Sooo.. Now that I've had a couple days to explore and get my bearings, I can tell you a little more about Dunedin.
One of the first things I did was to purchase a cell phone. And let me tell you - I defffinitely regret not bringing my American cell phone to New Zealand! First off, I spent $100 on the crappiest phone I've ever owned and on top of THAT I'm paying $40 a month for 2500 texts and like an hour of calling. Not exactly ideal. Even a midget's thumbs would have a hard time texting on this piece of crap. It's back to T9 and a lack of good ringtones for this guy! On the up-side, since these phones can't do ANYTHING the battery lasts a whole year and a half. Seriously!
Later on during the week, the International Program put on a few events for all the international kids. One of those was a train trip through the Taieri Gorge. By the way, let me just say that the Dunedin Railway station is incredible! I got a couple good shots of the place. Beautiful lawns and gorgeous architecture everywhere you look.
The scenery itself was pretty awesome, but it was definitely designed to be more of a social event. At first, I just stuck to my seat but, eventually, I started milling around, walking from carriage to carriage, taking photos outside where I could get a better shot, and really just sitting down next to anyone and everyone whenever a seat was open. It was a really good time to meet new people and I got a ton of numbers from people from all over the world. I met people from Spain, like Oriol who wants to start an indoor soccer team. Wesley from France. Jitka from the Czech Republic. Christin, Lena, and Kat from Germany. And, of course, I met a number of people from the States and Canada - but that's boring.
After the train trip, there was a party for the International Kids at a place called the 10 Bar. The party itself wasn't bad, there were hors d'oevres (ah! had to look that one up for spelling.. HATE that..) being served, a dance floor, an adequate amount of flashing lights to give myself a seizure, insanely high-priced drinks (like $8 for a little cocktail!), and lots of international students. Again, I was meeting people from all over the place. I met a cute girl from France, one from Norway, some guys from England, the Netherlands.. ALL over. After a while, I really had to focus to keep all the names, places, and Majors straight in my head - I kind of enjoy it though. It's kind of a personal game for me to see how much I can remember about everyone by the time I leave. I even drill myself the next day to see how much I've retained - I know, I'm a nerd like that.
On a side note, there are definitely people dancing with torches on the lawn right in front of my library window. I'm definitely regretting leaving my camera at my flat... Looks kinda like this though:
Before or after the International Party, we met up with our good friend Neil, the local, who showed us a bit more of Dunedin. After playing some billiards at a local poolhouse, Neil showed us to one of his favorite Cafe/Bar's called the Metro - he knew the manager that worked there. I actually really enjoyed this venue! The Metro had a really cozy feel to it. It was decked out with fire pits in the middle of tables, dim lighting, a nice staff and, if you said "Aye! `Ave you been working out, mate?" to the guy working the counter you got a 50% discount! (Thank you, Neil, for that little tidbit!) That worked out in our favor, even though the person working was a chick and had no clue why me and Nathan (my good buddy from Seattle) were complimenting her. She eventually caught on ("Oh.. You boys want the discount!") and we enjoyed a nice pizza for the 5 of us around a warm fire with organic beers to top it off!
Another thing that took a bit of getting used to was the food. Not the taste, though - the prices! A footlong from Subway is NOT $5, instead, it's about $7.50. There's no Dollar menu at McDonalds. The mocha I just bought was $4.20. A single bag of popcorn cost me $3.50 at a corner store! And most meals (if you don't get something real low quality) are about $10, if you're lucky. Fortunately, me and my flatmate, Jason, have done a pretty good job finding some good deals. We've been eating a whole lot of sushi at this place called Savoury Japan, realll greasy food at Squiddies (pretty much the McDonalds of NZ, as far as your health is concerned) - but you can get fish for $1.90 and heaps of chips (fries) for $2.60 - and Neil was good enough to tell me about a $3 student lunch every Monday and Thursday at the Clubs and Societies Center which I definitely plan to hit up. Last but not least, kiwis were $1.20 per kilo! I thinkkk I've got a new favorite fruit...
A couple days later, I had coffee with a girl named Christin from Germany that I met at the train trip. We went to a place called Modak's that the Kiwi locals love. I went here with Jason, Nathan, and Blake (a neighbor) a couple days earlier and we really enjoyed it. It's a warm little place where you can sit down, play some chess if you so desire, and write on the walls that are decked out with blackboards.
Christin then told me that her place was heated - unlike mine - and I instantly knew we would become best friends. Then we hung out with her flatmates a bit at her place and we all played some games, including "Never Have I Ever..," spun coins all over the dinner table, bounced them into glasses stacked 5 cups high, and an assortment of other activities that kept us entertained for hours, allll over a nice bottle of wine. We're real easily entertained here..
The next morning after, we went to find the Steepest Street in the World! I had no clue it was in Dunedin but apparently Baldwin St. is either the steepest street in the world orrr the 2nd steepest street in the world, depending on who you talk to (the other one is in Los Angeles or something.. it's debatable which one's steeper). Took about 20 minutes to get there, it was pretty steep, we hiked it, the view was gorgeous - that pretty much covers it.
As I was exploring the campus, I came across a place I did not quite expect to find - an awesome sound-proof room with a heater, a fair view of Dunedin AND ... a piano with a gorgeous tune. It was love at first sight. I will easily be able to record my music, play and write to my heart's content, and sing my lungs out as often as I want. It's quite possibly the best surprise I've ever stumbled upon. I'll take a picture of it sometime. Oh, and I almost forgot, there's more than one! I just found a few more today which means I will definitely not be lacking for hobbies.
The locals here are awesome. Most of them are very friendly. I've never had any trouble making small talk in class and finding a couple buddies. The girls are a bit shy though! It's kind of cute. Every time I talk to one, they have a sort of sheepish smile, ask me if I've acted in Grey's Anatomy before (once I mention being from Seattle), and talk to me as if they're afraid to say something wrong! It's probably because I'm American but it could be because of my overwhelming sense of charm ... I'm going to pretend it's the latter.
To my surprise, my workload has been non-existent. I'm taking 3 classes, never have more than 1 class a day, and my earliest class is at 9 AM on Thursdays (not bad, eh?). Class seems like it should be pretty easy and, apparently, we have a whole MONTH to study for Finals! Sweet-as, mate..
Alright, so I never thought I'd say this before but... I'm in love with the library, here. It really is amazing. Maybe it's because I've forgotten what it feels like to be warm and not on the verge of frostbite but, I will definitely spend a good amount of time in the Central library. Unlike the University of Oregon, there are outlets literally EVERYWHERE you sit. No fighting over outlets like back home. They've also got these cool desks with built in lamps that you can turn on and off (also with outlets close by) and these strange (albeit, slightly creepy) study rooms that you can see into from the main lobby room that looks like a honeycomb! I will definitely have to take pictures later but, take my word for it, it's awesome.
Wellllll.. this was a pretty long post, so I think I'll save the rest for another time! Hope you enjoyed it and.. until next time!
E noho ra!
- Jake Brenneman
