Submitted by Christina Le Febvre on the 2020 winter session program in New Zealand sponsored by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering…
This last week, we traveled from Christchurch to Queenstown stopping at Tekapo on the way. These three towns are on the South Island in New Zealand. Christchurch is a fairly quiet town that is still working on rebuilding after a massive earthquake about nine years ago. There is not too much nightlife, but there are a ton of upscale stores and unique attractions such as botanic gardens and museums.
Tekapo was breathtaking. As a town with no light pollution, it draws people there to see its beautiful night sky. Words cannot describe the feeling when seeing the night sky with that much clarity for the first time. We went on a “dark sky experience” where an astronomer, with what appeared to be a real-life light saber, pointed out certain stars, constellations, and galaxies in the sky. Unique to the southern hemisphere, two other galaxies were visible. They looked like small clouds in the sky.
Now, Queenstown. Queenstown has a nightlife unlike any I have seen before. In Christchurch, stores closed at 5;00 pm while in Queenstown, they would be open until around 9:00 pm. The town was jam-packed with young people and tourists who were looking to have a good time and go on adventures. One adventure in particular that caught my eye was canyoning. You might be wondering: what is canyoning? Canyoning is when you completely immerse yourself in waterfalls. Rushing rivers and hydro-power are a big part of New Zealand’s sustainability efforts. So, to experience that first hand, I had to go canyoning!
These three towns were very different in their feelings and experiences. I look forward to seeing how Auckland on the North Island differs!
