So, having arrived at Christchurch airport, we bade farewell to Lily (who was staying a night in Christchurch) and Max who was returning to his home and Lynn. Tom and I waited together for our flights, and then boarded separate planes both headed direct to Auckland. On arrival, I excitedly picked up our tiny hire car and ventured out onto the roads with great precaution, for this was the first time that I had driven in 6 months, but I quickly began to enjoy myself. After a quiet night in Auckland, an early start to the morning involved meeting Tom at his friends' house for we were heading together up towards the Bay of Islands. Once out of Auckland, the roads became less busy and more scenic, rolling countryside and a cream tea made us feel that we were in a home from home. Our journey was filled with plenty of conversation, some great laughs, and a few scenic stops on the beaches, at a waterfall and for a spot to eat. We lost ourselves in some hilly bends, where we shared the driving, before arriving at the Bay of Islands, in the town of Paiha. Here we checked into our quirky hostel, the Mousetrap, before shooting out to the supermarket for dinner and a few beers.

The following morning and we borrowed bicycles from the hostel, before cycling down to the pier and organised our itinerary. For the day to come, we took the local ferry across to the island of Russell, a beautiful and quaint island with lovely old wooden bulidings and a very slow pace of life. Home to some historic buildings, including the oldest pub in New Zealand, we relaxed and had a drink before going for a walk throughout a Kiwi bird protected woodland path - but unfortunately no sightings were had. On return to mainland, we cycled to Waitangi, the place where the British officially recognised Maori ownership of their lands and other properties, although we were unwilling to pay the pricey fair for the full tour. We also arranged our plans for the following day, a cruise around the Bay of Islands was well sold by the Kiwi booking officer - apparently a bus load of Scandinavian lap dancers had just arrived and were looking for some handsome men to entertain them on the cruise. So, we booked up immediately and headed home. Later we headed out for a drink in the rather bizarre bar which appeared to have time travelled from the 1980's.

The next morning we headed back to the pier for our morning cruise. With no Scandinavians in sight, we took the best seats we could before the boat headed off towards Russell island to pick up some more passengers, and then onto and around some of the smaller islands. Before long, our attention was diverted away from the beautiful scenery and towards the active marine life - for we had been met by Dusky Dolphins. These playful creatures were relatively calm to begin with, before several of the cruise passengers who had paid to brave the icy cold waters in order to swim with the Dolphins jumped in, proving to be particularly humorous for the rest of us in the relative warmth. Before long, the dolphins were playing with one another, swimming alongside the boat, performing some jumps, swimming on their backs in front of the boat and the like. It was a very warming moment for us all. After a while, we headed onwards, undertaking some deliveries to the 1 or 2 inhabitants of these isolated islands, before reaching the end of the landline, and to the infamous 'hole in the rock.' After the captain skilfully navigated us through the narrow space, and told us plenty of it's history, we headed back for home. My eyes were constantly on the horizon for the Killer Whale, which is regularly seen here, but no such luck. Instead, at our next stop I was amazed by how clear the water was and from the comfort of the boat I was able to spot many fish varieties including several large stingrays.

Before long we were back on shore, and heading out of Paiha for our journey back down to Auckland, and our last night in New Zealand. Along our drive we encountered (would you believe it) large sand dunes sitting right next to the sea, and some more stunning coastal scenery. Parts of the journey were particularly boring though, as the road was dead straight and never ending. Before long, we were back in Auckland, had checked into our respective hotels, and had met up for some nice Chinese food. James and the midget German and also just arrived in Auckland straight off the stray bus, and so we were all celebrating our last nights in New Zealand. We headed out into town and in search of a party, and although there was lots of it to be had, we couldn't settle on a location. Eventually, we found an underground 'cave' for some wild party rock dancing, before moving on to a more sophisticated venue with some live music. We ended up in a fantastic nightclub with excellent music, and here we partied on into the early hours before the club closed its doors at about 2am. A fitting end to an awesome 4 weeks with some great new friends.

The next morning, and I returned the car back to the airport with Tom before we headed onto the airport and our return flights. For Tom, this was via 3 weeks in Fiji. For me a brief and unwanted (for at this stage I simply wanted to get home) 2 day stop in LA before my onward flight. After my flight, I landed in LAX at about 7am and was struggling to find the buses necessary to take me onto my accommodation in Venice Beach, where I eventually arrived at about 8.30am. I checked into my room, and decided as I was wide awake to go for a run down the beach. It was not long before I was positively surprised by the sight of a Pelican bird, and not long after that bored and tired of beach running. On my way back to the room, I found many what looked like homeless people lining the streets with large bundles and packages of 'stuff.' I later found that this was actually a vibrant and creative market selling all sorts of bits and bobs. After a sleep, I then headed into Santa Monica, which was actually really nice, bought myself a pair of Ray Bans and walked along the pier before returning to the beach for a day of sunbathing. I then chilled out and watched an awesome basketball match which I found out to be the regional semi-final, before returning to my hotel for the free dinner. The next morning involved a trip to Hollywood Boulevard, an American Diner lunch (in Hooters - sorry Lottie) before attempting to walk down Santa Monica Boulevard back into Santa Monica. After 40minutes of walking, and no sign of the beach, I decided to hop on a bus, and another 30minutes passed by along the same road and eventually we had arrived. LA is incredibly large! After a walk along the beach, and watching some incredible skaters at the park, I was then lucky enough to see the LMFAO boys recording the video to their latest hit 'Sexy and I know it!' I chatted briefly to the lead singer and had my photo taken with him! Such a fitting end after our regular running man dancing in NZ.

On my last day I hired some rollerskates and did the LA thing by skating along the beachfront in the morning, before watching more fantastic entertainment along the beach in the way of some street dancers and magicians. Venice Beach reminded me soo much of my beloved Brighton - full of character and quirkiness, if not a bit weirder, but it is also a place where people freely entertain one another and are in the main happy. After relaxing on the beach for a brief while, where I was one more treated by a school of Dolphins swimming past, I had actually grown fond of this area of LA and was reluctant to leave, but my flight beckoned and I was excited to get home and see my family.

The return flight with BA was one of the worst that I had had, where the customer service and other standards were far lower than that of my more regular operator Quantas, and I was therefore unable to get much sleep during my overnight flight. This was unfortunate, for my mum and sister had taken time away from work to come and pick me up, welcoming me back with balloons and banners! I was soo excited to see them when I turned the corner, and ran (sort of) into my family's arms. Unfortunately for the journey home, I was soo tired and just wanted to get some sleep, yet they obviously wanted to hear tales of my adventures. And bless my sister, she had made me a lovely three course dinner which I struggled my way through, before retiring for an early night at about 9pm. Home, asleep, and my 7 month adventure had officially ended...