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I apologise.
The last couple of entries have been really negative, and I think I appeared ungrateful. I am not. I did not mean to complain I do not want you all to think that I'm not still having a wicked time.
We are. I think I know what the problem has been though.
I have been spoilt. Over the past month I have been inundated with exhilirating activities, in awe of stunning scenery, and messing around with many new friends, that once the adrenalin has stopped pumping, and I'm seeing the same scenery again, and we are leaving our new friends behind, I got complacent, and stopped appreciatting where I am.
New Zealand - a country that will take your breath away one way or another, and leave you wondering why on earth anybody would ever want to leave. I know it seemed like I was being ungrateful, and there are plenty of people who can't come here that want to, and so the complaining stops now - I am so lucky to have come here.
Our Kiwi Experience on the big green bus helped to make our experience what it was, but there were many other seperate factors.
I have done so many things here that I have always dreamt of doing, all of them adding together to make this a once in a lifetime journey. Adrenalin has been constantly pumped around my buddy, it's hard to deal with the come down. Whether it's jumping out of a plane at 15,000ft, launching off a platform with just an elastic rope to stop me, galloping on a horse, or swimming with wild dolphins, I have never had such a constant rush - not knowing what will provide it one day to the next.
Of course, it was not just these crazy activities that made me feel this way. This is one of the most stunning places I have ever been, its beauty often breathtaking, and occassionally even surprising. Mountain ranges are not reserved for Switzerland or "The Sound Of Music". Some of the most amazing ranges I have seen here, creeping up on us over a ridge, not expecting to see anything that beautiful, so when we do I'm not sure whether to take a picture or just watch it and keep it in my head. I think that is what I appreciate more - that every time I close my eyes, lying in bed waiting to sleep, I can recall all these things have seen - all the views, all the scenery, and remember I what it was like to be there, and how it felt to see them. Even better, is the way it all changes one minute to the next. We could be driving along and I would glance out of the window to see a glacier crawling through the mountains, read a couple of pages of my book, and the next time I take a look out see roling green hills covered in hundreds of sheep. I don't think I have ever been in such a varied environment. It is not just excited me aesthetically though - spiritually too. I know it might sound a bit poncy and pathetic, but at times I have found myself questioning my belief system. At times it has been hard to believe that all of this was created purely by chance, and that some superior being did not design it in order to create a perfect country.
No wonder the Kiwi's are so proud of where they live.
And boy are they. You can tell just by talking to them how much they adore their country, and why shouldn't they? They are also some of the nicest people you will ever meet. They are happy to talk to you all the time - whether you are just buying something in a shop and the assistant stops for a 15 minute chat, or asking for directions in the street and you are actually given the right answer, opposed to an unenthused waving of the hands in any direction you might get at home, they never seem to be sick of you, and their pride oozes from every word that they say. National pride - something we could learn from them I think.
But the thing that really made the trip - the thing I think we both might take from this leg - are the friends we have made. We were altogether for a pretty long time, stuck on a coach or in a dorm room. We have all been given the same adrenalin hits, shared in the beauty, and sometimes even shared the same beds! A month with strangers would have been a long time, but fortunately these strangers turned out to be great people, and I am so pleased to be able to call some of them my friends. I know it is something of a clice, but I believe they may now be friends for life - getting together to reminisce about one time or another, and laugh again at the good times we have had here.
So much here will stay with me my whole life - I do know how lucky I am to have come here. No more complaining, I promise.
I think then, in conclusion, there is only one thing left to say about New Zealand - the perfect ending:
"Sweet as Bro""
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