deckardcanine | Tour Review, Part 3: The North Island

Since it’s been more than three weeks since my New Zealand trip, I’d better pick up the pace in telling about it.

I arrived in Auckland after nearly 24 hours in transit, but 6 hours too soon to check in at the hostel. Well, there are worse places to kill time while drowsy and unclean. Indeed, Auckland reminded me of home more than other New Zealand cities did, which may explain why I didn’t take any pictures there. I’d been told that the country was pretty good about accepting U.S. dollars, but I soon learned to exchange all my cash except a backup twenty kept apart from the rest. Might I say, while the prices are higher than I’m used to, a currency with nothing worth less than ten cents is a nice change of pace.

The first stop of the Topdeck tour was at Parry Kauri Park, which preserves some WWII artifacts (I didn’t know U.S. troops stopped there) but mostly features some of the largest trees left in the nation. Our guides said to hug the McKinney kauri tree for being endangered; I settled for patting it.

NZ reportedly has the most golf courses per capita (a possible reason for the golf quip in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey), so I decided to capture a piece of one with the first landscape I enjoyed. This is presently my desktop background, tho that may change soon.

The first town we stopped at was Paihia, at the Bay of Islands. It seemed to have almost as many hotels as houses. Still, I can imagine why someone would want to live there.

It was on a slow day in Paihia that I did my first daring activity: parasailing. Good weather for it, with just enough wind to shake me a little. Other participants (none from Topdeck) skimmed the water on the way back to the boat, but apparently I weighed too little on my own for the crew to take that chance. No one could get a good photo of the activity itself, so here’s a mere “before” picture.

The next day, we made a stop at the Whangarei Falls. Forgive me if I’m a big sucker for waterfalls.

That evening, we roomed at the marae I mentioned earlier. I made sure not to take any photos that the Maori would consider disrespectful. Here’s where we slept, with some difficulty.

Nearby Rotorua boasts the Rachel Spring and the Queen Elizabeth Spa, but they’re more historic than picturesque. The same goes for the city’s Whakarewarewa Village and Thermal Reserve (full name given on a sign as Tewhakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao), where sulfur reigns supreme but at least provides a handy way to cook.

Then there’s the Waiotapu Thermal Reserve, which gets compared to the Bog of Eternal Stench from Labyrinth. I’m rather glad to have chosen the southbound tour; better to have gotten this part out of the way.

The Whakarewarewa residents did impress me somewhat with a stage show, however touristic.

Please note: I’m working from short notes and a slightly inaccurate itinerary, so I don’t cover things in exact chronological order. I’m pretty sure it was before visiting Whakarewarewa that I went Zorbing on a curvy track. Not a bad way to spend NZ$50, but I can’t recommend buying the video and photos for NZ$35.

More of a highlight was an activity I didn’t think I’d get to do from looking at the map: touring Matamata, nicknamed Hobbiton for its role in the outdoor scenes of the Shire in Peter Jackson’s movies (not much to see inside). I took interest in how much of it was real and which parts were faked, like the big wiry hilltop tree. Some items turn out smaller in person, because Gandalf stood near them.

Our ~~bus driver~~ coach conductor had greeted us with “Good morning, hobbits!” I couldn’t help paraphrasing Gandalf’s request for clarification: “Do you mean to wish us a good morning, or that it is a good morning whether we want it or not, or…?” I also noticed when we passed a location called Mourea, not to be confused with Moria –- and that our Hobbiton guide had nine fingers, like a certain character.

Huka Falls is worth a look. I opted for the hukafalls Jet boat ride instead of the later Shotover Canyon equivalent, not because it looked more exciting but because I had busier days ahead. The pilot made a point to almost hit stuff and then swerve enough to splash us. Once again, I was the only Topdeck tourist, but I would get better at selecting more popular activities (after one got cancelled for lack of support).

I didn’t get to see everything locally related to the works of J.R.R. Tolkien – others hiked “Mt. Doom,” for instance – but the other key such place was Weta Cave, named for an indigenous insect. It’s less a cave and more of a studio and gift shop, with a movie talking about how Peter Jackson and associates got going. The only items I considered buying were two Tintin books hard to find in the U.S., but, well, there’s a reason for that.

We spent a lunch stop in Bulls, a town that can’t get enough puns on its own name. How insuffera-bull.

Wellington, now the second largest NZ city and supposedly one of the coolest in the world, offered more than I could appreciate in such a short time. For example, I’d have seen more birds in the reserve called Zealandia if not for the pre-closing rush, tho at least the North Island Robin, shags, and Takahe didn’t mind showing up. On the urban side, I’d also like to have examined the harbor’s underground market and a theater or two. The cable car and Botanic Gardens provide only so much fun. (That’s Dan, one of the tour guides, in the second photo.)

More impressive in Wellington was the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, especially these extinct specimens: the giant moa and Haast’s eagle. I don’t know which would scare me more.