A few more photos and anecdotes.

So as I predicted, more photos surfaced on facebook and I thought I'd share them with you.

This was the beach we checked out during hour quick rest stop at Napier. Not the most impressive part of the trip, but still a pretty cool beach. A bit chilly.

Breakfast at the Taupo backpackers. I don't know why the picture looks like we're being attacked by a disembodied spirit. I'm eating oatmeal, which they call porridge, which I find funny. It's catching on though, as most things do eventually. I mostly call it porridge now.

Here are some more photos from Mt. Monganui.

This is the beach at the foot of the mountain where we ate our lunch. I was actually approached by quite an interesting character walking back from the car to our picnic spot. He looked very world-traveled and carried only a backpack and a walking stick with a big grey bushy beard. He stopped me and asked "Are you from New Zealand?" I grew very excited, as world-weary travelers with big beards are exactly the sort of cool people that I want to meet and talk to. No, I'm from America, I said. Rhode Island. Without missing a beat, he said "I've been telling people from Rhode Island for 25 years..." and then proceeded to lay out a solid five minute prediction of the detailed chain of events leading to the apocalypse, starting with "There's gonna be a pope from Belguim...", carrying on through a predicted web of increasingly unfortunate happenings to which I responded with great interest and concern (this was very much a "smile and nod" type situation), and ending with "...Putin pushes the button. Boom." Well sir, said I, I hope you're wrong. "I'm not wrong," said he, "I've been saying it for 25 years. So when a pope from Belguim is elected, get out of the Northern Hemisphere." Fair enough, I said. I will. Thank you. "Would you like to hear about the UFO's?" As much as I'd love to, I said, I've got to eat my sandwich now. And so he walked off into the distance, on his way to god knows where. I like to think he just walks the earth, spreading the word of the coming apocalypse. I didn't get a picture of him, sorry. But yeah, that happened on this beach. 

Here's a few group shots of us on the summit of the mountain. I'm sorry I look like I just killed a man in the first photo. I don't think I was ready.

This photo sums up our relaxing time atop the mountain. The sun was so brilliant it took my sunglasses and my hat to shield myself from it.

Here's us cooking and eating at the Tauranga Backpackers. Pasta and chicken, if I recall.

This photo captures the essence of our experience at the Taupo hot water pools, I made it my mission to make a peanut butter and nutella sandwich and eat it whilst being massaged by water from the earth. Success.

This was our first fire. Not the most successful as we weren't able to get it hot enough to cook food with, but it was impressive for our first time and basically only wet wood at our disposal.

Ah yes, and in other news I just bought tickets to see Roger Daltrey (lead singer for The Who) in November in New York City and am so excited that I had to slip the tour's promotional artwork in here. He's doing a solo tour, using his voice so as to keep it in shape between Who concerts. Awesome. Completely irrelevant to my trip but worthy of mention nonetheless. Love the tour name as well. 

"You're never too old to rock and roll if you're too young to die" - Jethro Tull.

Be back up with more stories and pictures in a few.