Here is a little update on my life at the moment:

After 6+ months of travel across two continents and 11 countries, I am now, more or less, settled down in the third and 12th–New Zealand. This small and scenic country in the far corner of the globe will be my home for the next year, where I will be traveling around and working on a Working Holiday Visa.

It’s been over half a year since I left home last August, and it has truly been quite the epic journey for me. From hiking around the European Alps to drinking beer at Oktoberfest in Munich, trekking through the high Himalayas of Nepal and riding camels in the deserts of India, ringing in the New Year with lanterns and fireworks in Chiang Mai, and skiing bottomless powder in Japan, the experiences of the last few months have created memories that will last a lifetime.

Having said that, I am ready to settle down a bit and have a place that feels like home again. I don’t think I will miss the early flights, enduring overnight train rides (no matter how cheap), and not-so-private hostel dorm rooms too much, though they made for plenty of good stories. Perhaps best of all, my bank account will finally be seeing some additions again after constantly dwindling down over the last few income-less months. In other words, I am still traveling, but not quite as the wayward bum I previously was (though still somewhat of a bum).

I arrived in New Zealand a little less than a month ago and have been busy getting myself set up since landing. The first week was spent in Christchurch where I had to do the mundane, but necessary, tasks of setting up a bank account, IRD number, phone plan, and insurance. Oh–and I bought a car! …as well as a whole heap of camping equipment and a mountain bike. So for now, I am all set to explore the wild and scenic landscapes of New Zealand.

But first, I had to find a temporary job as I spent the rest of my money on all these new toys.

Before I left Christchurch, however, I was able to see some old friends from back home–Nathan and Caile–who were on a cruise around New Zealand and docked in the city for a day. Unfortunately, we only had a few hours to spend together, but were able to catch up and make the most of it, highlighted by a scenic gondola ride up to a viewpoint overlooking the city and sea. How crazy it is to run into old friends from home in the other corner of the world!

I found a job on an apple orchard near Cromwell in Otago, where I have been for the last couple weeks. I was able to make a mini road trip out of drive here from Christchurch as I rode some bike trails at Mt. Hutt, visited Mt. Sunday–the filming location for the city of Edoras in the Lord of the Rings films, and took a scenic detour up the highway to Mt. Cook/Aoraki.

The orchard work is difficult, but rewarding, and I have made many new friends as there are about 15 of us here–all backpackers. We work together, cook, together, and party together.

I plan on staying here and working until meeting up with parents, who arrive in just over two weeks. I will travel with them for about a month, before settling down for a winter of working and skiing in Queenstown.

I have been in New Zealand for less than month, but I already have the sense that this is somewhere I could live. All the places I have visited thus far have brought me great enjoyment, but now it feels as if that chapter of my journey is ending, giving way to a new one. One that will surely be full of joy and adventure in this small, yet grand country.