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On Wednesday we got up ridiculously early, at 6 in the morning, to start the long drive up to the Bay of Islands from Rotorua. It didn't seem too bad, however, partly because I think we had prepared ourselves for such a long journey, and partly because it was such a great day, with blue sky everywhere. It made for a pleasant drive up. We arrived at Paihia, the Bay of Islands, at around 12:30, after one pit stop for lunch. Typically, we managed to book ourselves into the wrong hostel! We stayed at 'Bay Adventurer' when we had planned to stop at the YHA next door. The car park looked like it belonged to the YHA! Luckily, everything turned out ok. 'Bay Adventurer' was the same price, had a really friendly lady on the front desk and had loads of free features, such as bike, kayak and tennis racket hire, as well as a swimming pool and spa area. In the afternoon we took a stroll around Paihia, a pretty little place with boats bobbing on the waterfront, a beach to walk along (I dipped my toes in the water, though Jo didn't dare!), and plenty of green in the village itself. We spent the early evening in the spa, as it started to get a little chilly when the sun went down.
We'd come up here to do a cruise, and so on Thursday we jumped on a boat at 9 and set off around the Bay. We went with 'Dolphin Discoveries' who took us around the bigger of the over 100 islands in the bay, explaining the history of the region, and hoping to spot dolphins. It didn't take too long...within the first hour we'd come across a pod of bottle-nose dolphins. None of them jumped, but it was still really cool to see them in close quarters, even if we were restricted for the main part to sightings of noses, fins and tails. The boat also took us up to the 'Hole in the Rock', a huge hole which cuts through the middle of an island at the top of Cape Brett. After a few photos of the hole, we went straight through it on the boat, which apparently can be a tricky maneuver, especially in rough waters like we had. We got the chance to see more NZ fur seals at Bird Island, relaxing on the rocks, and then stopped at Otehei Bay on Urupukapuka Island for a cup of tea, a pretty little spot with lots of greenery, a sandy beach and small jetty. The rest of the day was spent relaxing, playing backgammon and sitting in the jacuzzi.
Our last day in the Bay saw us venture to Haruru Falls, which seemed pretty fast-flowing owing to the large amounts of rain we had last night. Strangely, the falls seemed to have a yellow tinge to them in certain places. We have no idea what may have caused this. It rained intermittently throughout the day, but it was curious weather: one moment glorious sunshine; the next, a sudden downpour. We saw plenty of rainbows. From Haruru we moved on to Waitangi, accessed via a bridge from Paihia. Here stand the infamous Treaty Grounds, the setting for the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 between the British crown and NZ's Maori chiefs, seen now as the nation's Magna Carta, its founding document. The grounds themselves had been turned into an emblem of nationhood, but seemed much more important to Maori rather than Caucasian Kiwis. The lawns were beautiful, native birds could be spotted and heard, and we had great views back over the Bay of Islands towards Paihia and Russell. We spent time in the restored Treaty House and the whare runanga (meeting house) built in 1940 to commemorate the Treaty's centenary. After a few hours here, we started the drive back down to Auckland, stopping in Whangarei for lunch. We arrived at Whitford, just outside Auckland, at 6, where we were greeted by Tim and Caroline, who we're staying with at the moment. After dinner we chatted, watched some TV and used the internet before a reasonably early night.
We had to be up early yesterday morning to drop our beloved Daihatsu back off at Jucy, our car rental company, in central Auckland. We'd become firmly attached to the tiny thing after 30 days of trawling around the country in it. Once that ordeal was over, we taxied to Kelly Tarlton's aquarium. We were slightly embarrassed to be there, especially when the only other people were parents with children and Japanese tourists! I managed to complete the 30-second challenge of keeping my hand in freezing water and ice at Antarctic temperatures, so we could realise how cold the penguins like it. After walking through a replica of Scott's 1911 Antarctic hut (they seem even more interested in his failed expedition in NZ than they do in the UK), we encountered some ginormous stingrays swimming in a tank. We sat on a 'SnowCat' with close up views of king and gentoo penguins, walked through an underwater see-through tunnel with sharks swimming above us and saw all sorts of interesting fish. We then explored Princes Wharf and the Viaduct Harbour in the 'downtown' area, where there were some massive yachts anchored. After some light window shopping we went up Auckland's Sky Tower, the needle-esque tallest building in the southern hemisphere which looms over the city. We went two-thirds of the way up for birds-eye views over the city, harbour and bridge, and there was even see-through glass that you could stand on and look down, which made Jo feel a little funny! Whilst at the top we saw someone do a bungee-jump off it, which looked absolutely horrific. After nearly getting in the wrong car at the ferry terminal, we were picked up by Tim and Caroline and went straight out for an Indian meal, which was really tasty and almost up to English standards!
Today proved to be a fairly relaxing day. Jo and I woke early to watch England's disappointing 1-1 draw with the United States after Rob Green's howler, and then nipped into Botany nearby for a coffee with Tim and Caroline and then a haircut (which we hope will last us the remaining ten weeks of our trip). Back at the house we sat down to a wonderful Sunday roast of beef, Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli and gravy. It was something the pair of us had been craving almost since we left home. The rest of the day was spent watching films on TV and reading and chatting.
Tomorrow we fly on to Chile, South America, leaving NZ behind and ready to start the final third of our travels!
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