U.S. Foreign Service Officer headed to Wuhan, China

The mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad. The work that diplomats do has an impact on the world as they serve at one of any of the more than 270 embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions in The Americas, Africa, Europe and Eurasia, East Asia and Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.

The duties of a Consular Officer include to provide emergency and non-emergency services to American citizens and protect our borders through the proper adjudication of visas to foreign nationals and passports to American citizens. We adjudicate immigrant and non-immigrant visas, facilitate adoptions, help evacuate Americans, combat fraud, and fight human trafficking. Consular Officers touch people’s lives in important ways, often reassuring families in crisis. They face many situations which require quick thinking under stress and develop and use a wide range of skills, from managing resources and conducting public outreach to assisting Americans in distress.

Journey to the far north

Three days in Auckland flew by and before we knew it we were back in the car and heading to the far north. While I was working with NZSki, one of the transport drivers had recommended that I stay with her mom in a place called Doubtless Bay, a small area only a little ways from the northern tip of New Zealand. After arranging directions and our estimated time of arrival, my friend's mom, Annette, said she was happy to host us and that she would have afternoon tea waiting for us when we got there. I couldn't wait!

The drive north took us about four hours from Auckland as we made several additional stops along the way. The first detour was to check out a waterfall in Whangarei. Since it was a beautiful day, we appreciated the chance to get out, stretch our legs and enjoy the sights on a little hike to see the falls followed by a picnic lunch.

Our second stop was to see the Hundertwasser toilets Kawakawa. During an art and architecture course with Hope College in Vienna, we had studied a lot about Hundertwasser and had toured some of his crazy buildings. He lived out the end of his life in the tiny town of Kawakawa and the public toilets was the last piece of art that he designed. They are some of the artsiest toilets I have used and definitely some of the most photographed.

We made it to Annette's house by dinnertime and were surprised and excited to find a lamb roast and chocolate cake waiting for us. They were quickly devoured with lots of wine and conversation - Annette is quite the character and entertainer. She peppered us with lots of stories and information about the area which made us excited for our adventures the following day which included driving all the way to the top of the island. We went to bed with very full stomachs and hearts warmed with incredible Kiwi hospitality.

Read More 2 comments | Posted by Sarah Sanderson

2 comments

Linde on November 1, 2012 at 1:54 PM

Wow! That waterfall looks like paradise
:-)
Chris Winkler on November 5, 2012 at 3:51 AM

Very cool about the Hundertwasser stuff! I recognized the design before you even mentioned that it was from the guy in Vienna. How fun.

Wanderlust

In Mandarin: 旅遊癮 (lǚyóu yǐn)

According to my Mandarin teacher, the term 'wanderlust' can best be translated as 'a travel addiction or craving'. In the above translation, 'yǐn' has several meanings such as 'a strong impulse', 'a longing', or 'a desire'.

U.S. Foreign Service Officer headed to Wuhan, China

Journey to the far north

2 comments