Auckland to Mercury Bay

Yes that's right, we are in a whole different country! Arrived in Auckland on Saturday afternoon and was met by our tour guide for the next few days (NZ Mark who lives in London) and headed into the city.

Had a quick change and then went to explore some of the eating and drinking holes that Auckland has to offer. We had a cheeky bottle of wine and a lovely Thai meal before moving onto an Irish Bar (Danny Dooligans - very authentic) where there was a great live band on.

The next day was spent doing the traditional lonely planet walk to Devonport which included Mount Victoria, North Heads and Cheltnam beach.

Day three in NZ was pretty cool as our tour guide took us out of the city to some local beaches which were really great, we went to Bethel's Beach and Piha. Got to swim in the sea without worrying about getting eaten/stung like in Oz!

To celebrate our last night in Auckland we had bubbles in our room before heading off to the Sky Tower buffett resteraunt where we were told to "Fill our Boots" by the lady on reception. I think the three of us ate more than everyone else combined in the restaurant that night! We then went up the Sky Tower (picture below) to get fantastic views of the city. We headed to Moe's bar for a nightcap. It was the smallest bar we have ever been in and the bar is literally 2 meters long!

 The next morning we joined the Kiwi Experience tour in Auckland and went up Mount Eden as the first stop. It rained solid and you couldn't see anything and nobody wanted to get off the bus! Think we are taking the weather with us! Our driver (L J) annoyed the hell out of us that day with his constant use of "awsome", "sweet as" and "get amongst it" but we are used to it now after a few weeks in NZ!

The weather picked up and we went to this Awsome little beach called Catherdral Cove which was quite a walk to get down to but soo worth it!

Our first night was in Mercury Bay (whitianga) which is pronounced Fiteanga which totally confused us but we are down with the lingo now. We stayed in what was effectivley a large garden shed that night (not as big as your's Lyndon) but it was cosy all the same. The group seemed nice and there is a 78 year old (Babs) who is awsome, loads more about her later.

Mercury Bay to Rotorua

Today we passed through Maramata which is home of Hobbiton for all those Lord of the Rings boffs reading this. We were seriously not impressed when L J told us why the place was famous but surprisingly all the lads were loving it!

Arrived in Rororua and all I can say is phwaaaa! it smells of rotting eggs due to all the geothermal activity and there are steam jets popping up all over the town! really cool but really smelly!

We got the chance to go to the Tamaki Tours centre in the afternoon for a formal welcome by the Maori people. Later that night we were taken by bus (We had to imagine it was a canoe) to a little mock village that they had set up to demonstrate their culture. It was a great night, they did a little show, they sang and danced and then the highlight, they did the Haka. A feast was then laid out and we all tucked up.

There is something seriously wrong at this point, we have been in the country 5 whole days and not particiated in any extreme activities, all that was to change!

Rotorua to Waitomo

Arrived at our accomodation, went on a walk round the cave mouths and then had a great BBQ expertley cooked by L J. We were in bed early as had an early morning appointment with a Black Water Rafting trip. Sounds very exciting but was actually caving with a giant rubber ring. It was great fun, we had to dress up in full rubber suite, wellybobs and head torches. The glow worms were out of this world and we had to jump a few waterfalls in our rings. We were put to shame by Babs who did the advanced version which included an absail in the dark as well!

Waitomo to Taupo

We arrived in Taupo and the weather had not been that great so sky diving was looking unlikley, then as if we were blessed by the good weather god (we certainly haven't been on our trip to date) the sky cleared and the sun came out and we knew it was time....... to throw ourselves out of a plane at 15 THOUSAND feet!!! bring it on

Lucy was a bit unsure about the whole thing, especially as they show you a dvd in reception of what it is actually like! but we were first ones up and most people were only doing 12,000. We opted for the full on dvd/photo package (if a job's worth doing and all that) so there was your tandem master and then another guy who jumped with you with a video camera and a static camera on his head. Going up on the plane was pretty scary, then before you knew what, you were sitting with your legs dangling out of the plane and the wind trying to suck you out - it was unreal!!! and then it was go go go!

Can't really explain the freefall feeling but it lasted for a whole minute at that height and the views over the lake were quite simply awesome. The camera man was close by the whole time and as you will see from the pictures, I nearly lost my watch!

Then the parachute opens and the rush is over and its very quite and really peaceful. It takes about 4 minutes to get down and just couldn't stop looking around. We landed first but it was pretty funny watching Lucy (aka Roy Chubby Brown - her dad called her that, not me!!!) land cauase she went onto her botty! we both really loved it though and were buzzing all night! Went for a group meal to a nice mexican bar where they activley encouraged you to throw your peanut shells on the floor but we had to call it a night about midnight - big day tomorrow.

The next day we had a 5am start to do the Tongariro Crossing. It basically is a 18km walk which is up and down volcanoes (those used to film Lord of the Rings) and across craters and things. It was pretty shattering and took 7 hours but well worth it in the end! Our bus driver was really funny and the iron man competition was on in Taupo that weekend, he kept dropping people off in the middle of the running track which was not the best idea!

Babs did it in 9 hours and fell 4 times but was still in the bar for a beer whereas we were in bed after a good curry at 9pm! she puts us to shame!!

Taupo to River Valley

The next day we travelled to River Valley which is exactly that. On the way we went back to Tongariro National Park and did a much smaller walk of 5km to a waterfall. LJ ran the track, he is a mad man! At River Valley there is a little hostel and pub and it was an idyliic little spot. We arrived early evening and had a big home cooked roast dinner a few drinks.

The next day the weather was scorching so we laid by the river whilst the rest of the group went pony trecking and played golf.

River Valley to Windy Wellington

We travelled to Wellington via Bulls (see the photos on the blog) they have named all the shops and cafe's after bulls surprisingly and it was a nice little place.

Wellington is not called Windy Wellington for nothing, we couldn't believe the weather when we arrived! Had a group night out and must have been the only people out in Wellington that night. The YHA we stayed at was really nice and central and the next day we headed out to the Te Pa Pa museum which is the NZ national museum and was really good. Lucy wore a skirt during the day for the first time ever, I don't think she had concidered the wind when she was getting dressed! lets just say she went back to get changed pretty quick with minimum cheek exposure. In Wellington we went up the cable car as well which we were expecting to be pretty high and a good view - it was like a little tram up a steep hill but we weren't too dissapointed with the view from the top and the botanic gardens.

We headed out for dinner and had an early one seen as we head to the South Island on the ferry tommorrow.