⚲ Christchurch, Aotearoa/New Zealand (South Island)
(Translation: Welcome!)
And touchdown – I was in New Zealand! It felt quite surreal, as I had been planning this trip for such a long time, and New Zealand is so far from home – and a whole other hemisphere too! After a whole ordeal with my passport not scanning at the electronic gates, the lovely people at Christchurch Airport helped me out and allowed me entry into their country, and then I was really in New Zealand!
I hadn’t had as much sleep as I would have liked on the plane, and the vegetarian breakfast option was… questionable, so my plan was to check into my hostel, have a quick shower, and then go and find some food. My main aim, though, was not to fall asleep! I really wanted to push through and sleep at night to help with the time difference and jet lag. Although, as many of you have probably guessed, this plan was very quickly foiled!
Check-in wasn’t until 3, so I left my bags in storage and went to find some food and toiletries (specifically suncream, because despite it being on my “do not forget” list, I somehow still forgot to pack it). Once I was checked in, I made the mistake of sitting on my very comfy bed whilst booking my coach to my next stop… and fell into a deep sleep. It was only about an hour and a half, but honestly, that was enough to leave me feeling completely disorientated!
I realised that, as my coach was at 7am the day after next, this only gave me one full day in Christchurch – so I suddenly had quite a lot to fit in! Thankfully, I also had the evening ahead of me, so I decided to head down to the Riverside Market.
As many of you will know, I love a theme, and I love my music – so it felt very fitting that one of my favourite bands at the moment is from New Zealand. I’d had a feeling their music would be the soundtrack to this road trip, so I popped in my headphones, selected Drax Project, pressed play, and off I went.
The walk down to the Riverside Market was lovely, taking me through a pretty park and then, unsurprisingly, along a river – very on brand! The market itself was beautifully laid out, with cute fairy-light lanterns, and just had a really lovely vibe overall. After eating (and enjoying the live entertainment from the table next to me – potentially a joint stag/hen do?), I headed back along the river. By this point, it was getting dark and everything was starting to light up, which looked so beautiful.
By the time I got back, I decided it was just about late enough to go to bed. I was trying hard to fight the jet lag, but I think I held out as long as I could! Even still, I woke up at 2am, wide awake… which was not ideal. I did manage to force myself back to sleep eventually, but it wasn’t easy. I was just too jetlagged and too excited to finally be here!
Much Love,
Sara 💛
Song of the Day: “Toto”, Drax Project. This one opens with “I quit my job” and then goes on to sing about how essentially life is short and we don’t know what will happen, but embracing the unknown and enjoying the ride is the best part. Having quit my job to make time for myself and to travel the world solo, which has always been a dream of mine, this song really resonates with me. I’m looking forward to this chapter of my life, but it is also a risk that I’m taking and therefore, a little scary. Whilst I may feel a little anxiety of leaving the financial security of a job, I feel hopeful about “stepping into the unknown” of this journey. I have got too used to riding the wave that is grief, and I know that will never stop, but hopefully with this trip I can also celebrate and enjoy the ride of chasing a dream, and getting some much needed rest and headspace.(Also we love a reference embedded in a song – especially when it’s a chance to “bless the rains”!)