Country Number Two

So Sky Diving was A-MAZING!

I know that some of you have done it so would agree that there is no other feeling that compares to falling from 11,000ft at 200km/hr. Absolutely incredible! I was, surprisingly, not nervous at all. The only time that I felt a bit iffy was the initial evacuation from the plane but then it was just one of the most enjoyable things I've done. Flying over Fiji was a beautiful experience as was when the parachute opened sans-problem. Pete (to whom I was attached) allowed me to steer and just made me feel so comfortable up in the air. We did some spins and landed smoothly. I'm still in awe of the experience and hope to do it again soon. Conor was a good sport, and despite his fear of heights he took it like a man and fell through the air from a radical height. We were both moved by the whole thing. A-MAZING!

It was a relief getting out of money-guzzling Fiji. The Islands were stunning and DEFINITELY worth seeing but the mainland is out to get tourists and you have to watch out for schemers (ie. most people). There is great tension between the Fiji Natives and the Indians so each is telling you to stay away from the other and buy only thier products -- but really you need to stay away from both -- they're both our for your money. You just need to be wise do only what you want to do. If I've learned anything from the Mainland it's to watch your ass and be strict about it.

Our last night in Fiji we went to a local bar with Kevin (our Texan friend from the hostel). He had been there earlier in the night and was cornered by locals whose intention is to get you really drunk and then take you away from the bar and intimidate you into getting your money/rob you. He evaded them and then hooked up with us. Things were fine to go back because the bouncer/security guard at the bar (Freddy) takes care of tourists. He gave us our own table away from the locals and kept an eye on us. There's nothing to worry about when you're in groups but being a sole white guy you're a definite target. We had a great chat and he gave us heaps of information about Thailand. It's nice to find someone else true and down to earth because as we've seen so far, they are few and far between. After having to be escorted out by Freddy, Conor and I were ready to call it a night and say goodbye to the bizarre world that is Fiji and head off to our second country.

Today is our second day in Auckland, NZ and so far I'm impressed. The city is like most cities and offers the same sort of things but is VERY clean. I can touch a handrail and avoid getting the feeling that I should wash my hands immediately. The architechture is reminiscent of europe/UK and everything looks right together -- unlike some buildings in Toronto that you look at and think, "why was that built there, and why is it pink?" (Kelly, I think you know which building I'm refering to). There is tonnes of green space and most things are within walking distance.
Although the city is really nice there are still a few things that we find expensive: Any Outdoor gear (i.e. hiking shoes etc), books, as well as some vegetables. Of course there aren't many manufacturers of outdoor gear around here but why are books so expensive (~$22.00 for a regular paperback)? Even second hand ones?
Conor and I have gotten to comparing the price of Red Peppers to gauge expenses: In Fiji: 18.99/kg; In NZ: 14.99/kg --- Seriously.

We're staying at Albert Park Downtown Backpackers. As the name says, it's downtown, but I think it's a quieter hostel. It's pretty nice but the reception desk doesn't seem to know much about places to go/directions, the place is clean, the showers have good pressure and I couldn't have chosen better roommates -- a musty 65 year old woman, and a guy who lives in Auckland but can't afford housing at the moment and smells like rotting lemons. It's great, it's just too bad we're leaving on Friday. Haha.

It's rainny today so to stay indoors we visited the local aquarium (Kelly Tarlton's) -- pretty neat, got up close and personal with some penguins, stingrays and walked through an overhead aquarium with sharks (but of course, that was no big deal, we already saw them in the wild). Intelligently, the aquarium is underground -- this means that you can't see how big it is from above ground, because if you did you'd realize it was tiny (for an aquarium that costs $25 admission) and look the other way. Still neat. But just neat. We met an American woman at the aquarium that we had first met on the airplane to Auckland. She had rented a car so we hitched a ride to Mission Bay and walked along the beach path for a bit. Unfortunatly the fog didn't really allow us to see the supposedly awesome view of Downtown but it was still a fantastic walk.
We plan to do some trekking tomorrow but I'm really looking forward to getting into the camper van and being amongst some great scenery.

I love you all and hope all is well.
love,
elke

---

---