Tena Koutou 01/04/2010 Back across the Cook straights on a smaller and older ferry to begin our tour of the North island, It started with a 10hr bus trip to Auckland for one night. The North island is totally different from the South, We now have volcano's rather than snow capped alps, The scenery which is still good but less dramatic, with cows instead of sheep on the rolling plains, Even the accent of the locals is different, its less pronounced. We are sti...

Tena Koutou 16/03/2010 Our short 3hr hop across the Tasman sea bought us to windy Wellington, On the north island of New Zealand, After 2 dog searches, X-rays, and no forwarding ticket documentation questioning they finally allowed us in. A 16 degree drop in temperature greeted us, as a biting wind drove up the Cook straights (What a culture shock, bloody freezing), We put on our warmest clothes even with our rain mac,s over the top, and lent head first into t...