DO MORE than just EXIST

Being out from my experience longer, I can only keep reiterating the utter invaluable experience studying abroad has on your life!! I studyed abroad in Dunedin, New Zealand, on the lovely south island :D

Unique, exquisite and breath-taking are words that describe New Zealand's natural wonders and experiences it has to offer. Rather than talking about skydiving, bungee-jumping, and tramping (of course great options, but typical of NZ travelers), I seek to offer a different perspective. I was able to study art history while at the University of Otago, and for all the Art History lovers and art lovers out there, this place is a gem! My professor was from America and I am from America, so I felt an innate connection to her and felt completely comfortable in her classroom. Her teaching style was like no other -- so comforting, knowledgeable, and yearning in want for the students to learn how to learn, appreciate, and articulate what we love and what exists in artwork. Dunedin has multiple galleries and museums that my class walked to in order to go over how Modernism is reflected in current works of art. What do you see? What is the artist trying to convey to the audience? How does the color pallete effect the the mood? It was a great opportunity discuss the works with my professor and classmates. We went to the Dunedin Public Art Gallery and the Hocken Library to review works of art and see first-hand local artists and their work, internationally recognized works, and local art events where you could be surrounded by curious and passionate people! It was a time to bond and become more passionate about art and art history!!! I have to honestly say that through my professor's teaching style and my curiosity of art, I gained an unquenchable thrist for gaining knowledge and skills in the arts and art history! I came to New Zealand knowing that my passion for earth, healthy living, traveling, and appreciating animals would grow stronger during my discovery of pure natural beauty of NZ, but I left with more than that. I left with a deep growing love of art, of turning strangers into friends, of embracing "Sweet as", of loving the flightless birds, of smooth sailing on the TransAlpine, and of watching sunrises against snow-capped mountains on the Routeburn track. So come to Dunedin, New Zealand or at least some part of the Land of the Long White Cloud. Grow your passion, free your spirit, and learn to embrace life come what may. So join me with the great, proud alumn travlers of NZ and DO MORE than JUST EXIST.