The Suitcase Backpacker

A change of pace, forging new connections, and finding the emerald gardens

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Aotearoa New Zealand

4 min read

It was time, once again, to say goodbye to Auckland and head to Hamilton for the next couple of days. The second stay I booked before leaving the UK was situated in Hamilton East, and about a 2.5hr coach drive from Auckland Central. I had decided to break up the hostel stays with the occasional Airbnb booking that was within my budget, and had found a cheap, comfortable, private room for a few nights. The neighbourhood was so quiet you could hear a pin drop; definitely a nice change from the business of central Auckland. Hamilton is nestled along the scenic Waikato River, and it is the fourth most-populated city in Aotearoa NZ.

My Airbnb host, Lucy, was extremely kind and accommodating. After the second day I started to settle into a cosy morning routine, where I’d see Lucy and her young daughter, Celia, nestled in their mother-daughter study session each day. I really enjoyed the chats over breakfast, learning about Chinese culture, and what brought Lucy to New Zealand. We talked about travel and all the places we had been too, and I’ll never forget the beaming surprise and spreading awe across Celia’s face when I showed my photos of the Northern Lights. I feel so grateful for the travel experiences I’ve had, and meeting new people like this. This is what I love about it all. I’m hoping to fill up my travelling ‘guest book’ with messages from the hosts and people I meet along the way.

Something I had been looking forward to visiting were the breathtaking emerald gardens of Hamilton. Each garden is based on a particular theme, era, or civilization, e.g. the surrealist garden, Renaissance garden, the tropical garden, and so many more. They were an absolute feast for my forest eyes; such an endless maze of greenery. I love plants, and I really enjoyed exploring all the variety here; landscape gardening and horticulture at its absolute finest. I would highly recommend a visit, god knows how many photos I took! The Egyptian garden had to be my favourite. I felt like I’d stepped back in time to a place I had never been, but knew well. The vibrancy, the bold pillars, the ancient art, it was incredible, and if it hadn’t been so hot I would have stayed a while longer gazing at it all. Upon leaving, I discovered a café around the next bend and stopped for the most refreshing scoop of strawberry ice-cream. 

During the bus journey back from the gardens to the Airbnb, a situation evolved between the bus driver and a bunch of young kids fooling around at one of the bus stops. They started hitting the bus and kicking it, it was quite a scene! The behaviour of the bus driver definitely surprised me more. She literally started chasing them, and was trying to hit them back. it was absolutely insane…the immaturity.

Unfortunately I didn’t feel well enough to visit the famous Waitomo Glowworm caves. Despite how disappointed I felt I knew it was the right decision. My energy levels were still pretty low since arriving back in Auckland from Waiheke, and I didn’t want to push myself. Besides I knew I didn’t feel comfortable driving with the eye-strain and headaches that had developed shortly after arriving in Hamilton. It had been a rollercoaster couple of days, and I could only do so much. I figured I could see a glowworm cave on the South Island instead, which is where I’ll be headed later this year.

On the third day, I enjoyed walking around the Waikato University grounds, and admiring the beautiful lake and scenery surrounding the campus. I also visited the incredible Waikato Museum, learning about the colonial history of Hamilton, the influences of Western pop culture and music, and how the city has changed over time.

During a few dinnertime occasions I’d chat with the other Airbnb lodger, Rory, a Chinese student at the Waikato University. We talked about everything, from tattoos, to food, travel, our education, and he told me some useful things about life in Hamilton. It seemed that Auckland was probably my best bet in finding work. Despite the very appealing lower cost of living in Hamilton, there aren’t many job opportunities here.

My last morning was a memorable one. I awoke to the serene sound of two cats yowling and screeching at each other, they were fighting and were super loud. The neighbours must have thought so too, as the next thing I hear is this angry voice yelling at the cats to shut the hell up, and would you believe it they did! I lay there laughing to myself.

I also took some time figuring out what my plans were going to be within the next week or so. I had been contemplating renting a flat with my friend Alison for a few months in Central Auckland whilst working. I craved stability, to slow down the pace, and more importantly, to stop living out of a suitcase!