Kia Ora and welcome from beautiful New Zealand. Arriving into Auckland, North island a fortnight ago, Lee had thankfully pre-booked our first nights accommodation in a motel, before we picked up our new home and wheels for our travels around New Zealand. Having come accustomed to relative comfort and luxury for the previous 3 weeks whilst we stayed at Ingrid's house in Sydney, we were mentally preparing ourselves for life in a campervan once again. The next morning we were up early and full of anticipation to be picking up our 'Jucy Crib', and on inspection I was quite upset to discover just how small the 'van' is. It's basically a converted people carrier with the tiniest amount of storage space, no fridge and just 1 gas ring - basically a complete downgrade from our luxury Battlebus. It's taken some time adjusting and re-thinking of habits and routines, but slowly we are learning to cope with life in the 'Bogey Box' (it's bright green and the size of a matchbox).

We deliberately left Auckland once we were mobile and decided to head up towards the north of the North Island before coming back down and then heading over to the South Island. Admitedly we came over to NZ not having done our homework and hadn't even devised a route plan. When we were in Australia we planned ahead with the use of our trusted Rough Guide and made the rest of it up on the hop through taking advice from fellow campers, and it all seemed to flow perfectly. On our second day here we suddenly realised we needed some sort of plan/route to get the most out of the place, so a quick nip into town to purchase a Lonely Planet guide book and heads down for the rest of the day and we had the start of a basic itenerary.

It came as a bit of a culture shock when we started looking at maps and guide books and realising the similarity in the names of many of the places over here, that coupled with the fact that nearly all of the place names are pronounced differently to how they are spelled.

The first day and night in the Bogey Box we booked ourselves into a campsite in a place called Orewa which is a coastal town on the east coast. After much re-arrangement of the van, we decided to investigate the beach and were quite suprised at how different it was from the beaches in Australia. For a start it was surrounded by great, green, rolling hills and lush mountains and had a very rugged appearance, and secondly the actual sand was a lot more gritty and digestive biscuit coloured. We've since discovered this to be the case with most of the beaches over here and have realised that it is completely unreasonable to compare the 2 countries. Its also obvious to point out the differences in the weather patterns. In 2 weeks we have come to realise that most days seem to follow a similar pattern in the weather - i.e. wake up to thick cloud and by mid morning it is then blue and bright sunshine. By lunchtime the clouds have turned thick grey again and are ready to burst into torrential rain, which usuallly comes and lasts anything from 20 minutes to a couple of hours. This is then followed by more sun, then rain, and it is then 50/50 whether it clears up before dusk or remains raining for the rest of the evening. One thing we have noticed in particular over here is the alarming intensity of the UV. We knew the ozone layer over NZ was practically non-existant, but we didn't realise just how much you can feel it. We've been slapping on the factor 30+ everyday, but even so you can feel your skin burning. Even though the temperature may be 23 degrees, it can feel like it is 35 degrees on your skin.

Back to our actual travels so far. From Orewa we headed north to a large town called Whangerai, pronounced 'Fong-ger-rye', where we based ourselves for about 4 nights. We had our first tramping session (NZ term for hiking/walking) up to the sumit of Mount Parahaki, where we were afforded fantastic all round views of the town and surrounding mountains and lakes and sea. On our return to the bottom we decided to sit by the river and take in the beauty and serenity of the spot. As we sat there taking it all in, I was rudely stung by a wasp in a completely unprovoked attack, and so I would like to add that this confirms my theory that those little pesky devil insects, will infact sting you just for the fun of it!

The rest of our time in Whangerai was spent walking to the beautiful Whangerai Falls, and a trip to the nearby Abbey Caves, but unfortunately all 3 caves there were either closed or inaccesible. We did however discover a rock forest just off the footpath to the caves which was like taking a step into the set of Lord Of The Rings with all of the strage and eerie green rock formations. Those caves being closed spurred us into deciding to go in search of some more caves the following day, so we decided to head south a bit for Waipu to explore the caves for free at our own leisure. It seemed it was the most unusual setting to get to the caves. We parked the van next to the beautiful grassy meadow, nestled in between a load of scenic, rolling hills, dotted with sheep and cattle. A short hike through some fields and we were soon at the entrance. It was a bit daunting to enter at first as we were the only ones around and we were a fair distance from civilisation, but we had gone prepared with our walking shoes and torches so decided to take the plunge. It was really dark looking inside and we could see water on the ground around many of the rocks, but I was aware of a patch of light coming from around the corner and felt re-assured to think there must be another entry/exit point there. We clambered over the rocks in the opposite direction first to avoid wading into the water and soon realised it was a dead end. This meant we had to venture through the water to the rocks on the other side so we could then get round that corner towards the other exit. Luckily the water only came up just above our shoes so we didn't get too wet, but we were then absolutely gobsmacked to look up towards where the light appeared to be coming from to discover the light was infact being created by hundreds of thousands of tiny glo-worms. We turned our torches off and stood in awe gazing up at the amazing luminous green glow being produced, and seeing the tiny threads of silk hanging around them all. We left the caves on a high at our discovery, feeling all the more smug that we were able to discover the cave on our own rather than on one of the many guided glo-worm cave tours on offer in NZ. That said we will probably more than likely join a guided tour of the better known Waitomo Caves when we arrive there, but we are already looking at alternative ways of exploring them when the time comes.

Back on the road, we passed through a small town called Kawakawa to visit (& use) the famous Hundertwasser Toilets. Sounds a bit crazy but they really are something to write home about! They were designed by an Austrian Artist/Architect and are the most photographed loo's in the world for the unusual, yet artistic style - see blog photo's. We later arrived that afternoon at the lovely town of Kerikeri where we then based ourselves for the next few days. We visited the Stone Store which is NZ's first stone building and steeped in both European and Maori history, and is set in the prettiest basin area of the river, with picture postcard perfect scenery all around. We had a guided tour of the house which included the history of the house and the settlement of the first Missionaries in the former Maori inhabited site a couple of centuries ago. The tour was interesting and ignited our desire to learn more about Maori culture as it is so heavily intertwined with everyday life in everything here in NZ.

The next day we drove to Paihia which is the gateway town on the coast for boat trips out around the Bay of Islands. We decided to opt for an overnight boat trip on a converted car ferry that now operates as a houseboat, and runs trips out to some of the 144 islands over a day and a half. We arrived at the wharf just before 5pm to join the trip, not sure what to expect from the description of activities on the leaflet, but once onboard were pleased to realise that a whole host of fun and activities were on the agenda in between taking in some actual sight seeing of the islands, and the huge feast that had been prepared for that night's welcome dinner.

There were about 30 of us on the trip and we were soon being pitched against each other, taking potshots with a rifle and trying to hit the floating plastic duck, bobbing along at the rear of the boat. This was then followed by a session of long line fishing, which was soon interupted by a school of dolphins swimming right up to our boat and alongside it. Some of them came so close you could almost reach out and touch them which was absolutely awesome. It seemed that everyone on the boat bar Lee and I caught a fish at some point, although they were all deemed to small and thrown back into the water. I did however catch 2 lumps of coral - whoops! After dinner those us of who wanted to were hopping into kayaks and paddling out into the pitch black to a small bay area where there is phospherescence in the water. Phospherescence is a type of algae that lives in the water and glows bright bluey-green when it is either stimulated by your fingers rippling the water, or the movement of your paddle through the water. The stars were so bright that night and Lee and I even saw a satelite passing up above over us.

The next day we dropped anchor by a beautiful island (called Robertson and Makatu island if I remember correctly). We all climbed up to the lookout point on top of the big hill and were treated to some fabulous 360 degree views of some of the surrounding islands dotted in the water. When we glanced down to the nearby crystal clear, aqua blue lagoon that was going to be used for our group to snorkel, I decided it was time to confront my fear of snorkelling and seize the opportunity to try it again in such clear and shallow water. After a few brief panicky attempts to breath through the tube, I soon had the hang of it and was in fact dragging Lee further and further into the centre of the lagoon to explore more. Unfortunately for us, we only saw 2 fish, although I have to say they were whoppers. I'm pleased to say that I have now conquered my fear and am now looking forward to snorkelling again. Once back on the boat, some of the crew guys gave us a demonstration on how to kill, gut and prepare one of the fish that a fellow passenger had earlier caught, and the same too with some of the bucket full of Sea Urchins and giant Mussles they had dived down and caught. It was, as you can imagine, fairly graffic and gruesome watching the fish going from slipping all around in the small holding tank, to still twitching and flapping even after it had had half of its side removed. It might seem horrific, even morbid an idea to want to watch such an act, but it really was fascinating to see how a fish ends up when we buy it already prepared from the supermarket. The fish was soon cut up into little chunks and being handed back to us all on a big plate with little dollops of wasabi sauce (firey hot Japanese horseradish) and a couple of bowls of soy sauce. We all squirmed at the thought, but were soon dipping our sushimi style, raw fish into the wasabi and soy and then throwing them into our mouths. Lee and I made the mistake of covering ours with too much wasabi, thinking it would disguise the taste of the raw fish, but consequently ended up with our mouths (and sinus's) feeling like someone had placed a red hot poker in them, and so somewhat deflected from the taste and sensation of the fish. I did have a small bit left in my mouth that hadn't been tainted by the devil paste and was quite suprised and pleased to discover that the actual raw fish tasted really fresh and not fishy as you might have expected. It was soon time for the Sea Urchins to meet a similar fate and we again watched in fascination as they went from being round, orange sized prickly balls, to having a knife plunged into the top of them and being halved on the table before us. The guts were once again removed to make way for the prized ball of slime. The yellow, squidy roe, which is covered in slimy mucus is said to be a delicacy in Japan, and a kilo of these balls of slimey filth can sell for up to $600. Not wanting to miss a once in a lifetime opportunity, I let my head rule my stomach and was rubbing the slime off against the back of my hand (as had been shown) and then forced the sludge into my mouth, trying to take as few chews as possible. It was soon Lee's turn and amazingly he said he found this to be far more palatable than the raw fish. The salty, gritty, winkle like juice that oozed from it was nearly enough to make me gag, but somehow Lee didn't struggle with this as much as the first. Next up was the giant mussle. Similar again although not gruesome to watch at all, and being that I often choose mussles if they appear on a menu I knew wouldn't struggle with this one to much. The mussle was cut up into small slithers and we were each handed a piece to chew on. Mine went down fine, whereas Lee really was almost sick on his. Most of the activities we did on the boat trip were first's for Lee and I so it made it even more memorable and enjoyable. A few hours later, we were back on dry land and buzzing from such a fantastic trip and the people we had met on it. We even had an impromtu party back in the Bogey Box the night after with Zoe and Michelle, a couple of great girls we met on the trip. Ladies, you were hilarious and we hope to catch up with you again back in the UK sometime!

From Kerikeri the following day, we drove to Cape Reinga which is right on the northern tip of the North Island. A walk out along the windy coastal footpath leads down to the picturesque Cape Reinga Lighthouse and lookout point. It's also the place where on a fine day you can see the actual merging line in the water of where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. There really is a distinct difference between the colours and wave patterns in each body of water and it is quite hypnotic watching a wave coming from the Pacific Ocean on the right hand side, meet the forward current of the Tasman Sea on the left hand side, and see the wave turn 45 degrees and before finally breaking against the opposite shore.

The next night we headed for Waitangi, the town in which the famous Waitangi Treaty was signed by both Maori leader and British royal representative, in a declaration that was the basis of much confusion and anger over its different translation and interpretation over land 'ownership' of NZ. We headed for the Treaty House for the much talked about Maori Cultural North Night Show, which for us was a great introduction to the history of Maori people and their culture, and the history of European and British settlement. We were soon being greeted by the fearsome looking Maori warriers performing the famous Haka welcome dance. The dance includes much shouting and stomping and the showing of tounges that you may be familiar with if you have ever seen The New Zealand All Blacks rugby team perform before each match. The show was fantastic and it inspired us to visit a 'Pa' site in Kerikeri the next morning to see a re-creation of a fortified Maori site.

We left beautiful Kerikeri later that day and headed back south towards Auckland onto our next destination. On our journey down we passed Sheep World and took the opportunity to pop in and watch a live sheep shearing demonstration. We were amazed at how still the sheep sat and how relaxed they seemed even though they were being propped up at an unusual angle between the guys legs. The guy that was doing the demonstration then asked for a volunteer to have a go too, so I of course leapt at the chance to help shear the almighty creature. It turns out that sheep shearing is not as easy as it would appear. I was so scared that I might hurt poor flossy that I ended up giving her 2 big lines of a number 5 hair cut, rather than the rest of her that had been given the equivalent of a number 1!

The next day we were headed towards the Coromandel Peninsular, on the east coast, as we had found a few places in the guide book that we thought were worth checking out. We arrived at Hot Water Beach which is an area that 2 hours either side of low tide, you can dig into the sand and create your own personal hot water bath. Unfortunately we arrived at high tide and just as the clouds were breaking with a huge downpour. We drove a short distance just up the coast a bit to Cathedral Cove. We parked the van and walked the 45 minutes or so along the scenic coastal footpath and were very pleasently rewarded when we finally got to the limestone cove, and stunning, rustic little bay.

The next day we headed for a town called Tauranga where Lee had read they had a Blo-karting track. For those not in the know, Blo-karting is like Go-karting except that it uses a sail and the wind instead of an engine. I was a bit sceptical of the enjoyment factor of doing this as I am nowhere near as fanatical about go-karting as Lee is, but we both went out for the first 15 minute session. I got a bit freaked out when the kart went from sailing along nicely on 3 wheels, to lifting up and tilting on 2 wheels when the wind picked up. Lee however, and all the remaining males on the track were loving it and lapping me a number of times over with crazed, excitable looks on their faces. Lee decided to go out again whereas I thought it best to spectate and get some good action shots of him. It turns out that spectating (for me, not Lee) was far more enjoyable, and I had lots of laughs watching the next session of mums, dads and children all hurtling round the track, out of control. The looks on some of the kids faces was priceless as they came crashing round the bends and up onto the grassy bank.

We were soon back on the road, still heading south towards Rotorua, our next destination. As we approached the place, we could smell it before we could see it. Rotorua sits right in the middle of a highly active geo-thermal area, and you are never far from a puff of steam being released into the atmosphere. The awful eggy smell comes from the sulphur being released in the air. We decided to kick off our tour of Rotorua with a trip to Te Puia, a geyser park (actually pronounced guy-ser and not geezer as most of us think), so we could witness the Pohutu and Prince of Wales geysers erupting. They both erupt for about half an hour every hour so we knew we would be able to see them.

The next couple of days were all about fun, fun, fun, the begining of some of our fun and extreme activities on offer in Rotorua. We had been previously sceptical about attempting the Luge as we had heard it was the recipe for broken bones, but after seeing the leaflet we had a change of hearts. A gondala takes you up the mountain, where there are 3 tracks that you can descend from - scenic, intermediate and advanced. The luge itself is a 3 wheeled cart that you sit on and it has a handle bar lever in the midde which you use to steer and pull down towards you to slow down. The tracks are all zig-zagged and the higher the grade of track, the more steep banks and drops there are to navigate. I thought it was great fun but Lee found it all a bit tame. Next up was to try our hands at Zorbing. We both opted to go separately in our Zorbs to avoid injury by involuntarily whacking each other, and thought it a better idea still to go for the 'Zydro' option. The zorb is basically a huge inflatable ball in which there is a smaller inflatable ball where you then sit. The Zydro option means you have your zorb part filled with water. You are driven to up a hill then get out, and squeeze yourself into the tiny hole until you are in the inner ball bit. Water is then added, and the gate is opened. Lee and I both started our balls off by standing up and taking a few steps forward until momentum takes over and you slip down. From that point on you are sloshed about, backwards and forwards, side to side, completely out of control until you reach the end of the zig-zag track. You emerge at the end of the track like a drowned rat, disorientated, but grinning like crazy. Again I found this to be loads of fun, but Lee found it to not be as fantastic as he had hoped.

The following day was the biggie as far as I was concerned. We had been debating over which of the many white water rafting companies to go with and were telling the receptionist guys on our campsite that we were thinking of doing a grade 3/4, which is listed as 'fun/exciting'. White water rafting grading goes from level 1, which is the easist and tamest, through to grade 5, the most challenging levle you can do in a commercial raft. Level 6 is only for absolute experienced people. The guys on reception pretty much laughed in our faces when we told them we were thinking about the grade 3/4 and said that children do that level. After some persuassion by them, they convinced us that absolutely must do the grade 5 and that even though it would mean going down the biggest waterfall (7 metre drop) in the world that you can in a commercial raft, we would love it. When the bus arrived to pick us up to take us to the centre, I felt slightly re-assured when we picked up an American girl, Christie who had already rafted grade 5 rivers twice before. We were dropped off at the river already in our life jackets and fleecy warm tops and wet boots. I totally took the bait when one of the guides was winding us all up by saying that if we didn't follow their instructions, we would basically die. We soon sorted ourselves into groups of 5 or 6, and out of the 5 rafts all waiting to go out, our raft was to be the lead raft. We were soon in the water and almost immediately approached the first of the many rapids. We tensed up but braced ourselves for the first slight drop, and when we realised that it wasn't so bad after all, started to feel a bit easier with it all. We had all been drilled onboard the raft what we were to do when we approached the waterfalls, the first being a 3 metre drop, and then the massive 7 metre drop. The time was soon upon us and we somehow managed to all stay afloat for the first 3 metre drop. I was already panicking in anticipation of the second 7 metre drop, but after much re-assurance from our great guides, felt that we had run through the drill enough times, that fate would be the only thing that would guide us down in the end. As we approached the huge drop I could almost feel my heart beating out of my chest as the adrenalin surged round my body. We started the rapid descent into the raging torrent of water and disappeared into the powerful jets of water for what seemed like ages, before finally re-appearing, the right way up, all still onboard at the foot of the fall. I hadn't dared open my eyes from the approach to the drop until we were safely clear of the rushing water over our heads, but we kind of gasped when we realised we were ok, and then started cheering in our complete elation at making it over safely. Our raft then sat at the side of the river as we watched, one by one, the other rafts make their scary descent into the fall. Only 1 raft flipped over, but they following the protocol, they were soon being plucked back into their raft, and even so, still looked happy! We were soon headed further down the river, when our guides suggested that we all jump in the river for a bit to celebrate our feat. I didn't particularly fancy it, but didn't want to be the stick in the mud and so decided to take the plunge too. After a brief splash about, the guides were then telling us to get back in the raft, on the opposite side to which I was at that point. I tried swimming back to the aforementioned side, but the current was far too strong. I was aware there was another set of rapids quickly approaching, and tried desperately to swim against the current towards the raft, but I then realised that it was to no avail, and that I should brace myself (as we had been told how to) and get into the foetal position as I plummeted once again into the raging water. After again what seemed like ages, I did re-emerge safely. It was hard trying to resist the urge to do what feels natural and kick out and try to swim, but I knew that what we had been told was for a reason. I then had to suffer the indignation of being dragged back onto the raft, and being dumped (literally) in the most awkward, unnatural position and told to 'hang on' as we were approaching another set of rapids. As I sat all squashed up with my ankles up somewhere by my ears and my chin pressed in at a sideways angle against my chest, I thought to myself I really must look like a beached whale, struggling against its unnatural environment, but was overall just thankful to be out of the water and back with everyone else back on board! It was not long after this that our journey in the raft came to an end, and I was definitely pleased to see the opening on the river bank where we would be filing out from. We had to carry the raft upside down on our heads back up the bank and to the waiting bus and trailer, and as I took a seat inside the bus, I looked down to see just how much I was trembling. My hands shook like crazy for about 15 minutes afterwards, but I have to say I did still look back on the whole experience as overall, really exciting. Lee absolutely loved the whole experience and was buzzing for ages afterwards. The mixture of adrenalin was almost overwhelming, but I have to say for all the terror it induced, the sheer excitement of approaching the great falls and then realising you have come out of it alive and intact pretty much outweigh the negatives. I'm not sure yet if I would do it again, but I guess if it was on offer somewhere and we had nothing else to do, then... well, watch this space.

We decided to finish this fun packed day with some easy sight seeing and relaxtion so headed for Hells Gate, one of the many geo-thermal parks in Roturua, to witness more bubbling mud and and thermal muddy waters, some of which boil away at over 100 degrees centrigrade! At the end of our walk around the park we treated ourselves to a mud bath and thermal spa. We were pleasently suprised to discover that the mud bath they had escorted us to, was a little private mud bath for 2. You're only allowed in there for 20 minutes due to the amount of sulphur, and then must have a cold shower to rinse off the mud. We both found it to be quite fun and theraputic slapping the hot, silky mud over each other. After the cold shower it was time to get into the gorgeous thermal spa, that once again, we had to ourselves. You could stay in there for as long as you wanted, but I had to get out, as Lee had very kindly paid for me to be treated to a lovely massage. Half an hour later I came out of the little room feeling like I was floating on air - a perfect air to a crazy day.

The next day was Lee's day to indulge in some fun treats. He started off the day with a trip to a dirt bike track for an hours lesson and venture into the fields and forests for some action packed off-road biking. I watched from the side as he had a practice session on the quad bike track, before disappearing off up into the hills for half an hour or so to put into practice what he had just learned. He re-emerged a while later back onto the quad bike track all smiles as he then did more laps, this time with much more speed and confidence. At the end of the session when he removed his helmet and I could see his face properly, I knew he had found something he really enjoyed, and wasn't the least bit suprised when he announced that this could very well become a new hobby when we get home. So, if anyone is ever stumped for a good present to buy Lee for his birthday or Christmas, I think a Kawasaki GTR 230 should just about cover it!

Next up was a trip over to The NZ Off-road Centre, to the sprint car track. After a 5 minute induction Lee was strapped into the small, but extremely loud buggy like sprint car, and hurtling around the purpose built track at great speed. You get to drive 12 laps and the idea is to beat the record lap time of 11.06 seconds. Unfortunatley Lee did not beat it, but he did come away from it all smiles again, loving the thrill of the speed factor.

Sunday just gone was the A1GP 'worldcup' motor racing in Taupo, which is where we are now. For anyone who doesn't know what this entails, it is basically like Formula 1, but instead of the drivers winning the races due to the car they are driving in (i.e the Williams Team and MacLaren Team etc), all the race cars are identical, and the race comes down to the skill of the driver rather than the performance of the car. I think there were about 16 teams from different countries taking part. We got tickets to spectate from the embankment, and it was an absolute scorcher of a day. The race had been really hyped up over here and I think that Lee was expecting it to be more than it was. I thought it was pretty cool. I'm not really into motor racing, but it was really exciting seeing, and mostly hearing, the race cars roar round the track. We were also treated to aerobatical displays, and races with other cars such as Porche's and Ute's which I found to be quite amusing.

Yesterday (Monday) Lee and I headed out on a trip to the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, voted the number 1 one day walk in the world, for an 18.5KM trek up into the mountains, passing the volcanic craters, and then back down through gorgoeous mountainside covered with lovley flowers, and then finally through lush forest with pure water streams. The climb itself which covered about the first 11.5KMS of the walk was really tough going in parts, and we had to take regular stops for a minute at a time or so to regain breath and ease pumped calves. We took a quick lunch stop by the stunning Emerald Lakes, which we were so lucky to see in their full beauty as it was such a clear and beautiful day, and then began the slow descent. I took a couple of tumbles as we practically rock surfed down a really steep downwards path, but was straight up on my feet and on our way again. The walk was without doubt absolutely amazing with so many incredible views as the landscape changed so dramatically. The last 45 minutes of the walk, which was all downhill proved to be the hardest, as our legs and feet in particular were so tender from all the previous climbing, that trying to keep yourself steady by putting more strain into those muscles almost became too much to bear. We plodded on at a much slower pace and were overjoyed to eventually reach the end of an almost endless last section of the walk, to see the bus that was to take us back. We hobbled off the bus back to our campsite and only just about made it to the showers without falling in a heap. We are up and about today but are really feeling stiff and achey, but so glad to have done the walk, and especially as we were so lucky with the weather.

That's all for now, so until next time, Kia Ora.xx