Okay. Okay. So this is way overdue and I'm sorry.  For the record, I actually started this yesterday but due to a minor incident where I thought I lost hundreds of pictures, I went on a manic spree for a couple hours and reorganized all 2,000 pictures I have of this adventure.

Anyway, the trip was nothing short of amazing. Jethro and I left on a Wednesday and took the train from Adelaide to Melbourne. It was about 10 hours and full of amazing scenery. When we arrived one of the first things I saw was Starbucks.  This definitely deserved a photo.  The train  station was beautiful and we embarked on what turned out to be a bit of an interesting journey on foot to our hostel. Thanks to a nice man with an iPhone, we made it.  On this journey we fell into the hands of a great Mexican restaurant called "Taco Bill's" where we ate later that evening. Mexican food can not be taken for granted on this side of the world. I have seen a total of three restaurants professing to serve anything of the sort. They barely have tortilla chips. It was sooo good.

We booked a tour to Phillip Island that departed at noon the following day. In the morning we explored the city and I think we're both keen on traveling back to Melbourne before we leave. On the tour we visited a wildlife park where we got to feed kangaroos, see koalas, etc. It still amazes me that they just let the kangaroos and wallabies run wild and interact with the humans.  Following we went to a winery that specializes in fortified wines. I've learned a lot about wine on this trip, probably none of which I will recall. After dusk we went to the "Penguin Parade" which involves 2,000 eager and freezing tourists sitting in grand stands facing the ocean waiting for Little Penguins to waddle out of the water. It began to rain about twenty minutes in so about three fourths of the people frantically made their way back to the lodge. This gave us front row seats for the remainder of the time. It was a stupid amount of chilly, but those things are seriously cute.

We arrived in Auckland around eight the next morning. 

We took a bus from the airport to the city and walked to find our hostel. We were chatting about the city and with my huge 70L backpack I completely ate shit off the curb. Jethro pulled me up by my pack saying things like: "You're okay" and "It's alright," followed by: "Nobody saw that." (We were right in front of a string of cafes.)  I think we stood hunched over, hands on knees for a minute or so just loosing it.  Later we walked to the Sky Tower and got side tracked at the casinos for a while. Jethro convinced me to play and I won $26.60 on my second try. (It was a five cent slot.) I'm convinced I'll never have a gambling problem. After that win I was ready to go. Always leave on a good note. Always.

We traveled NZ through a company called Stray Travel. You buy a pass, with the route length you're interested in, and can stay with the same bus or get off at certain destinations, stay for a few days/months and catch a new bus later. Because we were short on time, we stayed with the bus and took it more as a tour. Every day we departed for a new city around 8.

Hahei,NZ: We took a walk to Cathedral Cove. It was beautiful. Later that evening, we went to some hot water springs. At the specific location of these springs, hot water is under the surface of the sand. If you dig a hole big enough, you can sit inside. That is the idea anyway. This did not work so well. The tide was too high and the hole kept getting bombarded with cold water. Some of us who thought the digging was a lost cause just wiggled our feet under the sand to feel the warmth. This was satisfying enough for me.

Raglan, NZ: In Raglan we stayed at the surfing school. There was a ropes course which, proudly, I made it safely across the two legs I attempted. Jethro nailed the entire thing on his first try. It was very impressive. There was a zip line and random trails through the woods. Nearing dusk we walked to the beach and watched all the surfers make their final runs for the day. Apparently this beach has waves that you can ride for five minutes. Movies were filmed on it and stuff? I think I heard that.

 

Waitomo, NZ: Here we went to Waitomo Caves and saw the  glowworms. Jethro did the more intense caving adventure that involved things like rock climbing, repelling and most importantly, tight spaces. I opted to take the leisurely walk and boat ride through the caves. There were thousands of these things. Thousands. And it was magnificent. If rich people knew about glowworms, they would order them to their extravagant parties and put them on the ceiling.. just because. I mean, I would. This same day we went to Maketu,NZ and participated in a Maori ceremony and ate a traditional Maori meal. In the Maori culture, one introduces themselves by saying "Kia Ora" and then taking hands with the other and touching noses. We all did this with the performers. There was a little boy, maybe eight, who was at the beginning of the line. When I knelt down to touch his nose to mine he looked straight at me with the biggest of green eyes. His brown cheeks were ornamented with freckles and I blushed. At an eight year old. He was beautiful.

Taupo, NZ: In Taupo Jethro and I planned on going white water rafting but decided to go on a tour of a thermal village instead.  This was beyond interesting. I am not sure how I feel about living in what smells like a pile of rotten eggs, but the concept is definitely plausible.  To this day 25 families (who are all part of the same tribe) rely on the hot springs for cooking, bathing and washing.

That long word is the name of the tribe

 

Tongariro National Park: It was in the park that we went on a 19.4k walk/hike along the Tangariro crossing. We did not technically climb Mt. Doom, but it was in sight the entire time.  About 4k in, when you have been walking at an incline for some time, your thighs are considering failing you, and you look up to see the tiny dots that must be humans so far ahead; it's then that you start to wonder why you signed up for this. Two physical trainers were in our group of nine, and both of them were struggling at parts. That should give you a good inclination of how I was doing. We stopped for lunch near the top and to observe the scenery. It was all very worth it. I think this took us a total of 6 hours.  Oh, and it should be noted that despite Jethro's laughs, I am the proud owner of a fanny pack. I made fun of my father for years but it cannot be denied, they are convenient. Jethro also deserves boyfriend of the year award because he carried all of our stuff the entire way. Little does he know, that is why I bought the fanny pack. "Oh, sorry honey, that doesn't fit in here." I am totally joking. We stayed in the park this evening. This was the nicest accommodation of the trip. The beds were long and there was a hot tub. Sold.

& the fanny pack:

Wellington, NZ:  The trip to Wellington was a longer drive than our previous treks. We arrived late in the afternoon and were all pretty exhausted. We had lost a few people along the way, but a group of us that had clicked from the beginning were all still together.  We made some really awesome friends, most of which were male, which was good because Jethro was able to have conversations about music and fighting and other boy things that he can't have with me. As Wellington would be the final destination for some of us, we all gathered for drinks rather early and easily managed to stay out rather late. This was an excellent time. Quoting from Jethro's blog : "One of the most amazing things I've experienced so far is being in a big circle of people including Irish, Welsh, Danish, Kiwi, German, U.K., U.S., Italian, all doing a huddle formation, and at the top of our collective lungs, singing Living On a Prayer.  Everyone knows Bon Jovi."

The following day we explored Wellington at ease. The weather was perfect and it was a great ending to the trip.