When I was searching for a place to study abroad, I took the weather into consideration. I am not a huge fan of cold weather, so I wanted someplace with a warmer climate. (Of course, the weather was not my most important factor or I would have ended up in Auckland.) However, I heard that it rarely snowed in Dunedin – at most once every couple of years. Perfect. I was trying to escape the buckets and buckets of snow thrown at the U.S. this winter. When I woke up Monday morning, finally coaxed myself to crawl out of my warm sleeping bag covered by 4 layers of blankets and walk into my frigid, uninsulated house, where I can see my breath whenever I talk, I had a surprise at my doorstep. Snow. In Dunedin. What was it doing here!?
Watching New Zealander’s handle the snow was comical. In all honestly, there was not that much – enough to cover the ground, but not enough to make snow angels in. However, the people from Dunedin acted like it might be the end of the world. Roads were closed, some shops did not open, and I even heard some classes were canceled. Oh boy, they should come to the Midwest in the dead of winter.
What was even more exciting was watching my flat mate enjoy the snow. She was incredibly excited because she is from Hong Kong and has never felt snow before. When most people were heading for cover, she ran outside in order to feel the hail that was pelting the ground.
That made the snow all worth it for me. In fact, I hope we get a bit more snow just for her.
haleychelsvig 