Day 145 to 150! - Waiheke + Hobbiton

The "Emergency wisdom teeth extraction" chapter of my life is officially over. Wahey! The dentist removed the stitches this morning and said everything is perfect. Which is perfect for me since tomorrow I begin my next adventure straying around NZ. I can't wait!

Having said that, as eager as I am to start exploring again I have been having an awesome time with my family and I'm not that eager to leave. Ah, such is life.

I have managed to do a bit more exploring while I have been here though. A short ferry ride from Auckland central is Waiheke Island,...

...a gorgeous slice of paradise. I only spent a day there so I didn't explore the numerous walks and other beaches on offer but I did get a chance to look through all the cute little boutique shops, stop for lunch with an amazing view, and just chill out in the sun. It's an amazing place to go and let life slow down.

Restaurant view over Oneroa beach.

Then to top that, and to please my inner geek, we went to Hobbiton. Ahhhhh! :) It was AMAZING. After the latest run of filming, for The Hobbit, the set has been left exactly as it was for the film (minus the hobbits) so you can see all the intricate little details that make up the fantasy. I got to walk along the path that Gandalf rides in on, see the Green Dragon pub and the Mill, play under the party tree, climb the steps to Bag End, and stand outside Sam's house where the trilogy finishes. We also learnt pretty funky facts about how they made the films, and saw the 5 new Hobbit holes that were built for the new movies and then never used :) .

I have to say though, any non-Lord of the Rings fans should probably miss out this part of NZ. (You'd be surprised how many people take the tour having no knowledge of the movies or the books) In my opinion, it was a superb day! :)

Day 141 to 144 - Shooting and teeth pulling :S

What an interesting couple of days...

My Uncle took me and my cousin to a shooting range for a play about and we had an amazing time. Turns out I'm still quite a natural with a shot gun :) hehe - blonde essex girl with a gun, what a great idea :). I also had a go with the semi-automatic machine gun, couple of pistols, rifles etc. It was an epic day!!

Then to keep the excitement going a few days later I had to have two of my wisdom teeth taken out. I had said no to the sedative until the dentist informed me she would be cutting away bone and gum before pulling the tooth. So half an hour before leaving the house I took my sedative pills. When it came time to leave my Uncle had to support me to the car. At the dentists all went smoothly - apart from the anesthetic wearing off and having to be re-administered twice. My memory of leaving and getting home is then very hazy. I do know, from other peoples accounts, that it was amusing to watch me attempt to drink from a bottle since I couldn't feel my mouth and subsequently dribbled it down me. Attractive I'll bet! On the plus side - this all occurred yesterday and today I am totally fine (in fact I was fine about 5 hours after having it done). Today I have been out in Auckland, to the cinema and stuffing my face with McDonald's (shhhh don't tell the dentist).

Day 136 to 140 - Adventures with Emily

For those who don't know... Emily is a fellow OzIntro traveller and temporary Sydney dweller who has also skipped over to NZ :-) . We decided to meet each other while we're both here and planned a trip up to the beautiful Bay of Islands.

Upon meeting in Auckland we went to the Sky Tower where, in the basement, we took photos with the LOTR models :-) and, at the top looking down, decided we were NOT jumping off of it like many other crazy tourists have. 

In the evening we had a very unique experience at the Ice House - well unique if you haven't been to an ice bar in any other city which I have'nt. It was cold! I know most of you reading just went "well duh", but I didn't really think about it beforehand and assumed the coats they give out would be enough - they are if you're not wearing a short skirt :-/ oops. Nevertheless, we had an amazing time drinking cocktails that taste like Ribena, drinking shots out of the moose head, and kissing the frozen kiwi.

The following day, after 4 hours of sleep, we headed off to Paihia where we checked in and jumped straight on a boat to see the 'Hole in the Rock' and some dolphins. The weather was perfect, bright sunshine, and that was thanks to the captains careful navigation that involved keeping the black cloud behind us :-) . Sadly our second day here there was no avoiding the rain. It was still "sweet as" exploring the area, visiting the church that still has bullet holes in it, and having lunch in the oldest pub in NZ, and then we partied until our feet could party no more :-) .

Day 127 to 135 - Australia to NEW ZEALAND

aaaaand I'm off again...

I have left Sydney and hopped over to NZ for a bit. My last week in Sydney was spent just hanging out with friends, exploring old pubs in the rocks, drinking english cider :-) , and sneaking past security guards into the casino - hehe. My arrival into NZ wasn't short on excitment as well as I was greeted by my Aunt and Uncle with an embarrassingly large "Welcome" balloon at the arrivals gate. I'm staying with them for a while before I travel around the whole of NZ and so far it has been awesome - or "sweet as" as they say over here.

In my first week I explored Orewa (a nearby beach town), went on a 'surfari' (we drove to 3 beaches on the west and east coast looking for good surf), had a guided tour of Auckland, and had an awesome night out in Auckland finished off by a fabulous midnight view of the city.

In addition, I have just been hanging out with my family who are all awesome!! 

Day 116 to 126 - AUSTRALIA DAY! + Zoe!

Australians really celebrate their national day well... with lots and lots and alcohol! This was great for me in more than one way. Firstly, I spent the morning with friends in the oldest part of Sydney doing a mini bar crawl. Secondly, I spent the later part of the day working at the bar where, because it was Aussie day, they paid me an obscene amount. Thirdly, the bar was closed but midnight so we locked the doors, turned the music back on and the boss gave us a good amount of free drinks :-) . It was an amazing day, topped off by an amazing night!
Plus, with all my temporary aussie tattoos some random woman mistook me for an "actual Australian", BONUS!

Then a few days ago I had a date with a very sexy blonde Australian chick :-) . Zoe, my fellow G Adventurer, flew over from Melbourne and we went to the museum. A free glass of vino was a perfect way to start the evening and then it was on to watch guitar hero in the skeleton room, a silent disco and karaoke in the dangerous creatures room, a live band (that sadly was never there when we were) in the dinosaurs room, a funky photo booth, huge stick insects we could hold, a nerf gun firing range with toy dinosaurs, live taxidermy (if you're into that kind of thing), and a games room with UNO (score!). A lovely dinner later and some good girly gossip and we had to say goodbye *weep*. Luckily I will be visiting Melbourne later on in my travels so bring on date number 2...

Day 108 to 115 - Sydney to Canberra to Palm Beach to Sydney...

An exciting week of getting burnt on Manly beach, watching Tangled outdoors at Sydney Olympic park, drinking shots out of a tea pot, and launching the Chinese New year festival could only get better with a girly road trip to Canberra.

I finally took advantage of the 3 day camper van rental that I won and my flat mate and I hit the road. 5 hours, a picnic in a car park, and a lot of snacks later we rolled into the Capital of Australia. Luckily Australians drive on the left so all I had to worry about was the transition from driving a tiny manual car with a sat nav to driving an automatic beast of a machine being directed by Holly and a map that was too small! We only got lost once, or twice... truthfully I lost count how many times :-/ but it was an amazing trip. Canberra is stunning! In the centre of the city the Parliament house rises up and facing away from it you look out across the river to the stunning War Memorial. Our excitement was evident to anyone watching us roll down Parliament hill and chasing the birds. Then later we calmed down and just took in the breath taking view over the lake where we set up for the night.

Sadly Holly had to get back for work so after exploring the remainder of Canberra we hit the road again (ABBA CD at the ready) and back in Sydney I swapped flat mates and took off for Palm Beach (yes it is where Home and Away is filmed and no I don't care so I didn't bother doing any sightseeing). We simply pulled up to the beach, ran along the water front, stared at the stars, and chilled out in the van with chocolate and a dvd. It was another awesome night followed by a day visiting as many beaches as possible on the way back down the coast.

Day 101 to 107 - Sydney, still...

To quit, or not to quit. That has been the question on my mind this week?

Working at the bar on Darling Harbour has been, and is still, amazing. Working at the bar/restaurant in the centre of the city, however, has not been great. The minute I set foot back in the bar to start my first shift I felt the life get sucked right out of me (and not in a fun i'm obsessed with vampires kinda way). The people there, however polite and friendly, are all zombies, and the customers are not only uptight and rude, they don't tip! :-0 Not wanting to be a quitter my immediate reaction was to get over it, man up, and carry on. Then a friend reminded me I didn't come to Australia to "cope", I came for the experience of a lifetime, and this place just didn't fit into that plan...

This week I have also made a list of all the things I want to see and do before I leave Sydney, and I have started diligently ticking them off. A friend and I went to the Sydney fish market, and oh my goodness it stank! I like the smell of fish but I still had to let myself adjust. We then moved onto Woolloomooloo - best name for a place ever! - and checked out the jelly fish at the wharf :-) . Woolloomooloo is nice but personnally I would say it's name is the best thing about it. I also spent a morning at Balmoral beach with friends, sipping iced mocha's on the beach front, and revelling in the family atmosphere that so many places we have been to are lacking. Then later today we will be going to the Powerhouse museum and we might even see the Harry Potter exhibition :-) yaaaaay!