If Mikey likes it, it must be good

Hello friends,  

It has been one day in one of the largest metropolises in New Zealand, and I am already awestruck by the natural beauty that this country boasts. 

  After arriving in Auckland I was happy to have conquered the 13 hour flight from Los Angeles. The flight itself was less than ideal as I was situated in between an obtuse, albeit friendly gentleman who claimed the armrest as his own, and a kind old lady. We got along great, although I feel the old lady was mildly offended by the sexually explicit scenes exposed as I watched Californication throughout the duration of the flight. As I stepped off the plane my back ached as I was hunched forward in an attempt to stay within the confines of my temporarily leased seat on the plane. 

  Google maps showed me there was waterfront nearby, and I was anxious to explore the area searching for potential spots to wet a line. I was greeted by a very low tide and marginal fishing opportunities. I was lucky enough to stumble across a bird sanctuary with a thriving avian community wading through the mudflats feeding on crustaceans. I need to purchase a birdbook, as aside from a few species of gulls the only birds I was able to identify was thanks to an interpretive panel. 

  After my stroll I took a quick nap and greeted the wonderful Andrea Chomyc. We went on an adventure to climb a dormant volcano located a few kilometers from our hostel. After a calf busting climb to the top we were greeted by a scenic vista overlooking the Auckland harbour. The site seems to be a popular place with locals using the steep slope to burn calories and is also seemingly overpopulated with rabbits. A few hours later we arrived back at the hostel and dined on some fine indian cuisine before calling it a night.

Frustration with my inability to identify the local species of trees and shrubs is steadily increasing. The vegetation has incredible diversity, with redwoods, coniferous trees, flowering shrubs and a variety of tropical plants. Tomorrow we are meeting up with John Campbell, a true canadian beauty out of Owen Sound, Ontario and hitting the road  due north with our rental car. I am looking forward to further exploring this wonderful country, and I am anxiously awaiting the soothing sounds of running water and the splendour of big wild trout rising for cicadas. Watch out trout, the river ninja’s coming for you.

Keep it real,

Mike

On a quest to be a true Canadian hero

Salutations friends,

So here I am- nestled comfortably on the blogging bandwagon. As you are likely aware of, I am departing to New Zealand January 25th and will use this blog to keep everyone posted on my escapades. (Unless I end up flopping, which there is a decent chance of) I will do my best to make this blogging experience mildly entertaining for the reader. 

 Despite my reputation for lengthly verbal ramblings, I hope to condense my thoughts into a brief blog consisting of well chosen words integrated into organized paragraphs of grammatically correct sentences. 

My journey begins in the Ottawa airport as I travel to Philadelphia, Washington, Los Angeles, until reaching my destination in Auckland. Despite the unfortunate overlays in these American metropolises, I look forward to all of them. Depending on visibility, hope to view the Whitehouse and Washington Monument, along with other historical relics from the airplane giving me an excuse to never take the boring tours of the city. The flight to Auckland is a lengthy 13 hours, and I hope to sleep the entire time dreaming of mountain streams, scenic vistas on mountain summits and the medley of flavours kangaroo burgers promise to provide.

We begin our journey with 7 days on the North Island meandering through the land in our rental car. I’ll update as soon as anything exciting happens with photographs and an unnecessarily descriptive description. 

Keep it real,

Mike