Meg Eats World

Join me as I eat my way through 8 countries in 2 months.

[megeatsworld]

Homeward bound!

That's all, folks! Sitting at the airport waiting to board my last flight, back to DC. Thanks for following along!

[megeatsworld]

Day 1 in LA: Hollywood, Griffith Observatory, hiking Mt. Hollywood and trying and failing to take a good selfie with the Hollywood sign. Finished off with some delicious tacos with old friends.

[megeatsworld]

Back in the USA, but the journeys not quite over yet. I've still got 4 days in LA to eat all of the In-N-Out that I can.

[megeatsworld]

My friend sent me a shot of our shark dive (I'm on the left)! Unfortunately the sharks did not want to take a picture with us.

[megeatsworld]

I'm not dead, I'm in Fiji! I spent the last couple days on Mantaray Island in the Yasawa island group. I've seen a lot of beautiful places on this trip, but Fiji beats them all. Clear skies, clear water (even out on a boat you can see all the way to the coral reefs below), and amazing friendly people. The snorkeling was the best I've seen in my life. I felt like I was in National Geographic or Discovery Channel because there were fish everywhere! And I got to try scuba diving for the first time! I was so nervous that I would panic and get decompression sickness but I had an instructor there the whole time adjusting my equipment, keeping me breathing, and pointing out the amazing flora and fauna around us. On my two dives, I saw reef sharks, sea turtles (touched one!), moray eels, puffer fish, clownfish, angelfish, a huge shrimp or possibly lobster, and so many tropical fish that I don't know the names of. Such an incredible experience. I've still got a few more days on the main island, but I think Fiji is already my favorite place on Earth.

[megeatsworld]

And some retroactive food photos! There are some fantastic spots in Australia and New Zealand, even if they don't have their own distinct cuisines like Asian countries. I now have strongly positive feelings about flat whites.

[megeatsworld]

Today I walked through Auckland Domain to the Auckland Museum, which had a really cool exhibit on volcanoes and lots of Maori artifacts. And look, I finally saw a (taxidermy) kiwi! Also a recreation of a moa, making me a little glad they are extinct because they are huge and scary even if they are giant wingless emus. Then I went to the top of the Sky Tower. I'm glad I waited until the last day to go, because I could actually see all the way across the harbor and the bay on this clear day. You can see Rangitoto in the second to last picture. Tomorrow, my last passport stamp: Fiji!

[megeatsworld]

Yesterday I climbed Rangitoto, the biggest and youngest volcano in the Auckland area. It erupted out of the sea about 600-700 years ago. The volcanic island is just a quick ferry ride away from downtown, and unlike the volcano I climbed in Bali, this one was only 45 minutes to the top. There were awesome panoramic views of the harbor and surrounding islands from the summit. The island also had some old lava caves that are not for anyone who is afraid of the dark. Lots of black volcanic rock all around the island!

[megeatsworld]

I fell a little behind in my blogging so these are from Friday night! I did a "Maori experience," which involves visiting a traditional Maori village (and being greeted by their warriors) where we learned about the culture and the guys learned how to do the haka. There was also a traditional song and dance show before dinner cooked in a hangi, or basically a hole filled with super hot rocks and covered with dirt to steam cook the food. It was very interactive and a cool way to experience this unique culture!

[megeatsworld]

Finally, Champagne Pool (so named because of the constant bubbling) and Devil's Bath (yup, that's its natural color). After the geothermal park, I headed to the Polynesian Spa on Lake Rotorua to try out some of these crazy hot springs for myself!

[megeatsworld]

Mineral hot springs for days! Devil's Ink Pots, Artist's Palette, and more!

[megeatsworld]

Lady Knox Geyser. Although it is a natural geyser, they set it off at 10:15 everyday using soap

[megeatsworld]

Today is visited Wai-O-Tapu geothermal wonderland. Lots of super weird things! First up, mud bubbles!

[megeatsworld]

They don't call it geothermal "activity" for nothing!

[megeatsworld]

The less stinky but very pretty freshwater Lake Rotorua and some of the forest around it, plus the Rotorua Museum. The mud bath on the right emits gases that are similar to laughing gas and used to be the first commercial bath house in New Zealand.

[megeatsworld]

Welcome to Rotorua, New Zealand! This whole area is full of geothermal activity from hot springs to geysers to mud bubbles. The whole town smells like rotten eggs from the sulfur, but looks pretty cool!

[megeatsworld]

National Gallery of Victoria and the Ian Potter Centre