Kia ora, New Zealand

Kia ora t2hendab Maori keeles "tervist". Novembri l6pus 6nnestus meil l6puks 2ra k2ia Uus-Meremaal, t2psemalt siis p6hjasaarel. P6hjasaare keskosa on muuseas ka koht, kus S6rmuste Isandat filmiti. Uus-Meremaast r22gitakse alati yliv6rdes, eriti v6i emajaolt kui r22gitakse loodusest. T6epoolest loodus oli

vapustav: kitsad-k22nulised teed m2gede vahel, lopsakas loodus, kus vaheldumisi kasvavad nii s6najalg- kui ka okaspuud ja muidugi lehmad, mis yletavad teed nii nagu neile sobib ja millal sobib. R22gitakse, et l6unasaar olevat veel ilusam kui p6hjasaar. Eks meil on siis p6hjust j2rgmine kord ka l6unsaarele minna. Seekord aga vaatame siis, mis p6hjasaarel tegime.

Kia ora is a Māori language greeting which has entered New Zealand English. It means literally "be well/healthy" and is translated as an informal "hi". At the end of November we finally got the opportunity to visit New Zealand for the first time. We visited the north island, to be precise. For those of you who love fanatsy movies, The Lord of the Rings was apparently shot in a location on north island. I've always heard people speak in imperatives when they mention the nature of New Zealand. Finally, i do understand why. It is absolutely beautiful: the narrow and winding roads, lush vegetation that is a mix of tree-ferns and gymnosperms and of course the holy cows that cross the road when and wherever they wish. Evidently south island is even more beautiful compared to north island. Well, we will have to find out next time. This time, i'll focus on our travels on north island.

Uus-Meremaallaste ikooniline lind kiwi on all oleva m2rgi peal. Kahjuks meil ei 6nnestunud seda n2ha, kuna see on enamasti aktiivne oositi.
New Zealands iconic kiwi bird is on the sign below. Unfortunately, we didn't get the chance to see a real one as it is nocturnal.
 

Waipoa mets saare loode osas on aga see koht, kus saab n2ha v2heseid allesj22nud "kauri" puid (Agathis sp). Kunagi olevat nad v2ga levinud olnud, kuid inimasustuse tihenemisega raiuti enamus puid maha. 6nneks m6ned j2eti alles ja nyyd on see mets kaitse all. Kauri puud on huvitavad. Mulle meenutavad nad k22buseid: kasvavad vaid umbes 20-30 m k6rguseks, kuid on j2meda tyvega, ja oksad/lehed on puhmas tipus.
Waipoa forest is the place in north west where one can see what's little left of once widespread kauri forest. These trees remind me of giant dwarfs, they are rather short for such old trees, reaching only about 20-30 meters, but have a thick trunk with branches in a bundle on the top.

All oleval pildil poseerin minu m2letamist mooda 4 kauri 6ega. 

On the photo below i am posing with 4 kauri sisters. 

Teepealt avanesid ilusad vaated. 

Nice views from the road.

Auckland vaadatuna Edeni m2elt.

Auckland as seen from Mt. Eden.

 

T2n2peaval kehtib ytlemine, et igas sadamas on v2hemalt yks eestlane. L2bi juhuse, 6nnestus n2ha okos6dalast Kadri Kallet linnakeses nimega Rotorua:) Oli vahva kohtumine.

Nowadays you could say that in every port you can meet at least one Estonian. Accidentally, we met ecowarrior Kadri Kalle in Rotorua. Was a great re-union.

Rotorua l2hdal asub selline v2gev koht nimega Wai-O-Tapu, kus saab n2ha looduse v6imsat j6udu: nii geisreid kui ka kuumavee allikaid. All pildil on n2ieteks Shampanja bassein (diameeter on 65 m ja sygavus 62m), mis on umbes 700 aastat vana ja mille vee temperatuur on 74C. Vees olevate mineraalide hulka kuuluvad nii kuld, h6be, elavh6be jne. Basseini l2hedal seistes tugevama tuule korral oli kohati aurusauna tunne, nii tihe oli see kuum aur.
Near Rotorua is a place called Wai-O-Tapu that has geisers and hot springs. Below is a picture of the Champagne pool, which is the largest spring in the district (65 m in diameter and 62 m deep). It is estimated to have been formed 700 years ago by hydrothermal eruption. Minerals contained in the water are gold, silver, mercury to name a few.

Vee temperatuur ja ylim happelisus ei heiduta seda lindu (Himantopus himantopus). 

The Pied Stilt seem quite unconcerned about the acidic waters in which they wade.

Naturalistid seina vaatamas-nuusutamas: mis siin kasvab?

Naturalists being curious about the rock wall nose first.

Ringi s6ites nagime sageli valget auru, mis tuli keevatest j6gedest/allikatest. V2ga mystiliselt ilus vaatepilt.

While driving around we would often see the white steam coming from boiling rivers/streams. Very mystical/magical view it was.

 

P6hja saart kylastades kindlasti soovitaksin k2ia 2ra Waipoa metsas Aucklandist p6hjas n2gemaks vanu hiiglasi kauri puid ja Rotoruas (Wai-O-Tapus) Aucklandist l6unas, et saada selge ettekujutus Uus-Meremaa geotermilisest aktiivsusest. Muidugi on p6hjasaarel veel palju palju muud vaadata, aga  no k6ike ka ei j6ua teha, eks ole?

If you are visiting north island, i would definitely recommend visiting aforementioned places.