IFSA-BUTLER INFORMATION HEALTH & SAFETY TRAVEL ADVICE REMINDERS HEALTH PEOPLE PLACES ANTICS ADVENTURE

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SEMESTER 1/2015 NUMBER 2

Great Breaks

Nice Eats

Iconic Images

ActionFun

Times

Adventure

2 Contents

5 NZ Experience

8 Bunch of Fives

6 NZ (Foodie) Experience

Photo: Lia Van der Krol (UAK), one of our Iconic Images Winners - see more on page 10.

Travel isnt always pretty. It isnt always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts. It even breaks your heart. But

thats okay. The journey changes you - it should change you. It leaves marks on your misery, on your conscious-ness, on your heart, on your body. You take something

with you... Hopefully you leave something good behind. - Anthony Bourdain.

7 Awesome Breaks

10 Iconic Images9 NZ (Foodie) Experience 11 Weekly Challenge

The IFSA-Butler NZ Office is working to reduce our environmental impact. Please pass this publication on or recycle when you have finished enjoying its contents.

Tn koutou! Hi and almost goodbye!...I hope you all had an amazing mid semester break and the second half of the semester is going well. Thanks for all of the fantastic contributions for this newsletter, all of the entries for the IFSA NZ Weekly Challenges and the stunning photographs submitted to the Iconic Images Competition! Congratulations to the winners!!

This semester has past so quickly! As the next few weeks rush past please remember to take time to enjoy yourself, as it will soon be time to leave this beautiful country. J.R.R Tolkien once said Not all those who wander are lost. I hope you have found many amazing things during your travels.

The weather is getting cooler and exams are fast approaching. It is very important that you are taking care of your physical and mental health. Here are a few handy tips:

If you start to feel unwell go to the University Health Centre

Take time to have proper meals including lots of fruit and veges! Try to resist the study snack urges. A packet of TimTams for breakfast while cramming for an exam can be temptingbut you will feel worse for it.

Get plenty of sleep!

Drink lots of water

Keep warm

Dont spend all day inside. Get fresh air and talk to other humans

Triple check your exam timetable

Attend exam preparation sessions at the Student Learning Centre

There is an amazing team of SSCs all over the country. Please contact your SSC if you are feeling unwell, stressed, homesick or just need to have a chat.

Best wishes for your final weeks in Aotearoa! Travel safe, Kia pai te haere, Haere r.

Emily Nicholson, Editor

From the Editor

IFSA-Butler NZ Level 2, 99 The Terrace, Wellington 6011 Website: http://newzealand.ifsa-butler.org Email: ifsabutlernz@ifsa-butler.org Phone: (04) 471-0145

3 Bunch of Fives 4 Awesome Breaks

3We posed a bunch of five deep and meaningful questions to our students, and this is how they answered.

Bunch of Fives5

Emily Goldenberg, UAKDescribe the fashion style of your city: People look good. They look real good. Its a very trendy city.

What is the weirdest thing NZ University students do? They dont study at night. The library is packed during the day, but once its dinnertime, everyones ready to start partying.

What is your favourite NZ slang word / saying said in a Kiwi accent? Decades. Say it in a Kiwi accent. My professor said it today and I got extremely confused.

Whats the best place to eat in your city? Ive never been a burger-lover, but here, its basically all I eat. Velvet Burger, White Lady, Better Burger, Burger Burger, even Burger Fuel. Theyre amazing. Also obviously Ferg Burger, but thats in Queenstown. Oh yeah, and Giapo Ice Cream is amazing.

What is the best thing you have cooked in NZ? I make a mean chicken stirfry.

Number one thing Ill remember about New Zealand: the night I spent in the best hostel ever. The hostel, The Lazy Cow, was in Murchison. There was nothing in this town except a really old op shop that had an entire room dedicated to old glass bottles. Ali and Phil, the owners of the hostel, bake cake for all of their guests and the coffee table was covered in puzzles from Puzzling World!Most famous Kiwi Ive met: Lady cop who pulled me over outside of Te Anau. She was very nice, but I still got a speeding ticket.

Slang Ill take home? Thanks heaps! Heaps is a great word.

Favourite place? Right now my favorite place has to have been Gillespies Beach in Fox Glacier. Crashing waves on one side, and beautiful snow covered mountains on the other. Im really excited to head up to Cape Reinga, though. That might become my favourite.

One sentence weekend? A great weekend includes piling into the car with my flatmates, driving countless hours, camping, tramping, and then doing it all over again.

Alexis Cooper, UOT

Ellen Risemberg, CAN

Coolest place Ive visited in NZ: - Takaka/Paynes Ford.

Weirdest thing uni students do?: Say oh noer instead of oh no.

Kiwi slang word Ill introduce to the US: Oh noer.

Best budgeting tip?: Eat rice and beans for two

meals a day, buy goon when its 2 for $40

Best thing Ive cooked in NZ: Rice and beans.

Nicole Liebman, CANCoolest place Ive visited in NZ: Lake Wanaka.

Weirdest thing uni students do?: Walk around shoeless. Shoes are not a requirement.

Kiwi slang word Ill introduce to the US: Sweet as.

Best budgeting tip?: A good budgeting tip is invite yourself to eat the food your flatmate is making.

Best thing Ive cooked in NZ: I dont cook interesting food, but I make good burritos.

It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end. - Ernest Hemingway.

Continued Page 8...

4Awesome Breaks

Alexis Keeman and friends taking in the view.

There are several ways to get a birds eye view of Canterbury. CAN SSC Alexis Keeman hiked Mt Herbert....

Mt Herbert is a sea to summit hike starting from Diamond Harbour. Jump on the Purple Bus into the city, then transfer to the number 28. Take this all the way out to the ferry terminal in Lyttleton. From here, hope aboard the Diamond Harbour Ferry. A 10 minute crossing over to Diamond Harbour takes you to the start of the hike.

The majority of the walk is through farm land and follows an exposed volcanic spur. Allow 5-6 hours to climb the 919m to the top of Mt Herbert - the high point of Banks Peninsula. From these heights, you can experience a birds eye view of

Canterbury. From the miniature Lyttleton below, over to Christchurch, and to the angular mass of the South Alps. In the other direction, the summit of Mt Herbert offers spectacular views of the hills and harbour of Akaroa.

Make sure to pack warm layers and plenty of food. It gets pretty chilly at the top, and if your legs have acclimatised to the Canterbury plains, youll need to schedule plenty of snack stops to rest your weary legs!

Skydiving....expensive but totally worth it. A 20 minute flight (in the smallest plane I have ever been in, (seating five people uncomfortably) then out the door we go at 12000ft.

When you first go out, it feels like youre falling down stairs, not having any control over whats happening, then you put your arms out and you are free falling.

That last about 45 seconds then the parachute opens and everything slows down and is peaceful. The New Zealand country side is BEAUTIFUL.

....and Aaron Rowbotham (CAN) jumped out of a plane!

5NZ Experience

It all began on mid-semester break. Our parents were continually urging us to do something adventurous, so Emily Goldenberg and I finally took their adviceby planning four of the most dangerous things you could possibly do in New Zealand. First stop Mt. Doom. Emily actually had been close to Mt. Doom before, but we wanted to go back, in style this time. We went skydiving over the volcano. You wouldnt believe the views!

The second stop was the Franz Josef Glacier, but we didnt want to explore it the normal way. We decided it would be much cooler (pun intended) if we zorbed down the glacier! So much fun.

Our third stop was my favourite. The plan was to go to Queenstown and flyboard, and on the

Welcome to Aubrey Walshs (UAK) Totally Normal, Not-So-Extreme Holiday in NZ

way, we picked up a sheep that was hitchhiking South (we later convinced him to come back to Auckland with us so he could meet our friend Maddy her goal while in NZ is to hold a sheep).

When I was about to take my go at flyboarding, my sheep friend Bahh-by said he wanted to try it also, so we rigged up a harness and he joined me. It was awesome! Totally unforgettable.

The last event of the trip was actually back in Auckland, where Emily and I played a pick-up match with the All Blacks. It was incredible, and Emily and I were naturals. They tried to convince us to join the team, but we told them we had to get back to school. Finally, we returned home and took a breatherwhere we started planning our next get-away.

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One of the reasons I chose to study in

New Zealand was to be given the opportunity to learn the game of rugby at a higher

level. In a country where rugby is

regarded as religion, New Zealand is clearly one of the best in the world.

As a newcomer to the sport, playing for the University of Canterbury has been an amazing opportunity and overall learning experience. The kiwi style of rugby has an air of beauty and elegance with continuous ball movement and quick rucks. Compared to rugby in the States, the sport has a more realistic flow due to the hereditary nature of the game.

In my opinion, the kiwi style of rugby is nothing flashy or over the top notorious for simple backs plays and cheeky offloads. More importantly, all athletes are extremely disciplined and in-shape. The players hit all tackles, run amazing support lines, and keep flat on defense.

Besides the game, the bonds of friendship and brotherhood that rugby creates are unbreakable. The hard-fought matches, the countless hours of training, and the laughs at piss-ups are the real reasons everyone lives and breathes the sport. Richard Podpirka, CAN

Who is The Scarfie?...Its true, I didnt go to class as much as I could have, didnt do many readings, could have spent more

time on my papers, but I definitely learned

something. This semester The Scarfie was my teacher.

I learned that you dont come to understand a new place by looking at maps and pictures, but by walking through the streets, taking a few wrong turns, and maybe asking that funky looking dude on the corner for directions. The Scarfie taught me to chill out, to make sure that when its nice outside, I go outside, to not be so concerned with grades that I

let a weekend of adventuring pass me by. By following The Scarfie I learned that free food is king, not only because it leaves more money to be spent onrecreation, but also because when you are following the food you end up meeting a diverse group of people; you meet the Christians at bible study, the atheists at SARS meetings, the internationals at Uni-flat dinners, the early risers at OUSA Brekkie and a few hours later, the young and old of Dunedin at $3 lunches. What The Scarfie taught me was that everyone is friendlier when munching a plate of food (the free-er the better)!

The Scarfie may be unique to Dunedin, but it seems like a welcoming whats mine is yours attitude is something shared by many Kiwis, it must be something in the water. Hell, The Scarfie helped me write this reflection! When I go back to the States, I will try to explain with pictures, words, and video The Scarfie. I know they wont understand, but maybe I can show them. Nick Knoke, UOT

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6NZ (Foodie) ExperienceLia Van der Krol (UAK) gives you a clear step by step process to a yummy dinner. And Tucker Brumley (UAK) brings you his blokes guide to nourishMENt....

More Foodie Fun on Page 9...

This dish (at right) is my most absolute favorite and delicious meal to cook. Everyone who has tried it has raved about it! Its very simple and relatively healthy, especially for a casserole. Its very much a comfort food in its perfect combination of creamy,

tangy, citrusy, and cheesy, yet at its core is a healthy dinner of

chicken, broccoli, and quinoa! Its just an average dinner combined with an

amazing sauce and baked.

Lias Chicken, Broccoli, Quinoa Casserole

* You can replace 1/2 c. mayo & sour cream with 1 cup of Greek yogurt. (This is what Lia does.) Its much healthier and tastes great!

Ingredients

1 can cream of chicken soup c. sour cream* c. mayonnaise* c. lemon juice 1 c. milk salt & pepper, to taste 3 c. cooked quinoa (prepared according to package directions from 1 c. uncooked)

As long as the ingredients are near proportional, the exact measurements are not important. Thats the beauty of combining everything together!

Instructions

Prep Ingredients: Cook quinoa according to directions on the bag. While that cooks, cut chicken into bite sized pieces, saut, and add salt and pepper. Cut broccoli into bite sized pieces and cook, either by sauting or boiling then draining. Prep: Preheat oven to 350-degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius) Sauce: In a large bowl, combine cream of chicken, sour cream*, mayonnaise*, lemon juice, and milk. Combine: Gently stir in the cooked quinoa, chicken, and broccoli. Cook: When evenly covered in sauce, spoon mixture into 9x13 glass baking dish and bake at 350-degrees for 25 minutes. (Or in a $2 disposable tin around the same size for poor study abroad students, located at PAKnSAVE but not Countdown. Make it easily reusable by lining it with tin foil before spooning in the mixture.). Add Cheese: Remove from oven, sprinkle with your desired amount of cheese, and return to oven for an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Optional: sprinkle parsley on top for appearance.

Chef Tuckers Corner

For those who have no skills in the kitchen, but need to eat an inordinate amount of food it is important to have go-to meals in the kitchen! To get away with only having one meal, it has to

be packed with all the essentials: protein, starches, green veggies

and overall tastiness. That is what this MAN-strosity of a meal includes:

1lb of ground beef 4 chicken sausages 6 potatoes 5 large carrots 1 full head of broccoli

1) What do you call a cow on the barnyard floor? a) Ground Beef b) Steve

2) Why did the dinosaur cross the road? a) Why not b) He was in a hurry c) Because chickens hadnt evolved yet

3) What do you get when you cross a potato with an elephant? a) Mashed potatos b) Road kill

4) Whats orange and sounds like a parrot? a) A carrot b) A ferret

5) What do you get when you cross broccoli and a vampire? a) Lawrence b) Count Broccula c) Capernicus

The extra effort to make it into a casserole is 100% worthwhile. And the best part: it reheats well! Leftovers are a college students best friend, after all. Make this for yourself and you can eat it for another three or four meals. Dont be fooled by the picture. This is not a very good-looking dish, but its unique and delectable taste will have you making it both in New Zealand and at home for your family and friends!

3 c. shredded chicken 2 c. cooked broccoli 1 c. cheddar cheese, shredded

7Rachel Barron (UOT) is blown away the starry nights and awesome views of the Mt. Cook region....

Walter Streeter (VUW) makes the most of a trip to Northland....

Travel far enough, you meet yourself. - David Mitchell,

Cloud Atlas.

Awesome Breaks

Since coming to New

Zealand some of the

best traveling that I got a chance

to do was a four-day trip to Auckland and Northland. For most of my time there I was staying in a hostel in the seaside town of Paihia, however I was able to get a guided tour to the northernmost tip of New Zealand.

The tour started early in morning with a drive along the 90 mile beach, which is the longest stretch of undeveloped coastline that I

have seen since coming to this country. At the end of the beach was the pathway to see Spirits Bay. The guide explained that this area was sacred to the Maori as it was the last place that the souls of the recently deceased would visit before they began the journey to join their ancestors in Hawaiki (the mythical Maori homeland).

Additionally, the area is a place of steep grass covered cliffs diving into white sand beaches and turbulent waters, with a careful eye you can see where the dark-colored waters of the Pacific Ocean collide with the light-colored waters of the Tasman Sea.

I have done a lot of adventuring over the past few months in New Zealand, sacrificed many a late night for studying that I put off over the weekend to go on some tramp through the mountains. Yet, nothing could compare to Mt. Cook.

That weekend started a bit late on Friday afternoon. We got to the trailhead around 4 pm. Aware that we might be hiking part of it in the dark, the four of us set off. It started out easy enoughand then came the stairs.all 2000+ of them.

My quads were burning to say nothing for how heavy my backpack felt, but boy was it gorgeous. We were hiking with the sunset and the moon shone brightly over Mt. Cook. I lagged behind the group as I stopped every 2 minutes to snap another photo of the incredible surrounding scenery.

When we got to the top of the ridge, it was time to turn on our headlamps. 10 minutes later we could see the lights from the

hut- hallelujah! It was a spectacular sight.

That night the stars were absolutely incredible. A nice man helped me take long exposure shots with my camera so I could capture the Milky Way. I took photos until my hands were numb. We then proceeded to spend the next 2 hours snuggled in our sleeping bag, laying on the benches and just staring up. Never have I seen stars so brilliant.

The next morning the weather was insane. It was torrential down pouring with a

60-70 km /hour wind. Just added a little excitement to the descent. Safely back on the ground with my knees knocking together and a huge smile on my face, I turned around and thanked Mt. Cook for providing me with the best experience of my NZ adventures.

The guide was particularly excited to show us the next area, a giant sand dune that locals and vacationers alike used to sled. Sledding down a sand dune is an experience completely unique from sledding down a snowy hill, the way that the sand kicks up as you ride and the lack of thick winter layers make it feel much faster than snow sledding, the guide said that it was possible to reach speeds higher than 80 kph (about 50 mph).

The day concluded with a stop at a Mangonui Fish Shop for dinner, a fish and chips place that is considered one of the best in New Zealand due to the effort that the restaurant puts into getting choice catches daily.

I t started out easy enoughand then came the stairs.

8(More) Bunch of Fives5

Kacy Reece, MAWDescribe the fashion style of your city: This is an easy one Hipster, never have I seen so many well dressed people walking the streets.

What is the weirdest thing NZ University students do?: Hmm I dont know if its weird, but they seem to get so much work done during the day. I barely see my

kiwi friends doing homework at night.

What is your favourite NZ slang word / saying

said in a Kiwi accent?: When someone says

good on ya mate!

Best place to eat in your city?: Oh this is a hard

one, depends on the food mood youre in, but Id

say one of my favourites is Ekim Burgers!

What is the best thing you have cooked in

NZ? Sweet and Sour chicken stir fry!

Megan Onuskanych, MAW

Describe the fashion

style of your city: A ton of

people dress as if they walked

out of a hit 90s tv show.

What is the weirdest

thing NZ University

students do? Their

homework.

What is your favourite NZ

slang word / saying said

in a Kiwi accent? Thats yum! or Thats yuck!

(in reference to food).

Whats the best place to eat in your city? For a

good milkshake, Fidel s. The most delicious and

satisfying plate of asian cuisine, Satay Palace.

A tofu burger with beetroot and every other

perfect ingredient on a burger, Ekim. All the fruit

selection you may need, Sunday Market. Classic

NY Pizza, Tommy Millions. Spirulina Slam (the

best green smoothie), classic Countdown.

What is the best thing you have cooked in NZ?

Jamaican Jerk chicken that practically killed my

flatmates..

Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new

eyes and colors. And the people there see you differ-ently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the

same as never leaving. - Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky (Discworld, #32).

Sara Lobdell, UAKDescribe the fashion style of your city: Casual comfortable, but not sloppy. Jandals are a thing for all seasons.

What is the weirdest thing NZ University students do? This doesnt apply to everyone, but for a few of my lectures there are students who skip every lecture and only show up for projects/tests. On exam day in my Marine Science class the class size quadrupled because everyone actually came to class. Attendance isnt taken for many classes, so its possible to do this and still pass.

What is your favourite NZ slang word / saying said in a Kiwi accent? Saying no worries in situations where people from the US would say youre welcome.

Whats the best place to eat in your city? For dessert, the Chocolate Boutique.

What is the best thing you have cooked in NZ? Cinnamon-Apple Cider Bread with Monteiths cider, a recommendation from my kiwi flatmate.

One of my favourite places to eat in Auckland is the Chocolate Boutique, located on Parnell Rise. It has a great menu with lots of delicious options. The banana split, the chocolate mud cake, and the caramel and chocolate brownie are all incredible choices. Every time I go, I try to order something different. By the time I leave New Zealand, I hope to have tried almost everything on the menu! http://www.

chocolateboutique.co.nz/. Emily, UAK

9NZ (Foodie) ExperienceDive into Sara Lobdells (UAK) decadent Tiramisu recipe....

Haley McDonough, VUW

Auckland food has a wide variety of cultural influences, but Ive had a hard time here satisfying my cravings for specialty Italian desserts. One of my favorite Italian desserts (or, in my case, usually also breakfast) is the classic tiramis. I adapted the following tiramis recipe, originally by chef Jamie Oliver, to the availability of New Zealand ingredients, my limited flat supplies, a tight student budget, and my own personal taste with quite satisfying results. Enjoy!

Ingredients

50g Whittakers dark chocolate, grated Pinch of salt 20-25 Savoiardi Italian biscuits (called Ladyfingers, in the United States) 400 ml coffee, cooled (1 medium long black from any local caf does the trick) 4 large eggs, very fresh, separated** 100 g white sugar

tsp Vanilla extract 750 g mascarpone Cinnamon Will power, if you dont have an electric mixer

Instructions

Finely grate the dark chocolate.

Separate the eggs. Place the whites in one bowl and the yolks in a separate, larger bowl. Add the sugar to the yolks and whisk with electric mixer (or by hand) until the sugar has dissolved and the yolks are pale and fluffy. Mix in the mascarpone and Vanilla extract with a spoon.

Clean and dry the whisk. Add a pinch of salt to the egg whites. Mentally prepare yourself to whisk the egg whites by hand (if youre a Uni student like me and dont have an electric mixer) then whisk, whisk, whisk! Whisk until the whites have incorporated enough air to hold their shape when the whisk is lifted. Once youve whisked as much as humanly possible set the bowl down, take a breather, and give yourself a pat on the back. Youve earned it! Use a

large spoon to gently fold the egg whites into the mascarpone mixture.

Now that the hard work is done its time to arrange the layers. Pour the coffee into a shallow bowl. Dip each side of the savoiardi biscuits in the coffee and line the bottom of an 8 x 8 baking pan with a soaked biscuit layer. Pour half of the mascarpone mixture over the first biscuit layer. Spread a layer of grated chocolate and sprinkled cinnamon overtop of this mascarpone layer.

Repeat with a second layer of biscuits, mascarpone, and chocolate. Attempt not to eat it all right away.

Cover the tiramis and refridgerate for a minimum of 2 hours to allow the layers to set. Refridgerate overnight if possible and if you have enough self-control, because the longer the layers soak together the more tasty the final result will be. Enjoy!

Describe the fashion style of your city: Wellington has a progressive, stylish, and comfortable fashion sense. A typical girl walking through Vic can be seen wearing ripped, bleached jeans, an oversized striped tee shirt, and black Nike running shoes. While in the heart of the city, you will likely see a variety of neutral colored tops and pants paired with clunky platform sandals. The exercise enthusiasts wont be caught dead without their Lululemon running leggings and matching tank top. The best part is the overwhelming draw to comfort and sensibility. Ive really taken a liking to Wellingtons laid back fashion style

What is the weirdest thing NZ University students do? The first day in every one of my lectures and tutorials, we were briefed in what to do in the event of an earthquake - a huge shock as Im from the southeastern United States. Ive never, correction, I had never experienced an earthquake in my life until living in NZ for a few months. The grading scale here is much more lenient - thats what I thought when I first saw that a 51% is a C-. But its extremely difficult to make As here. They also label students

by class year instead of the typical freshman-senior ranking.

What is your favourite NZ slang word / saying said in a Kiwi accent? Really, any conversation I get to have with a kiwi leaves a huge grin on my face, as I am always learning new slang. Here are a few of my favorite sayings Ive heard thus far: sweet as= awesome, mate = friend, gutted = really upset, pash = make out, brekkie = short for breakfast, candy floss = cotton candy, hot chips = fries, ice block = popsicle.

Whats the best place to eat in your city? Flying Burrito Brothers. It may not be the fanciest restaurant on Cuba Street, but it sure is tasty and filling. NZ restaurants tend to serve much smaller portions than in America, so its nice to sometimes have a meal comparable in size to ones back home. On Mondays, FBB does 2 for 1 main courses, so my flatmates and I are keen to take advantage of the deal as often as we can.

What is the best thing you have cooked in NZ? Cinnamon-Apple Cider Bread with Monteiths cider, a recommendation from my kiwi flatmate.

10

Iconic Images WinnersElizabeth Plascencia, UOT

Kacy Reece, VUW

Lia van de Krol, UAK

Liza Fryman, UOT Liza Fryman, UOT

Niyolpaqui Moraza-Keeswood, UAK

Liza Fryman, UOT

Rachel Zajchowski, UOT

Lia van de Krol, UAKNiyo was the Staff s pick of the Weekly Challenge Winners - see page 11.

11

Weekly Challenge Winners

Resident Director Sian Munro points out what to be aware of with Reverse Culture Shock...

Right: Sian and friends on a girls weekend in Paris while living in London on OE, 2005.

Aaron, CAN

Devin, UAK Ellen, CAN

Jamie, VUWLia, UAKNiyo, UAK

Rachel, UOTStef, VUW

We talked to you at orientation about experiencing culture shock while you settled into life in your new home. Some of you have spoken to me about how you feel like youve adapted to the kiwi way of doing things in some aspects of your daily life. We call this process acculturation.

You might not expect it, but when you get home youll probably experience some form of reverse culture shock. I definitely experienced this when I moved back from living overseas I had to turn the radio off as I was driving around in my car because I could not stand to listen to the broad kiwi accent that I was so unaccustomed to hearing. Its different for everyone, you might settle back into life without a hitch and in a short time feel like youve never been away. For others it can be hard and you can feel a bit isolated from the people and experiences you left behind. I have outlined a few coping strategies below to help you deal with reverse culture shock if you do encounter it.

Embrace the shock. Reflect on things you thought were frustrating or plain ridiculous while you were in New Zealand and relish what you appreciate about how things are at home (even if its just that you can understand what people

are saying 100% of the time!)

Keep busy at home. Dont expect everyone to drop everything to see you. While youve been in New Zealand having a wonderful time, theyve been getting on with life and will still have study and work commitments. Have some plans already worked out before you return home, returning home can be hard if you have nothing to do except sit and wait for classes to start.

Expect some interest from people back home, but dont expect them to sit through a thousand photos of places and people they dont know. With digital cameras these days, people dont print photos. Choose your best photos, print them off and show those to people. When youre back at school sitting at your desk wanting a nice distraction you can flick through your photo album and reminisce for a few minutes.

Keep in touch with each other. No one except other students who have been on your programme are going to completely understand what you have been through. Sometimes a lack of interest is veiled jealousy and its probably not surprising given that you will be talking about all these new friends you have made and adventures you have been on. If you

stay in touch youll be able to re-live the memories from time to time.

Look for ways to promote your study abroad experience at your home school. While websites are great because they allow people to browse at their leisure, prospective study abroad students will get more out of a five minute conversation with you than they would from an entire website. Volunteer at your study abroad office or join the IFSA-Butler Ambassador program and get paid by us to promote your experience (see our website for more details: http://www.ifsa-butler.org/for-alumni/be-an-ambassador.html).

Until you are back home, you may not realize the full extent of how much you have changed, matured, learnt new life skills and had life changing experiences. Remember and appreciate what you have gained, but enjoy where you are at home as well. Keep your mind open for new travel experiences - I know some of you are planning your next adventures already! Remember you can always come back to NZ for post-graduate study or a working holiday.

NewZealand is edited and distributed by the NZ Office, Institute for Study Abroad, Butler University, for IFSA-Butler Students and Staff only. Articles and ideas are welcome! Email: ifsabutlernz@ifsa-butler.org IFSA-Butler New Zealand 2010

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NTI

CS

PEOPLE PLACES ANTICS SAFETY TIPS FACTS & FIGURES TRAVEL STAFF NEWS STUDY PROGRAMS ANTICS ADVENTURE GETTIN

G A

RO

UND

ENTERTA

INM

ENT STUDY A

DVICE PEO

PLE PLACES R

ECREATIO

N PH

OTOG

RA

PHY A

CCOM

MO

DATIO

N M

AO

RI CULTUR

PEOPLE PLA

CES AD

VENTUR

E TRA

VEL AN

TICS

IFSA-BUTLER INFORMATION HEALTH & SAFETY TRAVEL ADVICE REMINDERS HEALTH PEOPLE PLACES ANTICS ADVENTURE

Fun

Friends

Experience

Education

Travel