If there is one thing I have learned from living in New Zealand the last four months, is that nothing comes cheaply in this part of the world. Between $6 per gallon of gas and $3 for a 20 oz. bottle of coke, you really have to budget wisely if you want to ‘see it all.’ Kiwis are a resourceful bunch and use a brilliant system of bartering and connections to get things done. In a large country with only 4 million people, there is a plethora of small towns and with that, comes that small town mentality where everyone knows and tries to help everyone else out.
While in Malaysia a few months ago (check it out on the ‘timeline‘), we met some cool Kiwi soldiers who recommended their favorite places in the North Island. We have been systematically checking them off over the last few months and with the sun blazing on my day off work, we went to ‘Goat Island’ to see what the hype was all about.
New Zealand is really picking up and one of my favorite things so far is the amount of green spaces available. Every corner has some park to relax, go biking, or have a picnic and some of the larger ones likes the Hunua Ranges, have incredible waterfalls.
About a month ago while driving down highway 16, I spotted three pukekos, a black and blue bird with a bright red beak native to New Zealand (mostly). Ever since then, I became a little bit obsessed and was always on the look out to find some more on the side of the road.
Everyone I mentioned this to was totally unimpressed and assured me they can be found anywhere, but I personally had only seen those three! That is until a few weeks ago when my new (and now ex)roommate told me of a large park where hundreds of birds gather and will swarm you if you bring some bread. I was so there.
These guys were more than ready.
The Western Springs in West Auckland is a great place where you can find these curious birds. There are also a bunch of other birds, including ducks, black swans, geese, heron, and a bird I wasn’t able to identify that looks like a black and white pukeko.
Look at those semi-webbed feet!
The park is attached to the Auckland Zoo so it is not very difficult to find. If you have some time, check it out and make sure to bring plenty of bread! Here are some pictures I took.
Can I has some bread?!
She regretted bringing too much bread.
This family was so cute
Side note: Would anyone be interested in an animal identifier app? I am considering learning to code for android for a few travel based apps I wish existed. The idea would be you take a pic, upload it, and have a community member identify it for you. Furthermore, it would keep track of where to spot certain animals. Sorry to sneak this announcement on this pukeko post, but I figured, it was short and you wouldn’t mind.
Another wonderful Tuesday came by a few weeks ago (which is currently, my only day off), and it was not going to be wasted. We had a choice of either going hiking or taking a long trip to check out Hobbitton, but after reading that it is $75 for a 90 minute guided tour, we opted to hike.
The Hunua Ranges is a huge park in the greater Auckland area about an hour south east of the city center. Since we were pretty impressed by Piha, we decided to give it a try! The first thing to know is that it is massive, with quite a few entry points and hiking trails. Since Sid and I are both grossly out of shape not at the zenith of our form, we went with the easy one to a 23 meter waterfall.
My first month in New Zealand was shit. Absolute shit. From the stress of looking for a job, to one of the worst housing experiences one can have, I was not enjoying this so called ‘paradise’ at all. After a month though, I got a job, found a so-so car, and moved to a new place… it was time for a little trip to explore what NZ has to offer (more on that first month later).
A few weeks ago, I saw a picture of Piha on Reddit (I can’t believe I didn’t mention Reddit on this post) and realized it was just a 40 minute drive from my house. Clear skies, the sun shinning, oh yeah, the beach was calling. Read more →
