It’s hard to believe 6 months have already passed since I packed up my life and left the country.

What have I been doing? Did I really leave home that long ago? Isnt this just my life now? Where in the hell am I going next? Am I even doing this right?

These, and a dozen or so other questions, have been running through my mind as I begin to realize that I’m leaving this place I now call home.

I hadn’t really intended on staying in Auckland for this long, it just kind of happened that way. It was amazing and I couldn’t have asked for a better situation, but how in the hell is half of my visa already gone? It feels like I just got here yesterday, and simultaneously like I’ve been here my whole life.

I honestly can’t imagine leaving my job. (Sound familiar?) My team has become my family here. I’m probably the luckiest traveler ever to have landed this gig because these people have been absolutely incredible and realistically, they are all I know of New Zealand. This office and the people in it have completely shaped my experience here, and for that I will be eternally grateful.

But yet, I have to say goodbye to the city and continue on with this adventure.

Not having a job does not come easily to me, but I came to New Zealand to take in everything it has to offer, and I have yet to even scratch the surface. I’m normally a planner, but this trip has taught me to let go because thats really where the magic happens. I have already been moving every month, so that’s been quite an amazing experience. But now I’ll actually be in a new part of the country every month, which is a bit hard to wrap my head around just yet.

In a few days I start heading South.

I pack up the few belongings I have and downsize just to my travel backpack. I’ve connected with a few travelers who are going to join me on my roadtrip. We leave Auckland and head to Taupo then Wellington. From there we’ll catch the (horribly expensive) ferry to the South Island and head down the West Coast to Queenstown. It is a lot of area to cover in 1 week, but I am thrilled to be doing it.

Once I’ve dropped off the car, my first real plan is to head to a rural farm north of Christchurch. I’m spending a few weeks with a photographer and producer who I’ve been a fan of for years. (Rememeber the show Departures I’ve mentioned before? Check out Season One – Episode 9.) After that I’ll be heading to a vineyard for a few weeks and then maybe to Wanaka.

Or at least that’s the plan, but part of the beauty of this thing is that the opportunities are endless.

And so I guess here is where the real adventure begins…