End of NZ and LA!

The end has finally come for us in NZ. As sad as it is to have to leave we are heading on to the US of A and were also very excited!

So to update you...Tuesday morning we drove to Paihia to catch a boat out for a 3hr cruise of the Bay of Islands. It was really beautiful out there, we saw a pod of dolphins who came right up to the boat, loads of birds and two really cool flying fish, no whales though sadly. We headed out into the Pacific to see the famous Hole in the Rock and managed to cruise right through it, despite our captain telling us that the waves were making it "like a washing machine" needless to say we felt really safe! I did unfortunately get a bit seasick, and was pretty pleased when we made it back from the Pacific and into the shelter of the bay, however, I did manage to refrain from chucking up breakfast! The story of this whole holiday is the people who we keep meeting! There were 2 crewmen on board (Matt and Peter) who were really lovely...and they made friends with us! Matt gave us heaps of information about dolphins, whales, birds and fish and by the end of the trip we were getting free cups of tea! It's not what you know...but who!

After the boat trip (and a walk around Paihia for me to recover) we headed off to Kaihu, which turned out to be in the middle of nowhere! Which in a way was pretty good as that night we were booked in for a Kiwi Night Walk through the forest. However, as soon as we arrived in the forest it started to rain...and then for the next 2 hrs...it didn't stop. We got absolutely soaked and had to use the tumble dryers in the morning to dry our jeans and coats! Needless to say we didn't spot any kiwis that night! We did however see the famous Cave Weta which can jump up to 2 metres! We also saw normal wetas, giant snails, eels, crayfish and lots and lots of kaori trees. The kaori tree is absolutely huuuuuuuuge, and the Waipoa Forest is famous for them. The biggest one in there is called Tane Mahuta, which means Lord of the Forest, and is 1200 years old 13.5m diameter and 51m high. Really really big! We visited him on Wednesday morning before traveling down to Auckland in the afternoon where we spent our final night in the camper! Aaw...or do I mean YAY!?.

Thursday was spent wandering round Auckland and visiting the sights there. We saw Aeota Square and visited Victoria market and walked along the sea front before heading back to our cabin...yes we treated ourselves no more wooden board for us! Although the main reason was so we could unload and repack all our stuff in preparation for leaving on Friday!? Don't be too alarmed, we only have one extra large hold all bag between us...so far! On friday morning we went to the zoo in order to actually see a kiwi as we had missed out on our walk, and we weren't disappointed! They are weird looking things though!? We also saw a Kookaburra, which just about rounded off our Australian wildlife as well. The moment was then upon us to give back the Jucy van. As sad as it was, we just about coped with the loss. I am pleased to inform you that our flight went without a hitch! Hurrah...and due to us crossing the international dateline...we landed at 10:00 Friday morning!

So we relived the 28th March in LA as well as in NZ! Very strange, we spent the day just meandering along Venice beach, where we are staying, and looking in all the tacky shops! We saw muscle beach, and Venice Beach pier so all lots of cool things! Today is Saturday and we have just got back from Hollywood Blvd. We tried to do some star spotting but were not at all successful. We did manage to find the Hollywood sign and the Mann Chinese Theatre...I don't think I've ever taken that many photos of the pavement before?! We have just one more day in LA before flying out Monday morning to NY, not much time here, but it has been lots of fun!