Last week one of my friends was supposed to visit me in New Zealand so I prepared this wonderful excursion for us to travel north and conquer Rotorua. I even planned out the ice cream stops.
After a series of unfortunate events, she wasn’t able to make it on her flight out of LAX so I decided to put my big girl panties on and go by myself. Boy am I glad I did! Even though it would have been amazing to make memories with a friend, traveling by myself for two days was so refreshing and allowed for such good reflection and time to breathe.
I highly recommend getting away for a day or two by yourself, even if it’s just to the next town over to do some deep soul searching and life enjoying. 🙂
I went to Wai-O-Tapu to see the Geothermal Wonderland. This is a volcanic reservation full of mud pools and hot springs. The park was so breath taking and I couldn’t stop myself from stopping several times just to take in the magnificence of it all, even as the rain came pouring down.
In the afternoon I went to Hobbiton to visit the set of the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. OH MY GOSH. For any Lord of the Rings/Hobbit fans out there, this is a MUST DO before you die!
The whole time I envisioned myself in the movie as I walked through The Dell past brightly painted hobbit holes adorned with delightful little flowers. It was truly magical.
The next day I traveled on a bus to Waitomo to climb down into the Glow Worm caves! Since it had rained so much the night before, the river in the cave flooded and I wasn’t able to go on the boat ride through the cave.
However I was still able to walk through the top parts of the cave and see some glow worms. That in itself was indescribable. Then it was back to Wellington because you know… I am studying abroad so I guess I have to go to class. 😉
I am having such a great time here and can’t wait to tell you about my next adventure. Stay tuned because it will be soon! In addition to getting an education here, I am learning so much outside the classroom as I meet new people and do spontaneous things. Living life is the best supplement to academic learning and this is something you can do where ever you are!
If you’re in school, be spontaneous! Try something you haven’t done before! Go somewhere you’ve never been. Try a new restaurant. Meet new people. Experience life while you have such a great opportunity.
If you’re not in school, BE SPONTANEOUS! The same applies for you too! You aren’t too old to have fun, to go on adventures and do stuff. You can still be awesome and make other people feel awesome. Don’t lose hope for your future because there are still so many wonderful dreams waiting for you to grab ahold of so they can come to pass.
Love always,
Nicole Renard #dostuff #NewZealand #NewNicole
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