Feb 19
Today we spent the morning at the beach, and the afternoon at University of Canterbury. At the university, we had the privilege of attending a lecture by Dr. Billy Osteen. Dr. Osteen shared a lot with us about crises, such as the earthquake Christchurch experienced in 2006, and how a community reacts to those crises. After our lecture we took a walking tour of Christchurch, where Dr. Osteen pointed out different memorials, playgrounds, and temporary set ups so the community could rebuild as the city rebuilds.
Feb 20
Today we went to Christchurch’s Antarctica center. We learned a lot about the research bases in Antarctica, including scraping the surface of some of the research being done down there. We talked a lot about how uniquely situated Antarctica’s geographic location is, so that all oceans touch it’s landmass. After our lecture, we toured the center and got to be in a simulation of an Antarctica summer windstorm (made us feel like we were home in a Minnesotan winter!!).
Feb 21
Study day!! We avoided the storm and found things to do indoors (with one excursion to get ice cream).
Feb 22
Travel day! Destination; Aoraki/Mt. Cook. We stopped at Lake Tekapo for lunch, and soaked in its beautiful views, including the beautiful chapel called Good Shepard. We arrived at our hostel, and some of us stargazed that night.
Feb 23
We started today with an engaging lecture from Department of Conservation worker Andy Oliver, who talked to us about the human and terrestrial history of Aoraki/Mt. Cook. We learned about the introduction of invasive species, sheep farms, and a brief time period where only the rich could frequent the beautiful views of Mt. Cook. We also learned about the Maori history of the mountain, and the reclaiming of it’s original Maori name, Aoraki. We then embarked on a 6 mile hike through Hooker Valley. More beautiful stargazing tonight as well!
Feb 24
Another travel day! This day’s destination was Oamaru, home of our wonderful Program Leader, Susie Scott. We had some guided tour time with Andy in the morning, learning more about the Pakeha (European settlers) history of sheep farming and settlement. We arrived at Susie’s house in Oamaru for some touch rugby and barbecue before heading off to see Blue Penguins in their natural habitat as they emerged from the ocean, and climbed rocks up to their little penguin sanctuary. Quite an amazing sight!
Feb 25
Today we traveled to Dunedin, home of our professors, Gary and Sian. We stopped at the world-famous Moreaki boulders, which are perfectly round! Next we stopped at Orakanui, an eco-sanctuary. We receieved a lecture from Jean, a staff member there. We learned about their efforts to rid the land of nonnative pests, and boosting native populations. This was followed by a tour of the land, where we saw many birds, a Tuatara, and some native plant species!
Here are pictures of our adventures!!
