Haere Ra, Farewell

Today is my final day in New Zealand. As I write this, a shuttle will arrive in less than an hour to take me to the airport, away from Flat 33 forever.

Before I continue with the sad stuff, I’ll update you on my activities for the past few weeks. First of all, the stores here have been decorated for Christmas for several weeks now. Without Halloween (which they have here, but don’t care about) and Thanksgiving to hold them back, the commercialism begins disturbingly early. Regardless, it makes me want Christmas cookies and apple cider. And presents.

Cole left two Wednesdays ago to travel Australia with his dad before returning to the States. To bid him farewell, Cam (from Arise) and I joined him for his last dinner in New Zealand: Abra-kebabra. We thought it was fitting because kebabs (which are like wraps) are popular in New Zealand, and Abrakebabra is a sweet place. Later, we enjoyed 50-cent ice cream cones at McDonalds. I’ll miss Cole, but he promised to visit Vandy, so it’s all good.

Matthias and Elise left last weekend. I got gifts for both of them and wrote them cards thanking them for all the unique experiences they afforded me over the semester. It was sad. I won’t bore/depress you with the details. But Elise’s parents took a bunch of us out to dinner that night, and it was delicious! They even “shouted” (took the bill), so it was incredibly nice. I’ll miss them.

Last Sunday, an awesome worship band called Planetshakers came to Arise. They’re like Hillsong, and they’re from Australia. That was really awesome. I took a bunch of pictures, and I’ll probably post them on Facebook later. I’ve got two of their CDs now. So if you’re into Christian music, check out Planetshakers.

Wellington is home to an incredible national museum called Te Papa, and I had never been until just a couple days ago. It’s a shame too, because that place was so cool that I should have gone multiple times. Hannah and I went and took photos. Te Papa is probably the most beautiful museum I’ve ever seen. It’s an enormous, intricately designed building with magnificent exhibits, some of which are constantly changing. That was sweet.

Today, Sunday, November 9th, will be the longest day of my life, thanks to the magic of time travel through flight. Here’s how it works:
I fly from Wellington to Auckland, land in Auckland at 3 PM.
I depart Auckland at 7:15 PM and arrive in LA at 10:15 AM, a 12-hour flight that takes me back in time 9 hours.
I depart LA at 4:00 PM and arrive in ATL at 11:15 PM, a 4-hour flight that takes me 7 hours into the future. Magic.

Well, today I say bid farewell to Hannah, Christella, Wellington, and ultimately, New Zealand. As most of you know from reading, my time here has been incredible. I’ve learned an enormous amount from the university courses I took here, and even more from the people I’ve met… the friends I’ve made. It is sad to break off these relationships, especially knowing that there’s a good chance I’ll never see some of these people again. But I don’t think of it that way, for I will return to this great land again. I will once more traverse the sheep-dotted hills, perfect beaches, and steep, spectacular mountains.

To all of you, my readers abroad who have journeyed vicariously with me through this blog, I thank you. Your support and encouragement have enhanced my experience in New Zealand in a way I did not expect. It is with mixed emotions that I leave this country, for I am sad to go, but very excited to return to you all.

Well, I guess this is it. My experience with this fantastic culture has come to a close… for now.

To Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud, haere ra, haere ra, haere ra.