which came first; the kiwi, the kiwi, or the kiwi?

After two weeks spent upside down, five hours behind my hometown of Seattle, yet a day ahead, I still can't answer that question. Was it the kiwi fruit, the kiwi bird, or the kiwi nationality? Doesn't matter much to me though. It's true, the kiwis (fruit) seem to be 100 times better in kiwiland than they are back home. I have yet to see a kiwi bird, but I plan on seeing one as soon as possible. I'm still waiting around to hear back from the New Zealand immigration office to see if they want to give me a working holiday visa. Shouldn't be a problem, but since I arrived a little earlier than expected, they probably had to do some extra paperwork on me.

the needle in the middle of Auckland; copy cats!

In other news, I am now a proud owner of a Mitsubishi Chariot. It's going to be my home for a bit. I got a for a killer deal and since I'll be living out of it, mostly for free, it'll pay for itself in a few weeks because I would've had to pay hostel bills. It does lack a shower, which would be nice for when I start going to interviews, but I'm sure I'll manage to find one somewhere.

Auckland is a wonderful city, but now that I'm in New Zealand finally, I'm really starting to get antsy. I want to get out and start exploring as soon as possible. Waiting to hear back from jobs in unnerving as I definitely need to start making money. Kiwiland is wonderful, and wonderfully expensive! Thank goodness one Kiwi dollar is 80 US cents; gotta love that exchange rate. I'm hoping for a barista position at a Cafe somewhere downtown. We'll see. As soon as I know though, I'm heading to a climbing area called Wharepapa (pronounced Fa-ray-pa-pa; weird right? 'Wh' = 'F' in NZ I suppose) and I'll post up there for a bit and get my fingers on some rock.

Went for a little hike to the top of Mt. Eden for sunset. It's the tallest place in Auckland and it's an inactive volcano. I didn't realize how beautiful the surrounding area is, absolutely gorgeous. Looking Southwest you can see the Tasman Sea and looking Northeast the Pacific, all from one spot. Pretty neat.

just me an my chariot on Mt Eden

As for tonight, well it's Saturday here, and for most of you it's still Friday so party on friends! Tonight there's a big Rugby tournament in Auckland, the NZ All Blacks vs. the Australian Wallabes. Rugby is really big here, they take it almost as seriously as I take American Football. Since I doubt they're going to show any Seahawks games at any bar, I guess I have to get used to rugby and get all rowdy with the kiwis. Should be just fine I think. Though they don't have Beast Mode....

Love and miss you all!

Much love

kiwiland

Hello all! Ok, so I have a lot of explaining to do. First off though, I want to tell some more stories from French Polynesia. When I last left off, I had just brought you all on my journey to Huahine. Huahine was perhaps my favorite place in the Society Islands. We were in an anchorage with many other boats in about 15 feet of clear blue water with sandy bottom; coral heads and the fishies living in them were easily visible.

the anchorage

 The first order of business was, of course, find a store at which to buy beer. We couldn't believe our luck when we walked into the store; it was huge! More like a regular supermarket, and much more decently priced. Soon, after obtaining our necessities, we heard rumor of a bar on the waterfront by the quay where the happy hour was cheap. We found ourselves amidst many other cruisers and enjoyed the evening immensely watching the sun go down and enjoying cold Hinano on tap. I even saw a friend that I met on Moorea!

just another sunset in paradise

John from Moorea

           

nom

 I didn't enjoy Huahine solely for the cheap booze though. The next few days were full of snorkeling, and surfing (by the boys not by me; the reef break is much too dangerous for a beginner, but I heard it was quite epic and I intend to return someday when I'm a pro-surfer...right). We also made a point of putting the spear gun and sling to use and getting some yummy squirrel fish for dinner. I myself didn't get any fish; my hunter instinct didn't really kick in, not to mention I lost a flipper during one windy night in Moorea, so that made things a little difficult. The boys got a few fish though, more and more each night. Taylor, Connor and Mat from s/v Gypsy Blues got a grand total of 15 fish over three days! They weren't the biggest, but that's really a huge achievement because those fish are quite quick to dive back into their coral homes when we got close.

mmmm fish guts

We decided to get off the boat the next day and go walk around the island a bit. There are quite a few interesting archaeological sites on Huahine. There are about twenty ancient Polynesian ruins that are called Marae; used for many important ceremonies and events; including human sacrifices and human dinners. Damn cannibals. They don't look like much in the pictures, but they were actually quite interesting. 

These sites were quite a few kilometers away from the quay where we parked the dinghy, so Mat, Taylor, Connor and I had to hitchhike to them. We got separated during the hitching process, so Connor and I wandered amidst the Marae, and soon found ourselves at a locals house that sold ice cream out of their house next to their art gallery. Naturally, both of us having big sweet tooths, we had to stop and we enjoyed cookies and cream with a local guy name He'are. We were soon invited to a bbq at his house the next night with his American girlfriend and some of their French and Polynesian friends.

if you're going to be eaten, I suppose there are worst places for it to happen

a marae Connor and I found on a short hike

 An invitation to a bbq seems to be a pretty thing to get when you're cruising around these islands. We came back the next night with nine freshly speared squirrel fish, a large fruit salad, and fresh baked cookies (by yours truly). We enjoyed a night with hew friends in He'are's self built home, attempting to play a traditional Polynesian instrument made from a tree trunk, drinking Hinano, and bbqing fish. Pretty enjoyable.

bbq made from coconut husks

ice cream shop aka He'are's house

fish cleaning

Connor being musical

approaching Raiate'a

Soon we were off to Raiatea. Only a half day sail away. We were there for two days, but it wasn't super exciting so we left for Taha'a after we searched in vain to find one of the world's rarest flowers. In Taha'a we did some more walking around and general hanging out, before we found a beautiful place to snorkel where I proceeded to snorkel with one flipper. Not the easiest thing to do when you're inches above pokey sea urchin, but I made it work.

I'm convinced this is the motu Captain Jack Sparrow was stranded on

In Taha'a, the decision was made to head back to Raiatea where I could get off the boat. I hopped on a flight to Papeete, where I stayed for two nights at Chez Fifi, a wonderful hostel right by the airport.

breakfast table & lounge at Chez Fifi

last Tahitian sunset...for now

I hopped on another flight, and here I am now, in Auckland! Kiwiland! I couldn't be more excited. Though it's still winter here...my wardrobe wasn't really ready to be here this early, but it's ok. It feels more like a Seattle Autumn than a winter so I think I can handle it.

Au revoir Tahiti

Hello everyone! It's been awhile since I've posted and much has happened. I have to keep this short as I'm in downtown Papeete, and paying to use the internet. I'm back in Papeete because a decision was made that I get off the boat. I got to do some amazing traveling and I consider myself extremely lucky. Now I'm booked on a flight for New Zealand at 7:30 am on the 11th! A little earlier than expected; nonetheless I'm wicked excited to get things started in Kiwiland! I just wish I had brought some warmer clothing as it'll still be winter when I get there. I don't think my tropical wardrobe will be much help. Oh well, on to the next part of the adventure! But first...gotta find a job. Wish me luck!