Haere ra, Aotearoa!
Taking Flight at 90 Mile Beach
Sorry for leaving you all on such a down note, the last few weeks have FLOWN by and I am now in Thailand. A quick recap:
My friend Amy flew over from Australia (where she was visiting from the US) and came with me up to the Northland. We went to Whangarei and Tutukaka (on The Perfect Day boat trip to the Poor Knights Islands — fantastic!) and Paihia (where I took the highly recommended AwesomeNZ Cape Reinga day trip) together before going separate ways.
Whangarei & Poor Knights Islands day trip
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Paihia and Cape Reinga/90 Mile Beach day trip
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After Paihia, I headed back south and went to Raglan, to the most amazing backpackers in all of New Zealand. Karioi Lodge is an eco-retreat about 10k from town, and is also the home of the Raglan Surf School. I spent 4 days there and FINALLY learned how to stand up and surf, go me!
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After Raglan, I headed back up to Auckland for my friends Ash and Elisa’s wedding. It was held on Ash’s parents farm about an hour out of Auckland and was a simply magical day. I took a few photos, but Elisa has asked that I not post any online so Im honouring that request.
I really should have left NZ the day after the wedding, as I ended up just faffing about Auckland for two days before leaving for good. I really enjoyed my time there though, so it wasnt too bad. I stayed at Oaklands Lodge in Mt Eden (where I watched Team Canada win Olympic Gold, w00t!), and wished that Id chosen that suburb to live in when Id first arrived. It was so lovely, with great brunch spots, markets and shops. Oh well!
I thought I would be more emotional about leaving New Zealand, after having been there for so very long. I love the country, but I think deep in my heart I always knew I would be leaving and so didn’t become as attached to it as others I know. So much has happened in the last few weeks, and I really would like to sit down and reflect on how I think my time there affected me (because it definitely has!), but that may not happen for a few weeks yet as Ive landed in Bangkok now and am kind of reeling from being here. Entry on BKK coming soon though!
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