Thankful.

I found these excerpts in my journal today. Stuff I was writing from my heart earlier in the trip...it describes perfectly how I feel about being here (overwhelmingly thankful) and how I've felt about the people I'm with since the day I met them.

Lord, 
THANK YOU.


You are so GOOD. Everything about You is wonderful... I can see it so clearly in this gorgeous world You created and in the people I get to be with every day.


....Thank You for this opportunity, for taking me to a new place to see You in new ways. 


....Every person here with me is so beautiful and so unique. I'm learning so much from them. Everyone here appreciates the beauty of this world and is chasing after free life with their whole beings. Satisfy that desire in us completely- exactly how You intended to when You formed us, creating us each exactly how You meant to. 


Lord, YOU ARE GOOD AND YOU HAVE BIG PLANS FOR THIS GROUP. Set our souls on fire. You came to give us life to the FULL. 

My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.
-John 10:10

Day 7- Nelson

On the seventh day, we rested.
After so much fun and adventure, it was nice to have an unplanned day. To sleep in a bit. Slow down and let our bodies catch up.
-An artistic coffee shop
-A nap in the car by the beach
-Lunch in the garden of a winery and a little wine tasting
-Walk through the Queen's Garden

Early the next morning we headed back to Auckland to settle into our hotel, do laundry, relax, and get ready for me to meet up with my group in the morning. Stephanie & Caitlin met us for dinner down on the waterfront. We had a blast catching up and topped off a great time at dinner with hokey pokey ice cream. (Creamy vanilla with bits of honeycomb...a Kiwi special) The next day, I gave Mama Hages a goodbye hug and met up with a group of forty or so Americans for a week of welcoming.

Day 6-Marlborough Sound

In the morning we found ourselves at the Nelson farmer's market. We were having so much fun shopping around that we completely lost track of time and almost missed our boat ride in Marlborough Sound. But we did make it, along with a generous supply of fresh fruit and homemade bread for lunch. 

The biggest, juiciest, and most delicious cherries I've ever had.

There are two roads going into Picton. The one that took us down the mountain looked like this:

I'm not sure how we survived with our stomachs in tact, but it was definitely a fun ride with some great views along the way.

In Picton we hopped on our mailboat cruise. The day was chilly and a bit rainy but we got to sit inside the catamaran by all of the mail that had to be delivered to expectant families who lived on secluded islands in the Marlborough Sound.

The day's deliveries

Our captain and tour guide, their mailman

At each stop, there was someone waiting on the edge of a dock with an empty mail bag in hand. Sometimes we were greeted by entire families, pets, or grumpy old men. These were my favorites:

A little pack of piglets ran away squealing as we pulled up...

But the grown-ups stuck around because they knew they would be fed a loaf of old bread.

Believe it or not, the pigs that came to meet the boat were wild...and very friendly.

Waiting for the mailman to throw him a bone.

Little Kiwis ready for rugby

A very sweet, chatty old couple

Day 5- Nelson

-Flew from Queenstown to the tiny Nelson airport (It doesn't even have a baggage claim. They just drive your bags around to the front of the building and you pick them up outside.)
-Dropped our stuff at the Trailways hotel
-Walked along the river and followed the trail up the hill to the "Centre of New Zealand"
-Passed through the Botanics Reserve, the field where the first official game of rugby was played in New Zealand
-Beautiful town with flowers blooming everywhere
-Dinner in town, walked back to our hotel

A pull-off on the side of the road on our way to the airport

The main road- winding along the lakes

Botanic Reserve- site of the first NZ rugby game

View from the Centre of New Zealand

Is it really the centre of New Zealand? It depends on how you define "centre." The top of this hill was used as the central survey point for the first geographical survey of New Zealand. But the actual middle point of the country is in the Spooners Range in the Golden Downs Forest. A bit of false advertising... but we can forgive it because it led us to this amazing view.

Saw a little girl holding a MASSIVE bunny in the Queen's Gardens

Waterfalls and Seals

Day 4- Dinner

We were just sitting outside enjoying a nice evening meal when all of the sudden...
WE WERE ATTACKED BY A DEMON BIRD.
It all started with a piece of cauliflower being stolen from a bowl of vegetables. My mom screamed so loud that a couple of waiters came outside to check on us. But that was just the beginning.
The nasty thing would sneak up behind us and fly through our hair, barely missing our heads as it dive-bombed our plates. Once it even made off with a big bite of my lamb.

I'm sure we did our fair share of damage to the American reputation with all of our screaming at dinner time. I also may or may not have gotten up and chased it around with a steak knife. Sorry...not sorry.

Don't pretend like that's not the scariest thing you've ever seen. 

Side note: Lamb fillet tastes great. But it looks so disgusting you won't want to eat it. Go for the lamb shank instead.

Day 4- Driving Back to Te Anau

The one-lane tunnel through the mountain, the only way to Milford Sound

Inside the tunnel

Out on the other side! Just hanging out on top, watching cars come out under me.

Can you see me!?!?

Natural ice bridge

When we came back to our car, these birds were hanging out on top of it.