Whangarei Diving

(Written 06/12, 17.13)

Yesterday, Bhavesh and I headed down Northland to get to Whangarei for the most popular New Zealand dive site, Poor Knights. On getting off the coach and getting in the "shuttlebus", we discovered that the YHA (Youth Hostel Association) had been moved from the city centre to the ghetto! The accommodation, however, was the nicest YHA so far! It felt like the setting for some holiday villas, but the rooms were still cabin-like. We had a little wander down to Whangarei Falls and they were surprisingly impressive even in the dark! Whangerai also gave us our first encounter with the Moaris: they shouted some Maori from their car. That was our reason for deciding we were in the ghetto of Whangerei. Apparently we actually got lucky in Piahia because tourists are frequently abused by the natives there!

Today was my dive day, and it seemed luck has turned! The last two days' dive trips were cancelled because of the weather but today was a beauty. We had a long drive and a very bumpy boat ride out to Poor Knights islands. (Probably should have taken a strawberry sea-sickness tablet!) The dives were fun (because scuba diving is fun), but the poor visibility meant it was not as spectacular as expected. Visiting the underwater Air Bubble cave was still very cool, and I can now imagine that wreck-diving is really fun! The boat also took us to the world's biggest sea cave Rico Rico, which has such incredible acoustics that bands, including the fantastic Spice Girls, have apparently played there!

Bhavesh and I have now parted ways for a few days, as he begins his diving certification at the Poor Knights and I make my way towards the Tongariro Crossing - the site of Mordor from Lord of the Rings and apparently one of the world's best single day hikes! Hopefully...