Palmerston North - Week 2

It hasn't been long since I've been here and I feel like I've been here forever. Yep, that's how I feel. It's been tough, and though my first few days have been great, the next ones were tougher than I expected.

Here's the story of my 2nd week in the land of wind and rain.

Palmerston North.

Monday to Thursday

15th-18th October 2012

So our week as official UCOL "students" has begun. And like the term implies, we went to school, attended lectures, did some homework, walked to and from the bus station, shopped for groceries and other necessities, and all other watchamacallits that students do.

The middle of the week was a whole new experience though. We got to experience a Marae. And what that is will be spelled out it big, black, bold letters in another blog. =D

It's been hard adjusting to this new kind of lifestyle. Being a student again was one thing but the new environment, the abnormally harsh weather, the scarcity of population, and the meager option for clothes, food, and shopping destinations have all shocked me to the core. But that was nothing compared to the homesickness that I began feeling. I knew it was creeping up on me but like what any other girl trying to survive would do, I dismissed it. And then, it suddenly came like a freight train and the next thing I knew, I was feeling terribly distressed and depressed. All that crying did nil to me at school though. And I've come to be good at covering my face up with a smile. Fake or not, it was better than nothing.

So I survived thinking about all the opportunities that I'm getting that others have been striving their bums off for and thinking about when I do pass this not-so-little-bump in the road. This is the biggest opportunity I've gotten and I've had to sacrifice a lot for this, so distressed or not, I'm not stopping now.

Friday

19th October 2012

All that brewing stress piled up majorly high on this day. My birthday. My 25th birthday. And I'm spending it alone. Well, not technically "alone" but you get the picture. So imagine my distraught knowing that not only am I not with my family today but the worst part was, I didn't even feel like it was anything special at all! How heartbreaking is that?

The day started like all the rest of my days here in Palmerston had. Woke up, bathed, ate, went to school, perfected the drug calculation exam (yey!^^), bus ride, home...and then...like some kind of magic, I was on a bus headed to Hamilton for the weekend! A breath of super fresh air! Although, it wasn't really magic because it was a planned visit, but hey, if your boyfriend offers to treat you some good weekend vacation slash birthday celebration somewhere, then who am I to say no, right? (Yes, I know. I've got a great one right here, aye?) So yeah, spending the weekend in Hamilton! And I'd like to make a blog specific to that so, let me end this with an advice...Don't let today's pain drag you down. It's pain now. But it'll be knowledge and maybe even laughter tomorrow. =D

Cheerios!

xoxo

-hny-