The End of the Beginning

And so here we are, at the end of the road of my long trip to New Zealand.  I have been back home for just over a month at this point, and I have to say re-entry was a lot easier than I thought it would be.  I hadn’t been expecting how quickly I settled back into a routine at home, but I guess that’s due to the fact that four days after I got home I started an internship (best way to get over 18-hour jet lag!). I missed my family SO much while I was abroad, and I am so happy to have gotten back just in time for Christmas, New Years, and a couple of birthday celebrations.  

One of the things that I (stupidly) did not think to prepare myself for upon arriving back in the states was the weather.  New Zealand was just getting into the middle of the summer when I left, and the day I got back to the states it was snowing!  I thought everything was so dark too - the last sunset I saw in Christchurch was at 9 - something, and in Jersey the sun set at 4!

I titled this post "The End of the Beginning" because I know that my experiences traveling the world have just started.  This trip has brought me to five countries I had never been before: Greece, United Arab Emirates, Australia, New Zealand, and the Cook Islands.  I never thought that I would be able to do something like this, but the most important thing I learned abroad was to never underestimate my abilites.  I have a lot of things to learn about myself, and I am thankful to New Zealand for kickstarting my next great adventure in my life.  

I am so grateful for everything that IES Abroad has done for me and all the support they have given me for studying abroad.  Nothing can prepare you for moving 9,000 miles away from everything you know, but being welcomed with open arms by Eunice definitely helped.  I’ll miss the laid-back vibes of Christchurch, but I am SO looking forward to returning to Rochester, my friends, and my future.