New Zealand
New Zealand- Day 1
Friends and countrymen, for this next adventure I'll be journeying to the land of the Hobbits. I have been a Lord of the Rings fan ever since the movies came out 20 years ago. I'll save all the gushing about the stories / movies for the day we go to Hobbiton though 😉
Last September, my friend, Les, found tickets to New Zealand for under $900?!*#!
(if you're interested in the total cost of my trip- scroll down to the very bottom of this page)
I booked a ticket and soon after a few other friends were also on board. Not surprisingly, the dates did *not* line up with my Spring Break- so I used all my time off. #worthit
I flew out of Vegas. I know this adds a six hour drive to the trip... but I like driving. And I get to see my brother and his family both before & after the trip ❤️. I got to read them their daily bedtime story and then played CLUE and a game called THE BEARS AND THE BEES with my brother and his wife.
Last September, my friend, Les, found tickets to New Zealand for under $900?!*#!
(if you're interested in the total cost of my trip- scroll down to the very bottom of this page)
I booked a ticket and soon after a few other friends were also on board. Not surprisingly, the dates did *not* line up with my Spring Break- so I used all my time off. #worthit
I flew out of Vegas. I know this adds a six hour drive to the trip... but I like driving. And I get to see my brother and his family both before & after the trip ❤️. I got to read them their daily bedtime story and then played CLUE and a game called THE BEARS AND THE BEES with my brother and his wife.
After staying the night in Cedar City on Tuesday, I drove to Vegas Wednesday morning to board my flight.
I downloaded THE HOBBIT and all three LORD OF THE RINGS books to listen to on my trip. I finished the Hobbit before I got on the plane. 😅
I flew from Vegas to Dallas where I met up with 3 of the other friends on our trip. We hung out in the Capital One lounge that they have at the Dallas airport.
From Dallas we flew to Auckland. I watched 3 movies and got like 5 hours of sleep! It was a productive flight. ;)
In terms of jet-lag it actually wasn't too bad. New Zealand is 20 hours ahead, since it's almost a full day we just skipped Thursday.
One of the movies I watched on the plane had this line that stuck with me and I wanted to share it...
"Why save the good stuff for later?"
I love that. 👆 That was the reason I started traveling.
"I'll wait until I have friends to go with"
"I'll wait until I'm married"
"I'll wait until I can afford a bigger and nicer vacation"
If you can help it, why wait?
Life is supposed to be enjoyed. Money is supposed to be spent. I don't think I'm in danger of blowing all my money and making irresponsible choices- so I think this quote is a good one to live by.
As long as you follow your conscience: "why save the good stuff for later?"
"I'll wait until I have friends to go with"
"I'll wait until I'm married"
"I'll wait until I can afford a bigger and nicer vacation"
If you can help it, why wait?
Life is supposed to be enjoyed. Money is supposed to be spent. I don't think I'm in danger of blowing all my money and making irresponsible choices- so I think this quote is a good one to live by.
As long as you follow your conscience: "why save the good stuff for later?"
We landed in Auckland and picked up our rental car. We headed to a convenience store to pick up some snacks. THAT is where we learned that meat pies are delicious. Now, as someone who doesn't love meat, I was skeptical of buying a pre-packaged pastry full of meat. But Les got us each a meat pie, and it was pretty good!
It was rainy, but 70° so it was pretty enjoyable. It's definitely been a learning curve trying to navigate Auckland driving on the other side of the car / road 😅 shout-out to my friends for helping navigate and reassure me in that 🙏
After grabbing snacks we drove to the water and walked along the coast then went and got some ice cream. Honey pokey (flavor) was recommended and it's real good.
After grabbing snacks we drove to the water and walked along the coast then went and got some ice cream. Honey pokey (flavor) was recommended and it's real good.
We checked into the Airbnb and after chillin' a bit we headed to Mount Eden (neighborhood) to explore a little. We wandered through a park and then found the *coolest* antique store called JUNK AND DISORDERLY.
After the vintage store we headed downtown. (⬅️ say 'downtown' like Macklemore though)
We went to the Sky Tower and Sky City. Definitely has space needle vibes. Maybe it was just because it was rainy... But Auckland overall has Seattle vibes. There are a bunch of shops near the Sky Tower.🗼 We first found a store for the All Blacks (rugby team) and then wandered upstairs and found an awesome Lord of the Rings store! It wasn't *exclusively* Lord of the Rings stuff, but probably like 75%.
They had replicas of all the weapons, they had little figurines of all the characters, maps of Middle Earth, tea towels of Rivendell and the Shire, and little pendants and collectables from all the movies. I almost bought a few books because they had cool copies... But I didn't. 😩
They also had models of Gollum, the trolls, and even a giant Smaug head that moved ever so slightly. It was cooool.
Anyway, we wandered around a few other shops until it was time for our dinner reservation at the Sky Tower. There's a restaurant at the top of the tower (Orbit 360) that rotates so you can see all of Auckland. It was gorgeous. And the food was delicious. Not a Michelin Star ✨ but similar caliber, at least in my opinion. I started with a chickpea-yoghurt-pomegranate salad. Main course was Gnocchi Alla Sorrentina and it was the best gnocchi I've had #probs. Italy was a long time ago. 😅
We shared sides of miso carrots and fries with garlic aioli. We also all got mocktails. I got a lemon-lime-black cherry mocktail. And we tried each other's food. I love people that are okay with that style. So I got to try the Beef fillet and scallops. Dece. I'm not a huge meat fan though.
We each got a different dessert, I got a mango jelly covered in mousse with a shell of white chocolate on crushed pistachios. My dessert was my fave. ❤️
After dinner we came home and crashed. In bed. It was a really good day. Jet lag isn't so bad when you're basically a day ahead (minus four hours). We just skipped Thursday. I'll update you again tomorrow!
Day 2
Today we woke up to a gorgeous rainbow. The weather has been so nice here. We hung out at the Airbnb until Nate arrived, he missed our Auckland day, but I think he's planning on going back for a few extra days after Tori and I leave.
We headed to the Parnell Farmer's Market before making our way up north. Both day 1 and day 2 it rained frequently, but the rain lasts for like 30 seconds.
At the market, I tried a Portuguese tart, Paul bought some honey, and Nate and Les got these really good tandoori spreads and sour dough bread. Tori and Les also tried fried octopus balls. To clarify, I mean ground up octopus + batter that was cooked in like an aebleskiver pan to form circular shapes.
We headed to the Parnell Farmer's Market before making our way up north. Both day 1 and day 2 it rained frequently, but the rain lasts for like 30 seconds.
At the market, I tried a Portuguese tart, Paul bought some honey, and Nate and Les got these really good tandoori spreads and sour dough bread. Tori and Les also tried fried octopus balls. To clarify, I mean ground up octopus + batter that was cooked in like an aebleskiver pan to form circular shapes.
My plan for the day was to drive up to the Bay of Islands. It was out of the way of where we were going, but the rest of the gang wanted to join in. I didn't necessarily plan an itinerary for the gang, but I did do research on places I wanted to visit. I got my own car so I could go off and see my own stuff, but Bay of Islands we did together. :)
On the way we stopped to get Fish n' Chips and sweets from the bakery!
The drive was gorgeous. I just wanted to capture the whole thing. Rolling light green hills. Cows and sheep occasionally. A view of the ocean. And it wasn't like "this is a cool spot" the *whole drive* was that way. Breathtaking.
I actually love driving. And I feel like it's a good way to get to know a place. And New Zealand there is a lot of space between signs of civilization. Because of bookings and such we actually stayed in a different Airbnb each night. And there was a lot of driving involved.
I actually love driving. And I feel like it's a good way to get to know a place. And New Zealand there is a lot of space between signs of civilization. Because of bookings and such we actually stayed in a different Airbnb each night. And there was a lot of driving involved.
The BAY OF ISLANDS is more of a region than one location. We actually just went to Tapeka Point Beach. A Canadian couple who had been staying in New Zealand for 6 weeks said a few hours was not enough to spend there, which is probably true... but alas. We only had a few hours.
I was in the water for a little bit, but then went exploring on some of the rocks and picked up some shells. 🐚 The beaches in New Zealand are TEEMING with shells.
After the beach the gang wanted to stop for pizza. Luckily gelato was involved afterwards. 😜
I was in the water for a little bit, but then went exploring on some of the rocks and picked up some shells. 🐚 The beaches in New Zealand are TEEMING with shells.
After the beach the gang wanted to stop for pizza. Luckily gelato was involved afterwards. 😜
The drive to the next Airbnb was three hours away. I loved watching the sun slowly dip behind the hills. The light faded ever so slightly as I drove and listened to the FELLOWSHIP of the RING. 🧝
Our next Airbnb was by the ocean, I had a little trouble finding it at first. It was on the WEST side of the island. Tori and I shared a bed in the west room. Soon after we turned out the lights, we heard a scratching sound. It sounded like it was coming from *inside* the room. I wondered if there was something in the walls. 😬
After we called Nate to help us investigate (Les and Paul were asleep) we determined that it was a large creature but it was outside... our walls were just really thin. Since it wasn't in the house, we decided to stay and deal. But we heard whatever it was on and off throughout the night. Someone later suggested it might be an opossum.
Day 3
I woke up pretty early and took a shower and asked Tori if she wanted to walk down to the beach. I sat on a short grassy hill looking at the empty beach with soft clouds and light breeze as the sun rose behind us. Les and Paul joined and then they all went down to explore a little.
I read my scriptures and wrote in my journal. *This* is the kind of life I want to live. I was thinking about that as I was writing. I want less work and more outside-enjoying-nature time. I love this island.
I also feel like I'm more reflective and trying-to-be-poetic because I've been listening to Lord of the Rings.
It might sound real cheesy, but a quote that's in both the book and the movie really struck me yesterday as I was pondering life decisions...
*you LoTR fans will definitely know this one.*
I read my scriptures and wrote in my journal. *This* is the kind of life I want to live. I was thinking about that as I was writing. I want less work and more outside-enjoying-nature time. I love this island.
I also feel like I'm more reflective and trying-to-be-poetic because I've been listening to Lord of the Rings.
It might sound real cheesy, but a quote that's in both the book and the movie really struck me yesterday as I was pondering life decisions...
*you LoTR fans will definitely know this one.*
Frodo says he wishes the ring had never come to him.
Gandalf replies, "So do I"
#startbyvalidating 👌
"So do all who live to see such times
but that is not for them to decide.
All we have to decide is what to do
with the time that is given us.”
👏👏👏
Gandalf replies, "So do I"
#startbyvalidating 👌
"So do all who live to see such times
but that is not for them to decide.
All we have to decide is what to do
with the time that is given us.”
👏👏👏
I want to be more intentional with how I spend my time. Every hour. What I think about. What goals / career I pursue. It affects everything. And I need to be better about making a choice instead of doing what's convenient.
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We headed to church nearby at 10am.
Before church as they walked by they shook our hands and welcomed us. We had joked before the trip about how we would meet someone at church at then get invited to their house for dinner... um they had a FEAST after church that they insisted we stay for. Everyone was so friendly and wanted to get to know us.
During the second hour of church we had relief society. They had a discussion about emergency preparedness. A few weeks before we got to New Zealand they had a cyclone that destroyed several houses and roads and left a lot of people without power. The women in the Relief Society said they were without power for 5 days. They couldn't buy anything because no one had cash and there was no credit card machine that could function without power. The discussion became 'what happened and how can we do better for next time?'
I was actually really touched as I listened to the sisters talk about how they went from house to house trying to check on their neighbors. And how they needed to make sure they were prepared so they could help those who couldn't help themselves. They talked about an older woman who didn't have enough water- and no one checked on her. They decided to make a list of people to check on in the event of another disaster.
The overall message was "we can't live in isolation"
I loved it. I was inspired by their conviction.
I spoke with Paula for a long time and we added each other on Facebook. 😅 She has a good friend who married someone with the last name 'Gunderson' and they live in Idaho. She told me to look them up.
The first thing that was recommended was a cultural center a few minutes down the road called 'Footsteps of Kupe'. A lot of people told us to go there. They all knew the kids that worked there and said it told the story of the first person who stepped foot on the island of New Zealand, Kupe (pronounced koo-pay). Kupe came from Hawai'i and brought a huge boat full of provisions and people.
I don't remember the names of all of their gods, but we were told the creation story and each god represents a different element. I actually just had my students do an assignment on Polynesian myth and we talked about how in both Hawaii and New Zealand myth, the tell about Maui pulling up the islands with his fish hook.
They spoke of the god of the earth and the god of the sky and how they were together, but were separated.
At the end of walking through the garden, we were taken into an indoor entry where our guides sang us a song and welcomed us. They have a tradition of saying 'welcome once, welcome twice, welcome three times'. We were also told at church that there are stages of guest, and when you share a meal you become like family. They also told us it's their culture to have guests eat first. 😏
They told us they would leave us time at the end of their presentation, for us to say a few words. We had joked at the front desk about how we were forming a band and they told us when we had a minute to speak that we should sing something.
After they gave us their welcoming presentation, they asked us to say whatever we wanted. Tori thanked them for sharing their culture with us, and once again they asked if we wanted to sing. They had a guitar, so Les was roped in to playing a song. We told him we'd sing with him. We were trying to think of a song that represented our culture. I mean, it couldn't compare to what they had just presented... but we could try to find something... it also had to be something we knew. And that Les knew how to play... we chose COLLIDE by Howie Day.
The two young guides watched politely as we sang "even the best fall down sometimes. Even the wrong words seem to rhyme" 🎶. I'm not sure if they thought we were crazy- but we were asked to share our culture and I guess that's what we came up with? 🤷
We also met JoAnne at church and she was so kind to show us around the area. After we finished at the 'Footprints of Kupe' she met us and brought us gifts of pop sockets and hand made earrings that she sells. She and her daughter then spent the entire afternoon driving us around local spots to show us the best things to see. We loved spending the day with her and her daughter. ❤️
We've noticed a few New Zealand phrases that people use- I was practicing my accent the entire trip, I don't know if I improved it any... but here are a few New Zealand words:
JoAnne took us to the harbor where Kupe first landed (Hokianga Harbor), then she took us on a short hike to the local's favorite spot for sunset.
Lastly we went to the Kauri Forest (pronounced kody) which has one of the largest trees in the world.
JoAnn met us with gifts and took us to the harbor, then an overlook, then the famous large tree- Tane Mahuta. Also known as 'King of the Forest'.
As we were sitting and chatting, a guide came and told us the science and myth of the tree. How when it scars it develops this gum. How it turns as it grows, developing a diamond-like pattern. They compared the pattern to scales and the gum to whale blubber. They actually use whale bone to help heal the tree. Visitors from all over the world bring foreign agents that can be really harmful to the tree and the diseases they bring can't be removed from the tree- only prevented from spreading. We learned a lot about it and then our guided ended with a song.
I love how song is such a big part of their culture, and the most of the locals don't seem to hesitate to sing at all.
please ignore my crazy hair in this next video 😅
The drive from the forest to the next Airbnb was a 6 hour drive. It was dark most of the way, but I enjoyed it. When I got sleepy, I just switched from audiobook to MUSIC and then I sung along with my hand out the window :)
Our Airbnb was a recreation of a World War II ship. It was quirky. I really liked it!
Day 4
We took some Titanic-style photos at the Airbnb before heading off for the day.
We did the Waitomo glow worm caves. There are glow worm caves two places in the world, New Zealand and Australia. We met a couple from Australia and asked them about their glow worm caves. The woman we met said they're near her house but she's never been to them.
So the worms (which aren't really worms- they're gnat larvae) but they attach to the ceiling and leave these strings or webs hanging from the ceiling to attract prey. There are insects that glow in other parts of the world- but they're beetles so *that's* why Australia and New Zealand are unique.
Anyway- we walked through the caves, our tour guide told us about the worms and then sang us a song- then we got on the boat to see the worms. For most of the tour, we weren't allowed to take pictures or videos (though I don't always follow that rule 😉) but a member of our group bought some of the green screen pictures they took prior to the tour.
The caves were cool- it was a short tour (45mins) I know they have a 4 hour tubing tour too- but I was happy with the short one.
After the caves the rest of the gang wanted to go and get sushi, so we parted ways 😂
I had a wonderful morning as we drove to Rotorua I stopped and found a spot to write in my journal, did a little bit of wandering... it was lovely. I found a bakery with a super delicious butter-chicken-filled meat pie. Aaand a Whitakers chocolate doughnut. loved it.
When I got to Rotorua I met up with the rest of the gang who had found a zip-lining / go karting place called Skyline. It was neat.
Rotorua is a geothermal area of New Zealand, we wanted to go see some pools- but they were closed by the time we got there. We had a luau-type Maori cultural experience scheduled for that night though. THAT was AMAZING. I would definitely recommend it. We actually ran into some friends from Provo, small world, right?
The introduction was the Haka in the rain. It was so cool to watch. Then they had us go to a few different outdoor stations where some of us learned a very simple poi dance, some stick games, and the Haka. There was also a Maori kid who told us about some of the tattoos and carvings that they have on their buildings. The placing of face tattoos is significant. Tattoos are supposed to represent your skills or your deeds. Tattoos are traditionally below the eyes, if you have forehead tattoos it might mean that you have extra spiritual gifts or that you're really wise. They told us that women get tattoos just on their chin to not hide their beauty and also because they go through enough pain already with childbirth.
Traditionally women had the role of raising the children and the men did everything else. Cooking, cleaning, hunting, building, etc.
Houses are patterned after the human form. The head is at the apex of the roof, and the arms are attached. The building we were looking at had 3 carved fingers at the end. Our guide pointed out that you'll see 3 or 4 fingers but you'll never see 5 because they believe you shouldn't try to recreate / mimic accurately something that God has designed.
After the activities we went into a wharenui, a long house (the main beam represents the spine and the connecting beams represent the ribcage). Inside they performed a few songs. When they did they Haka again, I got chills. I've seen it before, but something about this time made me realize how important it is to their culture and the gratitude that they were willing to share it with us... and that it's not just about intimidating enemies (though that was it's original purpose) but now it's more about preserving culture and who they are. It was just really touching to me.
After the performances they took us into the banquet hall. The banquet hall had a very European feel. We were told that was intentional- the banquet was meant to represent a friendship between the Maori and the Europeans. They showed that in the food we tried as well. It was a really special night.
Day 5
We woke up on Day 5 in a hobbit hole, which was fitting, because Day 5 was the day we were heading to Hobbiton.
I woke up to the sound of sheep on the roof. I was in and out of sleep most of the night. When I finally decided to get up, I saw Tori had already gone and was probably on a nice morning walk. I got dressed and set out to also go on a walk.
I found Tori and we wandered around for a bit. After the boys woke up, we packed up and headed to 'The Fat Kiwi's to have brunch. It was a pretty good cafe.
After breakfast, we drove back to the east side of the island to go to a beach in Tauranga.
I woke up to the sound of sheep on the roof. I was in and out of sleep most of the night. When I finally decided to get up, I saw Tori had already gone and was probably on a nice morning walk. I got dressed and set out to also go on a walk.
I found Tori and we wandered around for a bit. After the boys woke up, we packed up and headed to 'The Fat Kiwi's to have brunch. It was a pretty good cafe.
After breakfast, we drove back to the east side of the island to go to a beach in Tauranga.
After lunch we drove to our next Airbnb, the other car had a bunch of their clothes with milk on them so they wanted to start a load of laundry. Then we headed to the Maunugui beach and spent about an hour and a half there. The rest of the gang stopped to get ice cream, but I hurried home to shower so I could head to our Hobbiton tour as early as possible. 😅
If you're a major LoTR fan and you plan on visiting Hobbiton at some point... feel free to skip the rest of Day 5. It might be more fun if it's a surprise.
So, I mentioned earlier that I'm a big fan of Lord of the Rings. When I was in high school, it seems like every weekend I'd sit down with two of my siblings and we'd decide which Lord of the Rings movie we were going to watch together. We watched it a lot. Although the story is fantastic, I have a lot of sweet memories of family that are associated with Lord of the Rings. It has adventure, friendship, and fun. But more than that the messages resonate with you. When I was in college I wrote a paper about C.S. Lewis and the Chronicles of Narnia and all of the symbolism he put in his books. I think Tolkien is similar. You can tell what his values are by the way he's built his world. He values nature and taking care of our environment. He was struggling with PTSD from WWI and you can see that as he explores the emotions with both Frodo and Gollum.
Often when characters face trials- Tolkien shows that they need each other to help them get out of trouble.
There are a few differences between the books and the movies (aren't there always? 😅) but Peter Jackson did a good job of keeping a lot of the same happenings and even word-for-word quotes.
The books seem to emphasize forgiveness and peace a little more than the movies. King Theoden gives Wormtongue a second chance. Aragorn suggests everyone be blindfolded to go to Lothlorien so Gimli doesn't feel targeted. Legolas and Gimli don't banter as much before becoming fast friends. Gandalf offers Saruman a second chance.
ANYWAY.
As I was driving up to Hobbiton I was listening to the last part of the FELLOWSHIP of the RING. The part where Sam tells Frodo that he's coming with him. As I was driving through the never ending green rolling hills and listening to Sam tell Frodo that he won't abandon him- I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. I choked up. It was so beautiful, both physically and emotionally.
Cheesy. I know.
One piece of advice I would give you, the gift shop at Hobbiton is pretty ... lame. The store we found in Auckland was 50x better. In fact, souvenirs you can find on Amazon are better. That being said, I have no complaints about the rest of the experience.
We were taken on a tour via bus. They had a short introduction playing with members of the cast of both LoTR and the Hobbit talking about coming back to the Shire. After the LoTR movies, they removed the Shire. They rebuilt it for THE HOBBIT and also for tourists to come in and enjoy. The movie set is on the Alexander farm which still has cows and sheep, which makes it feel more authentic. Mr. Alexander came down and joined our dinner, though we didn't talk to him. Apparently Peter Jackson is on the board of directors and people will see him sometimes. Our guide, Izzy, told us that a few weeks ago Ed Sheeran was staying in the mill house (only for people with connections) and decided to pop over to the banquet tour and perform "I See Fire". Pretty cool.
So you're driving through hills of cows and sheep and you come around the corner to a small little village. They have gardeners and carpenters that tirelessly maintain Hobbiton. Some houses are Hobbit-sized and others are large so us regular-sized people feel like Hobbits. In fact, our guide Izzy kept referring to us as hobbits; "come on, hobbits!" she'd say to us. She was a lot of fun. Both of our guides were in the movies. Katie was a Hobbit who got to run away with Bilbo's dining chair at the end of the last Hobbit movie. She told us about how they asked for people under a certain height and then just took pictures and chose from those. Izzy was an orc. I didn't hear a lot about her experience being an orc though.
We took so. many. pictures. I couldn't stop smiling the whole time. They gave us a few facts about filming, I learned that the tree on top of Bag End (Bilbo's house) is fake. The one in Lord of the Rings was a real tree- but they recreated it with plastic leaves. It's crazy because it looks SO REAL. They wired every single leaf to the tree.
They paid attention to little details that you probably don't even notice in the movies... like how they wanted plum trees but plum trees were too tall so they fastened plums and plum leaves to small apple trees.
At the top, right next to Bag End (Bilbo's house) a guy on our tour proposed to his girlfriend. 💕
After spending a while wandering through Hobbiton, we were taken down the road and across the stone bridge to the Green Dragon. They have it set up with candles and wooden chairs, and even a fireplace with two armchairs.
Of course there were 5 different types of potatoes at dinner, so I was in heaven! Rolls, lamb, chicken, beef stew, pickles, cheese etc. We sat by the fire and chatted after dinner. We also say in a little alcove and talked about fun trips we've been on and our experiences with those. For dessert try had apple crisp, chocolate cakes, pavlova with mint sprigs and tart berry sauce. I loved their sauces and spreads. I love that these kind of meals you can mix and match dishes and sauces and everything still tastes delicious.
After the banquet they had turned on all of the Shire lights and we got one last look before getting on the bus. You could also see so many stars tonight. The sky was so clear. It was magical. ✨
It was a fantastic experience and I loved every second.
If you're a major LoTR fan and you plan on visiting Hobbiton at some point... feel free to skip the rest of Day 5. It might be more fun if it's a surprise.
So, I mentioned earlier that I'm a big fan of Lord of the Rings. When I was in high school, it seems like every weekend I'd sit down with two of my siblings and we'd decide which Lord of the Rings movie we were going to watch together. We watched it a lot. Although the story is fantastic, I have a lot of sweet memories of family that are associated with Lord of the Rings. It has adventure, friendship, and fun. But more than that the messages resonate with you. When I was in college I wrote a paper about C.S. Lewis and the Chronicles of Narnia and all of the symbolism he put in his books. I think Tolkien is similar. You can tell what his values are by the way he's built his world. He values nature and taking care of our environment. He was struggling with PTSD from WWI and you can see that as he explores the emotions with both Frodo and Gollum.
Often when characters face trials- Tolkien shows that they need each other to help them get out of trouble.
There are a few differences between the books and the movies (aren't there always? 😅) but Peter Jackson did a good job of keeping a lot of the same happenings and even word-for-word quotes.
The books seem to emphasize forgiveness and peace a little more than the movies. King Theoden gives Wormtongue a second chance. Aragorn suggests everyone be blindfolded to go to Lothlorien so Gimli doesn't feel targeted. Legolas and Gimli don't banter as much before becoming fast friends. Gandalf offers Saruman a second chance.
ANYWAY.
As I was driving up to Hobbiton I was listening to the last part of the FELLOWSHIP of the RING. The part where Sam tells Frodo that he's coming with him. As I was driving through the never ending green rolling hills and listening to Sam tell Frodo that he won't abandon him- I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. I choked up. It was so beautiful, both physically and emotionally.
Cheesy. I know.
One piece of advice I would give you, the gift shop at Hobbiton is pretty ... lame. The store we found in Auckland was 50x better. In fact, souvenirs you can find on Amazon are better. That being said, I have no complaints about the rest of the experience.
We were taken on a tour via bus. They had a short introduction playing with members of the cast of both LoTR and the Hobbit talking about coming back to the Shire. After the LoTR movies, they removed the Shire. They rebuilt it for THE HOBBIT and also for tourists to come in and enjoy. The movie set is on the Alexander farm which still has cows and sheep, which makes it feel more authentic. Mr. Alexander came down and joined our dinner, though we didn't talk to him. Apparently Peter Jackson is on the board of directors and people will see him sometimes. Our guide, Izzy, told us that a few weeks ago Ed Sheeran was staying in the mill house (only for people with connections) and decided to pop over to the banquet tour and perform "I See Fire". Pretty cool.
So you're driving through hills of cows and sheep and you come around the corner to a small little village. They have gardeners and carpenters that tirelessly maintain Hobbiton. Some houses are Hobbit-sized and others are large so us regular-sized people feel like Hobbits. In fact, our guide Izzy kept referring to us as hobbits; "come on, hobbits!" she'd say to us. She was a lot of fun. Both of our guides were in the movies. Katie was a Hobbit who got to run away with Bilbo's dining chair at the end of the last Hobbit movie. She told us about how they asked for people under a certain height and then just took pictures and chose from those. Izzy was an orc. I didn't hear a lot about her experience being an orc though.
We took so. many. pictures. I couldn't stop smiling the whole time. They gave us a few facts about filming, I learned that the tree on top of Bag End (Bilbo's house) is fake. The one in Lord of the Rings was a real tree- but they recreated it with plastic leaves. It's crazy because it looks SO REAL. They wired every single leaf to the tree.
They paid attention to little details that you probably don't even notice in the movies... like how they wanted plum trees but plum trees were too tall so they fastened plums and plum leaves to small apple trees.
At the top, right next to Bag End (Bilbo's house) a guy on our tour proposed to his girlfriend. 💕
After spending a while wandering through Hobbiton, we were taken down the road and across the stone bridge to the Green Dragon. They have it set up with candles and wooden chairs, and even a fireplace with two armchairs.
Of course there were 5 different types of potatoes at dinner, so I was in heaven! Rolls, lamb, chicken, beef stew, pickles, cheese etc. We sat by the fire and chatted after dinner. We also say in a little alcove and talked about fun trips we've been on and our experiences with those. For dessert try had apple crisp, chocolate cakes, pavlova with mint sprigs and tart berry sauce. I loved their sauces and spreads. I love that these kind of meals you can mix and match dishes and sauces and everything still tastes delicious.
After the banquet they had turned on all of the Shire lights and we got one last look before getting on the bus. You could also see so many stars tonight. The sky was so clear. It was magical. ✨
It was a fantastic experience and I loved every second.
Day 6
The Airbnb we stayed in after Hobbiton had an ensuite back house with its own kitchen and bathroom, that's where I stayed ;)
We woke up and headed to do some shopping back near the beach. City is Tauranga, but the beach is Maunganui Beach. I didn't stay at the beach for long, I wanted to head to our next Airbnb which was at ANOTHER beach.
So the last day I spent exploring the countryside a little more. I made myself pasta for dinner and got some REAL good apple pie and ice cream for the kids when they got home.
I spent a lot of time on the beach just pondering. It was a good day, and a good chill ending of a great trip.
We woke up and headed to do some shopping back near the beach. City is Tauranga, but the beach is Maunganui Beach. I didn't stay at the beach for long, I wanted to head to our next Airbnb which was at ANOTHER beach.
So the last day I spent exploring the countryside a little more. I made myself pasta for dinner and got some REAL good apple pie and ice cream for the kids when they got home.
I spent a lot of time on the beach just pondering. It was a good day, and a good chill ending of a great trip.
Thanks for listening to my stories, I hope you get to go to New Zealand or get to go BACK to New Zealand someday.
Trip cost breakdown
Some people are interested in how I afford to travel on a teacher's salary... as I travel more- I start to splurge on things like- my own rental car. And eating at a fancy restaurant with local cuisine. I could've kept this trip under $2,000 if I had been a little more strict with myself. But #noregrets. This is the reason I work.
Total trip cost = $2,278
flight = $877.69
rental car= $199.97 (I paid for my own car- this was for 6 days)
gas = $203 (like 2hrs+ of driving every day... not bad eh?)
Airbnbs= $292
Hobbiton, Waitomo caves, Zip Lining & Go Karting, Footprints of Kupe, & Luau = $430
Food & Souvenirs= $271 ($81 of that was on the fancy restaurant in Auckland)
flight = $877.69
rental car= $199.97 (I paid for my own car- this was for 6 days)
gas = $203 (like 2hrs+ of driving every day... not bad eh?)
Airbnbs= $292
Hobbiton, Waitomo caves, Zip Lining & Go Karting, Footprints of Kupe, & Luau = $430
Food & Souvenirs= $271 ($81 of that was on the fancy restaurant in Auckland)