On the night of June 20, 2010 I knew my life wasn't going to be the same for a few months. I knew that something tickled my twinkle and I couldn’t rest. The following day, I embarked on a brand-new journey to find myself lost in a beautiful country, New Zealand, and furthermore a sight-seeing city, Auckland. When I went through customs at the Auckland International Airport, it struck me that I would actually be living here for nine weeks.

I especially took note of the diversity of the people immediately when I got to the central city. I saw people of color mingling together, groups of English-learning students conversing with one another and restaurants ranging from kabob to fish n' chips. It didn't take me long to realize that this city (or country) prospered from many different cultures. There were also some slang words that I thought were interesting. I remembered asking a local resident for a bathroom and got a shrug. Apparently, the term "toilet" is often used here. But I was especially impressed with how friendly the locals were. They are extremely laid back and never seem to get tired of my asking the same question: "Where am I?"

Auckland has an aesthetically pleasing layout, which mostly reminds me of New York City. The traffic infrastructure is also excellent. There are traffic lights and people actually obey them, though jaywalking is also a common thing. It gets cold at night and I always find the ground and streets wet in the morning. The weather is always unpredictable. It could rain for a few seconds and then you will see the bright sun just to acknowledge that you will not see it for another few minutes.

Meanwhile, my proposed project at the University of Auckland examines unreinforced masonry structures. The test that I am involved in deals with unreinforced masonry buildings. This type of structure posts a threat in an earthquake or any sort of seismic activity. The wall and bearings of such structures are weak against lateral loads. The objective of this test is to understand further the reaction of the masonry elements under lateral force. The test will provide information on the response of the peels and parapets and perhaps suggest a seismic retrofit solution. My duty includes setting an archive to be stored in a database for the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation, preparing the experimentation and sensor locations, and recording data for simulation. I will learn data documentation, NeesCentral, web-based centralized data repository for managing, sharing, storing and publishing data, and field instrumentation.

On the first week of my arrival I knew I just had to visit the Auckland Zoo. I’d heard a lot about it being a paradise for animals, and surely enough, all the creatures there seemed to be enjoying the attention. Not only was admission cheap, seeing a kiwi bird for the first time was a really refreshing change from seeing the birds in San Diego. Also in Auckland, I would go to the supermarket (called Countdown and New World here) twice a week to do my grocery shopping (yes, I eat a lot). I’d also tried to watch the movie “Eclipse”—and that was not easy. There are only so many cinemas here and popular movies like “Twilight” must be booked a few days prior. I was left with two options: watch on that day on the side seat of the second row in the front or go home and book a later day. I chose the latter.

I also ventured out of town on the weekends. One weekend I went to Devonport via ferry and hiked up Mt. Victoria to watch the sunset. The sun was never crispier. The following day, I took another ferry to Rangitoto and befriended a group of backpackers. We ventured into a 300-meter (300-yard) dark lava cave (inactive of course). My friends and I also rented a car for a few weekends and took a road trip to Waitomo and Rotorua. Driving on the left side was so fun, although I must say that I did drive on the right lane for a good (or should I say bad) seven seconds when I pulled out of a restaurant. In Waitomo we got to see some glowworms in their caves, and we relaxed at a mud spa in Rotorua. We also saw many sheep. There are so many in New Zealand! I’m beginning to think there are more sheep than humans here.

My experience in New Zealand wouldn't be the same if it wasn't for my dear friend, Negin. She was very supportive and I loved her company. We came from the same school but we did different projects. While I was occupied with an ongoing project on seismic retrofit, she was basically assigned to make up her own project! I feel bad because at the end of the summer, we are to write up a paper reflecting our theories and results and I'm not sure how that's going to work out for her. I tried to hang out with Negin as much as I could. The most unforgettable experience with her has to be the mud spa! Mud spa is essentially a spa with mud, hot, sticky, sulfurous mud! The feeling was so refreshing! I can't explain how I felt that day. We were like little kids playing and getting dirty with mud and at the same time rejuvenated under the mini volcano! It's such a blessing to travel with a friend, and it's rare to find someone compatible to you. I'm glad I had Negin wtih me.

Last weekend I went to the South Island of New Zealand. I stayed in Queenstown for four days and a night in the town of Franz Josef. The landscape of the south island is majestic. I really felt that I was living in a book. The south of the island has white snowy mountains, whereas the north is more like a green hillside. I trekked the Franz Josef glacier and that was a great experience. In Queenstown I rode a luge for the first time and took a cruise to Milford Sound. Words cannot express how I felt in the landscape’s presence. You really need to be there yourself to witness the beauty of it. I also took a jet boat ride on the Shotover River. Because of the heavy rain that day and the fact that the boat glided and spun at 85 kilometers (more than 50 miles) per hour, it felt like undergoing an acupuncture treatment at high speed.

In my spare time, I like to go to play pool. It’s my favorite pastime in America and not playing it in New Zealand would be a waste. One game I could never forget took place in Rotorua. My friend and I waited for a while to play since the table was occupied by two other backpackers. One of the two beat his friend so quickly that there were always at least five balls left in the table. Then he asked if I wanted to play. I said yes, took the pool stick and shot all five balls in a row in less than half a minute. People were watching me and my new friend was really impressed. I never felt that cool in my life.

Ultimately, I can honestly say it has already been an awesome journey. I am really living my life to the fullest. Awesome job, great food, genuine people, beautiful sunsets, amazing landscape: what else can I ask for? Perhaps the next time I stop to chat with a local I will not ask "that" question. On the contrary, I will let him know that "I'm in New Zealand!"