South Island to North Island

Oh My Gosh!!! The last 3 and 1/2 weeks have FLOWN by. I have done and seen so much, but there is also SOOOO MUCH more to see here. I have been to several places and seen about half of the the NZ country side. I spent 2 1/2 weeks on the South Island and from the 15th of March to now I have been on the North Island.

The South Island was amazing. I spent time in Dunedin, Akaroa, Christchuch, Nelson, and in the Abel Tasman National Park. The Last time I posted I had been to all but Nelson and Abel Tasman National Park. Nelson was merely the place I stayed before and after my trip on the Abel Tasman. I took a 3 day/2 night kayak trip on the Abel Tasman. Along with 25km of kayaking in 3 days we also spent time swimming in the blue green water and the golden sandy beaches but we got out and did short tramps to some incredible lookouts. The company I went with supplied the camping gear (although, I would have like my own in hindsight), the kayaks, the camping fees, the waterproof gear and everything else that is needed. I was suprised at the fact that I wasnt sore like I expected to be. It was such a beautiful trip, the weather was incredible and the sites were undescrible (pictures will follow when I get to a place I can put them on here). After this trip I got back on a bus and went back to Christchurch, and flew up to Auckland.

After I arrived in Auckland I had arranged for a trip to the furthest north place in NZ, Cape Reinga and the Bay of Islands. This was a very beautiful place. After arriving to Paihia (Bay of Islands) I then spend the entire next day traveling up to Cape Reinga and traveling down 90 mile beach and sandboarding down huge sand dunes. I then returned to Paihia and then went for a horse back ride through the bush, this was kind of boring, since it was just a trail ride, but it was really nice to see the country side in a different way. It was really cool to be on a horse for the first time in a long time, I miss it, and I cant wait to get home and ride Missy. After riding I relaxed by the beach for the rest of the afternoon. The next day I woke up and had to check out of the hostel I was staying at, but even after checking out you can still use the facilities and they also store your bags for you. Well I went down to the back and laid out for a while. I got on my bus to head back to Auckland around 1:30 and we got back to Auckland around 5pm.

I am packed and ready to travel back to the states. I will be in LA for 22 hours before I fly to Virginia to pick Rocky up. I will be out there for 1 week and then I will be back in CA on the 29th. I will be driving from LA to Fresno when I get back. I am really looking forward to getting back to Fresno, I am looking forward to getting back to everyday life and seeing friends and family.

Hey From New Zealand

I got into Christchurch on 2/25. I cant even begin to describe to you what I was seeing and smelling, but it was amazing. In Antarctica, all you see are the colors of the buildings (which are all pretty much the same colors), the brown dirt, white snow, Red and Orange vehicles, and the blue sky (sometimes). Well These colors aren't in any way the brilliant colors that I saw when I got off the plane. Colors that we take for granted every day of our lives, but after not seeing them for so long it is incredible to get to see them again. Next, the smells... Everything green, everything growing has an amazing smell that you don't smell on a daily basis until you are not exposed to them for a while. When the door opened on the plane you start to smell these smells, but they become stronger as you walk between the airport and the CDC as you walk past grass and flowers and bushes. Hearing the wind blow through the leaves, listening to the river flow past you, seeing a water fountain on the building side, these are all things that you see, hear, and smell. The best way I can express the way I felt with all of this was that I was experiencing all of it for the first time, I felt like I was 5 years old, getting excited about everything that I came in contact with. You slowly begin to not notice the smells as much, but the sights and the sounds are still new and exciting. I petted a dog and all I wanted to do was keep rubbing its sweet little head, it didn't matter if it was one of my dogs or not, it was a dog... Little kids are the same way, you don't see little kids and so when you see them or hear them, you want to play with them, well I haven't done that yet, I will wait do to that until I get home,

On Tuesday I booked the rest of my trip home with a week lay over in Auckland and then flying into Fresno, which I will just miss that flight, for the same day (that way I wasn't charged any money, otherwise it would have been $90). After I got my ticket booked I met up with a few people that I knew that were headed south... They were going to Dunedin, a town on the beach, 5 hours south of Christchurch. I stayed at a campground on the outskirts of town, near the beach, I had a few things that I wanted to do in Dunedin, well actually on the peninsula, there is a Royal Albatross rookery (the only one that is located on a mainland), and see the yellow eye penguin (the rarest penguins around). These two birds are both amazing and when I get a chance I will post some pictures. I hired (rented) a car in order to get out there, well actually the car I hired needed to get back to Christchurch by today so I didn't have to pay for a rental, just the fuel for it. I drove back to the city today and I will be here or around doing different things and traveling different places until 3/15 when I fly up to Auckland.