So it has been 10 days since I arrived but it feels like it has been a month. I haven't written because we have been so busy, but I will write about all I can. The first day we, Nicki and I, arrived in Auckland at 4:30am. The plane ride over was great but long. We had personal TVs with lots of movies to watch so that helped. After Getting to Auckland we immediately went to the information center to book our bus down to Hamilton. We both knew we didn't want to stay too long in Auckland because it is another big city. We were anxious to get to Raglan, a small surfing town where we would stay 2 nights. After getting to Raglan we arrived at our hostel which was amazing. It was right on the beach and very laid back, everything you would expect of a surfing town. Most of the people even walked around town barefoot. We got there and unpacked our stuff, and relaxed in the hot tub. We also strolled along the beach and Raglan Bay before passing out from jetlag.
The next day we woke up and took out some kayaks that the hostel let us use for free. We paddled around in crystal blue water, it seemed like an island paradise. After that we went to our surf lessons! We were both really excited to learn to surf and we were on one of New Zealands most famous beaches, Manu Bay. Surfing was very hard but so much fun! We both even stood up on the boards, which I wasn't sure was going to happen. After that long day we relaxed in the Hostel and talked to the other people. Everyone was very nice and laid back.
Our next stop was the Waitomo Caves which I was equally anxious for, because of all the stories I had heard about it. It was even featured on Planet Earth! We signed up for the four hour Blackwater Rafting Tour, and after putting our wetsuits, helmets and boots on we were ready to go. We climbed down into the cave through a small opening and the caving began. Our tour guide was great and he made us crawl through small tunnels and swim in cold deep water, sometimes in the pitch black dark! The glowworms were amazing and I have never seen anything like them. For that part we had a tube and were slowly pulled down the river with the only light on the ceiling of the blue green worms. It was beautiful! That night we stayed at another nice hostel in a hilly rainforesty area. It rained all that day but luckily it didn't matter for us.
We moved onto Rotorua the next morning, which is a big geothermal area with mud baths and hot springs everywhere. There is also a large Maori population, the native people, in that region. The town smelled like sulfur from the springs but I got used to it. We went on a tour of the Whakarewarewa living village. It was weird at first walking through an actual community with people living there but they were very nice and welcoming. We saw how they cooked the traditional Hangi meal, in the ground and in the thermal pools, and we were able to eat it afterwards. We even saw a concert they put on and at the end they did the Haka warrior dance. The rest of the day we spent in Rotorua we went on a gondola up a hill to see over the city and rode a luge down. We also saw many New Zealand animals in the nature park. We saw a kiwibird, the national bird which is endangered, but since they are nocturnal it was asleep. Finally to make the day even better we went to a spa and had a mudbath. They say that the natural mud is good for you and relaxes you. Which we needed as the next day we were going to head to the Tongariro crossing, the best day hike in New Zealand, and also the scene of Mt. Doom in Lord of the Rings.
We woke up early to start our hike, which would last 8 hours. We had to pack food and water for the day and extra clothes since it would get very cold on the top of the mountain, or actually volcano. We set out and the scene was absolutely unbelievable, it felt like a postcard. The track was a total of about 12 miles. It was the hardest hike I have ever done. It is hard to explain what it was like but I hope the pictures do it some justice. We were both exhausted at the end and my legs were shaking! The next few days we would be on the bus to head to the South Island so the crossing was a pretty spectacular way to end.
The bus to Wellington was a night bus so we tried to sleep but not very successfully. Wellington looked like a very cool city and I hope to make it back up there soon! At Wellington we took a ferry across the ocean and headed down to Christchurch where our school is. The bus was very scenic along the ocean and through wine country. The roads here though are very curvy and hilly. On the way down I was excited to see Christchurch where I would be spending the next 4 months but sad that our week was over. It is a beautiful city and they have a nice botanical garden and a city park. The Lincoln University campus is very small especially compared to U of I. It takes about 5 minutes to walk from one end to the other. This should be nice though as a change from before. I still hope to travel on most weekends, so look for more updates and pictures!
PICTURES!!!!
