New Zealand

Well I've had a very busy week, as you can tell from the lack of contact!

I left Auckland at 12.30 on Friday, after buying an AMAZING roll in a shop round the corner from me. It had ham, cheese, egg and salad in it and was just amazing. Bus journey to Hamilton was nice, jus watching N.Z go by listening to music. I waited in Hamilton for half an hour before the bus turned up and a whole load of kids got on. At first I thought it was the school bus so ignored it but then a guy with a surf board got on and so I figured... luckily! The drive down to Raglan was so nice. Perfect blue skies and the N.Z scenery, I've totally fallen in love with it again. Its so up and down and rolling hills everywhere. Although this was not so great in a very very old bus whose brakes I didn't entirely trust! A few of the little girls on the bus chatted away to me, telling me what I can do in Raglan, 'umm you can play with your friends, or surf or... umm...' Arrived in Raglan niavely thinking that there would be one bus stop when infact there were about 10. Went all the way to the otherside of the bay without seeing Nash so stayed on until I got back into town and got off there. I was just talking to some guy who was asking if I needed a lift because I looked lost when I saw someone walking towards me and it was Nash! So that was lucky! We then walked back to her house which is about 15 mins away. Her house is so cool! She shares it with Amy who is really nice too so it was all fab.

The next day Amy and me sunbathed on the deck, the weather here is great. Nash got back from work at about 1ish, and shortly after recieved a call from Helen. Helen told us that Kate had just committed suicide, through many tears. Nash and me were really shocked, and it didn't seem real at all. Its been really hard to get a grip on reality and the fact that it has happened when you're so far away from the greif and sadness back home. I think I can speak for Nash too when I say we thought about Kate a lot in those next few days. Having her as one of my best friends I remembered all the happy memories from growing up with her in primary school. I'm really glad that I was here with Nash when we found out, because we've been able to share our thoughts and everything. Over here it really still hasn't sunk in because we're so detached, and you catch yourself having fun and being happy and then remember what has happened and the dread sweeps over you again. Kate was friends with so many people and just such a unique person that so many people will be affected. She will always be remembered. So after finding that out we went down to the pub, Nash and me sitting there fairly silent, just brewing. We were joined by Bess and Brendon, an American couple who work at the lodge were Nash used to stay and works. It was a nice chilled evening in the sun, with a lot of thinking and sharing.

On Monday it was Nashs birthday, although the mood wasn't really set for celebrating. Once she got home from work her boss Erin drove us to the beach and Nash went surfing. I met some more people from the lodge, Carmen, Matt, Reba and Amy. Also got some snaps of Nash in the water. After that Erin drove us all back to town to the Tongue and Groove - one of the many amazing little cafes in the tiny town centre. She bought platters of food which the chef cooked up especially for her, as well as 6 bottles of champagne to celebrate Nashs birthday. Once we were almost done with all that she asked Nash what her fravourite drink was and I mentioned that Nash used to drink Tennents and fanta back home so Erin dragged me off to the booze store next door and we bought Grolsch (no Tennents for some reason?? haha) and fanta, and then loads of bags of crisps and sweets. She said we were set up for a party then, and I was just amazed. I said she was really generous, and she said 'its nothing if it makes someone happy, if you give then you recieve' I just said still not enough people do it and it was a very nice thing to do. After dropping all that off back with everyone at the table she drove me back to her house near the lodge to get the 'flimsonator' - her small old car. She said I could drive Nash back home and then drive her to work the next day so she wouldn't have to get up too early! Amazing person. So then Nash, Amy (a different Amy who was staying at the lodge) and me went back to the house. After chatting to Amy for a bit I found out that she went to Oxford Brookes to do business! Crazy, so had a good chat to her about that. Later on Bess, Brendon, Matt, Carmen, Amy and Travis all turned up and we had a pretty good night.

Nash woke me up at 7 the next day to go to work with her. We got in the car and it wouldn't start, just turning over. Erin had said it just needs warming up in the morning so we kept trying but it wasn't working, and a man came out of his house in the opposite gully and was looking about for where the noise was coming from so Nash went into the house to get Amy, who magically got it to start. Turns out you need to press the gas when you turn it on. The lodge is up on the hill, 'the sleeping lady' or Karioi. It was like a jungle tree house with all the rooms kind of in the rock and stuff, really cool. Later on Nash and me played pool and I won!! Whoo, haha. I also got filmed by some reality TV crew who were there whilst watching Spongebob Square Pants with two little kids... hmm bit embarresing... After work we sat in the Tongue and Groove having curly fries and cake with Reba for hours! Colin and Mike (two other friends) turned up in between for a chat too. Eventually we dragged ourselves up and I bought a steak pie in the bakery (was craving) and Nash got a vegetable pie and we walked home. Even after sitting on our arses for so long we got back to Nashs and watched TV all evening until a scary film called Wolf Creek (about three backpackers who get lost/killed in the Oz outback, how appropriate...) came on and we chickened out and Reba left. Nash and me then made pasta with veggies and sauce plus the magic ingredient of smiley faces.

Either travellerspoint sucks or I can't work it. I think its the former, but anyway, I need to fiddle with it but I've been on for ages already so I'll try again tomorrow. For now you can have these few...

Arrived in Auckland safe and sound and sleepy. Auckland airport is nice! Just the right size, and then stepping outside was wierd because I remember it from all the years ago. Got the express bus easy peasy, was actually asked for advice from 2 other travellers on what bus they should get, I gave them answers, but do I look like a wealth of information or something? And do people have no common sense at all? Anyway, the drive into Auckland was nice, I felt safe and comfortable which is not something I've felt when travelling into the unknown. So once arrived at the hostel all I wanted to do was check into my room and fall fast asleep because by that point I'd only slept 2 hours out of 24. But the room wasn't ready and I couldn't check in until 1pm!! So put my luggage in storage and had to while my hours away somewhere. I was starving and saw a Wendys Burger place (I keep walking past it now and thinking to myself, what was I thinking???) so went and had a chicken burger which was really satisfying. I then fell upon a Borders book store which looked tiny from the outside but opened up into this huge 4 storey store! So had a sit down in one section and read cover to cover firstly 'New New Zealand Houses' which consisted of architectural drawings and photos of very boring, dab modern architecture; all concrete and glass and corrogated iron whcih they seem to like over here. And then I found a Postsecret book - jackpot! So went through that too. Then wandered down to the travel section and had a flick through different European books as I think I'm coming home for April so I can do Europe. Yeah so by that point it was nearly 1 and I went back to the hostel and got into my uncleaned room. I was getting really grumpy and annoyed by this point but dumped my stuff and went out to a cafe round the corner (they have so many nice cafes around here, much fewer Starbucks, and yeah Matthew I felt guilty about not going to nice cafes and feeding the Starbucks piggybank in N.Y but I think they have shut down almost every coffee house because I could find hardly any) and had chocolate cake and pot of tea. Also went up to the bus station which is below sky tower and booked my ticket to Hamilton for Friday. I remember the sky hotel too from when we stayed there. Finally by about 2.30 my room was ready and I went to sleep. Didn't do much in the evening when I woke up, just had a shower and watched a bit of TV.

Today I went to Auckland Art Gallery and saw really quite a good exhibition by Laurence Aberhart. Lots of silver gelatin prints which I loooove. They're so spooky and brooding and magical at the same time. Then took a wander down to the harbour and walked miles out of town in search of the luxury yachts, to no avail. But I did take some nice photos. AND I CAN UPLOAD THEM! Whoo! Gonna do that now, theres 529 so I don't think they're all gona go up, depends how longs its gona take me. Although the internet is blissfully cheap and fast here! I like Auckland though, and today it was sunny and its such a nice temperature; not sticky and humid but still warm and sunny. It smells nice too, of summer evenings.

much love
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