Hey all! thanks for the comments- keep me down with all the Enterprise gossip.
So, New Zealand. We flew in on April 3rd, after never seeing the light of the 2cnd ( Time differences- very wierd). We flew into Auckland, where we went fom being a twosome to a posse of three, as Linsey flew in from England. Bit af a traumatic time for her, as her bags where lost in LA...not judging American Buearacracy here, but would this have happened else where..?Any way, the bag didnt deign to join us until thursday, so we spent a good old time checking out Auckland. I hadnt heard too many good things but i actually think its one of the nicest cities ive ever been to. very clean, the people are amzing, and the harbour, parks and island are wicked. we packed in the whole cultural thing here, visiting the huge Auckland museum, and the Auckland Art gallery. then, we hit the Magic bus! Sweet as, definately!
We only have 20 days in NZ, so its abit of a whirlwwind to see the best parts of the north and south island, hence why we brought the hop on hop off bus tickets. As an aside, we chose the Magic Bus over the Kiwi Experience, as we didnt feel the Kiwi bus would really cater to our tastes, as it were. We are NOT regretting that desion! Our Magic driver in the north island, Rangi, was brilliant, even if he did strongly proclaim that the best thing about Auckland is leaving it. On that first friday, we made our way down to Rotorua. (On the way, i saw possibly the funniest thing ever, though the girls werent so keen- there is a n angorra rabbit centre on the way, where they do displays of how they get the fur off the Rabbits. Basically, the rabbit has its paws streched out, and then is slowly turned, like a rottiserie chicken style, if you will, whilst being shaved. It doesnt hurt the rabbit, and it rather tickled me!)On the way, we stopped off at some caves, where Clare and i partook in some 'Black water rafting'. Basically, you get an inflattable inner tube, and make your way through a cave system, swimming at times, and jumping into water pools. Also, alot of this was in the dark, so you could see the glow worms- it was immense! Rotorua itself is a town based on a centre of geothermal activity- a bit wiffy, due to all the sulphar in the air, but very interesting being surrounded by geysers and bubbling pools. Also, the fact that the hostel had an open air, free, natural hot spring pool, didnt hurt either!
Next day, new bus journey. this time we headed down to lake Tapou, the biggest lake in NZ. On the way, a bit more addreneline! At dinner time, i did what could be best described as bungey swing. You skuttle up a telegraph pool, get strapped into a harness so you are in a sitting position, and then jump off! It was terrifying! So i thought next, lets go sky diving! that was so much fun, and not scary, just awe inspiring- it was over the lake, and it was just too good for words!
Phew!Off to wellington then! the most pulse racing thing we did here was go on the cable car up to the botanical gardens. Extreme. Also, kiwis take there holidays seriously here, so as it was easter, EVERYTHING was hut. Fun times- it looked like it could have been a wicked town. And that there was the north island! V quick, i know, but we are flying back to Auckland, to do the Bay of Islands, so its all good. We got the ferry across from the North to the South on Monday, where i randomly bumped into a girl from uni- very small world! Hope everyones good!
