East As, baby!

Hey all!
So recently I just got back from the East As side tour with Kiwi Experience which introduced me to some awesome new friends and some breathtaking scenery....in 4 short days. Not enough time on that east coast!
First off, to experience a bit of the maori culture that permeates the east coast, we stopped at a tree very sacred to the maoris where travellers leave offerings of nature to the tree (ie: flowers wrapped around twigs, etc...) and this should provide safe travels and good weather. Well, apparently we left enough for safe travels but not enough for nice weather because it rained 2 of the 4 days...but we still made the best of it.
We stayed at 3 different hostels described as
1) a peaceful lodge, about 15 minutes from Gisborne, nestled in golden hills just across the dirt road from a stretch of sandy beach
2) a quiet farm on the most eastern point of New Zealand boasting horses, a ping-pong table, a campfire pit, undrinkable water, and the first lookout point to see the sunrise this side of the dateline
3) a soul-cleansing, ocean-front sanctuary in Te Kaha where the lady who runs the place smiles at you like you are family :)

The first stop I engaged as a relaxing one. The group mingled and met eachother (after our grueling 8 hours on the little bus! At least our driver, Pedro, was a bit of a character and made the hours pass much quicker). I got in a little yoga on those golden hills amongst all the sheep (OH the sheep!) and then we made our dinners and settled into the movie Whale Rider, which was filmed right down the road from where we were staying....beautiful.

The second day brought us to that middle-of-nowhere horsefarm that I described above and as I declined the horseride (horses and I just don't agree that I should enjoy a comfortable and stress-free horsebackride), I instead opted to carve a bone necklace. I chose the twist design which signifies infinity and lovers being together even over long distances....ahem, I bet you can't guess who I was thinking of ;) We then played some ping pong and had good times around a crackling fire.....even some make-shift smores were roasted! I was up at 530 am to hike a small hill and be one of the first in the world to view the sunrise the next morning, but unfortunately the clouds were steadfast in their decision not to part. At least the view was still pretty.

The third stop, and my favorite, gave us an oceanfront view, a beautiful yard in which 6 of us girls practiced some yoga, a long stretch of secluded beach, a bbq dinner (including sushi! haha!), and a huge 10-person hot tub only steps from the rocks along the ocean. There we sipped wine or beer and watched a beautiful sunset. This place was heaven.

It was unfortunate that the next kiwi bus to come through was four days away. If it came along everyday then I may have chosen to stay a few extra nights at each stop because they certainly deserved some more attention. If you are ever in New Zealand, I highly recommend the gorgeous scenery and laid-back attitude of the north island's east coast.