Things I'll miss: Road Signs

The road signs here in good old NZ are incredibly funny, pretty much because of the extensive detail. For example, my favorite sign (for road work, especially is repaving, or "seal repair," is involved):

Pretty sure I burst out laughing for the longest time the first time I saw that sign. Honestly, how do you avoid passing on coming traffic that will send up rocks that will smash your windscreen (aka windshield)?

Then there are the rock fall signs, which are literally everywhere, seeing as just about every road cuts into a mountain or hill. And as I've learned in geology, undercutting the toe of a slope is a sure fire was to increase the likelihood of slope failure (aka mass land fail, aka landslides.) Here's one from the road:

Here's a mass land fail:

And here's a fun version from the glacier trip:

I like the added detail of the person being crushed in both a rock fall and an ice fall. 

Other signs that are fun are the signs cautioning a lower speed for tight turns. The greatest one was one which looked like this sign, only it cautioned for 15 km/hr. Which translates to a whopping 9.3 mph. Also, I'd like to say that it was totally necessary to actually slow down to 15 km on said turn. 

It was also necessary to slow down for this turn, as well. 35 km = 21.7 mph. The roads here are crazy.

Another fan favorite is the "slippery road" sign. 

How do the tire tracks crisscross like that? Really?

I haven't seen any sheep crossing signs, although I have seen several sheep mysteriously standing on the wrong side of a paddock fence (and one time, mysteriously in the middle of the road). I have seen cattle signs. And cattle mysteriously standing on the wrong side of the fence.

An interesting occurrence were the cattle stops on the road going up a mountain:

I also liked the detail in the RR signs. 

Good thing they included the smoke from the coal burning engine. 

And then there are the cautionary, don't drink and drive signs. Or rather, don't "drink-drive" as they say here (the always efficient Kiwis have cut out that annoying "and" and even more cumbersome "-ing"). These signs are both highly entertaining and highly disturbing. 

And lastly, a wee note on the state highway system. Only in NZ would there be copious (and I mean copious) one way bridges on state highways: 

And for those of you wondering, here's Ricardo, the trusty vehicle which carried me all about the South Island this semester.

 1991 Hyundai Excel LS. $600 Kiwi, split between me and three other girls (Kirsten, Alex, and Sara). Done and done. 

TimTam Slam. Done

A bit of Kiwi culture for you all: Tim Tams. A lovely chocolate-chocolate covered biscuit (cookie) which comes in packs of 11 and are irresistible. 

The proper way to eat said little delights is called a Tim Tam Slam. Here's how it's done.

1. Open package.

2. Carefully bit off the ends (both!) of the timtam exposing the inner biscuits and chocolate filling.

3. Put one end of the cookie in some milk.

4. Suck the milk through the cookie. 

5. Then eat the TimTam!

 

Also, if you are feeling adventurous, white russians can be substituted for milk!

Pineapple Express

Some things in NZ are are more efficient than anywhere in the United States. Uni Flats, for instance: When the spoons in my flat all but disappeared (there were 2 left), I went to Uni Flats to bum more spoons. And I was prepared to butter up this big story about the Mystery of Flat 6's Disappearing Spoons. But the lady just gave me a ton of spoons. No excessive story necessary.

Some things in NZ are unnecessarily inefficient. Like the finals schedule for university. WHY ARE FINALS STRETCHED OVER FOUR PLUS WEEKS? Because studying is so fun? I just love the anxiety of finals time, so why not make it last four weeks? Just kidding. Duh.

Actually, I have a two week break before my first final. And then another week before my next two and then another week(ish) before my last. [And then five days to pack and make it to the airport]. So, in the mean while, while everyone else is waking up at 7:30 to make it to the library in time to get a spot to sit (I've never been more adamant about the necessity of 24 hr libraries), I've been bumming around making bagels and walking up mountains.

Yes, I made bagels. I. Made. Bagels. I didn't even know that was possible. 

But, there are no pictures, so this post is actually about the semi-mountain I climbed with my flat mate Jen. We did the Pineapple-flagstaff Walk. I blew out my knee (previous blow out, probably related to horseback riding), but there were some excellent as views. Here we go:

Pineapple track? Hmm. Yes, now you know why I chose this one.

Me and Jen at the top of the Pineapple Track. That's Dunedin in the background.

Good old 480 (my flat complex) is somewhere down there. If only I could tag the pic for you.

Something else I will miss, the Dr. Seuss trees.

 

And monster trees like this one. Whoa.

Here's the path at the top of the Flagstaff track, on top of a high hill, which I will call a mountain.

And me and Jen looking beautiful on top of the mountain. 

Bread Making and other food related fun

Upon choosing NZ as my destination for study abroad, I began to worry about how I was possibly going to cook for myself. I am not a cook. At first, I was eating a lot of pasta packs and instant rice, but I've learned a little bit know and I eat a lot of fresh produce. If you are wondering, a typical dinner usually involves vegetables (including beans!) over rice, pasta, or potatoes with either a tomato, cheese or indian sauce. I'm starting to branch out, but that's the basic plan.

I also spend a lot of time baking. I think this is mostly because I get bored really easily because I'm not working three jobs and classes aren't as work heavy as at American. Most classes involve one paper and a final. Anyway, I started with cookies and have branched out to cupcakes and cakes. I started the experimentation method, which is simply adding whatever is in the cupboard, which had led to some interesting concoctions. Like chocolate marshmallow cookies which came from a peanut butter cookie recipe. 

Recently, I've gotten into bread making. I would never touch yeast at home (why do it when there is awesome bread at the grocer, and mom will buy it?) However, good, crusty bread doesn't exist here, and when I have a hankering for bread that will hold it's own shape, until recently, there was just nothing I could do. 

But then my friend Alex and I made bread together. I made a plain loaf, a pesto sun dried tomato loaf, and a apple blackberry with honey and cinnamon loaf, and I have to say, I loved it. Here is the collection of flour (I cannot believe how fast we go through flour. My flatmate and I are always baking!, PS this isn't my kitchen, it's Alex's):

And here are some finished loaves. These are both plain, white bread, made by my flatmate, Jen. I forgot to take a picture of my loaves because I ate them. Jen made bread the night me and Jenny made Beer Cheese soup for our flats (Jenny lives in a different flat).

I got into bread making when I watched my friend Alex made bread when she made Beer Cheese Soup for her flat several weeks ago. The soup changed my life. Eventually I made it for some people here at 480. Here it is in the pot:

Not the most exciting picture, but definitely the most exciting soup. Beer cheese soup is filling and served with fresh made bread and garnished with popcorn. You may be skeptical, but it is delicious. Also, if you are on a diet, don't even tempt yourself. The ingredients which are not beer and cheese are whole milk.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to cooking in a real kitchen when I get home. 

Horsey!

So, you know those commercials for the Caribbean or Texas or something where there are people riding horses on a beach and it's absolutely gorgeous? That's what I did today. Only there were hurricane-force winds. But that's not important. Erroneous. 

Jenny and I drove down to the Catlins to Te Taunga Farm. We did a two hour horse ride, which wasn't quite a trek. We got to trot and canter, but we still had a guide. Basically, it was the perfect combination because we had a lot of latitude the ride how we wanted, but we also got to learn about the area, because our guide told us a little history of the area. And then she took pictures for us:

Jenny on little Pan, and me on Big Bo. And our sweet as dusters.

So, I've now managed to find a way to combine two of my favorite things: the ocean and horses. And I loved it. Until there was sand being blown in my face and I couldn't even open my eyes. But that didn't last long, because our able guide took us off the beach and back through sheep fields, where it was just as windy but without the sand storm.

I got to trot and canter, which was a lot of fun. The cantering was way more fun than trotting because I didn't have to post. Plus the cantering wasn't in a ring, it was in a field and it was exhilarating! 

Also, since it's been like six or seven years since I've actually ridden a horse, it was really hard to for my body to remember how to post, which was frustrating because my mind still remembers. I almost had it by the end, which was sweet.  I hope to go riding again, because it was so awesome.

And now, another lazy post. Here are some pictures:

The fields we rode through on the way to the beach. Just so you know, the white residue in the distance is sheep, not snow.

Ah, the beach. The waves were spectacular, and the wind was a little scary. I wish I had a better picture of the waves, or even the sand storms.

What I saw, complete with Bo's ears. 

 

Me and Bo, where Bo doesn't look like a fat pony. He was actually a really big horse, and he was awesome!

Again, me and Bo after the ride. He was such an awesome horse. 

Things I'm Going to Miss: the view

I'm really going to miss the fact that pretty much where ever you are in NZ, there is a great view. Moreover, the awesomeness of the view increases exponentially as you increase your elevation. 

Basically, this is how my Tuesday afternoon went:

Jono (a Kiwi), to me: Ever been to Mt. Cargill

Me: no

Jen, my flatmate, American: yes

Jono: want to go?

Me: uhh... sure?

And then Jono drove us to the top of Mt. Cargill, which is by my standards, a mountain (hello, it's Mount Cargill!) and a hill by Kiwi standards. It was a pretty crappy day, cloudy and a bit chilly, but in true NZ fashion, the views were still spectacular. 

Looking out toward the ocean.

I just can't look away. Like most pictures, the camera just doesn't capture the detail of these views.

Looking down at Dunedin.

Looking out at the peninsula

 

The countryside

And, Jono. I though he was going to fall over the edge. 

Just Geology

You may be convinced that this whole "study" abroad thing is really just an excuse for me to be on a glorious four and a half month vacation. I mean, that's really how I feel, however, I really do have classes, and I really do go to my classes. Most of the time. It really does get annoying, especially since some of my classes are quite demanding in the time department. Like, geology, which demands I show up at 9am on a Saturday for a field trip. The forecast called for cold and rainy with a chance of snow, and on occasions it really did feel that way.

Cloud of doom looming

But it was actually quite bearable most of the day. 

Anyway, I'll just give you a quite summary of the rocks here in Dunedin. The oldest rocks are the Otago Schist, which is also called Haast Schist. It is a metamorphic rock (I think it used to be a sand stone a bagillion years ago or something), and therefore looks mad sweet.

Please note the foliation and quartz veins. If you don't know what that means, don't feel bad, because I don't really know either... and I'm going to be tested on it.

The schist was our first stop, since we were working our way up the stratiographic sequence. We actually went to this gorgeous beach, and you all know how I love beaches. 

From the schist forward in time, there is a limestone and a bunch of different sandstones and mudstones, which formed over time as the ocean advanced and receded with various periods of glaciation. I heard a lot about fossils and got to touch a lot of sand (which, really, I feel was unnecessary, sand always feels like sand). I also had the opportunity to ask a complete stranger if she wanted some acid ("Hey, do you want some acid?"). Relax Mom, it was HCl to check for the presence of calcite. 

Anyway, here's the part where I just plop in pictures and describe what's going on:

The waves were giant at the beach.

Like any trip outside a city in NZ, there were many sheep. Also, its lambing season. I love spring.

A moment of sunny "warmth."

A demonstrator, some wonderful outcrops which could be limestone, and a group of eager first year geology students at the top of the hill.

Here we are at a working quarry. I only put this picture in so you would know we really were on a school field-trip. And that the proper safety percautions were being taken.

And here are me and Sara, being appropriately academic and definitely paying attention to the wonders of quartz gravels underlying the Abbotsford Mudstone.

Sweet as cliffs. If only you know how hard the wind was blowing and how much I really thought someone was going to be blown off a cliff into the ocean. 

And the most geological germane part of the whole day. The awesome [like] 17 hand horse we saw at the last stop of the day. 

So basically, for those of you who are geologically savvy, you may be wondering why all the rocks I've been talking about, minus the schist, are sedimentary. I have mentioned in the past that Dunedin is built on an old volcano, and it really is. The youngest sedimentary rocks are triassic (a stab in the dark because I'm too lazy to look it up), and then the volcano began to erupt. So the Dunedin volcanics overlie the the Dunedin sedimentary sequence. It's all very exciting and definitely a step up from Fall Brook, for those of you lucky enough to remember said field-trip in 8th grade earth science.

Also, a big thanks to Sara for all the pictures, without which this would have been the most boring post ever. Actually, this post wouldn't exist since I didn't do one for the Volcano FT.