Saturday 17th my bus left Rotorua on the final leg of my Kiwi pass to Auckland. The only stop we made en route was at a town called Matamata where filming of The Shire took place for Lord of the Rings. We didn’t see any little hobbit houses built into hills though, it was only a snack stop so I popped in the bakery for a sausage roll. That’s about as exciting as it got. The reason I was in a hurry to get to Auckland for the 17th was the rugby match between the All Blacks and Ireland. There were seven of us who bought tickets online for the second test match at Eden Park. It was the first professional rugby game I’d ever been to so that was good. I was quietly cheering on the Irish (amongst a crowd of Kiwi’s, hence the ‘quietly’) but the boys in green never really looked like winning and were eventually defeated 27-17. After the match we all went for what could prove to be my last proper night out on the lash. Saying that me and Matt spent most of the night on the pool table, we were on fire. A few random blue-coloured shots that night ensured a less than productive following day. I walked around Auckland’s main high street and that was about it.
Monday was my last day in New Zealand. I got up about 9am, had a shower and packed my backpack ready for checkout at 10am. I went along to the internet room to book a place to stay when I arrive in Tokyo. I also printed off an itinerary of a few places to visit during my brief stop in Japan. In the afternoon, JJ, Miles, Lara and I went to the top of the Sky Tower, the tallest in the southern hemisphere, for some panoramic views of New Zealand’s most populated city. I decided to use my final hour or so in Auckland to get my hair cut. I’ve only had it cut once since the end of January and that was back in Singapore so I thought I’d get tidied up for my return home. I searched the city centre high and low before eventually finding a shop with ‘hairdressing’ written in neon in the window so I thought this is as good a place as any. I sat straight down in the chair and the woman started going at the piece before I’d even had chance to tell her what I wanted. Not that that was much use as she spoke about seven words of English. I think she was Scandinavian. She took about an hour and kept talking to herself in her own language which was odd. Every so often I’d be sure she was finished but then she’d spot a strand of hair which was half a millimetre longer than the others, say ‘Ha! Gotcha!‘ and carry on snipping. Oh well at least I don’t look like I’ve got a mop sat on my head anymore.
It was then time to say my goodbyes, board the shuttle bus to the airport and catch my 6pm flight. New Zealand really exceeded my expectations. I’ve had a great time here and met so many people along the way, in just a three week period. Most of the people I’ve been with have got more time in NZ and are heading further north today to the Bay of Islands. I wish I’d planned in more time myself so I could join them up there but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. It’s time for me to leave the Land of the Long White Cloud for new horizons. The Land of the Rising Sun.