Paradise!

Hahei = Paradise

Sea Adventures

My cousin and I decided that we would do something more adventures than hangout on the beach so we climbed up Pah Hill at Hahei beach on the Coromandel Peninsula (gorgeous beach by the way). Then we decided to lower ourselves down onto the rocks below. It was so steep that it was almost vertical. Without a rope I doubt we would have gotten back up, because you can always go down, by falling face first haha
Once at the bottom we had to precariously climb the rocks. Luckily for us there were many nooks and cranys that we could stick our fingers into and put our feet on. What an exhilarating feeling to climb rock faces with nothing under you but the ferocious water! I doubt we were in any real danger since we did take it slow and there was no wind about.
My cousin managed to frame me quite well in this picture. I'm just coming up onto the ledge the looks down onto the swell of the ocean and the waves upon the rocks. It caused this awesome whirlpool effect to. The ocean was so blue but clear at the same time and we saw heaps of fish. We even saw 1m long kingfish and decided to come back to the same spot tomorrow to try our luck with the fishing rods. The climb down and up with the rods strapped to our backs was no easy feat.
The weather was fantastic and so warm. We did contemplate leaping off the rocks into the water but after seeing a stingray and something much larger than a fish we changed our minds. Also, with the tide coming in we did not want to get trapped on the rocks just because we wanted to have a swim.

The water was so amazing though. It had a strange attraction to it but then the stingray and the larger shadow had the same sense of awe but the opposite since it just made us want to stay dry. I did catch a fish here on the 2nd day but it was a 10cm snapper and so I decided to throw it back. Ill come back for it in 2 years time =)

Memories

Since I left NZ when I was 13 I do have a few memories of the time I spent there. Many of my memories are of the places I visited the most and my family. I decided to go and visit the 2 houses that I used to live in but regrettably I think that it ruined some of the fond memories I had as the places had changed for the worse. Alas, nothing lasts forever but times were good when I lived there.

My first house

Old Lawrence Cres. The trees sure had grown!

Happy childhood memories

"The Land of The Long White Cloud" welcomed me back

2001 was the last time I set foot on the soil of what I used to call home it was time for a visit to see friends, family and places that I once knew. 9 years is a long time and things have changed a lot but many parts of NZ I still recognised. I spent 14 days there and had a blast. Can not wait to go back!

Auckland SkyTower, biggest building in the Southern Hemisphere
View of Auckland from "One Tree Hill" which ironically now does not have a single tree left on it after it got attacked by a large man wielding an axe =(

View from the harbour - It has turned into a beautiful skyline

Auckland Blues vs Wellington Hurricanes.
It was the first game of the season and the match ball was delivered in person by Michael Jones

Almost Try time but it was thwarted

My high school and the sporting grounds

Camera

While at Yokohama I tested out my camera by shooting a picture directly into sunlight. It gave this awesome effect on the buildings and since the sun was just coming past the buildings I got the streaks of light too. Unfortunately after this I realised that my lens was slightly dirty and caused a "blob" of light to appear in the middle of the image.

Yokohama

Yokohama is a beautiful city, especially down by the harbour area. There is a lot of touristy things such as museums and boats that will take you on a tour but it is pleasant just for walking. I can really see it as a romantic spot at night during the summer. If you get the time a visit to Yokohama and T.G.I Fridays is heavily recommended.

The Harbour and Amusement Park

The tour boat

Coastguard museum and vessel