Second day down at the beach of surfing, this time with a large crowd to watch me fail! No pressure. I didnt do entirely bad I even managed to stand up for about .3 miliseconds before falling back into the crashing waves... I must need more upper body strength as I have become a bit weak since working in an office. Metabolism dont fail me now!
But anyways after surfing parked myself on the beach and just observed how people were using the beach. A lot of people just sat down like myself and watched surfers, waves, or whatever. A lot of people also walked up and down the shore going "oh the tide is gone im going to walk out as far as i can.... oh no the waves are coming back in but i dont want my sandals to get wet!" as they scrurry back up the beach. Lots of people also play rugby or kick the ball back and forth. I thought to myself about frisbee and then realized beach winds probably prevent any game of frisbee from even starting. Then I turned around to my surprise to see what was going on in the dunes.
Now the dunes are in a precarious position. They are vital to Piha as they protect the entire village from ocean waves and flooding, but they also in between the parking lots and the beach.... hence the problem is desire lines! The dread of all Landscape Architects. Its something that can be included into a design however there is no way one can predict all the lines... other then a plaza or a giant concrete slab. You can design measures to control it but its nearly impossible to stop all cases of people not using desinated pathways..... ok back on track (pun not intended ha) The dunes are already a very fragile system and people are tramping all over them. People putting chairs and umbrellas to sit atop the dune, children running around stomping on plants and kicking sand around, and dogs... dogs are the worst, digging and rolling around on the frail plants, chasing nesting birds and using the area as a bathroom. I think that even with visiting peoples general lack of respect for the beaches and dunes that dogs are by far the worst thing that has happened to Piha.
People let their dogs run around without leashes and they have just been devastating to both plants and animals alike. It is posted in too few places that dogs need to be on leashes and there is going to be a movement soon to put up more signs because of their rampant destruction.
September 20
Learned about surf culture, ocean landscapes, and first day of surfing
Today was all about surfing. period . I want to learn how to surf... scratch that... i NEED to learn how to surf. I've found that a big part of my project is going to revolve around the water and who comes to the water from all over... surfers. So today was about figuring out whats so great about surfing, what makes surfing good or bad.... and then eventually getting out there and trying it.. eek
So the surf culture, In the first few days here I listen in on some conversations between surfers... no clue what they are talking about. Its like listening to surfers from California.. yah.. totally.. rode the rip to hit a gnarly right hand and tubed that beast..... what? So I have been checking out magazines to try to decipher this language of theirs and I am no scholar in dicatation but some things are starting to make sense. I think the important part is to figure out first what all of the terms for waves are. I learn about rips and swells, tubes and right/left handed waves, long vs short boards.
I also learn about the landscape underneath the waves, these are actually one of the most important factor to being a good surf spot vs a bad one. Temperature, sun/shade, rocks and obstacles, views, and much of the things that landscape architects think about for a successful site is not too important. The most important thing is the nature of the landscape, the topography of the sand or coral or rock, the surrounding landscape, the trenches and swales, these are what makes the surf... surfable. This is going to be a case study for sure as I want to diagram directions of surf, sand, and the surfers. It is all a really neat orchestra of things moving around to make a neat experience.
Speaking of that my first experience surfing... how it goes is: Sure lets go surfing im up for it..... inside my head goes like this: oh my god oh my god i dont know why my mouth is saying this i dont know what im doing!... So I put on a wet suit... The wet suit however is old and pretty much broken. The zipper in the back doesnt work and the legs are so tight even though they are ripped at the back of the knee to my ankle. But it covers up my unsightly pastey body so it does its job. We get there and Tom and Geoff go off the the side and he tells me to have at it.... ALRIGHT! haha omg Im going to be dead in the next half hour. So I grab the board and walk out into the water and give things a try. Was not bad I wasnt able to stand up on the board but i got a good feel for it and the waves. All in all I enjoyed my first time surfing and will definetly try some more till I get the hang of it.
Today was all about surfing. period . I want to learn how to surf... scratch that... i NEED to learn how to surf. I've found that a big part of my project is going to revolve around the water and who comes to the water from all over... surfers. So today was about figuring out whats so great about surfing, what makes surfing good or bad.... and then eventually getting out there and trying it.. eek
So the surf culture, In the first few days here I listen in on some conversations between surfers... no clue what they are talking about. Its like listening to surfers from California.. yah.. totally.. rode the rip to hit a gnarly right hand and tubed that beast..... what? So I have been checking out magazines to try to decipher this language of theirs and I am no scholar in dicatation but some things are starting to make sense. I think the important part is to figure out first what all of the terms for waves are. I learn about rips and swells, tubes and right/left handed waves, long vs short boards.
I also learn about the landscape underneath the waves, these are actually one of the most important factor to being a good surf spot vs a bad one. Temperature, sun/shade, rocks and obstacles, views, and much of the things that landscape architects think about for a successful site is not too important. The most important thing is the nature of the landscape, the topography of the sand or coral or rock, the surrounding landscape, the trenches and swales, these are what makes the surf... surfable. This is going to be a case study for sure as I want to diagram directions of surf, sand, and the surfers. It is all a really neat orchestra of things moving around to make a neat experience.
Speaking of that my first experience surfing... how it goes is: Sure lets go surfing im up for it..... inside my head goes like this: oh my god oh my god i dont know why my mouth is saying this i dont know what im doing!... So I put on a wet suit... The wet suit however is old and pretty much broken. The zipper in the back doesnt work and the legs are so tight even though they are ripped at the back of the knee to my ankle. But it covers up my unsightly pastey body so it does its job. We get there and Tom and Geoff go off the the side and he tells me to have at it.... ALRIGHT! haha omg Im going to be dead in the next half hour. So I grab the board and walk out into the water and give things a try. Was not bad I wasnt able to stand up on the board but i got a good feel for it and the waves. All in all I enjoyed my first time surfing and will definetly try some more till I get the hang of it.
September 19
Decided to walk into South Piha for today, instead of taking my normal route down the north side road I went down the other road. Currently the bridge that goes to the south side is closed off for some maintenance so it makes it a little more difficult to reach via walking. But I decided to anyways because im stubborn enough to. Walking down this way I found all of the Native Plant Restoration signs. These areas looked like they were torn up first and then replanted with native grasses and shrubs. I couldnt figure out what kind of plants they were quite yet but hopefully I will get a grasp on them...hopefully.
Anyways walked down the restoration area I will have to check the information back at Geoffs to really get a handle on what they did, what it looked like and what the overall idea is as well as maintenance. So I get down to the beach area first thing I notice ....landscape architect inside of me groans... stormwater inlets that are not only clogged but the water is sitting stagnant on top. ugh. I wonder what kind of problems they have with sand blocking pipes and other utilities.
I continue on towards the "Gap" I've been told it is an area where massive ocean waves come in and try to squeeze through a narrowed area of rock causing the real life equivalent of the scene in Fantasia where Mickey summons the waves to crash. Very very cool spot. The trail system is pretty warn but it looks like their is going to be an attempt to fix this as their are new boards placed along the stairs. Their are definetly some issues that would arrive back in the US, including no possible ADA accessibility. There are spots where you have to crouch and lean over the railing to avoid scrapping your bag on the rocks as well as ducking under a tree that has overgrown the pathway. One interesting thing to note is the plants that are along much of the trail are thorny yellow bushes, got myself with them a couple times... maybe long pants next time.
Anyways walked down the restoration area I will have to check the information back at Geoffs to really get a handle on what they did, what it looked like and what the overall idea is as well as maintenance. So I get down to the beach area first thing I notice ....landscape architect inside of me groans... stormwater inlets that are not only clogged but the water is sitting stagnant on top. ugh. I wonder what kind of problems they have with sand blocking pipes and other utilities.
I continue on towards the "Gap" I've been told it is an area where massive ocean waves come in and try to squeeze through a narrowed area of rock causing the real life equivalent of the scene in Fantasia where Mickey summons the waves to crash. Very very cool spot. The trail system is pretty warn but it looks like their is going to be an attempt to fix this as their are new boards placed along the stairs. Their are definetly some issues that would arrive back in the US, including no possible ADA accessibility. There are spots where you have to crouch and lean over the railing to avoid scrapping your bag on the rocks as well as ducking under a tree that has overgrown the pathway. One interesting thing to note is the plants that are along much of the trail are thorny yellow bushes, got myself with them a couple times... maybe long pants next time.
September 18
Piha Library, although small has an enormous amount of information that is crucial to my study. I introduced myself to the librarian Gabrielle. Quite a nice lady, has been to California too. There is such a wealth of information here that it is going to be very difficult to narrow things down and find exactly what I need. There are a lot of papers done by the Regional Council but they are the normal DEC type papers that are mindless boring stuff built on a format with only little information changing. Oh well, I think I will just have to do a lot of reading in the library rather then take out tons of books and papers.
Excellent find though. Project is really on its way now!
Excellent find though. Project is really on its way now!
September 17
Today is much better, nice and sunny mixed with short sprinkles. I thought today would be as good a time as any to check out all of the signs in Piha. I simply walked around taking photos of all the signs, street signs, business signs, road signs, ads, warnings, informational signs, plaques, monuments, descriptions, everything. These are all pretty valuable and give me a little insight as to who comes here most (tourist or local oriented signs), ideas of the values of society (Dont drink drive, neighborhood watch, graphitti). The most important ones for me and my project today was the informational surfboard signs. Implemented by the Regional Council for Tourism. The boards were designed and created by someone with obviously thought on who is reading it what to teach them and where the information needs to be placed. Seems to be working well as they are highly visible as well as giving good information (Locations/beach ettiquete) and educational information (History/wildlife) May have to do a case study on signage
September 16
Yesterday was great, weather was amazing, things were near perfect. Early in the morning however it begins pouring once again and does not relent. I figured today may be a good day to check out the watershed and flood areas as it is coming down like a beast. Didnt learn much from the experience as I didnt have a reliable topo map but found all of the water collection containers under the house as well as got to see the stream in the bank fill up quite a bit.
September 15
Ugh wake up to some girl walking into my room, i ask what time it is..10... great so pack all my stuff brush my teeth checkout and out the door. Walk down Queen St looking like a hobo still and goto the Britomart aka Grand Central Station. The building itself was strange. Looks like a very normal building quite high ceilings. Went inside and their are little kiosks everywhere, trains, buses, ferrys....trains... . . . ok so there are 3 kiosks to get tickets. I grab my ticket head down the stairs and entered what looked VERY much like the hanger they keep the alien spaceship in Independence Day with Will Smith (Fantastic movie... first movie i went to sitting next to a black lady... "Dont u go in there Will...I TOLD U") So I wait a bit and hop onto my train.. holy buckets of holy water! scary scary train rocks and creeks back and forth... but was nice cuz it only cost 4.50 to get to Glen Eden Station.
Side Note: They say four dollars fifty... instead of four dollars AND fifty CENTS
So i wait outside the station for Geoff and of course he drives like a maniac at me slams on the breaks skids and goes "oui Mike, hop in" Hop in like your being chased by cops or hop in like get in and lets ride? Weird sense of humor here but its a free ride. We head to the grocery store again for my second time. Little more comfortable looking around knowing not to expect to see Cambells or Wonderbread I have a slightly better eye now. So i get my usual, apples, bananas, bread, beans, crackers. (its like i shop with only 3 letters abc) I also get beef sausage (mistake). I look at the other meats and think YAH good idea but then noo dont know how to prepare that. so beans and bread is ok with me.
So we head out of the grocery store, Geoff rides the cart down a ramp cuts off an old couple around the corner and keeps rolling. The little old guy hops onto his cart in attempt to catch him but then stops. His wife looks at him and giggles then looks to me and says "Boys will be boys"
So off to Piha and ends a nice day
Side Note: They say four dollars fifty... instead of four dollars AND fifty CENTS
So i wait outside the station for Geoff and of course he drives like a maniac at me slams on the breaks skids and goes "oui Mike, hop in" Hop in like your being chased by cops or hop in like get in and lets ride? Weird sense of humor here but its a free ride. We head to the grocery store again for my second time. Little more comfortable looking around knowing not to expect to see Cambells or Wonderbread I have a slightly better eye now. So i get my usual, apples, bananas, bread, beans, crackers. (its like i shop with only 3 letters abc) I also get beef sausage (mistake). I look at the other meats and think YAH good idea but then noo dont know how to prepare that. so beans and bread is ok with me.
So we head out of the grocery store, Geoff rides the cart down a ramp cuts off an old couple around the corner and keeps rolling. The little old guy hops onto his cart in attempt to catch him but then stops. His wife looks at him and giggles then looks to me and says "Boys will be boys"
So off to Piha and ends a nice day
September 14
Driving back to Auckland today so i can call Geoff and schedule to get picked up. On the way home decided should stop at Mount Eden a focal point for the city of Auckland. Was neat, nice view, oddly enough it was mowed.. by cows... a national symbol of Auckland and there are cow pies all over the place..wtf?
Head to the backpacker got a private room with 4 beds to choose from! Fantastic! Except that next door were a pack of nueget filled German nuts playing techno music all night long.. another WTF!
Head to the backpacker got a private room with 4 beds to choose from! Fantastic! Except that next door were a pack of nueget filled German nuts playing techno music all night long.. another WTF!
September 13
Went to town of Waitomo today to see some caves. UNDERGROUND CAVES!.... underground caves with GLOWWORMS... (much cooler sounding then they actually are)
So planned out 2 caves for today, first glowworms and then Ruakuri cave. Glowworms, commentator guy was amazing. He was like one of the guys on an animal planet special talking about something boring but the inflections in his voice make it amazing! So walk walk walk abit see a big cathedral cave where orchestras come to record. Many stalagtites all look like penises and I giggle profusely. We hop into a big canoe and round the corner. Looks like a bunch of LEDs to me on the ceiling but he assures me they are glowworms. I ask to take a picture he says no. So I quietly take a video instead... unfortunatly with no REAL light other then bioluminesence aka LEDs there is nothing on the video but sound of a canoe. So its pitch black and a bunch of LEDS and a canoe... waste of money... NEXT CAVE
Ruakuri Cave now this one seems way cooler. Named for the wild dogs that used to live in it which were later killed so there could be CAVE TOURS! On the way down a giant spiral staircase the tour guide asks where im from, my name, my zip code, my social security number, if im susceptible to any diseases... i say im "Mike from NY" She then asks why Im in NZ. I say "Studying ecotourism" She says she did stuff with eco-tourism and will give me her email address... awesome!
Anyways back to the cave. Was very neat, impossibile to get good pictures so I eventually gave up. Lots of neat features and bottomless pits. Would be a perfect place if I finally get my Evil Genius degree for a secret hideout. Got a picture of me and ecotourist tour guide normal pose then crazy pose. She and I both threw up the rock fists at the same time great minds do think alike! Ecotourism, ridiculous humor/sarcasm, and rockfisting... sweet
Also fun fact of the day, first time i ate lamb in the country in a traditional MEAT PIE! Organic lamb pie with mushy peas... fancy restaurant and it actually says mushy peas.. strange. It seems all restuarants are really into the presentation of food. Everything was fancy eating like Pascales but the food was normal... like Dennys. Even Dennys was fancy. very strange
So planned out 2 caves for today, first glowworms and then Ruakuri cave. Glowworms, commentator guy was amazing. He was like one of the guys on an animal planet special talking about something boring but the inflections in his voice make it amazing! So walk walk walk abit see a big cathedral cave where orchestras come to record. Many stalagtites all look like penises and I giggle profusely. We hop into a big canoe and round the corner. Looks like a bunch of LEDs to me on the ceiling but he assures me they are glowworms. I ask to take a picture he says no. So I quietly take a video instead... unfortunatly with no REAL light other then bioluminesence aka LEDs there is nothing on the video but sound of a canoe. So its pitch black and a bunch of LEDS and a canoe... waste of money... NEXT CAVE
Ruakuri Cave now this one seems way cooler. Named for the wild dogs that used to live in it which were later killed so there could be CAVE TOURS! On the way down a giant spiral staircase the tour guide asks where im from, my name, my zip code, my social security number, if im susceptible to any diseases... i say im "Mike from NY" She then asks why Im in NZ. I say "Studying ecotourism" She says she did stuff with eco-tourism and will give me her email address... awesome!
Anyways back to the cave. Was very neat, impossibile to get good pictures so I eventually gave up. Lots of neat features and bottomless pits. Would be a perfect place if I finally get my Evil Genius degree for a secret hideout. Got a picture of me and ecotourist tour guide normal pose then crazy pose. She and I both threw up the rock fists at the same time great minds do think alike! Ecotourism, ridiculous humor/sarcasm, and rockfisting... sweet
Also fun fact of the day, first time i ate lamb in the country in a traditional MEAT PIE! Organic lamb pie with mushy peas... fancy restaurant and it actually says mushy peas.. strange. It seems all restuarants are really into the presentation of food. Everything was fancy eating like Pascales but the food was normal... like Dennys. Even Dennys was fancy. very strange
September 12
Today is another big milestone, traveling the farthest out from the city to Rotorua. Quite scary being on the wrong side of the road for 3 hours but finally arrive. The entire place smells of rotten eggs, sulpher yuck. I ask one of the ladies "Do you get used to the smell? She replies "What smell?" I see how it is, very funny. I push her into the boiling hot waters below.... in my mind... The place was pretty cool, lots of stinky gas, lots of bubbling, spewing, errupting, gurgling things. The geologist in me is having a nervous breakdown as he wants to start naming all of the reasons why rocks are odd colors... Ooo iron oxides mixing with sulphric acid pretty! Also got the chance to swim around in a pool... geothermally heated pool. Was like a giant bath tub. It was actually steaming. Tonight was also the first night I noticed something in the sky. Being away from the city a bit you can see stars.... stars that I have never glanced upon before. AND the coolest part was seeing Scorpio for the first time. The Scorpio constellation has been over my bed since I was little and seeing it for the first time was really quite special for me. Going to sleep and then caves tomorrow!
September 11
Today, not feeling so grand, more likely to sit down relax and catch up on school work... aka sketchbook. Also today went out and shopped a bit on Queen Street. Oddly enough cotton boxer are rarer then plutonium as every store I walk into has silk boxers or tight whiteys. I refuse to buy either. Finally walk into an Armani store while looking like a bum with ripped jeans, beard, and a backpack filled with dirty clothes find a paid of cotton boxer shorts. I buy them and mention my difficulties to the cashier, he agrees that they are not all that big in NZ... thanks for the help. I leave with underwear in hand and check the price of other Armani clothes... $450 for a paid of jeans.... why?
September 10
Today went out to Parnell, apparently the swanky neighborhood with good shopping and cafes.... well dissappointed in that it seems a better idea to cut across Auckland Domain past the museum, past the university, past Queen street, and proceed directly to Mexi-Cali... They obviously put crack in their food because im addicted to it now. I eat I sleep I dream Mexi-Cali
September 9
So my wounds seem to have vanished overnight... may be the magic potions I have been taking every morning (V8 original). Today I get a ride from Geoff who has to fix his truck on the North Shore. So we drive out to the North Shore and goto the mechanics. We drive back with Tom and go into the city apparently there is a skatepark in Victoria Park that Tom wants to see. cool. They drop me off at the Skytower and tell me they can get me on Sunday... hmm long time but i can manage
So I get my fill of tacos and apparently the only spicy venue in all of NZ. Jalapeno ooo! ooooo its sOOOOooooo SPICY.... about as spicy as a loaf of bread... I would literally kill someone just to see if blood tastes spicy or flavorful. It is nice however that the owners of MexiCali are from California and are very easy to understand. To kill some more time before the concert I walk 20 meters...
Onto the Disturbed concert! AWESOME simply awesome. Redline (nz band), Alterbridge (Creed minus lead singer), P.O.D., and then Disturbed. Redline was okay.. said the "C" word a lot and swore AT me which was unnnessary. Their online music was good... live... not so much. Alterbridge was good too, even if they didnt play any of their good songs and chose to play more of moshpit songs.... on that note strict rules for No moshing and No crowd surfing... wondering how long that will last at this concert... or in a month with Slipknot >:P POD was pretty good, very neat to hear youth of the nation sung by the crowd and here come the "BOOM" says the crowd. Disturbed started out with David Draiman coming out on a dolly in a straight jacket... crowd goes wild. He is much shorter then I realized. In one of the old videos of Disturbed (down with the sickness) he is wearing tight black leather pants and is always all crotch out in the open, leg up on a speaker screaming to the fans.... that is apparently his "move" as he crowd humps every speaker available and then some. His normal speaking voice is actually really cool, i could totally hear him as a radio DJ.. welcome back Seattle...oooo ahahahah... and now the weather
Awesome show, totally worth it and great seats. Was worried about the mosh pit area so got seats instead, even if the pit was as rowdy as a Neil Diamond concert. Walking back home everyone in their cars are playing Disturbed....you mutha get up... 10,000 fists in the...liberate your mind... neato... also on the way back some yutz is firing his gun out the window. Nobody else seems to worry about it. Needless to say I am uncomfortable. Would be an equivalent of someone shooting a gun in armory square on a saturday night and the general consensus being... meh
So I get my fill of tacos and apparently the only spicy venue in all of NZ. Jalapeno ooo! ooooo its sOOOOooooo SPICY.... about as spicy as a loaf of bread... I would literally kill someone just to see if blood tastes spicy or flavorful. It is nice however that the owners of MexiCali are from California and are very easy to understand. To kill some more time before the concert I walk 20 meters...
Onto the Disturbed concert! AWESOME simply awesome. Redline (nz band), Alterbridge (Creed minus lead singer), P.O.D., and then Disturbed. Redline was okay.. said the "C" word a lot and swore AT me which was unnnessary. Their online music was good... live... not so much. Alterbridge was good too, even if they didnt play any of their good songs and chose to play more of moshpit songs.... on that note strict rules for No moshing and No crowd surfing... wondering how long that will last at this concert... or in a month with Slipknot >:P POD was pretty good, very neat to hear youth of the nation sung by the crowd and here come the "BOOM" says the crowd. Disturbed started out with David Draiman coming out on a dolly in a straight jacket... crowd goes wild. He is much shorter then I realized. In one of the old videos of Disturbed (down with the sickness) he is wearing tight black leather pants and is always all crotch out in the open, leg up on a speaker screaming to the fans.... that is apparently his "move" as he crowd humps every speaker available and then some. His normal speaking voice is actually really cool, i could totally hear him as a radio DJ.. welcome back Seattle...oooo ahahahah... and now the weather
Awesome show, totally worth it and great seats. Was worried about the mosh pit area so got seats instead, even if the pit was as rowdy as a Neil Diamond concert. Walking back home everyone in their cars are playing Disturbed....you mutha get up... 10,000 fists in the...liberate your mind... neato... also on the way back some yutz is firing his gun out the window. Nobody else seems to worry about it. Needless to say I am uncomfortable. Would be an equivalent of someone shooting a gun in armory square on a saturday night and the general consensus being... meh
September 8
Today was all about exploration for me, I decided it would be a good idea to walk up the volcanic cone that is in the back yard. I walk down the street a ways and find the sign that says Maungaroa Lookout Tk. No idea what the sign means but I can clearly see the top so it shouldnt be that difficult to get there. Bad idea to travel without my water canister...also bad idea to travel in jeans as they are quite warm and restrictive.
So up the trail i go, much steeper then I had expected. Also took note that paths were relatively clear as it seems to mean it is a popular path. Comparing this to the Adirondack Mountains is not even fair. Adirondacks receieve thousands and thousands more visitors as shown by their highly erroded pathways, almost like walking through a trench an excavator dug out. Here it was mostly just no vegetation in a zig zaggy line as well as some well placed boards that acted as steps.(The LA in me grumbles they do not meet safety codes but the kid in me says weee! big steps!) Also I note that the vegetation is a very very dense screen, as their are no big mammals such as deer to graze on all the saplings and such or provide deer trails. If one were to try and walk straight through you would benefit from a machette... or a chainsaw depending on how lazy you are.
So finally reaching the top, things start getting really steep, who would have guessed a volcanic cone would be so rocky and steep.. jeez who made these things anyways. The top is mostly bare with a few shrubs and small herbacious plants... kind of neat to think how long it took to make the soil that these plants are rooted in as the leaves do not drop like back home. Back home its thick layer of organic material from all the leaves falling ...in fall... here it is only loose leafs or "dust in the wind" (struggling not to finish rest of song.....) aghh.
The view from up here is quite amazing, great view to the beach as well as down to the Beachstay, although very nervously, I sneak over as far as i can to take a cool "aerial photo" of my home for 4 months. I also take note to some clematis vines at the top of one tree across the valley, they should be blooming fairly shortly, will have to come back up here and get pictures of that.
On my way back down the cone I hear "a rustlin' " in the trees. I quickly picture horrorifying scenes from Jurrasic Park/Predator/and oddly enough Space Jam all combineing to attack me.... also could be Yetis but I fear them not for I have my trusty Yeti-shank I made in Nam.... what?.......... So I hear something moving and get my camera ready I wont die from Yeti attack without getting footage. The most ENORMOUS PIGEON IN THE WORLD is flapping about in a nearby tree. So I quickly get my big camera out and zoom in out it and grab a few shots. The pigeon is facing away from me turns and looks at me over its... pigeon... shoulders....? Then it turns to face me... Its on! I get one last shot of it before the attack. It takes off thrusting hurricane force winds from underneath its 12 foot wings. Knocking over trees and other feeble avian cousins it swoops towards me looking to take me away to its nest to feed me piece by piece to its 7 foot tall newly hatched demon spawn pigeon babies. As it nearly rakes my face off like a John Deere wheat thresher it shoots back towards the sky as another larger Pigeon comes in obviously trying to claim me for its own. As the two 350.lb pigeons fight viscously in the sky cooing thunder deafening battle crys and destroying much of the fragile ecosystem with their rockets I slip away down the hill back to safety... unfortunatly my camera stopped working when they faught... must be some kind of Electro-magnetic pulse device they are equiped with. However I managed to get to safety and vowed to go back someday and rescuse the poor village children that were picked up and carried away the previous week.
A long day indeed, I patch my wounds and stitch myself up.... Tomorrow is the Disturbed Concert AND taco tuesday!
So up the trail i go, much steeper then I had expected. Also took note that paths were relatively clear as it seems to mean it is a popular path. Comparing this to the Adirondack Mountains is not even fair. Adirondacks receieve thousands and thousands more visitors as shown by their highly erroded pathways, almost like walking through a trench an excavator dug out. Here it was mostly just no vegetation in a zig zaggy line as well as some well placed boards that acted as steps.(The LA in me grumbles they do not meet safety codes but the kid in me says weee! big steps!) Also I note that the vegetation is a very very dense screen, as their are no big mammals such as deer to graze on all the saplings and such or provide deer trails. If one were to try and walk straight through you would benefit from a machette... or a chainsaw depending on how lazy you are.
So finally reaching the top, things start getting really steep, who would have guessed a volcanic cone would be so rocky and steep.. jeez who made these things anyways. The top is mostly bare with a few shrubs and small herbacious plants... kind of neat to think how long it took to make the soil that these plants are rooted in as the leaves do not drop like back home. Back home its thick layer of organic material from all the leaves falling ...in fall... here it is only loose leafs or "dust in the wind" (struggling not to finish rest of song.....) aghh.
The view from up here is quite amazing, great view to the beach as well as down to the Beachstay, although very nervously, I sneak over as far as i can to take a cool "aerial photo" of my home for 4 months. I also take note to some clematis vines at the top of one tree across the valley, they should be blooming fairly shortly, will have to come back up here and get pictures of that.
On my way back down the cone I hear "a rustlin' " in the trees. I quickly picture horrorifying scenes from Jurrasic Park/Predator/and oddly enough Space Jam all combineing to attack me.... also could be Yetis but I fear them not for I have my trusty Yeti-shank I made in Nam.... what?.......... So I hear something moving and get my camera ready I wont die from Yeti attack without getting footage. The most ENORMOUS PIGEON IN THE WORLD is flapping about in a nearby tree. So I quickly get my big camera out and zoom in out it and grab a few shots. The pigeon is facing away from me turns and looks at me over its... pigeon... shoulders....? Then it turns to face me... Its on! I get one last shot of it before the attack. It takes off thrusting hurricane force winds from underneath its 12 foot wings. Knocking over trees and other feeble avian cousins it swoops towards me looking to take me away to its nest to feed me piece by piece to its 7 foot tall newly hatched demon spawn pigeon babies. As it nearly rakes my face off like a John Deere wheat thresher it shoots back towards the sky as another larger Pigeon comes in obviously trying to claim me for its own. As the two 350.lb pigeons fight viscously in the sky cooing thunder deafening battle crys and destroying much of the fragile ecosystem with their rockets I slip away down the hill back to safety... unfortunatly my camera stopped working when they faught... must be some kind of Electro-magnetic pulse device they are equiped with. However I managed to get to safety and vowed to go back someday and rescuse the poor village children that were picked up and carried away the previous week.
A long day indeed, I patch my wounds and stitch myself up.... Tomorrow is the Disturbed Concert AND taco tuesday!
September 7
Today I've decided to snoop around a bit as the sun is out. Checking out what the Piha Beachstay is really about. This place markets itself as being "eco" so I tried to figure out how close to the truth it really is. Anything IS better then NOTHING but still there has to be some cut off point. SO the things that make it eco. For starters the thing I noticed right off the bat was the architecture. The entire roof pitches to the front of the house, all of the rain that hits the roof goes into gutters, the gutters go into a storage tank. Ok so the place collects rain water, always a big plus especially with the amount of rain we've been getting. Apparently Geoff built this place and the entire house uses only collected rain water.
The way the house is built also takes advantage of the sun's orientation. In the winter the sun sits lower and shines directly into the house passively heating. In the summer the sun is higher and does not shine into the house passively cooling. They also seem to take advantage of the cool breezes and relatively bug free days and have windows and doors open keeping things very well circulated.
The Beachstay also has close ties with the Waitakere Regional Council which provides recycling opprotunities as well as provides free native plants. The entire Piha community is very big on conservation efforts. The community is highly motivated to remove invasive plants and replace them with native species. Geoff also uses this as a chance to teach guests about the native plants and what makes the ecosystem unique. The community is also very close and very neighborly. The local hot spot is the RSA club it seems to be the community voice almost like a town hall where all the important issues take place.
All in all, Piha is a very closely knit community and is filled with very active and environmentally driven individuals. Eco-tourism has a large part in the development in this area as surfers and trampers (hikers) are the main kind of visitor. These visitors tend to leave a very small footprint and respect nature for what it is. This is all being combated by the normal sight seeing tourist, these kinds of people show far less respect for the surroundings (walking on dunes) and are ironically the ones who most get into trouble in the ocean.
The way the house is built also takes advantage of the sun's orientation. In the winter the sun sits lower and shines directly into the house passively heating. In the summer the sun is higher and does not shine into the house passively cooling. They also seem to take advantage of the cool breezes and relatively bug free days and have windows and doors open keeping things very well circulated.
The Beachstay also has close ties with the Waitakere Regional Council which provides recycling opprotunities as well as provides free native plants. The entire Piha community is very big on conservation efforts. The community is highly motivated to remove invasive plants and replace them with native species. Geoff also uses this as a chance to teach guests about the native plants and what makes the ecosystem unique. The community is also very close and very neighborly. The local hot spot is the RSA club it seems to be the community voice almost like a town hall where all the important issues take place.
All in all, Piha is a very closely knit community and is filled with very active and environmentally driven individuals. Eco-tourism has a large part in the development in this area as surfers and trampers (hikers) are the main kind of visitor. These visitors tend to leave a very small footprint and respect nature for what it is. This is all being combated by the normal sight seeing tourist, these kinds of people show far less respect for the surroundings (walking on dunes) and are ironically the ones who most get into trouble in the ocean.
September 6
Ughh another bad bad rainy day got a lot of reading done today. Also took notice to all of the posters and decorations in the house. A lot of maps that show trails, restricted areas, places with good views. There are also maps and posters showing the flood plains and warning horns that sound and where to go in emergency.
There is also a marker board showing the places that are open giving winter and summer hours. One in particular caught my eye "Blairs on the Beach- summer hours: early till ? and whenever the surf is good" hmm thats a cool way to run a business.
There is also a marker board showing the places that are open giving winter and summer hours. One in particular caught my eye "Blairs on the Beach- summer hours: early till ? and whenever the surf is good" hmm thats a cool way to run a business.
September 5
And I wake up to it raining... darn... plans ruined for today. Geoff says that the weather comes in really realy fast and will pour and then clear up sunny day and then boom start pouring again. Weather so close to the ocean is apparently very unpredictable even more so then being in Auckland as they have some time to see it all coming over land and the mountains tend to slow it or stop the rain. All of New Zealand has a mountain chain along the west coast that provides a blocker and tends to slow the speed of the clouds which produces the nickname "Land of the Long White Cloud". Anyways not too much to say today other the it is kind of cold but the fire is going and Whatitu is sleeping on my feet keeping them warm.
September 4
Today I was up early as I had to get out to Glen Eden Train Station and meet Geoff. I call a cab... he decides to drive past me so I called another company and then promptly come and get me with a nice little old man as a driver. Hopefully he can see out the front window and get me there. Why I didnt just take the train I dont know, it was either discomfort in the shadey looking train website or the fact I was strolling along with thousands of dollars worth of clothes, electronics, and cash. So took a cab he estimates it will be 50 dollars. Thats fine, about 45 dollars more then the train but I feel much more comfortable this way.
We arrive at the train station and it comes to 41.50. Cabby says he was off and $40 would be fine. Wow the whole rounding up and down thing here is slightly obnoxious but also works in my favor sometimes.
So waiting waiting imagining what kind of vehicle Geoff drives as Im watching traffic go by. Noticed a lot of young girls dressed as though they were at a Harry Potter convention. They all wear matching uniforms with labels showing their school logo which appears to be a shield with different colors and things on them.
Geoff arrives in his offroad looking Nissan Datsun. With a young guy in the passenger seat named Tom. So i hop into the backseat with Geoffs cat named Whatitu pronounced "footy" Maori name apparently. A lot of things are actually both in English and Maori which is pretty cool. The Maori really faught to be here after colonialization and are still a dominating factor in almost all of the decisions in NZ. Can only imagine what it would be like if the North American Indians all faught as hard, their would be Indian names for everything... I mean they have county names and stuff but imagine if route 81 was called Tunganunga path or something cool like that but then it would change when it left and entered other tribe territories.
Before we head to Piha we head over to Henderson the largest city in proximity to Piha. So i head into the grocery store with Tom and he kind of guides me around. He has traveled all over the world and works as a "WOOFer" (Worker On Organic Farms) to get money to travel to a new place. He seems accustom to going to places and not understanding the local foods or traditions so he helps me out a bit. He says that the meat here is "not so good", I tell him about Subway meat and he agrees it is much better in the USA. He is also a huge fan of Jared.... why Jared is such a respected icon world wide I will never know. But I found myself having difficulty because there are not familiar brand names here... duh i think to myself why would there be Ballpark Franks when they dont even have baseball here. gawd. I try to get my fruits as well as vegetables trying to make a healthy and precarious balance of nutrition... and then go get pasta and canned sauce as well as bread and peanut butter... not being able to find JIF like the choosey mom I am makes me upset... also no Peter Pan... or anything else familiar to me I grab "HomeBrand crunchy peanut spread" ughh..
We finally drive out and get to Piha. I got to explore the Beachstay a little bit more. Its like a bed and breakfast mixed with a backpacker. $30 a night for the normal rooms pricier for the bigger beds or private rooms. About 10 rooms in total with 1 larger bunk room which is where I am staying for the time being. Alan (crazy old guy) is staying in this area with me as well as a guest. There is also a kid about my age named Tom Daily from the Czech Republic who is really cool and nice to talk to. The Beachstay has a large common room with a big fireplace plenty of couches and seating a big wrap around kitchen and a wall made of windows facing the volcanic mountains. Good time to note that all of Piha is inside of a volcanic crater once New Zealands largest volcanos but erroded away leaving a large valley surrounded by very steep volcano cone/mountains.
Today took a bit of a toll on me so Im going to call it an early night as I have big plans for exploring more places tomorrow!
We arrive at the train station and it comes to 41.50. Cabby says he was off and $40 would be fine. Wow the whole rounding up and down thing here is slightly obnoxious but also works in my favor sometimes.
So waiting waiting imagining what kind of vehicle Geoff drives as Im watching traffic go by. Noticed a lot of young girls dressed as though they were at a Harry Potter convention. They all wear matching uniforms with labels showing their school logo which appears to be a shield with different colors and things on them.
Geoff arrives in his offroad looking Nissan Datsun. With a young guy in the passenger seat named Tom. So i hop into the backseat with Geoffs cat named Whatitu pronounced "footy" Maori name apparently. A lot of things are actually both in English and Maori which is pretty cool. The Maori really faught to be here after colonialization and are still a dominating factor in almost all of the decisions in NZ. Can only imagine what it would be like if the North American Indians all faught as hard, their would be Indian names for everything... I mean they have county names and stuff but imagine if route 81 was called Tunganunga path or something cool like that but then it would change when it left and entered other tribe territories.
Before we head to Piha we head over to Henderson the largest city in proximity to Piha. So i head into the grocery store with Tom and he kind of guides me around. He has traveled all over the world and works as a "WOOFer" (Worker On Organic Farms) to get money to travel to a new place. He seems accustom to going to places and not understanding the local foods or traditions so he helps me out a bit. He says that the meat here is "not so good", I tell him about Subway meat and he agrees it is much better in the USA. He is also a huge fan of Jared.... why Jared is such a respected icon world wide I will never know. But I found myself having difficulty because there are not familiar brand names here... duh i think to myself why would there be Ballpark Franks when they dont even have baseball here. gawd. I try to get my fruits as well as vegetables trying to make a healthy and precarious balance of nutrition... and then go get pasta and canned sauce as well as bread and peanut butter... not being able to find JIF like the choosey mom I am makes me upset... also no Peter Pan... or anything else familiar to me I grab "HomeBrand crunchy peanut spread" ughh..
We finally drive out and get to Piha. I got to explore the Beachstay a little bit more. Its like a bed and breakfast mixed with a backpacker. $30 a night for the normal rooms pricier for the bigger beds or private rooms. About 10 rooms in total with 1 larger bunk room which is where I am staying for the time being. Alan (crazy old guy) is staying in this area with me as well as a guest. There is also a kid about my age named Tom Daily from the Czech Republic who is really cool and nice to talk to. The Beachstay has a large common room with a big fireplace plenty of couches and seating a big wrap around kitchen and a wall made of windows facing the volcanic mountains. Good time to note that all of Piha is inside of a volcanic crater once New Zealands largest volcanos but erroded away leaving a large valley surrounded by very steep volcano cone/mountains.
Today took a bit of a toll on me so Im going to call it an early night as I have big plans for exploring more places tomorrow!
September 3
Getting sick of the crappiest internet available in the entire city that is "Global Gossip Network" from Base Backpacker. I decide to head into the city in the morning for some breakfast and some internet at a cafe. Strolling down the street I spot "Esquire Coffee buy something and get 1 hour wireless internet" ... sweet. I of course cant find the door as the entire store front is made out of glass and the panes all look like doors... doing this someone is waving at me... how random it is to find the two girls is beyond me but they point to the door and I walk in. I first order myself a nice chocolate chip muffin and get my internet yum to both.
Apparently they are staying at the hotel Katy was in its just the lady at the front counter is a complete moron. They also did not bother to get online for their first day and never told anyone they arrived or where they were staying. But found them chatted a bit and pointed them to a couple of different real estate places and they were on their way.
I headed down towards the Viaduct once more and checked out one of the plazas there. Lots of detail going on in this small space, seems to be a decent place to put on a concert or small play although it seemed strange to me that nobody is really using this space. It is a little out of the way of all the bars and cafes and more towards the expensive apartment buildings are. Maybe it isnt used because of that but any LA would see this as a great, very well designed, just maybe in the wrong place or bad pedestrian access to it. In either case the place was really neat with a big sculpture that I have no idea what it was but the wind swung it around and was quite cool looking. Also the boats in this area are big to point where Billy Fuccillo would pass out be their sheer size. These boats were all private yachts but they needed crews of about 20 to actually get them moving. Some had sails, some had other 30' boats hanging off the back like saying "yah this is my small boat what of it... not compensating for anything" and even some with helicopter pads on them so they can have family and friends over when they are 60 miles of shore.... yeah
That night went a bar called The Albion that had free sausage sizzles. Went over had myself a sizzle and a Lion Red and watched the most embarassing rugby game with the All Blacks versus Samoa..... score ended with something like 8 bajillion All Blacks to 3 Samoa... was like watching the New England Patriots take on CNYs Clay Panthers. Humiliating
Apparently they are staying at the hotel Katy was in its just the lady at the front counter is a complete moron. They also did not bother to get online for their first day and never told anyone they arrived or where they were staying. But found them chatted a bit and pointed them to a couple of different real estate places and they were on their way.
I headed down towards the Viaduct once more and checked out one of the plazas there. Lots of detail going on in this small space, seems to be a decent place to put on a concert or small play although it seemed strange to me that nobody is really using this space. It is a little out of the way of all the bars and cafes and more towards the expensive apartment buildings are. Maybe it isnt used because of that but any LA would see this as a great, very well designed, just maybe in the wrong place or bad pedestrian access to it. In either case the place was really neat with a big sculpture that I have no idea what it was but the wind swung it around and was quite cool looking. Also the boats in this area are big to point where Billy Fuccillo would pass out be their sheer size. These boats were all private yachts but they needed crews of about 20 to actually get them moving. Some had sails, some had other 30' boats hanging off the back like saying "yah this is my small boat what of it... not compensating for anything" and even some with helicopter pads on them so they can have family and friends over when they are 60 miles of shore.... yeah
That night went a bar called The Albion that had free sausage sizzles. Went over had myself a sizzle and a Lion Red and watched the most embarassing rugby game with the All Blacks versus Samoa..... score ended with something like 8 bajillion All Blacks to 3 Samoa... was like watching the New England Patriots take on CNYs Clay Panthers. Humiliating
September 2
So today is the day Karlie and Amber are supposed to arrive, Katy and I figured we would meet them and show them around a bit... Problem being nobody told us where they would be. So after leaving the Brown Kiwi and saying goodbye to all the nice people who are of lower status then I am because they are "Not-American" (darn commies). We call a cab and order the most useless driver... luckily they did send him as he opens the trunk and watches Katy struggle to lift her bag and put it in... thanks bud.
We drive to the Auckland Base Backpacker get rooms and head out to the hotel Katy stayed at. We ask if the two girls were there so we checked my hotel they said no too.... okay enough of looking for the day lets get lunch! We head down to the Viaduct (Armory Square on the water) and I get a icecream sandwich and a powerade... awesome combo ftw! We sit at the boat docking area and chat for a while watching creepy people feeding the pigeons, which by the way are some of the most diformed things I have ever witnessed. 1 leg, 2 leg, 7 toes, no toes just stumps, 3 legs.... alright I made the last one up but you can understand. They all seem to have gotten roughed up pretty good, wheither there is an underground network of pigeon fighting or these pigeons just suck at landing I do not know but I will investigate and find out.
We ended up staying for a while and finally went to eat at Mexi-Cali for Taco Tuesday... awesome just plain old awesome. 2 tacos and a huge taco salad later I'm content with the world and ready for sleepy time.. YA! But alas we get an email from Scott our advisor that the girls are MIA and nobody knows where they are.... ugh
We drive to the Auckland Base Backpacker get rooms and head out to the hotel Katy stayed at. We ask if the two girls were there so we checked my hotel they said no too.... okay enough of looking for the day lets get lunch! We head down to the Viaduct (Armory Square on the water) and I get a icecream sandwich and a powerade... awesome combo ftw! We sit at the boat docking area and chat for a while watching creepy people feeding the pigeons, which by the way are some of the most diformed things I have ever witnessed. 1 leg, 2 leg, 7 toes, no toes just stumps, 3 legs.... alright I made the last one up but you can understand. They all seem to have gotten roughed up pretty good, wheither there is an underground network of pigeon fighting or these pigeons just suck at landing I do not know but I will investigate and find out.
We ended up staying for a while and finally went to eat at Mexi-Cali for Taco Tuesday... awesome just plain old awesome. 2 tacos and a huge taco salad later I'm content with the world and ready for sleepy time.. YA! But alas we get an email from Scott our advisor that the girls are MIA and nobody knows where they are.... ugh
September 1
So the night before I called a man named Peter from the Piha Surf Shuttle website. I say yes 2 people at 10:30. Perfect, cheers mate! So I wake up to Katy coming into the room saying "Diablo, the guy is here." "What time is it?" "9:30"........ So I roll off the top bunk put my bandana on and stroll out the door still blinking from being so unexpectedly woken up. Peter Gillespie is his name, random facts is his game. On the drive down to Piha he tells us all sorts of interesting things about New Zealand.
Interesting Fact 1: NZ doesnt have 4-way stops, they have round-abouts..... cool
Plant Fact 2: The Manuka and Kanuka plants are similar but Manuka is used similarly as aloe vera, and produces a unique sweet smell, bees that pollinate it make Manuka Honey... awesome will have to get some Manuka Honey
Awesome but kind of Scary Fact 3: Piha Beach has its own tv program "Piha Beach Rescue" about the lifeguards... almost like a Cops/Baywatch and Piha is the most popular beach and has the most drownings in New Zealand.... neat.... hmmm
Slightly Racist Fact 4: Asians don't care about the environment and destroy all the wildlife and are the reason for all the fishing bans.... okay?....
Really Racist Fact 5: Asians drown the most cuz they cant swim... and their bodies dont float back to surface and onto the beach. You know what they say... asians dont float..... ok now im uncomfortable.
The drive is crazy as Peter is racing through the backroads of Waitakere Ranges and on the wrong side of the road no less. Roads are extremely small and extra sharp turns. Totally wish I had my car as this road would be such a blast to bomb around corners. The Ranges are huge and it a complete change of scenery from the conrete jungle that is Auckland City and the sprawling suburbs surrounding it.
Finally make it to Piha Beach and the view is astounding. And the word astounding doesnt even match what it actually is so bare with me here. It is like looking at a painting and saying, "wow I wish that place were real, cuz i'd go there." Its like watching a movie where they pan back and you can tell its all Computer Generated but then have second guesses as you see a person waving at the helicopter camera... Words and pictures do not have any way of capturing how amazingly beautiful it is. And this is just on the drive in.
We drive on down the road Peter pointing out the little quirks of the place on the way and the surf shops, club houses, and little grocery store. We head down the road further and goto the Piha Beach Stay where Geoff lives (The guy I will be staying with) and there is a note that states he is gone and will be back at 4:30. Okay cool we will just wander around a bit till then. Peter drives us to the Grocery Store and heads back to the city.
The grocery store is really small and less groceries and more like a couple refigerated counters with various sandwiches made from local gardens and fish. I grab a ham sandwich and a brownie as well as a chocolate milk. After Katy and I get some food we walk out the door across the Piha Domain (large field for gatherings and field day type stuff with a playground). At the end of the Domain is a small concrete bridge that goes over a freshwater stream that meets the ocean. The bridge looks fairly new construction, their are cute surfboard shaped metal details embedded into the path as well as what could be kelp or eels of the same material. The handrail appears to be made of Cor-10 steel for a rusty orange look that really gives the bridge some character. So the bridge goes over and goes between some dunes as a wood plank boardwalk. Then up and over a dune with black sand.
I have always HEARD of black sand beaches and many places advertise... luxiourious spas and black sand beaches...ooo waving their fingers about magically. As if the term black sand means its like normal sand but it is way better... you walk on normal sand... you romance your feet in black sand. My feet were indeed in needing of some romance so off came the shoes and my feet made love to the black sand...ooo (insert magic finger motion) On closer inspection the sand was indeed mostly black, there seem to be shiny flecks (possibly shells) and what I guess is a normal sand mixed in. It does have a very shiny quality to it. There are also tons of sea shells scattered all along the beach... Not being used to this as most of the beaches I have been to are in LA or FL in both cases the shells are picked clean and the only thing remaining is shell fragments... or broken bottles that look like shells. There is quite a variety of shells to be had. There are little white spiral ones, white thin mussel looking shells, multiple colored pointy ones, sand dollars, conch shells, clam looking shells, and green lipped mussel shells. Another thing to be noted seagulls here are either small with red beak and legs or enormous and yellow features.
Never got to meet Geoff but Peter came to pick us up and we headed back to the Brown Kiwi. That night I ate some beef thing and mashed potatos from a Chinese place... not bad but stick to the rice please. Talked with the UK kid again about the snow watched some of the old version of hitchhikers guide to the galaxy and then off to bed.
Interesting Fact 1: NZ doesnt have 4-way stops, they have round-abouts..... cool
Plant Fact 2: The Manuka and Kanuka plants are similar but Manuka is used similarly as aloe vera, and produces a unique sweet smell, bees that pollinate it make Manuka Honey... awesome will have to get some Manuka Honey
Awesome but kind of Scary Fact 3: Piha Beach has its own tv program "Piha Beach Rescue" about the lifeguards... almost like a Cops/Baywatch and Piha is the most popular beach and has the most drownings in New Zealand.... neat.... hmmm
Slightly Racist Fact 4: Asians don't care about the environment and destroy all the wildlife and are the reason for all the fishing bans.... okay?....
Really Racist Fact 5: Asians drown the most cuz they cant swim... and their bodies dont float back to surface and onto the beach. You know what they say... asians dont float..... ok now im uncomfortable.
The drive is crazy as Peter is racing through the backroads of Waitakere Ranges and on the wrong side of the road no less. Roads are extremely small and extra sharp turns. Totally wish I had my car as this road would be such a blast to bomb around corners. The Ranges are huge and it a complete change of scenery from the conrete jungle that is Auckland City and the sprawling suburbs surrounding it.
Finally make it to Piha Beach and the view is astounding. And the word astounding doesnt even match what it actually is so bare with me here. It is like looking at a painting and saying, "wow I wish that place were real, cuz i'd go there." Its like watching a movie where they pan back and you can tell its all Computer Generated but then have second guesses as you see a person waving at the helicopter camera... Words and pictures do not have any way of capturing how amazingly beautiful it is. And this is just on the drive in.
We drive on down the road Peter pointing out the little quirks of the place on the way and the surf shops, club houses, and little grocery store. We head down the road further and goto the Piha Beach Stay where Geoff lives (The guy I will be staying with) and there is a note that states he is gone and will be back at 4:30. Okay cool we will just wander around a bit till then. Peter drives us to the Grocery Store and heads back to the city.
The grocery store is really small and less groceries and more like a couple refigerated counters with various sandwiches made from local gardens and fish. I grab a ham sandwich and a brownie as well as a chocolate milk. After Katy and I get some food we walk out the door across the Piha Domain (large field for gatherings and field day type stuff with a playground). At the end of the Domain is a small concrete bridge that goes over a freshwater stream that meets the ocean. The bridge looks fairly new construction, their are cute surfboard shaped metal details embedded into the path as well as what could be kelp or eels of the same material. The handrail appears to be made of Cor-10 steel for a rusty orange look that really gives the bridge some character. So the bridge goes over and goes between some dunes as a wood plank boardwalk. Then up and over a dune with black sand.
I have always HEARD of black sand beaches and many places advertise... luxiourious spas and black sand beaches...ooo waving their fingers about magically. As if the term black sand means its like normal sand but it is way better... you walk on normal sand... you romance your feet in black sand. My feet were indeed in needing of some romance so off came the shoes and my feet made love to the black sand...ooo (insert magic finger motion) On closer inspection the sand was indeed mostly black, there seem to be shiny flecks (possibly shells) and what I guess is a normal sand mixed in. It does have a very shiny quality to it. There are also tons of sea shells scattered all along the beach... Not being used to this as most of the beaches I have been to are in LA or FL in both cases the shells are picked clean and the only thing remaining is shell fragments... or broken bottles that look like shells. There is quite a variety of shells to be had. There are little white spiral ones, white thin mussel looking shells, multiple colored pointy ones, sand dollars, conch shells, clam looking shells, and green lipped mussel shells. Another thing to be noted seagulls here are either small with red beak and legs or enormous and yellow features.
Never got to meet Geoff but Peter came to pick us up and we headed back to the Brown Kiwi. That night I ate some beef thing and mashed potatos from a Chinese place... not bad but stick to the rice please. Talked with the UK kid again about the snow watched some of the old version of hitchhikers guide to the galaxy and then off to bed.
August 31
So Katy and I were both due out of our hotels at 11:00 we decided we should try somewhere out of the city for a bit as both of us are very discouraged and dissappointed with this whole finding a place to live thing. Katy finds a hostel out in Ponsonby, which is a suburb to the west of the city and is also where the MOTAT (Musuem of Transportation and Technology) and the Auckland Zoo. We decide it would be a good idea to just take a deep breath and check out the zoo, get our minds off the city for a bit.
We get to the Brown Kiwi and its a cute little house filled to the brim with kids about 20-25 years old from all over the world. Meeting these people were definetly a priority for me as I found this to be overwealmingly neat. We decide to walk to the zoo and then come back for dinner. It seems that everyone in NZ LOVES giving directions but none of them are too keen on the correct ones. After getting directions from many kiwis we goto the MOTAT and ask the guy at the front desk he says hop onto the tram and it will take you there. We do as he says and hop onto what he called a tram, but I obviously misunderstood as a New Zealand "tram" is actually an oversized train they have in the mall around Christmas time for kids age 1-5. Very rickety but the inner child in me actually enjoyed it quite a bit. The tram chugs along for quite a while and comes to a stop at the zoo entrance... needless to say we were way off with our directions.
So the zoo, it was rather small but I thought it was quite impressive, many of the animals were active and seemed healthy and happy. We went into Darwin's Cafe for something to eat, I got myself prepackaged egg salad sandwiches and a giant orange slushy, Katy got fries, a fruit cup, and a beer...? Yes they serve alcohol at the zoo, which was frightening enough. They also served champagne and hard liquor. So back to the zoo, the sea otters were very cute, they were chasing the sparrows that would land in the pen, very playful and entertaining to watch. Also got to see my first tuatara (looked like a bearded dragon to me) and my first kiwi bird ( which was actually cute but much bigger then i thought). Onwards, a Giant Tortoise was indeed a giant much much bigger then i expected. Walking through I realized that much of the zoo is integrated into what seems to be natural topography. In other words the place was not levels first and then built upon. It also included a lot of natural plants and very open enclosures, seemingly nothing containing the animals at all, which was a cool feature. The aquarium was closed and would be until 2012... maybe revisit then? The hippos were jumping in and out of the water and splashing and playing, never knew they could be so happy. Skipped thru the monkeys as they are not very interesting straight to the penguins and sea lions. Obviously not in the same enclosure but same theme. The sea lions must be hungry as they are all standing/sitting? in front of the trainers door. The blue penguins were not only cute but were pocket sized, they were SOOO tiny, they however looked cold... which seems ridiculous but there you have it.
One of the neat parts of the zoo was how they have a savannah exhibit quite like what you would expect from zoo tycoon. Ostriches, Zebras, Girafes, Springbox, Rhinos. The springbox were great as they looked like skateborders jumping over ramps and chasing each other jumping around. Even better was the fact that the lion area overlooked the savannah area and the lions were all watching the springbox jumping with hungry eyes... Just staring and staring.. seemed like the idea was "king of the jungle" has a big rock where they overlook the rest of its domain, very King Louis 14th... very Lion King... however I dont think the designer realized how much of a tease this view would be for the lions.
So we leave the zoo and get back to the Brown Kiwi hostel. Time to find some food and eat with these people. Went to little cafe and got a cajun chicken sandwich, Katy got Satay Chicken. Brought it back to the hostel and started talking at the kitchen table. Germans, Australians, French, Chinese, Tahitian, Irish and the UK. Talked to the UK guy the most as he seemed the most interested and most willing to talk, he was amazed by the amount of snow we got in the blizzard. On the wall I noticed a map of the world and I caught a glimpse of cut marks that made an "x" over the USA.... I think that people are a bit intimidated by Americans but at the same time once WE started talking to them and getting a dialogue going, they seemed to realize oh maybe their not all alike. Stereotypes are pretty amazing but they usually have some truth to them as thats how they come about. The Germans were a bit loud and rowdy, the French guy knew how to cook, the chinese girls stuck to their own and pointed and laughed at everything, the australian girls were all over the males, the UK guy drank tea and the Irish guy drank beer... The americans got food from other cultures, were outgoing and willing to break some social and cultural boundaries and in the end thought themselves to be better then the rest..... The world in a nut shell I suppose.
That night I read a bit fell asleep and woke up to one of the Germans snoring like a wildebeast. Bad sleep goodnight tho. Big day tomorrow as Katy and I visit Piha Beach
We get to the Brown Kiwi and its a cute little house filled to the brim with kids about 20-25 years old from all over the world. Meeting these people were definetly a priority for me as I found this to be overwealmingly neat. We decide to walk to the zoo and then come back for dinner. It seems that everyone in NZ LOVES giving directions but none of them are too keen on the correct ones. After getting directions from many kiwis we goto the MOTAT and ask the guy at the front desk he says hop onto the tram and it will take you there. We do as he says and hop onto what he called a tram, but I obviously misunderstood as a New Zealand "tram" is actually an oversized train they have in the mall around Christmas time for kids age 1-5. Very rickety but the inner child in me actually enjoyed it quite a bit. The tram chugs along for quite a while and comes to a stop at the zoo entrance... needless to say we were way off with our directions.
So the zoo, it was rather small but I thought it was quite impressive, many of the animals were active and seemed healthy and happy. We went into Darwin's Cafe for something to eat, I got myself prepackaged egg salad sandwiches and a giant orange slushy, Katy got fries, a fruit cup, and a beer...? Yes they serve alcohol at the zoo, which was frightening enough. They also served champagne and hard liquor. So back to the zoo, the sea otters were very cute, they were chasing the sparrows that would land in the pen, very playful and entertaining to watch. Also got to see my first tuatara (looked like a bearded dragon to me) and my first kiwi bird ( which was actually cute but much bigger then i thought). Onwards, a Giant Tortoise was indeed a giant much much bigger then i expected. Walking through I realized that much of the zoo is integrated into what seems to be natural topography. In other words the place was not levels first and then built upon. It also included a lot of natural plants and very open enclosures, seemingly nothing containing the animals at all, which was a cool feature. The aquarium was closed and would be until 2012... maybe revisit then? The hippos were jumping in and out of the water and splashing and playing, never knew they could be so happy. Skipped thru the monkeys as they are not very interesting straight to the penguins and sea lions. Obviously not in the same enclosure but same theme. The sea lions must be hungry as they are all standing/sitting? in front of the trainers door. The blue penguins were not only cute but were pocket sized, they were SOOO tiny, they however looked cold... which seems ridiculous but there you have it.
One of the neat parts of the zoo was how they have a savannah exhibit quite like what you would expect from zoo tycoon. Ostriches, Zebras, Girafes, Springbox, Rhinos. The springbox were great as they looked like skateborders jumping over ramps and chasing each other jumping around. Even better was the fact that the lion area overlooked the savannah area and the lions were all watching the springbox jumping with hungry eyes... Just staring and staring.. seemed like the idea was "king of the jungle" has a big rock where they overlook the rest of its domain, very King Louis 14th... very Lion King... however I dont think the designer realized how much of a tease this view would be for the lions.
So we leave the zoo and get back to the Brown Kiwi hostel. Time to find some food and eat with these people. Went to little cafe and got a cajun chicken sandwich, Katy got Satay Chicken. Brought it back to the hostel and started talking at the kitchen table. Germans, Australians, French, Chinese, Tahitian, Irish and the UK. Talked to the UK guy the most as he seemed the most interested and most willing to talk, he was amazed by the amount of snow we got in the blizzard. On the wall I noticed a map of the world and I caught a glimpse of cut marks that made an "x" over the USA.... I think that people are a bit intimidated by Americans but at the same time once WE started talking to them and getting a dialogue going, they seemed to realize oh maybe their not all alike. Stereotypes are pretty amazing but they usually have some truth to them as thats how they come about. The Germans were a bit loud and rowdy, the French guy knew how to cook, the chinese girls stuck to their own and pointed and laughed at everything, the australian girls were all over the males, the UK guy drank tea and the Irish guy drank beer... The americans got food from other cultures, were outgoing and willing to break some social and cultural boundaries and in the end thought themselves to be better then the rest..... The world in a nut shell I suppose.
That night I read a bit fell asleep and woke up to one of the Germans snoring like a wildebeast. Bad sleep goodnight tho. Big day tomorrow as Katy and I visit Piha Beach
August 30
Today Katy and I went down to the real estate place canceled, I got my money back but Katy ended up losing 600 NZ dollars to get out of the contract. Could have been much worse so I think we got off lucky. So went back to the hotel to recollect info on places to check except for 1 room studios instead. Went out into the city with dissapointment once again. At the end of the day Katy and I talked and neither of us got anywhere with places to rent... at this point I feel like the tires are spinning but I'm just sinking into the mud. Bad day brought to another bad end
August 29
ANOTHER day of disappointments but found a good real estate place. They told us about a place down towards the ocean available. Winson drove us down there and sang his own song of "where is there a parking spot, oh where am I going to park this car." He could speak some english but it was obvious that he was not fluent. I asked him what he does for fun? He replied my job? haha nice kid tho. Anyways Katy and I signed for the apartment in the center city and Katy immedieatly had regrets so the plan was for the next day to try and cancel. Long day again, looked good and was great thinking we had a place to settle into but then realized that wasnt going to happen.
August 28
Long long day, looked all over the city today with Katy for apartments. Lot of crummy looking places today. 1 amazing place on Symonds street that was in the price range but would not do 4 month rentals only 6 month. Major blow to the apartment finding fiasco.
August 27
I read quite a bit of my eco-tourism books today, felt rather accomplished, I still need to write an outline for each of the readings but after going through the books I think finding the important parts may be easier. I sent emails out to Rod Barnett from Unitec, he seems rather unhelpful, or rather he just doesnt seem to interested in helping. It could be that he was not ready for people to start asking him questions so early. I also send an email to John Edgar, President of the Waitakere Ranges Protection Society. He replied back fast, possibly an auto response, that he would be out until next week and try sending him a message or calling him then.
I had a meeting with Phil Patton today from IBM. Told me to meet him at O'Hagens Irish Pub on the Viaduct at 5:30.... I went down early to walk around a bit and have a look around. I spotted a guy looking around, I approached him and his name was Euwen... wrong guy. So I decided to sit at the bar and have a drink. The bar tender was real nice she seemed interested in where I was from and what I was up to. I ordered a Kilkenny, very smooth, very good, would definetly order one again. I sat down and 10 minutes later Phil came and grabbed me and told me there was a client he didnt want to deal with. So we went down the street a bit and walked into what looked like a spacestation, called Soul.... the name seemed ironic to me... the contemporary/futuristic look felt very soulless and cold.
Phil was quite helpful tho. He made me feel comfortable and was really friendly. A very genuine, and good hearted person. He told me all about different places to look for apartments, gave me a name of a real estate place, and even told me if they asked for a reference I could use him as one. Also let me know that I should contact the Regional Council as they are the major care takers of Waitakere Ranges, also let me know how to pronounce Waitakere. He also said it may be possible to get a meeting with the head of the Department of Conservation here and some Council of Tourism which would be PERFECT. Also, on a side note had my first New Zealand beer. Speights Gold Ale... nice. So lots of good stuff and plan on a busy day tomorrow, going to bed watching another rugby game and still just as confused as the first time as how the game works.
I had a meeting with Phil Patton today from IBM. Told me to meet him at O'Hagens Irish Pub on the Viaduct at 5:30.... I went down early to walk around a bit and have a look around. I spotted a guy looking around, I approached him and his name was Euwen... wrong guy. So I decided to sit at the bar and have a drink. The bar tender was real nice she seemed interested in where I was from and what I was up to. I ordered a Kilkenny, very smooth, very good, would definetly order one again. I sat down and 10 minutes later Phil came and grabbed me and told me there was a client he didnt want to deal with. So we went down the street a bit and walked into what looked like a spacestation, called Soul.... the name seemed ironic to me... the contemporary/futuristic look felt very soulless and cold.
Phil was quite helpful tho. He made me feel comfortable and was really friendly. A very genuine, and good hearted person. He told me all about different places to look for apartments, gave me a name of a real estate place, and even told me if they asked for a reference I could use him as one. Also let me know that I should contact the Regional Council as they are the major care takers of Waitakere Ranges, also let me know how to pronounce Waitakere. He also said it may be possible to get a meeting with the head of the Department of Conservation here and some Council of Tourism which would be PERFECT. Also, on a side note had my first New Zealand beer. Speights Gold Ale... nice. So lots of good stuff and plan on a busy day tomorrow, going to bed watching another rugby game and still just as confused as the first time as how the game works.
August 26
So Katy arrived today, she tells me her hotel is on Hobson Street. Hobson is parallel with my street so I head all the way down mine cut over and start walking up Hobson Street back towards my hotel, looking for Auckland City Hotel. I end up finding it and simultaneously realize that it is kiddy corner to my hotel, nice long walk though. Was nice to see someone I recognize for once and they meeting starts out with good hopes when I hear, "Diabloooo!"
Katy has the same feeling that I did when I arrived about the city, so I decide to show her around the places that I felt helped me feel a bit better about choosing Auckland. We walk through Albert Park and she is amazed by the size of the trees just as I was. We walked through the college campus and down to Auckland Domain which is the largest of the city parks.
Todays weather has been perfect, quite a bit warmer then the past week, the view at the top of the museum is quite amazing. You can see most of the city, across the bay to Devonport, past that to Rangitoto and further out to Great Barrier Islands. As well as the ever present Sky Tower.
The Museum was actually really nice, seemed small at first but it realy opened up on the inside. As soon as you walk in its very dark with Maori houses and paintings adorning the walls. All of their art, tools, clothes, and everything else seemed to have either teeth or shells incorperated into them. Was strange but at the same time beautiful and different. Also explained a lot about the culture such as the tattoos, they are family symbols. Each family would have the same markings and it was considered an honor to be branded. People who come to NZ and get Maori tattoos from local shops are highly frowned on and is considered disrespectful. Ironically, back home guys wearing tribal tattoos are frowned upon... not because they are disrespectful but because they are deutschebags.
Went to Pizza Hutt for dinner, ordered a Mexican Pizza with Garlic Bread.... wow not very good at all, went to Dennys for an oreo milkshake and made everything better. Long day ending quite nice.
Katy has the same feeling that I did when I arrived about the city, so I decide to show her around the places that I felt helped me feel a bit better about choosing Auckland. We walk through Albert Park and she is amazed by the size of the trees just as I was. We walked through the college campus and down to Auckland Domain which is the largest of the city parks.
Todays weather has been perfect, quite a bit warmer then the past week, the view at the top of the museum is quite amazing. You can see most of the city, across the bay to Devonport, past that to Rangitoto and further out to Great Barrier Islands. As well as the ever present Sky Tower.
The Museum was actually really nice, seemed small at first but it realy opened up on the inside. As soon as you walk in its very dark with Maori houses and paintings adorning the walls. All of their art, tools, clothes, and everything else seemed to have either teeth or shells incorperated into them. Was strange but at the same time beautiful and different. Also explained a lot about the culture such as the tattoos, they are family symbols. Each family would have the same markings and it was considered an honor to be branded. People who come to NZ and get Maori tattoos from local shops are highly frowned on and is considered disrespectful. Ironically, back home guys wearing tribal tattoos are frowned upon... not because they are disrespectful but because they are deutschebags.
Went to Pizza Hutt for dinner, ordered a Mexican Pizza with Garlic Bread.... wow not very good at all, went to Dennys for an oreo milkshake and made everything better. Long day ending quite nice.
August 25
Today was a bit of a waste, it poured all day long and when I say poured I mean hurricane style rain. It was like a tropical monsoon that decided to unleash on Auckland. In either case I had checked my electronics and sure enough all of them except my phone was capable of converting 220v to 110v, now I only needed an adapter. $15 dollars later everything is charging and I feel much more comfortable about this whole ordeal.
On this day I also went down to the front desk and asked to stay until friday Mr. Trainee said everything was taken care of so I went back upstairs and made a little itenirary for the next day when Katy arrives.
Everything is fully charged and ready to go but with so much rain I decided it would be better off spent inside learning about New Zealand culture on the television. I watched a rugby game the Springbok versus the Wallabys... what masculine names for such a odd sport. This is basically how an entire rugby game goes:
Ref says "Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage" and then burly men in tight clothes manhandle each other while a rugby ball rolls about the field until someone decides thats enough foreplay and picks it up. They toss it backwards get tackled, grope one another, and then repeat for 6 tackles, then the they repeat the whole thing again for the other teams possession. Why this sport is popular I have no clue. Sure it is non-stop action but I guess if your into that sweaty manhandling thing then by all means watch to your hearts content.
Also watched a movie called "Vacancy" about a couple whos car breaks down goto a motel and realize there are cameras everywhere that videotape people being murdered by the hotel owners.... prolly not the best movie for me to watch while I'm in a hotel. I thouroughly check all possible places for video cameras and nervously fall asleep.
On this day I also went down to the front desk and asked to stay until friday Mr. Trainee said everything was taken care of so I went back upstairs and made a little itenirary for the next day when Katy arrives.
Everything is fully charged and ready to go but with so much rain I decided it would be better off spent inside learning about New Zealand culture on the television. I watched a rugby game the Springbok versus the Wallabys... what masculine names for such a odd sport. This is basically how an entire rugby game goes:
Ref says "Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage" and then burly men in tight clothes manhandle each other while a rugby ball rolls about the field until someone decides thats enough foreplay and picks it up. They toss it backwards get tackled, grope one another, and then repeat for 6 tackles, then the they repeat the whole thing again for the other teams possession. Why this sport is popular I have no clue. Sure it is non-stop action but I guess if your into that sweaty manhandling thing then by all means watch to your hearts content.
Also watched a movie called "Vacancy" about a couple whos car breaks down goto a motel and realize there are cameras everywhere that videotape people being murdered by the hotel owners.... prolly not the best movie for me to watch while I'm in a hotel. I thouroughly check all possible places for video cameras and nervously fall asleep.
August 24
Well todays mission is to go out and find an adapter, I decided to walk over to Albert Park first and then swing back into the city onto Queen Street to find something.
Albert Park brought back the glimmer of excitement and wonder back into me as the disappointed of yesterday really sucked the joy out of me.
I walked quietly past a group of old people doing yoga early in the morning, I thought, that is pretty cool, very peaceful place to stretch and keep active right in the middle of the city. The park seems very well laid out, on top of a bit of a hill and gets you above the noise of the cars. The main promenade has a large gazebo that resembles a Japanese pagoda. Sort of detracts a bit of character and seems out of place. A really neat thing I noticed was the giant trees (later learned to be Kaori Trees) are enormous. They are huge trunked trees but are very squat and short. These have to be the largest trees I have ever seen including all the trees in the cemetary at school. Also noted that at this point I have never seen ANY of these trees or plants before, very out of my element in Albert Park as things look like they could be related to things at home but I just cant put my finger on it.
After a while I wander down the road a bit finding that many of these large trees hang right over the road and have very little vertical clearance for cars or pedestrians. Wondering if its because these trees are historic and worth keeping even in an inconvient state. Also it seems NZ is not as concerned with liabilities such as low clearance or unsafe slopes and stairs. No ADA rules here.
I scour all of Queen Street and realize that nobody really understands what I need except one camera store, he tells me I dont need a converter but just the adapter depending on what things are going to be used. He tells me to head back to the hotel and check the cords of my cameras, psp, laptop and look to see if they have built in converters. So this is what I did, head back to my hotel with a whopper, fries, L&P soda, and 2 packets of ketchup
Albert Park brought back the glimmer of excitement and wonder back into me as the disappointed of yesterday really sucked the joy out of me.
I walked quietly past a group of old people doing yoga early in the morning, I thought, that is pretty cool, very peaceful place to stretch and keep active right in the middle of the city. The park seems very well laid out, on top of a bit of a hill and gets you above the noise of the cars. The main promenade has a large gazebo that resembles a Japanese pagoda. Sort of detracts a bit of character and seems out of place. A really neat thing I noticed was the giant trees (later learned to be Kaori Trees) are enormous. They are huge trunked trees but are very squat and short. These have to be the largest trees I have ever seen including all the trees in the cemetary at school. Also noted that at this point I have never seen ANY of these trees or plants before, very out of my element in Albert Park as things look like they could be related to things at home but I just cant put my finger on it.
After a while I wander down the road a bit finding that many of these large trees hang right over the road and have very little vertical clearance for cars or pedestrians. Wondering if its because these trees are historic and worth keeping even in an inconvient state. Also it seems NZ is not as concerned with liabilities such as low clearance or unsafe slopes and stairs. No ADA rules here.
I scour all of Queen Street and realize that nobody really understands what I need except one camera store, he tells me I dont need a converter but just the adapter depending on what things are going to be used. He tells me to head back to the hotel and check the cords of my cameras, psp, laptop and look to see if they have built in converters. So this is what I did, head back to my hotel with a whopper, fries, L&P soda, and 2 packets of ketchup
August 23
So I wake up to find its 4:30 in the morning, still no clue what day or time its supposed to be. I decide to take it a bit slow, take a long shower, flush the toilet again to make sure it doesnt spin, and then tidied up from me crashing to sleep. Its a bit later and I'm bored, so I put my shoes on and walk out the door. Wow, quite chilly compared to the day before, luckily Im wearing a couple layers. I walk down to Queen Street and check out the buildings and streets. Very strange crossing roads as Im not used to cars coming from the other direction, luckily the road junctions all have buttons to press and noise and lights to ensure me it is safe to cross. I trade in some travelers checks and decide 7 miles seems like a good idea after walking that as a combined distance through the entire summer. Walking along the shore my legs hurt, but I do happen to notice things such as there are no benches to rest on. I keep walking letting joggers and bikers pass me on whichever side they feel like as I do not know the right of way or which side of the sidewalk to walk on yet. I walk in the middle, Im American, move out of my way.
I finally reach my destination the very infamous Kelly Tarlton's Antartic Adventure and Aquarium. Sounds great to me, right up my alley in fact. Some how I feel misled about this Kelly Tarlton, there was in fact Antartic things but they would be better left in a museum. A very gimmicky Snowcat plow passing through a penguin habitat, felt very childish. Fake sea lion and robotic orca whale splashing out of the water. ugh sigh. Very Chinese Theatre from Disney. There was a little pool with big stingrays in it with too many people crowding around. Then there was a tube with a moving sidewalk type thing with fish swimming overhead. Neat concept but seems very poorly done, then it dumps you into the gift shop and your left there going where is the rest of this place? And realize that was it. Sigh I leave Mr. Tarltons very disappointed.
I slowly make my way back towards the city totaling 7 miles very sore. I spot a Burger King and decide that the King cannot let me down as he never has before. The King delivers... just not with enough ketchup... At this point I also tried my first thing entirely New Zealandish. L&P soda Paeora and Lemon soda. Tastes a bit like flat sprite thats been out in the sun.... not to bad but not all that great either. I run out of ketchup and throw the rest of the fries out as they taste like McDonalds fries instead of the normal crunchier ones (these are floppy) I head back to my hotel and call home..... and then my power converter decides to go up in smoke and fries but this fry is crunchy and burnt. Bad end to the day.
I finally reach my destination the very infamous Kelly Tarlton's Antartic Adventure and Aquarium. Sounds great to me, right up my alley in fact. Some how I feel misled about this Kelly Tarlton, there was in fact Antartic things but they would be better left in a museum. A very gimmicky Snowcat plow passing through a penguin habitat, felt very childish. Fake sea lion and robotic orca whale splashing out of the water. ugh sigh. Very Chinese Theatre from Disney. There was a little pool with big stingrays in it with too many people crowding around. Then there was a tube with a moving sidewalk type thing with fish swimming overhead. Neat concept but seems very poorly done, then it dumps you into the gift shop and your left there going where is the rest of this place? And realize that was it. Sigh I leave Mr. Tarltons very disappointed.
I slowly make my way back towards the city totaling 7 miles very sore. I spot a Burger King and decide that the King cannot let me down as he never has before. The King delivers... just not with enough ketchup... At this point I also tried my first thing entirely New Zealandish. L&P soda Paeora and Lemon soda. Tastes a bit like flat sprite thats been out in the sun.... not to bad but not all that great either. I run out of ketchup and throw the rest of the fries out as they taste like McDonalds fries instead of the normal crunchier ones (these are floppy) I head back to my hotel and call home..... and then my power converter decides to go up in smoke and fries but this fry is crunchy and burnt. Bad end to the day.
August 22
So I get on the plane to LA, sit next to a guy from what I think he said Wales but cannot be sure. Didnt have much of a personality tho. Flying to LA I found out the my connecting flight from LAx to Auckland has not been delayed, so now I'm in the same position I was from Syracuse to Dallas except this time I have 15 minutes to get to my gate. Tried to coax a conversation out of the Wales guy next to me but apparently his lack of social skills got in the way. Its night out so I asked the guy sitting next to Wales if he could take a picture out the window for me.. he asks where....out the window thanks.... So I ask the only guy on the plane suffering from cocaine withdrawl as even my brand new camera with stability control at max could not save the blurriest picture ever taken. "Thanks tho"... delete...delete.
So I get to LA and find out that it is the worst laid out airport in the world, as the signage points to the escalators (Gates 1-100-->) finding out that the signs point to a tiny door I walked around the food court looking bewildered as how all the planes park here. Finally find the door, get to security that is run by all of LA's highschool flunkies, I'm pushed further back and finally get through the stupid thing sprint to my gate and find my plane just left.... an hour ago... ?(Remember all meaning of time has left me at this point). So I walk back out goto the main Qantas desk and say my plane left and I'm here... fix it. They blah blah blah give me a ticket and say your new plane leaves in 15 minutes.... >:-( Through my previous knowledge of the dumbest architectural layout ever I speed to the security where I fling my shoes off have everything out go through the metal detector, shoes back on at the same time flipping off all 20 security employees with a combined IQ of 3. Run to my gate as its boarding hop on to the largest plane I have been on and proceed to fly to Sydney Australia....?
Yes I am flying PAST New Zealand to goto Australia and then back again, no recollection of the time or date I'm only aware of the fact that I get to have diner on a huge plane.
The actual flight was quite nice, very very few people on the enormous jet so I got 4 rows all to myself. I watched Iron Man, Prince Caspian, KungFu Panda, and most of Charlie Bartlet. Also got dinner and breakfast which both consisted of a mushy substance with some kind of sauce on it... not bad tho just gross looking. Probably should have slept a bit more but wanted to also take full advantage of the plane.
Got to Australia didnt look to bad, very brown tho, exchanged some US for NZ dollars, got pulled aside for a random security check (probably b/c I have yet to sleep and my eyes were completely blood shot aka crack head look) hop onto my plane and head over the Tasman Sea.... for the second time in my life, back to New Zealand.
I arrived in NZ and am greeted by sunny skies a clean well organized and planned out airport terminal and a lot of informational brocures which I was sure to get 1 of each. I breeze through customs but still have no clue what was said to me as I underestimated the accent and continue on.
I head over to the luggage carousel and wait..and wait.. and wait. Finally realizing nothing good could have come from flipping off the security in LA my luggage was sent to Australia as a final destination. ugh. So I walk out to the shuttle bus and tell the obviously not from New Zealand driver I want to goto Rendezvous Hotel. Scenery was pretty sketchy here and I was having some serious doubts and very nearly asked the driver Akmed to take me back.
On a side note, driving on the left side of the road is the wrong side, felt very unsafe and dangerous. Cant wait to go back to the right side of the road, aptly named the right side. Also got to see a lot of cars I have only seen pictures of such as Renault, Peugoet, and Holdens all driving about. Mazda seems to have quite a large influence here as many people drive them, and the Mazda 6 is called the Mazda Atenza here, strange fact but I already knew this one.
I get to my hotel get into the room, take out my camera rush into the bathroom to flush only dissapointment.... these toilets are like a vertical drop, no spinning in one direction or the other. Im ready to go home at this point. I call home, order a turkey club to my room and fall sound asleep. What a crazy first day in Middle Earth
So I get to LA and find out that it is the worst laid out airport in the world, as the signage points to the escalators (Gates 1-100-->) finding out that the signs point to a tiny door I walked around the food court looking bewildered as how all the planes park here. Finally find the door, get to security that is run by all of LA's highschool flunkies, I'm pushed further back and finally get through the stupid thing sprint to my gate and find my plane just left.... an hour ago... ?(Remember all meaning of time has left me at this point). So I walk back out goto the main Qantas desk and say my plane left and I'm here... fix it. They blah blah blah give me a ticket and say your new plane leaves in 15 minutes.... >:-( Through my previous knowledge of the dumbest architectural layout ever I speed to the security where I fling my shoes off have everything out go through the metal detector, shoes back on at the same time flipping off all 20 security employees with a combined IQ of 3. Run to my gate as its boarding hop on to the largest plane I have been on and proceed to fly to Sydney Australia....?
Yes I am flying PAST New Zealand to goto Australia and then back again, no recollection of the time or date I'm only aware of the fact that I get to have diner on a huge plane.
The actual flight was quite nice, very very few people on the enormous jet so I got 4 rows all to myself. I watched Iron Man, Prince Caspian, KungFu Panda, and most of Charlie Bartlet. Also got dinner and breakfast which both consisted of a mushy substance with some kind of sauce on it... not bad tho just gross looking. Probably should have slept a bit more but wanted to also take full advantage of the plane.
Got to Australia didnt look to bad, very brown tho, exchanged some US for NZ dollars, got pulled aside for a random security check (probably b/c I have yet to sleep and my eyes were completely blood shot aka crack head look) hop onto my plane and head over the Tasman Sea.... for the second time in my life, back to New Zealand.
I arrived in NZ and am greeted by sunny skies a clean well organized and planned out airport terminal and a lot of informational brocures which I was sure to get 1 of each. I breeze through customs but still have no clue what was said to me as I underestimated the accent and continue on.
I head over to the luggage carousel and wait..and wait.. and wait. Finally realizing nothing good could have come from flipping off the security in LA my luggage was sent to Australia as a final destination. ugh. So I walk out to the shuttle bus and tell the obviously not from New Zealand driver I want to goto Rendezvous Hotel. Scenery was pretty sketchy here and I was having some serious doubts and very nearly asked the driver Akmed to take me back.
On a side note, driving on the left side of the road is the wrong side, felt very unsafe and dangerous. Cant wait to go back to the right side of the road, aptly named the right side. Also got to see a lot of cars I have only seen pictures of such as Renault, Peugoet, and Holdens all driving about. Mazda seems to have quite a large influence here as many people drive them, and the Mazda 6 is called the Mazda Atenza here, strange fact but I already knew this one.
I get to my hotel get into the room, take out my camera rush into the bathroom to flush only dissapointment.... these toilets are like a vertical drop, no spinning in one direction or the other. Im ready to go home at this point. I call home, order a turkey club to my room and fall sound asleep. What a crazy first day in Middle Earth
August 21
So I'm flying to Dallas at this point. I know that this is the worst part of the flight as I have a small window of time to get to my next flight to LA. Of course they say "oh no, you can't take that bag onto the plane as carry on" and take it and put it into a valet service where when they land they get it out from under the plane and bring it up. Roughly wasting 10 minutes of time that I don't have.
The good side of this flight is I sat next to a young lady who was getting a Phd in geology. Strange but true. Talked to her for quite a while, got my mind off of running to my next gate. She also helped me figure out where I had to run and how to get my not so carry on bags as well as how to get onto the Skytrain. Coming into Dallas there are horrific thunder storms, I mean really bad, like who slapped Zeus in the face bad. Our plane was even struck by lightning or so says the pilot, very turbulent weather, very sickening feeling... oh good my semester abroad is going to end on the Dallas runway.. fantastic... So we finally land after what seems like a carnival ride of a plane and the pilot parks about 100 feet away from the ramp...hmm. He comes on to the speaker:
Pilot: "Ah, we have been told we cannot dock, ah, there is a bad thunderstorm on the airfield, ah, we will have to wait here for, ah, about half an hour or so, ah, be sure to note the, ah, fasten seatbelt sign is still, ah, lite so hold tight for a bite."
Pilot: "Ah folks, the ground crew has been given the all clear, ah, we should be able to unload luggage, ah, but currently not able to, ah, dock yet, ah, and as a reminder, ah, the fasten seatbelt sign is still, ah, lite so please stay in your seats, and,ah we will,ah, be clear, to ah, dock."
Ughh thats frustrating pilot talk for you. After that long and ridiculous fiasco finally allowed to leave the plane and get my carry on which has been sitting outside the plane for 45 minutes now. I step off the plane onto the little boom ramp thing and spot my luggage on a fork lift. As I reach for it my passport/travelers checks/all my ID/and boarding pass slip out and land inches from falling down to the run way.... I push my heart out of my throat and back to where it belongs and start running for the Skytrain. Took about 2 minutes but got to my gate and found out its been delayed for 2 hours........ ughh frustrating, but I did get to see an unusually large rainbow so thinks may be looking up.
The good side of this flight is I sat next to a young lady who was getting a Phd in geology. Strange but true. Talked to her for quite a while, got my mind off of running to my next gate. She also helped me figure out where I had to run and how to get my not so carry on bags as well as how to get onto the Skytrain. Coming into Dallas there are horrific thunder storms, I mean really bad, like who slapped Zeus in the face bad. Our plane was even struck by lightning or so says the pilot, very turbulent weather, very sickening feeling... oh good my semester abroad is going to end on the Dallas runway.. fantastic... So we finally land after what seems like a carnival ride of a plane and the pilot parks about 100 feet away from the ramp...hmm. He comes on to the speaker:
Pilot: "Ah, we have been told we cannot dock, ah, there is a bad thunderstorm on the airfield, ah, we will have to wait here for, ah, about half an hour or so, ah, be sure to note the, ah, fasten seatbelt sign is still, ah, lite so hold tight for a bite."
Pilot: "Ah folks, the ground crew has been given the all clear, ah, we should be able to unload luggage, ah, but currently not able to, ah, dock yet, ah, and as a reminder, ah, the fasten seatbelt sign is still, ah, lite so please stay in your seats, and,ah we will,ah, be clear, to ah, dock."
Ughh thats frustrating pilot talk for you. After that long and ridiculous fiasco finally allowed to leave the plane and get my carry on which has been sitting outside the plane for 45 minutes now. I step off the plane onto the little boom ramp thing and spot my luggage on a fork lift. As I reach for it my passport/travelers checks/all my ID/and boarding pass slip out and land inches from falling down to the run way.... I push my heart out of my throat and back to where it belongs and start running for the Skytrain. Took about 2 minutes but got to my gate and found out its been delayed for 2 hours........ ughh frustrating, but I did get to see an unusually large rainbow so thinks may be looking up.
August 20th
So my first blog isnt truely on the correct day but I'm transposing it from my journal online.
Aug 20, 2008
Scariest moments of my life, saying goodbye to family and giving and getting hugs. Choked a bit while hugging Jamie and saying "I love you and will miss you." Passing through the security gate was like a blur, took me a while to unpack everything (Cameras, laptops, boarding papers, passport, take off my shoes) and then repack it all with people pileing up behind me in line.
Sat at in the terminal with 4 strangers all talking about travel and the places they are going. Three of them are going to Australia for 10 days and then going to New Zealand for 15. It really is quite a small world as we all got to talking about the Airforce, as it seemed to be a commoniality with all of us. The older man of the group also mentioned he was a bird watcher and he has been to New Zealand before, he saw a male purple crested something, and a green feathered whatever. They all said that friends all agreed that New Zealand was the best place they have ever visited. So far its very encouraging.
The next few blogs may not make sense because at this point I'm crossing about a billion time zones and I have lost all track of the day or the time.
Aug 20, 2008
Scariest moments of my life, saying goodbye to family and giving and getting hugs. Choked a bit while hugging Jamie and saying "I love you and will miss you." Passing through the security gate was like a blur, took me a while to unpack everything (Cameras, laptops, boarding papers, passport, take off my shoes) and then repack it all with people pileing up behind me in line.
Sat at in the terminal with 4 strangers all talking about travel and the places they are going. Three of them are going to Australia for 10 days and then going to New Zealand for 15. It really is quite a small world as we all got to talking about the Airforce, as it seemed to be a commoniality with all of us. The older man of the group also mentioned he was a bird watcher and he has been to New Zealand before, he saw a male purple crested something, and a green feathered whatever. They all said that friends all agreed that New Zealand was the best place they have ever visited. So far its very encouraging.
The next few blogs may not make sense because at this point I'm crossing about a billion time zones and I have lost all track of the day or the time.
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