The reason for this change of plans was due to a small car accident in December (someone ran into me; nobody was injured). I had no idea that it would take soooo long to sort through insurance claims and police reports (made much harder and more upsetting after the guy who hit me changed his story after realizing the effect this would have on his insurance premiums). I’ve been in a holding pattern since then, wanting to get the car fixed but unable to make any arrangements with new farms until I could figure out when my car would be fixed and how it would be paid for. I’ve finally got it mostly sorted out, and though the legal headache isn’t over, I am confident that I’ll be back to farming with a fixed car within the week - YAY!
As frustrating as this whole car ordeal has been, and as eager as I’ve been to get back to wwoofing, I’ve had a really good three weeks despite it all. I began by heading up to a little village called Tutukaka and enrolling in a PADI Open Water Scuba Diving course. I’ve been wanting to learn to dive since exploring the amazing marine life off the coast of Mozambique three years ago, and when I heard that NZ’s Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve has some of the best subtropical diving in the world, I decided this was a good place to learn.
Cruising around the Poor Knights before a dive
I absolutely *loved* my diving course. The marine life was fantastic - both the fish and the kelp - but even more, I loved how relaxing and peaceful it felt swimming and floating along under water. I can’t wait to do more diving - though the cost has kept me away for a while, seeing as a day dive trip here costs more than half of my maximum weekly budget! Still, I cannot wait to do more. I’d also love to do a deep diving course (I NEVER would have thought that I’d want to go deeper than the 18 meters I’m currently qualified to do - that is 60 feet under water, after all! - but now I really want to!) and, if I could someday afford it, get into underwater photography.
During the five days I was doing my dive course, I got to know 3 really great people who work at the dive shop here in Tutukaka - Gus, Jenny and Laurent. Gus was the assistant on my dive course, and is a really warm and funny guy from an Indiana diary farm. We got along really well, and he soon introduced me to Jenny and Laurent, who were also living at the campground where I was staying. Jenny’s a NZ native, but just finished undergrad at UC Santa Cruz. We quickly bonded over such little things as music and a shared passion for Santa Cruz’s amazing Cafe Brazil, but since then we’ve gotten to know each other much better and I really, really enjoy hanging out and chatting with her! Laurent is a dive instructor from France who’s been traveling the world for four years. He’s also great to hang out with, but I find it particularly funny how much he complains about people saying “Sooo, you’re French” to him, when that’s my laughing reaction to most of what he says and does, as well!
Gus, Jenny and Laurent found a great apartment together just as I finished my dive course. Though I’d meant to quickly see Northland, get my car fixed and head south, the delays on my car meant I kept stopping back in Tutukaka to see them -- and every time, I ended up staying another day, and another day... and when I finally left, promising to come back again soon! We had such a great time cooking delicious dinners, dancing to live music at the marina, swimming at the nearby beaches, and eating chocolate mousse!
Gus on the beach at Mimiwhangata
Dinner laid out at the apartment
Concert at the marina
When not hanging out in Tutukaka, I did some exploration of Northland. It’s a really beautiful area of the country, though surprisingly similar to Northern California. At Shakespear Regional Park, north of Auckland, I could have sworn I was at Astradero Park near Palo Alto (well, until I climbed to views of the Auckland Harbour)!
The beaches are gorgeous... and some of the coastline is also extremely like Northern California.
near Mimiwhangata
I also spent a day hiking in the majestic Waipoua Kauri Forest. Kauri are kind of the NZ redwood - ancient, giant, native trees nearly logged to extinction but still preserved in some areas. The giant kauri were pretty amazing to see, but I enjoyed equally the lushness of the forests in which they grew. Beautiful...
The “Four Sisters”
Me and the Tree
Forest Path
Kauri Tree Macro
One evening, Gus and I explored the Abbey Caves near Whangarei - home to some awesome little glowworms glowing away in the silent caverns...
I also went to the Far North, which is, as the name suggests, the farthest north point of the country. I climbed around on some enormous sand dunes, and went to Cape Reinga, where the Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea meet. I enjoyed it, but Cape Reinga was the type of place that’s cool if you keep telling yourself what it is. Otherwise, it might look like any other cape - beautiful, but perhaps not worth the very long drive.
Sand Dune Waves
View looking back from Cape Rienga
I’m now back in Auckland, finally getting my car fixed and sorting out some more car accident legal details. I’m so tired of dealing with it, but am trying to enjoy some of Auckland as well. Yesterday evening, I climbed to the top of Mt. Eden, an old volcanic domain. Here’s a view of the crater, with downtown Auckland in the background.
Well, I am SO excited to get my fixed car back today. I will quickly explore the Coromandel Peninsula and head to my next farm in the Taranaki region of the North Island. As great as my break in the north has been, I’m so, so, so looking forward to farming again! More about that soon...
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