A long while later...

In the meantime of the last post until now I have: got a new roommate, turned 21, finished Queenstown winter, moved from Queenstown to Whakatane, got a job at a strawberry farm, started getting fit, went on a school camp, went to Wellington for 24 hours, moved to Canada, got into a serious car accident, started work as a ski instructor and spent the last two days upside down in powder having the best time.

It's been great. xx

Itchy feet & six day weeks

This post is almost pointless. It's pointless in the fact that I haven't planned it, probably won't edit it and will hold almost nothing of substance or importance.

Without further ado, pointlessness!

Remarkables sunrise

Yesterday was my day off, why I didn't properly plan and write a blog post yesterday is because I was too busy doing absolutely nothing. I watched hours of Suits 4/5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and two movies (McFarland, USA 3.5/5⭐️⭐️⭐️✩ and The Longest Ride 2/5⭐️⭐️). Now it's just gone 7am and I'm on my way to work very shortly (in fact, I should've left already but I've decided to go in a bit later).

While I was using my singular day off (we're working 6 day weeks due to high business levels) for pure escapism I did indeed feel the need to escape. Escape to; the warmth of springtime, swimming, riding horses, eating fresh fruit, digging my toes into the sand, daylight until 10pm.

Recently a person by the name of Deni posted an extremely valid reminder in a community forum about the importance of looking after each other in winter months. Seasonal Affective Disorder is a full-on thing - depression brought on during autumn and winter thought to be due to lack of light. It is a timely update especially as seasonal staff who spend double the amount of time in winter.

This is how I'm going to try to look after myself:
💟 Do exercise
💟 Eat good food
💟 Be kind to myself
💟 Sleep lots
💟 Surround myself with people I love

That's it, that's all.
xx

June Favourites

This song! I live in winter permanently and it makes me feel like I'm in Hawaii with a warm breeze kissing my skin... 

I found the song above on 8tracks.com in a playlist called beach and sun.

Continuing the Hawaii theme at a Hawaiian party! I almost never have photos taken of me and even more, photos that I like.

Aloha!

Oooh! I have a new camera! Which I am totally in love with (and that took the photo above). If you're in the market for a new camera, here it is!

As is the case with the internet, I randomly found Caroline Calloway's Instagram and absolutely fell down the rabbit hole! Her Instagram is so awesome, I definitely recommend reading all the way from the start.

Gala Darling is always my first port of call for good feels on the internet. She has so many fantastic posts, and she's a Kiwi! Bonus!

Everyone already knows who Louise from Sprinkle of Glitter is but if you've seen her on YouTube and not read her blog yet, go ahead and indulge with that first link!

Of course, Louise's partner in crime is the effervescent Zoella who also has a blog but isn't as updated as regularly. Worth a look for pretty pastels and a stretch in luxury. 

More Instagram delights!

Carin Olsson

Nicole Warne

Jessica Stein

Last but not least, this is my view from home. I will never get over it. 

Vietnam

A day by the river. Hoi An, Vietnam. 

After finishing work in Niseko, Japan I spent six weeks travelling through Japan, Taiwan and Vietnam. While I had travelling buddies in Japan and Taiwan; I flew solo to Vietnam and spent 3 weeks going from south to north by myself. I managed to spend all of my money (running out in Kuala Lumpur airport on a 10 hour layover), have my phone stolen by a crack addict in a hostel in Da Lat (then get it back) and be terrified for about 100% of the time.

Even now when people ask if it was worth it I'm still unsure. It was, hands down, the scariest thing I've done. Yet, I'm planning my next trip at the moment, probably not solo this time, but it definitely hasn't scared me off travelling in any way. I love the photos I have and in an extremely cliche fashion, I did meet some fun people, saw some sights and had experiences I will never forget. These photos I have are the most vibrant and colourful images of a nation that is relentless in it's explosion of sound, smell, taste and sight.

Unfortunately, due to my phone (where I take all photos) being stolen and wiped clean, I have very few photos of Vietnam before Da Lat - approximately 6 days into my trip. The photos I do have are taken from my Instagram (@iammereana - shameless plug) or Facebook which has reduced the quality of them. 

Canal boats. Mekong Delta, Vietnam. 

A new road, Da Lat, Vietnam. 

Family home at the farm. Da Lat, Vietnam. 

Farm shed. Da Lat, Vietnam.

Easy Rider is a well established motorbike guiding tour operating throughout Vietnam. I was fortunate enough to have the founder's son as my guide and he showed me the Da Lat surroundings including his family farm as pictured above.

Restaurant and homes. Da Lat, Vietnam.

Colourful buildings are everywhere in Vietnam. The call for optimised space means tall and thin are the way to go. Influence from French settlers is also obvious in Da Lat and Hoi An architecture.

Bold buildings. Hue, Vietnam. 

Organising a photo. An island off Nha Trang, Vietnam. 

Main beach. Nha Trang, Vietnam.

Nha Trang was a crazy place. It is known as the party capital of Vietnam with Russian tourists coming down for their sunny getaway as well as a major stop off for young backpackers and a hub for international staff too. Due to all the tourists as a target, Nha Trang also has quite a high crime rate (I did become a statistic), but it was beautiful nonetheless.

Bougainvillea lined streets. Hoi An, Vietnam.

Hoi An was my favourite place in Vietnam without a doubt. The temperature was much more manageable here and the entire place felt safer and quieter. Hoi An is renowned for it's cheap and fast tailor made clothing. I was already running out of money when I got here but had an item created from the hilarious Kim who told me off for drinking my money away in Nha Trang (and not spending it in her shop).

A shop that appeared to exclusively sell bird cages. Hoi An, Vietnam.

Mobile fruit shop. Hoi An, Vietnam.

These two came up to me and asked for a photo. At first I thought they meant they wanted a photo with me (not unusual in Vietnam) but it transpired they wanted me to take a photo of them which then meant I should buy fruit off them - I didn't arrive yesterday ladies! (But seriously, if you'd met me on my first day you could have taken everything).

Canal boats. Hoi An, Vietnam. 

Boats in a row. Hoi An, Vietnam.

In total I travelled over 1,700km from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi. I went via night buses, despite, somewhat unwisely, reading terrible reviews online a couple of hours before getting on my first one. I had relatively good experiences with all of my buses but it's not the funnest way to travel. I've found people only bother to write reviews when they had a bad experience...

Book exchange. Hoi An, Vietnam. 

House. Hoi An, Vietnam.

Village from the bus window. Somewhere between Hoi An and Hue, Vietnam.

Frangipani in the Imperial City. Hue, Vietnam.

Rooftop cafe. Hanoi, Vietnam. 

Umbrella roof. Hanoi, Vietnam. 

Hang Gai (Street of Hemp). Hanoi,Vietnam. 

Instrument shop. Hanoi, Vietnam.

 Hanoi and Hoi An seemed to operate on a different frequency to the rest of Vietnam. Maybe it was because I was more comfortable and felt more in control by the time I rolled around to these cities but the combination of the climate, layout of the city and slightly less harassment on the streets (again maybe I was just used to it) meant I bonded with these cities a lot more. I would have liked to go further north to Sapa and Halong Bay but I had run out of money, time and patience with Vietnam.

Deserted Kuala Lumpur airport. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

I've become quite nostalgic while writing about my experience and could see the potential of returning again… Although that could just be itchy travel feet. See you soon, Vietnam?

You're Going to be OK

Frangipani from the Imperial City. Hue, Vietnam. 

This is a reminder to myself.

You are going to be OK.

You're going to have to look after yourself.

You have to eat properly.

You have to go outside.

You have to talk to people.

You need to drink lots of water.

But most importantly, you need to be kind to yourself.

I'm going to be OK.

Hello Queenstown!

Last Thursday I flew into Queenstown airport. This was after my flight was cancelled, delayed (twice) and stopped in every major airport on the way down the country.

Snow capped mountains 

Nonetheless, flying into Central Otago is always like a homecoming for me. After living in Wanaka for 2012 and calling Queenstown my New Zealand seasonal home in 2014 and 2015 I'm hardly a local but it still feels pretty special.

NB: to be a local your great-grandmother's uncle must have inherited land from his third cousin's wife and every generation lived here ever since without even leaving to visit Glenorchy. And complain bitterly about tourist drivers. Even then your status might be dubious... I digress.

Early season snow

My new home overlooks Lake Wakatipu, Kelvin Heights, The Remarkables and stretches as far to see Walter Peak and far down the western end of the lake towards Mount Nicholas. It's pretty ok.

The Remarkables

Oh, Canada!

Weyhayhay!

Canada was fun! And incredibly photogenic.

My time on Canada was sorta complicated and while I enjoyed it, there were some times of difficulty. Something which I may write about in the future.

In the meantime, enjoy this very heavy photo post.

Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals! Village Centre, Big White.

Snow Ghost chairlift on the walk home. Big White.

Big White.

New snow. Big White.

The Knoll,  Big White.

Louise, Phoebe. Friends! The Knoll, Big White.

Sunset from the Telus Park Chair, Big White. 

A proper mountain. Whitewater, Nelson.

Whitewater, Nelson. 

Late season snow. Big White.

Roadie to Silverstar! Vernon, BC. 

Louise, Me, Phoebe, Nicko. Roadtripsssss. In a car somewhere, Interior BC (maybe).

End of season chairlifts with Phoebe & Haydn. Big White.

T-Bar party! Phoebe, Laura & I. Big White.