I'm going where the sun keeps shining...

As we set off in our campervan there were a few grains of doubt in my mind. A whole month sleeping, living and driving in just a small vehicle with a man who not only can't drive, but refuses to map read. But maybe it was the unbelievably beautiful scenary, the Kiwi relaxed attitude to life or the fact that Luke learnt to navigate (I promised not to shout if he got it wrong) but travelling round the North island was one of the most laid back and relaxed couple of weeks of our trip.

First stop was the Waipoua Kauri Forest. We spent the first night of many in a New Zealand Department of Conservation campsite (DOC), which are basic campsites which cost little to nothing and are alway situated in the most amazing locations. This one is on the edge of the beautiful Trounson Kauri Park. This whole area is home to New Zealands most famous bird the Kiwi. Sadly, due to the fact that Kiwis are shy, nocturnal and endangered Luke and I didn't see any of New Zealands most famous birds,but  we were however amazed by the beautiful Kauri trees. I know, I know - how exciting can trees be? Very/ They are literally enourmous, completely stright and incredibly old -living for thousands of years, at one point they covered large parts of New Zealand. Sadly as they also provide some of the best timber in the world many were cut down following the first settlers, and as they take thousands of years to grow are difficult to replace.

On day two we reached our most northerly point of Opononi, and saw our first beautiful coastline -something that would be very much a theme of our time in New Zealand. We then travelled east to the Bay of Islands. The Bay of islands has important historical significance for New Zealand. It's the place where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed between the Mauri's and representatives of the British crown establishing the first Governer in New Zealand. It is still generall regarded as ther founding document of the New Zealand nation. It is also the basis around much of the land disputes between Mauri groups and the government. There is still much controversy over the treaty as it was translated wrongly -so the Mauri version was different to the English, so they appear to have fundamentally different meanings - a mistake anyone could've made. You can go and visit the place where the treaty was signed, see the exact spot, see the house where General Hobson lived and a meeting house built where the Mauri chiefs met. There is also a little museum where you can read all about how it happened and who was involved. There is also a video shown every the hour explaining how it happened and who was involved, with a very real reinactment. And finally if thats not enough we got a free booklet and DVD explaining how it happened and who was involved. Well when you’ve got an interesting story to tell, why not tell it over, and over and well, over again. And anyone who hasn’t had enough of the Waitanghi treaty by now is in for a treat. After they signed the treaty (did I mention they signed a treaty?), the treaty went on tour and was signed by different Mauri tribes across New Zealand, all of which you can visit for free.

After being treatied out we had our first fight over the map, got lost and ended up in one of those overpriced family holiday campsite for a night, where a bird tried to steel our dinner. But this was all but forgotten by the time we pulled into a DOC campsite, for our final night in Northlands on the most beautiful and seemingly abandoned beach, apparently a popular nudist resort. We avoided the nudist part of the beach in a true British style were delighted to sunbathe in clothes for a few glorious sunny hours.

Our next stop was the charming if very touristy Rotorua. Rotorua is famous for its geysers, which spout steam into the air –and smell of sulphur, caused by constant geo thermal activity underground. We spent a fantastic night at some natural thermal baths just outside Rotorua –which was ridiculously cheap, in a beautiful location and also a campsite. We didn’t spend very long in Rotorua itself. I think we started to see that New Zealand isn’t about the towns -which (with some exceptions) can be relatively uninteresting and modern - instead it’s all about the stunningly perfect countryside and coasts.

From Rotarua we headed North to the Bay of Plenty, shocking as it may seem here we hit more fantastically magical coastline. And so it was we spent a night by another gorgeous beach encircled on the other side by wetlands lined with reeds. We made a quick stop in the small charming, (if not modern and slightly boring) Whakatane - where there was once a signing of the treaty of Waitangi -before heading along the cost to the East Cape. Before the East Cape we made two significant stops. One for probably the best fish and chip meal in the southern hemisphere, at a van selling fresh oysters at the side of the road. The second, to a bonkers supermarket in the middle of nowhere. It’s unusual that I feel overdressed in flip flops and shorts I've been wearing for a week, but this was a world where people don't wear shoes and there had recently been a fundraiser involving pig wrestling. Luke tried to subtly warn me about the shoplifter lingering behind me in the queue, which I pointed out, was actually the store manager. If you thought Auckland was laid back the East coast is horizontal.

None of these strange and insignificant goings on however, can prepare for the awesome and magnificent East Cape magic. This is the coast line of all coast lines, the vistas of all vistas and beach after abandoned beach of crashing waves, broken driftwood and jawdropping cliffs. All topped off with clean, gorgeous sand, a bit of sun and not another car or campervan for miles and miles. If you are ever in New Zealand it really is not to be missed!

Keep warm until next time,

Luke and Louise

Posted by Louise

Islands in the Stream

After a dateline crossing mix up and some delays, Luke and I arrived into Aukland airport, dazed, confused -and I imagine looking a little worse for wear. We were delighted to arrive at the luxury and comfort provided at the house of the lovely Jen.

Arriving in New Zealand instantly resulted in a feeling of confusion. Having spent the last seven months travelling round distant and foreign lands, it was quite crazy to arrive in the most distant of all lands -in fact, the furtherest I've ever been from home - and feel like you are back into familiarity. Brand names like home; speaking English like home; TV shows like home; cars stopping at pedestrian crossings like home... and yet it's not home! This confusion resulted in me speaking in Spanish to a baffled imigration officer and Luke baffling car drivers with his strange pedestrian ways.

After 12 hours on a plane that appeared to be held together in places by black tape and string (after 7 hours in Buenos Aires airport waiting for the delayed said-plane and 22 hours on a bus from Patagonia) we were hoping for a pretty laid back and relaing time in Aukland. And in what better city to relax than this laid back metropolis? Aucklanders (and quite fankly Kiwis in general) are happy, friendly and so laid back they are barely standing. Walking through the financial district and high street in the city centre, I - being from London - expected to find people dashing around in suits, looking serious and slightly agitated, with a look that imediately reads "get out of my way, I'm rushing to do something very important."  Instead you find people in shorts and flip flops, dawdling along without a care in the world.

Auckland isn't packed with touristy things to do, but is lovely to wander around. Drenched in sunshine and surrounded by sea it's an incredibly scenic city, complete with two harbours. Sitting as it does inside a ring of volcanoes it is also surrounded by majestic volcanic hills and islands.

A great introduction to New Zealand and all things Kiwi is the Auckland Museum. The highly aclaimed display on Maori artifacts and culture are brilliant, and give a newcomer to New Zealand a good overview of Maori life. There are also some really informative history sections covering New Zealand's history -both white and Maori. Unusual for me to say, but more fascinating still is the natural history sections which explains how and why New Zealand has such unique wildlife, and illustartes evocatively New Zealand's earthquakes and volcanoes. The museum itself is in a beautiful park and the walk from there to the skyscrapers is enjoyable.

Auckland is New Zealand's biggest and most vibrant and mutlicultural city. Ok its not New York or London or even Mebourne, but then it doesn't pretend to be. It's a great place for eating and drinking -I imagine it would be even better if you weren't on a tight backpacker budget. Due to its proximity to Asia it does have a prolifertion of good and cheap Thai, Vietnamese, Malayasian and other Asian food. Aukland, like the rest of New Zealand, also has great coffee and an array of great coffee shops. We stayed in Ponsonby which has a mouth-watering array of of cafes, bakeries and restaurants as well as a selection of beautiful, typically New Zealand, wooden houses.

The best thing about Auckland is its position as a vibrant city in touching distance of countryside, beaches and beautiful islands. Its good for the city lovers and outdoorsy types in one.

A must do in Auckland is to take a ferry either over to Davenport or to one of the many surrounding islands. Thanks to our lovely Kiwi host Jen we had a great day out on one of the less touristy and clearly underated islands (Tiritiri Matangi Island) with Jen, Richard and Nathan. Not only was Nathan lovely, he had a fantastic knowledge of native birds and a good eye for potting them -something Luke knew little to nothing about.

New Zealand has no native mammals and before the arrival of humans was a land of birds. It really was like the land that time forgot, with a variety of unique birds -many of which were  flightless -the largest of which was the giant moas which were three and a half metres tall. Sadly, like other native birds moas are now extinct, due to hunting, destruction of habitats and the introduction of unnatural predators, like dogs, rats and possums to New Zealands. Many more of New Zealand's birds have become endangered for the same reasons including the famous kiwis. Being two remote islands, New Zealand has a very delicate and unique eco system which can be easily damaged by the introduction, not only of predators but even ants, fruit or soil -New Zealand has a constant battle to protect its natural habitats and its farming industry -hence its strict custom and excise on the importing of foods or soil.

Tiritiri Matangi island is a protected reserve which has only native trees and birds -no dogs, rats or even ants are allowed to travel to the island and visitors are asked to ensure their shoes and clothing is clean. As a result this tiny island has birds  and wildlife you don't see anywhere else.

We had a great day on the island, enjoyed a picnic down on the beach, and topped the day off with a kiwi beer (as in a beer made in New Zealand -not with the fruit or the bird) on the quays looking out at the harbour. Could it get any better? How about a great Thai meal, New Zealand wine and fabulous Italian ice cream and tea back and Nathan and Deborah's.

A big thank you to Jen, Nathan, Deborah and Richard for a perfect Aukland day!

And what these four all have in common with other Kiwis we met later on our journey is their enthusiasim for New Zealand and all it has to offer. The really love their country and were bubbling with good ideas for a great road trip.

So having introduced us to the food, flora and fauna of New Zealand, as well as the very lovely Kiwi film Boy, Jen took us to pick up our spaceship campervan -a converted people carrier, loaded up with a DVD player, a fridge, cooking facilities and a very comfy bed.

And from there we headed North...



Until next time, stay warm!

Luke and Louise

Posted by Louise