Three Weeks in New Zealand - North Island (Part 1)

For three weeks in August, I traveled New Zealand on my own, but at the same time was not alone at all. Despite being about the furthest I could be from home (about 15,000 km), and the closest I've ever been to Antarctica (about 4,130 km), it strangely didn't feel like I was that far away. It's probably a combination of the Commonwealth connection and all the nature that is similar to western Canada but so much more accessible in NZ, as everything is closer together geographically. After I returned, I became that person, always referring to my time in NZ, so after these two blog posts it'll be the last of it. I spent one week on the North Island, and two on the South. Decided to split the blog post into two, because it's looking like a real long post.

This was my first real solo trip (aside from a couple days in NYC in 2016) but I was so much more freaked out about being on my own in New York City. Perhaps it's all a matter of perspective - I met many young people traveling solo or on working holiday - it's so normal, but a lot of the older people I met said, "You're so brave for traveling on your own, doesn't it get lonely?" Well, not really. Traveling alone I have met so many new people, especially staying in hostels, it was so easy to make new friends and potential travel companions. It's as simple as having someone ask me what I was doing that day inviting them along. At the same time, if I wanted to be alone, then I didn't need to make excuses to anyone and just go off on my own. Most of all, I think I was too busy being in awe of everything to get lonely.

Often while hiking, I found myself stopping and exclaiming, "WOW is this real?" out loud, taking a couple steps and looking back at the view again because it was just that awe inspiring. Thanks, tectonic plates. Thanks, mother earth. But it also made me that much more aware of climate change when I visited glaciers and looked at placards with how tall they used to be a couple decades ago and how alarmingly quickly they're melting. I mean, I knew it before but seeing the blatant effects right in front of me really made my heart hurt. We really need to take care of our planet!

North Island
Landing in Auckland and walking around the city, I seriously felt like I hadn't left Toronto. Auckland is New Zealand's largest city, though it is not the capital. There is a harbour and a university, there are shops and lots of people. It's a diverse place, with all different cultures, just like Toronto, though I must say it's a little less lively and their coffee shops don't offer filter coffee. McDonald's only had espresso and it started at $4.00. Seriously? I was mad. Where can one get a cheap coffee? The answer is a) no where, drip coffee is uncommon, espresso is the norm and b) at some hostels, for free - instant coffee - and yeah, after my initial judgement, I drank it up. The first hostel I stayed at was called the Attic and I was really lucky to have met some cool people - two Americans and one Canadian who has a really good eye and thus, a super lit insta. We spent the day together and walked to Mount Eden, which is really just a big hill with a huge crater at the top (above).

I rented a car and drove through Hamilton (where there is a cool botanical garden, above) to Taupo, spent two nights there, then to Rotorua, where I spent one night. They are around the middle of the North Island. Lots of Maori culture in the north. I learned a bit about how Great Britain colonized NZ and pretty much snaked the Maori people because there is no direct translation of sovereignty in Maori. The Maori signed the agreement without knowing they were signing away their land rights. Though now the government is doing things like changing the official names of places back to the names the Maori gave the places, or having dual names. Fun fact, Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand and it roughly translates to "land of the long white cloud". I love it, it's so mystical.

At this point in time I felt like I haven't left Canada. The only difference is that they drive on the left side of the road. Taupo was like a ghost town. The reason I went there was to hike Tongariro Alpine Crossing (where you can hike up Mt. Doom from LOTR) but unfortunately it was cancelled due to inclement weather, two days in a row. There I met some lovely British people and we went to some hot springs. There's a lot of geothermal activity around the North Island, like Craters of the Moon in the photo below. Steamy vents and bubbling craters all around.

My favourite view on the North Island was when I hiked up Rainbow Mountain (below). It's called that because the rocks are multi-coloured from its volcanic past. It was super muddy and I trudged into the bushes by accident because my map led me onto an unkempt path. Made a bit of a detour, but got back on the main path. I parked in the wrong parking lot and that added an hour to my hiking time. Met a lovely couple on the way to see some blue lake who offered to give me a lift back to my car, but I decided to hike up to the summit.



And I'm so glad I decided to hike to the top! From there (pictured below), there were beautiful rolling hills as far as the eye could see. I felt like I was looking at the Shire! Who needs to go to Hobbiton when you could see all this for free? Just imagine the doors. At the base of the hike, there was a geothermal creek called Kerosene Creek where the water was super warm. Soooo nice to walk through after that 3 hour hike through the mud.





In Taupo, I wandered the streets and they were completely empty. It also got dark quite early so I was wandering alone in the dark looking for food. There was a McD's in a plane. Didn't get to go in, though because it closed at 5pm. I settled for a fish & chips place where I asked for salad instead of fries and the lady working the counter said they didn't have salad and told me the only place I could get salad in the vicinity was Subway. That's how dead it was.

There is a Redwood forest in Rotorua (below), exactly like the one in California. They were brought to NZ from California to see if they would grow well there for lumber. Looks like they're growing just fine. Drove here with my two German pals, one that I met the previous day in Taupo, the other I met in Rotorua. They didn't know each other before, but just so happened to both be from Germany and were both traveling/working for an extended period of time. Really made me want to take a year off, too. I love how it's so commonplace for Germans to take a gap year to travel and work after they finish high school. The reason for this is because they got rid of grade 13 not too long ago. It's the same here, but why don't more Canadians take a gap year? Why isn't it more encouraged? I really wish I had taken the time to see a different part of the world and ~find myself~



An instance of it being a super small world when traveling - when I checked into my hostel room in Rotorua, the other girl in the room was someone I met previously at my hostel in Auckland! It was wild, we were like omg hieeee!! That night I went to the Polynesian Spa (it was a spa that had some different mineral pools/hot springs) and accidentally dropped my phone into the water. I freaked tf out. My stomach dropped. How would I navigate anywhere now? Good thing I was soaking in a hot pool to bring my anxiety levels down. A couple employees brought poles with nets attached and tried to retrieve my phone but all they pulled up was mud. It was pretty frustrating to watch (a handful of people were watching this situation unfold), so much so that an Australian man who is a history buff and doesn't own a television climbed over the little fence into the reservoir and fished around for my phone. Much to my surprise, he grabbed it and it turned on! BLESSED DAY!!! I thanked him profusely and quickly put my phone away.

The next day I drove back to Auckland, returned my lil green Mazda Demio, hung out with a friend I met my first night in Auckland, and talked about how much time seemed to have passed, but it was only a week since we last saw one another. Perhaps adventure does that to you. I'm really thankful for the new friends I made thus far, they really made my trip that much better. So far, the views were nothing I haven't seen before. Maybe I'm spoiled because I've been to so many beautiful places. I recognize my privilege, but still - where are the awe inspiring views that everyone raves about? Time to head down to the South Island.