New Zealand is the land of doing super fun and adventurous things! We have been in New Zealand for almost 2 weeks! We are on a road trip through the north island of New Zealand. I have been mashed between two annoying siblings.🙄 Here are some fun things I've been doing and learning about!
Surfing 🏄🏼♀️
We went to a town called Tauranga that is on the Pacific Ocean. On Thanksgiving I took a surf lesson with my awesome coach Camila. She helped me find the center of the board. Then she told me to make sure my feet are just hanging over the edge of the board when paddling. And the most important part is that you are centered on the board so that you go straight and don't swerve off course.
I think surfing is amazing and when we get home I want to learn how to really surf. In this photo I am almost standing. Even though I did stand, daddy did not get photo of it. I'm not mad though because I only stood for a millisecond.
Glow worms 🐛
I saw glow worms on the ceiling of a biiiiiiggggg dark cave! Glow worms, which should be called glow maggots because they are the larva of a fly. Glow worms have these little mucus strings that help them catch food. When something touches the strings, the worms feel it and slurp it up like spaghetti. Then they mush up the insides into a bug smoothie and drink it.🤮🤢 BARF!!!!!!!!!!
How do glow worms glow you ask? Well this should answer your question: bioluminescence, which is a chemical reaction that gives off light. The life span of a glow worm of is maximum a year. They are larva for 9 months and then they turn into a fly and only live for 3 days because the fly has no stomach or mouth. I think that glow worms are cool and gross. Gross because if you see them in the light they look like dirty boogers. They are cool because they glow and l like stuff that glows.
Kiwis 🥝
Hahaha not the fruit! Did l trick you? We saw kiwis (the BIRDS) in Te Puia, which is a big museum of Māori culture. We could't take a photo of the kiwi so l drew this instead!!
There is a Māori legend of a god who needed a bird to volunteer to protect the forest floor. The kiwi was the only bird that said okay. So the kiwis lost their eyesight in the daytime and their wings, and in return the kiwis got night vision and super strong legs.
The size of a kiwi egg is like a human giving birth to a 5-year old and the egg is the same size as ostrich egg. 🤯!🤯!🤯!🤯!🤯!!!
Māori People
The Māori people came to New Zealand in canoes from Polynesia in 1500s. The Māori people do their amazing dance called Haka. The Haka is a really cool because they make a lot of noise and stick out their tongues to try and intimidate their enemies and hopefully scare them off. As you know every tribe has a chief and when we were at the Haka Daddy got to be the chief!!
The Māori had tons of cool weapons that I want Paul to teach me how to make so I can defend myself against my brother Baker.
This is the simplest in my opinion. And I'm not kidding, Paul you have to teach me how to make that.🥺🙏🏼
Jet Boat 🚤
We went on a super fast Jet Boat on the Waikato river. We got to do tons of 360s on the boat. We also got to go close to Huka Falls and I wanted to go up the water fall but it was too dangerous.😭 Our guide was named Tee and she was super cool and she went super fast!! I heard Auntie Leah likes jet boats too!! Hi Auntie Leah!! I miss you!
Happy late Thanksgiving everyone!!!!!!!!!!!
Love, Ginny!!!!!!!!!!!!!💜👧!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Glow worms sound gross! Did you see a bug get turned into a smoothie? Haha!
We have jet boats in Idaho, too!
I had the biggest smile EVER after my jet boat ride in NZ - I’m glad you liked!
Ginny, what an adventure with lots of learning and amazing things. Looks a little chilly there this time of year. I have always wanted to go to New Zealand and fly fish. They have some of the biggest and most beautiful trout/fish in the world. Stay warm, love the lesson on the fly(that was cool no mouth or gut) and the not fruit Kiwi. Have fun. Alex