I managed to get some more pics up but I messed up the template while uploading. This will probably be my last post. Tracey is gonna go "wild as" when she sees what I did here. Ciao...if you like it leave a comment so she doesn't harm me!
1- This is a pic from a gravel road leaving Raglan, where we stopped to take a pic of remnants of a cyclone over the coral sea
2- A pic of us at Bridal Veil Falls
3- Bridal Veil Falls
4- Us looking over at BVF
5- Shane hanging out at the top of Mt. Maunganui
6- Tracey surfing with her new board
7- Us at a monument in Wellington
8- Leaving the hot water beach in Kawhia
9- A random sunset in NZ
10- So many sheep, they even make sheep sculptures
11- Dolphins on our day cruise through the Bay of Islands. They were literally everywhere. Many different kinds as well as babies, riding the wake all around the boat.
12- I think that we are tourists, snorkelling in the Bay of Islands
13- The hole in the rock on the day cruise
14- A dolphin jumping beside the boat
15- Sheep everywhere!

In Tauranga

Hey everyone. Tracey and I are in Tauranga now looking for some jobs...probably picking kiwis, stacking kiwis, storing kiwis, eating kiwis, getting sick of kiwis! I just added some pics, a few surfing ones for the guys back home. I'll try and add a few more tonight or tomorrow morning. Anyways, take care! (if some of the pics don't enlarge can you leave a msg please, so I can fix 'em)

dropping in at Manu Bay
surfing at Manu Bay
Duckdive!
surfer at Manu Bay
Tracey...being...silly Tracey!
surfing at Ohope...trying to anyways
Tracey and the girls from high school
Tracey and her brand new "Hot Buttered" 7'4''
Tracey and I after our climb to the top of Mt. Maunganui

East Coast to the Bay of Plenty

Has it really been 6 weeks? Unbelievable! Well, since the last post we changed our plans a bit but we are still having a lot of fun. From Raglan we drove to Wellington where we met up with not 1, not 2, but 3 high school girlfriends and their men (holla back Aphra, Jenni and Kristin!). We haven't been together in years, and whether it's a good thing or not, we are the same giddy teenagers we were when we met. Needless to say we had a blast in Wellington on St Paddy's day and even more fun chatting and catching up in the days following. Instead of staying in Wellington (no surf) we decided to travel for a few days with Kristin and Owen up the east coast and into the Bay of Plenty where we are now. The surf is pumping here thanks to a cyclone somewhere else, so Shane is thoroughly enjoying being able to stop anywhere along the coast and jump in for a few waves.
We drove to Hastings, Napier, Gisborne, Ohope, Whakatane and we are now in Tauranga where we will surf for a couple of days and maybe climb Mt Maunganui tomorrow. There are many places that we have seen that could easily become home in the future, but for now we're just enjoying our time together in God's amazing creation...and being reminded now and then with the occasional spanking by a heavy wave that He's in charge!
I'll post a few pictures when I don't have to pay by the minute, so until then please say a quick prayer for us and know that we are thinking of you and wondering what you all are doing at different times during the day.
Hugs and kisses...T.

The sunset at Piha.
























The glow worm cave entrance.














The sets rolling in at Piha, with Lion Rock on the right.

Part 2 of NZ Pics

One of Tracey's sea shells
This above pic is the sun setting on Piha's black sand beach last night. It was awesome to see.
This is a view from Ocean Beach where I climbed a hill to see if any surf was happening.
This is a cave we found at Ocean Beach. I climbed in there and it smelled awful!

Hey everyone, it's a Shane Post this time. Tracey and I have left Whangarei for Wellington, although I'm quite disappointed about leaving the north part of the North Island. It's truly amazing and I sometimes have hesitations about leaving NZ. It's beautiful here.
Last Friday we went on a dolphin cruise through the Bay of Islands and saw so many dolphins it was unbelievable. They were "bow riding," playing in the current made by our boat, and seeing so many pods blew us away. We went through "the hole in the rock," a big arch formed by the power of the ocean, and there were so many fish swimming around the boat it looked as if we were floating "on" them. The cruise also stopped at an island where we went for a snorkel and a swim and Tracey tirelessly searched for sea shells.
The day before our cruise we stopped at a glow-worm cave and took a tour through water-made caverns full of stalagtites and stalgmites. The worms were itsy bitsy and they glowed a blue color when all the lights are off. It was pretty cool to walk under hundreds of them.
For the last couple of nights in Northland we stayed in a bach at Ocean Beach where we snorkelled around and did a bunch of body surfing. It was a really relaxing couple of days after all of the stress we have been enduring (just kidding about the stress).
Last night we stayed in the van at a beach in Piha. There were huge waves last night night but it died down quite a bit. We hired Tracey a board today and went out for a few hours. I was worked by the most powerful wave I have ever been in and had some hesitations about going back out. I didn't want to waste money on the wetsuit rental here so I wore my 5/4. It was brutal. The water temp is about 17 degrees and I was cooking. I think only the people who wear wetsuits will understand.
Tonight and tomorrow we are staying in Raglan, a small community full of people committed to surfing first and working second. It sounds like a match made in heaven. We plan on staying a few days before heading into Wellington to meet some of Tracey's friends from high school and get jobs. What an awful word. There are some pics above for you all and I hope you enjoy them. With me you'll probably end up with a bunch of nature shots but I'm sure you'll like them. We miss you all lots and until the next post...

Part 1 of NZ pics

The view from the plane of Christmas Island. Inviting, isn't it?









Another day in downtown Auckland for Juan Valdez.







Whangarei (fung-a-ray) Falls just down the road from where we are staying.







Just checking out the magnificent New Zealand surf at Bayley's Beach in our wicked sweet van!











Sheep...duh!






Just another day at Ocean Beach hanging with the dolphins!










Shane is smiling at Cape Reinga because right behind him the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean are colliding! Who'd'a thunk it?







A staircase carved out of an old kauri tree in the middle of the Giant Kauri Kingdom store.








Shouldn't a lighthouse be a bit bigger?








Up over a sand dune and across a mountain side is where you'll find the other half of Ocean Beach.

From Hawai'i to Fiji To New Zealand

Hello my people! SO SORRY to take this long to update...it won't happen again! It has been a whirlwind of events since we landed in New Zealand and we're just settling in now. I'll give a quick rundown of events now then post pictures later. Deal? Alright then!

On the 21st, we flew from Hawai'i (where lost tickets just about ruined our trip) to Christmas Island for a stop (where the airport composed of crumbling, weed-devoured concrete and a painted sign that says "Welcome to Christmas I" - they ran out of room). It was neat to fly over, but other than that...

Next stop - Fiji! Just overnight this time, but so humid and wonderful! I can't wait to re-meet the people we stayed with, Melissa, Serevee and baby-on-the-way! Wonderful people!

On to NZ - FINALLY!!! What an amazing country! And we've just begun exploring! We stayed in Auckland for a few days where Shane discovered the name of the disease(s) that robbed him of surfing in Hawai'i. Wanna know? You'll have to ask him! We met up with Jenni (friend from high school) in Auckland, saw the Sky Tower, a horse on the sidewalk and intersections that stop traffic completely so pedestrians can cross any which way! Crazy! We bought a van and drove north to Whangarei (fung-a-ray) where Aphra's (friend from high school) parents live. I am now staying with Calvin, Annmarie (who broke her ankle today), Shane, bees, spiders, cows, a crazy looking pig, mice (unless they've eaten their "last supper") and no hair dryer or straightener! And, surprisingly, I'm loving it! The life, not my hair! We have begun to explore Northland using Calvin and Annmarie's home as a base and we already have phenomenal memories and pictures!

On Thursday and Friday we checked out the local east coast beaches and Whangarei Falls, had an interesting lunch on the west coast, drove through Waipoua Forest and saw endless rolling hills layered with sheep and cattle. Today we went to a local market in town then drove to Ocean Beach where I collected beautiful shells and, yes, that's right, stood in the ocean a few meters from a pod of dolphins! They came right up to the shore! I've never seen anything like it! That has definitely been the highlight of my trip.

Well, it's getting late so I'll wrap it up there. I don't know if the pictures are going to work because the computer is acting up, but I'll try and post some soon. We lost a day during travel, so if you're in Victoria, I'm living in tomorrow but 2 hours behind you. Toronto, I'm 5 hours behind you and a day ahead. Got it? Good. I'll try to make a few phone calls next week. Mmmwah! Love you all! Thank you to those who have dropped us a note - they are much appreciated! Bye for now!