The new year

Dear friends, I am excited to be amongst the first (all of us here in New Zealand) to bring in this new year. I wish all my friends and family abundant blessings in 2012! Much love, Mary

The very Kiwi Christmas

Merry Christmas to all!

I hope you have had lovely Christmas celebrations with your loved ones. I enjoyed a sunny Kiwi Christmas here in Taupo with new friends.

But first, an update!

I have spent the past week and a half in the town of Taupo on the North Island. Taupo, located on the northeast side of Lake Taupo, has a population of approximately 23,000 people, a number that increases in the summer months as both Kiwis and international travelers holiday here. I am currently working for accommodation at a local hostel where I have made many new friends. Each evening, we enjoy a spectacular view of the sunset over Lake Taupo from our balcony (these pics were taken from my phone so they aren't the best, but they'll give you an idea). Be sure to look for the mountains in the background. It's really a million dollar view:

Taupo is a gorgeous place, as you can see, surrounded by the mountains, the hills, and the lake. There are a ton of outdoor activities to do both on and off the lake, and Taupo is known as the adventure capital of the North Island (Queenstown holds that title for the South Island). I will be here for a bit longer and plan to explore the area more... by land, sea, and air! :-)

Walking along Lake Taupo

Bright sun over the lake

One of the lake's beaches

A natural hot springs along the river

The hot spring source... water over 40 degrees celsius!

Christmas Eve was spent on the beach with friends, in true Kiwi fashion. At the end of the day we headed back to the hostel and in the kitchen, Dave, a trained chef (and the only true New Zealander in our bunch), threw together a lovely iron chef-style meal utilizing all our bits of random food. On Christmas day, we hit the beach again and cooked a delicious Christmas dinner which included roast chicken, kumara (sweet potatoes), carrots, green beans, English-style bread pudding, and gravy. Of course we all ate way too much!

Goofing off on the beach

Some of the gang

Our lovely Christmas dinner, before we devoured it!

New friends

Wishing everyone a joyous Christmas season and blessings for the New Year!

All is well...

Hi, friends! Just a brief update to let you know I'm safe. Yesterday's earthquakes hit Christchurch which is quite a distance from where I am in Taupo. Obviously this is not good for that city, especially since they've already been hit so hard this year. I will post more soon. Until then I wish you a very merry Christmas as we prepare to celebrate the nativity of Christ!

The Aucklander

Over the past few weeks, Auckland and I have become fairly well-acquainted with each other. I've had to stop through town several times on my way to and from other places. Earlier this week, I stopped in for two nights. During my free day, the sun came out (so grateful!) and I went for a run through the Auckland Domain, which reminds me a lot of the Boston Common. The Domain has a "Wintergarden," a glass-enclosed botanical garden of plants and flowers from around the world, and also a fernery, an entire area dedicated to different types of native ferns. I was pleasantly surprised to find such a hidden tropical gem in the middle of the city. I didn't have my camera at the time, but here's a good shot I found online:

Later that day, new friends, Noriko from Japan, Wendy from New Jersey, and I went out for a lively dinner on Ponsonby Rd.

I'm currently in Taupo, where the sun is out, the lake is shimmering, and life is good. Will post pictures and a lengthier update soon. Wishing everyone a wonderful week!

The Haruru part 2

Kia ora!

The past few days I spent up in northland in an attempt to escape the cold rain. Both the North Island and the South Island have experienced record amounts of rain the past several days, which have flooded many low-lying parts of the country. Check out this picture of Haruru Falls now after the flooding, and compare it to the shot I took over a week ago. Crazy!

Last week, a picturesque waterfall

This week, raging river rapids

I stayed with a nice Kiwi family out in the country between Paihia and Kerikeri. The setting is idyllic, even with a little rain. On their property, they have a beautiful (currently flooding) river, lots of sheep, a dog, some turtles, and beautiful hills. Everywhere I've been in New Zealand outside of Auckland, which many Kiwis identify as an extension of Australia and not a part of NZ, has made me feel like I'm in a postcard. I went for a run one evening, and once I got off the main road, my main encounters were with cows and sheep, which are everywhere here in NZ. And yes, it really feels like Lord of the Rings (I keep getting asked this question)! :-)  As I jogged by, the cows stared at me, and I started laughing as I wondered if they were mean stares ("Stop intruding on our lovely view!") or curious stares ("What are you doing out here, you crazy American?").

It's hard to believe Christmas is less than a week away! I sang Christmas carols for the first time this season when I attended service at St. Paul, a small Anglican parish in Paihia, on Sunday morning. We sang some of the Christmas classics, although a few (like Silent Night and O Little Town of Bethlehem) were slightly different versions than I'm accustomed to.

Historic St. Paul Anglican church in Paihia

I'm in Auckland for a couple days and headed to Taupo next. 

Cheers!

The Whaka

Kia ora!
(This is the traditional Maori greeting spoken by many New Zealanders, so I figure I'll use it too!)

I'm writing this update from Rotorua, a city on the north island known for its geothermal activity. The area surrounding the town is called Whakarewarewa, which locals shorten to just "Whaka." In the Maori language, "wh" is pronounced like "f."

Rotorua is one of the most highly populated active geothermal areas in the world. The city has a funky smell that comes from the sulfur in the hot springs. In my family, this smell was known as "egg fart." The smell can be pretty potent in some places, but after a while I've gotten used to it. It's cool because the geothermal activity provides a lot of natural energy for the town. (Strangely enough, this town also has a ton of seagulls, which is odd since it's not a coastal town. I heard from a local it's one of the most inland places to have a significant population of seagulls... random. They are pretty aggressive seagulls too!)

My first full day here, I headed to one of the spas here which was built on the hot springs. I figured it'd be nice to get some pampering since I was tired from traveling, and the rain prevented most other activities. After enjoying a very relaxing facial, I spent a good amount of time in the spa pools, which stay open until 11pm. Each pool has a different temperature, starting at 36 degrees celcius and working up to 42. The spa is situated directly on Lake Rotorua so I enjoyed a great view while relaxing in the water:

Lounging in the hot springs, overlooking Lake Rotorua

The next day it was raining even harder, so instead of mountain biking, my new friend Willie and I decided to try zorbing, which is unique to Rotorua. Zorbing involves being harnessed inside a ball and then rolling down a hill. It was fun but went by all too fast.

View from the top of the hill

Willie and me at the zorbing hill... in the rain

The following day it was raining still (picking up on a theme here??), but I wanted to check out Wai-o-Tapu, a geothermal park right outside of town.  The first stop was to see the Lady Knox (also called the Pohutu geyser), an active geyser that "explodes" every day. After that I headed to the geothermal park where there's a great trail that took me all around these amazingly unique sites.

The Lady Knox geyser shooting hot water

Lots of steam coming from the geothermal pools

Geothermal wonder at Wai-o-Tapu

Crazy-colored geothermal pool

Some of the foliage at Wai-o-Tapu

In front of a cool green geothermal pool

Back in town, I met up with two of my new friends. They work at a sushi place here in Rotorua (by the way, one of the best things about NZ is that sushi is wicked cheap! One of the few cheap things that one can enjoy here :-)!)  After sushi we went to my favorite coffee shop in town, Zippy's.

Me, Shu, and Kim at Zippy's

Kim ordered an iced mocha, which was really a delicious blend of chocolate, ice cream, whipped cream, marshamallows, and M&M's. Sooooo yummy...

Later in the afternoon, the rain let up slightly so I went for a jog towards Kuirau park. Not only does the park have some of its own (free) hot pools, but it also has a very huge jungle gym type thing, geared towards children I'm sure, but which I, monkey that I am, simply had to climb. I didn't have my camera to take a photo, but it was awesome!

Last night I enjoyed a nice dinner out with new friends Sonia, from France, and Karima, from England. It has been so nice to meet other travelers, share stories, get tips, and make new memories.

With Sonia and Karima

Here's to many more adventures!

The Haruru

Greetings from the other side of the world!

I haven't posted photos in a while so I figure I should catch up. I'm currently in Rotorua but will put up some pics from a few days ago: my last day in Auckland and some pics from Paihia.

In Auckland, I went with friends to Brown's Bay, a northern suburb, to have a BBQ on the beach. Despite high winds, we had a lovely time and enjoyed another beautiful picturesque view:

Brown's Bay

After our cookout, we walked around the town and took some pic. This one is from a local sweets shop:

Lee, Louise, and me in Brown's Bay

Thursday I headed up to Paihia via bus. Paihia is situated on the coast, next to the Bay of Islands. Creative name: it is simply a bay full of little islands. Paihia itself is a small town that buzzes only in the summer with tourists. I took a hike, starting at the Waitangi treaty grounds. This is a historic site because of the original treaty signed between the British Crown and the Maori people, though the actual history of this relationship depends on which version you subscribe to. Read a bit about the treaty here.

My hike took me about 5 km through the grounds, ending at Haruru Falls. The next day I went kayaking near the Falls as well. Beautiful!

Hiking along the water



Through the mangrove trees





Haruru Falls


Will post more pics soon... still in Rotorua enjoying the geothermal wonders. :-)

Spreading my wings

I will tread water

In the Gulf of Mexico.

I will climb the Alps

And visit Rome.

I'll speak fluent French

As I tour the Eiffel Tower,

I'll fly across the sky,

Then go dancing past the hour.

I'll stand on the hills of Ireland.

Afterwards, walk on the moon.

I'll see castles of England

From a hot air balloon.

I'll climb to the top of the world

And discover new things everyday.

I'll have exciting adventures,

Maybe even catch some rays.

And when I feel tired and exhausted

After learning so many new things,

I'll slowly turn the other way,

Take off and spread my wings.

This is a poem I wrote when I was 13 years old. 

So glad that 17 years later I am following through!

The Seinfeld

Greetings, friends!

I write you from Paihia, a small town known as the "gateway" to Northland, the northernmost part of New Zealand. To be honest, there's not much here. It's a fairly sleepy vacation town on the coast, but things here don't really pick up until after the holidays. I have spent the past couple of days here, hiking and kayaking, and will head down to Rotorua today via bus. Rotorua, a major destination of NZ visitors, is home to much geothermal activity, including a big geyser that explodes several times a day. Pictures to come.

I've enjoyed NZ so far: it is beautiful, accessible, and the people are friendly. However, one thing I have noticed is how touristy it is. The tourism industry is an integral part of life here, and it shows. On the one hand, this makes it very easy to do/see certain things, but on the other hand, everyone else is doing/seeing those things too. I have met other travelers from all over the world: the Netherlands, France, the US, Germany, Sweden, UK, Australia, China, etc.

On a practical note: In a moment of Seinfeld inspiration, I recently decided to start naming each of my blog posts like a Seinfeld episode. I love the show and think the new titling system will add a little something interesting to the blog.

Sweet as

Hey mates!

The past few days I've simply been enjoying Auckland and recovering from a lingering cold. 

Sunday I ventured out to Western Springs for church at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church where I met Fr. Paul Patitsas and his family, and was welcomed warmly by several parishioners. The rest of the day was spent trying to stay dry from the pouring rain: reading in the library (where I'm now a member) and hanging out at the coffee shop.

Monday I joined a free tour of Auckland. We got some great views of the city along our tour:

And we were also treated to a "bridge walk" on the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Some brave souls went bungee jumping off the bridge. I'm saving my money for sky diving. :-)

Today I took a ferry out to Rangitoto Island, which at 600 years old is New Zealand's youngest volcano. The summit of the island rewards visitors with a 360 degree view.

The island also has several lava caves, some of which are big enough to walk/crawl through. I was lucky to have remembered to pack my trusty headlamp (thanks, Liz), which helped me find my way through the darkness of the caves. Very cool.

Happy St. Nicholas day to all! Will write again soon.

The Kiwi experience...

Hello from Auckland! I arrived two days ago and have been adjusting to city life again... much different from the slow-paced island life of the past several days. I am staying at a hostel in the central part of the city. The location is ideal but the hostel is... ugh. It is a huge, 400+ bed place that feels more like a campus dormitory than a hostel. Think Jester at UT or Warren Towers at BU. But hey, at least I have a place to lay my head at night. Oh, and here's the view across the street:

There's a Starbucks on this block as well... and a Burger King.

I've spent much of my time hanging out with some girls I met at the hostel: walking around the city, doing some job searching, joining the library. Today, Louise and I trekked out to Waiheke Island, one of the beautiful islands right off the Auckland coast.

The best mullet ever, seen on the ferry to Waiheke.

Waiheke has great beaches (though the water is quite chilly!), beautiful vineyards, and fancy resorts.



The beach at Onetangi, Waiheke



Wine-tasting at one of the many vineyards

I've also been fighting a cold the past few days, which is kind of a nuisance to deal with while traveling. It's not too bad though. The worst was having to fork over NZ$20.99 (over US $16) for simple cold medicine at the pharmacy.

I hope to venture outside of Auckland soon and experience the other places in New Zealand. Will keep you posted!