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I’ve fallen in love with where I live: Wellington, New Zealand.
You can truly love who you are and where you are. You don’t need a significant other to validate either of those things.

It was rough for me at first, mainly because I lost faith in myself when I moved. I was hard on myself and considered myself a failure when things didn’t go as planned.
But I’ve now fallen in love with everything about Wellington.
The cafe culture. The 40-minute tranquil walk home along the coast. The friendliness of Kiwis. The incredibly laidback lifestyle. The beaches and bays everywhere. The insanely breathtaking views while hiking. The endless amounts of forestry. The bookstores. The quietude. The wildlife and bugs, all of which will never do any harm to you. The safety. The adorable pets. The isolation of the islands. The paradise. The calmness. The natural beauty.

My perspective of New Zealand has changed rapidly over the last few months… in a great way. I’ve been at peace most when I grow on my own, which always means exploring on my own. I’ve channeled a lot of my hidden introversion to be okay with where I am and how I’m living. I enjoy getting weekends just for me— not catered to anyone else’s schedule or penciling in appointments, like the California girl in me used to.
I finally love who I am, how I’m changing, why I’m here, and where I am… and the struggles along the way serve as the foundation for my life lessons.
This is why I moved. Wellington embodies my true love, happiness, and peace.
It’s always nice to love and to be loved, of course. But it doesn’t mean that you can’t take a step back from it all and learn to love yourself and your surroundings before fretting, swooning, or fantasizing over any one person.
I loved this post. I can completely resonate with it. I fell in love with Utrecht, the Netherlands when I lived there for 3 short months. I’m now back home in Ireland nearly 2 months and I still feel I have left a part of me in Holland. I will go back eventually but until then I will cherish the amazing memories 🙂
Yes! You sure learn a lot about yourself when living abroad in a different setting, huh? Ireland seems amazing as well- must be filled with beautiful architecture and landscapes. 🙂