Landscapes, walking and lots and lots and lots of sheep - Welcome to New Zealand

So after taking the scenic route travelling to Auckland (Cairns-Sydney-Auckland, when the much shorter Cairns to Auckland would have sufficed) I arrived in the country that has a ratio of 10 sheep to every one person (that's not a lie: 40 million sheep and 4 million people!)

Now with such a big country and so few people I made a mental note to approach the next few weeks as an opportunity to take stock, slow down on the beers and get a few nice picturesalong the way. 

Having spent a couple of days in Auckland without much to write home about, I jumped on the Kiwi Experience bus and set off on a 17 day trip through the North Island, over the sea and around the South Island. 

First stop was a small place called Mercury Bay. There we embarked on what I would later find out to be the first of many walks along New Zealand's rich parks and landscapes. It was a relaxing day and my body was thankful for the brief interlude in beer drinking and injection of exercise.

From there we made the short journey down to a place called Rotarua and the place absolutely stunk...literally. Now Wikipedia will have you believe that it is due to the geothermal activity in Roturua and the strong presence of Sulphur in the region. I will tell you that it smells like the population have been living off too many egg sandwiches and have let off a huge collective fart! Anyway, despite it's bad smell I went to a traditional Maori night which was good fun and also refreshing to see a country embracing it's indigenous past rather than shunning it.

Having survived the smell we moved on down to Waitomo - Population 40! I stayed one night went for a LONG walk in the morning and then moved on. 

The next stop was a place called Taopo which offered the first glimpse of a township or city since Auckland. In Taopo I had a lot of fun going Zorbing and Luging and even managed to have a few beers and a party in the evening. 

The Kiwi gods must have sensed I was having too much fun and meeting too many people as the next stop was a place called River Valley - Population: Us! Seriously, the hostel was in the middle of nowhere with the next town, people or shops 35 minutes away. The reason we went there though was to go White Water Rafting, which I did do and which I must say was a lot of fun. Amazingly as well, I managed to catch the Arsenal game at this hostel which considering we were in the arse end of nowhere was a huge surprise. 

And so I rushed through Wellington, Nelson and have now arrived in Westport for a night. Population - Not many. However, this is only a stopover before the South Island really comes alive with the Franz Josef Glaciers (which are rumoured to be stunning) and then Queenstown where you can do the highest bungy in the world (134metres = pretty high). You can also do this....not sure about that one yet!!!

Anyway, despite my cheap and unfunny jokes about the sheep and population, New Zealand truly is a stunning place. It is rich in mountains, hills, volcanoes, lakes and rivers which consistently provides awe inspiring scenery.

So with many miles clocked up walking and some brilliant postcard photos, I look forward to the South Island which by all accounts offers a good mixture of adrenaline, scenery and of course....walks. 

Speak soon!!