Hastings in the eyes of a new arrival

There is a place in New Zealand that I always look forward to coming back to visit at least once. It's where I first lived and worked in New Zealand. Due to many plans this year and next year, I cannot visit this place in the near future, so through this post I would like to invite you to visit my memories from 5 years ago, when I first set foot in New Zealand.

^{My first early sunshine in New Zealand}

It is still vividly in my mind how I woke up the first day in a very far away land. Everything was new and interesting through the eyes of a new arrival. It's summer time but I still feel chilly like autumn in Vietnam. With the roses blooming next to the road, the early morning sunlight, and a thin layer of fog, I was instantly drawn to this place, just like you would fall in love at first sight.

^{First time seeing Maori scuptures on the way to a library to print some documents}

Hastings is a small town in New Zealand and it's quite different from the bustling crowd in my hometown. Although small, I find this place is charming. Because I'm so used to the hustle and bustle of life and the passing between people without saying anything. When the locals here greeted me with a big smile and say "How are you", I stop for a moment and actually didn't know how to respond. I'm not used to this friendly greetings from strangers.

But gradually, I love the friendliness and peace of this place. Come to think of it, this is exactly what I was used to as a child. I grew up in a rural area in Vietnam. It was a small village, so everyone knew each other. When we met others on the street, we greeted each other with the same enthusiasm. Only when moving to a big city, did the habit of greeting passersby disappear.

^{Picking plums on public parks nearby}

Living in Hastings summer is a plus. All along the road from my house to the town center are plums. Plums are planted on the front porch of every household and in the park. I still remember every day I picked a lot of plums every time I walked home. Then there were wild flowers every where. I looked at them every day without getting bored.

There is a famous place among tourists in Hastings that everyone who comes here must visit once. It's Te Mata Peak which stands nearly 400 meters above sea level at the western boundary of the wine-producing Heretaunga Plains. It is popular for the panoramic views of Cape Kidnappers, Ruahine, Kaweka and Maungaharuru Ranges on the submit.

The first time I visited was with a group of friends on a working holiday. We took advantage of the weekend off to visit this place. It was a nice weather day so we wanted to go watch the sun go down.

There are several options to get to Te Mata peak, you can either drive straight up to the top or choose the hiking trails in the Te Mata Trust Park lead through forest and along limestone valleys. We opted for the later option and it was great. I was very impressed with a small red wood forest, it's like getting lost in the jungle in the movies. Even though it is a small one compared to the size of a big red wood forest in Rotorua, New Zealand.

^{A small redwood forest in Te mata Peak}

^{This photo was taken on my trip in Rotorua, a popular place among tourists in New Zealand. The redwood forest there is bigger and well known}

After around 3 hours hiking up, we reached the top of the mountain. It was my first time climbing this mountain and saw the whole view of the town. For me the trail was not too hard compared to climbing mountains in Vietnam. However, as I had been working in a blueberry farm for around a month and I had to stand up all day so I was exhausted when we climbed up to the top.

^{My friend and I were so excited when we saw the beautiful scenery around}

^{We took the opportunity to take a cool photo with the landscape}

^{The grass swayed in the wind, soft as silk, made me want to blend in with the wonderful dance of nature.}

For me, Hastings is a place where I had chances to experience New Zealand for the first time. First time I picked plums and walnuts from a nearby park, my first mountain peak conquered in New Zealand, my first farm job, my first time attending a Christmas party with traditional Maori meals, and my first birthday party with migrants from Kiribati Island. These are all wonderful memories I have of Hastings.

^{First job in a blueberry farm, a really hard job but wonderful team and especially I could ate good blueberries for free}

^{First time in the extravaganza fair with friends}

^{Maori traditional meal - Hangi - which is cooked under ground with hot stones on top of the food. My landlord told me it took 6 hours to cook everything. It is kind of interesting way to cook food.}

Thank you so much for stopping by and visit these beautiful memories with me today. I hope I will have sometimes in the future to visit this beautiful town.

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