Nearly Home

As I arrived in Auckland I decided I wanted to return home to see everyone I'd gone so long without seeing. My New Zealand plan has never been fixed. After about 20 emails back and forth between myself and STA I managed to get my flight changed to the 4th of March. This meant I now had a month left to enjoy New Zealand.

I vowed to spend every day left in New Zealand swimming and place to begin was Waiheke island. The main attraction for me was a hostel with a volleyball court. As soon as I arrived I met a couple of Germans celebrating Bob Marley's birthday by listening to Bob Marley songs and smoking weed. I spent a few days enjoying the delightful beaches the island has to offer. On my travels I encountered a free orchid and a box of cucumbers and courgettes being given away. While being a short ferry trip from Auckland it feels like a world away.
Then it was time for the final part of my kiwi experience trip up to Paihia. With so much time to spare I decided to break it up with some side trips. First was a four night camping trip around Cape Reinga which was so intense it will get it's own blog entry. This was followed by a break in endless summer lodge in Ahipara. The garden has some bananas, herbs and aloe vera growing in it. The highlight for me was the grapevines which had far fewer grapes on them when I left. There was body boarding to be had in the bay and sand boarding in the dunes.
Now after sand boarding on the Cape Reinga trip I felt I had it mastered. After a long climb up to the dune I took some time to appreciate the landscape at the top. There were nice sandstone rock formations and a silence in the air. I sat in the sledge provided by the hostel and went flying down. Instead of stopping at the bottom I hit a rough area of sand and basically crashed. While clearing the sand out of my face a wedding photography expedition appearing to start taking photos with the sand dunes as a stunning backdrop.
My final side trip was to be the last use of the tent on Urapukapuka island. This again provided bountiful swimming opportunities in the many sheltered bays. I also swam to a nearby island because why limit yourself to just one island.
While gallivanting off on all these trips I have been using my Paihia hostel to store my luggage. This allowed me to take only the essentials camping and amaze everyone in Ahipara by turning up with just a small rucksack.
Today I went on a walk along the coast and was invited to join a couple of Kiwis drinking beer on the beach. Then an Aussie turned up who was running because she was worried the homeless guy who lives in a tent might try and eat her. We are all meeting up in a bar tomorrow. With only a few days to go my New Zealand holiday remains interesting.