A Very Kiwi Christmas

Hi friends! As my loving and intelligent fiance pointed out to me, not everything on this blog should be educational. Let's talk about my time in New Zealand so far.

I am in love with this country. The biodiversity is beautiful and the people are genuinely kind. I have been able to ignite a love of adventure that I didn't know I had. If you told me 6 months ago that I would be swimming with dolphins, hiking a glacier, and riding a horse up a mountain all in one week, I wouldn't have believed you! But I may never be able to come back here and I want to see as much as I can.

I am glad that I am in New Zealand overr Christmas so I have two free weeks to travel. Even better, the love of my life and my parents are traveling half way across the world to be with my sister and I. Bri is hiking the length of the country; it's nice to know that she is in the country in case I have a medical episode or emergency. Even though we rarely get to talk because she doesn't have much service (canoeing and hiking doesn't always place you in the busiest of towns), I am excited to see her and share our Kiwi experiences over Christmas.

I'm also excited to meet her hiking group, who will tag along on our adventures. My family will be exploring part of the North Island. Then, when they head back to the states and Bri heads back to the trail, I'll spend a week on the South Island by myself! I am really looking forward to it.

I have made some amazing friends here who I'm excited to keep in contact with. There is this one girl, Eliza, who has really sparked my own wanderlust. She loves to travel and is pretty fearless (while also being hella smart), and even though she is only 18, I definitely want to be like her when I grow up. I see her working so hard to have the life she wants, while also being kind to every person she meets. I have really enjoyed getting to know her and the rest of the volunteers at Hearing Dogs, who have all given me some great insight into Disability in New Zealand and prompted so many ideas on how I might extend my project.

Many people here celebrate Christmas on the beach with a barbecue. This holiday season is much less commercialized than it is in the States, although there is one kiwi tradition that I am excited to experience. I have loved the sausage rolls and beef mince pies, but there is annual event here in New Plymouth that just started. The Festival of Lights, held at the beautiful Pukekura Park in town, feels like you are walking into the movie, "Alice in Wonderland." I'll post pictures when I go with my fam, but I know it'll be magical.

Anyways, there's a ton of stuff I could write - all in time. Until then, I hope you all have a happy holiday and are able to connect with family - blood or chosen. Merry Christmas from this Watson Fellow, I'll write in the new year!

My coworkers at Hearing Dogs and I posing with Santa :)