http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Ashleigh---smash/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Ashleigh smash en-us Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:21:11 +0000 Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:21:11 +0000 On my birthday weekend the city of Hamilton NZ was nice enough to put together a little event to celebrate the big 21. Balloons Over Waikato maybe you have heard of it. twenty five hot air balloons touched down in the field just behind my dorm and it was the sweetest thing. http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Hamilton/blog-267614.html Alex dan Raquel and I made a little trip to Rotorua to go Zorbing and Luging then down to Taupo to Bungy Jump and then all the way down to Gravity Canyon Not much to say here the pictures and video will say it all. http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Taupo/blog-267595.html When I signed up for classes here at Waikato one in partiuclar caught my eye. Adventure Programming said that there was a cumpulsory camping trip. Well I was in The trip ended up being free and it was awesome. We did the normal team bonding activities but then we got to do abseiling repelling caving and I climbed Mount Ngauruhoe and camped at the top. This mountain is 7516 feet high and it http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Tongariro-National-Park/blog-267590.html The first week I was here I bought tickets to Jack Johnson. I love love love his music and the concert just so happened to fall on Easter Sunday so I knew we would have a couple days off to make the trip down to New Plymouth. Our original plan was to drive to Marokupa and stay at the beautiful campsite on the beach that we saw on a flyer at a travel center and then we would go to Tongaririo Na http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/New-Plymouth/blog-267578.html Having grown up in San Diego the zoo is definately in my top three places to visit. Hamilton Zoo is just a ten minute drive from campus and Simon was dying to see the giraffe feeding so Raquel and I figured Hey homework or zoo Zoo of course http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Waikato/Hamilton/blog-267554.html Endless Summer is a 1964 film about surfers searching the coasts for the perfect wave. When I found out that there was footage of this film shot in Manu Bay just west of Raglan I just had to go Come on i had that poster in my room freshman year Since we don't have classes Friday all 8 of us headed out to Raglan for the day to get some sun and check out the black sand beaches. The bus from Hami http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Raglan/blog-267543.html After a rainy weekend at the Mount all of us Americans were determined to get back there and get some sun. Simon a guy who lives across the hall from me invited 8 of us to his beach house in Papamoa for the weekend. Its just south of the mount0 ten minute drive. Come to find out he didnt tell his mom we were coming. When he showed up with 4 americans she was suprised. Then when the rest who ha http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Bay-of-Plenty/Mount-Maunganui/blog-262758.html So University of Waikato was nice enough to take international student to Mount Maunganui apparently one of the nicest peaches in New Zealand. So naturally I paid the 5 dollars to get on the bus and was sooo excited. Then we get there and it was pouring down rain. It was so rainy and nasty that you couldnt even see the top of the mountain Sad day. So instead I went shopping and what did we find http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Bay-of-Plenty/Mount-Maunganui/blog-255649.html Orientation back in the states usually involves all the students going to countless powerpoint presentations teaching them what to expect at their school. Well we did have two very boring sessions just like that but the University's Student Union also puts on O Week which is basically the entire week filled with all types of activities on campus free concerts and comedy nights and most popula http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Waikato/Hamilton/blog-253530.html Here are some pictures from my trip to Rotorua. Sorry for doing it seperate from the blog I am still figuring out this whole thingAsh http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Rotorua/blog-252811.html Feb 16th After a 13 hour flight the only thing I wanted to do was find anything that resembled a bed and sleep That was not going to haoppen though. The group flight to New Zealand left LAX at 10 45 a good hour plus late. I can't complain to much. They served dinner... with wine. Yeah for international waters We each had little tv screens on the back of the headrests in front of us so i attemp http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/New-Zealand/North-Island/Rotorua/blog-252809.html