Written by Heather Brock and Taylor Boucher

The week started off with knowing that we had only five days left of our typical schedule in Whanganui. This meant the end of our homestays, classes, and internships. Our environmental issues class consisted of guest speakers Richard Thompson, who was involved with the Mackenzie Agreement, Nelson Lebo, who talked about sustainable living, and Graham Pearson, who talked about the different eco projects that he does for a living. In our geology class we presented our geology research projects that we were assigned. Our variety of research topics included greenstone, gold, and coal in New Zealand, Fiordland National Park, marine terraces, geothermal power in the Taupo Region, and volcano monitoring. We did not have any cultures classes scheduled for our last day, but instead we had our last reflection session with our Quaker friends Jillian and David, as well as Mandy and Nigel. In this last session it seemed that mostly everybody was feeling a little eager to go back to the States, but we also concluded that most of these feelings were due to the crappy weather we had been having for a few weeks.

On Friday morning we all met at the Quaker Settlement at 9 AM and prepared for our Easter journey to Waitomo and Rotorua! We drove four long hours through the windy hills of the Whanganui Region until we reached our Waitomo destination. We arrived there in the early afternoon during a rainstorm, and immediately ran inside to the YHA Hostel in which we would be staying at for one night. Right as we arrived we split up into two groups and prepared to spend the next three hours exploring the underground cave system home to glow worms. We had to split up because we had to stay in small groups, and a party of 20 would be hard to handle in the caves. But before we went into the caves with our guides we had to get properly suited up; wearing thick neoprene wetsuits, neoprene booties, rubber boots and a hard hat with a strong waterproof headlamp. Once we were all ready to go we drove to a small river for some practice jumping backwards into the river while sitting in our inner tubes. This short practice would come in handy for preparing us for the high jumps off the underground waterfalls in the cave later on.  

As we began our adventure, we entered a small crevasse into a new magical world. We were all taken aback because none of us has ever seen anything like it before. No words or pictures could fully show the beauty that we saw. As we traveled through the cave, the temperature dropped, but our level of fun rose. We all especially loved looking up into the dark and seeing what looked to be the milky way but brighter from the glow worms. Most of our trip through the cave consisted of walking through a high water level wearing our boots and carrying our tubes, but the other times we hopped on our tube and rode it like there was no tomorrow. We were all sad to see the light at the end of the cave, which meant our adventure was over. That night we gathered in the common area to watch Lord of the Rings with all of our fellow hostel members while we ate breakfast for dinner. We all slept like rocks that night from our long, awesome day, and woke up rejuvenated to travel to Rotorua. 

Saturday we drove a few more hours north to Rotorua where we were staying at the Crash Palace Hostel. This was a more relaxed day and we were able to explore the city and do some shopping. Chris and Meg gave us money for dinner and we all split up to get what we wanted, but somehow most of us ended up eating at the noodle canteen and the rest of us ate at an Indian restaurant. Even Chris, Meg and the kids ate there- we thought that was funny. 

Written by Cole Moore and Chris Angell 

After a long dry spell, the rains came to Wanganui on Monday the 7th. And boy did they come! Many of us began to get rides to class with our host families, rather than suffering a rainy bike ride. Those who biked that first Monday arrived at class soaked from head to toe. They've continued for a week now, through Monday again. We just have to keep reminding ourselves that the thirsty plants are eternally grateful for some water, after about a month without it. 

That day, we also began our geology research projects. Sorted randomly into pairs, we have all chosen topics in New Zealand's geology, ranging from gold mining to volcanic eruptions. Each pair will give a 15-minute presentation on their topic on either Monday or Wednesday, as well as write a short research paper going into more detail. Meanwhile, we've been given the final assignment for the Environmental Issues course: a more extensive, open-ended research paper about conservation. We have two weeks to write these essays (this time, on our own). It is daunting, but promises to be a valuable exercise. 

All the while in the background, course planning for next year's fall semester has begun. The list of courses offered next semester was posted online when we were in Kaikoura, but as course registration day draws nearer, the tone has shifted from one of idle speculation to serious planning. Chris Smith has become something like a celebrity, with so many biology (and related) majors looking to him for advice. 

With so many rising senior biology majors around, planning for Senior Seminar in the fall has also just begun. Every biology major, as well as some relatives like environmental science and biochemistry, is required to do a semester-long group research project on a topic of their choice, culminating in a review article and a presentation. 

On Friday, we presented our Kaikoura research projects again, for the benefit of Peter Frost and Meg, who didn't come to the South Island with us. It was a little nerve-wracking for some of us, but it allowed us to get some more feedback on our projects (which was all very positive!) and let Meg and Peter share in a little bit of our South Island experience. (And, for those who care about such things, this means we'll also receive a grade on our presentations.) 

There had been some tentative planning for a return trip to Tongariro National Park on Saturday, so that those were interested could complete the Tongariro Crossing, which we missed out on in January because of high winds at the summit. However, the poor weather showed no signs of clearing up over the weekend, so we nixed those plans. That doesn't mean there was nothing to do, however! On Saturday afternoon, Chris and Meg sponsored a trip to the roller skating rink, and on Sunday they invited us to join them in the Splash Center, an indoor pool and water slide.  The skating rink was quite enjoyable some of our group; Heather and Jessica even got a lesson from a teacher who was present in the rink. The splash center consisted of several hydro-slides, a lazy river, various hot-tubs, and the coup de grâce a giant inflatable bouncy racecourse. Suffice it to say we had quite an enjoyable time there this weekend.

As of today, the weather is still wet and cold. We're preparing to say goodbye to our host families at the end of the week, but we're excited for our two final trips: Rotorua and the Marlborough Sounds. This semester is going by so quickly! 

Written by Bailey Heinzen and Hanna Sosin

After a week of Spring Break adventures we arrived back in Wanganui ready to go to the annual Artist Open Studios. There were nearly seventy different artists whose studios we could visit, everything from print-making to ceramics, glass art to paintings. Some students bought a few pieces a few pieces of art, and we all really enjoyed exploring Wanganui and appreciating the amazing creativity of the local artists. The annual event drew more than five thousand visitors and made $170,000 in sales. To the right is example of some artwork seen at the Open Studios.

The next day marked the start of our transition back into the routine of classes and internships. For the first day back of our Environmental Issues of New Zealand course, groups of two students presented some of the things we learned about in the South Island. The seven pre-assigned topics were Eco Services, Habitat Conservation, Ecological Restoration, Predator and Pest Control, Captive Breeding, Reintroductions & Translocations and What More Can We Do? We had some very informative and intriguing discussions about these issues, sometimes ending in a little bit of arguing. Our Cultures of New Zealand class that day was at the Whanganui Regional Museum again for a meeting with Āwhina. She taught us about traditional Māori musical instruments as well as her experiences traveling across the Pacific on a double-hulled waka (canoe). It was a special lecture because a double-hulled waka that had sailed to New Zealand from San Francisco was due to arrive in Wanganui the very next day.

Tuesday and Thursday everyone went to their respective internships, but on Wednesday we enjoyed a special Geology class on the beach. Meg taught us all about Wanganui Geology and its significance; we were amazed at how quickly the rocks were eroding and couldn’t believe that some things would just crumble in our hands! We also had plenty of time to look at all the cool rocks and shells that were scattered along the beach, we even found the body of a young shark washed up on the shore.

Friday was dedicated to art projects with Wi and Liz (Adaobi’s host parents). This meant a steep ascent to the Quaker Settlement by bike. Over the course of the day, we worked hard to create personalized kowhaiwhai, Maori symbols, to represent everything from family and friends to graduation. These kowhaiwhai complimented/accented the small acrylic paintings we did with Liz’s help. Everyone came up with some amazing pieces of art! It was Wi’s birthday so Chris Smith brought Wi a bratwurst with candles, Wi doned a particularly ravishing birthday hat, and we sang happy birthday both in English and Māori.  Overall it was a great week for transitioning back into the swing of classes and internships after being away from Wanganui for so long. We’re excited to turn in our Natural History Journals on Wednesday; we’ve furiously been working on them all week. Here’s a photo of some Albatross Encouragement Zoe Wolfe sent to us earlier: