New Zealand, and finally... home

Today I woke up, grabbed some granola and an orange, and watched SportsCenter on television.

I took my dog for a walk, and looked left then right while crossing the street.

Yes, I'm back in Ann Arbor, Mich., in the United States of America. I can watch my favorite sports all the time and take Copper for as many walks as he can handle.

So all is bliss, right?

Well... no. It'll take some time to readjust. I really do miss Australia and all the friends and good times I had there. It was an amazing experience.

New Zealand wasn't bad either. So let me tell you about my Kiwi experience.

I was in New Zealand for four days. The first three days I spent in Taupo, a small town in the middle of the country's north island. It is an adventurer's utopia. There are opportunities to bungy jump, sky dive, mountain bike, hike, white-water raft, you name it. If you want a thrilling adventure in the great outdoors, Taupo's the place to go.

Which is why I went there.

I arrived in the afternoon the first day, preventing me from doing any big things that day, so I took a longer-than-expected walk to Huka Falls - a huge rapids in the local river. While the walk along the river was extremely long and mundane, the rapids were pretty cool. It's safe to say, if anyone fell in, they'd be gone forever. They were that ferocious.

On the way back from the rapids, I stopped at a hot springs connected to the river. It was amazing. I slipped into the water, and immediately I felt as though I was immersed in a hot tub. Then I walked toward the river, and the water temperature gradually decreased until I was in the rather frigid river.

Two new experiences in one afternoon. Not a bad day.

On my first full day I was planning on catching the bus to the Tongariro Crossing, arguably New Zealand's best one-day hike. But due to weather conditions, there was no bus on that day, so I was stuck in Taupo. So I slept in, finally waking at 12 p.m. in the Tiki Lodge when the maids entered the room to prepare the other beds for newly arriving visitors.

I decided to make something of the afternoon and rented a bike. I wanted to bike to the base of the nearest mountain (which looked to be about 3,000 feet) but I was told it would take way too long to reach the base trail, climb the mountain and return the bike in time. So I settled for some mountain biking in the Huka Falls area.

The trail was great. There were several twists and turns on a narrow path and I had to concentrate at all times on the path in front of me. However, the bike kept shifting gears automatically on me - and generally was not a great bike - so I didn't find the riding that pleasant. Let's just say the experience could have been better. After returning the bike and a quick dinner, I prepared for bed. I had a long day ahead of me.

My final day in Auckland was, hands down, the highlight of my New Zealand experience. I did the Tongariro Crossing, easily my biggest hike while I was abroad. The crossing is basically a ridge hike. There are a few steep ascents in the first stages of the hike, and then the final couple hours are descents. In between, you're on top of the world. It's about an eight- or nine-kilometer hike (I think).

I was ill-prepared for the conditions, that's for sure. With my suitcases completely stuffed full of belongings, I couldn't afford to buy any rain gear (or stuff for the cold, for that matter) so I did the hike in shorts, my UNC sweatshirt and a makeshift raincoat that I made out of a trash bag.

Two hours into the hike I was freezing. But that didn't take away from my enjoyment. Although it rained the entire time and the visibility was White Mountains-esque, I met up with a young guy from Denmark, and we traversed the terrain together. Our group wasn't supposed to get picked up from the end of the track until 3:30 p.m., and the weather had us moving fast, so when we arrived at a hut that marked the two-hours-to-go spot at 11:00 a.m., we decided to chill for a couple hours and try to warm up.

Ironically, I read Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods" while I was shivering in the hut.

Finally, after two-plus hours of descending (the part of a hike that ALWAYS seems to take the longest) we completed the famed Tongariro Crossing. I might have been cold and wet, but the experience was definitely worth it.

I returned to Tiki Lodge to shower and dry all of my soaked cloths. Drying my sneakers was not so easy. I held them under the hand dryer in the bathroom for about 15 minutes. Finally, they were at least bearable to wear.

I spent my last night in Taupo wandering the town, taking pictures, catching the new Bond movie at the local theater, and hitting up a couple bars before my 1:50 a.m. bus to Auckland.

In one of those "this world is small after all" stories, I met a guy at a bar who knew my cousin, Pete Wolf, from their days in Oak Park, Chicago. Absolutely amazing. That had me buzzing (more than the beer) all night.

After a not-so-pleasant bus ride, which seemed to take forever, I arrived in Auckland for my final day abroad. I was tired and, frankly, ready to be home. Or at least in bed. I tried to make Borders my bed, falling asleep at the book store three times, but eventually I was kicked out (they actually escorted me to the door - how crazy is that?).

It's probably safe to say that my days of shopping at Borders are over. If a man needs to sleep, let him sleep.

So without a legitimate place to crash, I conjured up the energy to do things. First I visited the Sky Tower, taking several pictures from its two indoor observation decks. I was disappointed there wasn't an outdoor deck. I guess suicide is just too big of a risk these days (what better way to go out than from the top of a tower?).

Then I was greeted to some great hospitality at the coolest, neatest, sweetest driving range I've ever visited. It had one of those golf simulators where you can play a round without moving more than a couple steps. The guy there allowed me to play a few holes at Pebble Beach for free. I think I was 10 over after four holes. Tough course.

Finally, I walked down to the harbour, got a great ice cream cone (Strawberry Ripple) and headed to catch the bus to the airport. It was only 1:40, and my flight wasn't until 7:30, but I was ready to go. Plus, with all the crap I had to go through for a flight to America, I didn't have all the time in the world at the airport.

After 16 hours of flying and many other hours waiting in lines in airports, I was home. In a genuine act of kindness, all my family members made the cumbersome 40-minute drive to Detroit Metro Airport to greet me (even Copp - who was tired from a long walk earlier in the day). Thanks, guys. And soon I was home at last, watching Stuart Scott on my TV and eating Tostitos.

Oh, how things can change so quickly.