New Zealand Adventures

Queenstown, New Zealand

Tue, 25 Sep 2018 14:00:00 +1200

Another long journey today! Started off with a little walk around the side of the lake before jumping on the bus where we drive to puzzling world and half of us went for a hike up Mt Iron. It seemed to be a really hard hike for me and I realized later that my sleep the night before wasn't thst great and I had developed a cold. The view from the top was beautiful and well worth the effort! Then we drove to Queenstown with a stop at a giant farm where they make real fruit ice cream. I got some and some oranges for my cold and we continued on. We stopped again at AJ Hackett and two people bungee jumped and Morgan, Brogan, and Becky all ziplined. I ws so not into it.... We got to Queenstown and got all checked in, then I decided to check if there was space for me to get my nails done at Spring spa before going up the gondola with the girls. It worked out perfectly! Had a beautiful gondola ride up and got some amazing pictures, found some cheap gloves, then headed back down. Had time to go to the cookie bar and had some cookie dough and a cappuccino, then went to my nail appointment. I got a really nice colour of nails and it was actually cheaper than I thought! I got back to the hostel, hung out witth Nick for a while, then showered and got ready for dinner with everyone. Dinner was alright but I started feeling sick and nauseous so went to bed fairly early. I had a really hard time sleeping and just rolled around all night...

Wanaka, New Zealand

Mon, 24 Sep 2018 15:00:00 +1200

Super long day to Wanaka today. Started with a lake hike at lake Matheson which is a mirror lake, but pretty much as soon as we got to the lake it started raining and we couldn't see the mirror. We decided to keep going around the loop and it ended absolutely pooring down and we got completely soaked... We were somewhat able to dry on the bus before our next stop where it was nice and sunny. We just stopped at a small town for some food. The continued on to Wanaka where it was very cloudy and started raining too. Beautiful lake! Hard to see the scenery because of all the clouds! I didn't stay out too long, found a toque and bought some chocolate, then got back to the hostel, made my pot noodle dinner, and ended up watching a bit of the fellowship of the ring with Amy. Then we all tried to sleep with a karaoke contest going on in the basement right under our window...the volume eventually went down and I fell asleep.

Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand

Sun, 23 Sep 2018 07:20:00 +1200

Got up early and met Morgan and Brogan at the kitchen for our horse back riding. We got sorted and I had enough food ready to go for a hike after riding. We got to riding and got checked in and assigned a horse. My horses name was William. He was a little fidget-y for the first little while. I wasn't sure if it was something I was doing... We got riding pretty quick and rode into the valley towards the river. At one point we tried doing a trot and it totally didn't work! Willie just wanted to run and ended up jumping and trotting and had some trouble... We did get to walk through the river on the horses but had to be careful that we didn't steer them towards the deep end where they could get pulled under. We all made it over but then ended up on some sand and my horse veered towards so I veered him back but the guide's horse behind me decided to go for a roll in the sand....randomly. Brogan laughed so hard cause she had never seen anything like it. I hiked up the valley to the glacier on my own as the Morgan wanted to change her pants. It was a really cool walk and I got some good photos. I walked back and ran into the girls from my room and grabbed one of the room keys from them. The whole hike took me about 3 hours to get back to town. I bought myself an ice cream and a sandwhich for the next day, then napped as my roommates were all out hiking still. When they got back I went in the hot tub with the other Canadian, Amy who happens to be from Kelowna! I had more pot noodles for dinner and chatted with Amy and Giselle for a while in the kitchen before going to bed.

Franz Josef, New Zealand

Sat, 22 Sep 2018 11:20:00 +1200

Early morning after such a late night at Mahinapua. We left early as some people wanted to do the heli hike and our guide Martin was trying to get them on to the flights today as the weather wasn't looking good for tomorrow. We had a short stop on the way, then chugged on to Franz Josef, I definitely napped on the bus... Once in Franz Josef, the people going on the heli hikes got sorted and left and I ended having a room all to myself for most of the day. I tried to nap for a bit, did my laundry, walked with Morgan and Brogan to try and figure out our ride to horse riding in the morning (which we did eventually get a hold of them), then went in the hot tub with Michelle and Giselle. After the hottub I was actually able to nap for a bit. I had pot noodles for dinner and had an early night after such a late night the night before.

Ruatapu, New Zealand

Fri, 21 Sep 2018 14:10:00 +1200

Lake Mahinapua hotel!!!! Party place! Had our SUP in the morning, and had a chill time. Did a headstand on the board!!! Without falling in too! Then they xrove us to Cape Foulwind where Amy and I ran to see the fur seals on the beach! Drove to Pancake rocks beach and had a lunch break. Cool walk around to see the pancake rocks. Then off to Greymouth to get stuff for our costumes. Once we got to Lake Mahinapua Hotel I did Greenstone carving! I made a mermaid tail! Then worked on my costume (Polaroid picture), then walked to the beach to see the sunset in time to get back for dinner. Delicious pulled porked with gravy, garlic bread, and potatoes. Hung around for a while before the party then had a wicked time all night until 3am. Even saw glow worms on my late night walk with Jake

Westport, New Zealand

Thu, 20 Sep 2018 16:10:00 +1200

Not too early of a start. Everyone else went on a boat trip to Abel Tasman national park, I slept in a bit then had breakfast, got all organized for my skype interview with Hobbiton, and then hung out at the beach with Leticia for a bit. My skype interview went well and I think I made a good impression! i will find out Monday. Then we were off for a long day of driving to Westport. Booked SUP for the morning, luckily enough people signed up. Did a walk to the grocery store and only baught some Bunderberg ginger beer and a new passionfruit flavour. Then dinner, and then I put Oceans 8 on tbe tv for anyone that wanted to watch it. Early night for paddle board in the morning.

Abel Tasman National Park, New Zealand

Wed, 19 Sep 2018 16:10:00 +1200

Wellington, New Zealand

Tue, 18 Sep 2018 15:10:00 +1200

Manawatu-Wanganui Region, New Zealand

Mon, 17 Sep 2018 15:10:00 +1200

9:30 start off towards River Valley Lodge Stopped at the Chateau on the way and did a 2 hour walk to Taranaki falls, sped in front of everyone Kept driving to River Valley, stopped for coffee and ice cream on the way. Only got a cappuccino Good time to river Valley, signed up for rafting in the morning Chill night with dinner and hanging with Lukas and Malta Then my room decided to have drinking games and kept everyone up almost all night

Taupo, New Zealand

Sun, 16 Sep 2018 09:40:00 +1200

Slow start Started to spa park on my own then thought I should invite others Walked with Jilly and Tanitia, spent an 30 minutes to an hour there Went back to hostel, made lunch, then napped Quiet night, dinner, and a movie

Taupo, New Zealand

Sat, 15 Sep 2018 16:10:00 +1200

Hike in cedarwood forest Checked out Te Puia gift shop Drive to Taupo Check-in then walk to grocery store Drinks and rugby match at Element Bar Movie then bed

Rotorua, New Zealand

Fri, 14 Sep 2018 13:20:00 +1200

Hike around glow worm caves in Waitomo with Laurence Hobbiton Tamaki Maori village

Waitomo, New Zealand

Thu, 13 Sep 2018 13:20:00 +1200

Early start today from Hot Water Beach! We drove out the same way we got there and the stopped for a short hike throigh some mining ruins which was pretty cool. Was a nice little hike to warm up to the day. Then we carried on the long drive to Waitomo. We stopped in a small village to do a grocery shop and to get some cash out for Hobbiton, Tamaki Marae village, and the ferry to the south island. I went pretty light on food as we will get dinner and breakfast at Tamaki Marae. When we got to our hostel in Waitomo, Kiwi paka, I had just over 2 hours before my glow worm cave tour was posted to leave. So I got into my room, which I was sharing with Jill, and charged my phone a bit. Then grabbed my laptop so I could check my emails and finances. Once tour time came around, a big group of us got on the tour bus and headed to the main office to get geared up. Rudy, Helen, and Hannah gave us full length wetsuits, a wetsuit jacket, and a fleece top if we wanted it. Along with wetsuit boots and rain boots too. Quite a bit of gear as the water is very cold! We then got back in the bus as the caves were actually back past our hostel. We got of the bus and they had us grab some tubes and the lady. Helen, told us to find the right one we needed to put our butt through and have the tube not fall. Turned out to just be a joke though ha. We then headed to the river and she gave us a little briefing on going down waterfalls with the tubes. You basically go right up to the edge, turn around, put the tube on your butt and throw yourself backwards....she made me go first and pretty well pushed me haha. All good fun though. We then got back in the bus and went back up the hill. They showed us how to link up so that when we are in complete darkness we don't lose anyone. Then we headed down to the cave!! They gave us another little briefing and then we were in! It was really cool inside! So glad I did it! The glowworms were super cool and it wasn't so bad going backwards off little waterfalls. Reminded me a lot of rafting actually! We didn't finish till about 7, then we had the trouble of trying to get all our stuff off! I had such a hard time getting my boots off....did eventually though. Then we all got showered and went up to have tomato soup and bagels. So good after the freezing cold river!! We actually got all of the photos free because it was still the winter season, and we got those before we even left the building as they were emailed to us. Such a cool day!

Hahei, New Zealand

Wed, 12 Sep 2018 12:20:00 +1200

Tour day! Katie and I got up early around 6:45-7 to get me downtown by 8:30 for my tour. It worked out really well. We didn't feel rushed at all. Katie has been so great! Tour start was a little slow. Bus was late and I ended up at the back so didn't really talk to anyone for the first part until we got to our first stop Tairua where we just had a bathroom stop and picked up some food for lunch and dinner if we wished to. After that we headed off to Hot Water Beach to check into our hostel. Super nice hostel! I ended up in a room alone...not sure how that happened but I'm not complaining hah. We got in and then had the option to go to the beach and dig a pool for hot water. How it works is the techtonic plates underneath the ground shift and cause heat that pushes water up through the sand. So if you dig in the right spots you get hot water pools like a hot tub. I ended up walking down with Georgie, Gavin, and Lawrence. Very nice, all from England. We walked down to the beach and had to search a little for a place with hot water, but finally found some and dug this massive pool which we ended up having about 8 people in. After that, we headed back up to the hostel and rinsed up a but and got ready for a hike to Cathedral Cove. The bus drove us there and then it took us about 20min to hike down. It was a beautiful cove and is apparently where they filmed some of the Narnia movies. I also checked out stingray bay as I had some time. Lawrence walked with me most of the way and a girl from Brazil whose name I don't remember. Gavin and Georgie caught up too. Stingray bay was cute and no one was there so it was nice for pictures. We hiked back up to the entrance and just waited on the lookout for everyone else to get back. I got some wicked photos from the lookout. After we just got driven back to the hostel and Lawrence invited me to play Uno with a group. It was pretty chill and fun and we played till dinner time. Some got food from the lodge, burgers and such, but I had baught pot noodles from the store so I had those and a cheese bun. Then I just went to my room and set up my laptop with a movie and ended up passing out early.

Mount Eden, New Zealand

Tue, 11 Sep 2018 16:40:00 +1200

Katie got back around 3:30am from work. We slept in a little even though she wanted to get up around 9. I wasn't in any rush. Once we did get up, we got organized and headed to pick up her friend and go to a photoshoot for her show that is happening in November. Was fun to see "behind the scenes". After that we dropped her friend back at home and then went to see about getting me a bank account. Looks like I will have to do it later as I need a letter from my employer to be able to get an account...ah well. We tried. We then got some coffee and pastry from the food court at the mall then drove to Mount Eden! Mount Eden was super cool, it had a giant crater at the top like a real volcano. It was a beautiful day to go up and I got some awesome photos of the city. We also had a bit of a mini photoshoot while up there and got some awesome photos of eachother. We got to see the start of the sunset then we headed out to get some groceries to make dinner and then went back to her place. We had a bit of a late dinner of noodles and lots of veggies! It was delicious! We finished a movie from a few nights before and then when that finished we put another movie on and Katie did henna on my back! Looks super cool :) My stomach acted up a bit, not sure if it was just from lying down on it for so long or what. Still felt a little funny the next morning, but figured itself out. Maybe too much turmeric?

Titirangi, New Zealand

Mon, 10 Sep 2018 13:50:00 +1200

So it's Monday, everyone is working so not really sure what to do today. Had a bit of a sleep in, watched some tv, and called my parents. My mum was happy to hear from me. They still haven't gotten any of my packages...super weird. Decided I shiuld go for a walk. So went for a wander to Titirangi village. Pretty small village, but right as I walked in was their art gallery which is free, so I went for it! Pretty cool gallery, lots of Maori culture for such a small gallery and they had a very cool video of Maori kids growing up right now. After I just did a little wander further down and to a little gift shop. Didn't buy anything but it was a cool store and this amazing song was on so I asked the lady what it was and she wrote it down for me! Then I walked back, ended up eating all of my chips...and watched a bunch of Vikings episodes. Pretty quiet day really.

Huia, New Zealand

Sun, 09 Sep 2018 11:50:00 +1200

This morning I had a sleep in then didn't really know what to do for the day. Luckily Gareth sent me a text saying they were going to brunch with the kids and a hike and wondered if I wanted to join, which of course I did! So around lunch they picked me up and we went to Huia Café. I had salt and pepper squid which was great and some chips on the side. They were nice enough to buy for me, which I did offer to chip in. The kids had caramel milkshakes, mmm. We then went for a hike up to Lower Huia Dam, which was a pretty nice walk. Isaac is super cute, we get along great. He asked me if next time we meet my hair could be orange hah. He also really likes playing plants vs zombies 2. The dam was very cool! There was this spot where you could walk over where the water runs down into a big tube. From above it looks kind of scary! I got a cool picture through a little peep hole. After the walk we drove to their house and dropped Isaac off at a play date on the way. Then Katrina asked if I wanted to come with her to downtown Auckland and have a wander while she works out at the gym. Sure! So she got organized and we drove down, and then Katrina offered to give Katie a ride back too as she was finishing work at Lush at 5pm. So I went for a nice long wander around downtown. Saw most of the harbour and a few shops, stopped in to see Katie, but it was really busy in Lush so I left and wandered back to meet Katrina. It worked out really well for Katie and then we had lots of time to just hang out at her place, cook dinner, and watch movies. Pretty chill night!

Piha, New Zealand

Sat, 08 Sep 2018 12:10:00 +1200

Today Katie has to work in the morning at 9 so she aaked if I wanted to drive her to the train station and then drive back. I said sure, and we had a good laugh when we got to the station and I turned right and proceeded to turn onto the wrong side of the road....haha whoooops. I managed to get back without getting in an accident, remember they drive on the left side here...Once I got back I kind of napped a bit and tried to watch a movie. Then decided I should send Gareth Morris a text as he had commented on one of my photos that he was really close by. So I did and they invited me to go to Piha beach! The drive out there was beautiful! Piha is a black sand beach and has this huge rock called Lion Rock. We walked down to the beach and hiked up Lion Rock! Then we walked all the way to the other end of the beach. Gareth and Katrina's kids are sooo cute. Sam and Isaac. Isaac is super quirky but so much fun. He wanted to walk and hold my hand and told me I was cool haha. After we walked the whole beach we went to the café and got pies and coffee. They were pretty good. There was this sad dog there who seemed blind :( poor dog!!! On the drive back we stopped at Arataki Visitors Centre where you can get an amazing view of the whole area! Inside they had some super cool geckos. Isaac wanted to play a board game so we did a quick round! They also haf this crazy cricket that looks like it was crossed with a cockroach! Super big and they like to live inside trees, I think they are called waka. It was quite cold at the centre so we didn't stay long. Gareth did also show me the kawhai tree which in Maori means yellow. After that, they dropped me back off at home and no one was even home. So I had a quiet night, ate a mango, had some tea, and some chips.

Titirangi, New Zealand

Fri, 07 Sep 2018 06:40:00 +1200

The sun was just rising as we got to her place. It was beautiful! The area she lives in is sooo green. When we got to her place we unloaded into her room and chatted quietly a little as it was pretty early and people weren't up yet. She showed me around the outside of her house which is awesome! She pretty much has a jungle in her backyard! The house is super sweet too! She lives on the bottom floor and her sliding door opens right into the driveway which is pretty convenient. The upstairs is very open concept with a big kitchen and a big outside deck. We had some peanut butter toast and then went back downstairs so she could get ready for work. I got to meet her one roommate ?Kayla? and her other roommates son Jackson who is only 18months old. Then Katie had to go to work so I went to take a nap for a bit. I slept for a while, then watched a movie and did some work for Byte Camp. Went and grabbed some lunch upstairs and met her other roommate Alisa. Then went back to Katie's room for a while. Thought I should maybe go for a walk so I got some tea and then walked down the road a ways. All the houses here are like jungle houses, it reminds me a lot of Hawai'i. There is just so much green and soo many shades of green. It's a great area. After my walk I put another movie on while I waited for Katie to get home. When she got home she ended up bringing down buttered bread, fries, and ketchup and showed me a super kiwi thing (apparently) of eating fry sandwhiches with butter and ketchup! Super weird but not bad haha. We then headed out to go buy some groceries so I had food as she is working lots while I am her. She showed me some good vegan options as her whole house is vegan and by the time we got home we put everything away had some vegan chocolate milk and just put a movie on and fell asleep.

Auckland

Fri, 07 Sep 2018 05:20:00 +1200

So even though I started my journey to NZ on the 5th, I didn't get to Auckland until the 7th becuase of the time change. I had a retty long day of travelling, which started with my mum leaving work early to drive me to the ferry. It was really nice to have that little send off, I really appreciated it. I took the usual ferry, bus, sky train to Vancouver airport, which worked pretty well with all my stuff. As long as I don't have to do a ton of walking with all of my stuff on I'll be fine. The skytrain was pretty funny cause Seth Rogen now does the announcements. Pretty cool haha. I got to the airport at about 5:50pm and went straight to check-in and get my bags sorted. I was able to get a big plastic bag to go around it all for $5 and they didn't give me any hastle. I then searched out a timmies as my mum had warned me there is no longer a timmies in the international departures wing....so silly. So had my final timmies and then headed through security with no problems. Went to subway to grab a Korean Pulled Pork sub and then found a spot at the gate to sit, charge my phone, and eat. The flight had no delays and the people I was in between were alright. I watched "Life of the party" and "War for the planet of the apes" and they served dinner in between. I had the chicken which was in some kind if curry, it was pretty tasty, and finished it off with a pretty rich cheese cake. I couldn't eat it all... I tried to sleep for a while as the flight was about 13.75hrs...I definitely got some sleep, but it wasn't very good quality. Had a hard time getting comfortable, hopefully on my flight back in a window seat I'll have a better time. At some point I woke up and there was only a couple hours left in the flight and they started serving breakfast. So I watched "Solo" while eating my breakfast and filling out my landing card. It was great to land and finally get off the plane. I was expecting line ups for customs but it eas actually the fastest customs I have ever gone through. I didn't even talk to a person, just scanned my passport and walked through. I did check online later to make sure my visa had registered and had the right leave date (Aug 7th 2020). I then went to wait for my bags and had good enough wifi that I called my dad at work and said hi and that I had made it safe and sound! My bag didn't take very long to show up and wasn't damaged at all, I lect it in the plastic bag, which was a good thing as I still needed to go through a biosecurity scan. I had already messaged Katie to let her know I had landed, when I got to the biosecurity hall though my Wi-Fi stopped working so had to just hope she was waiting outside. No problems through biosecurity, he did ask me if I had hiking boots and I said yes and that I was wearing them, but they were brand new. Then I finally got outside to try and find Katie. Didn't take me long to realize everyone was driving on the left side of the road! Took me a little while to find her, but we found each other and threw my stuff in the car and hugged and off we went!