Entries Tagged 'New Zealand' ↓

So yeah, it’s been pretty much forever since I updated this blog. I’m a bastard, I know. Obviously my new years resolution to update this bad boy regularly has failed. And so has my resolution to get into better shape. I went bunjy jumping in Taupo and they weighed me… and I’ve gained 7 kilos. Probably more by now. That’s fifteen pounds. Eeek. And now I’m back in Auckland, getting ready for Australia on Thursday.

A lot has happened since I last updated this blog.

First, I went to the Cook Islands and had an incredible experience with one of my best friends. So much fun. I don’t even remember New Years. Then I went back to New Zealand and went up to Paihia and met some cool people and travelled around NZ with them on a tour bus. Again so much fun.

Lets see if I can remember some of the highlights:

• Making gingerbread houses with my friend Nicholson
• Christmas Celebrations with my birth-family
• Christmas Celebration with my Mom on farm where Lord of the Rings was filmed
• Seeing a spotted eagle ray, 3 sea turtles, and a white-tipped reef shark while snorkelling in theCook Islands
• Lounging around the beaches on Paihia
• Eating incredible amounts of food
• Applying for 18 Google jobs and not receiving any responses
• Watching a video about the “Gay” Dolphin
• Bunjy Jumpin!!!!
• Watching the Buskers Competition in Christchurch
• Listening to Flight of the Concords
• Playing way too much Monopoly
• Trekking around Abel Tasman
• Drinking way too much in Barrytown
• Sleeping under my friend’s bed in Franz Joseph, and going for a 1 hour turned 3 hours hike with said friend (with no water)
• Jumping into freezing cold glacier water
• Singing Total Eclipse of the Heart in Queenstown
• Checking out Milford Sound
• Doing a three day hike on Stuart Island in one day!!!
• Partying in Dunedin in clubs full of 16 year olds
• Hanging out in Queenstown for a week, going out almost every night
• Meeting up with Emily in Christchurch

I need to figure out what I am going to do with this site. Stay tuned

It’s been raining in New Zealand for the past few days. Well, maybe not the entire country, but certainly where I’ve been.

We left off with my plan, dancing, and meeting my Birth Mum. A lot has happened since then. At the hostel I was staying at I saw a post-it-note with a message advertising a free ride around the country. Yup. A free ride. All I had to do was split gas - 3 ways. A pretty good deal if you ask me, considering bus trips on the north island start at $390! And I’m cheap, so obviously I said yes.

I sent off an email and 3 days latter I was in a car with Stacey (a fellow Canadian), and Hannah (a girl from Germany). The adventure started after we picked up Hannah. When Stacey put the car into reverse it lurched forward a few feet (we were on the hill). And it happened again. Before going into reverse a third time we decided it would be wise to have me stand in front of the car and push it. Two seconds later I jumped out of the way as the car proceeded to crush my arm. It was 2 inches away from the car in front. I have very small arms. Ok I don’t and I’m exaggerating since the car didn’t actually crush me, but it was 2 inches away. Since we couldn’t move the car without hitting the parked hybrid prius, we had to knock on every house on the street asking people to move the car. Unfortunately, the owner didn’t live there. So we had to wait. And wait. Just as we were about to call the AA the owner came. What a good start.

Wow this is really boring. It was certainly more interesting at the time. I think the coolest thing I’ve done so far was go to this “hot water beach”. There are thermal pools underneath the sand and you dig holes and have a little bath. It was incredibly cool (err hot), and a lot of work. I borrowed someone’s shovel and Stacey used a frying pan. Oh yes, it was pouring with rain. Torrential downpour. It’s been raining pretty much since we got here. Except for yesterday, and I took the opportunity to take a surfing lesson. I suck. I’m probably the worst surfer in the world. But Stacey sweet talked the instructor and it was only $40 for 2 hours. $40 New Zealand, so like $30. Pretty reasonable. Oh yes, there was human poo on our campsite at Mount Maunganoui.

I love camping in the rain.

Ok so I have not actually been in New Zealand for a week… but I certainly have not been updating this website. And I feel sort of bad about it.

I don’t think the Choose My Adventure thing is going to work in NZ. Mostly because I do not have any money. I have enough to scrounge an existence, but I need to be cheap. But I thought I’d share with you my plans either way. I’m sure I’ll be able to provide you with the opportunity to have some influence.

1. Stay in the Auckland area until Christmas
2. Meet up with my Mom on Christmas, spend five days traveling with her
3. Fly to the Cook Islands and stay with one of my bestest friends from Victoria… for NEW YEARS! Celebration!
4. On January 7th fly into Auckland at 5:00 AM, and then hop on a bus and start traveling around the North Island
5. On January 23rd I fly from Wellington to Christchurch, and then take a bus to Dunedin to meet with a friend I used to work at the GAP with
6. On the 27th I meet up with one of my bestest friends from Victoria and we’ll rent a van for a month and travel around the South Island, and then make our way up… Eventually…
7. Late February I fly to SYDNEY!

And that’s why the Choose My Adventure thing isn’t going to work. I had to figure out ways to be thrifty.

So what I have been doing these last weeks? Well I messaged random people on FaceBook, befriended one of them, and now have a really good friend in New Zealand. NO, not that kind of “really good friend”. An actual friend who I go on adventures with. And have access to his friends, he he, which is fun. We went to the beach yesterday and had a giant picnic. There were 6 of us, and we bought $120 worth of food! It was amazing, until a swarm of seagulls came and attacked us, stealing our food. Well, the carcasses and bones and molten cheese.

Before that I went out dancing a few nights, got a bank account, applied for an IRD (social insurance) number, went to a meeting with the welfare people (I don’t think that’s going to work out, unfortuantly)… and met my Birth Mother. Yup. I’m adopted.

And I’ve certainly been busy

Hello hello! I am on my way to New Zealand! Yay! Celebration!

Sorry for not updating the site in a few weeks. I was incredibly lazy.

I’m still on the fence about what I want to do with this website - how I can make it better and more interesting to read. I guess I have several long flights to figure that out.

But on to more important matters: I was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man for Halloween. My roommates were the Ghost Busters. Pretty sweet. Twenty days late, yes… but… yeah…

I really need to do something about these boring posts…