I'm Khushbu, just your typical senior year Psychology major, Bio and Chem double minor SBU student...except I've been in Auckland, New Zealand for about 2 months now. I am currently attending Auckland University, in the biggest city in New Zealand. Auckland, the 'City of Sails', is a really diverse - the people, the culture, the things to see and do, it almost reminds me of NYC. Raised in Brooklyn my entire life, I can definitely say the the pace of the city is slower here though, and MUCH slower in the rest of the country. Its true what they say about NZ - the sheep really do out number the people living here!
And you don't need to be here 2 months to figure that out...you can't go 20 minutes outside the city without seeing sheep or cows.
I currently live in one of the many subherbs of this super-city, in Grafton, in a dorm building. The interesting thing about Grafton Hall is that you don't need to be an Auckland Uni student to live here...in fact, my roommate goes to a completely different university thats nearby. I love it...you get to meet so many different people this way. And for the first time in my college career, I'm living corrider style! Its so weird because guys and girls live on the same floor and share the same toilets and showers! This hall is also catered, so you don't have to worry about grocery shopping or making your own meals (although there is a kitchen if you want to use it). I'd highly reccomend other people to live in a catered hall...its less to worry about!
Although I'm a psych student, I'm taking some general education classes that are really interesting (and fulfill some DECS/Skills) - Sociology of Auckland, Anthropology of the Pacific Peoples, History of Sex in Europe and America and I'm also taking a Genetics class. I really enjoy my athro and soc classes because every week I learn about the history and practices of where I am right now...it just wouldn't be the same learning the same things from a textbook in Stony Brook without being emerged in it. If you're going to study abroad take some similar classes - if nothing else, if you learn about the city you're in, you won't get lost so easily!
The rest of my time not spend in class has been amazing as well...I've been skiing (we just entered spring in the southern hemisphere) and to geo-thermal parks and even petted a sheep or two amongst other things. I haven't seen a kiwi bird yet though, NZ's national animal is actually endangered. Over our mid-semester break I went to Sydney (only a 3 hr flight away) and to Surfer's Paradise (where I learned to surf!). Flights in NZ are reallyyy cheap and it only takes an hour or so to get to most other cities domestically. The flight to NZ from NY was another matter altogether though! It took me 2 days with a 12 hour layover in LA to get to Auckland. It didn't take me too long to get over the jet-lag though, as I slept on the entire flight from LA!
The rest of my time not spend in class has been amazing as well...I've been skiing (we just entered spring in the southern hemisphere) and to geo-thermal parks and even petted a sheep or two amongst other things. I haven't seen a kiwi bird yet though, NZ's national animal is actually endangered. Over our mid-semester break I went to Sydney (only a 3 hr flight away) and to Surfer's Paradise (where I learned to surf!). Flights in NZ are reallyyy cheap and it only takes an hour or so to get to most other cities domestically. The flight to NZ from NY was another matter altogether though! It took me 2 days with a 12 hour layover in LA to get to Auckland. It didn't take me too long to get over the jet-lag though, as I slept on the entire flight from LA!
Otherwise, my study abroad experience thus far has been a fantastic slurry of meeting new people, learning new things and having daily adventures! Want to study abroad? I would say do it!
'Til next time,
Khushbu
Khushbu
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