Teenaa koutou katoa Ko Te Pane o Mataoho te maunga,Ko Manukanuka o Hoturoa te moana,Ko Waikato te awa,Ko Tainui te waka,Ko Waikato te iwi,Ko Te Puea te marae,Ko Pootatau te Wherowhero te tangata. Ko wai au? I am my maunga, and my maunga is me.I am my awa, and my awa is me.I am my…Continue Reading Pounamu meets Marble
India is like the great act no one wants to follow—anything that comes after feels pale in comparison. Not as exhilarating, not as captivating, not as exciting. At least, that is how it has felt for me as I hesitantly eased back into routine after the most extraordinary adventure. Returning home required an adjustment. The…Continue Reading Sarees & Seis
Kia Ora from Auckland! So, my journey has finally come to an end. Adjusting back in Aotearoa has been a whirlwind and I’m so glad to be back with my friends and whanau. While I type this blog, I look back fondly on all the great memories I’ve made with some fantastic people. I miss…Continue Reading Ka Kite Mumbai: With Me, Always
And just like that, it was all over. Six weeks in India, an amount of time that seemed so incredibly daunting in the beginning, went by in what seemed like a matter of days. This has been the most incredible, fulfilling, eye-opening, and just downright fun six weeks of my life. Assuming you’ve read my previous four posts,…Continue Reading A Few Final Thoughts on India
Two weeks have passed since touching down at Auckland Airport. Returning to New Zealand after six weeks of immersion in India’s daily life has been an enormous reverse culture shock. I no longer take for granted what was once trivial. Living in a developing country has made me more aware of how fortunate I am…Continue Reading Reverse Culture Shock: From Mumbai Madness to Kiwi Calm
As I left Mumbai, I thought of all my adventures. The highs and the lows. The buzz and the silence. My first day and my last day. The experience had shaped me, leaving me with memories I will forever cherish. Reading my first blog, I could see how I was so taken aback by the speed…Continue Reading Echoes of Mumbai
Now that I’m back in Auckland, reflecting on my time in Mumbai fills me with deep appreciation for the experience. I didn’t go in with many expectations, but my six weeks in Mumbai were more intense, eye-opening, and rewarding than I could have imagined. The People One of the biggest surprises was how much the…Continue Reading Looking Back on Six Weeks in Mumbai
It’s been two weeks since we returned home to New Zealand, and the reality of being back has given me time to reflect on everything I experienced in Mumbai. Coming back has been a whirlwind of emotions – there’s a strange sense of nostalgia for a place that once felt unfamiliar but soon became home….Continue Reading My Comfort Zone
Two weeks into settling back into life at home and university, my experience in India feels like a complete fever dream. The days of catching a rickshaw through Govandi, walking the streets full of animals, and hearing taxis beeping their horns every two seconds already feel so distant, almost as if they were part of…Continue Reading Lessons between sips of Masala Chai
Waking up in my own bed on February the 22nd felt strangely normal. I got up, brushed my teeth, showered, ate cereal, and got into my car. Muscle memory kicked in as I drove to the hockey turf, trained, returned home, and ate again. It was as if the past six weeks in India never…Continue Reading Was it all just a fever dream?