A Free Weekend to Remember

I have just recovered from my amazing four day weekend at Tauranga/ Mount Maunganui with Katy, Kristen and Ariel. We left Hamilton around four to arrive at the Mount by 6:30, didn't bother unpacking and hit the town right away. Tauranga is supposed to be known for its night life, and I had a lot of fun but I realized that Bars & restaurants in New Zealand are not nearly as packed as they are in America. This is probably due to the fact that the population in America is a lot larger then that of New Zealand. After dinner and a few bars we headed back to our hostile, Pacific Coast, to prepare for a long day of lounging on the beach. We were off to an early start Friday morning with breakfast at a cafe and finding a prime location at the beach. Besides Cathedral Cove I definitely think The Mount is one of the most beautifulest places to be. There were a lot of rock structures in the area and you could go pretty far out into the ocean while only having the water come up to your knees. After a few hours out in the hot sun we hit the town to do some shopping, but only to find that everything in the town closes at 5. Not only was I upset about this but I was surprised, usually in beach resorts at home shops stay open to at least 8 o'clock. Mount Maunganui is definitely a family type resort, all the families head out to the beaches and shops around 8 and head back to their hostiles or hotels around 5. Saturday I was more prepared and made sure to get my shopping done early. Having checked out the beach the day before the girls and myself headed to Pilots Bay to see what that had to offer. At the bay you could Sail, Kayak, and even go Deep Sea fishing ( that is if you could wake up and be on a boat by 7 am) but in this area there was more families then there were at the beach. At night we all headed out for a cruise, which was tons of fun. Unfortunately when we returned to our hostile we were a bit too loud and my have woke up a few people, the next morning there was reprocutions and we were asked to leave to hostile. I was really upset, I had never been kicked out of anywhere before. I then realized that hostiles are not like hotels that we have in America. Hostiles are more community based, everyone shares the same space and looks out for one another. If you were staying in a hotel, especially in America, you would be more on your own and doing your own thing. Now that I realize this I will be more respectful and keep the noise down. I can't wait for Wellington... No getting kicked out of hostiles for me there.