Life after studying abroad

I've been back from Australia for nearly a month now. It feels strange when I think about it. The memories are still fairly fresh, the connections I made still strong, and yet it all seems so far away. Perhaps it is because I know there's no going back. Sure, I can see my friends again someday, and I can visit Perth again in the future, but there is no going back to the life that I had there for those five months; the same people won't be there, I'll never be there under the same circumstances again, and the relationships I had with people have been forever changed. This is not necessarily a bad thing, it's just how it is. We've gone from "irl" to virtual, and that really changes dynamics in a relationship. However, just because you're not physically together anymore and the contact you have with each other is primarily over the phone/internet, it doesn't mean it's not real. Because it was real at some point and if you choose for it to be so, it can continue to be a real friendship, a real connection. Maybe I'm the only one who has a hard time grasping that, but reminding myself every so often makes it easier to be away from the people I grew so close to while abroad. For indeed, it has been hard!

So what have I been up to since I've been home? For the most part, I've been unwinding at home, processing through the times I've had and going through pictures. I started driving again after a whopping two years of not being behind the wheel, and I've picked it up again very quickly and rediscovered the freedom and joy of coasting along while listening to some good music in the car. I've spent pretty much every weekend so far camping with my parents. I went through a few days where I was very sad about not being in Australia, so I made myself busy by doing a huge purge of my bedroom and throwing out a lot of old stuff that I don't use anymore. Let me tell you, it was therapeutic. 

Last week I had the privilege of being a mentor for the Washington Aerospace Scholars residency, which is phase two of a two-part program for high school juniors to learn about aerospace engineering. It provides great experience and provides amazing opportunities to learn about the industry, explore career options, and build valuable study skills, teamwork skills, and lots of fun. The first part is an online class during the school year, so the program isn't just about fun; it's hard work. As an alum, I was really excited to act as a mentor to this year's students, giving them pointers and insights during their project work over the course of the residency week. It was interesting to be on the other side of the action, so to speak, because I felt as though I was dead weight on the team by not helping with the workload; then I realized I wasn't actually a member of the team and that my job was to supervise their work, not actually do any of it! Still, I was proud of my team as I watched them go through what I did a few years ago, with grace and some tiny freak-out sessions during which there was some yelling and frantic arm-waving. But that's all part and parcel!

Some pictures of the places I've been to the past few weeks:

Deception Pass

 Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest

Birch Bay

Grayland beach area

Westport

 Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park

 Cape Flattery, Neah Bay

Cape Flattery is the northwestern-most point of the continental United States.
In this picture I'm sitting right on the edge of the country, looking out
at the Pacific Ocean at the rest of the world

That's all I've got for now, so until next time!

~ JP

New Zealand in a nutshell...or a video

Hey look! Here's a video documenting my time in Enzed (that's NZ): CLICK FOR YOUTUBE VIDEO

New Zealand was a lot of fun, and it's the first and only big trip I've ever planned and carried out all on my own without my parents or other facilitators. I'm really proud of the research I did beforehand, and it definitely taught me that there is value in planning. I'm not one to just wing things, even though in some cases that may be more fun/feasible.
It was also a great way for me to get a little taste of a different culture and different people, and I was able to compare to both Perth and the US and gain an even more well-informed perspective.
People have asked me what my favorite part of the trip was. I always give a really annoying answer by saying I can't choose a favorite; all parts were good. The Auckland War Memorial Museum particularly resonated with me, though. It was very well-designed, extremely educational, and had neat stuff. It took a few hours to get through, and could've taken even longer had my traveling companion Cara and I chosen to, but we made that stop during our Coast-to-Coast walk, and we wanted to finish the trek before it got too late.

The first full day in NZ, we went to the Waitomo glowworm caves. No cameras were allowed inside so I didn't get to take pictures, but I don't think it would've done the glowworms justice. We went on a boat tour within the caves where we just floated around in the pitch dark, the only light source being the bioluminescent little blue worms spattered all over the cave ceiling and walls. It was surreal and I remember just staring up in dazed awe at how beautiful it was; it felt nearly like I was floating in space staring at stars. Waitomo was about a 2-3 hour drive out from Auckland and the tour bus driver gave commentary as he drove us, so it was really nice seeing the scenery and little towns that we passed along the way.

As for the Coast-to-Coast walk, I highly recommend it to anybody in Auckland who has a day to kill! And your feet, because we took 9 hours to do it including going into the museum and also eating lunch. After the walk, my feet were equal parts in agony and numbness and were tingling for about the last 2 hours of the walk. Regardless, the walk was fantastic as it took us through many of the iconic spots in Auckland: Mt. Eden, One Tree Hill, the museum, the ferry wharf, a couple of parks, and was just a really good way to get to know the different aspects of the city. As with all things, it's what you make of it, and the walkway has a specific path to follow but you can stop whenever you want or make detours, so you can really make it your own adventure.

Aside from that, we went ziplining at Waiheke Island, which is a lovely place to visit in itself and I think I would've liked to spend the night there to explore more of it. There is a small village with cute shops and food joints, and the beaches along the island are beautiful as well as the forested areas. I got a pretty good view by ziplining, and the company which I did this through, EcoZip, is a not-for-profit organization which uses revenue to preserve the bit of rainforest on its campus and provide educational and fun experiences for visitors. As someone who had been in a nature-based tourism class and was learning about ecotourism and how to conduct it sustainably and effectively, I can tell you EcoZip is doing it right! (I'm not being sponsored or paid, I really genuinely believe this).

We also did a "Bush and Beach Wilderness Tour" which took us from Auckland city central to the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, where we saw ancient Kauri trees in the rainforest, a black-sand volcanic beach at Piha, the Karekare falls, and learned a lot about the plant life of New Zealand.

Then we visited Rangitoto Island, which was covered in dark volcanic rock which we hiked through and climbed over and under. My favorite part of this was going through the lava caves, which were honestly a little bit creepy at first, but also very neat. It was pitch black down there and I was glad I brought a flashlight because my phone flashlight didn't feel like enough for me. After the caves, we made the long and arduous hike up to the summit where we had lunch and looked out at Auckland across the water. So many beautiful views.

Anyway, I told myself I wasn't going to be able to say much, but here we are yet again... watch the video for visuals!

Until next time,

~ JP