The Lone Adventures of Li-Lu

Howdy Y'all from the USA

lijanne13 — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 09:44:00 GMT

So its been a while since I last wrote....for those that don't already know... im in the USA now! Been here 3 weeks today and am having a ball. I got back to the UK on 15th may and booked a ticket out of there as quick as i could. Mum hooked me up with lots of work for 3 weeks and away i went. Im now living in Bellingham, Washington....North West state below BC, Canada. It is incredible here, Dain got us a room in a house sharing with 2 girls and another guy. All is going well, iv been doing pre study for my PGCE teaching course I start in Sept at Plymouth while Dain works. The girls work various shifts so I get to hang out with them too.

Everyone has been so welcoming since arriving here,..it seems Dain has been talking about me while we've been apart and I keep meeting people who are like oooohhhh you're the english girl! By the way...guys LOVE the english accent here, seriously i keep being asked to jsut keep talking or say certain words....like holiday! Been away camping a couple of weekends, lay in some hot springs, got dragged behind a boat on an inner tube, kayaked on a freezing cold glacier lake, drank! OOh and tried lots of yummy food surprisingly! Waffles, pancakes, celery with peanut butter (got to try it!), cornbread, gumbo, root beer (my new obsession), Crown Royal whisky, maple syrup, vietnamese picnics....the list goes on.

Surprised at how laid back and normal people are here, i have been informed that the west coast is the liberal side of the states and therefore has very normal people here! Also Washington is the fittest healthiest state in america and as such have not managed to spot any grossly obese people yet....theres still time, hehe. Everywhere i go there are big trees and mountains, stunning scenery.

Went to Seattle at the weekend and met Dains parents who were lovely...excited about meeting me as im the first gf dains had in a long time! I then met all the neighbours etc, proud to know hes not ashamed of me anyway! We are having a great time together, he is just very easy going and fun fun fun. We shall see what happens, its tough coz i am totally head over heels for him but situation is difficult and time or fate will see where it goes. watch this space.

Anyways thought id quickly check in with you all. love to everyone and see you soon!

Melbourne

lijanne13 — Fri, 9 May 2008 14:24:00 GMT

Arrived at Melbourne airport to be put in nothing more than a cage to collect our luggage...was starting to panic that i wouldnt recognise Kim after so long!! Luckily she spotted me, so amusing as she looks the same but is sporting an Ozzie twang! She found it equally hilarious as i looked the same but was sporting a rather confused north/south accent!! Went to her work and waited for her to finish and then we just chilled out and caught up on the goss over a bottle of red and the yummiest takeaway carvery ever!! Headed to South Yarra in the morning, jsut down from where KIm lives which has the most amazing shopping precinct iv ever seen....why cant i be rich!! There were models walking around making me feel v short and dumpy and everyone was beautifully turned out...made me long for something other than my jeans and grey jumper to wear! In the aft i went to Melbourne, a v short train journey away! they have a metcard system where you pay $6.50 for a day and have unlimited use of trains, trams and buses....literally dont have to walk anywhere, so funny. Really liked melbourne, even thoguh its a big city u dont feel it and its so easy to navigate. got some sushi for lunch (my new obsession) and sat in fed square and watched the world go by. Was pretty tired as being a tourist i decided to walk everywhere so went back to the flat for a well earned lie down. Kim took me to the Crown Complex which houses the largest casino in (cant remember if its Oz or s.hemisphere) either way it was impressive. Had a drink and watched the flames which light the river on the hr every hr, using up the same amount of gas as the whole of melbourne uses! very environmentally friendly im sure! cool all the same. We went to the nightclub in the casino and danced the night away to an incredible band called Adam 12...they played a real mix of music from ozzy classics to R&B (tht was amazing as never heard live R&B) Hilariously they ended on Dirty Dancing 'Time of your life' with one of the guys donning a wig and singing the female part. Very Very amusing to watch. Woke next day feeling pretty rough and achieved nothing all day apart from going to the shop and buying a kg of strawberry yoghurt, old habits die hard!! Been to St Kilda today which is beachside suburb here. Gonna go home and prepare for our girls night out tonight!! So excited as getting to raid Kims wardrobe for something to wear coz my backpackers attire is def not good enough for melbournites!!! hehe, should be a good night....will tell more later xxx

East Coast Trip

lijanne13 — Mon, 5 May 2008 13:50:00 GMT

Han had the day off on friday so we pottered around for the morning waiting for her friend to pick us up. Tony decided not to come so ended up being a girly road trip...kinda good job seeing as he wouldnt have actually fitted in the car we seemed to have that much stuff! Had a couple of hours drive to north of Bicheno where we would camp for the night. Got there just before dark and set off in search of firewood. We set the tent up in the dark (so easy without men around!) By this time we couldnt be bothered to go to the supermarket to get food so lit the fire and ate packet noodles, mmm yum! Had a fright when i went to the loo behind a tree at one point. Heard something coming up behind me and thinking it was hannah called out then something hopped next to me. I have never pulled my pants up so fast, ran off screaming a creature a creature! with the girls wetting themselves behind me i turned the torch on to see a little wallaby sat there minding its own business.... id jsut seen this big rats tail and freaked, so funny. heard possums fighting in the tree that night which was a horrific sound. Slept so so badly in my extra thin sleeping bag!! Had 4 layers on felt like nothing. Was glad of sunshine the next morning. Had a walk to the lagoon next to the camp which was so still it was like a mirror, the pics are awesoem.

Our first stop was Freycinet National Park to walk to Wineglass Bay. The weather was the best it had been all week and armed with choccy we were ready to go! Came across a huge set of boulders which i wanted to climb, han found a back way up to the top and i dared her to come down forwards. thinking she was chicken i went to the top to come down and fulfil my own dare. my god it was steep from the top! Had Dain in the back of my head saying "Do it Do it" so got on my hands and bum and went down, was doing fine until i got to the gap between the two rocks and at the point of no return got stuck!! hehe fi had to come help me as i couldnt get my footing, silly woman! Also managed to split my trousers! oh dear another clothing item bites the dust!

Went upwards to the lookout which was jsut undescribable, so so beautiful at Wineglass bay,,,white sands, turquoise sea and blue skies wanted to run down and jump in...had it not been about 10 degrees! We walked down to the beach and saw...dolphins!! they must have been 50m from the shore and bout 6 of them putting on a show for their spectators!! Couldnt take my eyes of them! Walked back via another beach and when we got back to the carpark i came across 2 wallabies!! I went up to one and it came and sniffed my hand and let me stroke it!! Was so chuffed. From the park we drove up further to St Helens, found a camp for the night and went to town, stopped at a really cool bar owned by a friend of a friend, drank g &t and played Uno (we are the height of cool). Prepared for another night freezing, this time with extra thermal and tights,...and yup still barely slept, summer is def over here! Sundays brekkie consisted of toasted marshmallows on the fire and jaffles (toasties to the UK!) made in a specially designed jaffle iron which goes in the fire., so cool and so yummy! Stopped on the way back to Hobart in a place called Swansea to visit Kates Berry Farm. Run by a transsexual she/he makes the best homemade ice cream ever all flavoured with her/his homegrown berries, yum!!

Had a chilled last day, went to Daras for dinner then stayed at hannahs parents house ready for the airport the next day, Melbourne here i come, hope its warmer than here!!

Tasmania!

lijanne13 — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 10:38:00 GMT

Arrived on Friday night in Hobart, Hannah picked me up from the airport amd took me back to hers in Dodges Ferry around 30mins from Hobart. Their ANZAC BBQ was in full swing, had some yummy food but everyone was way ahead in the beer stakes so felt a little bewildered after travelling! Me and Han hid away and caught up on the goss! saw Dara too )i lived with these guys all summer last year in newquay. She was on form as usual!

Woke early on saturday and Hannahs friend jesse called and asked if we wanted to go out on the boat fishing! Was great fun, armed with a fishing rod we motored out into the bay and attempted to catch Flathead, a tassie special. I caught the biggest of the day which i was very chuffed about! Got about 5 in total so enough for dinner! Me and Han went to the markets in Salamanca, the oldest part of Hobart. Was freezing cold so we got some hot apple and cinnamon juice adn aimlessly wandered the markets, loved it! Last night consisted of eating Kangaroo kebabs, flathead and watchng movies! two firsts on Li'lus food list! The roo was incredible, so tender and yummy!!! The fish was real meaty and yum too!

After a night of freaking out about spiders...terrified they are going to get me, we got up and tony cooked a mega brekkie. We headed down the Tasman peninsula, The coastline was rugged, reminded me of the East Cape in NZ but less green...absolutely stunning. We drove through a place called Doo'town which errr had every house named with Doo'something. Like Doo love it, doo nothing, do little, the list goes on adn gets worse!! cracked me up something chronic! Drove down to remarkable Cave which had great surf when it worked, though def only for experienced surfers, cool to watch! Went to the cave which has a hole eroded in it in the shape of Tasmania island....hence the name. POpped into Port Arthur which is a tres historic place for Aussies. Its an old convict colony full of spooky ghosts and old lunatic asylums, jails from the 1800´s.

Spent last night at hannahs friend Kirstys house who was having a dinner party....girls only! Had a wicked night, had great food and the girls were so so friendly, reall easygoing evening. So im going to go discover the city that is Hobart now, apparantly it is not very big , seems more like a town to me but its pretty all the same. Will try update again soon ! love to all xxx

Manly with Gina and Rosie!!

lijanne13 — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 10:02:00 GMT

Got on the ferry to manly to see Gina and Rosie, was very excited about it!!! G and Rosie had their housemates sister staying so booked into a hostel in town...the cheapest i could find..manly is pretty pricey! Went and surprised rosie at work....she gave a half hearted hello as i walked in which shocked me a little after not seeing her for so long. Then it dawned on her who i was! then it was all hugs and smiles, so amusing. Met gina after work, both of them look really well and clearly loving Manly life. Hung out at the flat and met their housemates. Knew the guy as he worked in Chy bar last year in Newquay, crazy small world! Went out for dinner to a gorgeous little pizza place called Beaches, yummy! Had a Cisco pizza which is mexican beans, sour cream, guacamole and a cherry tomato, so delicious!!! Seems that most restaurants round here are BYO which is a new one on me! Stayed that night in the hostel and met a Swiss girl who joined the rising number od Swiss ppl i have met who have never heard of my name before!! Think my parents have been lied to somewhere along the line!! we wandered Manly for the morning . love it here, so different from the city which is only 30 mins away! Almost like an upperclass Newquay with all the surfers and stores.

Woke up to more rain the next day but decided to head up to Palm Beach...where they film Home and Away. Glorious sunshine awaited, only an hr or so up the coast, was amazing weather juat like in summer bay! Started to recognise places like the Surf Club and the fenced area where the characters stand and sulk when everything goes wrong. Was a really good day out. lost my fave cardie so stopped by the mall on the way back. lets just say its a good job i cant fit anything in my backpack otherwise the trip could have been dangerous...clothes are awesome over here! Bumped into Emma Tyrell )abbys friend from newquay so arranged to go for a beer on my last night, drank german beer by the hslf litre and met Luke, her mum and her mums friend, was a brliiiant evening.

The day i left for tassie was actually ANZAC day so i went into town to watch the march and go to the service in the high street. This is a huge public holiday for the Aussies and rightly so, everyone collected together to honour those lost in the battle of Gallapolli and all that serve their country. Felt very emotional and there was a tear in my eye, it was a beautiful service. Got the ferry back to the city and set off for Tassie,, cant wait! xx

The Blue Mountains

lijanne13 — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:36:00 GMT

Just got back from a fab weekend in the mountains. Didnt like Sydney so took of Saturday morning. Stayed in a little backpackers in the centre of Katoomba. As iv been in NZ for 2 months i assumed that being in the mountains there would be no or limited supplies so took 4 days shopping up there with me, killed my back. It was a fully serviced town with supermarket, bars everything! Two guys arrived shortly after me, a german backpacker and a 33yr old architect from sydney. They invited me to go hike with them so we headed off to Echo Point to view the three sisters (a famous rock formation) il post the story behind it when i get chance.

The fog was so thick that at first we couldnt see anything! Gutted as apparantly the view from here should be amazing! We stuck around for a while and the fog started to lift to reveal the 3sisters and part of the mountain range. It was a brilliant sight, we continued on the path to Katoomba cascades, couldnt really see the falls and didnt have the energy to walk down to them as it was a mammoth trek. Saw the worlds steepest railway and cable car...52degrees. Was told it was a rip off for the price so didnt bother going on it. we walked back to town and i wandered about the shops...really nice little town. The boys asked if i wanted to go out later on to which i agreed to one as it was saturday night. A few beers later...all paid for insistently by Walter the architect we were in the KAtoomba nightclub danicing to some rather cool funk and soul!! Felt very underdressed for the first time in ages as all the girls were dressed up to the max and i was in trainers and raincoat, v sexy!!

Woke with a slight blurry head which was soon fixed by Marc's famous hangover sandwich (!) containing, bacon, egg, ham, cheese and tuna...very random indeed but tasted really good!! They were going to teh caves then back to sydney...i couldnt afford to go so chilled out for the morning waiting for the rain to stop! It didnt so by 1pm i donned my boots and jacket and headed out. Id heard about a chocolate factory down the road from my hostel so chked it out. They served REAL hot chocolate. I took a pic of this nifty bit of equipmemt...basically a tealight below a little cup with a jug of milk and a tub of handmade choccy chips. I sat there with a magazine making hot chocolate for an hr or so, it was the best thing EVER!!! Beats Cadburys Drinking Chocolate anyday.

After being throughly warmed up by chocolate i went back to echo point to take the other track to a town called Leura. I could not seea thing off the mountain and the paths were turning into mini waterfalls there was that much rain, i was pretty much soaked straight away. but i continued on as desperatley wanted to see Bridal Veil Falls. The sign said 1 and half hrs there, i decided that due to mine and Dains track record on the Tongariro i could do it in 45mins....got there in 1hr so not too bad considering conditions! only saw about 4ppl on the whole track! When i came to the falls lookout i was stunned, i had never seen a big waterfall so i was overwhelmed by it. Had it been a better day i would have taken the tougher rainforest track and gone to the bottom of the falls but it just wasnt a safe option that day. The fog cleared a little so i could see down the valley, it was gorgeous. Found a shortcut back to the road and decided to wimp out of the uphill stair trek on the track and opted for a return by road, so much easier! Got back really quick and spent the rest of the eve in front of the log fire trying to warm up. It was 11 degrees up there and the lodge was really cold. I had a heated mattress pad and an electric heater in the room both of which i had on full blast to try stay warm as had the room to myself last nite, good but means no extra body heat!

Headed back to sydney today and decided to spend a night in sydney as i had a voucher for a hostel in the centre of town which i had to walk past to get the ferry to Manly. The hostel wasnt actually there anymore it is now a Nomads hostel but hte lady said i could use my voucher anyway. It also turned out to be a hostel that my friend simon had been talking about...one with a 28 bed dorm. I could have ppicked a smaller dorm but decided i had to try it just for a laugh and i got it for $20 which is cheap here! doesnt actually feel that big, we shall see tonight how long im kept up by snorers though!

Walked to Darling Harbour today which was really cool actually, had a really nice vibe with loads of restaurants, gardens and cool sculptures. then i went to Paddys Markets which is famous here, made me wish i had money, oh and a bigger backpack! Had loads of wkd shops. Went to Chinatown which was full of restaurants and yummy smells. Nearly bought a crazy cake from a bakery there, just for the novelty,...there werre curried chicken buns, sausage donuts and other bizarre stuff, decided to save my money in the end. gonna head to manly tomoro now, weather looks rubbish for the rest of the week here, think iv had my quota of sunshine in NZ, the tan will be a distant memory on my return to the Uk, boo hoo...xxxx

Gallery: Last of New Zealand

lijanne13 — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:26:00 GMT

S-S-Sydney!!

lijanne13 — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 16:45:00 GMT

Flight was fine from Auckland, even got breakfast on the plane, not bad for a 50pound flight! Had to leave ACB Backpackers at 4.30am to get the bus which was subsequently late so left me standing on the main drag surrounded by drunk ppl coming home from nights out, scary! Got to Sydney and was greeted by pouring rain. Rang a hostel who came and picked me up (ended up being free too coz they forgot to charge!) but was a hairy drive to town, crazy bus driver. Found a map and headed off to the Botanic Gardens which Simon had recommended back in Paihia. Was amazing, saw flying fox bats, crazy trees and plants and some mad looking birds aswell which make the most awful din. Ended up doing a whistle stop tour of sydney! Went to Mrs Macqueries Point to view the harbour, the Opera house, Harbour Bridge, the Rocks (oldest part of Sydney) and Circuit Quay. Saw an Aboriginal band playing there, sounded like Xavier Rudd, was cool. Wasnt actually that impressed with the city, felt it was like any otehr big city...too loud and full of weird ppl. Stayed in the main backpacking area of Kings Cross which also happens to be the red light district here. Was feeling really lonely yesterday as its the first time iv been on my own for 2 months. Made some dinner and read my book, didnt feel like talking to anyone...bit bored of the old backpackers conversation...where u been, where u go to, how long, blah blah! Didnt sleep much as it was so noisy outside and someone was partying in the next door room. Woke up at 6.30am and decided to take off away from the city as really didnt feel happy. So i took the 2hr train journey to the Blue MOuntains!! My hiking boots are back on and i am happy! Met two guys in my room straight away this afternoon and we went off to see the 3 sisters and waterfalls. love it, staying here to do some more hikes tomorrow and then to Manly to see Gina G on Monday!! xxxx

The last of Paihia

lijanne13 — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 16:30:00 GMT

So you get the idea i have just been hanging around a lot at the mo. Got in touch with a couple we met on the bus journey back from the Tongariro Circuit who invited to take us on a tour of Northland. The weather was awful but still they gave us the lowdown on the history of the Maori land and we saw the Cavelly Islands and the oldest stone building in NZ (!) built in 1880 or something crazy. We then went back to KeriKeri for dinner at their house with their son. they had an a-class catamaran, a boat, some GTO sports car and a paintball course all in their garden, boys paradise. Dain got to play paintball for a bit as he'd never tried it before. i stood and watched in the pouring rain...thinking of all the bruises i could be getting. Yvonne cooked Roast Lamb with roast potatoes, pumpkin, kumara, parsnips and carrot and cabbage from her garden. Oh and lets not forget a Feijoa sponge for pudding...they are my new addiction! They look a bit like limes, with a texture similar to kiwis and a taste of passionfruit! Delicious!

MOstly had quiet nights to save money and the weathers been awful anyhoo. So our time has been spent watching movies and eating popcorn. Decided to stay our last night wtith Dains friend Willy and his girlfriend Jenny. They live about 20mins out of Paihia in a little house with a lake. They were almost entirely self sufficient...washing water came from lake, drinking water from the rain, electric from a generator and solar lights, eggs from chickens, it was incredible. They also had a pet sheep. dog and had just acquired a Pigmy piglet called Truffle- so cute i want one!! We got up early after a night of strange ni\oises...heard Kiwis and opther animals wandering around outside. Went off to do an early morning charity hike for the Summits for Ed memorial campaign in memory of Sir Edmond Hilary. However it got cancelled when we arrived due to the Tongariro trgedy which happened this week (2school children were swept away in a outdoor pursuits cnetre) so we had a minutes silence at the bottom and went of to Mount Blesloe to the look out. We then went to the Waitangi Treaty grounds where the infamous treaty was made. Saw a huge Waka (canoe) hollowed from just one tree, that was one helluva treee!!

Then it was goodbye. Very emotional as i felt so at home in Paihia and knew ppl there. But hey next step of my adventure is beginning. ...xxx

The Return to Paihia

lijanne13 — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:40:00 GMT

So guys Im back in Paihia, the place where i began my trip and met Dain. We turned up late in the evening and checked into a cheaper hostel across the road from the Pipi where we both stayed previously. Woke in the morning not realy knowing what to do for a couple of weeks so Dain asked if they needed cleaners....and they did so im working 2 hours a day for a room....sweet as!!! Bryan and Jan are lovely and Jan bakes something for us to eat after cleaning. She makes the best sausage rolls ever!! Oh and scones!! So i have done nothing really apart from lounge on the beach,, watch movies and drink beer!! Nearly at the end now and got a couple of days left before i head to Sydney. Looking forward to it as just found out today that my friend Gina lives in Manly in Sydney so off to see her for a few days which will take my mind off saying bye to Dain. Looks like im off to America this summer to see how it goes with him, crazy or what!! Then coming back to do PGCE and then who knows. Life throws these things at you when you least expect. Gonna miss him so much, he bought me a ring the other day so i can think of him whenever i see it, awwww. Anyhoooo no news as im being lazy and hanging out all day long with my cleaning boys, Dain, Simon an english guy and Courtney, an Ozzy dude. So chilled out now its awesome. A mahusive storm has just subsided so hoping one more day of beach time before i leave....we shall seee xxxx

Gallery: The Coromandel!

lijanne13 — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:44:00 GMT

Gallery: Fun in Opotiki and Whakatane!

lijanne13 — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:38:00 GMT

Gallery: East Cape 2

lijanne13 — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:26:00 GMT

Gallery: East Cape

lijanne13 — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:07:00 GMT

The Coromandel

lijanne13 — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:21:00 GMT

On the way to our next destination, the Coromandel we stopped at a place called Whakatane to see a statue which has featured in many postcards around NZ. I forget what its called but it was worth the detour as it was gorgeous. Headed from there up to the Coromandel Peninsula on a rather long and hair raising road, had to concentrate as it was so so windy! Got to Hahei where we had decided to stay due to its proximity to the vital attractions of this area, Hot water Beach and Cathedral Cove. most tours stay in nearby Whitianga but its 30min drive and seeing as we had the car it was far cheaper. Stayed at this tiny backpackers called Fernbird where an older couple just rent out 2 rooms in their house and you used their house facilities. They were really sweet and felt really at home there.

We planned to hit Hot Water Beach at the evening low tide as it would be quieter but alas we fell asleep and missed it. This beach is one of the most dangerous in NZ due to bad rips and the hot springs can only be accessed at low tide and 2hrs either side. We headed down spade in hand to dig our own little pool to lie in. There was already a crowd down there and we joined an old British couple in making a large pool as they had hit the spring!! The water is 64degrees so blooming hurts if you stand in the wrong bit!! I kept seeing people running off to put their feet in the sea to cool down! Incredible phenomena and still free which was even better. Dain took charge of the spade and was digging for a good 2 hours, the tide kept coming in and washing away our walls!! finally he managed to have a well earned relax in the pool.

After that excitement we went over to Cathedral Cove, walking past Stingray Bay and Gemstone Bay, pretty little coastal scenery overlooking the expanse of little islands making up the marine reserve in the area...it was a $2500 fine if you were caught removing anything from the beaches or leaving rubbish etc. Serious stuff! Cathedral Cove was lovely, on a hot day i bet its beautiful but it was overcast which made the sea quite dull and uninviting. We walked back through ancient P.....(cant remember name of tree) groves which were interesting looknig trees. God im getting obsessed with trees being over here, HAHA.

Had to get the car back to Auckland on the 7th so we hopped in and drove back up country. Got into Auckland ok until we had to find the rental place....few times round the one way system and we got there! We were catchin a bus out to Paihia at 1pm so quick changeover in Auckland as Dain had some stuff to get out of storage and I managed to see Matt, the guy i met in Singapore who is now working at the SkyTower jumping off it for a living! So all good, off back to Paihia, yaaaay!

Gallery: Te Urewera National Park

lijanne13 — Tue, 8 Apr 2008 13:53:00 GMT

Chillaxing in Opotiki

lijanne13 — Sat, 5 Apr 2008 14:07:00 GMT

Found an awesome backpackers in our guide books which was 5kms out of Opotiki, a small town with not much going on...nice to be off the tourist trail. Everyone was really friendly and said hello when you walked down the street. The hostel itself was right on the beach and run by a very relaxed guy called Steve and his wife. Free use of kayaks and bodyboards and just an all round great place to be, our one nights stop became two very quickly! The weather was gorgeous so we took the kayaks out on the sea and caught some waves. The water was reall warm too which was a surprise when i fell out a few times!! Luckly Dain did too so it wasnt just through my own clumsiness!! Had a sore knee in the end as i got battered as the kayak flew over me. So so much fun, feel like iv been on the go all the time so to stop and play around was brilliant. Chilled out with the german people in the hostel (so many around!) and woke to gorgeous sunshine again in the morning. We decided to try the bodyboards in the aft and had a great time!!! The waves werrent very powerful but enough to get a few waves! Then we took pics of each other riding the waves on the kayaks as well. will put them up asap as they are amusing! Absolutely loved my time in Opotiki as it was so nice not to worry bout anythinng. It did however make me really homesick and felt down that day...Dain kept cheering me up though. Next mission is to the Coromandel Peninsula, cant wait as more beauty awaits! xxx

Gallery: Taupo, Wellington and Napier

lijanne13 — Fri, 4 Apr 2008 09:06:00 GMT

First Sunrise in the World!

lijanne13 — Thu, 3 Apr 2008 13:18:00 GMT

Went on to Te Araroa, not a very long journey and where we were stopping for the East Cape (most easterly point in NZ) The town was tres small and the holiday park was a few kms out of there. Got a little cabin at the park which backed onto the beach, oh and also boasted the most eastern cinema in NZ. Wasnt working though they seemed to be doing a lot of work due to end of season. Grabbed some well deserved beers for putting up with each other and a portion of yummy fish and chips from the takeaway van, hoki and tarahaki being the standard fish (delish!) and settled down to a game of cards. Dain began teaching me how to play the ancient game of cribbage however tiredness kicked in and we never actually got to play the game! We were up at 5.15am to drive out to the East Cape Lighthouse which was a half hour drive from Te Araroa. The road was another treachorous gravel track, fun adn games at that hour of the morning! 700 steps or so later we reached the lighthouse, there were about 8 of us up there. AS it got light we were disappointed as clouds threatened to ruin everything, we were gutted as it was 7.15 at this point and thought we had missed it. As we got more disheartened the sky started turning pink and orange and there was a break in the cloud. The sun peeked through and set the sky on fire, it was just stunning with East Island sat in the foreground. Glad we went now as it was a special feeling knowing we were one of the first to see the sunrise in the world.

On the way back we came across 4 hawks eating rabbit on the side of the road, incredible as we drove past they all flew up in front of the car which was spectactular. Even though there have been hawks everywhere we have driven 4 was just crazy! We passed field upon field of beautiful horses, this is a definite horsey place, would love to go riding but we dont have time here. On the way to the next spot we stopped at the local school in Te Araroa to see the giant Pohutukawa tree, it was 40 metres wide and dwarfed the car. We drove round the coast, turquoise seas, driftwood strewn beaches and green rolling hills...the scene never gets boring. Got to our next stop but decided to press on and head to Opotiki instead as there was nothing there in Te Kaha!!!

Tolaga Bay - Finding Captain Cook!

lijanne13 — Wed, 2 Apr 2008 09:19:00 GMT

We headed up the coast to Tolaga Bay which was our first overnight stop. We stopped just outside of Gisborne at Tatapouri Beach for some lunch (ham sandwiches this time instead of peanut butter which has become a solid favourite, haha!). There were a few gypsies parked up further down and one of the ladies came over and asked if we wanted to see a seal. I wasnt sure what to think at first (im so untrusting its awful) but anyways we followed her down the beach and she led us to this beautiful seal sat on the dune. Crazy, iv seen them loads in Cornwall but this one was a different type. It wasnt too keen on us and flopped down the hill trying to look agressive but we backed away and it flopped down again letting out a sigh...i thought it was dehydrated and needed water but Im not a vet! We went back and got our cameras then left it alone and carried on up the coast. the waters were turquoise at every bay we went to and the other side was lush green mountain ranges, insanely pretty.

We arrived in tolaga bay quicker than we'd imagined and got a little cabin in the holiday park (no more sharing a tent for me thank you!). The park backed on to the sea and was at the entrance to the historic wharf which is a 660m pier built in the 1920's for shipping when the coast was thriving. It is now redundant but you can walk along it and enjoy the views of the sea and cliffs. We wandered back and chilled at the cabin ready to get up early and see another sunrise in the morning. It was definitely worth it this time, there were a few clouds but the sun rose over them in the end and was a gorgeous colour. we decided to walk to Cooks Cove and see where Captain Cook landed in NZ. Walked through changing landscape and came out on the top looking down on the cove. trundled through a little forest with millions of stairs (my nightmare!) and came out at the bottom by the Hole in Wall (a not so impresive version of Hole in the rock, Northland) but still picturesque views. Cooks Cove was tranquil and glistening waters. Lay back on a rock and pondered how he must of felt sailing up to this inlet with the mountain in the distance. Incredible to think of it happening so long ago before the world had been mapped as it is today. Well worth the walk. Found a short cut up to the top which meant i didnt have to deal with stairs and we set off on the next part of the East Cape Adventure!! xxxx