Okay, where to begin! So much has happened over these last couple of days. There was so much to see and very little time but I managed to still do a lot. I am currently staying with some platinum partners, Robyn and Tony Grinter! They are absolutely amazing; they took me around to all the sites and showed me the touristy and local areas. While in Auckland, we went to One Tree Hill which is a volcanic area. From the top you could see the entire city and of course sheep in the local field. I really wanted to go here because my favorite and pretty much only tv show that i watch is called One Tree Hill, so it just seemed appropriate.
Apparently on the west side of New Zealand, they have black sand. I’ve never seen this before; I’m used to the brownish/white sand in Florida so it was soo cool seeing something different. Since it was later in the evening, the sky was gray and the water seemed cold, it gave the place an eerie feel. In addition, for the FIRST TIME ever, i saw a horse ride across the sand. I thought this only happened in movies but no, it was reality. The horse just galloped across the sand jumping over the logs that were lying there.
Apparently on the west side of New Zealand, they have black sand. I’ve never seen this before; I’m used to the brownish/white sand in Florida so it was soo cool seeing something different. Since it was later in the evening, the sky was gray and the water seemed cold, it gave the place an eerie feel. In addition, for the FIRST TIME ever, i saw a horse ride across the sand. I thought this only happened in movies but no, it was reality. The horse just galloped across the sand jumping over the logs that were lying there.
Paradise Valley Springs: This is basically a wilflife park where you can feel NZ’s wild animals: wild pigs, alpacas, horses, donkeys, ducks, trout, and sheep. But the really cool part was being able to pat the cubs! They had two which you could pat, each 5-6 months of age. It was kinda scary being in the same pen as them because normally they are trained really well and they kinda just stay in one place, but these ones were different. They would walk around, brush past your legs, try and go for your ankles/sandals, and jump up on you! One of the other baby cubs was in this cage and it had big holes in it, enough for its paw to fit through and a human hand. I was kinda impatient to wait my turn so i stuck my hand in the cage and touched it, nothing happened for a little while until it just snapped at me and i quickly pulled my hand back. My heart was beating so fast! Don’t worry i still have 10 fingers! 
Skyline Rotorua: Basically, this is an attraction for people of all ages; those who like rides, enjoy a pleasant meal, and/or like a great view. I liked all of the above and had the opportunity to experience it all. We took the gondola ride up the side of Mt. Tarawera which overlooked Rotorua and then stopped at the entrance of gravity thrill ride, the luge. Its basically a 3 wheel cart that you steer down a hill on different courses, beginner, intermediate, and advanced. You can adjust your speed according to your comfort level; the first time I went, I went extremely slow around the corners just because there was a huge chance that i would fall out, let go of the steers and go flying off. The second time around, I had way more confidence and went faster - I even went up to the intermediate level :D. Since i was holding on so strong, my hands were hurting so bad afterwards, i felt some blisters forming. 
Rainbow Springs Kiwi Wildlife Park: Kiwi, what New Zealanders are usually called, are the native birds of NZ. At this place you could see kiwi’s in the conservation area; since they are nocturnal animals, they are put into a really dark room; unfortunately, i didn’t see many, most of them were sleeping but i did see one or two. NZ doesn’t have any snakes, alligators, or pretty much anything dangerous so the only reptiles they had were lizards!
Te Puia: This is where the bubbling mud pools and geysers are located. Besides the fact that it rained while we were walking around, it was really cool to see it all. You could feel the heat given off from the geysers from the top of the pathway! The Pohutu Geyser is one of the famous active geysers that erupts to about 30 meters tall; normally you have to wait a while for it to erupt but while i was there, i saw it erupt 3-4 times! I guess it was my lucky day :]
Waitomo Caves: GLOWWORMS! haha. There were three caves: Waitomo Glowworm, Ruakuri, and Aranui. In all three of the caves we learned about the worms, and then learned about the caves itself (stalagmites, stalactites). As we walked around, we weren’t allowed to touch anything since the oil on our fingers/hands would disrupt the growth of everything, and we couldn’t take pictures in the first cave because it disturbs the worms. Apparently it’s good luck if water drips on you.... i got a lot of water on me! Hopefully it follows through... so far so good :D 
Waiheke Island: One of many islands in NZ, we went for the day. It was a 1 1/2 hour drive from Hamilton and then a 45 minute ferry ride to the actual island. We did the car ferry which was really cool because we drove right on the ferry and parked... you can probably tell that this was my first time doing this :P Anyways, arriving on the island, it was lunch time so we drove to this huge vineyard and italian food; the pizza was sooo good! Driving around the island to the different bays; walking on the beach; walking through the forest pretty much sums up the day! The water was so calm at the beach as we walked along - a little hot but the wind was blowing quite strongly so it wasn’t too bad! Time seemed to fly by so quickly while being on the island; it was absolutely beautiful though! It literally had everything there, you didn’t need to leave and since it’s secluded, it was even cooler; a great getaway. 
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