Where to begin? Well, I met Brigita, my Slovenian penpal on Thurs (Wed in the U.S.) & she is absolutely adorable. She, Sonja & I have been getting along famously. We all went to the Backpacker Pub Crawl Thurs night after Brigita's arrival and had a good time. We met Danny from America (Missouri) during the evening & all did some dancing and chatted about our trips so far. On Friday, us gals went to Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter--saw some penguins, manta rays, sharks, etc. Sonja & I snorkeled in the shark aquarium in this small cage with netted sides and a clear plastic bottom. The guy who helped us get suited up in our wetsuits, etc. was awesome---his favorite word was "sweet," but in a Kiwi accent hehe. It was one of those acquariums where it is actually a tunnel that the visitors walk through. So, it was fun to have all of the visitors looking at us snorkeling =) It was pretty fun, although the water was absolutely freezing! I must admit, however, that it REALLY made me antsy to actually go diving!! I can't wait until we hit some scuba diving spots!
The next day, the three of us walked to the Auckland Museum--Brigita (Gigi) got us a tad bit off course on the way there, but it made for a hilarious stroll. Oh, my favorite quotes of the day: Brigita pointing off in a nearby location says, "Oh, park!" Sonja responds, "Isn't that a cemetary?" Haha. When we finally got to the musum, the trees around it were soooo gorgeous! I have no idea what kind of trees they were, but they were huge and had thick, wild branches. So, we stopped and took some photos--I was called a monkey by Sonja. That night, a group of us went out to a pub/bar called Northern Steamship (Sonja, Brigita, Danny, Hannah from Germany, Kirsti from Holland, and me). That was quite fun. We also visited one of the parks, Albert Park, which is really nice.
Yesterday, we went to Okahu Bay for a beach day and to celebrate Waitangi Day with the locals. It was a huge festival with a great band, delicious food, and a positive atmosphere. I ate THE best chicken kabob I've ever had in my life. Last night, Brigita & I also went to the Sky Tower and saw incredible view of the city. Today, we went on the free bus tour around the city---I was unaware that it also included a FREE walk across the Harbour Bridge. This isn't just any walk you see..it usually costs at least $80.00 because you walk across in harnesses and are connected to the bridge so as to not fall off the side =) Then, three people on our tour (including two British guys who I learned are adrenaline junkies) bungee jumped off the center of the bridge while we were there. It was SO fun to watch them jump & cheer them on. The last stop of the tour was North Head, which was amazing. It felt like we were nowhere near the city when we were there--beautiful green hills. Loved it!
Tonight, we are going to chill out at the hostel and plan out our trip up north, which shall include Bay of Islands and 90-mile beach. Sonja & I have become fond of Auckalnd very quickly, but we are definitely excited to be going toward the gorgeous scenery that New Zealand is known for having. Well, there is so much more to say, but I will have to leave it for the next post.
Cheers,
A
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