Author Archives: Amelia Wiggins

We began our day nice and early and with much needed coffee before quickly heading out the door to begin our next adventure! Today, we are driving towards Lake Taupō, an ancient supervolcano! But first, right in Rotorua, we are stopping by a redwood forest. How cool! I have seen redwoods before in California, butContinue reading “NZ North Road Trip Pt. 2”

Today, we begin our epic NZ North Road trip! And, it also happens to be Waitangi Day; the day the Māori and the British signed the treaty, creating what we now know as New Zealand. #themoreyouknow! 🙂 First up: a drive through the perilous Paraparas. This road is small and super winding, with large trucksContinue reading “North Island Road Trip Part 1”

I took the 6:50 AM Super Shuttle to the airport and arrived around 7:30. Very early for my 9:45 flight that boards at 9:30. lol. You can never be too sure, right? Dana recommended I go to Best Ugly Bagel inside the domestic terminal, and it did not disappoint. Supposedly, I should’ve been able toContinue reading “Wanganui”

I’m doing it! Finally going to New Zealand to visit my two travel buddies, Dana and Hayden! They live in Wanganui, towards the south of the North Island. To get all the way there, I’ll fly from Boston to LA, wait around several hours, then take the 13 hour flight to Auckland… officially my longestContinue reading “Auckland”

April 26th: Lima I woke up early and showered, then took all my stuff out of the dorm room and tried my best to organize it. I bought two bottles of Pisco at the vineyard in Ica, and now had to expertly pack them so they wouldn’t break since I had to check my bag.Continue reading “Lima”

The drive to Paracas was the shortest bus ride I’ve experienced yet. As soon as I got to my hostel, I got ready for a shower, prepared an outfit for the next day, and was in bed. I was more tired than I realized and fell asleep rather quickly. My bed wasn’t the most comfortable,Continue reading “Paracas”

Another long day on a bus. Haha. This time though, the AC was on! Thank all the gods! Haha. Leaving Arequipa, the landscape was just rocks. And more rocks on top of rocks. Rocks for as far as I could see, lol. I suppose we really are in the desert climate of Peru, haha. Eventually,Continue reading “Huacachina”

April 20th: Arequipa After spending some quality time in the hammock, I head downstairs to see if I can check in. After a bit of conversation with another staff member, the font desk person says I can take a bed in “x’ room. Okay, great! It’s RIGHT opposite the front door, lol. Gonna be aContinue reading “Arequipa”

Up early again for the day tour to Rainbow Moutnain! Wooohoo! Julia also reserved a spot for today with MPR, but as luck would have it, we were placed into 2 separate groups. Oh, well. It seemed strange we couldn’t switch around, but the guide didn’t seem to want us to. No worries, we’ll catchContinue reading “Rainbow Mountain 🌈”

April 17th: Day after Salkantay Today is all about relaxing, haha. I woke up and had breakfast at my hostel, which was way more than I had imagined. There was a small buffet table with fruits, bread, some cheese and deli meat, along with coffee and tea. I thought that was plenty, but THEN, aContinue reading “Around Cusco”