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We set sail across the Cook Strait and docked safely in the NZ capital of Wellington on the 24th of June. The weather is thankfully a little milder in the north, and we managed to follow the sunshine for the most part, even though 5 layers was still the norm! We visited 'Te Papa' the museum of NZ ('our place' in Maori) here, and had a well deserved rest.
The magic bus took us up to Napier, the 'art deco capital of the world', thanks to a very stern earthquake and the architectural trend of the 1930s. On the way up we stopped at Mt. Bruce Nature Reserve and finally saw a Kiwi bird! The strangest creature we've seen thus far - they're very fluffy with a thin white beak which seems much too long for them to control. We also called at the Tui Brewery, $2 for 3 'handles' of beer (at 10.30 am!). The rest of the bus ride was much more fun!
Next stop was the beautiful Taupo. Practically smack bang in the centre of the North Island, it is named after the largest lake in NZ (which is actually bigger than Singapore!). Taupo was the setting for our Skydive! It was Wednesday the 27th of June, and the weather was fabulous, the sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky. Eric the bus driver had booked us in without asking (!) so off we went (after adding a few more layers because its cold up there! -12!) As Michelin men we were weighed (highly unfair and not a true reading!) and then assigned to our 'Tandem Masters' - Brad and Kane! Right on. The teeny weeny bright yellow plane flew us up to 12,000 feet where 3 people jumped out, and the plane felt each one leave. Bumpety bump. Turbulence, shmerbulence (!) Simon and I then rose a further 3,000 feet to 15,000 feet above the ground - on a side note the view was amazing and you could see both the east and west coast of NZ - apparently, I can honestly say at that moment I wasn't that interested in the view. Simon and Brad went first! Bombs away!!!!!!!!!!! Then me and Kane. As your sit on the edge of the plane, its head back, hold onto your harness and tuck your feet under the plane (What!!!!!!) We flipped out and spun spun spun. 65 seconds of freefall went in a flash. At 5,000 feet the parachute is pulled and you say your little prayer of thanks to the Almighty. At this point Simon enjoyed the view and I held back the urge to be billious (motion sickness at its most deadly!) Its pretty hard to breathe on the way down and your eardrums take a battering but other than that its AMAZING!!!!! We've got the DVD for all to see.
The very next day, we trundelled off to hike the Tongariro Crossing - a 17km adventure over a snow covered Mt. Ngauruhoe (aka 'Mt. Doom' from Lord of the Rings). 'NZ's best one-day hike'. This required the return of the crampons. We set off before sunrise and had reached the top of the brutal 'Devils Staircase' by 10am. Phew! A further incline (with a sheer drop to one side - scary! Don't slip Simon 'mind the step' Colton) brought us to the summit of the Red Crater - free from snow due to the fact it is an active volcano! The views were treeeemendous. And we were above the clouds which was very satisfying after all those steps! Back down was easy but rather painful on the derriere as we sledged all the way!
Rotorua was our next stop. The town that smells of Sulphur due to the huge amount of geothermic activity. You can see the gas pumping out of the ground. Stinky pete. We attended a Maori evening which was great fun and very informative if not a little frightening. We experienced the Haka, ate some traditional food, and even did the Hongi (rubbing noses - rather like Eskimos - with the bus driver who had a cold - nice). We also ventured to the spa and the hot springs (in the rain!) which was very relaxing.
We arrived here in Auckand on the 3rd of July, and have been exploring the city ever since. Its been raining continuously, but I'm sure you'll know all about that back in Sheffield! Its sad to leave New Zealand, 'the land of the long white cloud', but Chile is calling us - its 1pm on Friday afternoon here, and we land in Santiago at this time on the same day after an 11 hour flight which departs at 6pm tonight?!?! I sense there may be confusion ahead....... Adios!
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