Kaukapakapa, New Zealand - Happy cows come from Kaukapakapa

"He pai rangi tahi"
-Maori for "The beauty of a single day"

OK, I copied that out of a New Zealand tourism brochure. I thought it was more appropriate than

"Hekakano ahau, ruia mai i Rangiatea"
-Maori for "I am a seed, sccattered from Rangiatea"



Greetings from New Zealand. It took an uncomfortable day adjusting from Fiji island life to Auckland city life. I stayed in a hostel in the Parnell district that was originally the embassy for the queen of Tonga. My overall surprise with Auckland, "the city city of sails," is that it feels like a very clean version of home. Borders, Starbucks, McDonald's, and all of the other big chain stores are very present here. I guess this is true for most big cities. I made some friends who had a car and ventured out to the east coast beaches with them. The beaches that line the Tasman Sea are rugged, rocky volcanic beaches with beautiful soft black sand. Very striking.

A few days in Auckland was enough for me so I headed north to Kaukapakapa (yeah, the Maori names can be a bit tough) to wwoof at River Valley farm. Wwoofing (http://www.wwoof.co.nz) is a world-wide program that allows volunteers to stay on organic farms and help out as needed. Its a great way to meet locals, understand the culture, learn about organic farming techniques, and save money as room and board are free in exchange for 4-6 hours of work per day. River Valley farm specializes in Feijoa orcharding, vegetable gardening, and cattle grazing. The feijoa fruit is very similar to a guava (in the states they are called the strawberry guava). I repeatedly forgot their name and called them frijoles. Luckily few New Zealanders speak Spanish and realized that I was talking about the large beans on the trees! When the feijoas are in season they are made into wine and jam and sold at the local farmers market. They aren't in season at the moment, so I did a lot of thistle grubbing in the orchards and cow pastures and helped plant native plants in the wetlands. At River Valley they have cows, chickens, and a bee farm, all of which provide hours of entertainment to a city girl like me. Did you know that putting plastic eggs in a hen house encourages the hens to lay eggs? The owners at the farm were great. They completely open their house to all the wwoofers - free meals, laundry, internet, etc. I also stayed in a private cabin, which is the holy grail of backpacking.

Another wwoofer from Maine was here at the farm with me. He grew up doing crazy things like chopping firewood so I relied a lot on his outdoor expertise. He is traveling around New Zealand for eight months, jumping from farm to farm. One night here he and I walked down the one road to the one bar and were held hostage for four hours by the bartender who was obsessed with American cars, the deep south, and bluegrass and country music. Actually the bartender was extremely nice and even insisted we come have dinner at his house another night. We didn't follow him up on his offer and were a bit apprehensive about going back to the bar - no such thing as a quick drink! He, like most foreigners I've met, wanted to talk extensively about American politics and the upcoming election. I'm really tired about talking about Hillary Clinton.

The farm was an amazing experience. I realized in my normal life I am so disconnected from nature. Working with the animals and the earth I felt a peace that I haven't felt in a really long time.

Oh, for those of you asking about the pics: they are all taken with an Olympus Stylus 790 SW. Its completely submergible to a depth of 3 meters without any special case. Pretty amazing.