Wasabi, Cows and Flowers

Hello all! This will probably be the last post, seeing as how I will be a little hectic this next month traveling the country (aka ignoring the internet for all intensive purposes of living up the tourist experience). I will have you know that I finally gave in to buying a pair of "stubbies," please don't judge. Haha!

I trekked around campus taking pictures today for sentimental snapshots to look back on when I get home. I'm bound to miss Hamilton - it has treated me very well! This picture of the cow was taken on a class field trip to Tirau, a small town that has been developed due to the large flow of tourists passing through constantly - the town has completely unified itself with corrugated iron signs and buildings (some in the shape of sheep, I know...awesome) for the shops.

Here's my friend Matt and I in the process of a wasabi contest at one of the billion cafes on campus - I was clearly frightened. However, it was my idea, so I couldn't very well chicken out:



Here's a cute little picture of the flowers mom sent for some encouragement while I studied for finals! Monday was the last load of exams and essays EVER. Or...at least until graduate school, which could possibly be in the cards for the future; but who knows! I've never in my life had such an intense load of schoolwork. This semester I've had the BEST teacher of my life as well as the WORST. Haha, Waikato seems to be all over the map with the quality of their teachers. But dang, when they're good: they're really good.

Just to give you a little idea of what my last 2 essays of the semester were on: for the last couple weeks I've been studying/writing about 1. whether free will exists in humans, and if so - what does that look like? and 2. the epistemological approach to discovering whether or not religious belief is rational. Can you just take a deep breath with me? Haha, seriously - the craziest/ coolest/ most difficult topics of my college career! Phew. I feel like I just ran a race. This is a picture of me, Liv (in the middle, from Norway) and Mulela (on the left, from Zambia) at the international "graduation" ceremony. They spelled my name wrong on the certificate - some kind of graduation! Haha!

And I am just so thankful to my parents who made this trip possible at all - Dad, Becky & Mom and John contributed a lot to help me come here and I really appreciate it! Their continued support throughout college has been a big encouragement.

Dad arrives next Tuesday to the North Island, and we're going to do some exploring for a week. When he heads out, I'm off to a conference up in Matamata for a couple days and then over to Auckland to pick up Matt, Kar, and Justine from the airport. I'm so excited! I really miss friends and family. I sent this picture of me and the Maori carving to my dad tonight, telling him I found a Kiwi boyfriend and wasn't coming home. Haha!

It will be so strange returning home though (I suspect at least...), because New Zealand - though unfamiliar at first, has become the familiar. I can honestly say that there are a few faces I'm really going to have a hard time not seeing at school and on the weekends. But...this next phase in life is going to be wonderful, I have a really good feeling about it.

Until the next time we meet...

Cheers!