Blogs from Raglan, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 9

We departed our comfy tiny cabin and sped to Raglan via Hamilton, arriving in sunshine. Immediately like the look of the place. The hostel is prettily situated on the estuary and has free bikes and kayaks for use. The rooms are located around a sunny quadrangle in which there are hammocks. The couple managing it are very friendly and helpful. After settling in we drove along the coast to the surfing beaches. The surf was not huge so there were only a few surfers. We lazed on the quiet beach for an hour. In the evening sun we strolled from the hostel around the sandy beaches of the estuary.... read more

We took off from Santiago at 10pm on MOnday 19th MArch and when we arrived in Auckland after a 13hr flight it was 3am on Wednesday 21st. A whole day of my life lost somewhere in space. I hope whoever finds it puts it to good use. After spending 13 hrs on a plane, all i wanted to do was sleep. When we arrived at the hostal we planned on staying at, there were no beds available, but the member of staff behind reception allowed us to crash on the sofas in the foyer free of charge. It wasn't ideal, but i was still grateful. I can pretty much sleep on a washing line. HOwever, if the mattress doesn't have the right feel. THe bed isn't 6ft1"1/4. THe lighting perfect and the sheets smelling like ... read more

After changing my ticket a second time to stay in NZ longer, Bradley and I headed up the north island to Raglan, a little community on the west coast right over the beach, to spend 3 days of pure extacy at a REGGAE FESTIVAL!!! YEE HAW!!! Driving up to the festival and finding the best place in the campground, right at the edge of a cliff over looking the ocean, the positive vibe around us was all encompassing. Each day that i speant in New Zealand continually proved to be the best experience thus far....and this was more than true with the Reggae Festival. We found a perfect hole that our back tire fit into, providing the perfect levelness we were in search of for a comfortable sleep in the car. Began making friends with Kiwi's ... read more

Well, I have finally broken free of my lazy spree and gotten to blogging again. Yes yes, I am alive and well and still walking. I am still residing in Raglan at the moment. I came back from the east coast for Soundsplash, a reggae festival held here. It was an awesome festival, with lotsa crazy hippie's and such. Good cheap food as well. In a few days I'll be heading down to the South Island with some friends where I plan to start solo-ing it and see what happens. I'm not really looking forward to hitching everywhere again, but it can narry be helped I might be hooking up with Luke somewhere along the way, which would sweet. Apperently the south is more rugged and not as populated, so that'll be cool. I'll hopefully be ... read more

Left Hahei this morning and headed for Raglan. We are actually staying 10mins outside the town in a forrest lodge which is great. We're in cabins on the hillside. There are lots of activities so spent the afternoon swinging on ropes and zipping down the flying fox. We also went on a forest walk which took an hour and 15min. It was quite jungle like, especially with sounds of exotic birds all around. The hostel made us a lovely dinner in the evening too. I could have stayed longer here as the resort is so nice but not feeling tired from jet lag anymore so are continuing straight on to Rotorua tomorrow.... read more