Upon arriving in New Zealand we have two different buses to catch to reach our destination for the evening of January 15th.
In between the two bus rides we shot over to the nearest super market for a bite to eat. I was SO EXCITED to introduce Jeremy to New Zealand pies and Tim-Tams. Now before you start to imagine our lunch as a big pile of desert, let me explain. A NZ pie has a savory filling often with different types of meat or cheese and is surrounded by flaky, delectable pastry. For our first pies of the trip, we chose a classic mince meat pie! 🥧
Next up – TIM-TAMS. I dreamt of having these again for months after I left NZ the first time. They are essentially 2 chocolate crackers with a creamy chocolate filling and dipped in chocolate. Yup. Addictive I tell ya!
After nearly 36 hours of driving, flying, busing, and walking- we’ve made it to our first official stop in NZ. ✈️
As we hoped off the bus in Tauranga, New Zealand, we were greeted by our friends with a warm smile and a big hug. During my previous time in NZ, Walter and Tracey were the house parents at CSALT and I grew to love our chats over a cup of tea. For the first few days, they offered to take us in and allow us a place to rest our weary and jet lagged bodies.
Immediately upon arriving at their cute town house a hot pot of tea was put on and we picked back up where we left off almost 3 years ago. Jeremy and I love listening to the kiwi accent and it didn’t take long before we were throwing in the occasional “aye” and “sweet-as”- trying to sound like a local (although failing miserably with my thick American accent and Jeremy’s half English/ half Amish accent! Hey at least we are keen to give it a go!🤙🏻)
16 January, 2026
After a good feed and sleep, we felt super refreshed and ready for our first full day exploring New Zealand. We began our morning with a cup of tea and the largest avocados I’ve ever seen, picked straight from the tree! 🥑
After breakfast we headed off to Mount Maunganui with Walter. A bit into the hike, Jeremy and I decided to try hiking barefoot. It felt SO GOOD to walk around barefoot again. Back home in Indiana, our family is sending us photos of a raging winter storm. Coming from the snow and cold to the beach and warm weather is bliss and I can feel my heart come alive again with each barefoot step as I soak in the sun! (We may have soaked in the sun a bit too much and paid for it later with a few sunburns. Nothing some fresh Aloe can’t fix!)
Of course after getting hot and sweaty we ran into the ocean. 🌊 As I felt the waves crashing over me and the salt in my hair (and eyes), I could feel every weight lift away. Ah at last – in the ocean again!
That evening, we had a delicious dinner with Walt and Tracey made with almost all produce from their thriving garden!
To my surprise, we didn’t have trouble sleeping at all and it seems like we will fall into a rhythm pretty quick in this new time zone that is 18 hours ahead!
17 January, 2026
Rotorua day trip- here we come! Rotorua is a touristy city filled with lots of geysers and other geothermic features – so much so that the center of the city smells straight up like sulfur! It is also the home of the blue and green lakes, the redwood forest, a Māori (indigenous people of NZ) village you can tour, and a huge mountain biking hub.
But that’s not why we’re going…
WE ARE GOING TO RAFT THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE’S HIGHEST COMMERCIALLY RAFTED WATERFALL!!!
The Kaituna River is a beautiful narrow river winding through a gorge with steep rock banks on both sides and jungle greenery all around! It’s completely stunning at every turn and teeming with eels! Tutea Falls is the last waterfall drop on this section of river- measuring at 7m (about 21 ft) in height! And we are about to sit ourselves on a big rubber floating blob and paddle straight off the top! (Ok- let’s be honest our guide did most of the paddling while we kept our paddles from nailing each other in the face. Thanks Pedro for keeping us alive 🙌🏻)
Jeremy and I also got surfed straight into the “wave of love” and got a face full of water💕 It is our honeymoon after all…
After rafting we grabbed pies (Jeremy’s newfound favorite food) at a local bakery and headed over to the redwood forest for an afternoon walk.
By the time we got back to Walter and Tracey’s place we were completely tuckered and ready for a good night’s rest!
18 January, 2026
Sunday morning…Sabbath. A day of rest. Jeremy headed to the beach for a walk while I stayed back at the house to rest. Nothing like a day to chill and recharge!
In the afternoon, I got my own personal baking class with Walter on how to make proper NZ Scones for afternoon tea.
We took the scones over to our friends Ben & Rachel for afternoon tea and to meet their new little 1-month old, Mya!
In the evening we went to the church I used to attend when I was in NZ for CSALT. It was great to catch up with old friends!!!
After church Jeremy and I grabbed some classic fish and chips and headed down to the beach to watch the sunset. Jeremy trained the seagulls to grab a piece of chip (fries for the American readers 😉) straight from his hand. I don’t know if he’s a bird whisperer or has instigated a feeding frenzy but I guess we’ll see!
19 January, 2026
It’s time to head South towards Wellington. We packed our bags (which isn’t a hard task with such few items) and Tracey graciously offered us a ride to the bus station! After goodbyes we hoped on the bus and that is where I am sitting writing this blog post!
Only 6 more hours of the 10 hour bus ride to go! The countryside of the North Island is beautiful and I’m soaking it all in! We have 4 more days until we begin our trek and I’m savoring every hot shower and fresh delicious meal I’m offered!
Onto Wellington from here…
Thanks for reading!!! A huge shout out to Berlin Gardens for sponsoring part of this adventure! To see more about our sponsors or how you can support the adventure check out
To read more about what we are doing in the South Island, be sure to check out our other blog post