After only three days together Austin, Stephen, Sam, Anne, Katie,
Melissa and I sat in Albert Park on a gorgeous, sunny day and made a list of 50 things we wanted to do while we were in New Zealand. Sam recorded the list in his journal, and over the following months we often revisited the list to check our progress. Between the seven of us we accomplished most things on our list, with the exception of #6:Get a part as an extra in the Hobbit. During the last couple days before flying back to the states I tried to cross a few things off our list.
“Jump off tall things” was one of the list items that was meant to be done over and over again. The more times the better. The most recent tall thing I jumped off was the Auckland Harbour Bridge, doing the same bungy jump Austin did on his twenty first birthday. I was absolutely freaking out and had to shut my eyes before I jumped, but of course it was amazing. #50: Do it for the Story was another one of these things that was meant to be done over and over again. “Do it for the Story” was that little extra bit of encouragement needed to get us past the point of no return on any potential adventure. I definitely needed that extra push to jump off the bridge.
Always keen to do something that wasn’t on our list, I took Jess up on her invitation to go to Rainbow’s End, a theme park in South Auckland.She warned me that although it was New Zealand’s premiere theme park it would not live up to Disney. But a theme park’s a theme park and it’s always great to run around and just be a kid for the day. We ran around the park for hours and never had to wait in a line. We pretty much rode each ride at least twice in a row. The Fear Fall was the first and the last ride of the day, Jess and I rode it 5 times in all! We knew Austin would have loved running around with us and making the most of the day!
Lying in Albert Park that day, making our list, we couldn’t help but notice the fountain nearby that was just beckoning us to jump into it. We put off the urge to frolic in the fountain then and there and added it to our list, knowing that it would be something to do on some random day. But we never got around to it, not as a group anyway. To start my very last day in New Zealand I enlisted a friend as a photographer and headed off to Albert Park. So cold! So worth it! I was sad we didn’t all do it together but glad that I did it. Jumping in fountains is going to be a thing from now on. This is not a goodbye to New Zealand, for I will return and continue adventuring. And this is definitely not a goodbye to Austin. Austin was on my mind during those last few days in New Zealand, still is now, and will be for days to come.
Love Always,
JuliaLying in Albert Park that day, making our list, we couldn’t help but notice the fountain nearby that was just beckoning us to jump into it. We put off the urge to frolic in the fountain then and there and added it to our list, knowing that it would be something to do on some random day. But we never got around to it, not as a group anyway. To start my very last day in New Zealand I enlisted a friend as a photographer and headed off to Albert Park. So cold! So worth it! I was sad we didn’t all do it together but glad that I did it. Jumping in fountains is going to be a thing from now on. This is not a goodbye to New Zealand, for I will return and continue adventuring. And this is definitely not a goodbye to Austin. Austin was on my mind during those last few days in New Zealand, still is now, and will be for days to come.
Love Always,
Thanks for including us all in the NZ Bucket List. Austin talked about it all the time and how much fun he was having checking things off with great friends. I have started my own Bucket List and think I should include jumping in fountains on mine.
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