Hi all,
Welcome to another installment of the epic Solinsky adventure. We are now in Cairns, AUSTRALIA! Here's an update of what we have been doing:
Tuesday June 29: We woke up super early to fly from Auckland to Cairns, Australia today. While on the flight we saw the sunrise and it was really beautiful! I had a really great last view of New Zealand which I definitely appreciated. We flew on Air New Zealand which was really great – they had a ton of movies and food. After a 5.5 hour flight we arrived in Cairns before noon. We checked into our hotel and went along the Esplanade for lunch. For the afternoon we just hung around and enjoyed being able to wear shorts and t-shirts outside (it’s in the 70s here). For dinner we met up with my friend from Brandeis Lisa (who I traveled around Tasmania with) and her Mom which was really nice. We all had different versions of Mahi-Mahi at this great fish restaurant. After dinner we got gelato.
Wednesday June 30: For the last day of June we had an awesome day out on the Great Barrier Reef!! After a delicious breakfast at the hotel, we were picked up and taken to the Cairns marina where we boarded our Reef Magic Cruise ship. The boat was pretty big with two levels and was pretty spacious. It was about a 90 minute ride to the Great Barrier Reef but the views were spectacular. There were beautiful lush mountains coming out of the water. Once we made it to Moore Reef we docked and jumped off the boat to a platform called “Marine World.” For the whole day the boat stayed docked next to Marine World where we were able to settle in. Marine World had tons of tables, a sun deck and all the equipment for snorkeling. We put our wet suits on, grabbed masks, snorkels and fins and were all set to go. We jumped in (the water wasn’t too cold) and the reef was so beautiful it basically took my breath away. From above the water you would never guess the reef and fishes that lie beneath it’s surface but they are incredible! We swam around for about an hour just taking in the beautiful coral and fish. I even got to touch Wally the local huge fish who comes along with his pal Rocky everyday at 10:30. The different types of fish and coral were amazing. They ranged in color, size and texture. There were rainbow striped fish, parrot fish, zebra fish, huge clams, “chocolate dipped” fish and so many more! We saw tons of different types of coral from hard to soft to brain to blue tipped. In the Great Barrier Reef there are 400 types of coral and 2,000 species of fish! It’s just truly amazing with tons of different reefs. Moore reef is classified as a small one and it was pretty big, so I can only imagine how huge the big reefs are! Then we hopped back on board and my Dad and I went on the included glass-bottom boat tour which took us to a different section of the reef. We got to see even more fish, coral and learn about them. Apparently since the coral is so far under water, because of the light spectrum red doesn’t really reach down there, which is why everything looks blue, but apparently if you add red back into the pictures all of the colors look much brighter- we will have to try that out! After that, we had our buffet lunch which actually had some really good vegetarian lasagna. After lunch my Dad, Brian, Jason and I went on a boat which took us to a different section of the reef and did a Snorkel Safari Adventure there. We got to see different types of fish and coral out there and learn about them along the way. We saw a clown fish (looks like we found nemo!), a shark and more clams. It was really incredible. The tour lasted for about an hour. Then we went back on the boat and I snorkeled a bit more in the reef right next to the base. Then we only relaxed on the platform for a bit before having to pack up our stuff and go back on the main boat. On board we had some afternoon tea which good cheese, crackers and fruit. It was a really amazing day! I absolutely love the great barrier reef!! Tonight we’re going out for dinner probably to a Mediterranean place and then have to get ready for our big Rainforest adventure tomorrow!
Sending lots of Solinsky love from the Great Barrier Reef!!
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
FAMILY in New Zealand!
Hi there!
Welcome to the Solinsky family epic vacation adventure part one: New Zealand! After a bit of a plane mishap concerning Chicago, my family made it to New Zealand one day late and we have been off and running ever since! I’ll break it down by day:
Saturday June 26: My family got into Auckland International Airport bright and early in the morning where I met them with our guide. After loading everyone up in the van we set off for Rotorua. When we got to Rotorua we went to the Whakawerawera Maori village. Unlike most tourist attractions in Rotorua, this Maori village was not staged and the Maori actually live there. We had a tour by a Maori woman who lives in the village and saw her family throughout the tour. She told us the history and daily functioning of the village. The village is built amongst many geothermal features and it was fascinating to hear about how the Maori use these geothermal pools in their daily lives. For example, they use the really hot pools for cooking – and we even had corn which is cooked in one and it was delicious!! They also have a ton of nature walks around the different geothermal activities which were nice. After the tour we went to the cultural performance put on by the Maori which was really fun. They did a lot of different songs and dances and even did the haka. They also had a section with audience participation where I was invited up to learn and perform a dance with a poi, which was hilarious for my family to watch. It was a really interesting place to go to. After the village, we had a quick tour around Rotorua where we learned the history of the town. Basically Rotorua would not exist without tourism due to it’s geothermal activities. It was originally thought that the geothermal activities could be used for healing powers. We stopped along Lake Rotorua which is beautiful. From there we drove to Hamilton where we had dinner and went to the ALL BLACKS GAME!! For those of you who do not know, the All Blacks is the national rugby team of New Zealand. Many kiwis will say that New Zealand does not really have a religion, but if one had to be chosen it would be the All Blacks. All New Zealanders love the All Blacks and are constantly following and discussing them. Since they are a national team, they are constantly playing rugby internationally and hence do not play many home tests (or matches). In fact, I think they have only played two or three tests in New Zealand since I have been there (and none of these tests were near Auckland). Therefore, when I found out that there was going to be a game in Hamilton (relatively close to Auckland and Rotorua) when my family would be here I jumped on it! The pre-game show was really fun – they had dance shows and fireworks! Then right before the game started, the All Blacks did their famous haka. It was SO cool to see the haka in person after hearing so much about it! The haka is a traditional Maori war dance to intimidate their opponents. The All Blacks perform a haka before every match to intimidate their opponents. After the haka the test began. Rugby is a little hard to watch in person because there are no announcers and I felt like I was constantly trying to find the ball. However, it was a lot of fun and I definitely understood most of the game which was exciting! The All Blacks beat Wales which was awesome! Then my family was so exhausted from the long day (some of them were even falling asleep at the test), and we all slept for most of the car ride between Hamilton and Taupo, where we stayed for the night.
Sunday June 27: We woke up in Taupo and my family felt much more refreshed after finally sleeping in a bed. Our room overlooked the beautiful Lake Taupo (let’s just say it was an upgrade compared to the backpackers that I had been staying in!). Lake Taupo was really gorgeous, especially with the snowcapped mountains behind it. It was so cool to see Taupo in the winter because it’s one of the areas of the North Island that gets snow. I could kind of see Tongariro crossing in the distance which I hiked back in January and it now has snow! Anyways after breakfast we were picked up by Rapid Sensations and were off for our bike and kayak adventure. We first did biking. Considering I had biked all semester I figured it would not be that hard for me. However, we ended up mountain biking which was so hard and intense! We biked down to Huka Falls which is New Zealand’s #1 free tourist spot. The falls are 12 metres and this awesome blue color and are just amazing to look at! After biking back we went in a bike forest area which was pretty fun (considering we were on the easiest track). By the end I got more used to it but lets just say that I definitely prefer road biking! After the bike section of the trip we went on to kayaking on the Waikato River! The river was really beautiful and pretty calm. We basically just kayaked down the river, and it was a really nice day out so it was lovely. As we were kayaking we saw someone bungy jump which was really cool and scary to watch. Then we made it to the natural hot pools which were just on the side of the river. We parked our kayaks, hopped out and went for a soak in the hot pools – they were amazing! It was kind of an enclosed area with a waterfall coming down and it was all natural and so gorgeous! Then we hopped back in our kayaks and paddled a few minutes down the river to get to the van. After drying off we were off again to Rotorua. After reaching Rotorua, Brian, Jason and I went Zorbing. A zorb basically looks like a giant plastic ball filled with another smaller ball in it. You jump into the smaller ball and get rolled down a hill. It is a really crazy unique experience. We all did the hydrozorb where they put water in the smaller ball that you’re in and it kind of is like what a washing machine would feel like. It was completely bizarre but pretty fun! Then we had lunch at Jesters which is a classic New Zealand pie (lunch not dessert pie) place where we all had New Zealand pies. Then we all headed up the gandola and went luging which was lots of fun! After luging we headed back in the van and drove to Auckland. Once we were checked into the hotel we went to Gina’s Italian restaurant for dinner, which was delicious.
Monday June 28: Today was my one day to show my whole family around what has become my home over the last 6 months: Auckland! We got up early and went to Café Melba for breakfast which was very yummy. We then headed over to the ferry terminal and went on an island hop-on/hop-off ferry for the day. They took us by the harbour bridge and Devonport and we got off at Rangitoto. We climbed Rangitoto and the weather held up wonderfully and we were able to have a great view! We then hopped back on the ferry and got off at Mission Bay where we had lunch and ice cream. We then took a bus back into the city and did a bit of souvenir shopping. For dinner we went to the Viaduct which was good. Then we had to pack up and get ready for Australia! It was a really awesome last day in Auckland, and I still can’t believe it was my last one there!
Sending lots of Solinsky love from Aotearoa!
Welcome to the Solinsky family epic vacation adventure part one: New Zealand! After a bit of a plane mishap concerning Chicago, my family made it to New Zealand one day late and we have been off and running ever since! I’ll break it down by day:
Saturday June 26: My family got into Auckland International Airport bright and early in the morning where I met them with our guide. After loading everyone up in the van we set off for Rotorua. When we got to Rotorua we went to the Whakawerawera Maori village. Unlike most tourist attractions in Rotorua, this Maori village was not staged and the Maori actually live there. We had a tour by a Maori woman who lives in the village and saw her family throughout the tour. She told us the history and daily functioning of the village. The village is built amongst many geothermal features and it was fascinating to hear about how the Maori use these geothermal pools in their daily lives. For example, they use the really hot pools for cooking – and we even had corn which is cooked in one and it was delicious!! They also have a ton of nature walks around the different geothermal activities which were nice. After the tour we went to the cultural performance put on by the Maori which was really fun. They did a lot of different songs and dances and even did the haka. They also had a section with audience participation where I was invited up to learn and perform a dance with a poi, which was hilarious for my family to watch. It was a really interesting place to go to. After the village, we had a quick tour around Rotorua where we learned the history of the town. Basically Rotorua would not exist without tourism due to it’s geothermal activities. It was originally thought that the geothermal activities could be used for healing powers. We stopped along Lake Rotorua which is beautiful. From there we drove to Hamilton where we had dinner and went to the ALL BLACKS GAME!! For those of you who do not know, the All Blacks is the national rugby team of New Zealand. Many kiwis will say that New Zealand does not really have a religion, but if one had to be chosen it would be the All Blacks. All New Zealanders love the All Blacks and are constantly following and discussing them. Since they are a national team, they are constantly playing rugby internationally and hence do not play many home tests (or matches). In fact, I think they have only played two or three tests in New Zealand since I have been there (and none of these tests were near Auckland). Therefore, when I found out that there was going to be a game in Hamilton (relatively close to Auckland and Rotorua) when my family would be here I jumped on it! The pre-game show was really fun – they had dance shows and fireworks! Then right before the game started, the All Blacks did their famous haka. It was SO cool to see the haka in person after hearing so much about it! The haka is a traditional Maori war dance to intimidate their opponents. The All Blacks perform a haka before every match to intimidate their opponents. After the haka the test began. Rugby is a little hard to watch in person because there are no announcers and I felt like I was constantly trying to find the ball. However, it was a lot of fun and I definitely understood most of the game which was exciting! The All Blacks beat Wales which was awesome! Then my family was so exhausted from the long day (some of them were even falling asleep at the test), and we all slept for most of the car ride between Hamilton and Taupo, where we stayed for the night.
Sunday June 27: We woke up in Taupo and my family felt much more refreshed after finally sleeping in a bed. Our room overlooked the beautiful Lake Taupo (let’s just say it was an upgrade compared to the backpackers that I had been staying in!). Lake Taupo was really gorgeous, especially with the snowcapped mountains behind it. It was so cool to see Taupo in the winter because it’s one of the areas of the North Island that gets snow. I could kind of see Tongariro crossing in the distance which I hiked back in January and it now has snow! Anyways after breakfast we were picked up by Rapid Sensations and were off for our bike and kayak adventure. We first did biking. Considering I had biked all semester I figured it would not be that hard for me. However, we ended up mountain biking which was so hard and intense! We biked down to Huka Falls which is New Zealand’s #1 free tourist spot. The falls are 12 metres and this awesome blue color and are just amazing to look at! After biking back we went in a bike forest area which was pretty fun (considering we were on the easiest track). By the end I got more used to it but lets just say that I definitely prefer road biking! After the bike section of the trip we went on to kayaking on the Waikato River! The river was really beautiful and pretty calm. We basically just kayaked down the river, and it was a really nice day out so it was lovely. As we were kayaking we saw someone bungy jump which was really cool and scary to watch. Then we made it to the natural hot pools which were just on the side of the river. We parked our kayaks, hopped out and went for a soak in the hot pools – they were amazing! It was kind of an enclosed area with a waterfall coming down and it was all natural and so gorgeous! Then we hopped back in our kayaks and paddled a few minutes down the river to get to the van. After drying off we were off again to Rotorua. After reaching Rotorua, Brian, Jason and I went Zorbing. A zorb basically looks like a giant plastic ball filled with another smaller ball in it. You jump into the smaller ball and get rolled down a hill. It is a really crazy unique experience. We all did the hydrozorb where they put water in the smaller ball that you’re in and it kind of is like what a washing machine would feel like. It was completely bizarre but pretty fun! Then we had lunch at Jesters which is a classic New Zealand pie (lunch not dessert pie) place where we all had New Zealand pies. Then we all headed up the gandola and went luging which was lots of fun! After luging we headed back in the van and drove to Auckland. Once we were checked into the hotel we went to Gina’s Italian restaurant for dinner, which was delicious.
Monday June 28: Today was my one day to show my whole family around what has become my home over the last 6 months: Auckland! We got up early and went to Café Melba for breakfast which was very yummy. We then headed over to the ferry terminal and went on an island hop-on/hop-off ferry for the day. They took us by the harbour bridge and Devonport and we got off at Rangitoto. We climbed Rangitoto and the weather held up wonderfully and we were able to have a great view! We then hopped back on the ferry and got off at Mission Bay where we had lunch and ice cream. We then took a bus back into the city and did a bit of souvenir shopping. For dinner we went to the Viaduct which was good. Then we had to pack up and get ready for Australia! It was a really awesome last day in Auckland, and I still can’t believe it was my last one there!
Sending lots of Solinsky love from Aotearoa!
Last Week in Aotearoa
Hi everyone,
My last week abroad in New Zealand was pretty relaxed. I was done with classes, my internship and exams! The weather on Monday through Thursday was pretty nice, which made just walking around the city a lot of fun! I did a lot of walking around downtown Queen St, going back to some favorite food places (including Mrs Higgins and Muffin Break) and walking along the harbour towards Mission Bay. Here are some highlights from my last week:
Sail NZ: Auckland is known as the “city of sails” and constantly has sailboats in the harbour. I have always loved sailing and have been wanting to sail here since I arrived. So on Tuesday afternoon I did a Sail NZ sailing experience in the harbour for two hours on an American Cup sailboat. It was a true sailing experience and we were put to work! There were 4 grinders which each required 2 people to put the sails up and down, out and in, which was hard work. Then I also got to steer the boat which was a little stressful, but overall was fun! It was a really great day out on the water, and was an awesome way to see and experience the harbour. We went by the harbour bridge, Devonport, Rangitoto and just saw a difference perception of the city. I’m so happy I did it!
Devonport: On Thursday a friend and I went over to Devonport again. It was a nice sunny day out. We took the ferry over, grabbed some food to go at a café and headed to the beach. There is a nice beach by North Head and we just hung out there overlooking Rangitoto for the afternoon. I climbed around North Head a bit, but mostly it was nice to just relax on the beach during “winter.” Then around five we went up North Head to watch a beautiful sunset. It was so cool seeing all the colors changing and the city lights start to go on.
On Friday night BU had a goodbye get-together for us down by the Viaduct which was nice. Also that night Carlson School for Cerebral Palsy (the base school where I did my internship) was having a potluck dinner for the staff as a mid-winter “Christmas” dinner at the school. My friend (who also had an internship at Carlson) and I went and it was a lot of fun! I got to see my head teacher and two of the teacher aides I worked with, in addition to the deputy principal. It was so nice to catch up with them and have fun in a relaxed environment. The food was also really good. They also had karaoke which was a lot of fun, and I even sang a song with one of the other teacher aides by the Beatles. While it made me miss the school and kids a lot, it was a lot of fun and I’m glad I was able to go!
Now my family comes and we have a jam-packed few days in New Zealand before heading off to Australia! Can’t wait!!
Sending lots of love from Auckland!
My last week abroad in New Zealand was pretty relaxed. I was done with classes, my internship and exams! The weather on Monday through Thursday was pretty nice, which made just walking around the city a lot of fun! I did a lot of walking around downtown Queen St, going back to some favorite food places (including Mrs Higgins and Muffin Break) and walking along the harbour towards Mission Bay. Here are some highlights from my last week:
Sail NZ: Auckland is known as the “city of sails” and constantly has sailboats in the harbour. I have always loved sailing and have been wanting to sail here since I arrived. So on Tuesday afternoon I did a Sail NZ sailing experience in the harbour for two hours on an American Cup sailboat. It was a true sailing experience and we were put to work! There were 4 grinders which each required 2 people to put the sails up and down, out and in, which was hard work. Then I also got to steer the boat which was a little stressful, but overall was fun! It was a really great day out on the water, and was an awesome way to see and experience the harbour. We went by the harbour bridge, Devonport, Rangitoto and just saw a difference perception of the city. I’m so happy I did it!
Devonport: On Thursday a friend and I went over to Devonport again. It was a nice sunny day out. We took the ferry over, grabbed some food to go at a café and headed to the beach. There is a nice beach by North Head and we just hung out there overlooking Rangitoto for the afternoon. I climbed around North Head a bit, but mostly it was nice to just relax on the beach during “winter.” Then around five we went up North Head to watch a beautiful sunset. It was so cool seeing all the colors changing and the city lights start to go on.
On Friday night BU had a goodbye get-together for us down by the Viaduct which was nice. Also that night Carlson School for Cerebral Palsy (the base school where I did my internship) was having a potluck dinner for the staff as a mid-winter “Christmas” dinner at the school. My friend (who also had an internship at Carlson) and I went and it was a lot of fun! I got to see my head teacher and two of the teacher aides I worked with, in addition to the deputy principal. It was so nice to catch up with them and have fun in a relaxed environment. The food was also really good. They also had karaoke which was a lot of fun, and I even sang a song with one of the other teacher aides by the Beatles. While it made me miss the school and kids a lot, it was a lot of fun and I’m glad I was able to go!
Now my family comes and we have a jam-packed few days in New Zealand before heading off to Australia! Can’t wait!!
Sending lots of love from Auckland!
Monday, June 21, 2010
North Island Roadtrip!
Hi all!
As hard as it is to believe I am writing to you during my last week in New Zealand! I can't believe how quickly my time in New Zealand has gone! However, rather than spend this posting going on about how sad I am and how much I am going to miss it here (which I am!) I will instead tell you all about my travels around the North Island this past week!!
I had my exam on Saturday 12 June (apparently they give exams on Saturday here?) and since it ended I am officially on NZ Winter (or US Summer) break! Meaning..I am a college senior! How crazy is that? Anyways after finishing my exam I went back to my apartment and packed up for our North Island roadtrip. While one of my friends got the car, I helped solve a lodging crisis (apparently there had been some miscommunication and we had no place to stay that night. No worries, I figured it out). Then we all loaded our stuff in the car and were off and away down the west coast of North Island on Route 1 to Wanganui. Five hours later, we got to Wanganui and were met with a really cool hostel. There were two bedrooms and a living area and our own bathroom with a stocked fridge with milk. It was really nice but I was way too tired to enjoy it, and went to sleep pretty soon.
On Sunday 13 June We drove a half hour to Whanganui National Park. It was raining a bit, but that didn't stop the beautiful views we got on our two hour hike - it was so awesome!! As we were leaving Whanganui National Park we were met with an incredible rainbow. We then went back to the town of Wanganui, got some lunch, and then set off for Wellington. Wellington was about a 4 hour drive away and we made it to the capital of New Zealand in time for dinner. We were staying at a YHA and it was well equipped with a good kitchen, and we stayed in a room just for the 6 of us which was great. Wellington is a beautiful city with an incredible harbour and Cook Strait which connects it to the South Island. Approaching Wellington, it definitely felt like we were approaching a US city and it felt way more like a highway than anywhere else in New Zealand (kind of similar to Auckland).
Monday 14 June was our first full day in Wellington and we completely took advantage of it! It was a beautiful day (rare for Wellington during the winter - Wellington is known for wind, rain and cold). But the sun was shining and it was a great day to explore! We took the cable car up to the Botanic Gardens and were rewarded with an incredible view of the city and harbour. Wellington definitely has more of a South Island feel with incredible mountains surounding it. We then explore the Botanic Gardens which was a lot of fun. Then we had lunch up at the lookout and took the cable car back down to the city. Then we walked around the city (which is pretty small and easy to manage) stopping by Cuba St and other cool areas. Wellington just has so much more culture and character than Auckland - it is filled with cool art stuff everywhere! Then it was my friend's birthday so we split off and 3 of us went to get her presents and a cake. We then got ready and went to "The Library" which was a really cool bar attached to "Chow" where we went for dinner. Chow is a asian-tapas place that has really good food and is half-price on Monday. There is a Chow in Auckland that I had been to once before, and it was just as delicious this time.
Tuesday 15 June was kind of rainy so we went to Te Papa. Te Papa is the national museum of New Zealand and is honestly one of the coolest museums I have ever been to in my life! It is all interactive and has such a variety of exhibitions that you can (and we did) literally spend all day there! There were exhibits on the structure of New Zealand, NZ's history, Maori history, animals, volcanoes all with tons of movies and activities. There was one movie which told New Zealander's stories which was really cool. There were also earthquake simulators and even a ride taking you into the center of a volcano! My favorite exhibit was called the "Mixing Room" which was an interactive area that told the stories of the refugees of New Zealand. It was such an interesting exhibit and I could have spent much longer there if the museum wasn't closing! So after staying at Te Papa all day, we then went to thhe Wellington art gallery which was okay. After glancing around, I realized that the sun was about to set and decided to walk along the harbour. The sunset was absolutely beautiful and I got to see the city lights on the hill light up (there are 2 hills surrounding Wellington). It was a great way to end the day.
Wednesday 16 June was another beautiful day in Wellington so we decided to wake up early and make the drive to Upper and Lower Hutt (about a half hour outside of the city). We first went to Upper Hutt and went to the Kaitoke Regional Park. We spent a couple hours just wandering and hiking around and it was so much fun! We saw beautiful sights and incredible trees. Kaitoke is the location of "Rivendell" in Lord of the Rings and we got to see the actual spot that they filmed in. It looks completely different now, but is still a beautiful spot. After having lunch in Kaitoke, we continued on to Lower Hutt. In Lower Hutt some people wanted to shop, but I wanted to hike some more so we split off. I went to Belmont Regional Park and hiked to the Korokoro dam which was really beautiful. There were these incredible mountains filled with trees and it was a really awesome hike. We then met back up and went back to Wellington. That night we went to "Alice" which is an "Alice in Wonderland" themed bar where they serve everything in teapots - it was a really cute place.
Thursday 17 June was yet another beautiful sunny day in Wellington. My friends slept in, but I woke up early and climbed Mt Victoria - a mountain in Wellington. It was a short steep climb to the top, and the views were spectacular! I hung out up there for a while and ate my lunch. From Mt Victoria it shows how close you actually are to Antarctica which is pretty cool. From Mt Victoria I took the Southern Walkway down which was really pretty and ended up on Oriental Parade along the harbour. I then walked away from Wellington and had a great walk along the harbour and the beaches embracing the sunshine. Then I went back to city centre to go Parliament. New Zealand Parliament is in Wellington and they give free tours everyday! So I went on one and it was SO interesting! Parliament itself is beautiful with 3 wings: the main one, the "Beehive" and the library. The library has km of shelf space than they have very impressive archives. Throughout the tour I kept thinking about how much more accessible and open the government is than in the US. They are very focused on direct communication between the people of NZ and the government. In law making they like people to be directly involved so they place ads in local papers about an upcoming law and if you have an input you can send a letter to parliament (for free) with your ideas and can even appear in front of the lawmakers in Wellington to tell them your thoughts (anyone can do this - even me!). It was very interesting. They even have the NZ flag from 9/11 which was really intense for me to see. After the tour we could go into the debating chambers to hear actual MPs (Member of Parliaments) debating over issues. I went and heard them talking about an agricultural issue. It was so interesting and cool to be able to witness the government at work.
Friday 18 June we woke up at 5 am to hit the road towards Napier. After a 4 hour drive (with a beautiful sunrise!) we made it to Napier. Napier is well known as the wine region in New Zealand and for it's awesome art deco. We first walked around the town and admired the art deco and fountains. Then we walked along the water and played on the beach. Then we piled in the car and set off to Mission Estate Winery which is the oldest winery in New Zealand! We had a free tasting there and it was really fun. We then went to a chocolate factory which was very delicious. Then we went back in the car and set out on another 4 hour drive to Gisborne. We stopped along the way to see the beautiful sights which included awesome forests, rivers and beaches. We made it to Gisborne for dinner and stayed at another YHA.
Saturday 19 June some of us woke up early again for the sunrise because Gisborne is the first city in the world to see the sun rise each day!! We got into the car around seven and got to a beautiful beach on Poverty Bay to see the sun rise. The sun rise was different than any I had seen before because the sun seemed to be coming from the side rather than up. It was a beautiful sunrise and so rejuvenating. It was a great way to start the day! We then went back, packed up and went to explore Gisborne. We went to a farmer's market which was great where I got manuka honey brie and manuka honey and walnut ciabatta bread which I had as a delicious lunch! Then we went to Gray's Reserve where we did a bush walk and saw incredible trees and a farm with lots of sheep! From there we drove on to Tauranga, which was about another 4 hours away. Along the way we stopped by more awesome views and the infamous Bay of Plenty beaches.
Sunday 20 June we woke up to a kind of rainy day in Tauranga but decided we still needed to go exploring. Even though it was filled with clouds we decided to hike Mt Maunganui or "the mount" anyways. The hike wasn't that bad and was really beautiful. There were tons of sheep all around! About halfway up it started to clear and we were able to see the scene shift from purely clouds to awesome views right before our eyes! By the time we reached the top we were rewarded with amazing views!! We could see so much from the top! Then we went down and explored the beach as it became a sunny day. There were these awesome rocks off the beach which we explored and saw more incredible views. After lunch we headed back to Auckland.
It was a really amazing trip and I got to see so many great sights! I feel now that I have seen the majority of New Zealand and can honestly say that I love every part of it! Here are the pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/LSOL817/NorthIslandRoadtrip?feat=directlink
This week I don't have much going on besides taking in Auckland and packing up. My family comes on Friday and I am SO excited!!!! Can't wait to see you all soon!
Sending lots of love from the whole North Island!
As hard as it is to believe I am writing to you during my last week in New Zealand! I can't believe how quickly my time in New Zealand has gone! However, rather than spend this posting going on about how sad I am and how much I am going to miss it here (which I am!) I will instead tell you all about my travels around the North Island this past week!!
I had my exam on Saturday 12 June (apparently they give exams on Saturday here?) and since it ended I am officially on NZ Winter (or US Summer) break! Meaning..I am a college senior! How crazy is that? Anyways after finishing my exam I went back to my apartment and packed up for our North Island roadtrip. While one of my friends got the car, I helped solve a lodging crisis (apparently there had been some miscommunication and we had no place to stay that night. No worries, I figured it out). Then we all loaded our stuff in the car and were off and away down the west coast of North Island on Route 1 to Wanganui. Five hours later, we got to Wanganui and were met with a really cool hostel. There were two bedrooms and a living area and our own bathroom with a stocked fridge with milk. It was really nice but I was way too tired to enjoy it, and went to sleep pretty soon.
On Sunday 13 June We drove a half hour to Whanganui National Park. It was raining a bit, but that didn't stop the beautiful views we got on our two hour hike - it was so awesome!! As we were leaving Whanganui National Park we were met with an incredible rainbow. We then went back to the town of Wanganui, got some lunch, and then set off for Wellington. Wellington was about a 4 hour drive away and we made it to the capital of New Zealand in time for dinner. We were staying at a YHA and it was well equipped with a good kitchen, and we stayed in a room just for the 6 of us which was great. Wellington is a beautiful city with an incredible harbour and Cook Strait which connects it to the South Island. Approaching Wellington, it definitely felt like we were approaching a US city and it felt way more like a highway than anywhere else in New Zealand (kind of similar to Auckland).
Monday 14 June was our first full day in Wellington and we completely took advantage of it! It was a beautiful day (rare for Wellington during the winter - Wellington is known for wind, rain and cold). But the sun was shining and it was a great day to explore! We took the cable car up to the Botanic Gardens and were rewarded with an incredible view of the city and harbour. Wellington definitely has more of a South Island feel with incredible mountains surounding it. We then explore the Botanic Gardens which was a lot of fun. Then we had lunch up at the lookout and took the cable car back down to the city. Then we walked around the city (which is pretty small and easy to manage) stopping by Cuba St and other cool areas. Wellington just has so much more culture and character than Auckland - it is filled with cool art stuff everywhere! Then it was my friend's birthday so we split off and 3 of us went to get her presents and a cake. We then got ready and went to "The Library" which was a really cool bar attached to "Chow" where we went for dinner. Chow is a asian-tapas place that has really good food and is half-price on Monday. There is a Chow in Auckland that I had been to once before, and it was just as delicious this time.
Tuesday 15 June was kind of rainy so we went to Te Papa. Te Papa is the national museum of New Zealand and is honestly one of the coolest museums I have ever been to in my life! It is all interactive and has such a variety of exhibitions that you can (and we did) literally spend all day there! There were exhibits on the structure of New Zealand, NZ's history, Maori history, animals, volcanoes all with tons of movies and activities. There was one movie which told New Zealander's stories which was really cool. There were also earthquake simulators and even a ride taking you into the center of a volcano! My favorite exhibit was called the "Mixing Room" which was an interactive area that told the stories of the refugees of New Zealand. It was such an interesting exhibit and I could have spent much longer there if the museum wasn't closing! So after staying at Te Papa all day, we then went to thhe Wellington art gallery which was okay. After glancing around, I realized that the sun was about to set and decided to walk along the harbour. The sunset was absolutely beautiful and I got to see the city lights on the hill light up (there are 2 hills surrounding Wellington). It was a great way to end the day.
Wednesday 16 June was another beautiful day in Wellington so we decided to wake up early and make the drive to Upper and Lower Hutt (about a half hour outside of the city). We first went to Upper Hutt and went to the Kaitoke Regional Park. We spent a couple hours just wandering and hiking around and it was so much fun! We saw beautiful sights and incredible trees. Kaitoke is the location of "Rivendell" in Lord of the Rings and we got to see the actual spot that they filmed in. It looks completely different now, but is still a beautiful spot. After having lunch in Kaitoke, we continued on to Lower Hutt. In Lower Hutt some people wanted to shop, but I wanted to hike some more so we split off. I went to Belmont Regional Park and hiked to the Korokoro dam which was really beautiful. There were these incredible mountains filled with trees and it was a really awesome hike. We then met back up and went back to Wellington. That night we went to "Alice" which is an "Alice in Wonderland" themed bar where they serve everything in teapots - it was a really cute place.
Thursday 17 June was yet another beautiful sunny day in Wellington. My friends slept in, but I woke up early and climbed Mt Victoria - a mountain in Wellington. It was a short steep climb to the top, and the views were spectacular! I hung out up there for a while and ate my lunch. From Mt Victoria it shows how close you actually are to Antarctica which is pretty cool. From Mt Victoria I took the Southern Walkway down which was really pretty and ended up on Oriental Parade along the harbour. I then walked away from Wellington and had a great walk along the harbour and the beaches embracing the sunshine. Then I went back to city centre to go Parliament. New Zealand Parliament is in Wellington and they give free tours everyday! So I went on one and it was SO interesting! Parliament itself is beautiful with 3 wings: the main one, the "Beehive" and the library. The library has km of shelf space than they have very impressive archives. Throughout the tour I kept thinking about how much more accessible and open the government is than in the US. They are very focused on direct communication between the people of NZ and the government. In law making they like people to be directly involved so they place ads in local papers about an upcoming law and if you have an input you can send a letter to parliament (for free) with your ideas and can even appear in front of the lawmakers in Wellington to tell them your thoughts (anyone can do this - even me!). It was very interesting. They even have the NZ flag from 9/11 which was really intense for me to see. After the tour we could go into the debating chambers to hear actual MPs (Member of Parliaments) debating over issues. I went and heard them talking about an agricultural issue. It was so interesting and cool to be able to witness the government at work.
Friday 18 June we woke up at 5 am to hit the road towards Napier. After a 4 hour drive (with a beautiful sunrise!) we made it to Napier. Napier is well known as the wine region in New Zealand and for it's awesome art deco. We first walked around the town and admired the art deco and fountains. Then we walked along the water and played on the beach. Then we piled in the car and set off to Mission Estate Winery which is the oldest winery in New Zealand! We had a free tasting there and it was really fun. We then went to a chocolate factory which was very delicious. Then we went back in the car and set out on another 4 hour drive to Gisborne. We stopped along the way to see the beautiful sights which included awesome forests, rivers and beaches. We made it to Gisborne for dinner and stayed at another YHA.
Saturday 19 June some of us woke up early again for the sunrise because Gisborne is the first city in the world to see the sun rise each day!! We got into the car around seven and got to a beautiful beach on Poverty Bay to see the sun rise. The sun rise was different than any I had seen before because the sun seemed to be coming from the side rather than up. It was a beautiful sunrise and so rejuvenating. It was a great way to start the day! We then went back, packed up and went to explore Gisborne. We went to a farmer's market which was great where I got manuka honey brie and manuka honey and walnut ciabatta bread which I had as a delicious lunch! Then we went to Gray's Reserve where we did a bush walk and saw incredible trees and a farm with lots of sheep! From there we drove on to Tauranga, which was about another 4 hours away. Along the way we stopped by more awesome views and the infamous Bay of Plenty beaches.
Sunday 20 June we woke up to a kind of rainy day in Tauranga but decided we still needed to go exploring. Even though it was filled with clouds we decided to hike Mt Maunganui or "the mount" anyways. The hike wasn't that bad and was really beautiful. There were tons of sheep all around! About halfway up it started to clear and we were able to see the scene shift from purely clouds to awesome views right before our eyes! By the time we reached the top we were rewarded with amazing views!! We could see so much from the top! Then we went down and explored the beach as it became a sunny day. There were these awesome rocks off the beach which we explored and saw more incredible views. After lunch we headed back to Auckland.
It was a really amazing trip and I got to see so many great sights! I feel now that I have seen the majority of New Zealand and can honestly say that I love every part of it! Here are the pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/LSOL817/NorthIslandRoadtrip?feat=directlink
This week I don't have much going on besides taking in Auckland and packing up. My family comes on Friday and I am SO excited!!!! Can't wait to see you all soon!
Sending lots of love from the whole North Island!
Monday, June 7, 2010
Gulf Harbour & Fun Farm Stay!
Hi everyone!
Hope all is well and that you are enjoying the warm northern hemisphere weather! Down under, it is definitely becoming winter. The wind is strong, it has been raining a lot and unfortunately the buildings are not at all well insulated so it's been pretty chilly - nothing like a northeastern winter though! Anyways the semester is winding down. My last day at my internship is Friday which I am really sad about, and my exam is on Saturday. Then I am going on a roadtrip around the North Island: Whanganui National Park, Wellington (the capitol of NZ), Napier, Gisborne and Tauranga - so get excited to hear about that adventure in my next post!
Anyways, back to the present. The past few weeks have not been too exciting, just wrapping everything up. However, I did have two big weekend adventures which I will now tell you about!
Two weekends ago a friend and I took our bikes on the ferry to Gulf Harbour! It was about a 50 minute ferry ride and it was a beautiful day out! We got to Gulf Harbour and rode our bikes to Shakespear Regional Park (which is about 5 km). There was a really nice bay (Army Bay) right at the entrance to the park with a cool tree that we played around in. However, upon reaching the gates of Shakespear we found out that the park was CLOSED for pest control! There were tons of signs saying that we couldn't enter due to poison and shootings. Apparently they are re-doing the regional park to make it safe for more birds. After being bummed out for a while, we decided to hop back on our bikes and try to ride to the next regional park. We got directions from a bus driver and we were off! About an hour into our ride we decided to take a break for lunch at a pretty bay. While eating lunch we saw a HUGE RAINBOW! It started right by the bay and went all the way across the water to Rangitoto! Then we hopped back on our bikes and kept riding. After a while longer we decided to ask someone to see if we were going in the right direction still. Apparently we were still quite a while away! So we decided to just go to Big Manly Beach which was right near us. The beach was really beautiful! It had tons of awesome rock formations and cool stuff to look at - I was even able to scratch my name into a wall! We had fun just walking and exploring around there for a couple hours. Then we rode back to the ferry and had a nice ride back. Throughout the course of the day we saw 6 HUGE RAINBOWS though! It seems to be a frequent occurence in Auckland winters: while it rains a lot, there are tons of rainbows to make up for it!!
This past weekend three of my friends and I went to the Drury Fun Farm Stay! Drury is about 30 minutes outside of Auckland. The Fun Farm Stay is basically a bed and breakfast (plus lunch and dinner!) where you can go to a house and play around on their farm! They also provide all transportation which was great! So Sunday morning we got picked up at 11 and were at their house in time for lunch! After putting our stuff away, we relaxed in their family room area and played some cards. Then we had a delicious lunch filled with corn fritters, scones and salads. After lunch it was raining a little so they took us to the Hunua Ranges, which was about a 20 minute drive away. At the Ranges we went for a walk and saw a GIANT waterfall! It was so awesome! Apparently the waterfall is not usually that big, but because of the rain Auckland has been having, it was massive! We walked around a bit to get a cool view from above and then were able to walk right up to the falls! It was really great and I loved it. Then we headed back to the farm and went horseback riding! It was not a huge riding session, just around their farm area, but it was a lot of fun. The horse I rode was named Beevis. Then I got helped one of the guys feed the animals! We gave a grain feed to the horses and haystacks to the sheep and cow (Mooloo). Then we showered up and relaxed for a bit before dinner. Dinner was also really good: we had delicious vegetables, potatoes, kumara, mashed potatoes and an incredible fruit cobbler! After dinner we relaxed and watched two movies: Chocolat and Love Actually. It was really nice to just be in a house!! The next morning we had a great breakfast of fruit and yogurt and cereal. Then we walked the horses down the road to get some grass. The farm that they were eating the grass at has tons of cows right by the fence! So I was able to walk a horse and hang out with cows at the same time - lots of fun! Then we walked the horses back and fed the sheep! We fed the sheep grains straight from our hands which was a lot of fun and I got to pet them. Then we went horseback riding again. After cleaning up our stuff, we expected to go but they gave us lunch again! I had a similar delicious lunch to the day before except I also had rhubarb muffins which were so great!! Then we were driven back to Auckland. It was a really great time!
You may have noticed in my discussion of the farm stay that we were there from Sunday to Monday. This is because we had no school on Monday because they were celebrating the Queen's birthday. Other than being funny that they were celebrating the Queen of ENGLAND's birthday, it was also funny because her birthday is apparently in March - who knows! Either way it was nice to have a day off.
Work at Carlson has been going really well - I just can't believe it's almost over!! Last week the speech language therapist put my name on one of the kid's devices which was really exciting so now she can say my name!!! Today another one of the kids kind of said my name which was incredible! I'm really attached to the kids and think it's going to be really difficult to say goodbye to them.
In other news, today I just said goodbye to my bike. After serving me well for the psat few months, I sold it on TradeMe (NZ's version of ebay and craig's list) and just dropped it off today. The man who bought it is 60 and seems really nice, but I was pretty sad to part with my bike.
I think that's pretty much the update I have for now. As I said, my exam is in a couple days and I have a lot of studying to do before then!
Here are the pictures from gulf harbour and the farm stay. Also included in there are some pictures from Mission Bay! Hope you enjoy: http://picasaweb.google.com/LSOL817/GulfHarbourFunFarmStay?feat=directlink
Sending lots of love from the many NZ sheep!
Hope all is well and that you are enjoying the warm northern hemisphere weather! Down under, it is definitely becoming winter. The wind is strong, it has been raining a lot and unfortunately the buildings are not at all well insulated so it's been pretty chilly - nothing like a northeastern winter though! Anyways the semester is winding down. My last day at my internship is Friday which I am really sad about, and my exam is on Saturday. Then I am going on a roadtrip around the North Island: Whanganui National Park, Wellington (the capitol of NZ), Napier, Gisborne and Tauranga - so get excited to hear about that adventure in my next post!
Anyways, back to the present. The past few weeks have not been too exciting, just wrapping everything up. However, I did have two big weekend adventures which I will now tell you about!
Two weekends ago a friend and I took our bikes on the ferry to Gulf Harbour! It was about a 50 minute ferry ride and it was a beautiful day out! We got to Gulf Harbour and rode our bikes to Shakespear Regional Park (which is about 5 km). There was a really nice bay (Army Bay) right at the entrance to the park with a cool tree that we played around in. However, upon reaching the gates of Shakespear we found out that the park was CLOSED for pest control! There were tons of signs saying that we couldn't enter due to poison and shootings. Apparently they are re-doing the regional park to make it safe for more birds. After being bummed out for a while, we decided to hop back on our bikes and try to ride to the next regional park. We got directions from a bus driver and we were off! About an hour into our ride we decided to take a break for lunch at a pretty bay. While eating lunch we saw a HUGE RAINBOW! It started right by the bay and went all the way across the water to Rangitoto! Then we hopped back on our bikes and kept riding. After a while longer we decided to ask someone to see if we were going in the right direction still. Apparently we were still quite a while away! So we decided to just go to Big Manly Beach which was right near us. The beach was really beautiful! It had tons of awesome rock formations and cool stuff to look at - I was even able to scratch my name into a wall! We had fun just walking and exploring around there for a couple hours. Then we rode back to the ferry and had a nice ride back. Throughout the course of the day we saw 6 HUGE RAINBOWS though! It seems to be a frequent occurence in Auckland winters: while it rains a lot, there are tons of rainbows to make up for it!!
This past weekend three of my friends and I went to the Drury Fun Farm Stay! Drury is about 30 minutes outside of Auckland. The Fun Farm Stay is basically a bed and breakfast (plus lunch and dinner!) where you can go to a house and play around on their farm! They also provide all transportation which was great! So Sunday morning we got picked up at 11 and were at their house in time for lunch! After putting our stuff away, we relaxed in their family room area and played some cards. Then we had a delicious lunch filled with corn fritters, scones and salads. After lunch it was raining a little so they took us to the Hunua Ranges, which was about a 20 minute drive away. At the Ranges we went for a walk and saw a GIANT waterfall! It was so awesome! Apparently the waterfall is not usually that big, but because of the rain Auckland has been having, it was massive! We walked around a bit to get a cool view from above and then were able to walk right up to the falls! It was really great and I loved it. Then we headed back to the farm and went horseback riding! It was not a huge riding session, just around their farm area, but it was a lot of fun. The horse I rode was named Beevis. Then I got helped one of the guys feed the animals! We gave a grain feed to the horses and haystacks to the sheep and cow (Mooloo). Then we showered up and relaxed for a bit before dinner. Dinner was also really good: we had delicious vegetables, potatoes, kumara, mashed potatoes and an incredible fruit cobbler! After dinner we relaxed and watched two movies: Chocolat and Love Actually. It was really nice to just be in a house!! The next morning we had a great breakfast of fruit and yogurt and cereal. Then we walked the horses down the road to get some grass. The farm that they were eating the grass at has tons of cows right by the fence! So I was able to walk a horse and hang out with cows at the same time - lots of fun! Then we walked the horses back and fed the sheep! We fed the sheep grains straight from our hands which was a lot of fun and I got to pet them. Then we went horseback riding again. After cleaning up our stuff, we expected to go but they gave us lunch again! I had a similar delicious lunch to the day before except I also had rhubarb muffins which were so great!! Then we were driven back to Auckland. It was a really great time!
You may have noticed in my discussion of the farm stay that we were there from Sunday to Monday. This is because we had no school on Monday because they were celebrating the Queen's birthday. Other than being funny that they were celebrating the Queen of ENGLAND's birthday, it was also funny because her birthday is apparently in March - who knows! Either way it was nice to have a day off.
Work at Carlson has been going really well - I just can't believe it's almost over!! Last week the speech language therapist put my name on one of the kid's devices which was really exciting so now she can say my name!!! Today another one of the kids kind of said my name which was incredible! I'm really attached to the kids and think it's going to be really difficult to say goodbye to them.
In other news, today I just said goodbye to my bike. After serving me well for the psat few months, I sold it on TradeMe (NZ's version of ebay and craig's list) and just dropped it off today. The man who bought it is 60 and seems really nice, but I was pretty sad to part with my bike.
I think that's pretty much the update I have for now. As I said, my exam is in a couple days and I have a lot of studying to do before then!
Here are the pictures from gulf harbour and the farm stay. Also included in there are some pictures from Mission Bay! Hope you enjoy: http://picasaweb.google.com/LSOL817/GulfHarbourFunFarmStay?feat=directlink
Sending lots of love from the many NZ sheep!
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