This year, has proven to be much, much better than last year, with the obvious reasons of the lockdowns limiting my movements and affecting me mentally. Still, this year wasn't all smooth sailing - it was in fact, not only a year that was whack-a-mole, but this year also had many hiccups along the way. It was tough, with a lot of uncertainty at the beginning of the year, worrying about the pandemic and potential future lockdowns, ongoing worries about the economy (including rising costs) and business impacts, and the war in Ukraine, which started very early this year. Also noting that we had just emerged from a form of a regional border lockdown for the unvaccinated this year too (which thankfully did not apply to me as I was vaccinated before the regional border lockdown was lifted).
One of the memorable parts of this year was travelling overseas for the first time since the pandemic began and the death of my father. The overseas travel happened a month before my birthday - but it was a part of my birthday celebrations, as I went to Sydney to do luxury shopping, which we bought a lovely Chanel scarf, a Furla bag and some other items. We went back to Darling Harbor and Circular Quay as well, both of my favorite areas to dine in. We went to a part of Sydney which I believe we have never been before - Shark Island. It was also my first time jet boating overseas, although I have done it many times in my own country. When we got back to Auckland, this was followed by more luxury shopping, which we bought a nice Alexander Wang bag, and two Givenchy items from a designer boutique in Parnell. This then follows a trip to Queenstown for my 25th birthday, in which I did a bungy jump at the Kawarau gorge, went on the Nevis swing and hilariously got tossed upside down, and back to the Shotover Canyon swing for another fun and adrenaline inducing activity. Concerts and events were another thing - from concerts and music festivals to fashion events like those hosted at restaurants where I was given a complimentary drink and a set course menu, treated to a fashion show on most occasions, and given a goodie bag to take home. Other times it was about mixing and mingling, and there was one event that was based on an auction (What Women Want) that took place at the end of August, just before we went on our first overseas trip, to Sydney - since the pandemic began. Six 60 made history again, as it was the second time they have ever performed at Eden Park stadium. I also went to Friday Jams for the first time ever, and the concert/music festival was such an amazing experience with an awesome vibe.
I also have done some awesome experiences for the first time in my life, such as Waitomo blackwater rafting, reverse bungee in Surfers Paradise, parasailing in Taupo and visiting the interactive Ripley's - believe it or not! museum in the Gold Coast.
The end of the year also was fantastic as I attended Coca Cola Christmas in the park for the very first time in three years, with one of them I missed due to being on holiday in Queenstown - in 2019. The other two were, of course, due to the pandemic related restrictions. I also went to the Gold Coast for the holidays, which is a first for a non Sydney related destination in years (I love Sydney, but it is awesome to travel to different places). In addition to kicking off summer with a blackwater rafting adventure in Waitomo, we went to Taupo and Rotorua for a bungy - and some fresh prawns. In the Gold Coast, of course we spent time at the beach in Broadbeach and did shopping and of course, we went to theme parks. And spent time at Surfers Paradise, too!
My favorite bungy this year that was the most memorable was the Auckland Bridge Bungy, where I dressed up as a creepy schoolgirl, and put on spooky makeup to do the 40 meter jump. It later tuned out that I dressed up as Addams from Wednesday, as people pointed out that I looked very much like her after the jump. It was not only so much fun, but it was the first bungy that I did that involved makeup. I also loved dressing up, and the photos turned out to be quite spooky and awesome, making this jump one of my favorites so far (Other being the Nevis due to its height)! The staff at AJ Hackett (link for anyone who is interested in doing their activities in New Zealand) were amused and they could tell I had a whole lot of fun, given it was halloween and that I loved dressing up for any occasion - and also wearing makeup on any day just for a good photo op, in addition to looking good and feeling confident in photos, as my face has unfortunately, naturally got acne and other flaws.
The downsides of this year was that I had to suffer the impacts of the lockdown on me - and the fall outs also resulting from it. One of those impacts was me (other than stress related to the lockdown) still not being on speaking terms with a couple of friends as a result of the lockdown, and the friendship issue has, unfortunately, consumed me this year, and which in turn had a very bad impact on my mental health. Another was worrying about potential future lockdowns and the economy (including inflation and the cost of living crisis) which only added to my stress. Rising crime across New Zealand, including and especially ram raids, burglary and theft, only added to my stress and worries, along with gun violence (the US is already bad enough with too many mass shootings in 2022, we didn't need our own). As if gun violence in the world and NZ, in addition to a pandemic wasn't bad enough already, add monkeypox to the list - another disease introduced to countries where it didn't exist before is the very last thing anyone wanted.
Then as if getting a period before bungy jumping of the Kawarau gorge wasn't upsetting and embarrassing enough, being forced into isolation after a household contact tested positive was even worse. Much to no one's surprise, however, I also had covid - although mild, it still did count as a very faint line was shown (even the faintest of lines are positive) although we recorded it as negative as we were totally unaware of what it meant at the time. To cap it all off, the wisdom teeth extraction was the absolute worst - I was bleeding for approximately a week, I couldn't drink alcohol for more than a week, and I couldn't even laugh or smile in the first few days. I could only have liquid food and drinks for that time. Luckily, I was able to make a quick recovery just in time for Halloween, where I did a bridge bungy, in a costume. Still, the intermission period right after the operation and just before Halloween was the worst. If all this wasn't enough, many beloved celebrities including Olivia newton-john, in addition to Queen Elizabeth, passed away this year, and tragically, at the tail end of the year, fashion designer and founder of luxury label Vivienne Westwood.
With 2023 at it's very beginning still, I am looking forward to what 2023 has in store for us this year, including major sport events and concerts! I will also be travelling more so now that this is the first full year with total certainty. Although 2022 was an awesome year in many ways, and a far cry from the horrors of 2021 and 2020 especially, there have been rough and not-so-great moments that definitely will not be missed.
Photo on blog cover by D5 Render on Unsplash
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AuthorI am Natalie Dunn. I am a feminist who believes in gender equality and rights for everyone. I have many passions in life such as fashion, beauty, adventures and travelling. Archives
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