I was so glad I made the time to go to
Pahia and the Bay of Islands - it was a very fitting end to my travels around the great country of NZ.
Being close to the edge with backpacker
accommodation, Kat and I treated ourselves to a little luxury for two of our four nights there. We booked into a 'studio' room where we had our own bathroom and kitchen. It doesn't sound like much, but it made such a difference to actually get some sleep for a couple of nights. I think I was on the verge of having a stand-up row with the next snorer I met - thus depicting me as an incredibly unreasonable individual - it can't be helped
after all! It's easy though to underestimate how much other people's snoring, bed-wriggling, plastic bag rustling and general presence can effect your sleep patterns. I hate to say it, but you can often tell who's going to have a particular 'trait' from what country they hail from too.... Plastic bag rustling was a firm favourite of any Japanese girls I met. Perhaps as they are more sensible than my self and actually
separate out all their stuff in their packs? Sorry to make sweeping generalisations..... Is that incredibly naughty? I
dread to think what they say about us Brits though...
So, determined to do very little, I spent time lying on the small, but perfectly nice beach gazing at the sail boats and enjoying the sunshine.
The North Island was significantly warmer than the South which leaves me with a dilemma - I prefer the South, but the weather of the North - what's a girl to do? I know I'll be back and would possibly even contemplate a move here although the lack of ozone layer, potential major earthquake and the risk of eating too many pies is a worry...
hmmmm.
Pahia itself was
definitely of the same ilk as 'The Mount' being a popular holiday place for Kiwi's and internationals alike. It had a great
ice cream shop where I savoured the delights of
Manuka honey
ice cream (if only
Manuka Honey wasn't so heavy - being such a honey fan, I'd have bought some back in the pack-load). Kat and I also enjoyed
Fush n'
Chups whilst listening to yet more dated music being sang by a man and his guitar. It was a nice evening though, with yet more 'gentle'
quantaties of beer (finally I find someone en route who doesn't think I'm square to only have one or two!).
A brief note on music in NZ. They seem to be stuck. Lots of Dire Straights, Crowded House (NZ band so can forgive them for this) Simply Red and the likes of
Fleetwood Mac. Not that any of these in small measure isn't bearable, particularly for nostalgia's sake, but when it's all you hear, it's a tad worrying.
The highlight of my trip to
Pahia was a boat trip into the Bay of Islands on my second to last day in NZ. There was the
possibility of a swim with wild dolphins. Not
guaranteed (which is reiterated several times) and I wasn't holding out too much hope having been informed by a
Yorkshire couple I met that they had been prevented from swimming with the dolphins they saw due to young/baby dolphins being in the pod (mother dolphins are very protective). So, the only ambition I had when I was younger was likely not to be fulfilled on this occasion; or so I thought.
An hour into the boat trip we were informed by the crew that three bottle nose dolphins had been spotted and they were without young. Not having been seen before in the Bay, the crew were unsure how they'd respond (nice - especially as I had recently spied the headline,
'Woman survives frenzied dolphin attack' in a local rag!). We were rushed into the water, supplied with snorkels and flippers and had instructions shouted at us from the boat.
Along with the 30 or so swimmers from our boat, two other boats were doing the same (there are strict rules in NZ about this - you can only have a maximum of three boats around the whales/dolphins and any aircraft count as one of the three). The words 'bun ' and 'fight' come to mind. People, in their excitement, clambered over you, ignored that you might sink and generally became the most selfish creatures. Still, you have to take what comes.
I had the amazing pleasure of seeing a dolphin swim directly beneath me about two foot away - literally. It's at this point you realise several things all at once. A) They are truly stunning, powerful and intelligent animals. B) Humans are completely inept in the water. C) It's actually quite frightening in an incredibly exciting way. I watched them play and watched them watch us. It was good, although on leaving the water I had a slight feeling that this wasn't the experience I had hoped for. I asked a helpful crew member if we might get another opportunity, but apparently is was really rare and even if we did see more dolphins, they may have young and our boat was
unlikely to have time to stop (having other sites to visit over the day). How wrong she was.
I cannot describe how fantastic an experience it was. An hour later the same three dolphins appeared. We were the only boat. They came to us. They played and jumped and performed various acrobatics merely meters away. They were completely wild and completely free. They came so close to me, I moved away several times for fear of being knocked
accidentally by their hugely powerful tails. I needn't of done as it was clear they knew exactly what they were doing. They wanted to look at us as much as we did them. One circled me and looking into its eyes was the strangest thing... It was a truly unforgettable experience that I would wholly recommend. It left me with an amazingly high feeling. I felt incredibly blessed to have had so many factors all come together and let me have such a rare opportunity.
Ok... enough gushing about it for the moment! But if you ever get the chance - do it (and the environmentalist in me begs it to be wild/free dolphins please!).
So, my trip to
Pahia and NZ drew to a close on a very high note. Kat and I spent our last day recovering from a mild hangover, cycling (well, she did - I pushed the bike up hills) and generally lounging about. We returned to Auckland for our last night and had an excellent Japanese meal with a few others, before retiring for a brief three hours kip - was there much point I ask myself! The first leg of my journey was a flight to Sydney accompanied by Kat.
She tried her
damnedest to ease the fear of flying (thanks Kat!) by pointing out the lovely sunrise out the window.... The conversation went something like this:
K: Look at the sunrise - it's stunning.
(
Taffi very tentatively looks out window and spots wing then turns green)
K: what's wrong?
T: I saw the wing (still looking green)
K: Well, surely that's a good thing? It'd be more worrying if you didn't.
(Much laughter ensues)
A good way to end my travels to NZ - a wonderful place that I look forward to seeing again sometime... A big thanks to Kat too for her good company, shared attempts at cynicism and general ability to make a jaded old fart laugh.
in a great, less full-on touristy place in Palolem. On arrival at 7am in the morning after 36 hours of travelling and little sleep, Jon and I enjoyed a beer on the beach and watched the dolphins jumping in the bay. Do you think it's possible that they followed me? 
