Keiora, (hello in Maori)
I arrived in Auckland, New Zealand last Tuesday. I can't believe that it's been only a week since I left South America. And it is still strange to hear English, instead of Spanish, spoken around me. Actually, I hear and see more Chinese around me, but more about that later.
New Zealand is about 17 hours ahead of the east coast of the USA (or about 12 hours ahead of my friends in Europe). I say "about" because they went on Day Light Savings Time, and the US went off DST (or is it the other way around), so I'm not exactly sure how far into to tomorrow I really am. This means that when folks back home on the East Coast of the US are waking up and starting their day at 6AM, it is 11 PM that same day, and I am getting ready to go to bed. [just in case you are wondering, the future is looke good from my perspective: Monday, April 23, has been a perfect day here]
Auckland is beautiful! Green and lush, with with rolling hills (after so many months in the Andes, I just can't bring myself to refer to this hills as mountains). Auckland is in the middle of the peninsula on the Northern Island, and has the Tasman Sea on the West/Left and the Pacific Ocean on the East/Right. There are many islands and gulfs and bays and alcoves and such around Auckland. It's a watersport and beach person's paradise: fishing, boating, swimming, beaching, surfing, diving, as well as hiking and camping (and bungey jumping off the Sky Tower, the highest structure in the Southern Hemisphere). You have the big city excitment of Auckland, and within thirty minutes you can have small island solitude. The weather has been sunny and in the mid to high 70's (20-22 degrees Celsius).
Auckland is big city. I don't know the population, but it is relatively crowded for New Zealand. And it is ethnically diverse. People of European descent make up the majority of the population at 50%, Maori are 30% and Asians (1-Chinese, 2-Indians and 3-other Asians) make up the balance. When I first arrived, I thought I was staying in the Chinatown section of the city. There are so many signs in Chinese, and it looke like one in three people on the street were Chinese-looking. I hear lots of Chinese spoken around me. On the plus side, there is plenty of inexpensive and delicious Chinese, Japanese, Thai and Indian food all around me.
I spent three days in Auckland before heading up North to the Bay of Islands. The Bay of Islands is comprised of 145 islands, and is where Captin Cook arrived when he came in search of New Zealand. Abel Tasman, a Dutchman (and after whom the Sea, Island and Devil were named), found New Zealand first (New Zealand is dutch for New Sea Land), however he never stuck around after being greeted by the Maori with the traditional Maori greeting. Imagine a dozen large, burly, tan skinned and heavily tatooed men, dressed in grass skirts and carrying spears, squatting and stamping the ground with their feet (think Sumo wrestler, the move, not the size), sticking their tongues at you and yelling as loud as they can. How would that make you feel? Abel decided to leave, but wrote about his experience. Captain Cook decided to check the place out, brought a Maori translator (Maori inhabited Hawaii and many other Polynesian Islands), and thus knew what the proper response to the above described Maori greeting should be if you don't wish to start a fight (slowly bend over and pick up the branch placed before you, never breaking eye contact). The rest is history. The British claimed New Zealand as a colony in 1840, at a site just outside of Paihia (Pie-heeya), and the initial capital of the country was in a city located across the bay from Paihia. Kokorareka, today known as Russell.
Anyway, I won't bore you with more fascinating history of the Bay of Islands and the North Country. I spent three days up north, exploring the area by catamaran, airplane, 4x4 bus, and an amphibious "duck" boat (they even gave us a kazoo to quack at pedestrians as we passed by). I went as far north as is possible in New Zealand. The area is spectacular: rolling hills, clear multi-hued turquoise water, white, golden and black sand beaches. And of course, perfect weather -- not too hot, not too cold. And not too many tourists. Tourist season is over, and it is the perfect time to visit this area. Eating was pricey, but the food was superb. Lots of great seafood.
Today I'm back in Auckland, and tomorrow I start my journey down south. The next stop is Rotorua.
Today I mailed a package home. And what a joy that experience was. No, really. Mailing packages from the various countries I've visited over the last year has been a special kind of hell. But not so in New Zealand! The people who work at the post office are pleasant and reasonable. And compared to what I've spent to mail stuff home from countries that are much closer to the US than New Zealand, postage was cheap! And they accept credit cards!!!!!!!! It was a truly DELIGHTFUL experience.
And that's a little of what I've been up to. I like it here, at the other end of the world.
cheers,
Stacey
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