High Tech Hobo: East As!

The Coastline at Tatapouri

When it comes to prioritising places to see in New Zealand, the Eastland Region on the North Island is low down on most traveller's lists. To be fair, there are so many great things to see and do and most visitors just don't have that much time to fully explore the country. It's understandable that the focus is on places like Queenstown, Milford Sound, Tongariro National Park or the Southern Alps. I'll admit that, before I arrived, the Eastlands weren't even remotely on my radar.

Commemorating Captain Cook

Oops. That's Not Quite Captain Cook.

It's a pity that the East Cape isn't better known. There is a lot going on in terms of history and culture, even if you have to keep your eye out for it. Quiet and isolated, this is where the first Māori tribes settled. This is also where Captain Cook came ashore for the first time at Poverty Bay. The time I spent in this sleepy region were some of the most enjoyable, and the most relaxing, of my six weeks in New Zealand.

The East As' Ride was Sweet As

My trip out to the East Cape was included as part of my Kiwi Experience pass, but it wasn't part of the regular Kiwi Experience circuit. To head east, those along for the ride found ourselves swapping the regular fifty-odd seater, big, green Kiwi buses for a smaller twenty-seater minibus. Instead of travelling amongst a larger crowd, we were travelling in a more intimate group of twelve. And rather than staying in hostels, we spent our nights in cozy little home- and farm-stays.

(Most of) Pedro's East As Whānau (December 14th - 17th, 2009)

The people I travelled with were just as important to my experience as any of the sights I encountered, or any of the activities in which I engaged. The group became pretty tight-knit over our four days and three nights together -- the girls were the instigators of the Ladies Night shenanigans upon our return to Rotorua; and Marc, Paul, Pete, Holly, Ems and I formed a group that would stick together through the rest of the North Island.

Where the Wineries Come to You

Gisborne is home to the world's most easterly wine-growing region, producing some tasty bottles of Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer. That first evening, we had a wine-tasting at our cosy little home-stay. When coupled with a good barbeque -- with plenty of fresh fish and seafood -- the sampling of six different varieties of Chardonney, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc proved to be a fitting reward after an afternoon spent surfing for the very first time, in a small bay just south of Tatapouri.

Of course, when I say "surfing", I really mean "learning to surf". And when I say "learning to surf", I really mean "learning to paddle". Because I didn't even remotely come close to standing on that surfboard during those two hours out in the ocean. I'm going to blame that less on my well-known lack of coordination, and more on the fact that my legs kept shaking because I was so freaking cold. Like the proprietors of the oceans up in the Northlands, the East Cape equivalents had forgotten to turn on the heat.

Total Cultural Insensitivity

The next morning, we rode out to the tiny village of Whangara. This was the setting for The Whale Rider, the acclaimed film that has done the most to export awareness of Māori culture and mythology since the All Black haka. Our little whānau (family) was lucky enough to be invited into the marae, the spiritual and social centre in Māori communities. The structure itself was simple yet incredibly intricate, with carvings showing the lineage of chieftains and prominent warriors within the iwi (tribe or clan). We were allowed to photograph the carvings, with the requirement that any photographs include at least one of our faces.

Bone Carving (photo courtesy of Pete)

That evening was spent in a farm-stay in the smaller-than-tiny collection of homesteads around Rangitukia, which is almost as far east as you could go on the New Zealand mainland. The weather had taken a turn for the bleak, but many of us happily passed the time trying our hands at some bone-carving. This involved sawing and sanding down a chunk of beef shinbone, turning it into a traditional Māori emblem. I was really happy with how my Fish Hook (which is supposed to bring good luck and safe travels over water) turned out. So much so that it's still a semi-permanent fixture around my neck.

Jumping Over East Island

The following morning, we did go as far east as we could go on the New Zealand mainland, climbing up to the East Cape lighthouse for a view of East Island and the vast expanse of ocean off to the... err... east.

From there, we were off to Te Kaha for our last night in the Eastlands. Facing west along the eastern shores of the Bay of Plenty, this was a fantastic spot to from which to watch a sunset. Especially since our home-stay had an outdoor hot tub right on the shoreline.

From about four pm onwards, we spent the entire night in that hot tub.