Christchurch, New Zealand 10.6.06

What an amazing experience this has been already. If for some reason I was forced to go home right now, I would be completly satisfied with the experience I’ve had until this point. I’ve learned so much in such a short period of time and, as expected, I’ve already begun my planning post ice time. New people are bound to bring insight and meaning to life and that has been happening daily since first arriving in Denver one week ago.

I’ve found two things especially funny since I left. One is that my first all expense paid “business” trip is as a janitor in Antarctica and the second being that venturing to the coldest, driest, most isolated continent on this planet has allowed me to meet people who I’ve been able to most closely relate to. When I expressed that to one girl in the program her response was that most people who go to the ice have a screw lose but that it’s usually a good one. It’s always comforting to meet people who are also wondering where they should go next with their life and who realize it’s okay not to know. Like truly does attract like.

I should backup for a moment and correct myself when I talk about being on the ice as I haven’t actually gotten there yet. My original ice date was Friday Oct. 5 out of Christchurch but because of weather conditions the flight has been pushed back until Saturday (tomorrow) morning. Instead of taking off and “boomeranging” back to Christchurch it’s much more cost effective to delay the flight until the weather conditions are absolutely ideal. I was informed today that a single round trip flight to McMurdo from Christchurh on a C-117 costs the United States Anarctic program around $22,000. However anxious I am to begin my ice time, it’s not as disappointing as it might sound to have our schedule moved back. Most of us are actually making more money off the $200 per day allowance in Christchurch than we will be at our jobs. We’re basically getting paid to hang out and sight see. Yesterday a group of us rented a couple of cars and popped over to some hot springs in the mountain town of Hanmer Springs about 125km north of Christchurch. I actually spent my 25th birthday at Hanmer Springs less than two years ago.

It’s a beautiful day in Christchurch and I’m beginning to feel a bit guilty for spending this time indoors. I’ll probably take a wander through the Botanical Gardens before meeting everyone a bit later in the Cathedral Square for dinner. I'm thrilled to be back in New Zealand...I don't think I've felt this good and had this kind of excitement keeping me up at night since I was here in 2005. I don't know what I'm more excited about, being on the ice for 4 1/2 months with some truly amazing people or coming back to these friendly little islands :) God bless New Zealand!

Cheers



Striking a pose after a relaxing day at the hotsprings