Akaroa

Here is a picture of the view driving into Akaroa.  The small town is located on an old volcano called the Banks Penninsula.  It is about 2 hours south of christchurch, and is home to a few penguin colonies and the worlds smallest dolphin.  My friends and I decided to take a weekend trip here where we did some hiking and camping on the beach. 

This is at the peak of our hike and it was actually really cold up there.  I tried to hold my composure as best as I could.

This is the beach that our campsite was on.  We only spent one night there, but it was a neat area.  During low tide my friends and I picked some mussels from the rocks, and cooked them up.  It was definitely the freshest seafood I have ever had.  I also taught my friends how to make eggs in a bag, which is an old skill I learned in scouting.

A Few Days in Town/ Port Hills

I saw this sign on the way up to a hike in the Port Hills. Morse specifically this was in a town called Lyttelton, which is one of the main ports in Christchurch.  The Port Hills are just a bus ride away from my school and offer some really neat day hikes.  This sign made me laugh because the direct translation in chinese is explosive dog, and it is kind of a ridiculous.

Here is a few from the top of the hills looking out over the coast.  In the left of the picture are some sheep.  They really seem to give their livestock a massive range to roam.

Here is a picture from the Chinese lantern festival, which we went to on the weekend.  There were a lot of very creative lanterns, a rock band, and authentic Chinese food.

Willowbank Wildlife Reserve

I got to go to Willowbank Wildlife reserve which is not to far from my school in Christchurch.  At the reserve there were many different species of New Zealand birds, lizards, geckos, frogs, and even a live dinosaur.  A tour guide showed us around and then we got a traditional Maori welcome where a tribe showed us several tribal dances, and rituals. 

This is a picture of a Kea, which is the only mountain parrot in the world.  They are very funny because they have no fear of humans, and will land on your shoulder when you are hiking.  I saw a flock of them trying to get into a hikers tent.  They have very beautifully colored wings, which are orange on the underside.

This is a Tuatara, which believe it or not is actually one of the closest living species to dinosaurs, and  are only found in New Zealand.  They are not considered a lizard because they lack ear holes.  It has been said that they can live up to three hundred years old.  This may be one of the coolest animals I have ever seen.  

While at the reserve I got to see the Kiwi bird, but they are nocturnal, so I couldn't get a good picture of one.   

Here is a picture of a Rainbow trout, which isnt native to New Zealand, but was introduced by the Europeans as a game fish.  I thought Grandad would like this picture.  I would like to do some fly fishing while I am here, as I hear it is some of the best in the world. 

Here is a picture of the Maori tribe that welcomed us.  They were very nice people and have very interesting dances and rituals.

Taylor's Mistake Day Hike

Here is a picture of me just up the hill from Taylor's Mistake beach.  All of the rock behind me is volcanic, and the erosional pattern is due to the different hardness of the rock.  The rock sticking out is harder then the rock further in towards the cliff. This area is considered have one of the nicest beaches in the Christchurch area and is only just a bus ride away from my school.  I will definitely be returning here throughout my trip.

 

This tide pool was located just behind where the previous picture was.  This place was amazing because I found so many different intertidal animals such as starfish (Bottom Right), kelp (Bottom Left), chitons (Top Right), muscles, limpets (Top Left), barnacles and anemones.  The environment here is very similar to some parts of the california coast.  During the high tide all of this area would be covered.  It was amazing to get to compare the species that I see in Florida (The Atlantic) to those in New Zealand (The Pacific).  It is moments like this one that make me realize how much I love Marine Biology.

IES Orientation Trip

This is a picture I took at Cave Stream Scenic Reserve in Canterbury.  I visited this a few days after my arrival with the rest of my study abroad group.  Just below this is a cave that takes about 45 minutes to crawl through.   Around this area is where the Lion the Which and the Which and the Wardrobe was filmed.  It is less than 45 minutes away from my school.

While in the area we visited a sheep farm.  The farmer gave us a demonstration of how to sheer sheep, and it is actually harder then you would think.  He also asked me if I wanted to get a hair cut, but I was a little intimidated by the clippers.  The farmer had over five dogs all of which were border collies.  The dog he showed us reminded me of Charlie. 

This is a picture of me standing on a rock at Castle Hill, which is a popular rock climbing place near my school.  This area is located just down the road from cave stream scenic reserve.  I am in absolute love with this place because it offers some very neat climbing opportunities only 40 minutes away from my school.   What you are looking at is all limestone, and is actually an ancient sea bed.

The Orientation trip lasted two days and included a trip to the sheep farm, Castle Hill, and the cave stream scenic reserve.  We also got go jet boating on the Waimakariri river.  Jet boats were invented in New Zealand and can go in water as shallow as three inches.  I had lots of fun on this trip and was able to bond with many of the people in my program.