Friday, February 22^nd
The Bay of Islands on the northern part of New Zealand’s North Island and is one of the most beautiful places to visit in the world. The Bay of Islands is comprised of more than 144 islands and is a water sports person’s paradise. You can take your pick from jet boating, deep sea fishing, snorkeling, swimming with dolphins, scuba diving, island cruise, water skiing, and more.

We spent Friday in the town of Paihia in the Bay of Islands, which is the site of the first permanent contact between Maoris and Europeans and also the site of the Treaty of Waitangi. The Treaty of Waitangi was signed on February 6^th 1840 and is New Zealand’s founding document, an agreement between the British government and the Maori.

Unfortunately history was not on our side today and Shawn and I found ourselves walking out of our three hour bus ride in the midst of gale-force winds and torrential downpours. This forecast necessitated every imaginable activity being canceled and we were forced into ducking sideways rain, eating, and souvenir shopping before catching our bus back to Auckland. Despite a few landslides and a turned over police car, the three hour drive back was pretty uneventful.