First Day on the Island

After some sleep and probably the best shower I have ever had, I was eager to have an explore on my first day. I was given a quick tour of the "hospital" and met the Nurse who would be supervising me whilst I'm here. The "hospital" has 3 beds for in-patient use which aren't usually used as people requiring treatment are usually flown back to the mainland.

I then went down to one of the two local shops on the Island, with the locum doctor. I just bought a few bits and bobs, which were quite pricey. The prices were as I expected, based on what I've heard from people and using my common sense, knowing that it's a remote area.

When I arrived back at the house I was able to connect to the wireless internet, which allowed me to Skype my mum and my girlfriend (which was lovely). Following that, I went out to Henga Scenic Reserve, which is situated a bit further up the coast from where I'm staying in Waitangi. The walk took about 3 hours (longer than expected), but gave me the chance to take some photos of the beautiful and dramatic scenary. These are just 5 out of the 150 photos I took, which I quite like, although I have now got a top 20.

This first picture is just a photo that came out quite well. I took it when we were walking, through the "bush", down towards the sea.

This picture was taken between the "bush" and the seaside.

This picture was of the track set out by the reserve, which we ignored for the most part. :P I had someone with me who knew the best spots for photographs, which were often not on this track. Having an unofficial guide was extremely handy, as I wouldn't have had a clue otherwise.

This picture is looking north, encompassing the dramatic sky and amazing coastline.

I like this photo because it captured both the foreground and background really well together. I took this photo while looking south, back down the coast.

This loop walk had beautiful scenary, which was on par with scenary in Cornwall. I was already impressed on my first day. I'm now even more excited to explore the rest of the island over the next 4 weeks, in between my studies of course. :P