UPDATE!

Hello faithful blog readers! Unfortunately I have no pictures to show you, nor much time to spare to write this, but I wanted to let you know that I am alive and happy! The things I have seen and experienced require words that don't exist yet- words that are lightyears beyond "beautiful" and "amazing" and "incredible" and "spectacular" and "stunning" and "transformative" and "magical." Just multiply all those words by one million trillion billion and that is how things are for me right now.

I somehow ended up on this beautiful and remote bird sanctuary island at the very bottom of the South Island. I also somehow ended up finding work and an adorable hotel room for free. I work in the mornings, and hike and kayak in the afternoons. All through the day I get to listen to pretty bird noises and very few people. It is pretty great.

My last WWOOFing job was unbelievably wonderful. All the backpacking and traveling since has been unbelievably wonderful. LASTLY, I have met some of the most unbelievably wonderful people. I am the luckiest girl in the unbelievably wonderful whole wide world.

My second day on the sanctuary, I found a special email in my inbox... I got into COLUMBIA! Last night in my delirious pre sleep, while I was trying to make a decision between the two, I suddenly thought- what if I just don't go to either? What if I just stay here forever and become an amateur ornithologist? Tempting, yes. Impossible, probably. Now that I am fully awake I realize that I am better off making a decision and scooting back to the good old USA. (Any advice about which school I should attend is more than welcome.)

There will be pictures and more words to come within the next few weeks. Ta!