New Zealand Update!!

I’ve kinda lost my way in doing the diary because I haven’t had the time so im just gonna go through what I’ve been upto since I last made a blog input.

To start things off would be the first trip to a place called Taupo, it has a lake the size of Singapore!! Its quite amazing and you’ll see some pictures of be above it soon ;).
The first time we went there I did a bungee jump!, I got a free dvd of me doing the jump because I paid for the sky dive in a package!.

I wasn’t too nervous when queing upto do the jump as it didn’t really seem the other people doing the jump were scared so I had to match them haha. When it got to the point of standing on the edge to jump 84 metres, the look of the drop finally hit me, all I could say was “fuck”, I said it about 3 times before I gradually lent over to fall.

It was an intense feeling going down, I just wish I closed my eyes and mouth just before I went into the water, I’ll leave it at that.



We went fishing the next day for 8 hours and caught 2 fish.


Right back to fun, we went back to taupo so I could jump myself out of a plane at 15,000ft!. I got to the sky diving place a bit early to make sure the weather was good enough to do the jump and thankfully it was!, I was told that I would be getting into the next plane which was in the next ten minutes so I had no time to think about what I was about to do which in a sense was the best thing that could have happened!.

I was introduced to my tandem matey and his name was Jonathon, he was a really nice guy from brazil that had been doing sky diving as a job for eleven years!, he spoke perfect English and a good sense of humour so he made me feel calm going up in the plane!.



The plane was small and obviously with loads of other people doing the jump it was a little crampt up but it was good enough. One guy was jumping solo and was doing it from only 5,000ft, seeing him jump out at that hight was intense and I couldn’t wait to do it myself!. Another guy introduced himself to me on the plane, his name I cant remember but he was the person who would be filming and taking pictures of me when im free falling!.



The time came and I was the first person who was jumping out of the plane, Jonathon literally lifted me up as I was attached to him and I was sitting on the edge of the doorway to jump out. He screams out “ONE,TWO,THREE” and there we are im screaming my head off and falling at about 120MPH!. here’s all the pictures for you all!.






Anyway im back home on Monday and I haven’t been drunk or off my head in three weeks so lets go crazy from then.

Love
x

New Zealand Part 3!

Day Seven
So we’ve been in New Zealand for a week now and it feels like we’ve been here a lot longer which is good!. Today is also the last day that the berry farm is open for the summer season so we went there to have our last ice cream from there which was as usual delicious

After the berry farm we just went to wakatane beach again for another day in the hot sun. the sea was so strong and it kept pulling us all out once you had started swimming in it, pretty dangerous but loved it anyway.

Standard day.



Day Eight – The day I became famous in Korea
Today was my brothers birthday (gutted Sam, birthday on a holiday), to start off the day I had the normal haymaker of a run with mum and it was so humid! Sweat city :).
After the run we went into town to go on this scenic tour bus called “The Duck”, This tour bus was able to travel on land or water! It was an old US WW2 vehicle which my dad was obviously interested in.





There was another of the duck vehicles following the one we were in with some Korean people from The National Korean channel basically making a short travel documentary on the tour we were on and why it was so great. Anyway we got to a place called the blue lake (picture below) and these people wanted to interview some of the holiday makers on the tour. So of course they come to my family, mum goes crazy with this bloody duck whistle thing, me and dad explain what the tour is and why its so great…you get the idea, anyway I got a picture with them aswell haha.





One of the best bits with the Korean film crew was when the tour finished and we stopped at this pub called the pig and whistle. They asked us to come off the vehicle and then say “we’re going to the pig and whistle” like a true English family :’(. I gave the guy my e-mail address and he said he’ll send me the video…I honestly cant wait.



So after me and my dad got another bottle of dark rum we made our way back to our house where we would meet my uncle aunty and their children for a little meal to celebrate my brothers 15th Birthday!.



Day Eleven
Today we were planning on going to a place called taupo for my todo a bungee jump but the weather was pretty crap so we went back to the museum so we could see it all,
It was pretty sweet, it gave the whole history of the town from when the it became popular as a tourist place for the rich and famous in the 1800’s to WW2 of which the Maori became known for being brilliant soldiers.

After the day in the museum we stopped off at a thermal spring on the way home and it was amazing!, I got into my swimming shorts and got straight into the pool which was just like getting into a hot bath!. It was so refreshing and it didn’t smell of the sulphur like it does everywhere else in Rotorua which I was happy about.

Day Twelve
i did my bungee jump today and it was incredible!, i've never had just a big rush in my life and its something i really want to do again before we leave for home in a week today :(!.
i've booked my sky dive aswell so that is gonna be the highlight of the holiday for sure!.

New Zealand Part 2!

Third Day
Today we all went into Rotorua town center to have a look around, one thing that hits me first is how American it all feels. Everywhere is set out into blocks!. We went for lunch in a place called Zippy’s, I ordered a chicken wrap and I can tell you now it was the most delicious lunch I’ve ever had. It was fresh and…it was massive.

After that I we all went to the tourist town hall I think it was, basically where you can find out all the information on different activities you can do in the local area and further out. Two things I’m definitely going to do is the sky dive and the bungee jump!.

With the sky dive I was initially thinking of doing the 15,000ft drop but with that I wouldn’t be able to afford to get someone else to jump with us who’d take pictures of it all!. So I think its gonna be the 12,000ft drop with someone taking pictures which im sure will come out ridiculous.

Later that day we went to Dereks house and everyone went for a swim in the lake…except me who forgot to bring my swimming shorts, well done jack.
While everyone went swimming and I was able to get online and post this blog which I hope you’re reading!. I was also able to see how much its snowing in the UK! Its incredible, really lucky I travelled out a few days before otherwise im sure our plane would have been cancelled as my dad said only 31 planes were fuelled up and on a normal day 250 planes should have been fuelled!.

Tomorrow i’ve got the morning run with Mum and then we’re off to ride on something called a gondolas and a luge! If you don’t know what they are I’ll get some pictures up.

Fourth Day
I had the half 7 wake up call from Mum, it was an absolute haymaker as I had to put up with Sam snoring all night. I’ll just drinking some more rum later tonight so I sleep easier.

The run wasn’t too bad this morning the weather was a little cooler as we left about 7:50, we measured the distance yesterday in the car and it totalled up to 5.4km which is about 3 miles I think?. It’s a decent way to get the fitness back on track and im not finding it hard either.

Plus I’m not snacking like I used to at home, just got to make sure I keep it up!.

We set off to the other side of Rotorua to go to the gondolas/luge ride!. Mums told me about this place before, she said when you’re going up the gondolas you can see the whole of rotorua…and fucking hell you could!.



Now to the Luge ride:-
I cant really explain what the luge is with words but take a quick look at the pictures below and you’ll get the right idea!. There are three different lanes you could go down in the luge (scenic, intermediate and expert).
Riding the luge was so much fun!, its like riding a go kart as such buts its just all down hill with very quick turns and at some points in the track there is a massive drop and you pick up so much speed.





Day Five.
I was woken up at 10:30 this morning after such a good sleep, was just annoying that everyone wanted to leave asap, Should have just woken me up earlier then.
Anyway once I had woken up and ate my bagel we headed off to Wakatane (which is pronounced Fakataney) with stopping off at a berry farm half way.

We came to the berry farm a few days ago and its got the most delicious organic ice cream!, the different flavours you can have are:-
• Strawberry
• Raspberry
• Boysenberry
• Mixed berry
• Black berry

All of them…are delicious.

We then made our way to Wakatane beach for the second time and the sun was so fierce its unreal. The tan is coming along well though so its all fine, the only downfall of the sun is the baking hot sand when walking on the beach.

For the evening we all went for a curry in the center of Rotoura, I had the butter chicken and it was really nice, although when I stepped into the restaurant I had a massive urge to go to gaylords in twyford with Tris Paul Robin Jess and Rosie again (gaylords is actually an Indian restaurant by the way). And yes I am missing you lot back home!.


oh and tonight i did a night time picture, just a simple 30 second long exposure and i put myself in it aswell. 30 seconds seems like a life time when you're trying to stay completely still!



Day Six
woke up today and was told we’re going to a place in Rotorua called the buried village, from what I’ve heard previous to going it’s a site that has been excavated since a massive volcanic eruption in the 1800’s which wiped out a small village.

The museum before the walk of the site was really good, loads of old pictures of what was there before which kept me busy for ages. After that we walked through the first part of the outside grounds to view the old houses and buildings which were lost. One thing that I found amazing is that from the ancestors that lived from the volcanic eruption, some people of the same families are working at the buried village site.





Now we went onto the waterfall route which I didn’t know about until we arrived there and it started out with a small stream which gradually became larger, and it was starting to flow a lot faster. There were some small water falls being formed which looked really sweet so I got some pictures of them.



We then came upto these realllly steep steps which you’ll see below in the next set of pictures and once we got to the bottom of that we came upto the most intense water fall, ok it was only 30 metres tall but it’s the first I’ve ever seen with my own eyes!.





Once we left the buried village my nan said we should drive a couple more minutes up the road to go to this view point where you can see the volcano in the distance that destroyed a lot of Rotorua all those years ago!. So we did and…it looked amazing.



Now it was about 2 in the afternoon and we needed something else do to, so me and my brother decided it was our turn to do something and we chose to go on something called a Zorb. Imagine a massive bubble filled with some water and you’re inside it.

Then you’re thrown down a hill!

It was so much fun and I’d definitely recommend anyone to go there and do it if you’re in the Rotorua area!.

My holiday in New Zealand -- Part 1

Flight

Me, Mum, Dad, Brother and Nan left home for heathrow airport at 4 in the afternoon, all I could think about is how I was going to get through the 24 hours of flying to New Zealand!, it literally seemed like a life time to go through!, but now I can now honestly say it was completely worth it!.

The flight itself wasn’t bad at all because my dad managed to get two free upgrades into first class which obviously I jumped on. Me and my dad made full use of the free alcohol and the food was licious!, if I can remember I think I had New Zealand lamb with vegetables and mash potatoe!. The staff were so nice always coming upto us and just chatting for ages!. Here’s a picture!.

Heres a picture of me at the half way stage in Hong Kong.

Once we arrived in Auckland we had to get a small domestic plane to Rotorua, it was only a short 40 minute journey and the views were amazing!. Only about 12 people were on the plane!, I think it could only fit 14 anyway!. Here some pictures!.

Dereks house/landing day

We arrived into rotorua at 2 in the afternoon and within the 34 hours of total travelling I slept….for 2 hours, I was completely knackered to say the least.

When we landed my uncle Derek and aunty Jody with their four children were there to greet us which was so nice!, I have seen Derek a few times in the last few years but I haven’t seen jody since I was 8 if im correct!. it was also my first time in meeting 3 of my cousins Caleb, Josh and Luke!.

We then travelled to Dereks house which is about 5 minutes drive from the small airport and literally I cannot put it into words how amazing this area and house is!, the kids spent a good 30/40 minutes telling me about all the different types of spiders you can get in new Zealand.

Great! Cause I cannot stand those disgusting insects.

Anyway, here is a picture of dereks house/back garden

Yep, his garden is just a lake.

After spending an hour or so with Derek we started our drive to the house that we will be staying in for our 24 days in New Zealand. Before the holiday I expected a nice house with probably a view of a nice forest or something modest. But to my biggest surprise was well everything! Even my dad couldn’t believe it and he was the one who booked the place! I’ll let the pictures do the talking!.

First full day

Our first full day in new Zealand and I woke upto the lake with a clear blue sky!, this country literally puts England to shame so much. Today my family from new Zealand came over and we had a big BBQ with some delicious steak and so on.

I went for a swim in the lake with my brother and it was so warm!, obviously its not salty either which is great as I don’t have to continually wash my mouth out like you do when swimming in the sea!. One of the bad points of living near the lake is because of a really small insect called the Sand fly. They bite you quite like the mosquito and leaves the most horrid itching mark on you.

Second day

i had a wake up call at 8 am from my mum, which surprisingly I didn’t mind at all as I went to bed pretty early the night before. Anyway we’re going on a run! I’ve decided from this holiday im getting back into shape and I know I’ve said it plenty of times since I stopped going to the gym (mainly to kingham) but no excuses this time..anyway reading the book yes man is encouraging me loads! And maybe someone else J.

Today we’re off to a town about 25 miles away called Wakatane, The center of it was really nice with local shops and nice restaurants around everywhere. We ate at a place called ground zero!, I had some sort of chicken and bacon pannini!.

The Beach then came our way and it was so so big and it was near enough completely empty!, the sky was completely blue and the sun was so so fierce! I couldn’t even put my bare feet onto the sand because it was so hot!.

Ps, just woke up on the third day and I’ve completely burnt the top of my hands, how the hell did I manage to miss putting lotion on those?.