Monday 21st November – 15:29pm – Somewhere between Hamilton and Rotorua

It’s been nearly 6 weeks since I arrived in Auckland, and it’s about time I updated…

Liam lived in Whangarai, which is a lovely country city in Northland. He picked me up from the bus stop after I arrived, and we met Ash, who had decided to come up for a week of work too. After a milk shake and a brief tour, we drove back to Liam’s house for some food and to get ready for the week. I worked with Liam at ISTC over the summer, and he remains one of the nicest guys I know. His family were lovely and funny, with an amazing house on the side of a hill in a gated off community. There was a recurring theme of people having amazing big houses in NZ, which made me feel nervous about people visiting in the UK. I know my families houses are nice, but they are so small compered to the houses in NZ.

Ash and I were to help out on the Avocado farm where Liam was a supervisor, doing anything from picking fruit to collecting logs and driving a tractor. The first morning we were up at 06:00am, and at the farm before 07:30am. The work was tough but fun, and I didn’t mind getting dirty and cold for some hard earned cash. We picked hundreds of fruit throughout the first day, and had some great laughs
The working day was broken up by two breaks; the morning tea break of half an hour and another half an hour lunch break. Liam’s mum had prepared us all a packed lunch, that included sandwiches, cake, biscuits, fruit and crisps, 3 portions each for all. It was a lovely gesture, and I was loving my time after the first morning. That evening we had some great food, and I had an early night. The time difference was still hitting me a little, so I slept early most nights. Liam had given me his bedroom, and he slept on the spare bed outside, which was another amazing gesture.

Over the next few days we picked fruit, drove the tractor, picked up hundreds of logs and checked the irrigation systems on a hell of a lot of trees. Like I said before it was tough work, but good fun and I enjoyed it. The weather was intermittent, and would oscillate between brilliant sunshine and grey rain clouds, which actually made the work more fun. In the evenings Liam showed us around the town, and we visited the cinema. One evening we visited some water falls, and on another we went on a hike up the side of a small mountain

It was during this time I realised I wanted to keep travelling and see more of New Zealand whilst I could. Before I came to New Zealand I convinced myself I was moving for rugby, and to experience rugby in a new culture, however since arriving I feel like I have changed. I am now more interested in travelling, and seeing as much of the world as possible. I understand my rugby will be at a detriment because of this, but as long as I can play socially along the way I don’t think I will mind.

In preparation for the following week, I went online and booked into a hostel in Mount Maunganui, and sorted out a bus that would take me there. I was going to live there for a week or so, and spend some time with Ryan and the other lads in the evenings. I am excited for some time by myself and want to immerse myself into a hostel environment again.

On Thursday evening Liam took us down to his local football club, and we took part in a social 5 a-side tournament. It was good fun, and great fitness! Despite falling over the first time I touched the ball, I actually played okay and even managed to score a goal. In the second game I had a stint in goal and managed to not embarrass myself, which meant I was having a lot of fun. Friday was our last day on the farm, and we had planned to go to the north-most point of NZ over the weekend.

We drove straight to a place called Kaitaia on the Friday evening, and stayed in a dodgy looking motel. The bus tour picked us up from Kaitaia the next morning, so we decided to explore the small town a bit the night before. It was a quiet Maori town, with 1 pub and 1 fast food restaurant – a KFC conveniently located opposite our accommodation. After a few beers and a funny night, we went to sleep; Me and Liam sharing a double bed and Ash in a single – standard travelling accommodation.

We were picked up at 09:00am the next morning by the bus company, and started our journey up the 90 mile beach to Cape Reinga. The bus driver was a friendly Maori man called Tip, who took us round the whole day and gave us some great advice about NZ. The bus tour included several stop offs at tourist-y places, and some time on the sand dunes sand-boarding. This was a great experience, and I loved it. The bus pulled up at the bottom of the dune at Te Paki, and you had to climb to the top of a large dune then board down on your belly. It was a good laugh and I got soaked by landing in a puddle at the bottom.

After the sand boarding we drove up to the north most point, Cape Reinga, and stopped for lunch. The most famous part of Cape Reinga is the two oceans meeting just off coast. The Tasman and the Pacific Ocean meet, creating a faint line as the two colours differ slightly. It was a great site, and we got some good pictures. From there we travelled back to Kaitaia, got the car, and drove to Paihia where we would be staying the night.

Paihia is a brilliant beach town in the Bay of Islands. Similar to the Mount, it was full of young travellers, and a street with 5 different backpackers crammed onto it. I really liked Paihia and have booked to go back early December for a week or two. We checked into the backpackers Liam had booked, and went out to explore to town. It was lovely and we grabbed some brilliant fish and chips to eat.

That night we had some beers and met some interesting people from around the world. We met a travel blogger who travelled the world with her boyfriend on their boat, earning shed loads of money from youtube based on the amount of views they got. They had just hired a videographer to travel with them, and purchased a discounted million dollar Catamaran. It was a funny night, and I was so happy to be back around a backpacker type of environment.

The next morning we woke and drove back to Liam’s house in Whangarai. We had a lamb roast dinner for our last night up north, and got an early night. It was truly a brilliant week, and I am once again so grateful I was able to stay with a friend and experience more of NZ. I was paid $540 for my week on the farm which was incredible, especially considering I didn’t have to pay for rent and barely any food throughout the week. This money would pay for our weekend away + my stay in the Mount for the next week or so.

From Whangarai I drove back to Hamilton with Ash, and jumped on a bus heading for the Mount, via Rotorua. I am really excited for a week in a hostel, and to spend some time with Ryan again. I miss travelling with him, and know this next week is going to be fantastic.