Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Black Sand Beach and Waterfall

New Zealand Travel Diary, Entry #8

After listening to Amateur Traveler Podcast on New Zealand, it seems I made the wrong choice between Black Water Rafting and Waitomo Glowworm caves.  According to the podcast, black water rafting was really the experience he liked more than the glowworm caves. Before coming to New Zealand, I had heard wonderful things about black water rafting but not so much about glowworms. Black water rafting is simply rafting in darkness, under caves probably so that everything appears black, hence the name "Black Water Rafting". As you should have guessed, I went to see glowworms in a cave but did not go black water rafting. Anyway, there will be opportunities to do it sometime later. :D

As I promised in my previous blogpost, I will post pictures of waterfall and gorgeous black sand beach. You may wonder well how is the sand black? Does the sand derive its color from sedimentary rocks? That's what I thought. It turns out that black sand is a result of volcanic ash released during volcanic eruptions. Remember, New Zealand is mostly formed from volcanic eruptions and it still has several active volcanoes, the most recent of which eruped within the last decade, I think. 


My friend Alvarro with Waterfall in background. Photo by: Digital Subway

Beach is an absolute eye-soother for me, especially because I am from a land-locked country. The first time I saw sea/ocean was when I was 20 years old, went with a Christian group called InterVarsity through Trinity University to a beach called Port Aransas, a little further from famous Corpus Christi in Texas. It was special. Seeing black sand beach this time was really special too. We spent more than an hour taking pictures, making graffitti on the beach, not so much building sand castles though. We are a little too old for that, I guess.

 The beautiful Black Sand Beach. Photo by: Digital Subway
 Anna walking on stones at the beach. Photo by: Digital Subway

If you want to see more pictures, you can see it on my Picasa Photo Album.


Read Entry #7 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #6 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here
Read Entry #5 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Read Entry #4 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #3 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Waitomo Glowworm Caves

New Zealand Travel Diary, Entry #7

This past weekend, we went to see famous glowworms in Waitomo caves, about 3 hours drive south of Auckland, New Zealand. I had never been in a real cave before and needless to say, I was amazed. The cave was 4.5 million years old and made up of limestone. It had amazing shapes and formations. Unfortunately, no photography of any kind was permitted which is why I don't have any pictures of glowworms or limestone formations.


The image above is taken from the internet, but literally that is how amazing it looks inside. It's one of the most popular attractions among tourists that come to New Zealand. I will leave the science behind glow produced by these worms for you to figure out. It's really not that hard. It's just some kind of bio-luminescence. We did not go to black water rafting even though it would have been really cool. You gotta watch your spending!


This is not glowworm caves. This is simply a tunnel that came out of the cave. Photo: Digital Subway

There was a scenic reserve too where we took a stroll and I got nice images. I figured I could actually post at least one picture per blog. New Zealand is a heaven for photographers. You can get some really awesome pictures. I'm glad I bought by DSLR camera before this trip.


Waitomo Scenic Reserve. Photo: Digital Subway


Waitomo Scenic Reserve. Photo: Digital Subway

In my next post, I will include images of waterfall and black sand beach. Ever seen black sand beach? It was really amazing. Keep reading my posts :D

Read Entry #6 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here
Read Entry #5 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here
Read Entry #4 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #3 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Booze, Partying and all that Bad "Stuff"

New Zealand Travel Diary, Entry #6

If you have not noticed already, there's one component in my New Zealand Travel Diary that has been under-represented. Yes, it has been done advertently. What could it be? Alcohol, parties and drunkenness and all that bad stuff, silly.

Trust me, studying abroad involves a lot of partying and alcohol, irrespective of the location you choose. Someplace more, someplace less but it will be there nonetheless. My friends tell me that people studying abroad in Australia party even harder. It's a big party country, apparently. 

I am not going to tell you about my stupid adventures or crazy nights (as if I remember anyway) on my blog at least. Neither will I specifically quote someone or write about them if it is not appropriate. I know you would love to read about crazy nights me and my flatties (flat-mates) have (frequently). But putting it out there publicly just does not seem right. We do spend a lot of money on booze and partying though, more than grocery, stationery, travel or anything else. You got that right.

There are some bars here that are very popular among students and have low prices to meet students' budget. On weekend nights, this city feels like a big party town because hundreds of students swarm up to these bars. And Kiwis like to party on Wednesday nights too. I should ask them why. Among the popular ones are: Cassette, Margaritas and Globe. But the atmosphere inside these bars is less openly erotic than most American bars. Grinding is not a popular sport in these bars. If you do see people grinding, usually they are Americans.

Even though I have you under the impression that I am a big party animal, believe me, I will change back to being nerd once I go back to the US.

(Note: grinding is a popular activity among young people, a special form of dance I should say. Look up the definition yourself)

Read Entry #5 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Read Entry #4 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #3 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here
 

First Week of Classes at Univ of Auckland

New Zealand Travel Diary, Entry #5

The moment I walked in my Anthropology Class my professor looked at me and said, 
Oh my God, you look like Jesus!
I looked at her and said, "Oh really?" I said to myself, "Is that a good thing or bad thing?" Guess what course? "Worldview and Religion". 

Of course this was not the first time someone had said so. My unshaven beard and disheveled long hair has gotten me a lot of comments, some of which I don't know how to interpret. After the class, I came back to my apartment and looked at the mirror trying to decide if it was time to shave. After a quick debate, my laziness scored a victory(as it usually does) and I decided I was not in a shaving mood.

And in my Thermodynamics course, the professor started out by saying, 
19 years before when I took this Thermodynamics course at Cambridge, I failed it. So when I was asked to teach this course, I said, "Oh my God." I had to learn everything again.
From listening to his three lectures so far, I feel he has not learnt it quite yet. He does a terrible job at explaining concepts. He makes fun of himself several times in the class and that's the only time people are not yawning or leaving their seats for the door. He seems like a nice guy and a nice human being but he struggles with delivering clearly what he wants to say.

My Control Systems professor seems to be quite good. Looking at the handouts and future course materials that contain plenty of graphs, it seemed to me those would be appropriate for learning in labs. We learn most of those concepts involving graphs in labs but here they have labs only three times a semester for this course which is why I guess this difference. 

Anyway, I don't want to be super-judgemental about everything here. I am quite impressed with their state of technology in classrooms. Every classroom has multiple projectors and screens along with laser pointers and magnifier for hard copies too. Not all of our classes have these back at Trinity University. But the size of student body is huge here and since I am taking four classes in four different departments (Electrical Engr, Chemical Engr, Anthropology and Politics), there is not a single person with whom I have more than one class.

Read Entry #4 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #3 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Monday, July 19, 2010

Getting Phone Unlocked

New Zealand Travel Diary, Entry #4

Anxiety can change your perception and experience more than you think they do. I was trying to get my phone unlocked through T-mobile since I want to use it in New Zealand. Most telecom carriers lock phones purchased through their contract so that it can only be used through their networks. (It's so unfair, I know).

To get it unlocked, I called T-mobile customer service and was assured a code in my email within 24 hours. Surprisingly, the email contained a blank where a code was supposed to be. From New Zealand, I called T-mobile customer service to tell them about the error they had made. It turned out that since my name was not on the primary user account, the primary user had to call them and have them add my name. Only then could they issue me an unlock code. Such a bummer. Who can beat their bureaucracy?

After doing all they said had to be done, T-mobile sent me a code finally. I tried it in my phone but it didn't work. Arrggh!! They just don't want us to have the code or use their phone outside their coverage area. Why don't they just say that instead of wasting all of our time? I called them several times again but i could not connect and the message was always that customer representatives were busy or that it was not their hour of operation. This frustration totally spoiled my day. It rained almost all day yesterday and I didn't have an umbrella. (My fault, totally). Instead of having a waterproof jacket (which almost everyone does because it rains a lot here), I was wearing a semi-dry jacket since my clothes had not dried from the other day. (Read about laundry nightmare in Entry #3).

Good news. I was able to call T-mobile customer service today and made it clear how frustrated I was and that it was my 10th time I was calling. The person on the other line was very understanding and he successfully assisted me in getting the phone unlocked. Within a few hours, I bought a Vodafone SIM card and now I have a working NZ phone. Yay!! All my friends were like, "Puru, you are being ridiculous! Just get a phone, man!" I knew I eventually would but didn't want to pay extra for another phone. And after I go to Nepal in a few months, I would have to buy another phone. 

After getting through this problem, I also went ahead and completed my application for HANZ 18+ card which is an identification for youths above age of 18. The only other acceptable form of identification is our passport. And I don't want to be carrying my passport in every bar, pub or wherever. This success made my day today.

Read Entry #3 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Laundry Nightmare at WSA in Auckland

New Zealand Diary, Entry #3

Living in a foreign country has its good and not-so-good times. Little deviations from what happens and what was expected could become frustrating. Take laundry for example. It costs NZ $3 for using a washer and another NZ $3 for using a dryer. In US $ that's a little more than US $2 for washer and the same amount for dryer. Isn't that too steep? Well, that's hardly part of my frustration though. I wouldn't mind paying an extra buck or two as long as the work gets done.

Wellesley student Apartment Building, Photo by: Digital Subway

Let me brief you about my unfortunate laundry experience yesterday. I live in Welleseley Student Apartments, managed by AUT (Auckland University of Technology). The laundry machines only accept coins but coin change machine was broken. I had all my clothes and laundry detergent already in the washer. (My fault, I know). I walked down the streets to a mini mart and asked for change at which my request was rejected. It turned out more students went to the same mart for a change than to make a purchase. His frustration was understandable. I did manage to get some change at another store by resorting to my emotional appeal and making it clear that I already had all my clothes inside the washer.

After completion of washing cycle, I loaded my clothes into the dryer. 40 minutes after, I opened the washer door only to find the clothes were still soaked without any signs of dryer even doing its work. I checked to see if I had forgotten to press the start button. Nope. My coins were already deposited into it's coffers and the machine had indeed started when I had left. Arrgggh!!!! I had to do repeat drying cycle. Time for more coins. No way! I was not going to those stores again. I went upstairs to  my room, on 9th floor and checked all over. I found one NZ $1 coin and one NZ $2 coin. Fortunately enough, the coin change machine worked if you were exchanging coins only. I dropped my NZ $2 coin and got two NZ $1 coins.

I loaded my wet clothes into another dryer (just to be extra-careful) and put coins and started the machine. This time I made sure the machine had started. 40 minutes later, I opened the dryer door again only to find my clothes had merely been transported  in space but unchanged along time domain. Not a single drop of water or moisture had evaporated from any of clothes' surface. Their state had not changed a bit since I loaded them from washer to first dryer and then second. This was absolutely ridiculous. No more coins to redo it. Fu@k. I missed laundrying at Trinity for the first time. For US $1 each, I could use washer and dryer. And I didn't have to worry about getting coins since all it required was a swipe of my Tiger Card.

Calmly, without kicking any of the dryers, I took out all my wet clothes and carried it back to my ninth floor apartments and hung it out to dry on  a cloth drying hanger. With so many clothes all around, my room looks like a drying room. I opened my windows to let in air to speed the process. Of course since it is the peak of winter, it didn't take long for my room to become frigid. I woke up next morning to find none of my jackets or sweaters had dried up. I was stupid enough to laundry all my warm clothes at once. I had to wear my semi-dry jacket to class at 8 in the morning. Welcome to a life in foreign country.

I could go rambling on and on about other little unsatisfactory experiences here but these are all of course part of learning to live in a foreign country.

Read Entry #2 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.
Read Entry #1 of New Zealand Travel Diary Series here.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Kia Ora

New Zealand Travel Diary, Post #2
In New Zealand, you greet people by saying "Kia Ora". This does sound a little like "Kya ho raha" which in Hindi means What's going on?

New Zealand is a beautiful country that has diverse landscapes. I am living in the heart of Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. Auckland is a very vibrant city which has lots of immigrants from all over, especially Asia and Europe. To me the whole city feels like a big university because everywhere there are students. It reminds me of Cambridge area in Boston.
 Auckland Skyline. Photo by: Digital Subway


A Traditional Maori Performance at a Marae. Photo by: Digital Subway
But I like it here in Auckland more than I did in San Antonio. Here, people walk on streets and the city is compact so you could walk to the grocery store, shopping malls or the university easily. Everything is in walking distance. My friends and I have a little wander every now and then and explore different parts of the city. A few days ago, we took a stroll and hiked up to Mt. Eden. The view from the top overlooking the Auckland skyline towards North and a beautiful romantic sunset on the other side was breathtaking.

 Auckland City. (I really like this photo I took) Photo by: Digital Subway

Next day, we strolled around a park and went deeper to discover a dense canopy of rainforest like trees. Then another day, we went around the main city and harbour and took some cool pictures. Still, there is so much to explore in this city and nearby. And of course, South Island needs to be explored during the Mid-Semester Break.
 Taking photos of Travel while travelling :D Photo by: Digital Subway

This semester is going to be a fun-filled one. I am definitely looking forward to it. I already like the change from my semester at Trinity University in San Antonio to this one at University of Auckland. It may not be as intellectually productive but it will be a different one in several ways.

Read previous entry in this New Zealand Travel Diary Series: Entry 1