Boy did I have a good night sleep! Certainly beats the airport seats!! Nicky and Sandor are so nice!! It’s almost over-whelming how welcoming and generous they are!!
So, I booked everything for NZ and Fiji today. I will get the chance to see most of NZ!! However, in a rushed time. I will be staying with Nicky and Sandor for the next 2 nights, and then I start my 14-day trip around NZ with my Magic Bus ticket. At the end of my 14 days, I fly to Fiji for 5 days. I come back to Auckland for 4 days before leaving for Germany and then home.
Today, other then booking my stuff, I walked around in Auckland to see the place and had a little “accrochage” with the fuckin ATM machine! But, all is resolved now, so it’s all good! Later in the evening, Nicky picked me up in the city after her meeting and she ordered pizza to be picked up!! Woohoo!! They are so great!!! I just cannot believe it!
November 17, 2006
Relaxing day! Caught up on some sleep! I booked my seat on magic Buss first thing in the morning, along with my first week of hostel. Then went to Auckland to pick up my vouchers and walk around some more in the city. I came back in the afternoon. It gave my enough time to go for a run and sit by the beach, which has a great view of a volcano! So cool! After, took a shower, called home, did some laundry and watched TV. In the evening, I packed my stuff for tomorrow. I have to be at the station for 7h30am in Auckland! Nicky will drive me there!
November 18, 2006
So, left at 7h30 am this morning. We stopped at Mount Eden (volcano) to get a view over Auckland, before driving through Bombay Hills and into Waikato region. Our first stop is Waitomo, where we can check out the underground caves and glowworms! The rest of the time, we drove to Rotorua. Some land seemed to have been sceneries from Lord of the Rings; the hobbits village where they have their little houses built in the hill. I am staying here for the night and leaving tomorrow morning. I checked in Planet Nomad’s Hostel at 5h45pm. I walked around town, bought myself a bread (for my breakfasts for the week!), came back to the hostel, watched TV for maybe 20 minutes and went to bed at 8h30am!!! I was exhausted!
November 19, 2006
Left Rotorua at 9am this morning. We had a brief tour of the town; saw Rotorua Lake, Parliament offices and gardens, Polynesian Spas (natural hot steaming pools --- sulfur = bad smell!). Then we headed to Taupo. On the way, we stopped to see boiling mud bath pools. Our second stop was Wai-O-Tapu Geyser who erupts at 10h15am everyday. We went to visit Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. We saw:
Champagne Pools: 74 degrees Celsius at surface temperature and bubbles are due to carbon dioxide. Formed 700 years ago by hydrothermal eruption of the rocks. Minerals contained in the water are gold, silver, mercury, sulfur, arsenic, thallium, antimony, etc.
Inferno Crater: Bottom of violently boiling mud! Can erupt to 20 meters!
Devil’s Bath: A large crater adjoining the bush line with a natural watercolor. The color is the result of excess water from the Champagne Pools mixing with sulfur and ferrous salts. Color changes green through yellow because of light.
Artist’s Palette: Overflowing water from the Champagne Pools draws with it minerals that have originated from below the surface. As the water cool and minerals are exposed to our atmosphere, they show themselves in a variety of locations and colors depending upon water level and direction.
Later we saw Huka Falls! Wow! Never saw beautiful blue clear water like that!
Now we are in Taupo, with Lake Taupo that apparently is the size of Syngapore. Behind Lake Taupo stand mountains with 2 of NZ’s biggest volcanoes! One of them, Mount Ngaurunoe (I think) was used in Lord of the Rings and named Mount Doom. Very cool! My hostel has a great view of them! Sadly, it is a little cloudy today so we cannot see them clearly, but we will see them tomorrow, I know it!
Some of us went walking around town and came back to our hostels for diner. In the evening, I met with Yorum (from Israel) and walked to the lake to see the sunset, moon and stars. We had a coffee later on.
Well, so far, I like NZ very much. Things get more and more impressive everyday! And on the plus side, there are NO venimous creatures in NZ!! (Except for one spider but it cannot kill you… unless you are me and you would die just looking at it!).
November 20, 2006
So, left Taupo at 8am this morning. We went into Tongariro National Park to see the mountains that where used in Lord of the Rings!! So cool!! We drove all the way to Wellington, arrived at 3pm but we were stuck in traffic so checked-in hostel at 4pm.
We visited Te Papa Museum. Very impressive!! Then, we had a walk around to see the parliament buildings, the harbour and, the “artsy” street. Later, we went up a cable car on top of Mount Victoria to see a panoramic view of the city; and visited the Botanic Gardens at the same time. We had a free diner at our hostel and headed back out for a walk in the night life of Wellington (not to big..) and we grabbed a coffee.
Back at my hostel, I watched “If Dreams May Come”… cried like as if I have never cried before! And, went to bed.
November 21, 2006
Woke up at 6am to catch the ferry shuttle at the YHA at 7am. I had a ferry ride across to the South Island. Saw some dolphins and amazing scenery!! I met with the Magic Bus on the other side. We traveled through Marlborough, famous for its vineyards and excellent wines. We arrived at Nelson at 3pm, “The Sunshine Capital of NZ”, known for its local artists and relaxed atmosphere (its relaxed atmosphere all over NZ to me!!). It is also the origin for journeys to the Abel Tasman NP (beautiful region with golden beaches and sparkling water).
My hostel, Paradiso Backpackers, is amazing! Free soup at diner, free breakfast, free pool, free sauna, free Jacuzzi… very nice place! Love it! Best hostel I have been so far!
Once checked in I went for a run into town, so did a “sight seeing tour” on my own at the same time (love multi-tasking). Came back for sauna… haaaa!…. Had nice hot soup and went back to town to meet with Jadey and Rémi at a resto for a coffee.
The difference between the South and North Island is already evident! Much more mountains, less people, more vegetation… much more beautiful on the South Island! Well, in my opinion!
November 22, 2006
We left Nelson this morning at 8am. We journeyed through the Hope Saddle and Buller Gorge, with all its mountains! Nice! Then we drove along the West Coast through one of the many National Parks – the Paparoa NP. We took a shourt walk along the Truman Track to see rainforests, blowholes, flat rocks and the amazing coastline up close! We also stopped at Punakaiki for pancake rocks and more blowholes. Amazing! I saw some seals too! We arrived in Greymouth at 5pm. There is not much to do and see in Greymouth! I am happy I am here for only one night! Once checked in my hostel, I met up with Rémi, Katty, Jadey and Peter (Swedish guy). We went to see the Jade shop, to see how Jade is shaped. Then we walked around town a little before going to a 5$ all you can eat veggie or meat buffet. We spent the rest of the evening there (there was no other place to go, except our hostels). We had a good lunch with Rémi and Peter drinking beer!!
Funny how NZ is not populated as I thought it would be. Towns and cities are so small. You can easily visit them by foot in just a few hours. And there’s usually not much to do except for extreme sports/activities… woohoo!. It is much more relaxed and “in toon with nature”. Love it!! So different from Australia and, all the other places I have been!
November 23, 2006
Great day! I was picked up at Neptunes Hostel in Greymouth. I was separated from the rest of the group because of too many people on the bus… However, it was only half a day driving so I could meet up with the rest at that point. It is pouring rain today!
So, we continued our way down toward Hokitika, famous for its cuisine and green stone. Then stopped at town of Ross, the “Gold Town”; learned how to do some gold panning. We took a quick drive into the scenic Okarito lagoon (but since weather was bad, it was not really worth to see). Then we finally checked-in our hostel in Franz Josef at 1pm.
Then I had the most amazing and crazy afternoon!! We took a shuttle half way to the Franz Josef Glacier, and walked the rest in the pouring rain!! It was 85$ for a tour up the Franz Josef Glacier, so we figured we could walk there our selves, and we did it for 5$ (the shuttle ride half way). However, because of the rain and fog, the view was not the clearest… but still! A river stream was formed because of the amount of rain that had fallen, stopping us to reach the bottom of the glacier. It did not stop us right away. We took some time to analyze and figure out where and how to cross that stream. After removing our shoes (well, I just had my sandals so did not bother), we started crossing the stream. We had build up a crowd by that time! We figured that we would have water to knee level but quickly realized it was going much higher! Therefore, we had to come back. Big pieces of ice were floating by us, so yes water was fuckin freezing! Our intention was to cross it and start singing “O Canada” (national anthem) on the other side, but we did not get there. It was too risky and too cold to risk it; the current was very strong!
We walked all the way back to the village in the beautiful rainforest with its multiple waterfalls! We also walked across a suspended bridge. Very cool! We got to the village at 6pm, just in time for hot soup (and a steaming hot shower!!! I am surprised I did not die of hypothermia, again!). In the evening, we played cards then went to the Blue Café for free shots and pizza.
That was a crazy day! I will remember this day for the rest of my life!!!
November 24, 2006
Weather started of against us a little but came out good. We visited NZ’s most famous lakes, like Lake Matheson, often called “Mirror Lake” due to its clear reflection of the Southern Alps and Mount Cook… which we didn’t see because of the rain and fog…
The scenery was dense forest to vast plateaus as we entered Central Otago region, known for its pip fruit and wine industry. Then, we visited Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka! WOW!! They are surrounded by the most stunning mountains!! There is something about mountains that simply amaze me. So, we stopped in the village of Wanaka, shortly. It is very nice; cute, relaxed and cozy. I would not mind spending a couple of days here. Then we stopped off to see the world’s first commercial bungee site, 42m over the Kawerau River. Rémi and Jadey jumped! Hihi! Was fun to watch them!
Finally, we arrived in Queenstown at 6pm. A very nice town I admit! It has a little “skier style”, like Mont Tremblant. It’s not too big so you can walk everywhere in a day but, there’s plenty to do!!! I was supposed to do some hang gliding but, we got in too late and the weather was not the greatest! Dam it!
So, checked in our hostel (I am in Pinewood Ski Lodge Hostel, love it!); booked my last nights accommodation; confirmed with my Milford Sound tour tomorrow and; confirmed my seat on the Magic Bus for the rest of my time. Then we were looking for tattoo shop for Rémi but they were all closed. So, we took a walk around town and ended up at “The Cow” (recommended by Alex) for some pizza and a drink. I pretty much went straight to bed after that. They went to a pub for drinks.
November 25, 2006
Holly, what a day! This was the most…. Crazy, amazing, most beautiful, spectacular, emotional, breathtaking day of my trip!!! Ok, well maybe the second… But, Holly Scheisse!!! It is definitely the most beautiful scenery I have seen in my life!
I went on the Milford Sound cruise today! We (by “we” I mean, Jadey, Rémi and I) were picked up at 7h45am. We had a 4 hours bus ride to get there, 2 hours of boat cruise and 4 hours of drive back to Queenstown…
On the way, we stopped at (or saw):
Lake Wakatip: The 2nd most important lake to the South Island.
The Remarkables (mountains): The highest summit of this chain is the Double Cone (2300 meters). Absolutely amazing views!!!
Gaston: NZ’s most far region from the sea (128 km). Ha! I drive that distance nearly everyday!
Kingston: Where the train “Kingston Flyer” was built.
Mossburn: Town of the first deer farm.
Then, we stopped in De Te Anau town for lunch. From there we saw:
Lake Te Anau: The 2nd most important lake to NZ.
Mount Murchisam: Sanctuary of one of the rarest bird in NZ, the “Takahe”.
Mirror Lakes: Reflexions of the mountains… haaa!
The Anau Downs, Knobs Flat, Marian Corner and Lower Hollyford Rd: Where hikers of the Milford track start.
Divide: Lowest section of the Southern Alps (534 meters). Starting point of Routeburn, Caples and Greenstone Tracks to Lake Wakatiper for the hikers.
Tunnel Homer: Tunnel through the mountains with no signalizations; descends to Milford with a 10% inclination; 1219 meters long; 2 way tunnel in the summer and one way in winter.
Chasm: The River Cledday sinks in a narrow chasm (gouffre) of 22m deep at Upper Fall.
Milford Sound: The cruise in the Southern Alps to the sea!!!! In Milford Sound, population of 150, it rains 4-5 days out of 7. Today we got a gorgeous sun!
All day was just amazing! I cannot believe it. I feel like I am in a dream and not really here. Waterfalls everywhere, mountains are mighty high and full of snow… Dolphins are jumping, seals are sun bathing… I was freaking out!!
We watched a movie in the bus on the way back and arrived in Queenstown at 8h30pm. We had a snack at a Thai restaurant and I went straight to bed. We leave Queenstown tomorrow morning… I would like to stay an extra day!! (I so want to do some hang gliding!!). Moreover, Jadey will not be with us tomorrow… She will be back with us in Dunedin tomorrow night though!
There are a couple of “Lord of the Rings” spots here in Queenstown!
I saw a couple of helicopters today in Milford Sound… I want to be a helicopter pilot… I’m checking that out when I get back home!!!
November 26, 2006
Bizarre day! Do not know why and do not want to… We left Queenstown at 8am this morning. We followed the former gold trail through Central Otago to Dunedin, “The Beer and Chocolate Capital of NZ”. So we arrived in Dunedin at 1h30pm. Rémi and I checked-in “On Top Backpackers”, very nice hostel!! We where so lucky though. We had a 6 dorm bedroom but we where the only 2 in it!! Make the calculation, we had 3 beds each! Hihi! In the afternoon, we went to the Cadbury Chocolate Factory tour… Even though I love chocolate, the tour was not very much… Especially the 1000 Liter chocolate fountain (or something like that), which was really disgusting!! Haha! But hey, the chocolate was cheap and good!!!
After, we walked around town. I was surprised how big it is; 110 000 in population with NZ’s 1st University (University of Otago, 1869). 20% of Dunedin’s population is students. We saw, the Uni, St-Paul’s Cathedral, Town Hall, Fairi Gorge Railway and more.
We had diner and soup at the hostel, played pool, did some internet, and I called home. We eventually met with Jadey and went to see the movie “The Invincible”, very good! We closed down the cinema! We where really the last souls in it but nothing was locked up...hihi!
November 27, 2006
Cool day! Left Dunedin at 8am. We started off with a walk (I decided to challenge myself in running up) up the worlds steepest hill (Baldwin Street). It’s reputed by the Guinness Book of Records for being the steepest street in the world. Well… I’ve ran up hills before, but this one.. HA! I could barely walk for the rest of the day, but I did run it!
After, we stopped at the beach to see the Moeraki Boulders, renowned for their unique shape. We headed inland to the Mackenzie Country, passing by the Benmore Dam, the largest earth dam in the Southern Atmosphere. We had some amazing views of Mount Cook and the lakes!!!
We arrived in Tekapo at 4pm, after visiting the idyllic Church of the Good Shepherd! Very beautiful!!
After check-in, we hiked for 3 hours up and down Mount John, at the Star Gazing Observatory… Wow! Absolutely beautiful and spectacular! We had a view of the Southern Alps all around! We came back for diner and some wine…hmmm! Thank you Rémi!!!
I like it in Tekapo!! I would spend a couple of days here. It is quiet, peaceful, beautiful and somewhat romantic somehow.
November 28, 2006
We left Lake Tekapo this morning at 8am. We traveled around the edges of the stunning Mackenzie Country, crossing over Burke Pass on the foothills of the Southern Alps. We passed through towns of Fairlie and Geraldine before traveling across the Canterbury Plains (largest area of flat land in NZ). We arrived in Christchurch at 1pm. A very big town for NZ; around 331 400 in population (the biggest in NZ in think).
We walked around town for the rest of the day.
We had a final diner the 3 of us at the “Two Fat Indians”. Very good!! We came back to our room and Jadey was so kind to bring her laptop so we could burn our pictures on CDs! We watched TV and had a couple of drinks at the same time.
November 29, 2006
The day went by so fast!! I slept late and got picked up at 8h50am to go to Akaroa for the “swim with the dolphins”!! We had to say goodbye to Rémi this morning… I felt sad, out trio is down to two, but that is ok.
We, Jadey and I, had an hour and half of bus drive to get to Akaroa. We stopped at a couple of places on the way like “Pebble Beach”, Bon’s Bay, and Hill Top Café with a view of the town and the lake. Finally, the swim with the dolphins! It was with Black Cat Company. We swam with Hector’s dolphins. They are the smallest dolphins in the world (female: 1.4m male: 1.3m baby: 76cm). They’re so cute!! They are listed as “endangered” by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources). They are the only one with a rounded dorsal fin and distinct 3-colour markings, earning them the nickname of “the panda of the sea”.
The water was absolutely freezing!!! We had wetsuits obviously, but still! I spent almost an hour in the water and saw so many of them! I did not want to get out even though I knew I was literally freezing! I got out with blue lips and fingertips. Some came 2-3 feet from me! They are so beautiful!! But, they were so hard to get on pictures. They where so fast. At least I managed to get a few. Jadey got very good ones!!
We had some time to look around town a little, and then came back to Christchurch with the bus. I slept pretty much all the way back! Once back at the hostel, I took a good shower, had diner, then met with Jadey to burn our pictures and add some music to Simona’s MP3.
Back at my hostel, I watched “Ghost” while writing my journal and went to bed. I am flying to Auckland to fly to Fiji tomorrow.
November 30, 2006
Well, long day… at the airport.
I took a hot chocolate with Jadey this morning before taking the city shuttle to the airport. This was another goodbye… Everyone is gone there separate ways now!
My flight from Christchurch to Auckland was at 12h50pm. I waited around in the airport then flew to Fiji at 7h10pm. I arrived in Fiji at 10pm (but really if was 11pm there because I had to add an hour). Hihi! We were greeted by a “Fiji band” playing banjo, guitar and drum at the airport! That was great! So great, I forgot to take a picture! Now I am in Nadi Bay Resort for the night. Holly it is hot and muggy here! Quiet a change from NZ! I have a free breaky tomorrow morning before leaving for my island tour.
I called home before leaving NZ. It was good to talk to them!
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