least) seals and had to stop to capture them on our cameras. This was one of them...

Click Here to read an inspirational blog. It is written by Lisa Ray, who has been one of my favorite actresses ever since I saw Water (you may remember my blog post about it: here). Most people who know me, know that I love actors and actresses that haven't quite made it big; because when an actor or actress's high-profile personality gets bigger than his or her talent, it's time for me to tune out. I no longer see the character, I just see whoever is playing them. However, Lisa Ray is different. I have now seen five of her films and I never notice her, the actress, I notice and connect to her characters - that is what I consider great acting. However, now I am paying attention to her for another reason: because she's not afraid to talk about what the rest of us are afraid bout: cancer. Every single person I know has been effected by it, one way or another, which is probably what makes it so difficult to talk about it. However, if you still can't talk about it, at least you can read about it on Lisa Ray's incredible blog.

Droplet

This is pretty much the ultimate New Zealand image. The silver fern is New Zealand's national emblem and one can see it literally everywhere. I took this photo while tramping in the Abel Tasman National Park after a bit of rain had come through. I have tried to get so many fern photographs, but not that many seem to turn out well, so I was very excited when I saw that this one did. Abel Tasman is a marvalous area, with more beaches than one can count and so much more. Ben and I went on a tramp over 12km one day in the park and we didn't even see a 3rd of it. More photos of the beattuiful landscape of the South Island to come, so keep coming back!

Check out my youtube page for two videos I uploaded from the break (one of bungy jumping, one of skydiving): http://www.youtube.com/crescentcompositions
Click Here for my facebook album (mainly photos of friends on the trip).

The Elements

Just got back to Auckland after spending two wonderful weeks exploring the South Island. This is just a taste of photos to come. I took this while exploring caves on Wharariki Beach, easily the most spectacular beach I have ever seen in my life. The elements were in full force: the wind was pushing us off of our feet as the rain played stop-and-go with us while we ventured into different areas of the beach. In the photo is Ben, who I spent the first week of my spring break with. However, now I have to go to laundry and start working on the papers I have to write in the next two weeks, so you will have to wait for more information about how incredible the South Island is.

Readers

Today is the first official day of spring break for Auckland University and in a few hours I am headed to the South Island for two weeks! So, I just wanted to give you a heads up that I will only have sporadic internet and probably won't be able update this blog much over the break. I want to wish everyone who is moving back to school and starting classes good luck. I miss y'all!

Honor

I'm sure you can tell, but I did not upload a photo from New Zealand today. Instead, I put up the video that I edited for the Honor Council to use during NSO (new student orientation) week at CC. Simply put, I joined the Honor Council half-way through sophomore year because I wanted more things to do. I spent freshman year doing the same thing everyday; it got boring and eventually had negative effects on my happiness. So, sophomore year I was determined to join groups that would fill my time with things that I loved to do. The Honor Council was one of them. I had an Honor Code at my high school, but no one followed it and hardly anyone ever got in trouble. It frustrated the hell out of me and definitely helped form a negative opinion of my high school. When I got to CC, people also seemed to take for granted the privileges that come with an Honor Code, which again frustrated me; by the time I got around to sophomore year, I wanted to try to change that. After being at a school that doesn't have an Honor Code for half of a semester, I feel even more dedicated to the cause. At AU (University of Auckland), everything is so formal. You have to fill out everything correctly and the lecturers walk up and down the aisle watching everyone. That stresses me out ten times more than my actual test. I feel like I am guilty until proven innocent. It also made me grateful to be at CC with professors who trust their students enough to have the integrity to do the right thing. When I try to explain our Honor System to students here I usually get the same reaction, "What's keeping you from cheating?" I at first I was shocked at the question, now I just think, "Why would you want to cheat?" To me an A is not worth losing all of what CC has given me, I'd rather add my own thoughts and explore my own mind than lose the respect of my professors and possibly be kicked out of the only school at which I've ever actually wanted to learn. They put so much into us, why can we not put effort into our work for them? I guess I'm just an idealist, but cheating to get a grade just doesn't seem worth it to me.... Then again, I want to be a filmmaker and therefore will end up living in cardboard box, so maybe it doesn't even matter if I get the grade...

Standing Up

President Obama's words on the passing of Sen. Ted Kennedy: here.

Stripes

Lots of work to do before break!