What I learnt living in New Zealand.

Here is a collection of things I have learnt living in New Zealand this year.

New Zealanders are Australians in shorts.

The Materials tech teacher I worked with says pants are only worn on three occasions, weddings, funerals and prize giving. While I won't be wearing pants in the minus temperatures I could start school in some days I totally get the shorts thing for any activity you do in New Zealand. I think I acclimatized to the cold about August and probably haven't hiked in pants since. Shorts make sense, you are either wading through water or mud and they would get caught on matagouri. In the other respects all New Zealanders have a sharp wit, are brutally honest and incredibly generous. If you are part of the community they will live in your pockets but they will also sew them up for you when you fall in a hole.

Shoes are optional.

No bitey ants and lawns in Otago are lush, you just don't need shoes.

Opportunities are endless if you choose to open the door to them.

For the love of god do not move to South Island if you don't like the outdoors or a bit of rain and mud. This year I added biking, rock climbing, snow boarding and amusingly disk golf as part of my sports skill set. You should always talk to the locals and ask them what's good. Marcella who I work with is the reason I attempted the Luxmore Grunt, I ended up at the Cathedral Caves and McLean falls over the weekend because of Luke and my friend Nia is the reason I now climb. Talking to people is the best way to learn about the best spots and if a local tells you it's good it is worth listening to them.

New Zealand also provides you with many ways to grow and test yourself physically, the environment is as challenging as you want it to be. If you wish to grow there is ample opportunities to do so.

Facebook groups can help you find cool places.

I am part of several trail running and hiking groups in New Zealand and have recently joined some climber and biking groups. The communities online for New Zealand are amazing and relatively safe. The trail running network alone is phenomenal and there are websites dedicated to plotting and tracking some of the coolest trails you'll ever tackle. Searching through facebook for these is easy but you do need to live local to be a part of a lot of these groups.

Just because you do something alone doesn't mean you're lonely.

This year was a big adjustment to not having a long term partner after a separation. Ironically though I already did a lot of things I wanted to do by myself. I'm also the "crazy" person who thinks running long distances, hiking up mountains or bike riding long distances is fun. I often joke that I'm not sustainable long term as I am often doing something. The biggest thing I did by myself this year was hike the Milford track. I was a little scared to be in my own head for 4 days without being able to hide but turns out I relished the disconnection and really enjoyed my walk in one of the most beautiful places in the world. You also find that people will talk to you when you complete things like this and a selfie tripod is handy to taking photos like the one above. Yesterday I decided to run part of the Routeburn and stopped to chat to rangers and other hikers, it's all about perspective to what you consider alone and none of my experiences were diminished by the lack of company.

You will meet people who will make you feel whole again.

This year was rough going for me but even cut off from my normal support network I made new ones. The people I met are wonderful and fun. I couldn't have survived this year without Beck who has been dragged along to a lot of random trips including being support crew for a few runs. Life is hard without people to share it with and it would have been a hard year without these people in it. New Zealand can also be a very isolating place without people you know and who care about you. The other beauty of New Zealand is everyone is genuinely fascinating. All my friends are really cool and come from all over the country and world, most are really talented and awesome in their own right.

I leave part of my heart in Otago. I don't want to go home and have certainly shed many tears this week over returning. New Zealand is a magical place that allows you to feel small and tall all in one go.

Now that I feel I've finally arrived, I don't want to leave.