God's Country

I am living in a dreamworld...

I arrived in Auckland on the 11th of February, where I completed a 23 km walk from one coast of the isthmus to the other, walking past historical sites, up mountains overlooking the beautiful city and through villages where the indigenous Maori people first settled. At night, I met up with one of my friends from high school, Erin. After marrying in the States, her and her husband Eric returned to New Zealand, where they'd been living the last couple years, for their honeymoon. It just so happened that my two days in Auckland overlapped with their two days in the city. After not seeing eachother in nearly six years, it was pure coincidence that we were able to see eachother halfway across the world and it felt like we hadn't missed a beat, reminiscing and laughing over pizza and some great New Zealand beers.

Leaving Erin and Eric, I hopped on a bus back to my hostel, only to get lost, get off at the wrong stop, and wind up on a street that didn't necessarily look like a neighborhood I should be wandering alone in at night. Confused, wandering aimlessly, and clearly looking lost, two city officials dealing with a towed car asked if I needed help. When I explained to them where I needed to go, they said they were headed in that direction and they could give me a lift. Hesitant to get in a car with strangers, I verified that they were indeed public officials, and they not only got me back to the area I needed to be in, but dropped me directly in front of my hostel without any hesitation. This was the first of many lovely and kind "Kiwis" I have encountered here in New Zealand and I am convinced it accurately portrays the type of truly decent people that seem to live here.

From Auckland, I headed off on my adventure tour with Flying Kiwi, a company that provides a full camping tour, complete with mountain biking every day and several other adventure activities along the way. Day one and our guide announces it's time for our first ride, dropping us off at the bottom of a beautiful national forest, throwing us a helmet and vest and telling us "turn right, then right again, go down, then up, and into Paihia". A little nervous about these directions, the thirteen of us biking that day departed on the gravel road, finding ourselves in a lush tropical forest, winding up and down the mountainside, past country farm houses and finally arriving in the beautiful seaside town that is Paihia. 45 kilometers later, we were beat...but Drew challenged us to continue riding to the campsite. So butts sore, we headed off into the fields overlooking the stunning Bay of Islands. As the sun set, we wound through pastures of grazing cows, the colors pink and purple appearing on the horizon as we descended into a valley where a mother horse played with her foal and we could hear the nearby rush of the Haruru Falls. Pulling into the campsite, we were greeted with a large plot directly overlooking a beautiful river and our own private viewing area of the single most spectacular star cluster that I have ever seen in my life.

Tired from the ride, we cooked up some spaghetti and woke the next morning to find an endless array of possibilities before us. A couple of us hopped on the bikes, ascending cliffs and mountains, legs on fire, to reach the Bay of Islands, where Dom, Mariel and I rented kayaks and found our way into breathtaking mangrove forests.

It has been a few more days that we have spent on tour now and every second has been a complete treat. Yesterday, at the thermal beach, as I sat watching a small boy build a hole that would fill with water and then heat from the volcanic lava flowing underneath, I felt a tap on my shoulder, only to turn around and be greeted by my friend Kate who I had met while traveling in Australia. Small world!! Tom and Kate decided to join us at the same campsite, where I ventured away with them on an afternoon hike with some of the most captivating views they have witnessed in their month in New Zealand! We watched the sunset and I prepared myself for today's adventure, throwing myself down a hill in a giant plastic ball filled with water!!! This sport, called "zorbing", was invented here in New Zealand, and while it doesn't last very long, it is a totally surreal experience, as you dive into the ball and they push you down a large hill, spinning and splashing as you go.

Tomorrow, if weather allows, I have officially signed my name on the paper marked "Skydive: 15,000 Feet". I am terrified, but I know this is something I HAVE to do while I'm here, as it's one of the only places in the world where you are allowed to do a jump at this height, with a free fall of over one full minute!!!

I am convinced that when God sat down at his desk to dream up the world, the first place he envisioned was New Zealand. It is pure and total heaven with stunning landscapes, beautiful people and endless outdoor adventure. And while I can't wait to see what else God dreamt up in his office that day, let's first hope my parachute opens so I'm able to....