the hell hole of the pacific

Josh and I started our first full day in the Bay of Islands with a ferrytrip to the hell hole of the Pacific, New Zealand's first capital, Russell. Russell used to be the place where sailors and hookers would spend most of their time because it was the main porting/docking place in New Zealand... now, it's this cute little historical town just across the bay from Paihia.

Russell is the home of the 1st church in New Zealand AND the first hotel… of course, we had to tour both. The church is pretty, well, church-y. A lot of gravestones in front dated back to the 1800s. There was even a Dunlop family buried there… cool, but kinda freaky…

The Duke Hotel is open for all passerbys for a quick drink of their verandah. It was around 10:30 when we stopped in, so a little too early for a wine or beer, so we asked for Mimosas. We were given a blank stare. Never heard of them. What?? I then asked for a Shirley Temple. Nope. Never heard of them. Roy Rogers. Nope. We tried our luck and just passed on through.

The police station is the cutest little thing – apparently the chief lives here…

We did a short little hike up to Flagstaff Hill.

From there we took in the view and got inspired to learn more about the Maori/New Zealand beginnings. Josh gives you a little history lesson in this flip… we’re not just entertaining – we’re educational. You’re welcome.