A friend from Austin emailed me the other day. It was great to hear from her. We met before I left but, unfortunately didn't have the time to hang out more. Writing her back was a great way to spend the evening thinking about the last couple of months, the seasons, and life back in Austin. I've included some of the letter. Enjoy.
"Hey! Thanks for emailing me. Its refreshing and a nice surprise to hear from you. Things have been going here in NZ. it's early summer with highs of about 82 and lows of 50. We get the occasional windy and rainy days but today is beautiful. I look out my window now and the greens of the hills pop out, the beach is filled with tourists and people on holiday, and the gardens along my street are filled with purples and yellows. The bees here are huge too! they fill the flowers of my courgettes and look like black and yellow stripped cotton balls. Our neighbor's apples fall from their tree and roll down our drive way and my other neighbor's plum tree is ready to be picked. I make sure I pass with empty pockets and take some of the load off their hands. The first bite of the plum tastes like koolaid then you get a taste of skin and its only a little bitter. Fruit literally rolls to our door. Apricots, nectarines, peaches, apples, and tomatoes take up most of the space at weekend market and I have no problem going there on an empty stomach and stuffing my face with the sugar.
Over the holiday break, me and some friends went camping to the Abel Tasman National Park. We set up in a section called Totaranui. You come across names like that all over the south island. Streets like Maitai Valley Rd and Tahunanui remind you of the Maori culture that Kiwis love to brag about. On our way to the camping site we passed a place called Takaka, but sounds like 'tarkaka' in the Kiwi accent. Its a small little town on a mountain where they filmed most of the cave scenes from Lord of the Rings. Totaranui is a beautiful place. Its in the Golden Bay named for the golden sands of the beaches. Water is cold and blue like it just came off a glacier but its nice to cool off after running around on the trails that trace the coast. Even though it's summer, it can still get cold in the evenings and at dawn. The last night we were there a storm rolled in and we got some bad wind and rain. But it was worth it.
Winter time in Austin was always my favorite. Cold enough to wear a coat, drink hot chocolate, and be happy its not summer. And its just the right length. Just when you're getting tired of it, it seems like spring has arrived and the trail smells like the blooming jasmine, especially between the 3rd and 3 3/4 mile markers"
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