Australia - Sydney

So after a bit of a shock at the airport - they didn't have my name down for being on the flight which was interesting! - I got on the plane with Grainne and headed to Sydney. For the third time in a row there was a problem with the plane so we were quite late leaving! Made it in one piece though fortunately!! From here Grainne got a connecting flight to Beijing so we had to say goodbye which was quite sad as we'd had such a great time travelling in NZ together. So there I was, in another random country, by myself again!

I made my way to the hostel and spent most of the day just wandering around Sydney to get a bit of a feel for the place. It's quite bizarre to think I'm going to be staying here for longer than a couple of days, and so I think I was a bit bewildered at first - trying to do hundreds of things at once (job, flat, bank account etc), but for my first day I settled on getting myself a mobile phone and organising a few flats to look at the next day. The hostel is full of really young people and everyone seems to know each other, which isn't great when you're on your own. So I decided I needed to get out of there ASAP!

The next day I went on a walking tour of the city and met quite a few people in the hostel who were also on their own, so suddenly I was surrounded by people and chatting to lots of them which was great. The tour was excellent as well as it went round the main areas of Sydney and it was such a lovely day aswell it was great to be out in the sun (and in a t-shirt, no thermals anymore!). Went round Darling Harbour, through the CBD, up to the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, through the Botannic Gardens, and lots more places I can't remember!

The following day there was another organised walk from Coogee beach to Bondi beach so lots of us did that one too and met some more people along the way! It was a bit overcast to start with and rained a few times but once we were out and about walking it cleared up and eventually the sun came out! It was a nice walk along all the beaches but it wasn't as pretty as I thought it was going to be! I imagine it would be a lot nicer in the summer though!

I have done a bit of flat hunting here which has actually been a little bit depressing to see how other people are living. Basically the places are a little bit manky or they try and shove as many people as possible into one room. They have these stunning apartments in the city centre and you get access to a (minute) swimming pool and a gym (with about 4 machines in it!) and then there are 8 people living in a 2 bedroom place smaller than my flat in sunny Didcot! So that's interesting!!! Not sure how long it's going to take me to lower my standards or do I just need to accept the fact that I'm too old for this malarky and spend a bit more to get somewhere nice (if it does actually exist!!)...

My hostel standards have gone up too! I checked out of the first place I was staying in as I decided it was too expensive. I went over to Kings Cross (the dodgy area!) and checked into a hostel over there but it really wasn't very nice. I probably could've coped with it if I had been there with a friend but not by myself. So the next day I carted all my stuff back to the first hostel and got a bed in the dorm room that my friends are staying in!! Problem solved!! I started to think I could just live in a hostel for a few months as it would be quite easy, but I eventually found a place to live!

I am living near Newtown which is about 20mins by bus from the city centre (or 45 mins - 1 hour in rush hour I've since found out!). I appear to be right on the flight path so have planes hurtling overhead which was a bit of a surprise as no one warned me about that, but you do get used to that after a while! Newtown is quite a trendy little place - lots of cafes, restaurants and bars and a theatre where loads of live bands play which is cool! There's 5 others in the house - 2 English guys and 3 Scottish girls. Everyone's nice and friendly, but it's a bit like living like a student again, sometimes which is good and sometimes not! I think I just need to adapt - I've gone from living in my own flat in Didcot to sleeping in hostels with up to 20 others in my room to only one bunk bed in the room! And it's not the cleanest place but for a few months it'll do the job! After all the hostels to stay somewhere where only 6 people share a lounge, TV, phone and kitchen is like pure luxury!!!

Next is work. Well, work is work really isn't it?! It took me a while to find something and it involved selling my soul to any agency that would listen to me but I got there in the end! In my hour of desperation I even when to an agency to find out about data entry work but they wouldn't give me anything as they thought it was such a waste of my skills! Well I thought that too but beggars can't be choosers! Anyway, it suddenly all went a bit crazy and I went for 3 interviews in one day and started a job the next!! Good things are - I get to use my brain again and have to think which is always good as it's been a while! And obviously I get paid which is great!!! But being a contractor generally means you get lumbered with all the really good stuff that no one else wants to do!! I think that would be the case anywhere though! The people there seem nice enough though so I think I can hack it for 3 months!!

I appear to have slipped back into the whole working routine and living for the weekend thing far too quickly for my liking but it's good to be in one place for a while and settle (and unpack my rucksack which was very exciting!). Sydney is actually a lot smaller than you first think and I even started recognising people as I'm walking around the place (which is not always a good thing!), but it's nice to have some familiarity and feel a bit like a local!

Seeing as my life is probably going to be entering a dull phase for the next few months whilst I'm working I probably won't be updating my blog for a while, unless something really exciting happens! But I'm sure I'll be back again soon enough...!

New Zealand - South Island Part Two

The West Coast continued

We spent the next morning in Hokitika as they had lots of Jade factories and a glass blowing shop which was really interesting as you could watch the men making things. Then we headed towards Franz Joesph Glacier on yet more mountain roads! It was a gorgeous day again and it was even warm enough to sit outside to have lunch which was fantastic. This was one of the first places where there were lots of other people (mainly from the big tourist buses) which was a bid strange - we went into the bar in the evening and it was pretty full which we have not encountered up to now!!!

In the morning we went on a glacier hike. We got given all our cold weather gear and spikes for our shoes again seeing as we were going to be walking on ice!, and hopped into a bus and were driven to the glacier. We walked about 45minutes through the valley to the terminal face of the glacier and then put our spikes on so we could start climbing on the ice. It was so warm the guides had shorts on and at one point I was only wearing one thermal (as opposed to about 3 layers on a normal day!). They had carved lots of steps in to the ice and where it was a bit dodgy there was rope handrails to hold on to. We spent a couple of hours up there walking around and through the glaciers which was fantastic.

In the afternoon we had planned to a helicopter ride over the Fox Glacier (the other one 20kms down the road) and up to Mount Cook but there was no one else who wanted to do that trip so we went for a different one where we went over both glaciers and the pilot went over to Mount Cook especially for us which was nice of him! It was brilliant! I have never been in a helicopter before but it was excellent! We went right up to Mount Tasman and Mount Cook and over the Fox Glacier and then we landed on the FJ Glacier and got out of the helicopter and walked around right on top of the glacier which was fab! We were the only people up there, the sky was bright blue with no cloud and the views were stunning! Then we headed back over the FJ Glacier and back to base. It was only half and hour but it felt quite a lot longer as we saw so much and I'm such a sucker for snow covered mountains, of which there were hundreds dotted around!

After all that excitement we got back on the road, stopping off at Lake Matheson which is supposed to be quite famous for being photographed so much as it is quite still and you get fantastic reflections of the mountains in the water. Then we drove on yet more mountain roads to Haast.

The South!

In the morning we drove onto Wanaka. The drive was pretty spectacular again, by Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea. Wanaka wasn't as pretty as we thought it was going to be but it was still a nice place and set by the lake which was lovely. We were near to the Treble Cone ski resort so thought we would drive to it and have a look. The weird thing about skiing here though is that you have to drive halfway up the mountain to get to the ski fields, I guess as the snow doesn't come down low enough. So we got to the bottom and it was a 7km gravel track up to the base. I wasn't overly keen on driving up as I thought it might be a bit steep for the old camper but after talking to someone who had just driven down we decided to give it a go. Well that was possibly the worst decision we have ever made since being here! It was the steepest road we have ever driven on, it was quite narrow and twisted up the mountain - we were absolutely shitting ourselves! We eventually made it to the top but were so traumatised that we took a few photos and then drove back down again. It was just as bad on the way down and every time we turned a corner to the right it felt like we were going to tip over so I had to keep taking the corners wide which meant Grainne was closer to the edge which wasn't particularly nice but eventually we made it down! Then we drove back to the holiday park, dumped the van and went for a drink to calm our nerves!

The next day we went skiing at Cardrona but this time we decided to get the shuttle bus up there! The road was just as bad as the one we went on the day before so we were quite glad we had decided not to drive it! The day was really good - got kitted out in skis and then booked a lesson but got a few runs in first to make sure I could remember what to do! The lesson was really good as we went over all the technique stuff that I did know but had forgotten!! Met up with Grainne for lunch and then went back out again in the afternoon. I think I have been spoilt by skiing in Canada though as the snow over here isn't as good - well there isn't much of it to start with and there was lots of rocks and grass patches and some ice aswell which always makes things interesting!

When we got back from Cardrona we thought we would drive to Queenstown as it was only about 70kms. What we didn't realise was that it was yet more mountain driving and was probably the steepest and bendiest road (apart from the Treble Cone experience!) that we had driven on, and we did it as it was getting dark too, so another sensible decision! We were going so slow round all the bends we ended up with a little convoy behind us by the time we got back on to the main road, but at least we made it in one piece and relatively unscathed!!

Queenstown is a great place! I was expecting it to be really touristy as it's the adventure capital of the world allegedly but it's also just a pretty pretty town, set in amongst mountains and a huge lake. It's a lot colder down here though, although there is sun there isn't much warmth to it so the nights require both heaters on full blast!!

It's a bit of a party town so it seems whatever night you go out something is happening which is great! Did a mini pub crawl (couldn't go out too often as it was too cold!) and found a great bar with a band playing so settled in for the night!

Went skiing at The Remarkables the next day which was good, preferred it to Cardrona, although there hasn't been any snow since 6th July so the slopes are a bit packed by the groomers and a bit icy in places. Had another lesson which was good, but it's hard work to remember everything all the time and every time I get to a hard bit all technique goes out the window as I fly down the slope!! Knees have held up surprisingly enough which is lucky seeing as my insurance doesn't cover skiing! But I'm not quite sure how much longer my luck is going to last so I might just quit whilst I'm ahead!

Just to demonstrate how cold it is at the moment (apart from it being the coldest period in Queenstown for 15 years or something crazy like that!) our water has frozen! This means we can't empty our waste water or fill up our fresh water, and when we did put a little bit of water down the sink there was no where for it to go so it came up the plughole in the bathroom (when I say bathroom I mean toilet and shower room that you can barely fit into!)! So that has made life just a little bit more interesting!!!

We went for a day trip to Milford Sound which was good but a very long day. We had a very random guy driving the minibus who decided to talk incessantly for much of the 5 hour journey each way to Milford Sound, and most of it was either rubbish or was pointing out 'the best', 'the highest', 'the largest' etc etc etc lake, mountain blah blah blah... Surely everything can't be the best ever in the country down this way, although again the scenery was stunning!

Finally caught the boat at about 14.45 and then cruised round for a couple of hours. The scenery was great, but I think I've got to that point that I've seen so many fantastic snow capped mountains that it now takes quite a lot to impress me! The weather was beautiful though so it was lovely to be there. And then we had to endure the 5 hour ride home again, although at least this time we got a movie to watch (although couldn't really hear it which was useful!), and then back in Queenstown we found a few more bars to sample! I have found this great vodka that is flavoured with either honey, kiwi or passion fruit and it's really nice!!!

The next day we were going to stay in Queenstown and had even paid for another night at the campsite but then halfway through the day we decided that we had had enough of this crazy town and made a swift exit! We spent the day in Glenorchy which is a 45 minute drive north of Queenstown and a really lovely peaceful place with beautiful scenery. We drove further up the road to Paradise aswell which was lovely, but could only go so far until there was a small river which we had to cross but it was iced over and I didn't fancy my chances of driving over it o we went for a little walk instead! Then we headed to Cromwell for the night, which is a pretty uneventful town, other than it has a few pieces of rather large fruit welcoming you as you drive into the town which I thought was a bit bizarre! Also our water tank has finally defrosted so we have running water back in the camper which I found quite exciting!

The Road North to Christchurch

From Cromwell we started the drive north towards Christchurch. We were going to take a couple of days to get up there, but ended up doing a massive drive in one day to Methven, which is an hour or so outside of Christchurch and the closest town to Mount Hutt, another ski hill! It was quite a good day though as we stopped off in lots of places along the way - Twizel, Lake Pukaki, Lake Tekapo and Fairlie - and got some excellent views of Mount Cook from across the lakes. The scenery has changed quite a bit - there are still some mountains around but there is a lot of flat open space all of a sudden which was a bit strange to see but it made driving a hell of a lot easier!! Eventually we arrived in Methven and found a place to stay and organised transport up the mountain for the next day too.

Mount Hutt is supposed to be one of the best ski resorts in NZ and I definitely enjoyed it more than the others, but that could just be that I'm improving slightly! I had another lesson and there was only 3 of us which was great! At one point the instructor said I looked graceful coming down the mountain which I was quite happy about, as sometimes it does all come together and other times I am a complete disaster!!! She also showed us how to ski backwards which was great fun, although can't see there being much need to use my new skill!!! In the afternoon I went up on my own to the top of the mountain to do some more blue runs but the runs were full of rocks and ice so I was anything but graceful coming down!! But at least I made it in one piece so am thankful for that at least!!! But things are starting to ache now and am feeling a bit old so this time I am definitely going to quit whilst I'm ahead and took the next day off whilst Grainne went off up the slopes again!

Spent our last night in the van, eating and drinking our way through our supplies! Then in the morning we made the short drive to Christchurch and found our hostel. The hostel is OK but not great, although it has underfloor heating which I'm really looking forward to!, and it all just feels a bit weird! It was a little bit sad to give the van back after such a long time - we worked out that we drove 3,602kms in 29 days which is not bad going really!

Went to the Antarctic Centre which was quite interesting. They have a snow room where you put rubber boots on and a big jacket and they recreate the weather conditions in the Antarctic - -8 degrees and a wind chill factor of about 44kmph and it suddenly became about - 18.5 degrees which was a little bit chilly!!

The rest of our time in Christchurch was fairly relaxing. We wandered round the city taking in the sights and doing some last minute shopping. We had a night out to sample the delights of Christchurch and were slightly surprised by what we found...

We went out for a few drinks but everywhere seems to close early. We finally found somewhere that wasn't putting all the chairs up on the table (never a good sign!) and were sitting there chatting and having a drink. Suddenly these two guys came over - a guy called James and someone I shall refer to as the twat as I've no idea what his name is! I can't say I was really being chatted up by the twat as he just sat there playing with his phone and then asked me the odd question but was not in any way interested in my answers. I was getting slightly annoyed at all this and then I find out from the James guy that he has made a bet that he can pull me!!! So I told him he was wasting his time, but he thought he's try his luck anyway, clearly he thought he was irresistible but he really wasn't and he was only 19!!! After a few attempted maulings I managed to get him off me and fortunately he disappeared for a while! The next time I looked over he was snogging some girl who was apparently his girlfriend!! I couldn't believe this but felt quite relieved that at least I was off the hook! We were then joined by another one of their mates, and then the twat and his girlfriend came over too which was all very odd!

Later on in the night he sits next to Grainne and starts mauling her, despite the fact he's sitting there with his arm round his girlfriend!! Completely unbelievable! Even more so when his girlfriend doesn't seem bothered by it (and she was English so where was her self respect?!!). Later on girlfriend nipped to the loo and he turned all his attentions to Grainne. His mates, even though they were completely disgusted with his behaviour weren't doing or saying anything to stop him and Grainne couldn't really do much while he had attached himself, so it was up to me! I asked her if she wanted me to hit him as that was the only way I could think of to get him off her. However, it all got a bit confusing and Grainne thought I said was she OK and she said no, despite the fact she actually said yes to whatever question she thought I asked! Anyway, so I slapped him pretty hard round the face and told him in no uncertain terms to leave my friend alone!! Everyone, including me, was pretty shocked for a second, especially Grainne as when I slapped him his head ricocheted onto her so she got a bit of a thud aswell, opps! But he left her alone after that and actually apologised too so perhaps I did the right thing...!! Anyway, we left shortly after that as it was all just getting too bizarre! And then our last day in NZ was spent recovering from the hangover!!! Oh well, it was an experience!

Bit of a shame that we didn't do half the things we thought of doing (or what some woman from the tourist information had demanded that we do!) on our last day as I felt too ill but that's life I guess!! We had the joy of playing the oh so fun game of 'lets try to fit all our stuff in our bags' instead which was great!

So after nearly two months I'm off again to the next country. I really enjoyed NZ, it's a fantastic place. We might not have come at the best time of year, but the weather in the South Island more than made up for the rain in the North and we even managed to cope with the cold most of the time! I think some of the scenery is more spectacular when it's covered in snow but I definitely need to come back when the weather is a bit better so I will in theory eat less and be in the mood to do more tramping and appreciate more of the amazing scenery!

New Zealand - South Island Part One

Blenheim and the Marlborough area

From the ferry we drove straight to Blenheim as this was the place closest to the Marlborough wine region and we wanted to do the rounds of some of the wineries!

The next morning it was sunny with blue sky which was very exciting so we went for a little walk around the town! In the afternoon we booked a winery tour that the guy at the reception of the campsite recommended. Well, he said they had been running the longest so we took that to be a good thing... When the guy came to pick us up we found out why it had been running the longest - he was 77!!! And it was questionable whether he should have even been driving! He was intent on giving us a big hug when we met him which was slightly unpleasant as he was really crusty and had dry flaky skin and black scab things all over his hands that you just wanted to pick off, and he smelt a little stale!!! Anyway, he was only our driver really, although he did suffer from verbal diarrhea as he was driving us about but he was harmless enough!

We visited 5 wineries I think and had a good tasting session in each, so ended up buying quite a few bottles of the nicer wine! The people in the wineries were really friendly and as they were quite quiet they were happy to spend ages with us talking about all the different wines so it was really interesting. At one point this old guy started talking about his prostrate and how often he had to get up in the middle of the night to go to the loo - I was standing by the fire trying not to piss myself laughing and this poor woman just didn't quite know what to say about that! So I ended up talking to her so we could both escape this bizarre man!!! It was a great afternoon though!

When we got back we decided to hit the town for a few more drinks, otherwise we would've ended up falling asleep at 5pm! So we walked into town and tried out the two pubs in the place, both of which were Irish! The first one was a bit odd - really quiet and some rather strange people in there so we left after a drink! The second one was a lot better as it had more people in and had a nicer atmosphere. But it seems that things only happen anywhere at the weekends at the moment so it was still reasonably quiet. But it was a nice evening out, away from the camper, and there was some live music going on aswell which was good!

The next day we thought we would try kayaking in the Marlborough Sounds but it was so cold we thought we would opt for a little boat trip instead. So we went to Havelock but it was pretty dead - apparently we had missed the mailboat and there was a water taxi going out to pick up some loggers but not until the afternoon! Not sure what some men would've thought if we were sitting in their water taxi after they'd had a hard day logging and we were just cruising around!!! So we decided to ditch that plan and carry on! Although we never have a plan B we're getting quite good at adapting ourselves for the weather and generally have a few other possibilities of things to do up our sleeves!

Nelson area and Golden Bay

We drove up to Nelson and spent a few hours there as it was a really lovely little town - apparently it is one of the most popular places to live in NZ. We decided to do something in the Abel Tasman National Park so booked a little day trip from there. Then we headed up to Motueka.

We went for a walk in the evening and the town was really pretty as it was the Festival of Lights and all the shops and the main street were lit up which looked really nice. We went into a cafe/bar and there was a band playing a bit later so we thought we'd stay and see what they were like. Over 3 hours later (although it was still only about 9.30!) the band started playing and they were actually pretty good - quite funky music which was great to listen to! But then out of nowhere all these people came into the cafe and it was completely packed. It was very bizarre though - I felt a bit out of place as I didn't have dreads and I didn't smell which seemed to be the main criteria for these other people - a mixture of BO and old clothes! It was a bit like a fancy dress party!! I think we must have stumbled on some little hippy town!! They were all having a great time though, although I suspect some illegal substances may have been involved! There was this one old guy there who was someone's dad who kept going outside with different people and then coming back in a few minutes later so I'm guessing he could be the local drug dealer!!!!

Anyway, it was all very surreal but we stayed for a while to listen to the band until the smell became a bit overpowering and we left to see if we could find somewhere else to go... But the other bar only had a few people in it, Hot Mamma's Cafe was obviously the place to be on a Fri night but we couldn't face going back so called it a night!

The next day was stunning - cold but bright blue sky and some sun!! We got picked up and driven to Marahau which is the start of the Abel Tasman tramp. We decided to do some kayaking so got kitted out for all that - instead of wetsuits we were given stripey thermals with some shorts over the top (I felt like a pantomime dame!), a jacket and life jacket,and then were pulled by a mini tractor to the water as it was low tide and then the water taxi took us to Torrent Bay. From there we got the kayaks all ready, were given these funny skirt things to wear (now I felt like a pantomime horse!) and our guide, Sam, gave us instructions on how to kayak and then some safety tips which scared me a bit as I hate the thought of capsizing and getting stuck in the kayak! And then off we went! I was at the back so had to steer which was interesting - it was quite easy, put your left foot on the pedal to go left and right foot on the right pedal to go right - only for some reason I kept putting my foot on the wrong pedal and turning the wrong way!! Oh well!

We kayaked around for a couple of hours I think, went over to Pinnacle Island where there were lots of birds and fur seals lying around - we got quite close to them which was really cool! Then we got over to Medlands Beach and had lunch there. I enjoyed kayaking, I'd wanted to try it for ages, but my lack of upper body strength is quite pathetic so my shoulders were aching by the end of it so was glad we were only doing it for a few hours!

From there we got a water taxi over to Onetahuti Beach, via Tonga Island where we saw some more seals, and got to walk from Onetahuti to Tonga Quarry, which was a lovely walk, getting some great coastal views as well as a bit of a walk through the bush. Then we got a water taxi back to Marahau and a bus back to Motueka. It was such a great day, the good weather made such a difference. Although it was a bit cold at times, when we were out kayaking it was really warm so that was good! Not capsizing was good aswell!!

The next day was gorgeous weather too and we drove up through Golden Bay right to the top bit of the south island. The scenery whilst we were driving was absolutely stunning - lots of mountains, some snow covered, others just full of forest and really green - it was amazing. Kept taking photos as Grainne was driving but they just didn't to justice to the views. The drive was really twisty and steep again through all the mountains but as it was such beautiful scenery no one seemed in a rush to get anywhere! There were lots of pull off points from the road so it's obviously an area where people stop lots to admire all the spectacular views!

Drove through Takaka and visited Te Waikoropupu (or Pupu!) springs, which has some of the clearest freshwater in the world and is a sacred place for the Maoris, so it was nice to go for a little walk around the area. Then we drove up further to Collingwood and Puponga. From there we drove on an unsealed gravel road to Wharariki beach which was amazing - we had to walk for about 20mins through the green hills to get to the beach and it suddenly appeared behind the hills. There were some huge rocks on the beach and in the sea, some with huge holes in that you can walk through in low tide. It was so peaceful there it was lovely. We also visited Farewell Spit which is right at the top and is about 35km of golden sand which was beautiful. In the evening we found a campsite that was right on the beach and saw the sun set over the mountains which was beautiful.

We had arranged to go horse riding on the beach in the morning but woke up to the pissing rain so had to scrap that plan! We drove down to Takaka which was a lovely little town with a great cafe! We wandered round the town and when it had stopped raining we drove to Pohara and walked to the Wainui waterfall, over a very precarious swing bridge where only one person at a time was allowed on it! The waterfall was quite impressive though - very gushing! From there we drove down to Nelson Lakes National Park. It was slightly precarious at times, especially as we were going up a very steep mountain and it started snowing (and I was the lucky one who was driving at the time!)!!! And then there was some more mountain driving in the dark which was interesting! Nelson Lakes We got to the lakes about 8pm, not that we could tell though as it was pitch dark and we were the only ones about! There was a campsite by one of the lakes and it was a bit scary in the dark, so we locked ourselves in our van in what felt like the middle of nowhere! It was quite a cold night too so we had both heaters on to keep us warm!

When we woke up in the morning it was a clear blue sky and we were surrounded by snow covered mountains, it was a spectacular view to wake up to! And it didn't seem nearly so scary in the daylight! We spent a couple of hours walking around one of the lakes which was beautiful - it's crazy that one day the weather is so bad and the next it's so gorgeous!

The West Coast

From the lakes we drove over to Wesport and down the west coast. We stopped near Westport to see a seal colony. We walked to a lookout and could see lots of seals lazing around as usual in the sun! From there we drove down the coast to Punakaiki to see the Pancake Rocks and the Blowholes, although there was no water spurting out of the blowholes the rocks were pretty impressive to look at! This was a bit of a scary drive as when we left Westport it said there was no petrol for 87kms. We had 1/4 of a tank left and I thought that would probably be enough to get us to the next petrol station... However we started to get a bit concerned as the needle kept going down and then the petrol warning light came on... We had about 12kms to go and I figured there was still enough, which there was but it was a close call! As it was my idea to not go back for petrol I was fully prepared to start walking if we had run out so every kilometre closer we got the less distance I would have to walk! So when I suddenly saw a petrol station I was so relieved!!!!

We carried on driving (with a full tank which was such a great feeling!) to Hokitika along the coast. The sun was setting over the sea and the views were absolutely incredible. We got postcard perfect views of snow covered mountains with a dusky pink sky, and then over the sea the sky was red and orange and it was fantastic. The stars in the sky were also brilliant - the sky was so clear and you could see thousands of stars which was amazing. We got to Hokitika and found a campsite by the beach. There was also a glow worm dell across the road which Grainne wanted to see so we had to walk up this pitch black little path to see hundreds of glow worms - it was quite amazing to see them in their natural habitat.

New Zealand - North Island Part Two

Auckland

Got the bus back to Auckland and met up with Grainne at the hostel. It was so great to see her and it's going to be excellent to have someone to travel with for the next month. However, she managed to acquire a 19yr old Brummie guy on the plane, who seems to be slightly unlucky - in four weeks he managed to have his luggage delayed, lose some shoes, had some incident involving his eye and had to go to hospital and broke his wrist. So we were hoping once he checked in he would disappear but then he appeared at our door as he had lost his wallet!! He was really young and naive and had no clue so we had to spend most of the day trying to help him sort it out and then he kept camping out in our room, but eventually we got rid of him!

We spent most of our time in Auckland trying to sort out our mode of transport for the next month - we eventually (after much debating!) decided to get a campervan for a month to use round the north and south islands. Am quite excited but really nervous about driving it!

We went up the Sky Tower, which is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere I think and the views around Auckland were absolutely amazing. It was getting dark as we were up there so the city was lit up aswell which was great.

Bay of Islands - Pahia

We picked up the camper that was to be our home for the next month! It's a bit old but it's nice enough and has got everything a girl could need! The girl showed us around it and explained how to use everything. There's a toilet cassette that you have to manually empty so we are operating a strict 'no shitting in the toilet' policy so it won't be too disgusting to empty! And then we also have to empty all the other waste water and fill up with fresh water every few days, and there's a little has stove in there aswell for cooking, and a little fridge, although it's so cold you can keep stuff out and it doesn't go off!!

Obviously not that many girls hire campervans without a big strong man to do all the driving and everything, and the vans are obviously designed for men as some things are so big and wide apart! We loaded all our stuff into it - it's going to be sooo nice to not have to pack up my backpack every few days! - and headed off up north to the Bay of Islands.

Grainne decided to drive first so I was on navigation duty which wasn't too bad - we only made one wrong turn! Grainne seemed to get quite comfortable driving it so I was sitting in the passenger seat getting more and more nervous about how I was going to get on! So after a couple of hours I decided it was better get it over and done with so hopped in the driver seat and off I went! I was surprised how easy it was to drive, it did feel a lot bigger than a car but as the roads are so wide over here I was not having any width issues that I thought I might have! Had to contend with lots of mountains and sharp bends and in the dark too but it was fine, I was actually quite proud of myself! Had a bit of fun parking in the supermarket car park and then when we got to the campsite and Grainne told me I would have to back it into the spot for the hookup to the electricity I thought she was having a laugh, but I managed it without putting any dents into it so that was good! And then we settled in for the night! Was a wee bit chilly but not too bad with the heater on!

The next day we went on a cruise round all the islands and up to the famous Cape Brett and the hole in the rock. The scenery was stunning, although there was one rock that the skipper pointed out saying it was the 8th wonder of the world as it had tropical snow on it. I wondered what he was talking about but when I looked it was covered in bird's shit which was lovely! The hole in the rock is exactly what it says on the tin but it is big enough for boats to sail through it which was quite cool! On the way back we spotted a pod of dolphins, there was about 20 or so of them in the water swimming about, it was absolutely amazing to see. We wanted to swim with them but as there were baby ones there we weren't allowed, but still fantastic to watch them in their natural habitat.

We got off the boat at Russell, which I think is one of the oldest towns in NZ, but there wasn't really much there, apart from a really good fish and chip shop! Then we got the boat back to Pahia as we were missing our little camper! We drove up to Waitangi which was a place where a treaty was signed between the Maoris and the British a few hundred years ago so it was really interesting to watch a video to understand about all the history and then walk around and see the place where it all happened.

We then drove down to Whangerei and spent the night there. On the way down we drove through a town called Kawakawa that is apparently really famous for the Hundertwasser toilets, although I had never heard of them! Anyway, seeing as we were passing through we thought we would see what all the fuss was about, only we couldn't find them anywhere! I refused to ask someone where these toilets were so Grainne asked someone and it appeared that we had driven right past them without noticing them! They were quite cool though - lots of different coloured glass bottles cemented in the walls, so glad we made the effort to see them!

Whangerei

Are having a few problems with the camper - a few things don't work properly and there is loads of condensation running down inside the van, making some of our clothes a bit wet. We phoned to complain and they offered us another one so as we head south we had to swing by Auckland to pick up another one. However, as we tried to leave the campsite the van wouldn't move. At first I thought it was my driving then I realised we were stuck in the mud!! But after two strong men and some strategically placed wood we managed to get on our way!

First we stopped at the Whangerei waterfalls for a little walk which was nice and the Town Basin which was lovely as it was right down by the harbour and loads of boats were docked there. Then I drove down to Auckland. Am so used to the beast now though I was zipping in and out of lanes, and it was quite nice to not always be the slowest person on the roads (everyone speeds here but I haven't quite plucked up the courage to do it yet and am quite happy driving along at 100kmph!)!

We got back to the van hire place and they offered us a few different vans and we decided to take the plunge and have upgraded not only to a nicer van but one that is slightly bigger aswell!!!! It feels even more like a bus than the first one, and feels a lot more sturdy aswell and it took a bit of getting used to but was easy enough! I'll be driving trucks soon!! By the time we left Auckland it was getting dark but between us we managed to make it to Rotorua by about 9pm.

Rotorua

We got a spot in the holiday park right by the lake so had a fantastic view when we woke up in the morning of the sun rising over the lake. We wandered into town, through a park where there were lots of hot pools with steam coming off them. There are loads of little holes everywhere where steam pores out of, even in the middle of the road!

We caught a gondola up to the top of a mountain where there were great views of the lake and surrounding areas. Then we decided to try lunging, which is basically a toboggon thing with brakes, and there were a few different tracks you could go on down to get down the mountain. It was great fun, screaming round corners and down dips and stuff! We tried the scenic course first, but then went back on the internediate and advanced tracks where you could go faster and it was cool!

In the evening we went to a Maori concert. There was a dinner option but we decided just to see the concert, but were the only ones to choose this so felt a bit of a pauper when everyone else went to go to dinner and we went back to our camper! But the concert was fantastic. First we walked down to a river and the men, all dressed in the traditional clothes, paddled downt he river in a canoe, singing and chanting. Then we followed them up to a recreation of a village and we had a traditional welcome, with lots more singing and chanting. Then the chief spoke in English and explained everything. They showed us all the different musical instruments they use and the weapons too. Then they did lots more singing and dancing and the chief translated as we went along. Then we had to do a bit of singing and dancing as well but it was quite funny! The language is quite difficult to pronounce but it didn't really matter! Then everyone else went to dinner and we got takeaway fish and chips and ate them in our little van!

The place where we were staying had a hot mineral pool so after dinner we decided to take our glass of wine and sit in the hot pool! It was sooo nice and warm, like a really hot bath, I didn't want to get out as I knew it was going to be cold outside!!

The next day we went to Wai-O-Tapu which is a huge park area with lots of geysers, hot pools and crater things with steam coming out of them! It was so cold though as we walked around, and the weather wasn't that great so the colours of the lakes probably weren't as good as they could've been, but it was still nice to walk around and we could still see a lot of different coloured pools around, and the champange pool was a fantastic colour - orange on the outside and turquoise in the middle. It did stink of sulphur though which was a bit nasty!

We also went to see some mud pools which were pretty cool to look at with all the mud bubbling away! Taupo On the way to Taupo we stopped at Huka Falls which were very impressive. They weren't that big but they were so powerful as the water gushed down the river, and were a great blue colour aswell. Then after that we went to see the Craters of the Moon, which was yet another area with lots of steam blowing out from under the ground! Then we drove into Taupo and got the most amazing view of snow covered mountains behind the lake.

We found a nice campsite close to town, and then went into town to sort out some activities. I was thinking of doing a skydive but it was so expensive I decided there were other things I'd much rather spend my money on! Instead we booked to do the Tongariro Crossing, which is an 18km walk through the mountains which I thought would be pretty amazing. The weather was going to take a turn for the worse though so the next day was the only time we would be able to do it for the next week, so the decision was made for us!

We were picked up at 6.10am, which is the earliest I've been up in a long time and drove over to Tongariro National Park. The storm coming from the north which was supposed to happen in the evening was going to come earlier than expected so it meant we couldn't do the whole walk, we would only be able to go so far and then come back the same way, which was a little disappointing but for safety reasons it had to be that way. We got fitted with boots and crampons and warm gear and then off we went! We were up there for about 7 hours, but it wasn't as cold as I thought it might be, and the weather was so changeable. We encountered a whiteout at one point and then it kept clearing and you got really good views. We walked for a while on the flat, and then when we got to the Devil's Staircase we had to put on our crampons. I've never worn them before but they were great. I felt like Spiderman as you could walk over anything - snow or ice - and you don't slip at all, it was fantastic!

It was a tough walk but not as bad as I was expecting it to be, and when it was clear the views were amazing, but I am a sucker for a snow covered mountain! We found the side of a crater where there were no rocks and turned it into a bit of a slide that was a bit steep but was fun to slide down! And then on the way down sometimes it was just easier to get on your arse and slide rather than walk! We timed it quite well though as just as we got back to the shelter it started raining and didn't really stop for the next 24 hours which was lovely! It was a great day though, am really glad I went up there. It's always a satisfying feeling to feel so physically exhausted after a hard day's walking!

Taurangi

Taurangi is on the south side of Lake Taupo so we drove round the edge of the lake, although the views weren't that great as the clouds were so low. We got to Taurangi and found that there wasn't really anything here, except the white water rafting which Grainne wanted to do so we decided to stay. Saw a climbing wall which I've always wanted to have a go on so we did! It was a bit harder than I thought it would be but it was great fun!

We went to the only bar in town on a Saturday night and it filled up when the rugby came on so we watched that and it was actually quite good when you get into it! But as soon as it finished the whole bar emptied out in about 2 minutes and that was that so that was our exciting Saturday night!!

Most of the next day, when Grainne went on the river, it decided to rain but I thought I'd put all my wet weather gear on and go for a walk anyway! I did get slightly drenched but it was good to be outside and I did a little loop round the river Tongariro.

We had a bit of a scare in the night as at about 4.30am this really loud siren went off for ages. We had no idea what it was for but I figured we were too far away from volcanoes and it was too cold for one to be erupting, but there was the possibility of an earthquake I guess! Grainne was quite freaked out by it, but I guess the years of living close to Broadmoor and having the weekly siren tests made me a bit blase about it and I figured it couldn't be anything too serious -we were close to the police station so I thought maybe it was a signal for volunteer firefighters or something like that. Anyway, Grainne went off down the road to the police station to ask someone what was going on but there was no one there so in the end we just went back to sleep! In the morning we asked someone what it was all about and apparently it was from the fire station which was also just down the road so nothing for us to worry about then!

Wellington

From Taurangi going south you have to drive on the Desert Road which is supposed to be a stunning drive with lots of fabulous scenery. However, the day we decided to drive it it was torrential rain and low cloud so you could see bugger all which was nice! The road was quite twisty and hilly which tested my driving skills aswell!! Further south though the weather improved and some of the views were pretty fantastic. We stopped at a couple of beaches along the way aswell, which were windy and cold but still nice for a little stroll.

When we got to Wellington we finally managed to drag ourselves out for a night on the town, although nightlife in NZ is quite quiet during the week. We visited a couple of places for a drink but there wasn't really that much going on.

We spent the next day in Wellington - went up the cable car and walked round the bottanical gardens, visited parliament and the government buildings and Old St Paul's church, and walked down by the waterfront. Went for a lovely curry in the evening - tried to find somewhere to listen to some jazz but it seems things only happen in Wellington at the weekend which was a bit annoying! It's a lovely city though, I prefer it to Auckland and has a really nice atmosphere.

The next day before we got the ferry over to the South Island we went to the Te Papa museum which had been recommended to us. It was an excellent museum with lots of different rooms and areas about NZ and the geography and the people etc. It had some cool interactive stuff aswell so it was better than just wandering around reading things, you could spend days in the place! Unfortunately we only had a couple of hours so went on a whistle stop tour, which was good, esp as it is the summer holidays over here so the place was full of kids who generally annoy me as they can't behave!!!!

We got the ferry over to the south island, and were told that the last hour was suberb scenery as you come in through the Marlborough Sounds (ie lots of islands!) into Picton. However, in our case the ferry left nearly an hour late so it was dark by the time we got to this bit and it was pissing with rain so we couldn't see a damn thing!!! This seems to be the story of our life at the moment but nevermind, there's always tomorrow and plenty of other stunning places to see!