Blogs from North Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 1195

Hey everyone! Elinor here doing a guest blog with a gun to my head... Apologies that most of you probably only know me as the nutter who jumped from a plane but Gemma and Dave have turned into rednecks since leaving Wellington so you don't want to mess with them. It all started in Wanganui, on our way up the Wild West Coast of North Island. The towns have got quieter and there has been a bit more contact with the yocals. Wanganui was... well what can I say? Ummm very pretty. We didn't do a massive amount there as the steam boat that does river trips only does Sat & Sun at this time of year - we didn't read those damn travel books properly again! We did however get to test out the acoustics ... read more

After another cool night on the beach at Napier, we decided to head off back to Wellington to catch our Ferry. Found an amazing lodge 5 mins from the ferry terminal where we were able to eat in the main restaurant! Very nice food and excellent facilities - highly recommended!... read more

Hi there all Well it's Friday morning for us, now recovered from the jet lag. Both Helena and I have been having some very weird moments, such as waking up in the middle of the night (lunch time in the UK) even though not hungry, trying not to fall asleep during the day and feeling very much like drunks due to tiredness! Luckily that is all past now and our body clocks have adjusted to Kiwi time! The hostel is in a camden-town-esque area with a high punk and street culture scene. Auckland city central is about 2miles square, surrounded by acres of suburbs. It has the feel of most Ports, being slightly rough around the edges but very alive and vibrant. Colonial Architecture meets American fast food and Asian skyscrapers is the best description I ... read more

Good evening all! We have arrived in New Zealand, Auckland! The weather is spring like, slightly damp in the air but comfortable (not cold!) The flight was crazy, left the UK at 4.00pm Sunday, arrived here Tuesday at 5.15am! Crossing time zones all over the place, we were finger-printed in LA, along with everyone else; while the plane was refuelled. However we did get free Tea and snacks. The trip added up like this: 10.00am leave sunny Ashford, 4.00pm leave UK = 10hr flight. 2hr stop over in LA. 15 hr flight to Auckland. 2hr bus ride on shuttle bus to hostel (crazy taxi driver!), due to heavy traffic in the city. We have both decided that we wouldn't want to stop over for a night in LA, as it would have made it far longer, ... read more

On the advice of a local resident who was visiting Westport, they recommended that we should visit Hawkes Bay and the East Cost of the North Island rather than the West - and I think it's safe to say that we're glad that we did! Spent the day visiting the National Aquarium of New Zealand which was a really lovely place, sharks, rays and even a huge turtle! We were lucky enough to get there for feeding time and see the diver hand feeding the fish in the Oceanic Tank. We then went to Marine Land which was a whole different story, really sad and depressing although they rescue and help to mend poorly sea creatures - seals, penguins etc; the whole place had an air of sadness with lovely dolphins swimming around their tank and ... read more