Glow-worm caves and Mt. Eden on north island NZ

After paying $25 NZ for 1GB, 200 minutes talk and 200 texts tax-free SIM card within the terminal, I successfully delivered a checked in luggage for a friend moved to Auckland and met my three travelmates at the airport and headed directly to the Abbey grow warm caves 3 hrs north of Auckland. Reddy and pipi came from Taiwan and currently work-stay on a kiwi farm, and Kay work-stayed in Australia and now lives in Hong Kong. We met via a Chinese backpacker website, and we are driving Reddy's used car bought in NZ, which is the most efficient and economic option to travel in NZ. I feel pretty spoiled to travel in a passenger car overseas, instead of my default public transportation which might have taken one day more to get in and out, yet I have to pay for what I am getting.

There are other more famous caves, but we picked these wet limestone caves for less foot traffic and free access. The deepest section was about waist high. New Zealand caves, riverbanks and other shady crevices provide a home for New Zealand’s most famous fly – the glow worm. When transforming from larva to fly, it casts luminous eerie green glow. I attached a photo found online since our camera cannot take a similar photo. There are beautiful rock formations in the caves carved by water over years. 

On the way back, we stopped by Mt Eden, one of the most prominent volcanic cones remaining in the Auckland region, to see the sun set as well as 360 degree nightlight views of downtown Auckland. 

We stopped by a local supermarket to pick up cooking materials for dinner (quite more expensive than USA, so a great weight lost opportunity for me), and stayed in a single family house owned by Reddy's ex-landlord near AKL airport (private room per person, another major update for my international travel, yet flight noise from time to time via the night (reminding me of my 1-night hostel stay next to Peking airport), but I got enough sleep. What a 1st day in NZ!









Comments

  1. 20% DIVIDENDMarch 5, 2018 at 6:00 PM

    Glow worms are awesome. Did not know food was expensive in New Zeland, we take this for granted in the US.

    ReplyDelete
  2. 20% DIVIDENDMarch 5, 2018 at 6:01 PM

    The store looks like our COstco

    ReplyDelete

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