Ups and Downs

Kia Ora everyone!

Sorry I have been kinda M.I.A these last two weeks.  Procrastination at its finest ladies and gentlemen! I will do my best at summarizing the last two weeks. Things have been a little jumbled.
The week before last was the first week since I have been here where the weather was not immaculate. The sky finally decided it was time to give the Auckland area a good soak. It was rather cloudy most of the week and poured all weekend. Of course, it was the one weekend where we had planned to drive an hour west to Piha beach, a beautiful stretch of sand with a nice waterfall you can hike up to. But alas, I opened my curtains that Saturday morning and was greeted by a steady downpour. Well there goes our beach plans. 

Me and my friend Melia at the bar.

 

 

But that Saturday was not wasted. Later, several of us went out for a night on Auckland town. It was an early St. Patrick's Day celebration. Having just recently become the legal drinking age in my own country, the bar atmosphere was a whole new experience for me. And to all of you responsible and experienced adults reading my blog, dont worry! I only had a two drinks. It was way too expensive for me to even approach my alcohol drinking limit. (See Mom, I am a responsible adult :) ) I have to admit I was not used to severely intoxicated men wandering over and surveying our group of girls and our figures in a less-than-subtle way. Frankly it made me a little uncomfortable. But hey that is bar life I guess.

Emily, me, Steph, Melia, Nic and Kristian in the back and Kirsten. Kirsten lives the flat next to us and Melia and Steph live in the other Massey accommodation 10 minutes down the road.

Other highlights; I experienced my first little earthquake that Sunday. It was pretty minor, but it felt like a car or bulldozer hit the house because the whole flat shook. Everyone wandered out onto the street asking each other if they had felt the jolt too. It was small but still kind of scary. That was probably nothing compared to the earthquake that hit Christchurch two years ago.


This last weekend, Emily, Robbie, our friend Klaire and I hiked up to Cascades Falls, 30 minutes west of Albany. It was a short but pretty hike. The falls are tucked behind this cave like cliff. We thought we could have a nice refreshing swim in the little pool at the bottom of the falls. But, the water was ice cold. Klaire, having warm Kiwi blood in her, could not be bothered with the cold and swam toward the falls while the three of us sat shivering on the rock. But it was still a great opportunity to see some the Kiwi wilderness. But this is only a taste of New Zealand beauty compared to what we are going to be seeing in the next two weeks.

We are now getting ready for our 2 week trip down to the south island. We have made the courageous decision to rent a car and drive the whole way. Hopefully the driving will come naturally, we will just have to switch to the left side of the road. Locations along the way will include Rotorua, Tongairiro Crossing (Mordor), Wellington (Rivendell), Picton, Marlborough Vinyards, Franz Josef Glacier, Milford Sound and Queenstown. Activities may include Zorbing, cliff jumping, wine tours, cruises, jet boating, and much more. We shall see how smoothly the trip will play out, but I can barely contain my excitement. This trip will be the most memorable part of my entire experience in New Zealand.
Unfortunately I most likely be unable to blog about my adventures. But I have a plan! I will keep a journal and write in it each night. Then when I have access to a computer, I will copy it onto my blog. Problem solved! You guys wont miss a single detail!

I am going to honest. These last two weeks, the homesickness has started to settle in. The overall euphoric feeling of actually being in New Zealand has begun to wear off. Trust me, I am so lucky to be here. But part of me longs for something familier like the mountains of home or the warmth and comfort of my family and friends. I miss the fresh crisp and quiet air of the Rockies. I am not used to the hussle and bussle of Auckland. Thankfully this trip down south will help ease the dull ache for home. I'll get to discover the less populated beauties of New Zealand.

Mama B on the left and Swanson on the right.

Mama B cleaning her feathers.

Before I sign off, I wanted to introduce you to Unit 14's newest "pets". The male duck is named Swanson and the female duck is Mama B. They come waddling up to our back door everyday looking for some bread to nibble on. They know to single me out as the weakest link between the four of us because I am the one most likely to give them food. I suspect that my flatmates are not happy with me giving our bread to birds. But if you know me well enough, you know that if they look at me the right way, their is no way I will turn away a hungry duck.

Well that's all folks! I will blog about my south island journey as soon as I get the chance!

Until next time!

Michael