Week 1

Wow, I can’t believe we have been here for a week already; we have been so busy it feels like it’s been so much longer, but I love it. Let’s see, what has happened in the past week…
Surprisingly I slept for about 8 hours of our 12.5 hour flight from LA to Auckland, so all in all the flight wasn’t too bad. Mt. Eden was really pretty, and seeing the Auckland Harbour Bridge got me really excited for bungy jumping. Just a little while after leaving the airport, we were standing on top of a volcano overlooking Auckland and the bay, amazing! I absolutely loved our trip to Rangitoto following some free time in Auckland. I have never seen anything like that before in my life, an entire island covered by black lava rock, yet still had lush green trees growing all over it. And of course, the views from the top were spectacular. I enjoyed learning about some geology because I don’t know too much about geology, but am very fascinated by it.
Our time in Paihia was wonderful, and if I ever had a chance to go back I definitely would. Seeing the Kauri trees on the way up was a biology major’s dream. To be honest, I had never even heard of the Kauri trees before, but I am so happy we were able to see them, they are simply incredible. I hope Cookie will keep his deal, because I managed to get the entire tree in one picture. Sand boarding during our day trip to Cape Reinga was definitely a highlight, mostly because it was a lot of fun, and was probably one of the best “classes” I have ever attended. I loved Russell, and was able to see a lot of the shore from a kayak in the bay, which was nice. New Zealand has some pretty scary jellyfish; I saw quite a few out in the water.
Yesterday was fantastic. Black water rafting followed by a brush walk in the forest, awesome. I love that we were able to see a lot of caves, even if I did hit my head several times while walking down into the Waitomo cave. There was a large cavern along the brush walk that was amazing, but sadly it was very difficult to photograph.
Other than that, I have loved playing some Ultimate Frisbee, eating “rice bubbles” in the morning, and I think I am finally figuring out which way to look before crossing the street. I look forward to searching for more snail shells on the beach and learning as much as I can about the Maori culture before I leave. I am still just as excited for White Island since the last time I posted, and probably even more so now that we have already visited a few volcanoes. Of course, I can’t wait for yet another adrenaline rush…zorbing this weekend!