Apologies for keeping this blog in the dark for a few weeks now! Blogging is kind of like keeping a garden and planting mint: if you don't keep up with it, the more time that passes, the more and more behind you get!
I like to keep these short on words and heavy on pictures, so although much has transpired in the last 2 weeks, I'll sum it up as this:
3 weeks' break from school! Yay! 7 of us gals have had a week-long trip plann in the works since early March. As stressful as it was to decide so far ahead of time what exactly our route would be, book hotels and car rentals, it was definitely worth the effort. The trip went pretty much without any major bumps-- no nights of hobohood, nor day transportationless.
I was surprised how easily 7 of us fit in a regular old Toyota van. That thing was a trooper! It was definitely working hard as it chugged up and over Arthur's Pass, and I was worried about the brakes going out on us as we careened down towards Queenstown, but it was a little rebel and it hung in there like a pro!
Our route was this: Christchurch--->Hokatika --> Fox Glacier (prounounced glay-shee-uhr, btw)---> Franz Josef Glaysheeuhr ---> Lake Wanaka ---> Queenstown ---> Milford Sound ---> back home to Christchurch under the starry skies.
If google maps told us our route would be a 3 hour drive, we could expect it to take us 5. That's a good thing!-- a group of like-minded A.D.D folk wanna stop for just about every snail on the side of the road.
It was so great to get out of the scholarly brain fog. Between the cozy, winding mountain roads and my newest acquisiton, TinkerBill (an angelic ukelele), anxiety dreams about missing school assignments/ failing / etc disappeared after only 2 nights! Talk about some potent medicine.
So, I'm proud to say that I learned a lot in those 8 short days. I hope to find a moment to recount a few of my favorite experiences in another post:
-somehow still commiting to skydiving over Queenstown after watching one of the skydive "masters" trying to figure out a malfunctioning electric sliding glass door
-sitting at Lake Wanaka feeling like living in a dream
-Sheffield's meat pie song
-giving travel companion Rachel a haircut using eyebrow scissors (and it turned out BEAUTIFULLY!)
-making friends with a duck who loved the sounds of my ukelele
-a bright orange moss lining the river rocks in Milford Sound was so illuminous that it looked like the whole riverside was spraypainted construction orange
-Wille Nelson On the Road Again lyrics: "On the road again… going places I have never been.. seeing things that I may never see again… I just can't wait to get on the road again."
-school anxiety dreams replaced by dreaming in mountains
I miss home, the creature comforts and the familiarity. But the wise words of my friend Nathalie echo in my head: "home will always be there waiting for you." And those of my momma who ponders about feeling at home inside ones self, regardless of the pillow you're resting your head on.
xoxoxox
I like to keep these short on words and heavy on pictures, so although much has transpired in the last 2 weeks, I'll sum it up as this:
3 weeks' break from school! Yay! 7 of us gals have had a week-long trip plann in the works since early March. As stressful as it was to decide so far ahead of time what exactly our route would be, book hotels and car rentals, it was definitely worth the effort. The trip went pretty much without any major bumps-- no nights of hobohood, nor day transportationless.
I was surprised how easily 7 of us fit in a regular old Toyota van. That thing was a trooper! It was definitely working hard as it chugged up and over Arthur's Pass, and I was worried about the brakes going out on us as we careened down towards Queenstown, but it was a little rebel and it hung in there like a pro!
Our route was this: Christchurch--->Hokatika --> Fox Glacier (prounounced glay-shee-uhr, btw)---> Franz Josef Glaysheeuhr ---> Lake Wanaka ---> Queenstown ---> Milford Sound ---> back home to Christchurch under the starry skies.
If google maps told us our route would be a 3 hour drive, we could expect it to take us 5. That's a good thing!-- a group of like-minded A.D.D folk wanna stop for just about every snail on the side of the road.
It was so great to get out of the scholarly brain fog. Between the cozy, winding mountain roads and my newest acquisiton, TinkerBill (an angelic ukelele), anxiety dreams about missing school assignments/ failing / etc disappeared after only 2 nights! Talk about some potent medicine.
The Mark Twain quote is pertinent: “I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.” – Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer AbroadLuckily I found that I liked my travel companions. Yet 8 days was plenty! Also, there is a quote floating around somewhere about how the unfortunate part about traveling is that you still bring you along! It stands in contrast to that fantasy of total escapism. Lots of days, especially the cloudy / cold ones, felt like I was wallowing around in my shadow wondering what the heck, why were all of my imperfections tagging along for the ride!
So, I'm proud to say that I learned a lot in those 8 short days. I hope to find a moment to recount a few of my favorite experiences in another post:
-somehow still commiting to skydiving over Queenstown after watching one of the skydive "masters" trying to figure out a malfunctioning electric sliding glass door
-sitting at Lake Wanaka feeling like living in a dream
-Sheffield's meat pie song
-giving travel companion Rachel a haircut using eyebrow scissors (and it turned out BEAUTIFULLY!)
-making friends with a duck who loved the sounds of my ukelele
-a bright orange moss lining the river rocks in Milford Sound was so illuminous that it looked like the whole riverside was spraypainted construction orange
-Wille Nelson On the Road Again lyrics: "On the road again… going places I have never been.. seeing things that I may never see again… I just can't wait to get on the road again."
-school anxiety dreams replaced by dreaming in mountains
I miss home, the creature comforts and the familiarity. But the wise words of my friend Nathalie echo in my head: "home will always be there waiting for you." And those of my momma who ponders about feeling at home inside ones self, regardless of the pillow you're resting your head on.
xoxoxox
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