New Zealand or Aotearoa - Land of the Long White Cloud by Laura_Foster

After spending a few months in Australia the winter weather in New Zealand came as a shock to the system. It didn't help matters that the first few days I was suffering from very bad flu (the girls in my dorm made me really paranoid it was swine flu, but the doctor assured me it was just regular flu!)
 
My ideal way of getting round NZ would have been to hire a campervan and travel around at my own pace, but this wasn't really an option travelling by myself and it woud be very cold in a camper as it was just coming into winter. So I booked on a hop on hop off bus called Magic Bus, which has been really good for meeting people.
 
Most of my time in Auckland I spent tucked up in bed. But I did manage to go and see some sights on a free city tour. I went up the Sky Tower, which at 328 metres, is the tallest man-made structure in New Zealand and offers breathtaking views for up to 80 kilometres in every direction. The lift up to the first observation deck at 186m took a stomach lurching 40 seconds. the lift had a glass panel in the floor so you could see the lift shaft beneath your feet. I'm not keen on heights at all and as we zoomed up we saw sections of the skyline flash past us which made me feel queasy! In the sky deck which was at 220m there were 38mm thick panels of glass floor, which I avoided stepping on. Auckland is home to one third of the national population and has a massive urban sprawl. On the way back down in the lift I stood in the corner and closed my eyes! Later on we walked across Auckland Bridge, which I would never have chose to do but it was free! We then headed up to Mount Eden which is the city's tallest cone at 196m and the views from there were impressive too.

Paihia was the first place that I visited after Auckland and it didn't disappoint. From Paihia I visited Cape Reinga which is the most easily accessible northerly point of NZ. The area is very special to Maori as they believe the spirits of the dead travel north from throughout the land. There is a rocky point on the headland which is called Te Reinga which is where the spirits enter the underworld. Clinging to the rock is an ancient Kahika tree named Te Aroha. The spirits descend to the water on steps formed from the tree's roots and they continue on their journey to Hawaiki which is the spiritual homeland of the Maori. Cape Reinga is also an impressive place for another reason as it is the meeting point of two oceans - the Pacific and Tasman, the water was turbulent and there were lots of white waves where the oceans met. The lighthouse at the edge of the land was very picuresque. 
 
Back in Paihia I went on a boat trip around the Bay of Islands which were stunning. We cruised around some of the 144 islands and had the chance to explore Urupukapuka Island, where there were some gorgeous views of secluded bays from the lookout. We also sailed out to Hole in the Rock or Motukokako which stands at 148m, which is an impressive rock with a hole carved out by the waves which is big enough for the boats to pass through in calm weather. Unfortunately we didn't see any dolphins on the trip which was a shame. 
 
I also went to the Whitangi treaty grounds where I learnt more about the signing of the treaty in 1840. I saw what would be the first of many meeting houses called te Whare Runanga which had intricately carved interior which represents some of the north and south island Maori groups.There was a very impressive war canoe or waka called Ngatokimatawhaorua and is 35m in length which was launched as part of the 1940 celebrations of the signing of the treaty.
 
On my way back to Auckland I decided to stop off near Opononi, which in 1955-56 was home to a friendly dolphin the locals imaginatively named Opo. We went to the info centre and watched a video about the doplhin from the 50s. As many as 2000 people came to see the dolphin, who frolicked in the shallows with curious tourists and locals.
 
In the evening I went on a twilight tour of the nearby Waipoa forest with a Maori guide, which is one of the most memorable things I've done in NZ. The forest is home to Tane Mahuta - Lord of the Forest which is the tallest Kauri in the world and Te Matua Ngahare - God of the Forest which is the oldest Kauri in the world. As we approached the trees my guide Taafety asked me to turn off my torch as he said mahi in Maori, which is a way of acknowledging the trees. The mahi sounded alot like singing and sent a chill down my spine! Standing at the base of the trees was truly humbling and seeing the stars twinkling though the branches was a really special experience. I was also lucky enough to hear the birdcall of the kiwi.

In Waitomo I went black water rafting which involved donning a thick wet suit and white wellies and drifting through a cave on a rubber ring. It got pretty scary in parts as it was pitch black and we had to jump off a waterfall backwards! I also visited the Glowworm cave where there were around 5000 glowworms on the roof of the cave, which looked like the Milky Way. The Ruakuri cave was full of spectacular grottos with stalactites, stalagmites and a lot of very thin straws (thin stalactites).
 
The upside of the geothermal activity in Rotorua was the bubbling mud, exploding geysers and hot pools. The downside was the strong smell of eggs that made your clohes reak! I really enjoyed soaking in several hot pools at the Poleynesian spa which overlooked the lake. I went to the Tamaki warrior cultural night too which is a re-make of a traditional Maori village where the 'villagers' talk about the traditional way of life and arts such as weaving and moko (tattoos). We also enjoyed an all you can eat hangi, which is a meal which is cooked underground with hot rocks. We also watched a show which involved singing, a traditional womens dance with poi (balls on string) and the Haka!  

There were lots of cafes and bars to explore in the capital Wellington and Te Papa, the national museum was so big I visited it twice! The Colossal Squid on display was caught on a long line in Antarctica and was preserved and displayed at the musuem. It is a massive 4.2m in length!

Once I reached the south island it wasn't long before I was partaking in some divine Sauvignon Blanc in the Marlborough region on a wine tour.
 
In Blenheim I stayed with friends who I met in Australia who are currently working hard on the vineyards in the wet and the cold. While I was there I went to the local farmers market and partook in some more wine, naturally!
 
While I was in Nelson I visited the Abel Tasman National Park nearby. I started my day by sailing around the bays and inlets on a catamaran, which was beautiful. We spotted some NZ fur seals on the rocks on one of the islands and also saw George the dolphin who was in his usual playful mood and followed the boat into the shallow waters. After the boat trip we walked a section of the track and saw some beautiful small secluded beaches and had some great views of the coastline.
 
Another activity which was very memorable was the Franz Josef glacier trek. Once we put on the big black boots and crampons we hiked up the the first section of the glacier which was very steep. It was easy to believe that Franz Josef is the steepest commercially guided glacier in the world! Once on the ice we climbed up stairs which our guide carved for us with a pick axe, climbed through tight crevices and holes in the ice and into ice caves.
 
I spent a while in Queenstown, which is renowned as the party town of NZ, its also very pretty place too which is built around Lake Wakatipu and the surrounding mountains are covered in snow. The day I decided to go skiing on Coronet Peak it snowed which made some great powder (according to my ski instructor!) I also went to the Winter festival, where a lot of mulled wine and Fergburgers were consumed. I should explain about Fergburger - its one burger place which Queenstown institution and I've never eaten a tastier burger! FACT. There were lots of events on over the festival including mountain bikes on snow, the opening night fireworks and the Mardi Gras parade. The Birdman competition was my favourite, which involved people dressing up in silly outfits and jumping into the freezing cold lake!

The architecture in Dunedin really reminded me of home, this is because in the 1840s the city became home to many Scottish immigrants who raised many of the city's Victorian buildings. I visted the Cadbury factory in Dunedin and got to see chocolate being made. it wasn't as good as the original tour in Birmingham though! The chocolate waterfall at the end of the tour was very impressive though.

While in Dunedin I also visited the Otago Peninsula with the Elm wildlife tour. I was really lucky to see a Royal Albatross in flight at the Taiaroa Head breeding colony, which is the only colony in the world which is situated on the mainland. The Royal albatross is the largest of the albatross and can have a wingspan up to 3.3m. I also saw around four chicks which looked quite small from a distance but when the rangers lifted them up to be weighed you could see how enormous the chick was in their arms! We also went onto a farm near a beach where we saw a lot of very cute fur seal pups who were playing in the shallow rock pools. On another beach we watched the endemic yellow eyed penguins come ashore after a day of feeding. They slept under vegetation over the top of a steep hill and they got home by hopping up the hill! We also saw two male hooker sealions on the beach, the older male looked quite content rolling around in the sand but we must have got too close when taking photos of the beast becuase it started to charge at us! So in one day I saw the largest albatross in the world and sealions and penguins which are endemic only to NZ. 
 
In Christchurch I rode the old tram aorund the city, visited the impressive cathedral and oogled at lots of arty stuff at the Arts Centre which is set in old Univeristy of Canterbury buildings.
 
I was really excited that I got a chance to go whale watching in Kaikoura as it often gets cancelled because of the weather. We saw seven sperm whales near the Kaikoura Canyon, which is an area of deep water which lies just offshore. The whales come up to the surface for around 20 minutes to re-oxygenate their blood before they dive down again to feed.  
  
In Napier I went on the art deco tour of the town with an eccentric guide. The town was rebuilt in the 1930s following a massive earthquake which levelled the main part of the city and left many dead. The sea floor rose a staggering 7 feet and the town planners bravely decided to use the new land when the city was rebuilt. A lot of the buildings reflec the time in which they were built and have art deco features such as ziggarats, suns, speedlines and Maori inspired designs.
 
I've had an amazing time in NZ and now I'm off to Fiji then the Cook Islands for some much needed sun!