Wednesday 27th June 2007

The Charleston Motor Camp, where we stayed last night, must be one of the quietest camps in the world! The only people there are... the guy who run's the place, a guy with a beard about four feet long, who's traveling but living there for a while - and then there was me and Nikki!

It was even colder last night that the night before - we've not had the official temperature, but the icicles hanging from Nikki's nose said it was below 0°! We had our showers in the outside cubicles, (which made our feet feel like they were gonna drop off), got ready and set off...

Just along the road, in the pub we'd visited last night, was a company operating tours into the Paparoa National Park - we thought we'd check it out.

I'm glad we did - it was amazing (although we were a little worried at first when the guide loaded a chain-saw into the back of the van). We were the only people on the tour - and we were taken to the edge of the bush in a mini-bus, before getting out and into a mini-train. This then ran right through the thick of the trees, all alongside the edge of the Nile River (no, not THE Nile River - another one). When we were towards the middle me and Nikki got out and set off on foot until we got to the Ananui (Metro) Caves. We had to trek through the forest, over rocks and then across an old suspension bridge - it was brilliant (the BBC filmed 'The Lost World' and Walking with Dinosaurs' here), plus there wasn't a cloud in the sky, the sun was shining and it was making all the frost on the trees melt - making everything look even greener. We were really having fun! Oh, and we were relieved to hear the chain-saw was for any fallen trees and not for chopping up bodies!

When we got back to the pub we had a coffee and a muffin and chatted with Ray, our guide on the trip, who told us things to look out for on our way down through the South Island (he also said it's gonna be colder again tonight). We got back in the van and headed South down Highway 6...

We've heard that Highway 6 has been voted one of the best scenic drives EVER - and we would agree - it was stunning! We drove for about an hour with green hills and mountains on our left, the blue ocean on our right and snow-capped mountains in front of us... WOW! After a while we pulled over at a place called Punakaiki and visited the 'Pancake Rocks', (which are part of the coast that has been eroded by the sea and weather but now looks like a huge stack of pancakes), and had a rest before moving on again.

This evening (at about 5pm) we arrived in Greymouth, which looks like it has a few shops and things - so we figured we'd spend the night here and check them out in the morning. We found a campsite and then went for a nice walk along the beach whilst the sun set. We then went and got ourselves some supplies from the supermarket and came back.

I sure hope Ray was joking about the cold!

Tuesday 26th June 2007

Brrrrrrr! It was FREEZING last night! The radio said it was -2°, but when we woke up at about 9am this morning and looked out of the window, the sun was shining and the sky was blue (although we could still see the snow capped mountains so we knew it wasn't warm out).

We had our breakfast and did some more washing before heading into town. We started by going into the Coaltown Museum, which is a pioneer museum, showing how things were done around this are over the last 100 or so years.

When we'd finished in the museum we drove into the centre and then out to the coast, to a place called Cape Foulwind. It's called this because the weather can cause a really rough tide and Captain Cook once took a whole week trying to land his ship here. Today however, the weather was stunning and the whole place looked really peaceful. We were able to walk all along the coastal path, up to and around a lighthouse and on further.

After almost an hour of walking, we climbed back into the van and Nikki cooked us some lunch on the little stove in the back of the van. We had a nice fry-up, which went down a treat. When we'd finished our food and I'd washed the dishes, we drove on down the coast to a seal colony. The sun was starting to go down now and so we were able to stand and take pictures of the seals and the sunset... which was beautiful!

Tonight we found ourselves a camp in Charleston (the next town along) and after setting the van up we went out to the pub, where me and Nikki drank beer, chatted and played pool and darts next to a lovely wood fire.

We could do with a wood fire in the van - it's gonna be another cold one tonight!

Monday 25th June 2007

Our alarm went off at 6am this morning - giving us plenty of time to get ready and get to the South Island ferry by 7.25am at the latest...

We finally got to the port at about 7.50am! We checked the van in and drove on. We locked the doors and went up stairs. I'd not bothered to take a sea-sickness tablet (even though there is some in the van)... Oooopps! Up on the higher decks it was really nice because we were able to watch the sunrise over the water.

I was starting to realise not taking a tablet was a mistake when it was announced over the loud-speaker that the conditions were 'less than favorable' and we were told to locate our nearest sick-bags.

The rest of the ride to the South Island is a bit of a blur. I can remember being sick at one point and then taking about 5 minutes to get back to my seat because every few steps the boat would rock and I was sent backwards. When I finally got there I slept for the rest of the journey. Even Nikki said that she felt sick, so it must've been bad - she usually loves all the bobbing about.

We drove off the ferry at about 12pm into Picton. We were planning on stopping here for some lunch, but it was really quiet. There weren't many shops - and half of them were closed. So we headed on in the direction of Blenheim. When we got there we got out of the van and it was absolutely freezing! We had a wander around the shops and then went into a pub for some lunch and a drink.

After leaving Blenheim, we drove over to the West coast, to a place called Westport. The drive was spectacular! One minute we were passing alongside hill after hill of lush green grass and trees, the next we turned the corner and we were at the foot of snow-capped mountains. After a while we pulled in alongside Lake Rotoiti and when we got out of the van the floor was covered in snow. As much as I wanted to, I resisted throwing any at Nikki (wimp).

The remainder of the drive to Westport was equally as stunning. We were driving for nearly 2 hours and I bet we only seen 4 or 5 cars in that whole time - so we could drive as slowly as we liked admiring the view. We drove through the Victoria Forest and alongside the Kahurangi National Park, which took us way up into the hills - so high that at points we were driving above the clouds in the valleys below! We got to Westport when it was dark so we found a camp and settled in for the night.

Better get out the thermal underwear - it's gonna be a cold one!

Sunday 24th June 2007

We woke this morning and the sun was really shining - it was actually quite warm today. We were happy because this meant we could go into the centre of Wellington and have a look around there. Nikki made us some breakfast and then we set off...

Back at the camp, someone had recommended that we go to Te Papa (which is a museum). When we got there we were happy to find that it was free! We parked in the car-park (where we were allowed to leave the van all day) and firstly looked around a small market place, which was selling fruit and vegetables, before going in.

The museum was excellent! It had loads of exhibits on things that are found in and around New Zealand. There was a skeleton from a Blue Whale (which was HUGE) and other sea creatures found off the coasts. They also had a science-type section, which explained all about New Zealand's volcanos and why they get earthquakes (which happen quite often apparently). On another floor we were able to learn about New Zealand's heritage and the Maori people. For free, this place was definitely worth a visit!

We left the museum and set off, on foot, towards the shopping area - which took us through the harbour. It was buzzing with loads of people out-and-about, taking advantage of the sunshine! When we found the shops we saw the famous Wellington Cable Car and so caught one from the bottom of the hill to the top, where we went into the museum and then walked back down through the Botanical Gardens.

After another look around the shops, we headed back to the van - walking through the harbour again (which was still busy). We got in the van and headed towards our camp. Instead of going straight back, we went to see what was in the Hutt Valley area. We saw a pub that we considered stopping at but Nikki remember being warned off it by the staff at the camp. We found a cinema but our van was too tall to drive into the car-park so we called it a day and came home.

We need an early night anyway. We're catching the ferry for the South Island at 8.25am tomorrow and need to board the ferry at least an hour before (ha! we'll see).

Headed South for the winter!

Saturday 23rd June 2007

When we woke up this morning, the sun was breaking through the clouds and it looked like it could be a nice day. We got ourselves ready on our campsite, had some breakfast then jumped in the van...

We're hoping to catch the ferry across the Cook Strait to the South Island on Monday and so we figured that we'd head to Wellington for our last couple of days in the North. The drive from Napier to the Capital is supposed to take about 4-5 hours, but we'd heard on the radio that, on the exact route we were taking, there were 130km/ph winds. So we didn't make any plans - we thought we'd just drive and get there when we get there.

The drive South was beautiful! We drove, firstly along the East coast then across to the West Coast and into Wellington (which is the most Southern Capital in the world). Driving alongside some of the rivers and then the sea was very cool because the sun was shining and the roads through the mountains were really winding - so we could take our time. We stopped in a picnic area about half way down and ate some pies that Nikki had cooked before we left.

We arrived at about 5.30pm and drove into the city centre by mistake before seeing a sign for a camp site and heading back there. We're in a little town called Hutt Valley, which is about 15 minutes in the car from Wellington.

Welcome to the Capital!

Friday 22nd June 2007

After the horrors of last nights drive over to Napier, we thought we'd have a relaxing day. We thought we'd head into town and just hang around there. Perhaps look around the shops, perhaps stop for a drink somewhere - anything but drive over mountainous terrain!

We slept until about 9am this morning and then Nikki made us bacon and egg sarnies for our breakfast before we went out exploring. We took a nice walk along the beach and then headed into the centre. Napier is quite a cool place. It looks a lot like Miami with a lot of Art Deco buildings.

When we'd been walking around for a few hours we stopped in a coffee shop for a drink and slice of cake before hitting the shops again. We found an Outdoor store which was having a clear-out and Nikki bought us some thermal socks to keep our feet warm in the South Island.

We left Napier and drove for about 20 minutes to a place called Hastings, where we knew we could find a campsite. We checked ourselves in and then made ourselves a spaghetti bolognese for our tea (Nikki made it really, I just stirred the pasta every once in a while).

After tea we jumped in the van and drove into town looking for a pub. We found an Irish one and went in there for a drink. When we left we took a slow drive back and I had the laptop out doing a bit of 'Internet Rustling'. We found an open signal on a quiet street and sat for about 20 minutes checking our emails and then Nikki watched the EastEnders catch-ups on the BBC webpage. We got back to the campsite and watched a film in bed.

I think we'll stick to the proper roads from now on - they're much easier!

Thursday 21st June 2007

As it rained all night we guessed the skydiving I'd hoped to do here would be off and so we would have to think of other things to see and do in Lake Taupo.

We got out of bed at about 7.30am this morning as we wanted to head into town to see if we could find an internet connection. We had to do it before 9am because that would be 10pm the previous night in the UK and that's when Mum and Keith go to bed. So, I made us some cuppas, packed up the van and we were off...

There was an internet connection for us... outside a camping shop of all places, (thanks to the staff at Gordon's for not protecting their signal), so we had a Skype call with home and then went to Tourist Information to find out what there was to do on rainy days (we were right, skydiving was off the menu). But first we sat in the car park and ate some Bran Flakes as we'd left in such a rush, we'd missed breakfast!

We started by walking down to the edge of Lake Taupo - it was huge and looked really pretty because the sun was starting to come out. All the water in New Zealand seems to be a really nice crystal blue and it was crazy to think that something this size was formed by a volcanic eruption!

Next, we jumped in the van and drove to the viewing point of the Huka Falls where we stopped for some pictures and then moved further on to a place called the Honey Hive. This place was pretty unique - everything was made, onsite, from Bee's honey (which they have in the back of the store). You could buy things like face creams, body lotions, different natural honey's etc. Me and Nikki just had a honey ice-cream.

When we were done at the Honey Hive we moved on to a place called the Craters of the Moon, which, as the name suggests, is full of craters. These are made because under the surface is high pressured water, which is bubbling away until it needs to escape and then just blows huge holes in the floor... pretty cool stuff!

We'd seen pretty much everything we wanted to see, (well, what the weather would let us), in Lake Taupo and so figured we'd move on. Whilst Nikki went into the supermarket to get some supplies, I had a look at the map to see where we could go next. It's crazy - there are so many places we want to see, but don't really have the time... we're doing our best though.

I said to Nikki that I fancied driving down the Volcanic Loop to see Mount Ruapehu. When we were about an hour into the journey I said I quite fancied climbing it if we could, so Nikki got her book out to do some investigating. What i'd failed to realise earlier was that, being Winter, the mountain was going to be covered in snow and it was only recommended that you attempt to climb it if you have vast experience in climbing and using a snow axe... d'oh!

We decided to carry on in the direction we were heading and we'd find a camp for the night before traveling over to Napier in the morning. The scenery was stunning! Everything just seemed to unfold in front of us - with mountains rising up from what looked like a desert - it was beautiful. When we got to Ohakune, (the gateway to the National Park), the weather was pretty bad and so I suggested we drive over to Napier tonight - it didn't look far on the map... Oooopps!

The road over from the Volcanic Loop was nothing like anything we've EVER seen before. We couldn't really appreciate the scenery as it was pitch black. but it took us up into the highest of hills and down into the lowest of valleys - the worst thing was when we were driving on the edge of a cliff and the tarmac road below was replaced by gravel tracks. We were terrified! With the wind really blowing, every turn felt like we could skid out of control plus there was no radio signal so the only noises were from Nikki... "Slow down!", "Watch the corner!", What was that?" plus the normal "I feel sick" and "I'm hungry".

We finally got to Napier at just after 8pm and so what would have taken one-and-a-half hours from Lake Taupo, had we come direct, in fact took us... nearly 5 HOURS! Oh well, it's all part of the experience I suppose.

After all that, Napier had better be special!

Happy Birthday Mummy June!

Wednesday 20th June 2007

Yippee! It wasn't quite as cold when we woke up this morning. Nikki made us a cuppa, we had showers and then I packed up the van. As I was getting things ready Nikki started talking to some people who are from New Zealand and also camping. They seemed really impressed with our van. There are four of them sharing a larger van - but they didn't seem to like it. They were really nice and asked if we were traveling up to Auckland. When we said no, they said it was a shame - we could've stayed at their house, and they'd have lent us a car to travel round in (bless 'em - they were like Grandparents trying to spoil us). We took a walk along the beach next to our camp and then set off.

We drove into Whakatane and had a look a couple of the shops there. We walked up to the Tourist Information place as I wanted to enquire about prices for flying to the White Island (this is an active volcano out in the ocean that you can get to by boat or plane). We decided against going and used the free internet on offer at Tourist Information instead.

After leaving Whakatane, we drove inland to Rotorua. It's here that you can see things like boiling mud and erupting geysers. When we'd been on the internet I'd spoke to Aaron on MSN and he warned me that Rotorua was quite smelly... boy were we in for a shock!

This place ABSOLUTELY STINKS! Not just a little bit - but loads. It's as if the whole city are cooking eggs at the same time. We stopped at a place just on the outskirts called Hell's Gate. We got out to have a look - but Nikki (the drama queen) had to get back in the van because of the smell of sulpher. I did get to see some boiling mud though in the thermal pools.

Instead of going straight into the city centre we drove to the 'Buried Village' of Te Wairoa. In 1886 Mount Tarawera erupted, covering the entire place in about 2 meters of hot ash and lava. You can now walk round the site and look at things that have been excavated as well as looking at buildings still buried in the floor. It was pretty cool, although hard to imagine as everywhere is covered with lush green grass now (not hot ash and lava like when it happened). We even found a beautiful waterfall when were exploring the site.

After our walk, we sat in the Tea Rooms and warmed ourselves up with a nice hot drink. Nikki had a coffee and I had a cup of tea (which was made using real tea-leaves, and yet still had less leaves floating in the cup than the tea my Mum makes using a tea-bag (ha ha)).

We drove into the centre of Rotorua to look for somewhere to stay, but the weather was pretty bad (and the smell wasn't any better). We checked our guides and there was nothing there that we couldn't see anywhere else and I know for a fact Nikki didn't fancy a mud bath only to get out smelling worse than when she went in, so we drove on to Lake Taupo.

When we arrived at 7pm we were both really hungry, so we checked into a Top 10 campsite and then drove into the centre to get some food. After the drive a nice Thai meal went down a treat!

Thankfully, Lake Taupo smells much better that RotorPOOa!

Tuesday 19th June 2007

Ok, I know i've started the last couple of days by moaning about how cold it is - but we heard a guy on the radio say that it was 0° last night - perhaps i'll let Nikki sleep inside the van tonight!

When we woke up this morning Nikki declared that she had run out of clean underwear and so we had to do some laundry (I later counted that she had brought 5 pairs of knickers on this trip - does that sound like enough for a year?). We washed and tried to dry the clothes on our site, but they was still wet and we had to leave - so we drove to the centre of Tauranga, where we found a launderette and I sat with the dryer whilst Nikki went food shopping.

The washing was still slightly wet, but we decided to leave anyway and went shopping. Nikki bought herself some jogging bottoms, which she says she's going to wear in bed tonight.

We would have liked to spent longer in Tauranga but had to move on, (so many places - so little time), so we jumped into the van and drove out to Mount Maunganui, which is by far the most beautiful place we have seen on this trip - it is stunning. The weather today was pretty good (I had my three-quarter length trousers on) and this just made it all the more spectacular. I'd imagine that during the summer months this place would be heaving, but it was lovely that we practically had the place to ourselves.

We started by buying a bag of chips from a takeaway (which were nowhere near as good as chips at home) and siting in a bay next to the beach and eating chip-butties in the van. When we'd finished we drove to the foot of the mountain and trekked over halfway up. We would have gone further had it not been for the fact that... Nikki couldn't be bothered. The views of the ocean and city from where we were standing were stunning. The beaches were golden sand and the waters crystal blue.

It was tough to leave Mount Maunganui, but we knew that, with so many other places to see, we had to move on. So, we got in the van and headed East along the coast to Whakatane. The drive was nice because the sun was setting behind us and the sky was all pinks, reds, oranges and yellows.

Just outside Whakatane, in a place called Ohope, we found a campsite and set up for the night.

If it's gonna be 0° again tonight, Nikki had better share the covers!

Monday 18th June 2007

It wasn't the alarm that woke me up this morning, it was the chattering of Nikki's teeth! Only joking. We woke up at about 7.30am and snuggled up together, chatting, before braving the world outside. When we did draw back the curtains, we found that it was a beautiful day - although a little fresh!

Even though Nikki had brought us to the wrong place yesterday, Raglan is very nice - it's actually where they filmed the surfing film 'Endless Summer'. We had a quick look round as we drove through, but didn't stop - instead we headed to Hamilton.

When we got there we parked the car and had a look around the shops. What did we buy? Some sweets (Nikki is hooked on Nerds), a jumper each and a hot water bottle.

After a while we set off for Waitomo, to see the Glowworm Caves (this time I looked at the map too) and once again the scenery on the drive was AMAZING - it was just roll after roll of green countryside! The thing we love about driving around New Zealand is that there's no rush. If someone appears behind you and wants to pass - they do, and then you're all alone and you don't see another car for about 15 minutes... perfect!

By the time we'd arrived at the Waitomo Glowworm Caves, the sun was really beating down and we sat in the car-park and had a sarnie for our lunch. We didn't know what to expect from the Glowworm Caves - it's just somewhere Nikki had seen on the map - but what we saw was spectacular...

You start by walking into a cave and climbing down some steps until you're about 15 meters underground. It's pretty dark down there, and then they turn on some lights so you're able to see all the stalagmites and stalactites that have formed over thousands of years. There's water dripping through the rocks, from above, all the time - so they're always forming (about a cm every 100-150 years). Apparently, the acoustics are so good in the cave that every year the Maori people have a carol concert that at Christmas and even people like UB40 and Sting have done intimate gigs there!

Next we were taken on a boat and guided through total darkness before stopping and being told to look up. Above us, on the ceiling were thousands of tiny glowworms - lighting up the ceiling like the stars light up the night sky - it was pretty spectacular. We were told that you can only find glowworms in New Zealand and Southern Australia as they don't live as flies for long enough to travel any further!

When we left Waitomo we drove East to the coast and a place called Tauranga where we set up camp. This drive took a few hours, and as we were climbing up into the hills we were able to see the sun setting behind us. We found a camp quite late, and Nikki made us a wicked chicken curry for our tea, before we chilled out in our little van - planning our next adventure!

Wearing our hats to bed - at least our ears will be warm in the morning!

Sunday 17th June 2007

We woke up this morning in a nice comfy bed in Susi and Dale's warm house. As lovely as it was - we missed our camper van (but not the cold nights)! We had some breakfast, said our goodbyes then got back on the road.

We drove into Auckland where we stopped at Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World. We spent a couple of hours learning about explorers like Scott of Antarctic, as well as seeing their living conditions in mock huts. We saw massive stingrays, sharks and all manor of fish in the Underwater section and went on a Snow-cat ride through the penguin encounter (which is set up to perfectly simulate the sunrise, sunsets and climate changes of the Antarctic).

After that we headed along the coast to Mission Bay and had a quick wonder around. It looked really nice here, with loads of restaurants - but it was too chilly for Nikki today so we got back in the van to warm up.

I let Nikki choose the next place we'd visit. She said she wanted to see the Glowworm Caves in Waitomo, so told me to head South to Raglan We left Auckland and drove for a couple of hours. It wasn't until we'd pulled into the campsite, and I looked at the map, that I realised we were in the wrong place... d'oh! At least this place is a bargain at $9 each... and only an hours drive from the caves.

We had some chilli for tea then walked across the field into the town area. By now it was getting dark and so we stopped in the 'Sports Bar' for a lime and soda each. We were pleased when the barman said there was no charge. Nikki has been moaning that she has nothing to put on her toast in the morning, so I also borrowed some honey sachets from the bar, all in all - a worthwhile visit to the pub!

It's so cold - i'm gonna buy some extra socks (to put in Nikki's mouth: to stop the moaning)!

Saturday 16th June 2007

It was FREEZING last night. Probably because we were close to the sea. I even woke up and put the heating on at one point - perhaps we'll invest in some sleeping bags.

As we'd arrived at the campsite when it was dark last night, we didn't know what to expect when we opened the curtains this morning...

Wow! We were overlooking the sea, in amongst some tree covered mountains, with sunlight flooding the camper. This was perfect! We got ourselves ready and headed out on foot to have a look around.

Our campsite was right next to the Waiwera Thermal Spa Resort, which has loads of different pools, all ranging in temperature from 28-48° and we got a discount because we were guests on the site. We felt a bit mental, walking around in our shorts at 10am - but completely forgot about the cold when we jumped into one pool that was 33°. We tried out all the pools and even went on a water-slide (which was FREEZING).

After a few hours of relaxing, (a few hours, we've been relaxing for 8 weeks now), we headed back to the van. We made ourselves a sausage sarnie for lunch, packed up our things and hit the road.

Waiwera isn't far from Auckland, and we were passing through anyway, so we thought we'd pop in and see Susi and Dale and show our van to Lloyd. Nikki gave Dale a ring and said we were on our way. We stopped to have a look around some small towns on the way, including Whangaparaoa where we did some food shopping before trying to find their house.

We've decided that tomorrow we're going to go to Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World in Auckland and so had to look for somewhere local to stay. When Susi and Dale said we were more than welcome to stay at their house we said we didn't want to impose, but when Susi said she was making a prawn satay for tea - we were sold. So, we got our things from the camper and spent another night in the comfy bed.

On the road again... tomorrow!

Friday 15th June 2007

We've already decided that we're going to have 2 weeks in the North Island and 3 weeks in the South Island of New Zealand (as well as the week we spent with Susi and Dale) and so far we've only seen the North West of the North Island. So, today we decided we were gonna go on a mission - and drive across to the very West coast of Northland and then back down to Auckland (or thereabouts).

We woke up at about 8am and then just lay in bed for about an hour drinking a cup of tea and chatting. Then we went and had showers on the site and, whilst I was packing up the bed in the van, Nikki made us bacon sarnies... what a wife!

What happened next, was nothing short of wonderful! We were driving back towards the main road that would take us West when Nikki spotted... a CHOCOLATE FACTORY & SHOP, so I swerved the van across the road and in we went. It was just like a normal shop down one side but down the other was a huge kitchen with a man making all sorts of chocolatey treats. We were the only people in the shop (well, it was only just after 10.30am) and the cook kept giving us bits that were left over. After about 20 minutes Nikki brought me some Macadamia Brittle and dragged me from the shop.

After driving for a while (and with a tiny bit of gas left in our tank) we came to the Waipoua Forest, which is home to some of the biggest trees in the whole of New Zealand. So we stopped here and went for a wander into the woodland. We found the Tane Mahuta (God of the Forest) no prob's - this tree was over 51 meters high and had a girth of over 13 meters. When we got back to the car we saw a sign that said it was 18km through the forest and we had no idea when we'd find another petrol station but we went for it anyway.

Our scenic drive took us through Puketona, Kawakawa (where we stopped to take some photos of some public toilets. What? The book said they were famous, ok?), Kaikohe, Katui, Dargaville, Brynderwyn and finally to Waiwera where, at 6.30pm, we decided to set up camp.

Our camp seems pretty cool although its too dark to see for sure (it's winter here). One thing is for sure, we're parked right next to the sea because as I sit writing this I can hear waves crashing against the van - Nikki is definitely gonna wake up needing a wee tomorrow.

We made some sausages, mash and beans for tea and sat chillin' in the van. I thought that the last 2 days were cool, but today was ACE!

WE LOVE OUR CAMPERVAN!

Thursday 14th June 2007

We woke up in our little van at just before 8am this morning and it was bloody freezing, because Nikki had taken all the covers! The bed wasn't the most comfortable, but it was fun all the same (i'm sure that feeling will soon wear off). We had some breakfast, packed-up the bed and got back on the road.

Our plan was to explore the Bay of Islands and spend a night up there somewhere, before heading back to Auckland either tomorrow or Friday and further South on the weekend.

After about an hour, we drove through a small seaside town called Paihia. The morning mist had cleared, the clouds had gone and the sun was shining on the water - the place looked amazing! We pulled in to take some pictures and then spent about an hour or two looking round and walking on the beach.

By now we'd looked at the map and figured that we'd head to a place called KeriKeri and spend a night there. To get there we took some scenic routes up through the hills and the views seemed to get more and more breath-taking around every corner. Up in the hills, we found a place called Haruru Falls, which are known as the 'Heart of the Bay of Islands' - they were pretty cool!

We left the falls and Nikki drove the van so that I could admire the country. I must say, she did very well and only crashed the once - only joking - she was brilliant and didn't crash at all. She got us to KeriKeri and we checked ourselves into another campsite before going for a look around.

When we got back from the town, we explored the campsite and found this HUGE old tree with a rope-swing out over a river. Even though its the middle of winter here, and the water is probably freezing, there was no way I was going to give this a miss. At one point I was going to change my mind, but when Nikki said I was a scaredy-cat I flew out over the river. Nikki had a go and then I wanted another go, but this time I got my foot stuck in the rope and couldn't get off. Nikki had to dump all the bags and come to the edge to catch me. We both nearly fell in, but she rescued me... my hero!

After all the excitement of the deadly rope swing, we needed to eat, so we made spaghetti bolognese for tea (we'd not eaten since breakfast). Yummy!

With our bellies now full, we went for a walk into KeriKeri to try and find a pub. We did find one not far from our site - but it seemed very quiet. Me and Nikki were sat enjoying a drink when we were asked if we wanted to play in the pool tournament? We said no at first, but I was thinking of changing my mind when some really scary looking, Maori men walked in... so we drank up and left. We came back to the safety of our van and watched TV instead.

Wednesday 13th June 2007

The alarm woke us up at 6am this morning, because Dale was giving us a lift into Auckland city centre. Today we were getting our campervan... yippee! We got ready, said goodbye to Susi and went to collect it. ROAD TRIP!

We decided that we would travel North from Auckland, to an area called the Bay of Islands. We didn't know if we were going to get there today, we just thought we'd see how we felt. Driving the van was ACE! We saw loads of them about, some from the same company - and their drivers waved at us as we went past.

New Zealand is beautiful! We were no more than 10 minutes outside of Auckland when the buildings disappeared and there was nothing but countryside. Everywhere you looked was green. One minute you'd be looking over miles and miles of fields, then suddenly you'd be driving up a huge hill-type-mountain, then you'd come out into the clear again - with a view that stretched for miles!

After about 2 hours of driving (at about 10am), we wanted to stop and get ourselves a drink and maybe some breakfast as we'd left Susi and Dale's in a hurry and had not any there. We found a tiny little café in the middle-of-nowhere and stopped. We both ordered a bacon and egg sarnie, and Nikki had a hot chocolate, with me asking for an apple juice. The food and drink was superb! My apple juice was freshly squeezed (with bits and everything), Nikki's hot chocolate was lush and the sarnies... well, they were the size of house bricks - brilliant!

We got back on the road and continued to travel North. After another couple of hours we drove through a city called Whangarei, and decided it would be a nice place to stay for the night. We found ourselves a campsite, booked ourselves in and went out exploring. To get to the Quayside Town Basin and harbour, we trekked through the Mair park / forest and got there in about 30 minutes. The park was very cool - we had to walk through all the trees, down shingle paths and then across a river (using a bridge of course).

The Quayside Town Basin has loads of shops and a harbour, so we spent a couple of hours looking round then went into the Fudge Factory where we bought ice-creams and fudge and sat eating them on the side of the river.

When we got back we went to a supermarket called Woolworth's and got some supplies for the trip. At the campsite, Nikki made us a chilli for tea, which we ate in the van before I set the bed up. We then got in, and watched The Break-Up on the laptop.

Out on the road - me, Nikki and Kiwi (our campervan)!

Tuesday 12th June 2007

Today was our last day with Susi, Dale and the gang (well, Dale was at work - but we'd see him this evening) and after we'd got ready and had some breakfast, we all went out for a walk.

Susi and Dale's neighborhood is very peaceful, and we walked around looking at the houses that are for sale. Thankfully, Nikki didn't fall in love with any - and so we can continue with the rest of our world tour.

The weather was really nice today. Even though it's winter here in New Zealand, we've had sun everyday and, if it does rain, it only rains for about 10 minutes then gets warm again. As long as it stays like this, I think we'll be fine in the campervan!

As Susi is heavily pregnant, the walk really tired her out and when we got back to the house everyone fell asleep, so me and Nikki just chilled out on the sofa watching TV.

When Dale got home from work we all decided to go out for a meal. They took us to a pub in Albany called Speights Ale House. The meals were really nice, and it was cool to go out on our last night together.

Yippee! We get our campervan tomorrow!

Monday 11th June 2007

Me and Nikki will have been with Susi and Dale for a week on Wednesday, and we think that they will have put up with us for long enough by then, so we figured we would try and sort our campervan today, so that we can plan our road trip. Nikki rang a few companies and then we headed into town to check some out.

Mia, Susi's friend, gave us a lift to the bus-stop (which is about 1 mile from the house) and we caught the bus into Takapuna. We didn't look around, just caught another bus straight into Auckland city centre.

When we got off we headed for a place called The Strand, which is where one of the camper van companies, Jucy Rentals, is based. As soon as we saw the little van, we knew it was the one we wanted, plus the company was offering a really good deal - so we put down a deposit and arranged to pick it up Wednesday morning... yippee!

With that sorted we had a look around Auckland. Nikki's Mum had mentioned that her Great Grandad's name was on a plaque somewhere in the harbour - so we had a look for that, but couldn't find it. We had some sushi for lunch (i've got Nikki hooked) and then went up the Auckland Sky Tower.

The Sky Tower is the highest structure in the Southern Hemisphere and we caught the lift to the top observation deck. Unlike the Stratosphere in Las Vegas, the views from here were amazing! Auckland is quite a large city, but is surrounded by green volcanic formed mountains and loads of water. It was beautiful.

Part of the floor of the observation deck is glass and so you can walk around and see the city below. When Nikki (the wimp) started walking on it I knew I had to go one better so I led down on it and then when she told me to get up, started jumping up and down...

Dale picked us up when he had finished work and drove us back to his house, where Susi had cooked us an Indonesian meal for tea.

Don't worry Susi and Dale, we'll be out of your hair soon!

Sunday 10th June 2007

Today was the day of Lloyds birthday party and when it was over, we were knackered - and yet all we did was eat food, wash the dishes and play with hundreds of screaming children. Ok, there weren't hundreds - but the destruction they left behind said differently.

Lloyd had loads of presents and we bought him a Duplo Ambulance (with flashing lights and everything!) to play with, plus Susi had made an incredible Indonesian curry, which we ate tons of... everyone was happy!

Happy Birthday Lloyd!

Saturday 9th June 2007

Susi and Dale had a few things to do today because they were throwing a birthday party for Lloyd tomorrow, and so we tagged along and they offered to show us around Auckland.

We started by driving along the coast and arrived at a place called Takapuna. This place was lovely. It was really peaceful and so whilst the others were looking in the shops me and NIkki had a walk along the beach. The beach was only small, but it was surrounded by grass covered mountains and the sun was shining - it was fun.

When the others had finished looking around the shops we went to get some lunch. We went to a huge food court where they served all sorts of food. Me and Nikki had Chinese. We tried to buy everyone else's, but they wouldn't let us (again!) - so we bought Lloyd a muffin instead.

Afterwards we moved onto a small seaside town called Brown's Bay, which was very similar to Clevedon in Bristol. Susi and Dale dropped us off and we had a look around. We found another small beach where we sat, talked and had a milkshake each, before looking in the shops and then going to the pub.

Susi and Dale picked us up a few hours later and we went to buy some food for Lloyds party tomorrow, before going home to chill out. Susi cooked us shepherds pie for tea.

If they continue looking after us like this - we're never gonna want to leave!

Friday 8th June 2007

We woke up this morning at about 10am - sleeping in a real bed is heaven!

As Susi and Dale were at work again, me, Nikki, Lloyd and Uni spent the day lounging around playing with Lloyd's toys, watching daytime TV (you are not going to believe what's going to happen in Neighbors!) and generally... being lazy, which was cool because we're normally on the go all day.

Susi and Dale got home at about 5.30pm and they'd bought 2 massive bags of food from the chip shop. We were supposed to pay, but they wouldn't let us and so once again they treated us... bless 'em.

We're going out for the day tomorrow, so we'll buy them lunch then... well, we'll try.

This place is doing wonders for our budget!

Thursday 7th June 2007

We woke up at 6am this morning, because Dale had offered to take us into the centre of Auckland so we could have a look around.

They dropped us off at about 7.45am and we headed straight to McDonalds to get some breakfast. We sat in there for about an hour and then hit the shops. We had a quick look round and then decided that we would catch a ferry over to a place called Devonport.

After going into the Tourist Information Centre we were given a map and took ourselves on a long walk around this part of the city. We were told that New Zealand was going to be really cold compared to America but we were walking round with just our t-shirts on (on top I mean - we did have jeans on too). I think it was probably just as warm as California was last week. The sun was shining and everywhere looked really peaceful so we were having a really good time.

Our walk took us to a place called North Head, which is an old volcanic formed hill, in which the army dug tunnels and caves, to to protect themselves when fighting people attacking them by sea. It was really cool, and the views from the top were amazing!

We walked along some of the beaches on Devonport, had a look in the shops and then caught the ferry back to Auckland. We had a few hours to kill before Dale picked us up again so we went and got some Sushi for our dinner and then went to buy Lloyd a birthday present as he's 2 and is having a party on Sunday. We're invited and i'm told there's food (yippee - jelly and ice cream!)

When we got back to the house Susi made us spaghetti bolognese for tea and we sat relaxing, watching TV and talking.

Yay, we're Kiwi's now!

Wednesday 6th June 2007

We arrived at Auckland Airport at just after 5am this morning and collected our bags before catching a shuttle over to Susi and Dale's house. They are 2 of Nikki's friends from Lloyds who are kindly looking after us for a few days.

After dropping off everyone else in the shuttle first, we eventually got to Susi and Dale's (large) house but they had already left for work. Susi's sister-in-law Uni let us in and we got to meet Lloyd (their son) before going to our room and falling asleep.

When we woke up a few hours later Uni had gone out so we had showers and chilled out in the house before Susi and Dale got home from work at about 5pm.

We said our hellos, which was really nice because we'd not seem them in years and Susi (who is tiny) is heavily pregnant, with a massive belly. They then said they wanted to take us out for a meal - how could we refuse?

They drove us to a nice Malaysian restaurant and we had a really good time - plus they wouldn't let us pay. From what we've seen of Auckland, it's very similar to the UK - they drive on the same side of the road, everything is closer together than the USA and... it was raining!

We got back to the house and hung out, catching up before going up to our room (yippee! our own room) and falling asleep... again!

Hello New Zealand!

Tuesday 5th June 2007

Because of the time difference between America and New Zealand (America are 19 hours behind) today was lost in the air.

I was well impressed with Qantas and our flight was pretty good. Nikki spent most of it asleep and I spent my time watching films and working on Wilksi's tattoo (yes, still doing it!)

Hopefully we'll be back to normal tomorrow.

I don't mind losing a day - I don't particularly like Tuesday's anyway!

Monday 4th June 2007

This morning we woke up when the alarm went off and got ourselves ready before packing our bags and putting them in the hostel storage room. This meant we could go out for the day before catching our flight this evening. We thought we'd walk in the opposite direction of Manhattan Beach and see where that took us.

Everywhere was really quiet - I guess that everyone was back at work this morning, and so there were very few people on the beach. We did see some people sat on their balconies, overlooking the ocean whilst working from home. When my business takes off - this is how i'm gonna do it!

Eventually we found ourselves in Redondo Beach and stopped to have a coffee in a café on a small fishing pier. When we'd finished we walked onto the main tourist pier and spent some time in the arcade. This place was ace! It was full of old arcade machines like Pacman, The Simpsons and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles so I played on these and Nikki rode on the waltzers.

Rather than walk back along the beach we thought we would walk back along through the streets to see what was about. When we got back to Hermosa we went into Ralph's and got ourselves a salad each that we sat and ate them on the beach. It was about 4pm now, so we thought it was about time to collect our bags from the hostel and make our way to the airport.

We got to the airport in plenty of time and checked our bags in. Before we knew it we were boarding the plane and we had excellent seats next to the emergency exits so we had loads of leg room. After a short delay our plane took off and we were on our way to New Zealand.

I can't believe our American Adventure is over so soon. Oh, well - on to the next!

Sunday 3rd June 2007

After all the exploring we did yesterday, we thought we'd catch the bus down to Long Beach today - to see what that was like. Before we did that though we had some breakfast and then did a Skype video call with Mum and Keith. We were really excited, saying how we were moving onto New Zealand tomorrow and Mum started to cry... again! She said it was because we were moving further away (bless her).

Once we'd finished the call we walked up to the bus-stop, which was on the Pacific Coast Highway (the same one we were on in Malibu - so it must run the entire West Coast of California!?) and waited for the bus. When we realised that we'd just missed one we went into Ralph's and bought ourselves some salad for our dinner, which we took to eat in Long Beach.

Long Beach is great! We got off the bus down by the harbor where there are loads of shops. We looked in a few and also rode the Ferris Wheel before walking along the shore up to a lighthouse. Everywhere was lush and green, the sun was shining and we were sharing a cheesecake ice cream... perfect!

After we'd spent a couple of hours looking round the shore area we headed in to the centre and had a look in some of the shops. Nikki bought herself a really cool pair of Puma trainers with her birthday money and we invested in some sweets for tomorrows 13 hour flight.

When it was time to come home, we missed the bus and because it was an hour till the next one we went in Starbucks and shared a Orange Mocha. We eventually did catch the bus and when we got off we popped into a lovely pizza shop for a slice each.

We then came back to our room, wrote the blog and drank some beers whilst listening to some band playing in the club below!

Long Beach in the house!

Saturday 2nd June 2007

When we got ready this morning we found that we were up in time for the free breakfast that our hostel provides, so we helped ourselves to some coffee and toast and then went out to explore Hermosa Beach.

This place is lovely. We think it is by far the prettiest place we have been to so far. All the houses are really funky looking and there aren't two that are the same. There are some that look like Spanish Villas, some that look like wooden doll's houses (but obviously bigger) and some that look like posh town houses.

We took a long walk up to Manhattan Beach, which is similar to Venice and Santa Monica Beaches: really wide, yellow sands and lots of volleyball nets - the beach goes on for miles!

When we got to the Manhattan Beach area we took a walk around the town and stopped in Jamba Juice for a smoothie, then looked in the shops before walking back through the streets - admiring the houses. We even looked in some estate agent's windows, but the cheapest houses were a cool £1million!

This afternoon, we took a walk in the opposite direction, along Hermosa Beach, and stopped for fish and chips in a little beach-side café (which were nowhere near as good as fish and chips at home). Nikki also bought a new t-shirt with some of her birthday money.

When we got back to the square where our hostel is we thought we'd go into the Lighthouse Café as they had live music. We sat and had a few beers watching a band called Yesterday's Child sing classic rock songs - they were pretty good, much better than the drunk guy who kept getting up to dance!

Tonight we bought some popcorn from the shop, which we cooked in our microwave and then sat and ate it in our room... rock on!

When I grow up, I want to live in Hermosa Beach!

Friday 1st June 2007

We woke up feeling sad this morning - our stay in Las Vegas was over (boooo), but never mind, we were flying back to LA. We didn't have anywhere to stay yet, but we figured we'd try Hermosa Beach, which is not far from the airport. We'd sort of reserved a place in one hostel there - but we weren't sure...

After getting ready we sat in the Starbucks in our hotel before going outside to catch the bus (but not before having one last go on the slot machines). The bus dropped us off right outside the airport and only cost $1.25 so we went inside, checked ourselves in and then Nikki rang her Grandma Iles.

As we knew we wouldn't be getting any food on the 45 minute flight we, you've guessed it, went to get some food. We chose... yet another burger! This time in Ruby's Dinette. It was HUGE!

When we arrived at LAX, we rang the Surf City Hostel (who said it was fine to stay) and caught the bus over. Our hostel is very cool. Well, the actual hostel is ok (we got a private room) but the area is awesome. We're surrounded by loads of bars and restaurants plus we're just a few steps from the beach.

We went out and got ourselves a slice of pizza each and then bought some beer and chocolate to take back to our room, where we sat watching TV on the laptop. Once again there isn't a TV in our room - well actually that's a lie - there is one, but I think they've put it in our room to store, because its sat on the floor, its not plugged in, it doesn't have an arial and it's very dusty.

Just as we were about to nod-off, it started... the 2 clubs below us started having a music competition. We tried sleeping to the sounds of The Eurythmics 'Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)' and The Black Eyed Peas 'Lady Humps' - what a mix. Oh joy!

Another day, another place to stay!

Thursday 31st May 2007

Yippee! No alarm this morning. We were knackered after yesterdays Grand Canyon trip and didn't get out of bed till 12pm.

We're heading back to LA tomorrow and so we took full advantage of the hotels free laundry room and did all our washing (you don't get these luxuries in hostels).

After we'd finished we made our way up to the 112th floor of the tower because I wanted to go on the new thrill rides. Man, these were scary! One of them, the 'X-Scream', tips you on an angle so that the car you're sat in slides at 30mph over the edge and then stops suddenly - 866ft above the ground.

The other, 'Insanity', starts by dangling you nearly 900ft about the Las Vegas strip and then starts to spin until you are at about a 70° angle - looking at the floor below. Both were amazing - but I won't be riding either again in a hurry!

When we came back down to a safer level, we went into Roxy's Diner for our dinner. I had a BBQ pork sandwich and Nikki had a cheese burger and chips. As she didn't go on the rides, she treated herself to a Banana Strato-shake - which was a milkshake that came in a cup, (shaped like the Stratosphere Tower), that was about 2ft tall - she loved it!

We spent this afternoon by the pool. Nikki read her book and I played basketball. We were up there for about 3 hours. It was baking, so it was nice to be in the water (which was freezing).

At 8pm we were told we had to leave the pool area as it was closing, so we came back to our room and got ready to go out. We decided that we'd catch the $2 bus to Downtown Las Vegas, which is where all the original casinos like the Four Queens and the Golden Nugget are. The area is called the Freemont Street Experience, it is an entire street, under the cover of a huge canopy made of lights, that show huge videos and displays - all to music. Apparently it was this year that they had to replace the bulbs - all 1 billion of them! The light show was really cool - some 60's music with a video about Vegas.

We got back to our room at about 11.30pm and packed our bags. We then sat writing a few postcards.

Goodbye Las Vegas...

Ladies and Gentlemen - Ben & Nikki have left the building!

Wednesday 30th May 2007

Beep Beep! Beep Beep! Once again, we were woken by the damn alarm - this time at 5.15am. We'd booked up to go to the Grand Canyon today and had to get our bus at 6.05am.

The drive out to the Grand Canyon was quite an experience. We had to drive through Arizona and apparently you could buy a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom house there for $90,000 (£45,000). The thing was, everything was miles apart, and almost everyone lived in mobile homes on the side of the road.

We had to catch a different bus up to the Canyon as the drive was through the Joshua Tree Forest, which is very dusty and rocky, and I guess the company don't want their nice coaches getting wrecked.

Everyone is dropped off at the Grand Canyon West Terminal, which is a starting point for all of the trips. It's here that you can make your way to the Canyon by bus, plane or helicopter as well as get to other attractions. We caught a bus over to the Hualapai Cowboy Ranch. This place was quite an eye-opener, it's an actual ranch in the middle of the desert where they heard cattle, ride horses etc, some people even live there. They're so far in the middle of nowhere that they have no TV and can only get radio reception somedays! We went on a horse-drawn wagon ride and then made our way back to the West Terminal.

Next we caught the bus up to Eagle Point, which is on the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. WOW! It was amazing. It's huge (the entire Grand Canyon is 277 miles long) and everywhere you look the views are spectacular. The West Rim is where they have built the new SkyWalk viewing platform. It's not the highest point of the whole Canyon but this thing still extends out over a 4000ft drop. Nikki didn't go on, but I did. It was cool. The floor is made of glass and even though you know nothing can go wrong, there are still people holding on who won't look down (wimps). I really enjoyed it!

When I got off, I rejoined Nikki and we had some photos taken together. What really surprised us was that there are no safety barriers. We saw a number of older people who would walk up to the edge, turn to pose for a pic and then start edging backwards to 'get in the shot' - the fools. We asked a ranger and he said that no-one has ever fallen over the edge! (yeah right).

From Eagle Point we caught the bus up to another section of the West Rim called Guano Point. This was just as amazing! We sat eating our lunch about 3ft from the Canyon's edge, again with spectacular views.

On the way home we got to stop on the Arizona side of the Hoover Dam to take some pictures. Apparently, Arizona and Nevada are going through a drought at the moment - it's been going on for 9 years now, and it showed - the water levels of the Colorado River were quite low. When we'd taken some pictures we got back on the bus and came back to Vegas.

Tonight, we went into the Chinese restaurant in the Stratosphere for some food. It was really good. Nikki had Kung Pao Chicken and I had Teriyaki Beef. When we'd finished we went into the casino where we played on the slot machines, took advantage of the free beer and then went to watch some singers in one of the bars.

Wow! What a day.

Tuesday 29th May 2007

Once again, we were woken by the alarm this morning because we'd signed up to do a Marriott Timeshare presentation, so we got ourselves ready and went down to catch the free shuttle.

The presentation was really impressive and the guy who was showing us round was really nice - his name was Chuck and he was quite old. We felt sorry for him in a way because we had no intention of buying anything. When it was over we got our free show and meal tickets and bid Chuck farewell.

Las Vegas was starting to get really hot now. It said on the news it was about 96°, so we thought we'd spend the afternoon by the pool. When we got to the pool we found that it was closed - there was some problem with the pumps or something and we were asked if we minded going to the other pool. They asked if we minded because it was an adults only pool - and there may be some topless swimming up there. I didn't mind - I planned on going topless anyway!

This evening we went to the Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino for dinner and to watch the 'V - Ultimate Variety Show'. We ate in a little Italian place called Lombardo's. The food was really good, and even though our main meals were paid for, (by Marriott), as we had ordered deserts and drinks we spent $30 extra - d'oh!

The 'V Show' was pretty good. It was loads of different circus-type acts and for nothing we couldn't complain - although I admit, it was no Celine Dion type production! When it was over we took a slow walk back to the Stratosphere.

Man, we are cooking in Vegas (and I don't mean on the slots)!

Monday 28th May 2007

We woke up this morning feeling really good. Sleeping in a king-size hotel bed with Nikki was definitely an improvement on sleeping in a bunk-bed.

The alarm woke us up because we planned on doing a Skype video call with my Mum, Keith and my Gran. Nikki went to get us some coffee from the Starbucks in our hotel, whilst I set it up. The video chat was really cool - I don't think my Gran could quite get her head around the fact that when we were on screen, we were LIVE!

After getting ready we caught the Las Vegas Trolley down to Mandalay Bay. This is the last hotel on the strip (when traveling away from the Stratosphere) and decided we'd start our day there before walking back.

Of course, we couldn't start our trek on empty stomachs so we shared a Subway sandwich and set off...

We got back at about 9pm. We'd managed to have a good look inside half the hotels, but then decided we'd leave the rest for another day. The Strip is 4.2 miles long and we were knackered!

As we couldn't be bothered to go back out for food, and we were starving because we'd not eaten anything since lunch-time, we went to the Courtyard Buffet, which is in our hotel. They had TONS of different foods - and we ate most of them. I left felling ill... d'oh!

I admit it - I was beaten by the Buffet!