A semester in the youngest country

Staff

Published Saturday, March 29, 2008

By Geri McShane, assistant editor

Looking back, Krista Horejsi said her last semester in college now feels a lot like a dream.

And in many ways it was just that — a dream come true.

Horejsi spent from early July to mid-November studying in New Zealand.

“I knew I probably wouldn’t have a chance to go there any other time in my life,” the Albert Lea native said. “I thought, when am I ever going to get to New Zealand?”

What’s more, the University of St. Thomas student never thought she could afford it.

But after she applied for a scholarship specifically designed for psychology majors and having her grandparents pitch in for her airline ticket, she didn’t have to take out any loans for the semester.

Horejsi said New Zealand was also appealing because it is an English-speaking country.

“I thought sometime in my life I’d probably get to Europe,” she said of choosing New Zealand.

She studied at the University of Auckland through Arcadia University in Pennsylvania and took a normal load of four classes: an introduction to pilates, an introduction to the Maori Society (indigenous culture), applied ethics and perception and cognition.

“It is a huge campus,” Horejsi said of the University of Auckland. “There are so many international students that I got used to hearing five languages at a time.”

Her dormitory was the railway campus train station, which had been renovated for international students.

She walked a lot. “It was two miles to church and we walked it every Sunday,” she said.

When she was not studying, she and some of the other international students saw the sights.

They went to Bay of Islands for a weekend. They took in a New Zealand vs. Australia rugby game. During a two-week semester break, they traveled to the South Island. “We did a lot of hiking,” she said.

She got to see many things she’d never seen before, including mountains, an avalanche, penguins, seals and whales. She rented a car and drove on the opposite side of the road than what she’s accustomed to when sightseeing. She hiked on a glacier.

New Zealand is the youngest country on earth — the last major landmass to be discovered. Horejsi said one can experience all four seasons in one day. “A raincoat and hiking shoes are a must,” she said.

There are sheep everywhere. “New Zealand is a land of 40 million sheep and 4 million people,” she said.

Two weeks before she left the country to come home again, she and some of the other students went to Lake Taupo on North Island, where she got to go skydiving.

Her tandem skydive consisted of a 45-second free fall, then her diving partner, Kane, tapped her on the shoulder and the parachute opened. “Then time stopped, and Kane said, ‘How do you like my office view?’”

Internet and phone cards kept her in touch with her family.

Horejsi said she learned a lot during her adventure. It was a little daunting to be dropped off by her parents for her 15-hour flight to a foreign country.

“I learned that I can fend for myself and I found out what was really important to me,” she said.

As co-captain of the St. Thomas swim team, Horejsi missed the first month of her season, and tried to keep in shape by running a trail. She swims the 100 and 200 breast stroke, the medley relay, sprint freestyle and occasionally the 200 freestyle relay.

Horejsi said she recommends to anyone thinking about studying abroad to not give up and to explore the possibilities, including scholarships.

“It was the trip of a lifetime,” she said.

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