I have begun my journey across the world and my first pitstop was, the one and only, New Zealand! I have been here for 6 days and I’m packing up to head to my next adventure. My time here has been absolutely incredible and I’ve truly embraced all that this island has to offer.
I spent my time in the southern island of New Zealand, making my way towards Christchurch. I started in the beautiful city of Akaroa, which sits right along the water among a peninsula. I only stayed here for three days, but I managed to experience so many of Akaroa’s main attractions. The first place I had to go was Akaroa Beach, which is the only place where the rare Hector’s dolphins swim. So I kicked off my shoes, jumped in a kayak, and decided to do some ocean kayaking in search of these beautiful creatures. After a couple hours I saw a splash in the water and, surely enough, a dolphin swam near my kayak. It was such a crazy experience to see something so rare in real life. After doing some more research, I found out that there are only 55 dolphins left in that subspecies. That piece of information just made the experience even more surreal. While still in Akaroa, I had to make sure to hike throughout the gorgeous Hinewaii Reserve, and paddleboard during sunrise in the Akaroa Harbor.
After my three days were up, I had a day of travel up to Christchurch. While a day of travel might sound like a complete bore, this was one of the most scenic drives I’ve ever taken. I went along the coast from Akaroa to Christchurch, stopping at some breathtaking beaches and lookouts. The next couple days in Christchurch consisted of biking along the Avon River, and relaxing by New Brighton Beach. During this whole trip I got to meet so many new people and hear their amazing stories. One woman’s story has been on my mind for days now, and it really left an impact on how I see the world.
I was in Christchurch, sitting in a little coffee shop overlooking the ocean, when a woman sat at the table right next to me. I was reading the newspaper which was talking about the ongoing trial for the Christchurch massacre. I began to make small talk to the woman next to me, but when she saw the front page of the newspaper, she almost began to cry. I was confused and I immediately asked her what was wrong, she then began to share that her son had died in the terrorist attack. My heart sunk and I sympathized deeply for her. Since I live in Australia I had been following this tragic event, but I had never met someone who had been personally effected by it. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, the Christchurch massacre was a terrorist attack on a Islam Mosque. The shooter, cold-heartedly, killed 51 out of the 400 people attending Friday Prayer. This woman continued to bravely share her story about her son, but as she spoke I could see the absolute fear and sadness in her eyes.
It’s devastating to think about what this woman had to go through, and it’s even more devasting thinking about the hundreds of families who were affected as well. At first, hearing her story made me incredibly sad, but as the days have gone by I have become increasingly angry at our society. This event was a blatant act of Islamophobia, and it must come to an end. The fact that so many innocent people were shot just for practicing their religion, shows how much change we need to make to our societies.
I’m, honestly, really grateful for my time in New Zealand. I had so many adventures, but I’m also leaving inspired to enact more social change. Hearing that woman’s story first-hand was heartbreaking, but it also ignited a new side in me that is ready to make a change in the world.
Around the World with Jess 