The welly feeling

Hi everyone,

It is my last day in Wellington before heading back north. The last time I wrote I was in Rotorua I believe. Well since then I have travelled south quite a bit.

Mark and I headed down to Taupo and the rain just didn't stop. We stopped by Huka falls and the crater of the moon site, another eerie geothermal site. Finally, sick of the rain, we made it to Taupo. I met up with Emma Holdgate, another kiwi housemate from my time in Dublin, and we had lunch in a cafe emma works at while Mark went to discover lake Taupo on a cruise (which is in fact a caldera, overdue to erupt as well) and I also bought a new camera to replace my broken one. We then left Emma who was entertaining a Contiki group that night, and we vegged out at our hostel after Japanese for dinner. The first and only night I have watched tv on this trip and it was great. It seemed the whole hostel was holed up in there cos of the rain which made a cosy atmosphere if anything.

The next morning was National Jandals day! However due to the cold we didnt wear our thongs or flip flops or jandals - whatever you want to call them. We were off from Taupo, ready to hike through Tongariro National Park on our way to Feilding. Two out of the 3 volcanoes in this park were used to film Mordor's Mt. Doom in the Lord of the Rings movies. The nearby village Whukapapa (Fa.ka.pa.pa) is a popular ski resort during the winter. We weren't able to hike to the crater of them as we were too early in the summer season, but we did do a 2 hour hike to get some good views and see a waterfall. It was an amazing place, the closest I've been to a volcanoe like that and to mountains that big. A great day so far.

We eventually got into Palmerston North, where we dropped the rental at the airport and then picked up by our mates Ree and Dan. I met Ree and Dan (along with Mark) in Croatia last year - on a boat called Vrutak. They have been living in London for the last 6 years and are now settling back into life in Feilding (NOT spelt wrong), a small town known for dairy farming and who will one day be ruled over by Mayor Dan. haha. We stayed with Dan, Ree and some of their extended family (there were sheep in the backyard! - a true kiwi experience). The first night included beer, whisky and general catching up. Then we got the local tour the next day - centre of town and the clock tower, the cafe/deli owned by Dan's sister Ron, and the wind farm just outside of town. We went out on the town that night, a bit quieter than we wanted but we made our own fun. Up early the next day to drive to Wellington.

We said goodbye to Ree and a sick Dan about midday and went to discover the Te Papa museum on the harbour. And the next day did a tour of Parliament house and the beehive. Then I took the cute red cable car up the hill to the Botanical gardens, while mark discovered the Lord of the Rings wellington. Finally I headed back down to the city for some shopping for dinner and got back to the hostel later for some drinks with new people we met there. I love wellington so far and will stay here 3 nights all up, leaving tomorrow to head back up to Taupo and stay with Emma. The city is much smaller than Auckland, and maybe because of that it has less of a slick feeling. It is the political heart of the country but also the cultural. Lots and lots of cafes (more than New York per capita if the lonely planet is to be believed), gallerys, theatres and a great vibe. And I've just been wandering around seeping that all in today. Mark left for the south island early this morning and I am back on my own.

PS. When you book into hostels they ask you what nationality you are and so far I have had 7 people so far say they thought I was English, not Australian. 7! I am slightly offended and am diligently working on my Steve Irwin twang to combat this nonsense.

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