new zealand

What you see in these photos is just a glimpse, but it was there in kiwi-country where my entire world opened up for the first time. I drove on the opposite side of the road, survived a 7.8 magnitude earthquake and relied on the kindness of strangers in sticky situations. I hiked a volcano, gazed upon glaciers, kayaked amongst white caps in Milford Sound. I saw the lupines bloom at Lake Tekapo and watched the sun set over an endless black sand beach. I surfed with wild dolphins and observed the rare yellow-eyed penguin in the petrified forrest of the Catlins. I slept in a “gypsy wagon”, a train car, and more hostels I can count, and lost a lot of my hygiene in the process. I met remarkable people from all over the world and turned some into life-long friends. I road tripped with nothing but a old map and a new friend.

I experienced more than I thought possible in one lifetime, let alone two months, and preserve it in my most prized photographs and memories. Forever imprinting wanderlust onto my Midwestern heart.