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: