February is almost over which means spring is almost here!!! I escaped the cold for a week and went to my third new country of the year, New Zealand!
For my friends who are Lord of the Rings fans (and even if you’re not one) I strongly recommend traveling to New Zealand. It’s far, but worth the trip! I was there towards the end of their summer (southern hemisphere) so the weather was perfect! With the exception of the first day, it was shorts and tank top weather the entire time!
I took a overnight flight from Tokyo arriving in Auckland around mid morning. I rented a car (really easy to do if you have a license in English), and headed out to explore! I drove 2.5 hours to Tongariro National Park, this my friends is what Mordor was inspired off of. The elevation was a little higher so I was wearing pants and a jacket the entire time I was there. I stayed in the National Park Village and took a shuttle bus to the starting point of the 7 hour (round trip), 19.4km hike. This hike probably ties with the most tiring but rewarding hike with Fuji. I mean, I really hiked Mt. Fuji just so I could say I hiked it, and to see the sun rise). But this Tongaririo hike was just beautiful. The landscape changed with each part of the hike.
The first third was all desert like, it reminded me of the power rangers movie when they’re on the planet that’s not earth. The middle part (topish), was rocky kind of like a volcanic mountain. Probably because it’s volcano. But once you get over the top, there are these natural sulfur lakes that are the bluest masses of water you will see. The color changed color as you got closer and father away from the pond. This spot is the perfect place to break for lunch (make sure to bring your own food). It did smell like sulfur, but it wasn’t too bad! The views still out weigh the smell. The last third was like a rainforest. Lots of plants providing shade and everything was so green! You definitely wouldn’t know that this was the same hike by looking at pictures.
Along with the change in scenery, there was a change in temperature. Granted, when I started hiking, it was 9 in the morning and when I finished it was about 4:30 in the afternoon. But I started off so cold, wearing legging, long sleeve, sweater, and a light down jacket (not very thick, but still), and ended up shedding all my layers by the end. So if you’re going to hike Tongariro Alpine Crossing, I suggest you bring layers, food and water, and a backpack big enough to store everything.
The next day, I left the national park and headed to Rotorua. They’re known for the Polynesian spa but I didn’t get a chance to go. It’ll be something I’ll do next time I go. The drive was maybe 1 hour north but it was so much warmer. It really felt like summer. The town was small but cute and was the perfect place to relax after a day of hiking.
The next day was the set tour of Hobbiton which was close by. If you’ve watched the movies (and even if you haven’t), go on this tour! The set is on a private owned farm filled with cows and sheep. This farm is so huge you can’t see any sign of modern day life (which is why they chose this location). Each Hobbit hole is packed with detail that most people wouldn’t think to look at. It’s truly amazing! Go in the early morning though because there’s less people and more enjoyable.
After Hobbiton I headed further north to Coromandel which is know to have hot water beaches. It’s a regular beach but if you dig in. The sand, there’s hot water! Many people come to the beach to dig a hole and just lounge in the hot water with the waves crashing in front of them. You need to go during low tide so it’s pretty crowded, but it’s so cool! Unfortunately, I picked the wrong area so my water was luke warm. But when I went into the ocean and dug my feet in I could feel the hot water.
The next day, I returned to Auckland, returned the car and just walked around the city. By this point, I was pretty exhausted from everything that I had done earlier that week so it was nice to just relax a bit. Auckland reminded me a lot of Sydney which I loved! But there’s more things to do in Sydney (in my opinion) so it’s still the top city on my list. I had a day and a half in Auckland to rest and explore before heading back to cold Japan. Getting back on the plane to Japan was so depressing! Mostly because I had to go back to the cold (and to work), but also because everyone I met in New Zealand were so friendly! I’m not joking when I say everyone was super friendly. Even the airport security people were nice! The country is a lot bigger than I realize so I’m definitely going back again! Maybe to see the set where they filmed more scenes for Lord of the Rings on the southern part of the north island.
