With a successful landing on the Christchurch International Airport tarmac, the SoPac Fall 2008 students made their glorious entry onto New Zealand's south island.  Armed with passports, cameras, and a semester's worth of luggage, their bright eyes absorbed the beauty of the raw New Zealand scenery with all the excitement you would expect from a group that is going to spend three and a half months in it.  On the two hour drive from Christchurch to our new home in Kaikoura, the scenery transformed itself from a rolling pastoral setting, all the way into a rugged, winding mountain scene.  Gasps turned into silent awe as we came into Kaikoura, where the ocean finally greets those mountains.  We went to the lookout to get a good view and then finally proceeded to our new home at 'The Old Convent'.  A gorgeous old building with an even more gorgeous view, this is an answer to many hopes and prayers, as it will serve as CCSP SoPac's home for years to come.  

The students settled in, and went to bed quickly as jet lag had

 the final word on the day.