At institute I got talking to Amanda about doing something at the weekend and we decided that it'd be fun to hike up Rangitoto. You know, that island that's Auckland's biggest and youngest volcano? Yeah, well that's what we were going to do because we're hardcore. Weather permitting of course. I mentioned that it was my birthday that weekend and Amanda got all excited and I had to break it to her that I actually could not be bothered to organize anything.
This is the part where I tell you about my birthday weekend. Or should I say week? I mean, the whole week I was giving myself treats because it was almost my birthday. Frozen yoghurt you say? Why not, it's my birthday on Sunday. When I walked past the cake shop the next day, I decided I would treat myself again. Seriously the passionfruit one is to die for. Long story, short: After checking with Sarah that I wouldn't look like a heifer having frozen yoghurt two days in a row, I went on my merry way with some passionfruit goodness.
Saturday I arose bright and early in preparation for catching the 9:15 ferry to the island. I was in the kitchen making myself a packed lunch when Andrew came in, obviously shocked to see me up before 10 on a Saturday and said something along the lines of "You're up early. Making sandwiches. Are you off on a hike or something?". To which the answer was of course, yes I was. So we discussed the weather and whether (haha) it was still too cold for shorts. The consensus was that shorts were perfectly fine for a beautiful day like that Saturday.
All geared up, I set off to catch the bus to the ferry port. I tell you what, I looked like an idiot walking through Ponsonby in my shorts and hiking boots. I mean there's a load of hills around here, but come on. I had a little panic that I was going to miss the ferry but I made it in good time. The man at the ferry port made me brush my boots down as "They didn't want any infestation on the island". I would have taken offense, but I didn't actually care and he was asking everyone else to do it too. Amanda jumped on the ferry at Devonport and we took the 20 minute journey over to Rangitoto on the crowded boat. We decided that we would aim to catch the 12:45 ferry back so we decided to take the direct track up and when we arrived at the island we set off on our merry little way towards the summit.
That day was quite hot and I could easily have changed my name to sweaty Betty and it would be accurate. But after almost an hour of walking, we made it to the top. The day was just beautiful and the surroundings and view were just picturesque. We enjoyed our packed lunches in the warm sunshine and then proceeded to take pictures of everything. Here are a selection of the view:
You know how it's a volcano? Well this was the crater. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't filled with lava, but I guess I wouldn't want to be there if it was...
When it got to 12, we decided we better begin the walk down. As we hadn't taken any photos on the way up, we were making plenty of stops on the way down.
 |
| LAVA ROCKS! |
 |
| The summit. |
As we were walking, everything kind of looked the same and we had no idea how far away we actually were. Then we got to a sign that said it was 40 minutes back to the wharf. We had 25 minutes before the ferry was due to leave. We decided that it couldn't be accurate and that if we picked up the pace we would be fine. Suddenly there's loads of people running past us. There are only three ferry departures from the island a day so if we missed the 12:45 one the next, and last, ferry was at 4. There are no shops or cafes on Rangitoto so we didn't fancy hanging around. Each time another person ran past us we discussed whether we too should begin running. We agreed that at 12:35 we'd start running. So at 12:35 we begin running.
Did I mention that the ground is made up of loose lava rocks and really uneven? No? Well it is and running on it is not fun. And probably not really safe. But I'm proud to say that Amanda and I were star athletes that day and made it to the wharf before the boat even showed up, giving us plenty of time to sit and relax. When the boat actually arrived it took forever for everyone to get off and on so we probably didn't have to run.
Back on the ferry, we both got off at Devonport and headed to Narrowneck Beach, which gave an excellent view over to Rangitoto Island. It was lovely and warm and after a morning in hiking boots it was nice to walk around bare feet in the sand. The water was quite cold though! We stopped off at the cafe there and I treated myself to some chips because, well it was my birthday and I was at the seaside. It was an awesome day and it was great to spend time with a fun girl having plenty of laughs.
I awake at 7am on Sunday morning and after getting over the initial shock that it was 7am already, I remembered that it was my birthday and that my mother had sent me a present. I jumped out of bed and grabbed my present and card that had been delivered that week and got right back into bed. First I opened the card which had been sent from Australia and couldn't help but laugh when I saw this beauty created by Alex (thanks bruv!).
Next I moved on the the shiny purple package. I opened it up, pulled out a t-shirt my mum had bought me (it looks good btw, mother). I struggled to get the next thing out. I pulled really hard and managed to get the present out but heart balloons and confetti went everywhere! And I mean everywhere. Between every sheet on my bed and under every piece of furniture. I'm still finding pieces of it now, almost two weeks on. This morning there was a heart confetti in my shower. My shower, Mother. A different room to where my bed is. I got some lovely little present from my mother including the mascara I was craving and a cute little snow flake charm.
When I ventured out of my room for breakfast the family all sing 'Happy Birthday' to me and they had bought me lovely charm as well. Susan asked what I had planned for my birthday and said they wanted to take me out for dinner. I accepted of course. At the end of church the ysa were planning a rehearsal for that evening. I told Maureen I couldn't make it because the family were taking me out for a birthday meal. She got all excited and cancelled the rehearsal and instead put on a dessert night in my honor.
After consuming my favourite meal of pizza with the family I headed over to meet the ysa and ate delicious cake. I got to speak to my parents on Skype and also to my grandmother which was a pleasant surprise. All in all, my birthday which had no plans ended up being pretty good. And to top it off, Sarah took me out to see SOAP - the Show on Tuesday night, which was pretty good. It was at Auckland Civic Theatre which is just BEAUTIFUL. I've been trying to find a decent picture of the inside, but it ain't happening.
Thank you to all my birthday well wishers. It makes me happy that people take the time to say hello on the day of my birth. And maybe next year I'll get over my birthday issues and actually do something about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment