New Zealand Study Abroad Blog

One of the primary concerns I had for going abroad was how I was going to get around.  As someone who had a car on campus at Loyola, I knew this was something I thought could present a challenge for me. Surprisingly getting around Auckland has been much easier than I expected. We have walked all over the city and we have quickly come to realize everything we need is within such a short walking distance. Now when it comes to exploring beyond the campus and the certain mile radius we are willing to walk, the public transportation here has proven to be extremely efficient.  In fact, I had my very first experience with navigating the public transportation Auckland offers just a few days back. Looking for something to do before classes get started, we decided to visit the Auckland Zoo and take advantage of the discount they offer on Friday nights.  Once we realized the zoo was beyond what we could walk, we took this opportunity to figure out one the...

I have finally arrived in New Zealand!  Going into this study abroad program, I was well aware the travel process would be no easy feat.  While I imagined the length of the flight would be the biggest challenge, I was definitely mistaken. Looking back on it all, I was by no means prepared for the harsh reality of what traveling alone with luggage for a 4-month stay could really have in store for me. Challenge #1: Wheel from my suitcase Life wasted no time throwing a monkey wrench into this long travel process for me.  Once my mom and I arrived at the airport and finally found a parking spot, we went to unpack all my bags.  As my mom pulled out my checked bag out of the car, it landed in an awkward way and the wheel popped right off! We had spent all morning trying to pack and get everything situated under 50lbs that we could not stop laughing at this extremely unfortunate timing. Once we pulled ourselves together we finally moved on into...

So I hate packing. I always have. And packing for 4 months...going to a country I’ve never traveled to before...where I would experience three seasons in...certainly did not change that. Since packing is such an ordeal for me; I decided to bring you along as I struggle to subdue the natural “over-packer” inside of me and fit everything I need in a suitcase, a carry-on, and a backpack. Empty suitcases About a week before I was set to depart, I decided to lay out my empty suitcases in my room.  Throughout my final week of work, I used this as a means to start putting together some of the items I had been collecting for my travels.  I knew the weekend before I left would be overwhelming as it was so this was an attempt to give myself some sense of accomplishment for the time being.  The week flew by of course and at this point my suitcases were piled high with all these random last minute purchases and study abroad “essentials” I had gathe...