Bye Bye North Island

After an exciting time, we took it easy for the following days and spent them on beautiful beaches near New Plymouth. There we met a family who has been traveling in New Zealand with their bus for 2.5 years and homeschooling their two children. We listened to their stories by the campfire and enjoyed marshmallows.

We also visited the center of New Plymouth and the two very interesting museums, the Len Lye Centre and Puke Ariki, which we really liked.

One highlight for us was a visit to an all-you-can-eat restaurant.

After seeing enough culture in the city, the legendary Mount Taranaki called us.

The climb was very steep, first we drove on gravel roads to the last hut and then climbed up stairs.

The last part couldn't be called a path - it was just gravel and the climb became more and more strenuous. Unfortunately, it was very cloudy on that day and we could only see more than one layer of clouds occasionally.

Nevertheless, the atmosphere was special and we enjoyed our snack and rest.

From that day on, we headed further south and made stops in Opunake and Whanganui before arriving in Wellington.

Wellington was the first city where we could really imagine living. It has a vibrant nightlife (big for New Zealand), great beaches, culture, and friendly people.

Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time in Wellington to explore the surrounding area extensively, but the city center was already promising.

We visited the Te Papa Museum and were impressed by the exhibition 'Gallipoli' about the New Zealanders' involvement in the Gallipoli Battle in World War I, told from the perspective of 8 New Zealand citizens. The huge reproductions by Weta Workshop made a particularly vivid impression.

What Weta Workshop does, we didn't know until we visited the Weta Cave in Wellington. This company has designed the designs and effects for megahits like The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Avatar, and The Adventures of Tintin. During the tour, we learned a lot about the creation of such films and were totally impressed. Wellington really has a lot to offer and we will definitely make another stop in 'Wellywood' on our way back.

From Wellington, we continued to the South Island. Time has passed so quickly and we have been in New Zealand for almost 3 months now. Roger has been faithfully accompanying us for over 6,000 kilometers and we like the Land of the Long White Cloud better with each passing day. The rain, which annoyed us at the beginning of our journey, has gradually stopped, and the temperatures are rising.

After the North Island convinced us with its diverse nature, impressive volcanoes, and lonely sandy beaches, we are very excited about the South Island, which is said to be even more beautiful and is considered by many New Zealanders to be the real main island.

Cheers North Island, thanks for the great time and see you soon :-)