Entries for July 2006
Back in Christchurch, Fri Jul 28
Back to topI don't really have time to go into detail, but as you can tell, we went east across the mountains to Christchurch. We met up with some old friends of mine that run a backpacker in the city. Tonight there is an All Blacks test match on against Australia. Big match! And afterwards, some time out in the city celebrating the victory and the 150th anniversary of the city of Christchurch.
The real news is that we uploaded the new pictures from Mary's fancy camera. (Thanks Mom2!) So enjoy the new photos. Tony should be jealous of Ben's skill with the camera. Some of these are really good!
Cross-country blitz starts now!, Wed Jul 26
Back to topA lot has happened. I flew to Wellington in a hurricane in a 15 seat prop plane to meet Ben at the airport. I thought we would go to the All Blacks match, but he wasn't interested, so we did a little sight seeing and flew back to the South Island. We raced up to Nelson and camped out on the beach in Golden Bay, north of Takaka. I'm glad Ben agrees that the night sky here is astoundingly clear. There wasn't a cloud in the sky all night and the moon didn't come up.
We've been moving a lot the last few days. After camping out and freezing our butts off, we retreated back to Blenheim for a night to warm ourselves and watch a few episodes of The Office. We got off to a slow start the next day and had resigned ourselves to driving to the west coast at night. But we stopped halfway there at Nelson Lakes and I couldn't resist the nice clear weather. So we hiked three hours in the dark with just a torch between us to a hut at the southern end of Lake Rotoiti. We were expecting to find the place empty since it is the middle of winter...
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The real Kiwi experience, Sun Jul 16
Back to topIf you are considering travel to New Zealand, you have no doubt heard of the Kiwi Experience bus service (even if this is the first time.) Buses travel organized routes and you can get off and on whenever you want. Bus drivers help suggest activities and buses drop you off at "approved" backpackers. It all sounds really great. All the hard work is done for you. You just ride around the country with a bunch of other backpackers and enjoy the scenery wherever the bus stops.
It's a total crock. Almost everyone on these buses is 18-19 year old British kid who is probably more interested in getting pissed at the pub than really experiencing the country. We (regular backpackers) call them bratpackers. Buses drop you off at YHA hostels that are sterile, rigid, and lack character; people there aren't really interested in meeting people outside of their clique.
Why am I ranting? Because someone has to, and so I can compare my experience to some other standard, even if that standard is lacking. For example, this weekend I went camping in the freezing cold next to a river in the middle of nowhere and stayed up all night trying to catch eels with a spear. The week before I went to the eastern coast of the South Island (White's Bay) and went diving for paua (that's Maori for abalone.) Which sounds better?
Continue reading "The real Kiwi experience"
(Mis)Adventures in the Sounds, Thu Jul 13
Back to topI drove two hours over bumpy one lane gravel roads, with hardly a tree to stop my car from flying over the edge into the sea if I missed the next turn. Big puffy clouds floated along amidst sparkling waters and land rising quickly to hundreds of meters. Sounds too good to be true, I know.
And it was. The people there weren't the nicest I've met. The HelpX website says you should work about 4 hours a day in exchange for room and board. I also expect to get something else out of my stay, something unique. I can work my butt off somewhere else and get paid; I want something special here.
All I did was dig up earth for 6 hours for a silly rock wall. I didn't even get a "thank you" or a "good job", just a dinner at which me and my friend worker were ignored the whole time. I was treated like a guest, but rather an itinerit worker of little consequence. I was supposed to stay until Sunday but I left on Thursday morning...and I forgot my $200 boots. I want to drive my car off a cliff.
I also got sick from working in the wind and cold and I've spent the last week getting better. Now that I've healed up enough, I'm taking off for a week in the wilderness to clear my soul, as Emerson would have done. Ben will be here next week. Gotta get ready for nonstop travel again. It'll be hard now that I feel like I live here and not just passing through.
Port Ligar... That's right, the magical lion/tiger, Sat Jul 1
Back to topSo I'm told that it actually rhymes with "cigar", but its still funny. If you're not sure what I'm talking about, you need to rent Napoleon Dynamite--right now. Don't worry. I'll wait...
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Got it? Yes, now laugh with me. Good. Moving on!
I finally quit the vineyard on Thursday. I don't know how much I made, but I have over $1200 in the bank and a few hundred in my pocket. I really should have made more, but my hands are big balls of cramped muscle, so I couldn't work as fast as I could for 8 hours straight.
But the real news is that I'm leaving for Port Ligar. It's way out in the sounds, on the northern tip of the South Island. I'm staying on a farm/bed and beakfrast about 2 hours on a windy one-lane road (check out the pics). It's a big family that runs the place and there is also a japanese and kiwi girl working there.
Continue reading "Port Ligar... That's right, the magical lion/tiger"