How, I wonder, would Sei Shōnagon have enjoyed winter if she were alive today?
In this 7th December of the Reiwa era, the snow-filled early mornings feel at once nostalgic and impossibly distant.
Happy New Year. This is Rintaro Kamoshita, a 3rd year student. I returned to Japan last month.

Just as I thought I had finally parted ways with New Zealand’s lethal ultraviolet rays, I now find myself enduring the winters of Shinshu, where body, mind, and thermometer alike freeze solid. Strangely enough, there is a sense of calm in these days.

Before returning home, my family joined me in New Zealand, and together we embarked on a two-week adventure. Leaving Dunedin behind, we set out on a bold journey that explored every corner of the South Island’s natural beauty. In this journal, I would like to share the story of our very first overseas family trip, taken by the three of us. I hope that, through this small glimpse, you can feel the grandeur and magnificence of New Zealand.

Our story begins in Dunedin, the academic city where we 3rd year students live. After arriving in New Zealand, I guided my parents—bewildered by the unfamiliar land—and proudly demonstrated that even a terrible sense of direction can be cured after eight months. At my father’s request, wanting to truly feel the city I had spent those months learning from every day, we decided to stay in Dunedin for a full five nights.

During that time, I showed my parents many places dear to me: St Clair Beach, which I had visited countless times on walks; the card shop where I deepened international friendships through frequent visits, and the Otago Polytechnic campus, which I had completely claimed as my own territory over the past eight months. I also went around Dunedin’s many coffee shops with my father, comparing cup after cup. New Zealand coffee is remarkably smooth, easy to drink, and of an exceptionally high standard. Some classmates of mine only learned to enjoy coffee after coming to New Zealand. If you ever visit, I highly recommend giving it a try.

My father (on the left) and I (on the right), sipping coffee in the suburbs of Dunedin.ダニーデン郊外にてコーヒーを嗜む父（左）と私（右）

Once our days in Dunedin came to an end, our next destination was Lake Tekapo. One of New Zealand’s largest glacial lakes, Tekapo is said—according to our driver—to derive from a Māori word containing the meaning “night,” perhaps reflecting the lake’s famously beautiful starry skies. At that point, my sole purpose for the journey was seeing the stars of Tekapo; driving was merely a means of transport. That assumption was completely overturned along the way.

Our driver, a Japanese man, was an incredible storyteller. Of course, the scenery alone was more than enough to amaze us, but his New Zealand stories held my attention from start to finish. His choice of route was also perfect—rather than the standard coastal road, he took us through the mountains. The vastness—no, the overwhelming vastness—of nature stretching endlessly before us made me think, “So the scenery in Mission: Impossible wasn’t an exaggeration after all.” The five-hour journey passed like an arrow in flight.

Upon arriving in Tekapo, the sheer scale and surreal turquoise color of the lake shattered my sense of normalcy, and the first day ended with us doing little more than staring in awe. But the main event of this trip—seeing the real Milky Way—was something I absolutely could not miss. With the weather forecast declaring that the first night would be our only chance, fatigue was dismissed without negotiation. At 2 a.m. the next morning, I forced my eyes open using the vibrations of modern technology.

Even now, I remember the sensation of stepping outside half-asleep and having countless particles of light rush into my vision. I do not think I will ever attempt to describe the beauty of that night sky in words. I want you to see it with your own eyes. I will say only this: in that moment, I thought, “Ah—this is why I was given these eyes.”

The shores of Lake Tekapo adorned with blooming lupinsルピナスが彩るLake Tekapoの畔

After being utterly overwhelmed by the stars, we spent our second and third days in Tekapo at an unhurried pace, savoring life there. Then, as the final great natural landmark of our journey, we visited Mt. Cook (Aoraki). Designated as a national park, it is a place where precious natural wonders gather in abundance. We walked two relatively gentle hiking trails that day.

The weather was heavily overcast, and the summit was hidden behind clouds, which initially disappointed us. However, our driver explained that “Aoraki” is a word related to clouds, and he told us Māori legends, including the story of the cloud god and the earth god being torn apart. Thanks to those stories, what could have been the worst possible weather instead felt deeply mystical.

After this, we were taken to Queenstown, then flew on to Auckland, where we did our final shopping and dining before bringing this long journey to a close.

There are three main things I wanted to convey through this journal.
First, trips like this hold deep significance: for students, they broaden one’s understanding of New Zealand beyond Dunedin; for families, they allow shared experiences and sensations through time spent together in Dunedin and amidst vast natural landscapes. For 1st and 2nd year students, as well as new arrivals planning to study abroad, I especially hope you will consider opportunities like this.
Second, Tekapo Shuttle, who took care of us from Dunedin to Queenstown, was absolutely outstanding. If you go, I strongly recommend using their service. By the way, the biggest surprise of this trip was discovering that the owner of Tekapo Shuttle is also named Rintaro—and even shares the same name origin as me, though written with different kanji. What an incredible near miss!
And finally—seriously—go see the stars at Lake Tekapo.

The absolutely incredible owner of Tekapo Shuttle, Rintaro (second from the left), with my family.あまりにも最高すぎたTekapo Shuttleのオーナー、Rintaroさん（左から２番目）と我が家

Before long, our 3rd year will come to an end, and our time at ICT will be more than halfway over. The speed at which life moves continues to astonish me. Living every day at a full sprint is not a bad thing—but perhaps, once in a while, it is good to stop, and lean your whole body into the vastness of nature.

I sincerely wish that this year will be a fruitful one for all of you. Until next time.
Until next time.

Rintaro Kamoshita

Hello,
My name is Hitomi, and I am currently on a one-year Sabbatical Training program at Otago Polytechnic in Dunedin, New Zealand. Usually, I work as an ICT staff member at the Kanazawa Campus. Now, I’m here in New Zealand with my husband, our 11-year-old daughter, and our 5-year-old son. At Otago Polytechnic, I’m studying Event Management, attending classes, and gaining practical experience through several projects and internships. These opportunities allow me to work alongside local staff and learn directly from the New Zealand work environment.

After classes on weekdays, I pick up my children from their local primary school. On weekends, our family enjoys exploring the natural beauty of Dunedin, its mountains, beaches, museums, arts, parks, and more. We also actively participate and volunteer in local community events, which have provided us with wonderful opportunities to connect with people and enrich our experience here.

In this report, I’d like to introduce some of the unique foods I’ve experienced during our stay. I hope this gives future students, their families, and anyone preparing to study abroad a glimpse into New Zealand’s food culture.

Let me start with “Fairy Bread”, a popular menu item at children’s birthday parties in New Zealand. It’s made by spreading margarine on slices of white bread and sprinkling colorful ice cream toppings (sprinkles) on top. As you can imagine, it’s sweet and crunchy, and the kids absolutely loved it. I learned the recipe from Mikayla, one of the supervisors at my internship, who’s a Dunedin local.

Fairy Breadsフェアリーブレッド

The next one is a classic Kiwi snack, potato chips with Kiwi Onion Dip. This dip is easy to make; just mix Nestlé’s reduced cream (a canned unsweetened cream) with powdered onion soup mix. It tastes very good, especially with salt and vinegar flavor chips, and is highly addictive. Once you start, it’s hard to stop! In New Zealand, all kinds of candy are affectionately called “Lollies”, and they’re loved by both kids and adults. In the photo, you can see colorful, chewy gummy lollies and Pineapple Lumps. These are soft pineapple-flavored candies coated in chocolate, and they’re so delicious you’ll find it hard to eat just one.

Snack Platter – Chips with Kiwi Onion Dip & Assorted Lolliesポテトチップスとディップ、キャンディの盛り合わせ

The “cheese roll” is a popular snack you can find in almost any café. It’s reasonably priced and tasty. Some are made with plain white bread. The cheese roll is found on the South Island of New Zealand, where it is loved as a kind of soul food. It’s just bread with cheese filling inside, rolled up, toasted, and topped with butter. One bite gives you a warm and happy feeling.

Cheese Rollsチーズロール

Here’s a Christmas meal in New Zealand. Many families celebrate Midwinter Christmas in August — the middle of winter in the Southern Hemisphere — by enjoying Christmas dinners. I was invited to a Christmas dinner hosted by my internship organization.
The dinner began with salads and bread, followed by a main course of ham, pork, and chicken served with roasted vegetables. The side was an orange-colored sweet potato called Kumara, a local favorite similar to the Japanese sweet potato. It’s widely available in supermarkets and absolutely delicious when roasted. My family enjoys eating kumara as well.
For dessert, we had “Pavlova”, a traditional New Zealand dessert said to have originated here. It’s a meringue with a crisp outer shell and soft, marshmallow-like center, topped with whipped cream and fresh seasonal fruit. It’s a festive treat that’s light and sweet. It has a familiar taste for Japanese visitors too.

Roasted potatoes and vegetables served with a fresh broccoli saladローストされたポテトやお野菜とブロッコリーサラダ

Finally, no visit to a New Zealand café is complete without trying a Flat White. This espresso-based drink with finely steamed milk originated in New Zealand or Australia and is a local favorite. It has less milk than a latte, allowing the rich flavor of the coffee to shine through. If you find yourself in a Kiwi café, I highly recommend giving it a try.

Flat Whiteフラットホワイト

Life in New Zealand has been filled with beautiful nature, warm people, and delicious discoveries. Exploring the local food culture has been one of the many joys of our stay, and I hope this journal helps future students and their families feel more connected to what awaits them here. May your own study abroad journey be just as rich, flavorful, and memorable.

Hitomi Nanto

Hello.

I'm Inaba, and my husband and I are in charge of Student Support for ICT students in Dunedin. This time, I, Wakako (the wife), would like to briefly introduce Dunedin and our life here.

We regularly check in with students to support ICT students in making their Otago Polytechnic study abroad experience more fulfilling.

My husband worked at a Japanese energy company for 15 years before coming to study in the MBA program at the University of Otago, which he completed this year. Our family loved life in Dunedin so much that after graduation, he found employment with a local company and we've continued living here.

Dunedin is compact, without the hustle and bustle of a big city, yet not too rural—it's a "just right" kind of town. We often hear from young students that there aren't many places for entertainment, but it's blessed with nature. With beaches and trekking courses just a short distance away, it's perfect for refreshment. I think it's a calm environment where you can really concentrate on your studies.

We've been meeting regularly with ICT students since April, and at first, we noticed they felt confused by the new environment and different culture. However, they've gradually adapted and transformed into confidently enjoying their lives, which makes us feel they're becoming quite resilient.

Next, I'd like to introduce what kind of life we actually lead from a private perspective.

We're a family of five: husband, wife, and children (eldest daughter 7 years old, eldest son 5 years old, youngest son 3 years old).

On holidays, the whole family enjoys various types of activities such as visiting parks, shellfish gathering, fishing, and free museums. Since we lived in Tokyo before coming to Dunedin, we're often overwhelmed by the scale of nature here. Just a five-minute drive from our home, we can see many sheep, horses, and cows leisurely grazing in pastures that stretch far into the distance.

Our home is also located partway up a mountain, and from our garden we can see the mountain scenery. In the morning we hear birds singing, during the day sunlight pours down, and when there's a sun shower, rainbows often appear—it's an environment where we constantly feel nature close by.

Dunedin is welcoming spring and moving toward summer. In summer, we have so many things we want to enjoy: swimming at the beach, casual trekking, playing with water and pools in the garden, and more. It's been over a year and a half since we started our life in Dunedin, and we've gotten used to various aspects of clothing, food, and housing, and feel we now have the capacity to enjoy it all.

A part of the harvest昨年の収穫物の一部。採れたて野菜はやっぱりおいしいです。

Recently, we've been challenging ourselves with making homemade natto (fermented soybeans) and miso. Through trial and error, we've become able to make natto more consistently and deliciously than before. As for the miso, we prepared it about half a year ago, so it's about time to take it out and taste it. We're also growing vegetables in the garden, and it's very enjoyable for the family to tackle various things together that we probably wouldn't have tried if we were still in Japan. We are gaining new knowledge and experiences.

By the way, our children, who had zero English ability when we first came to Dunedin, have reached the point where they can communicate in daily life almost without any problems in English after only a year and a half (kids are really amazing!). They have long since surpassed me (a wife in my late thirties) in English ability, but I'm trying hard to keep up by attending lessons and such.

We want to continue enjoying our Dunedin life positively as a whole family.

To everyone reading this article, please do reach out to us when you visit Dunedin!

Wakako Inaba

　Hello, my name is Kaya Yasuda. I am a 3rd year student at ICT. It has already been six months since I arrived at Dunedin International Airport. I’ve gradually gotten used to life in New Zealand, and I’m now enjoying every day here. In this journal, I’d like to introduce what my new daily life looks like after these six months.

　First, I’ll talk about my host family. My host family is a woman who lives with two dogs. To be honest, before coming here, I imagined a host family with parents and children. I thought we would have barbecues together and join various family events. So, when I received my homestay information during the spring holidays and read that she “lives happily with two dogs,” I couldn’t quite imagine what my life would be like and felt a little nervous.
　However, once the homestay began, I realized she was a kind person and a great match for me. We do things like having meals, walking the dogs, and going shopping at our own pace, which makes living together feel very comfortable. Our dinner conversations are always enjoyable—not only about school or studying, but also about funny stories from her work or the mobile games she’s into lately. Sometimes she suddenly says, “I feel like ice cream,” and takes me to a drive-through, and every Friday and Saturday night, we go to her friend’s house for dinner. I think this kind of lifestyle, just the two of us, is something I wouldn’t have experienced in a typical host family stay, and I really enjoy it.

　Next, I’d like to talk about how I spend my time outside of class. Classes here in Otago Polytechnic usually run from around 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and even on longer days, they finish by 5 p.m. After class, I often go to the university gym located near my school. The gym isn’t just for sports—it also has a fitness area, pool tables, and even a café, so there are many ways to have fun. The facility is open not only to students from the polytechnic I attend but also to students from the University of Otago, and anyone can use it if they become a member. Because of that, I’ve been able to make friends with people my age, university students, and even working adults.
　There are also many international students who use the gym, from countries such as Korea, Singapore, Australia, and Japan. It’s always fun meeting new people. Especially when I meet Japanese students, there’s a special sense of comfort—a feeling of connection that’s a bit different from other friendships. While I often play badminton and volleyball with my ICT classmates, sometimes students from other countries join in naturally. Other times, I start by asking them to help me practice setting or serving. Before we know it, more people gather, and we end up having a small match. Everyone is very open and friendly, and many try to speak the simple Japanese they know. It’s always a fun and warm atmosphere.
　Recently, the days have become much longer, and it stays bright even after 8 p.m. After leaving the gym, I often go out for dinner with friends or take a run to the beach. I really enjoy spending my evenings freely and actively.

Running toward the beach at sunset 走って向かった夕暮れのビーチ

I’ve now completely settled into life in New Zealand, and the days are flying by. Since the term is almost over and exams are coming up soon, I’d like to focus on studying hard as well.

Kaya Yasuda

Hello. I'm Rinse Okiyama, a 3rd year student at the International College of Technology, Kanazawa. I'm currently studying abroad in New Zealand. Here in Dunedin, the weather is gradually warming up as spring approaches. Since arriving, I've been learning a lot every day through language study and cultural exchange. Living in a different environment isn’t easy, but it's full of new discoveries, and I can truly feel myself growing each day.

While people in Japan were diving into the sea, I was diving into the snow on the ski slopes of New Zealand. My friends and I took a bus and rode for an hour. Outside the window, lush green hills and flocks of sheep stretched out before us, revealing one beautiful scene after another—views unlike anything we’re used to seeing in Japan. Dunedin, where we live, is a suburban area, so we don’t often see farms, making the scenery feel refreshing.

We arrived in Roxburgh and had lunch at “Jimmy’s Pies,” famous for their meat pies. Next, we headed to “Puzzling World,” a mysterious space where you can enjoy a maze and optical illusion art. We got completely lost in the maze, feeling like little kids again. It was quite a challenge, and we ended up walking around for hours, but we finally made it to the end.

After checking into our accommodation in Wanaka, I took a walk with my friends to a nearby lake. Along the way, we discovered a stylish café and enjoyed some ice cream. After exploring the town on the first day, we returned to the lodge and enjoyed a warm dinner that our teachers had prepared for us.

The next day, we left our lodge early in the morning and took a bus to the ski fields, enjoying the sunrise along the way. Whether it was the driver’s rough style or the poor road conditions, the ride was bumpy the entire time. When we arrived, I was worried because there didn’t seem to be much snow, but the ski slopes were actually well-covered. Since I had just skied at Hakusan earlier this year, I got used to it quickly and had a great time.

Japanese ski resorts are known for their convenience, with abundant hot springs and lodging facilities. In contrast, New Zealand’s major advantage was the chance to experience the grandeur of nature itself. The scenery was totally different, featuring numerous courses with exposed rock faces, vast treeless slopes, and majestic mountain ranges stretching across the landscape.

At night, I went to a restaurant and took a walk around the lodge with my friends. Later, back at the lodge, we all gathered together as if we were back in the dormitory at Hakusanroku Campus and played a quiz game. It felt like those nostalgic and fun times were back again.

The third day was all about activities. Arriving in Queenstown, we took a gondola to the summit and looked down on the town. The view of the blue lake and surrounding mountains was stunning in its beauty. After that, we tried the Luge, a thrilling activity where you race down a steep slope at full speed. We all enjoyed it.

For lunch, we bought the tastiest burgers, known as “Fergburger.” Unfortunately, our schedule was packed, so we didn’t have time for sightseeing. At the final destination of our trip, three classmates challenged themselves to bungee jump. After jumping, they looked proud and relieved, having overcome their nerves. After that, we headed back to Dunedin, and the fulfilling three-day trip finally came to an end.

This ski trip was a valuable opportunity to deepen bonds with my friends and experience the differences in nature and culture firsthand. I want to continue challenging myself in various ways and make my study abroad life even more fulfilling.

Rinse Okiyama