Wanaka, my second home!
I was lucky enough to spend the majority of my 2 years in New Zealand living in the amazingly beautiful and exciting town called Wanaka. Wanaka is a ski town and thrives throughout both the winter and summer periods with a combination of skiers and snow boarders chasing the snow, tourists and holidaymakers plus the lucky locals.
The town is highly elevated and is surrounded by large, breathtaking and usually snow capped mountains. Nestled beneath these monolithic peaks lies the stunning Lake Wanaka, which the town wraps itself around.
The exciting and invigorating energy of Wanaka is intoxicating. Each day as I walked into the town, admiring the glistening sunlight reflecting on the smooth calm lake beneath the rugged giants I couldnโt help feel immense joy and gratitude.
Each person who lives in Wanaka shares this feeling and everyone makes it known how wonderful it is to live in such a perfect paradise. When I asked a local how their day was, a response I became quite accustomed to went something like โHow can you not have a great day when you live in a place like this?โ.
The afternoons in Wanaka are best spent by a local bar, drinking beer while watching the sun set slowly behind the mountains and enjoying conversations with the slightly exhausted yet cheery skiers who have just descended from the mountain. Grinning from ear to ear with goggle tans and baggy ski pants, you canโt miss a skier who has had another epic day above the clouds.
I still pine for frosty mornings, the crisp fresh air and the glowing snow capped mountaintops contrasting against the blue bird sky. The joyful nights fueled with beer and tequila. Mixed accents mingling with the sounds of music while new friends dance and boogie late into the night. I miss the hiking adventures up mountaintops, the winding road trips through quiet farmlands dotted with sheep and the laughter with travelers enjoying a tasty bbq on a summers day.
Wanaka will always be my second home and although I miss it, I know I will always go back to the town that first captured my heart.
The scenery in your photos is stunning. I don’t know if you’ve been to my home, Scotland, before but here reminds me so much of where I am
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Wow that’s amazing! I had never thought that the two would be so similar. I actually plan to visit Scotland when I start my travels around Europe in July! I’ve heard it’s a beautiful place ๐
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Aw you really should try to include Scotland in your travels, the country is beautiful. If you loved what you see in your photos there I can guarantee you’ll love it! We are planning on doing NZ once we’ve done our year in Australia which starts in October ๐ Eeek it’s exciting
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You’re coming to Australia? That’s wonderful, you should definitely visit Melbourne (my hometown) I look forward to reading about your adventures in Oz!
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We sure are.. we’re visiting Bali for a few weeks then in Oz for the year! We plan on moving around as much as possible so we definitely will be in Melbourne at some point. Thank you
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That’s super exciting – You’re going to have the most amazing time! ๐
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Very very beautiful place indeed!
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Beautiful country! Thanks for the inspiration ๐
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Just had a weekend get-away to Wanaka! So beautiful and relaxing!
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Isn’t it the most beautiful place? Any snow on the mountains yet?
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Yes we woke up this morning to a light dusting, definitely getting colder
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How exciting!! Winter is coming ๐
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