New Zealand at Last!

Kia Ora!
Due to my lack of internet for the past few days, I have had no access to this blog. You might be wondering what I'm doing at the moment, but it's not quite as exciting as the first few days I was here.
Here's a short (long) recap of the first day.
Since I last posted (which seems like a long time ago), I have met my fellow study abroad students. They come from a variety of non-Utah places that sound interesting, and we have started molding our friendships. There was one person from Utah, but she saw reason and left the state for a California school.
Despite what I assume is your undying need for a lengthy detail of the twelve-hour flight from San Francisco to Auckland, I'm going to give you highlights. This was a two-story airplane! When I walked in the door, there were people going upstairs in an airplane to get to their seats! That isn't normal. That is a big plane! I was seated in the middle of the bottom floor (dang it) and was separated from my friends. We were greeted by a Lord of the Rings themed airplane safety video on our personal television screens that was not only awesome, but also included some of Tolkien's grandchildren and Peter Jackson himself. The rest of the flight involved sleeping and watching both The Wolverine and Thor: The Dark World.
Now we're in New Zealand! I reunited with my friends, exchanged my American money for colourful (that's how they spell it, don't judge) New Zealand dollars and walked out the door. The fresh air was invigorating after that long travel process and I was eager to see the sights of Auckland. So promptly, we climbed onto our bus, started driving on the left side of the road and started touring. Here's some pictures:

Yes, those are other people in the last picture. And yes, they do enjoy my company, despite being forced into it. Stop asking. Those two are Eric and Ryn (from left to right), just two of my new friends.

We drove around the city for a few hours before we reached our new destination, the YHA Hostel. Admittedly, this was not the best place to stay, but it would only be for one night.

The rooms had four beds, but the view wasn't too bad. Luckily, we didn't have to spend much time there.

After a short introductory presentation, we were set free into the city between meals. I used this time to walk around the city and buy a few essentials. I bought a cool pair of sunglasses (an essential) and a Huawei brand phone through Skinny Mobile. My walk (not alone) took me to various places around the city.

To say the least, it's the coolest city on the planet that I have visited thus far. And that was merely the first day.