Rachel Schnaitman – Final Blog Post

Reflecting upon my travels through the land of the birds brings back so many amazing memories. Between arriving bleary-eyed at Auckland and leaving Christchurch after our Antarctic adventure I have experienced the time of my life. Being a wildlife conservation major I have a great love and appreciation for nature and animals and my main objective for this trip was to see and learn about things that I could never experience anywhere else in the world. Coming to New Zealand definitely made that dream come true. I got to experience nature at its finest and to see what the last settled country looked like in all its majestic glory. Though I would have liked to spend more time looking at all the flora and fauna New Zealand has to offer, I think I have achieved my goal. I saw so many different bird species that I never would have gotten to see in Delaware unless I was visiting a zoo.

I can't exactly pinpoint the highlight of the trip because what I enjoyed most was the pleasure of experiencing New Zealand for the first time with wide open curious eyes. I really loved all of the new experiences I got to experience in New Zealand and being a first time foreign traveler. I enjoyed the culture, the food, the flora and fauna, the scenery, and so much more. As I look back I wouldn't change anything about the trip. I got to do and experience so much more than I ever dreamed possible and I loved every minute of it. I think this trip has definitely opened my eyes to the world beyond the US and has made me all the more curious and anxious to experience other countries and cultures.