Day 7 Cont: After hours of driving we pulled into the sleepy town of Te Anau and drove into the llama farm that surrounded our hostel. Rose and I took 20 minutes to explore all of Te Anau’s downtown (five of which were spent perfecting this picture) and noticed that the town offered an inexplicable…
Category: New Zealand
The Great South Island Road Trip: Part 1
Alright folks, we’re coming into the final stretch of Caitlin and Rose’s amazing New Zealand adventure. To properly say goodbye to this country we’ve become attached to, we decided to rent a car and see as much as possible in 15 days. DAY 1: Picton to Golden Bay (245 km) We said a very sad…
A Kiwi Thanksgiving
This year, for the first time in my life, I celebrated Thanksgiving abroad. In order to make Thanksgiving authentic we decided to celebrate on American time which due to the 19 hour time change put our feast on a Friday. Seventeen people of six different nationalities gathered around one long, wooden table – only two…
Home Sweet Hopewell
Back in August, Rose and I sat at her kitchen table in St. Paul and started writing to WorkAway hosts arguing that we were the candidates with the most experience, strongest work ethic and best jokes. We found a resort of sorts in the Marlborough Sounds looking for people willing to stay for at least…
The Walls Were Shaking, the Earth Was Quaking
Hi friends, This is a story of miscommunication and perils of distant time zones. And historic earthquakes. Sunday night started uneventfully at Hopewell Lodge – in which I mean that I was in my bed by 8PM. After a dinner of all our remaining vegetables, Rose and I abandoned the raucous common room to go…
Trip Half Full
Today marks the 6 week point of our travel which means we are halfway through. As nostalgia sweeps through me I’m thinking about how quickly it has gone so far. In celebration I’ve assembled this highlight reel: Since we have been in NZ I/We have… Spent time in 12 towns (Auckland, Paihia, Russell, Rotorua, Taupo,…
The One Where We Become Sheep Farmers
I recently finished my first Work Away experience which took place at a farm in the picturesque Wairarapa region. In our two weeks we gardened, shoveled horse manure, hiked, fed lambs, caved, learned how to lead sheep and did some extraordinary baking. We met our first host Jon aboard a rush-hour packed train from Wellington…
Sailing Away in Taupo
Hey everyone, Rose and I arrived in Taupo during a rainstorm and then predictably took an accidental “scenic route” to our new hostel. Lake Taupo is the caldera of a super volcano and if that weren’t enough, it is the largest lake in the Southern hemisphere. Taupo itself is a booming resort town in NZ’s…
The Road to Rotorua
Hey there friends, After Auckland (the second time) Rose and I rode a coach bus southeast to Rotorua, the place for tourists who want to see thermal activity and learn more about Maori culture. We had hoped to stay with a host for the first two weeks of October to save some money but a host…
New in New Zealand
Hi friends, Today marks a full week since Rose and I landed in New Zealand and we’ve found ourselves back where it all started. Last Sunday, after a 4AM shuttle, an 8 hour flight, a shuttle to downtown Auckland, and a slow trudge up a hill with all of our belongings, Rose and I arrived at…
Return of the Blog
Hi friends, After three years of hibernation, my blog is back! This time I’ll be chronicling my time in New Zealand (by way of Hawaii) and the struggle to stay as long as possible on the least amount of money. To accomplish this, my travel partner Rose and I are participating in WorkAway programs where we go…
That Time Caitlin Went Abroad 