hool (including Julia, our guide Cillian's assistant), so we were really the only ones in the group who could speak English fluently. Besides us, there were ten others on the tour: two friends from Japan and South Korea, a couple from Brazil, and six students from Switzerland. The first day mostly involved traveling from Auckland to Paihia, our picturesque home for the weekend. However, we did make some short stops along the way. One of them was the Hundertwasser public toilets in Kawakawa. Who knew that an ornate restroom could double as a tourist attraction? We also briefly visited an 800 year old Kauri tree. This species of tree is one of the most ancient in the world. Harvesting of Kauri wood and gum used to be a very profitable industry in New Zealand, but the practice is now illegal because it has led to widespread deforestation. However, timber from buried Kauri trees is still used to make products. It's amazing how the Earth can preserve something so perfectly for 50,000 years. It is hypothesized that many centuries ago in the Northland region of New Zealand, an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean triggered a tsunami that buried the ancient Kauri forests.In Paihia we stayed in a cute little hostel called the Peppertree Lodge. Vicki and I shared a room with two of the Swiss girls. My only complaint is that our ensuite bathroom didn't have any soap. Note to any prospective travelers out there: If you plan to stay in hostels, bring soap!
The next morning, we woke up early to go on a day tour. When we left Paihia, it was dreary and rainy, but luckily the sun came out as we headed north. Northland definitely rivals the South Island when it comes to beautiful scenery. It was absolutely breathtaking. That day, we visited Gumdiggers Park and stopped at a beautiful east coast beach where I touched the Pacific Ocean for the first time. After enjoying a picnic lunch at Taputaputa Bay, we drove to the most northern part of New Zealand- Cape Reinga. Here, we took a short walk to the Cape Reinga Lighthouse, and saw the point where the Pacific Ocean meets the Tasman Sea. Although you might think that this division wouldn't be obvious, it turns out that the two bodies of water violently crash into each other, and because of that can be distinguished from each other.
Next, we made our way to Ninety Mile Beach (which is actually 60 miles long). Here, we had the opportunity to sandboard down a massive sand dune. I was a bit apprehensive
at first. The sand dune was very steep and the plastic snow sleds we were given didn't look particularly sturdy. However, I figured that I should give it a shot, because I knew I would regret not trying it later. After making it to the top of the sand dune (which was an accomplishment in itself), I watched Vicki go down. Things went well for most of her trip- until she tried to stop herself too soon. When her foot caught the sand, she tumbled head over heels down the remainder of the sand dune! Needless to say, her mishap did nothing for my confidence level. It took me quite a while to build up the courage to go down, but when I saw everyone getting back on the bus to leave, I knew it was 'now or never.' One guy who was waiting at the top actually volunteered to switch sleds with me beforehand- mine was cracked in more than one place. I took him up on his offer, boarded my sled, and took the plunge. Things went perfectly! I couldn't believe it, as I'm not the most athletic person (but I guess sandboarding doesn't really count as a sport?) In the end, I was really happy I 'gave it a go'- how very Kiwi of me! After our sandboarding adventure, we finished up our tour with a scenic busride along Ninety Mile Beach.Day two in Paihia included a boat cruise to Piercy Island, otherwise known as "The Hole in the Rock," and the idyllic Otehei Bay. After the cruise, we spent the rest of the afternoon in Russell, New Zealand's first capital city. Here, I enjoyed some chicken 'n' chips while Vicki and Joanna, the Korean girl on our tour, took a short walk. We made it back to Auckland by 8 pm.
As soon as we got off the tour bus, things started to go downhill. As we began walking to the hostel in the city where we planned to spend the night, I noticed that I had left one of my bags (which held my passport, credit card and camera among other important things) on the bus. Vicki called one of her friends from Waikato and asked her to look up the number for the tour company for me. I got a hold of Cillian just in time- he was about to get on the highway when he got my call. After I got my bag back, we resumed our walk to Nomads Fat Camel Hostel. Since it was still early when we checked in to our room, we decided to go sit in a Starbucks for a few hours. As I began drinking my hot chocolate, I started to feel very sick. I'm still not sure why, but I'm guessing it was a combination of what I had eaten earlier that day and slight dehydration. I did not have a good night and still felt sick when I woke up the next morning. Somehow, I pulled myself together in time to make our 7:25 am bus back to Hamilton- and make it to my 10 am economics class! Although the ending of our trip was a bit rocky, I'm still glad that I went. The good memories definitely outweigh the bad ones.
No comments:
Post a Comment