Calling seabirds from the sky

The tyres on our four-wheel-drive buggy dig into the wet ground as we climb through the tangled forests of Tāwharanui. Caked in mud, we emerge onto a clifftop and onshore winds buffet our vehicle from the swollen seas below. I grin as we lurch from side to side, excitement building in my belly. Little do …

Putting the ‘new’ in New Zealand

I awoke on my first morning in Auckland at 05:55am, alert as I’ve ever been in my life. The main perk of this jetlag-induced zest was that I was up at sunrise on the balcony of my new digs (flatshare/flatting in New Zealand speak), joyfully watching a string of new bird species introduce themselves. The …