Arrival and what follows

Hey Everyone!
Upon arrival my first impression, after an exhausting plane ride, was how clean the air is. Then when we took the drive into Auckland it didn't really hit me that we were in New Zealand. I must say that I was a little disappointed by the city of Auckland. Not that the city wasn’t nice, but for me New Zealand is the country. New Zealand is blue and green and vibrant. Auckland was just not doing it for me. It was very similar to the other cities I have been to, granted the views are better here.
Now I do realize that we were able to see some green on our visit to Mount Eden (how about those cows!) before exploring Auckland, but that was not enough green for me. I was finally able to believe we were in New Zealand when we reached Rangitoto. Rangitoto was amazing, just for the simple fact that it is 600 years young and still forming. Not being any type of GEOL major, I found it fascinating to see vegetation growing among the rocks. My highlights from the next day came from the amazing beaches we viewed out of the bus windows, the Kauri trees and Will.
The beaches are straight out of paradise, which really made it a tease not be able to visit them at the time. But the lunch break on the third day made up for every beach we passed. That swim was the perfect thirst quencher. At first I didn’t think much of the Kauri, but after the museum I was intrigued to see more. Everything from the tree was serving a purpose, even the sap or gum. The one room in the museum really got me wondering about the trees, and that was the black circles drawn on the wall. I was not expecting a tree with that size circumference. I think I captured a pretty good picture of Tane Mahuta. Then there was Will, our guide at Waitangi, he provided us with a wealth of interesting information in such a pleasant manor. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the grounds and Maori people made this tour a must-do.
The third day was memorable not only for the swim but also for the sand boarding and ninety-mile beach. How awesome was sand boarding! I tried twice down that dune and I just couldn’t reach the stream. That was the ultimate calf work-out right there! Ninety-mile beach was something you just don’t find at home (not that much of New Zealand can be found at home) because where else do you have a highway on the beach. And Murry’s stories of the beach taking over cars were comical; don’t drive in the dry sand or the water! I was able to collect numeral unique shells from this beach on our brief stop.
Then there was the cruise to Motukokako (the hole-in-the-rock), is it the real thing or was Murry correct? I’m going to pick the real thing, and being able to go through it on a cruise boat is something not quickly forgotten. And then there was Russell, the perfect beach town. A quaint little beach town with great views and an interesting beach. Next was the black water rafting. How amazing was that! The formations within the cave left me in awe. Making my way through that cave on a tube would have been fine with me but the glow worms illuminating the way gave it that extra excitement. There were also a few on my group that were able to see the pyrite forming on the sides of the cave.
All in all a great first week in New Zealand!