Sirens and Lights

Pictures from New Zealand and Australia!

from the trip with Mom around the South Island

Mountain and Valley in NZ

Mt Cook

NZ Chasm

from the Tongariro Crossing with Sujal

Blue Lake

Emerald Lake

Emerald Lake

Tongariro Mountains

Volcano

from the visa expedition to Australia…

Sydney Opera House

Three Sisters in the Blue Mountains

Payal commented to me the other day that my time in NZ has flown by, even to her…. It’s been a whirlwind time here between visits from Mom and Sujal, and then having to go to Australia for the visa (I did get my certification at the end of the course- yay! Plus I saw some sting rays, sharks, etc., while diving! Amazing!). I did manage to get quite a bit of research done, though of course I wish I had been able to do more. A friend of mine from WHO, Dave, is here in NZ today and we finally managed to meet up in Auckland for dinner…he’s doing research on Maori and mental health. It was a good reminder of how many different aspects of healthcare are affected by culture and a pretty interesting discussion about travel, future plans and, of course, just catching up. Having family and “old” friends around is really one of the best ways for me to get a better grasp on what I’ve been learning.

This past week, my brother and I had a really fun time just touring around the North Island, though the time has been pretty full on– we did some kayaking at Waiheke Island and then went down to Tongariro to do the fabulous one day Tongariro Crossing. It was possibly the most incredible tramp I’ve ever done– volcanos streaked with reds, grays and white, bright azure and emerald green lakes, slightly snowy mountain, views of Lake Taupo, and a hot spring that was about as colorful as anything I’ve seen. We took heaps of photos and will be sure to post those soon! We went sky diving in Taupo (it’s really cheap there and incredible over the Lake with the mountains in the distance)….I’d been wavering on whether or not to go, but it was worth every cent! I was the first one to get tossed from the plane, so I was lucky enough to not have time to really think about what I was about to do– my tandem master literally just popped open the door and swung me around and off we went! The freefall is just amazing and then you cruise down to the ground. Then, yesterday we just went on some short tramps and wandered a black sand beach. Today, it’s exploring another section of Auckland that’s really cute and then off to Brazil to meet Payal for some birthday fun!

Ok, I have to go. Pictures forthcoming! Take care, everyone!

Whew, craziness. Apparently, I’m going to Sydney for 2 weeks. I need to get a visa to go to Brazil and it requires 8 working days, and of course the embassy in New Zealand (which is in Wellington, a city I’ve been dying to go to but now won’t get to see) doesn’t allow non-NZ residents/citizens to get their visas here… In any case, it’s kind of problematic as my brother is coming in to visit me on the 7th, but I don’t really have a choice so my poor brother is going to have to entertain himself for a day all alone in Auckland. Argh. It kind of puts a dent in my research plans for NZ (and an even bigger one in my bank account), but I’ve been lucky and have been learning TONS these last few weeks…the hospital here in Christchurch is staffed by some incredibly friendly, knowledgable and helpful people. They’ve certainly given me enough reading to keep me occupied for my time in Australia! In any case, it’s pretty interesting since a lot of people here are involved in developing EM in the islands around the South Pacific.

Christchurch is a beautiful city–way better than Auckland. It’s much more European in nature and as a result, has a lot more character. Lots of little cafes and galleries…there’s a great Arts Centre right in the middle of the city which has galleries, shops, an art-house cinema (I just saw “Gloomy Sunday”–what a beautiful movie, and it’s been running for 2 years or so now…worth watching for the music alone!), trendy/lively cafes and just architecture that reminds me so much of Bryn Mawr…has to be one of the nicest places I’ve been just to sit and relax.

I’ve spent the last few nights with Servas hosts, which has been a new and really great experience for me. I finally got around to registering with Servas, an international peace organization that sets up networks of travellers and hosts in countries around the world. You pay a registration fee and you receive a booklet with the names and contact info of people who would be interested in hosting a traveller for 2 nights. It’s really an incredible concept as these people house you, feed you, show you around and just let you really enjoy travelling. My biggest complaint for the last month (aside from this visa craziness) is that I realized back in Thailand that I’m really not a big fan of the “backpacker” thing. I know, I know, I’ve been traveling for so long and it finally hit me? Well, the thing is that I’ve never really been a backpacker. The last times I travelled, I was living with family in India (back in ‘92), living with a host family in Paris (’01), and living in Geneva (’03). Aside from weekend trips from Geneva and two weeks of backpacking with Hala in ‘01, India this year was the first time I relied on hostels and the like for an extended period of time. However, India is pretty well off of the backpacker track, even though the foreigners do tend to stand out between our/their clothes and skin color,. Thailand, however….well, in Bangkok, there’s quite a set up of backpacker facilities, bars, etc. New Zealand is the same way….there’s just an entire backpacker culture here and it’s kind of a shame since in means that most travellers really rarely spend time meeting people actually from here instead of other backpackers. Don’t get me wrong, I love exchanging travel stories and meeting people from all over the world, but I could do that in just about any country….and so I’m really enjoying spending a few days in house in avalley of Cantebury and just commuting into the hospital. :).

An eye for an eye…

Ok….back to the visa to Brazil: I’ve been holding off on posting this, but I guess it’s time. So, if you haven’t heard me rant about this yet, you should really read this, especially if you’re American. As most of you know, America’s foreign policy is kind of crap right now when it comes to tourists coming to out country. Yes, we are protecting ourselves and no one can argue that that’s our right as a country, but for anyone trying to visit and experience our culture– well, we don’t make it easy, nor do we make ourselves look very good while doing this. Before I go on my little tirade, just wanted to say that I understand why we have our policies and, as frustrated as I am with this Brazil visa process, I really do understand and actually support their policies as well to a certain degree….

OK, so, the reason I say this is because getting a visa to Brazil is pretty much an only slightly easier process than getting one to the U.S. because the Brazilian government has implemented reciprocity policies with the U.S.; basically, any hoops we put them through, they’re putting us through. Now, this is all fine and dandy if you’re in the U.S. because you can do it in person and within 24 hours. However, from abroad, it becomes a nightmare. The visa has to be issued within 90 days before arrival in Brazil and with very few exceptions, can only be done in your country of residence, and only in person. As I’ve been traveling for 7 months now, that obviously is a bit of a problem. Every time I’ve tried to get the visa, I’ve been shot down– NY and Switzerland, it was too early. India, I got yelled at because, “Well, America isn’t very nice to the U.S., now is it??!” and Bangkok, it took too much time (in retrospect, I should have just stayed in Bangkok longer, as it was only 5 days, not 8). NZ won’t give it to non-Kiwis and so I’m going to Sydney. Now, you have to have an onward ticket, so I had to buy one here even though it’s HEAPS more expensive (I bought a refundable one…I’ll buy a cheaper one in Brazil and then return this one, same thing I did to come to NZ) since it’s always cheaper to buy in the country you’re leaving from. On top of it, the cost of the visa is technically free, but because of the reciprocity policy, we have to pay $250 AUD to get it! Plus, once we arrive, there’s fingerprinting, etc. Now, from the beginning, I’ve actually been rather amused by the whole thing just because, well, we do deserve to get a taste of our own medicine, but it’s a little frustrating and I do wonder how much tourism Brazil loses as a result. In any case, I have to respect their stance and all of it, even if I sometimes want to shout, “Ok, Ok, I get the point, but you’re really making this argument to the wrong person as I clearly am interested in the rest of the world, or I wouldn’t be traveling…” In any case, I don’t think many Americans (myself included) really realize how difficult it is to visit the U.S., especially from a lot of developing countries, because of the combined fears of illegal immigrants and of terrorists. I’m not saying that we’re not right to a certain extent because those are both big issues at home, but maybe we are taking things too far…

AH, well…. it’s all part of the experience I suppose. I’m really excited to be back in a developing country again. I miss the energy of India and of the people there.

Home. Well, not even specifically my home, but A home…the idea is so foreign to me after 7 months out here. For the last four or so days, I’ve been crashing at the house of one of my old Bryn Mawr classmates and it suddenly struck me that as much as I love living abroad, a little bit of my wanderlust is actually fading away. …Then again, I’m getting ridiculously psyched for Brazil, too! Actually, I think the issue is probably that NZ is a really easy place to get around. It’s almost too easy to settle in. I’s beautiful and there’s a lot to do, but lacks the excitement that makes traveling so unique and fun. though, if there’s one thing I’ve really loved about the lifestyle of most of the people I’ve met here is that people really enjoy what spare time they have– they go out and really do things outside– kayaking, biking, swimming, tramping, surfing. This has to be one of the fittest countries in the world! Hopefully, I’ll be able to keep a bit of that mentality into my life next year…I’m definitely wary of going back to being swamped with work for most of my days…

In any case, I’m on the move again…heading to Christchurch to do some observations in the ED there. I’ve been kind of low key these last few days, but at least I’ve been getting a lot of work done….and I’ve had time for symphonies in the park and barbeques, so life is good :). Hopefully, I’ll find something fun to do in Christchurch along with my research…. I put some new pics up around the site…search around ;-).

well, i haven’t posted in ages, huh? i’ve been all over the place so I barely even know where to begin on here….in brief: spent 3 days on the beautiful little island of Waiheke with its gorgeous beaches with stunning blue water (I’ve never seen so many shades of blue in one place before)… Weirdly enough, a few days before, when i emailed the Watson Foundation to tell them that I had arrived in Auckland, they informed me that another Watson fellow had just arrived in Auckland as well (they opened our emails successively by coincidence). So, she called me and then we realized that we were both in Waiheke, this random little island on the Hauraki Bay in new Zealand. We ended up meeting up at a playground overlooking the beach and talking before I headed back to Auckland. Wonders never cease!

Then, Mom showed up for a week of crazy travel. i have to say that i was really impressed by how much energy and enthusiasm we managed to keep up– believe it or not, Mom even went hiking with me and surprised me by being the one who wanted to keep hiking through the rain! we spent the first day just visiting places in Auckland: the sky tower and the parnell rose gardens. then mom took me out to go swimming with the dolphins on tuesday! fun! i have some great photos from that, which I’ll get around to posting someday. we flew to Christchurch in the South Island that night and started our tour of the South Island the next morning: a whirlwind of visiting Mt. Cook, Queenstown, Milford Sound, Franz Joseph Glacier and then taking the TranzAlpine train for a beautiful ride back to Christchurch. We flew back into Auckland at night and then the next day toured Rotorua ( with its spas and geyers and boiling mudpools) and Waitomo Caves, which are filled with little glow worms that light up the inside of the cave like little stars. She left on Monday to my sadness. it’s weird saying good-bye to family again and to think that there’s another 5 months before I’ll see her again :(. As you can tell, it was a very fast-paced trip, but we had a wonderful time!! I’ll put up pictures soon…

This week, I also started meeting with people here in NZ. I met with the director of the Health Emergency Management of New Zealand, who works on the ambulance system here, and then with a woman who works at the Center for Social Health and Outcomes Research in Auckland. She’s specifically interested in the use of emergency departments as the sites of brief public health interventions, which is one aspect of my work at the ED at CHOP that I always liked: that you can use the ED as a place to teach people about things like bike safety or alcohol. I’m going to look a little more into some studies she recommended to me regarding that phenomenon and maybe post more on it later. Today, I spent the day in Whangerei near the Bay of Islands. One of the doctors up here agreed to let me conduct a focus group here on Emergency Medicine for my research, so I was able to set up a meeting with doctors and nurses here….went really well. Again, I’ll post more on that later.

Ok, I’m heading to the Bay of Islands tonight before I head back to Auckland…

Keep in touch! NZglacier glacier mtcook

As weird as it is being some place so empty and clean and where I can drink the water, I have to say that I love cities at summer time…especially ones near the water! Outdoor concerts, hiking, shakespeare in the park, dancing on outdoor restaurant decks, boat rides, people watching at cafes, open air movies, playing cricket on the beach… Auckland is definitely short on tourist attractions, but it’s a great city to just get to know. There are lots of cafes and lots of outdoor things to do. I’m currently working on setting up my life here, but it’s slow going….tickets and visas for Brazil and some ER visits and NGO visits. I visited the Asian Disaster Prevention Center in Bangkok and have gotten a little more interested in disaster prevention…as New Zealand is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, this is a pretty decent place to be looking into this area! Also, because NZ’s EMS systems are much more developed than, say, India, it’s a nice place to look into some of the other initiatives tied into ERs, like public health programs and evaluations….I’m going to visit the Centre for Social and Health Outcomes Research and Evaluation here in Auckland at some point this month. Hopefully, this will all end up giving me a different perspective than the one I got in Philadelphia at CHOP (the systems are very similar here and in the U.S.)….

I’ll post pictures soon, I promise….nothing too dramatic yet. I need to leave Auckland for the really cool stuff, but I think I’m heading out for a 3 days trip to one of the islands tomorrow, so there should be some.

hi, from new zealand! i finally made it here after a few small fiascos, including almost not qualifying for my visitor’s permit (i’m a moron and that’s another story…) and getting profiled by the NZ customs agent who thought i might be trying to smuggle illegal flora/fauna into the country (they’re very protective of their environment here and the species within it, so you can’t even bring in water that might contaminate life here). I managed to get away from the customs agent after only 20 minutes of questioning and, miraculously, without having my bags searched. Thank goodness, cause I’m not sure how I would have packed them up again…

All for now…more another time. Going to go find myself a pizza place or maybe a falafal place….hmm, non-Indian or Thai food for the first time in a while ;). So many choices! Off I go…