The goodbye

Greetings, friends!

It's time for me to leave Taupo. I will be catching a bus to Wellington this weekend, and after that, heading down to the South Island for some more exploring. My time here has been filled with new adventures, lots of friends, and rewarding experiences.

I'll miss the lovely friends I made here:

Ruth and I jam out. I miss this girl!

My friend Ann from Germany... my first roommate in Taupo

Some of the gang: Raphaela, Ann, me, Matthew, Ruth, Celia, Dave

Ruth, Celia, and me... roomies

Tina, me, Courtney, and Rob



Nadine, me, Marie, and Rob



My last night in Taupo: Mario, Rob, Sabrina, Ann, Caro, me, and Marie

I will not miss our bedroom: six (bunk)beds, six women, three electrical outlets, no storage:

I will miss walking by the SuperLoo, the town's public toilets, and having a good chuckle at the name.

I will miss seeing the Mackers that converted an old plane into a seating area. Not because I fancy Big Macs for dinner every night (I already confessed to one fast food transgression), but because this place is uniquely Taupo.

I probably won't miss the Taupo "nightlife" very much. There are about four places to go, and they're pretty much all the same. And they're all on the same street:

I will miss hanging out at the cafe, and my funny colleagues there:

Troy and Possum

The outside of the cafe... look closely and you will see some rugby players out front

Hamish (aka "Hammy")

Judith

Troy, Possum, Judith, me, and Michelle out at the pub



I will miss this wonderful espresso...





But I won't miss doing the dishes at the cafe:

A typical day in the kitchen... don't I look thrilled?!

I will really miss the incredible Taupo sunsets. Each night, from our balcony view over the lake, we enjoyed different, but equally majestic, displays of color and texture as the sun went down. These photographs don't really do them justice.

So, goodbye, Taupo. It's been good.