I’ve always loved traveling, since long before it was a part of my life. When I was seven, I begged to go to EPCOT–I had minimal interest in Disney World itself, but I was definitely excited about going “around the world” at the world showcase. I spent hours playing Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? on our ancient IBM computer, and watching the fantastic game show on PBS. I dragged my parents to Japanese cultural festivals and forced them to eat sushi while sitting on the floor in a tatami room at our local Japanese restaurant.

I’ve since been to 41 countries, six continents, and over 300 cities. My latest adventure was one of my favorites. I just got back from a month in an amazing new place–New Zealand!

Perfect reflections at Lake Matheson.

New Zealand certainly sets the record for longest flight experience–getting home took three planes and well over 40 hours! It was also one of the most generally beautiful places I’ve ever been. The people were lovely, the food is amazing, and traveling around was so easy! I spent five days on the North Island and about two and a half weeks exploring the South Island (including a fantastic week-long road trip with some of my best friends from college). Some of my highlights were:

• The Waitomo Glowworm Caves: You can’t take pictures in the caves, and they’re very hard to describe, but being on a boat in an utterly silent, pitch black cave surrounded by millions of tiny little lights (glowworms!) is an almost mystical experience. It’s like looking at the starriest sky you’ve ever seen.
• The Tongariro Crossing: Billed as New Zealand’s best one-day hike, the Tongariro Crossing was definitely one of the most beautiful hikes I’ve ever been on–and the toughest! I was exhausted by the end of the 20-kilometer day, but the views of Mount Doom and the Emerald Lakes were totally worth it.
• Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers: I love glaciers, and I was so excited to spend four days hanging out in New Zealand’s West Coast glacier country. Fox and Franz are receding fast, and the only way to get onto them is with a helicopter–which was awesome (if somewhat terrifying!). I took a fantastic helicopter ride to Franz and spent a couple hours hiking around the glacier–utterly incredible! I also did some really amazing hiking and kayaking. My favorite thing at the glaciers was Lake Matheson, which is a glacial lake where you can get absolutely perfect reflections of Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman. I love reflective pools!

Queen of the Ice!

• Milford Sound: I was unbelievably lucky with weather in notoriously rainy New Zealand, with the notable exception of the day I went to Milford Sound–where the rain was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Still, rain at Milford Sound means that all the surrounding mountains turn into waterfalls! It was a pretty fantastic sight.

Water, water everywhere on the road to Milford Sound

• Sunset in Queenstown: Water, mountains, and fabulous sunsets are pretty much my favorite things in the world. The South Island had them all.

Sunset over Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown

I’ve been home a week and am already researching two more adventures for this year. Stay tuned for details!

In the meantime, I’m happy to be home in NYC, and getting back into the swing of acting. I’m taking the second level of Heidi Miami Marshall’s on-camera class, which I am super excited about! I’m also taking my first sketch writing class. I’ve hit the ground running, and am really happy to have a whole bunch of upcoming auditions and projects in the works! I can’t wait to see what 2015 has in store!