New Zealand Trip 2007

9 months today

2008-06-20T17:56:00.000+12:00

could have had a babay in that time.
thankfully havent though.

acb- back where i began

2008-06-20T10:31:00.002+12:00

all kind of went without a hitch, got through customs after thanking god my bag was on the round and round thing.
caught the supershuttle at 1245 which cost me $30, and got dropped off at ACB.this was the first ever place i stayed in nz, and it was very wierd to go back there. anyway they forgot id stayed there, it was not until 1.45 that i could go to sleep.
even then i couldnt sleep.
reading a book called the thorn birds which is very interesting.
i read 263 pages yesterday.
this woman interrupted me from reading yesterday, she was wierd from the au government, doing a survey of normal tourists from overseas. after telling her what i did, why i was there and how spontaneous it was- booking the flight 3 days before leaving, i asked her if i counted as normal. i didnt like to think so anyway.
ok well im going to discover auckland again and look for a lotr souvenier for darren.
laters xxx

brisbane

2008-06-19T18:09:00.002+12:00

it wasnt til i looked properly at my ticket yesterday that i realised i was in fact going to brisbane today.
and here i am, been here a couple of hours now, its just waiting waiting waiting. waiting for the bus, waiting for the plane, waiting for the plane to be over, waiting in a queue for food,

whitsunday islands

2008-06-17T19:42:00.002+12:00

took a touristy boat tour round the whitsunday islands, but it was well worth it.

first went for a walk through the bush of one island to a look out point over the bluest sea and whitest sand ive ever seen in my life.
then went to whitsunday beach- like 7kms of the whitest most beautiful beach ever. the sand was incredible. tho it did feel like i was on the beach at the begining of jurrassic park!
then we went for abit of a cruise and stopped off at a snorkel site which was off another island, amazing coral and fishes everywhere, this was the coolest thing ive done since holding a koala.
very nice day out, lots of cool photos, quite hungry now tho, may sample some fresh fiish for dinner.
laters xxx

magnetic island, townsville and airelie beach

2008-06-16T18:00:00.003+12:00

magnetic island
had a wonderful time, went on a wildlife tour- held a koala, croc and a snake, saw and ekidna which was the cutest thing ever. very interesting, also saw a wallaby. went on a bus from one side of the island to another, theres only one road, and really not much to do but admire beau beaches.

townsville
caught bus and ferry back to townsville, stayed three nights at perrines, mainly just chilling- playing wii, making chilli con veges, watching films, catching the bus to random places, walking along the beach at the strand, sitting by the river, taking photos of strange traffic cones and flowers.

arelie beach
didnt really know what to do for the last few days, the boys were going to pick pinapples tommorrow so it was either cairns or aireli beach. this place was closer and has a beach so it was where i chose to go. after a 4 hour journey down south, i realised how little there actually is around oz, you can get into the vastness quite quickly. respect for danny and danny for driving round the whole of it.
so i just arrived here, very touristy but got a good beach, theres lots of clouds around which is not so good, but at least i can wear a hoodie til i wash my clothes.
staying here for two nights before heading back to townsville, where il get my flight back to auckland.

latersxxx

magnetic island

2008-06-11T16:57:00.002+12:00

tom gave me a lift down to the ferry gratefully, it wouldve been alot of hassle otherwise. caught the 1030 and after a 20 min journey arrived. caught a bus through windy roads to horseshoe bay where the yha hostel is. its one of the coolest hostels, the koala sanctuary is right next door! im guna gothere tommorrow.
it is surprising where you end up. horseshoe bayt is one of the most beau places ive seen in a while. picture perfect, yellow sand, blue seas, palms and jungle on the land, boats anchored in the bay and parrots above you in the trees.
laters xx

hello australia

2008-06-10T17:20:00.002+12:00

so after a horrible horrible day- waking up for the bus at 2.45am, somehow navigating through the airport, security and everything else at christchurch, got on the plane at 6am, for a 3 hour flight to sydney. got there where it was raining, and looked very miserable. oz is two hours behind, so i ended up very hungry after getting through customs and being checked into another domestic flight, which gave me nearly two hours to kill at the airport.
ate the most delicious musli and a chai latte and spoke to a woman who was heading home after visiting her son in north carolina- she'd just gotten off a 15 hour flight. got on a new plane and sat next to a 5 year old ozzy and was a showed me how tv can shut small children up very quickly.
flew over the east coast- pure vast expanses of land as far as the eye could see, full of nothingness. just shrubland and desert. managed to get though it ok, and landed at townsville at 2pm ozzy time. that was like a 13 hour journey in total. after collecting baggage met dan- who i met in hk, and his friend from uni tom. toms girlfriend perine lives in townsville, dan and dan crashed into a kangeroo in the desert a few weeks back and so dont have a car anymore- they had to hitch back, leaving their car in the middle of nowhere.
so perine is letting them stay there til they get enough money or a job or something. she is also kind enough to let me stay at their house for a few days so i can get my bearings and know where im going to go next.
yesterday was toms birthday, so all went to a river and swimming and it was like in the middle of the bush and there were wonderful birds and trees and it was so hot. we had a picnic and it was lovely. i cant believe its the midst of winter here, dont think id live in summer!
this morning i caught the bus into the city center and discovered that which is townsville. the hardest thing is working the money out. alot of the shops are the same as nz here, as are the banks. just the terrain, accents, dangerous animals and tv which are different.
walked along the beach at townsville, there were warning signs about box jellyfish in the water. you dont get them in nz. had lots of discussion about all the animals that can kill you or do you much harm here.
going to book a boat to magnetic island in abit so i can go and hold a koala at the koala sanctuary.
well there ya go.
nick got back on saturday and has got severe jet lag.
hopefully that wont be the same for me...
anyway laters xxx

spontanuity

2008-06-07T18:13:00.004+12:00

left xch as planned,
met corrina and nici as planned,
returned to ne brighton and said hello to the sea for the first time in two months,
bought return plane ticket to townsville, australia,
leaving tommorrow at 3am by supershuttle- $17,
sent 5kg package of stuff home,
bought souveniers, sent them home,
walked round botanical gardens,
sat by lake,
watched snow fall,
talked with nici and corinna,
randomly came across two peopleon the street that i knew, who tried to persuade me to join greenpeace and red cross,
checked travel insurance,
savoured trim, chai lattes at the honeypot cafe,
got lost in warehouse,
got confused about the free bus,
bought more souveniers and cuddly kiwi,
sorted out everyhting for trip,
crossing fingers itl all work out as planned!
looking forward to seeing koalas on magnetic island!!!!!!!!!!!!
yay!
laters xxx

social queenstown

2008-05-31T15:17:00.002+12:00

kind of strange how many people ive actaully ended up knowing in qt. it seems that everytime i walk down town i bump into someone i know. yesterday it was jen- from the flight over here who id not seen in 8 months, along with half of the guys from manchester, and today it was darci- who again flew over with me, and again id not seen in her 8 months- the last time id see them both would be pahia.
so i found out that most of the bunac group have gone home, and only probobly five of us remaining in nz out of the 11 who came over.
its nice to know people around who are more than just a face, so you can talk about other people you know, where youve been since the last time you met, future plans and so on.
but i have decided to definately leave on tuesday, and in the next few days there are plans to meet up with so many people from around the place its crazy.
im looking forward to abit of a change, and seeing the girlies again in christchurch.
queenstown is great but unless you have a job or a good bunch of friends, two months is long enough.
laters xx

stuckness

2008-05-30T20:09:00.002+12:00

really want to leave queenstown, but really dont want to be bothered with the crazy constant change of travelling again. but i will go to christchurch- which isnt new seeing as i stayed there for two weeks some time ago, and meet nici and corrina- both of whom are good friends of mine. so its not actaully that bad. will leave qt on tuesday morning, i think itl do me good. maybe il stay in christchurch with the girls for two weeks, christchurch is cool.
laters xx

random

2008-05-26T15:07:00.002+12:00

managed to windle the first dvd of over 700 pictures to just 160 print outs. put them in a photo album and they look cool.
yesterday went for a dinner party at jack and harris new house in fernhill. its only a small house, but it has a wicked view- when its not dark. sam and dave are crashing there for a while. they all have such english names. but theyre cool guys. but living in fernhill would be annoying.
my camera arrived today! which is good, because it means that i can leave queenstwon when i want to now, which will probs be a week tommorrow, so i can go to christchurch and meet up with nici and corinna again, probobly for the last time.
just managed to successfully apply for accommodation at uea. not sure what i applied for, but followed alex's suggestion, but tbh a single room would suit me fine. not for a long while will i share my room.
really cold now, clouds have lifted off the mountain and it looks stunning now.
the other day i woke up and i actually thought i was at home in those first few seconds of waking up, then i realised i wasnt actually and my mood dropped. since tom and everyone else who'd been staying for a while has gone, alpines gone downhill and i really just want to leave. but as the weather is nice, and nici doesnt get to xch til the 5th june, and i have my own room and its for free, so il stay til next tuesday.
well now ive done all i needed to do today i think, so il go back and sit by the fire and write down a little story with each of the photos.
the first one is of ada and i in hong kong.
even though i spent three motnsh in the north island, i cant see how i did, time flies so fast if youre not careful you might miss it. however the south island is so much better. i love it!
err yeah, i need to go and buy food but i really cant be bothered, its really boring and cold and yeah no, maybe tommorrow- always tommorrow.
tara for now xx

random

2008-05-23T12:16:00.002+12:00

200 resumes were handed in for a job at katmandhu- a outdoorsy shop like millets.
no one remains at the hostel anymore.
i would leave straight away and go on a road trip if i could but i dont have a camera.
on sunday we're having a dinner party, which should be nice.
im abit fragile today and have no food.
in a sec will have a small hot chocolate.
very cold today, snowed even more over the mountains.
laters xxx

comings and goings

2008-05-22T16:28:00.002+12:00

snow on the mountains.
today Tom left, he arrived at more or less the same time as i did, 2 months ago. possibly the person ive know longest on my travels. so it was really sad and i did shed a tear or three, alpine will definately not be the same without him.
yesterday pretty much the whole hostel made a three course roast dinner, with fresh soup for starters, a lovely roast for mains- inc yorkshire puddings, then there was icecream but no one had any room left. theres 3 cool manchester guys whove just gotten a house to spend the winter season in. one is a chef, one makes cocktails and the other i dont think has a job atm.
but seriously every single person in this town is looking for a job and its still the low season, crazy.
so basically im still waiting for my camera, which should be here in less than two weeks then i think il go to xch and meet up with nici again, not really sure where to go from there, but who knows.
the 8 month mark passed the other day, which is quite strange.
sometimes- like yesterday i really wanted to stay and then other times i really want to go home. i have a feeling i will live in st ives for a while. not sure why, but apparently its cool, all i remember of it is the art gallery.
ok well im going to go now,
laters xxx

accommodation upgrade and POST 100!

2008-05-16T14:29:00.002+12:00

wow 100 posts
and now i am Titled Naomi Hyland- Night Porter and Cleaner of Alpine Lodge!
so i am lucky enough to live in the 'hobbit house', up stairs, its got a really low ceiling, but its lovely because its all mine until the 10th June or whenever i leave alpine.
its not very big, but has two matresses and a dvd and tv, and drawers and mirror, and window and its really wierd because its like my own space, and because i havent had my own space for months on end its abit scary because i dont know where to put my stuff! hehe, very happy that taff asked me to be 'night porter'- basically just kick people out and switch everything off in alpine and turner. at 5am i woke up and someone was snoring so loud i slept on the sofa- 3rd time in a week, not good.
so i will make the most of this wonderous oppertunity to catch up on some good old sleeeep!
ah wonderful. now i am addicted to pixel puzzles, theyre great, enjoy going to the gym every morning, and need to go to the CAB right now.
anyway so post number 100 for you, and the weather is beautiful again.
maybe i will sit by the lake and so a pixel puzzle with a nice yummy coffee.
laters xxx

new but slightly familliar routine of queenstown life

2008-05-14T13:12:00.002+12:00

snorers drive me so insane that for the past two nights i have ended up moving to the lounge and sleeping on the sofa at around 2am. tbh i love the sofa, its nice and comfy, though when i wake up im like "aaaaargh where am i?!" then i remember and go back to sleep.
decided to use this weeks rent money from work to instead join the gym. tbh i should have joined it much earlier, the changing rooms have straightners and hairdryers- two items which are not readily available in everyday life. there is also nice showers and a sauna there.
so yesterday i went in the morning and in the evening, its nice because you can see the remarkables and part of the lake and lakey mountains, forest and streets below- where you can watch all the buses go round and pick everyone up before heading out for the 12 hour trip to milford sound and back.
and its surprising the number of people ive recognised there too.
yesterday nici, lucy, charlotte, gennette and i went out and had a coffee at the patagonian coffee shop by the lake. we all work together and are all backpackers so theres some quite funny conversation, laughed so much!
next week nici is leaving, so we're all going out to dinner- mmm. but we'll see each ohter again in christchurch along with corrinna, so its ok.
nici is from the black forest- its where all the best people are from :)
weatehr is beau still, however theres no snow on the mountains- which is not too bad, because when it does i will be able to take a photo with it with my camera, which i still havent heard how long it will take. maybe i will call auckland in a bit.
work want me to pay $100 for the sink.
it is strange how many english people travel in groups of two or three, not many are on there own.
oops i just did something wierd to the computer screen.
ok, err yeah not much else to say.
watching alot of checzh films at the moment- which is interesting.
bloc party still rule.
anwyay laters xxx

jobless

2008-05-12T19:08:00.002+12:00

jobless once more, ah well, at least now i can say that for a month of my time i worked as a cleaner in queenstown and it was wicked, which it was, but alas i am not as good a cleaner as i imagined.
now i will swim in the mornings, get free accommodation and then do little for the rest of the day. maybe work out something for skiing. which is now on the top list of priorities, maybe will do some social networking around the place.
it would seem that queenstown keeps firing cannonballs at me, trying to make me leave, but it is such a brilliant place i fear i cannot.
looking forward to swimming now! get up and swim for two hours!
my days of quiet and restful recovery from the past 6 months are over, now back to being active again, and as i dont have a bike a pool will have to do!
yay!
anyway, because the next week of accommodation is free, i have a load of my wages which i can spend. interestingly somehow i did manage to get 20.5 hours last week. absolutely no idea how though.
right now it is pointless trying to look for a job, queues at the job agencies go on forever, half the shops are down to minimal staff, resteraunts have shut and everything is pretty dead. but the backpackers keep coming, and queenstown still continues to bumble along, and all is peaceful and cold in the town.
the english guy tom in the hostel is wayy to good at playing guitar for his own good. and because he knows he is, i dont tell him. people like that are so annoying!
anyway laters xxx

coronet peak

2008-05-11T16:16:00.002+12:00

this is one of the ski fields in the region, and where we went cleaning today.
amazing- never seen a ski field before now, but they look pretty cool, there were some snow boarders and skiers on the snow, which looks so fun!
forget about leaving queenstown i want to go ski!
looking forward to it.
but otherwise it was a very bad day.
laters xxx

queenstown

2008-05-08T14:08:00.004+12:00

same same, hostel life changes though, franchescas gone on her way towards south america, and im getting fewer and fewer hours this week.
got paid $220 for last week, $140 of that went on accomm, $50 went on food, and so i have $30 to blow on the rest of the week.
writing up a book of my travels now, got 30 pages done in two days.
really cold here now, but still as beau as ever.
not much is going down really, so there ya go
although i hear the cost of the ferrys are going up again.
wightlink make me grry.
laters xxx

cameras and snowy mountains

2008-05-02T12:04:00.002+12:00

day off today, woke up to big flakes of snow falling from the sky.
watched them whilst eating P&J on toast. compared nz marmite, vegemite and 'our mate' which is REAL marmite; imported from the UK which an english guy had bought. UK stuff definately wipes the others off any scale of comparison.
the cloud lifted to show the mountains covered white nearly all the way to the bottom! the luge hill has got pine forests covered in snow, looking like a dramatic narnia. really cool. maybe il walk up there later.
tried to take a picture of an autumnal scene of a stream running through fallen golden leaves and willow trees, only to find that my camera does no longer work and the zoon is all dead. slightly annoyed i called up the people in auckland and told them the problem, they said send it to them and theyll fix it in 2 weeks. and thats what i did, never seen so much bubble wrap. hopefully itl be covered by warrenty, thank goodness id still got the receipt all the way from way back in hong kong.
so for now, you'll just have to imagine how beau the snow is here, like a scene from a christmas card.
just looked outside its sleeting, apparently this never usually happens, sadly it rarely settles.
now it is may, i cant actully believe it.
still waiting for zen battery and watch,
hopefully il be able to keep my job for the next few weeks without being fired.
but life goes on, and i guess little bits and pieces happening make life abit more interesting?
maybe il just go back to the hostel and drink cups of tea by the fire now, tell ya what, its nice to have abit of winter once in a while!
laters xxx

ferg

2008-05-01T18:21:00.002+12:00

worked from 8-5.30 today ,longest day ever.
snow on the mountains.
was so hungry decided to have first fergburger- tropical swine; beef burger, cheese, pinapples, bacons, salad and made the mistake that everyone makes- buying chips. even though i was so hungry, i still couldnt finish it.
thankyou fergburger!
tomato ketchup is not so nice here, look forward to the good ol' heinz from home.
laters xxx

things

2008-04-29T12:36:00.003+12:00

are getting more complicated.
cant explain too much about that on here,
anyway just talked to nick for the first time in ages and hes going back to the uk for uni.
so thats cool, summer is looking better already, not much is going on, but it is raining, and i am going back to work at 6pm.
laters xx

arrowtown autumn festival

2008-04-28T13:14:00.002+12:00

autumn is surely one of the most beau times of the year, yellows, oranges, reds, browns all vivid. so beautiful with the lake and mountains. a patchwork of colours.
there is a sense of excitement about the season to come, yet another transformation of the mountains.
its strange how the englishness has been upkept through the generations which have past, steamrollers, fudge, lavender, soaps, knitting, jams, beads, scones and pickles all for sale at little family owned stalls, in amongst the fallen leaves and underneath the golden trees. the sound of acoustic guitar wavers on the cool breeze.
parades of floats and cars- some older than nz itself, the queen with corgies, superheroes, pirates, cubs and scouts, fire engines and ambulances, bikes and fairies make their way in procession. giving a very havenstreet feel to it all
but little differences creep in, sausage sizzles, paua and greenstone jewlery, the wail of the wartime siren which calls firefighters to work, 'lollies' for sale- marshmallow fish, hokeypokey, peanut clusters, only then- along with the sun going over the mountain at 3pm, do you realise youre not on the isle of wight, or england, no instead your in new zealand, and they do things differently here...
sure!

life atm

2008-04-26T11:10:00.002+12:00

not many hours going down atm tbh- lol computer speak, maybe jennifer will have to interpret for the parents.
beautiful weather all the time. theres a do going on at arrowtown- the autumn festival so maybe will go for a visit this afternoon.
has been a good few days, lunching by the lake, playing pool in the evening, chasing amy, getting lots of internet time, listening to joy division on youtube- shes lost control, irish guys making up crazy songs about the poor french girl, beautiful weather, seeing the scenery around here, finding out joy division features on the donnie darko soundtrack, eating out of date marshmallow santas, talking to girls from kendal, making hundreds of beds, looking at the vivid changing colours of the landscape in contrast to the ugly evergreen pines, chatting with nicky from germany whilst eating waffles, only spending money on accommodation, being annoyed at the english guy who is staying long term at the hostel and is a complete jock- aka idiot, wondering how pavel- checzh guy at the hostel, manages to stay out so late then work 10 hours the following day, watching weetbix turning into mush when you add boiling water to them, then sprinkling with sugar, asking for no ice and a straw in me coke at buffalo, looking at the stars in the pitch black sky, seeing the bright lights of the gondola shut off at night, being inspired by the height of ben lomond as clouds gather around the base, finding other people who appreciate bloc party as much as i, trying to pick out english people in the street, helping tom- a jewish german to make pancakes, playing card games we make up with stupid numbers of rules, drawing random pictures in peoples books by mistake, potting a black, not potting anything, eating rice everyday for the past few days for dinner, using unnamed milk from the fridge to make free tea taste better, being excited underworld is playing the bestival, talking to people on msn, wrapping up on the coldest days with gloves and drinking tea, having two plug sockets next to my bed, being glad that the scarves and shoes ive dragged round with me for the past six months have finally come into good use, getting turner lodges key so i can use the landline phone instead of spending money on phone cards, each day being amazed that i am here- still cannot believe it, looking forward to my zen battery coming through the post, wondering what i will do about working, trying to find something interesting to write in my blog, realising that time is being taken away faster and faster, trying to make the most of each day as it passes, :)

thats all for now,
xxx

a womans touch

2008-04-21T14:13:00.002+12:00

well started my job today, and yay its brilliant.
working the whole week. which is nice, maybe il even be rich by the end of it.
however when my first pay cheque comes in i have vowed to eat a fergburger.
woop.

7 months away

2008-04-19T13:24:00.003+12:00

thats right.
got a job as a cleaner which i start on monday, hopefully i can work in the evenings too as a babysitter. having an interview for that soon.
got a hoodie made up yesterday, its got nz on the front and 'ich spreche kien deutch' 'New Zealand Trip 2008' on the back. navy and bright yellow print. pretty funky.
and i found out that another girly is working at the squadron. girl power!
and i found out that someone i know from school might be in nz atm.
erm yeah, thats all that happened now.
laters

snow on the mountains!

2008-04-18T13:51:00.002+12:00

went outside today to do the last cleaning day at turner lodge, and looked up to see snow on the mountian tops! ah wonderful! yay! heard on the radio that temperatures are a high of 8 degrees in queenstown today. a real difference from yesterday.
the hostel paid me $35 for my extra hours which was nice. just went to the salvation army store to see if there was a nice warm jumper or something, sadly no.
anyway. there you go.

converstation outside fergburger

2008-04-16T13:09:00.002+12:00

boy- 'hello are you in the cue?'
me- 'yes, where are you from?'
boy- 'england'
me- 'where abouts in england?'
boy- 'south'
me-'where abouts in the south?'
boy- 'near portsmouth, near gosport?'
me- 'yeah i know it'
boy- 'where are you from?'
me- 'the isle of wight'
boy- 'cool, you know lee on solent? its opposite cowes'
me- 'with the long beach yeah, i work in cowes'
boy- 'really so do i, i crew on a charter yacht in cowes week'
me- 'wow im drive a launch in cowes week'
boy- 'small world eh?'

the end.

today i found a leaflet of the london underground, and realised i actually miss london an awful lot. there is no place which is even close on matching it here at all.
corinna left today, which was really quite sad. i will miss her, i have decided that i will give it a week and if i am not 100% happy im going to go to dunedin!
yay.

ok well thats all really.
oh and by the way dont ride horses, the other day, the people were riding up in northland and there was a big thunderstorm and a few got struck by lightning! its true i tell you!
big weather going on in the north, a beautiful day here.
laters xxx

comings and goings

2008-04-15T13:44:00.002+12:00

being pestered to upkeep blog from parents, so here you go.
was corinnas birthday yesterday, so i bought her some 'three wishes' cadburys chocolate, which is like white, milk and dark in layers, its yummy. and a glass with some funny sheep on it, which look like us, also a pretty card which i later found out was made in the uk.
the english accent annoys me so much. gotta cold now which isnt so good.
anyway back to yesterday, after finishing cleaning, met with corina and we sat by the lake, saw a bloke who'd stayed in the hostel yesterady, he went stunt flying the day before and said it was amaizng! then we headed to winnies and had a pizza, which was really yummy, then we played a game of pool in buffalo. im so rubbish at it. then we went to lick icecream bar, and had birthday icecream- hazelnut praline and white chocolate & rasopbrry for me. im not going to eat icecream for a long time now.
went back to the hostel and met up with corinnas cool roommates- two germans and a french canadian girly, they were all quite characters, we had a nice evening all together, started to rain later.
i still have yet to watch my film i got for $10, dazed and confuzed, maybe this afternoon.
looks like corinnas got the queenstown bug too, shes torn into staying and going.
but im oging to see what i feel like in a week and if im not happy, il go to dunedin, but as always time will tell.
there are so many french canadians around atm. a lovely girl called emily left us, she was a definate member of the alpine lodge crew and shes gone to dunedin today. lee- from uk is leaving next monday, and corinna is leaving to go to the catlins tommorrow.
a month ago i arrived in queenstown for the third time.
it will be sad when corinna leaves, but we'll see what goes, dunedin seems more appealing now.
ok well that was a pretty boring blog, but i was asked for it.
laters xxx

frisbees and babies

2008-04-13T19:03:00.002+12:00

still in love with queenstown.
every day you see another reason to love it, be it a view or whatever.
incredible place. thats why im not leaving for a bit.
working 2-3 hours cleaning the hostel, they pay me the excess of 14hrs per week with $10 an hour, which is sweet. and they say i can stay on cleaning even when this job finishes. we got some wicked people staying in the hostel, we're all around for a while, so go out a play frisbee golf and have breakfast together and share the same room, its cool.
today they went swimming in the lake and got 9 frisbees out there. ben lost his $30 one in the lake yesterday when we played. i borrowed one from the hostel, which they found and it had a number on it, so the owner just txt me back which is quite funny. anyway im going to give it back, cus its a damn expensive one.
anyway, today was cool, last week i applied to a babysitting agency online and they txt me today to say there was a 'job' just out of town. so i left after hostel work and looked after a lovely little one year old ausralian girly whilst her honeymooning parents suffered from food poisoning. poor things.
never in a million years would i have thought that i would have ended up babysitting and actually enjoying looking after children. anyway she was amzing, and so clever and we watched the boats and people and planes go past the kin expensive apartment, with an awesome view. it was fun, and i got cash!
i dont see why anyone would want to stay in an apartment, theyre so antisocial, and you never meet anyone. hostels are the way forward.
it has been a wonderful week, ive been chilling out with Corinna from Germany
, who i met in Pahia and Napier, we're like such good friends, and have gone out pretty much everyday, its her birthday tommorrow, so il have to get her something!
the most beautiful weather in the world at the moment, clear, not too hot, not too cold. no snow yet. very happy, still looking for a job, but i felt like id done a good deed after today. :)
need to call the parents and jessica now. and maybe eat tiramisu gelato with corinna.
laters xxx

queenstown

2008-04-04T14:33:00.003+13:00

amazing sunset last night. the sky just glowed.
raining hard today.
on my last pair of trousers- left home with with 4, 3 of those were completely worn out and i gave the others away, need to buy a new pair.
started earning my keep at the hostel today- 10 til 1, its easy.
need to get a new battery for my zen, lost my mini speakers which were my favourite things which i owned.
have very few possessions anymore. its nice to feel that you dont really need possessions to live- only toiletries and clothes/ shoes are the essentials. a bed helps too.
all my important stuff i take with me everywhere i go. passport and camera and nationwide card.
cant believe i lost my speakers.
maybe tommorrow i will go and get some more.
anyway. im off, laters.

milford sound

2008-04-03T12:30:00.002+13:00

well it was a beau day, after leaving the milford sound lodge, saying adios to the south african anniversiariers, walked down the road to the warf, and was just astonished, the most beautiful scenery. amazing peaks being reflected in the stillest of water.
sooo cold that even the sandflies wernt out.
drew a picture of it all, had a rubbish flat white which failed to warm me up and then waited hours for the kiwi experience bus which eventaully turned up.
went on the 1330 boat, and wolfed down the free lunch. just stood outside in awe the whole time. my cameras batery was dying so sadly couldnt take so many pics- maybe 70, couldve taken hundreds. amazing. undescribable. go there.
then went to an underwater observatory, and saw all the deep water fishes who live near the surface cus the fresh water above the salt water blocks out the sunlight.
i really feel like the coral, all the time being swayed too and fro. but thats a different story.
so then got off the boat, and for the longest bus ride ever, with no phone signal to help the time go by quicker, and really needing a wee nearly all the time.
then the bus broke down, in the dark just in sight of the twinkling lights of queenstown. still needing a wee, and even more annoyed cus i would be fined for stealing if i didnt retun a camping pot set at 9pm. the other bus turned up at 8.30, and after dropping a load of people off at random hostels, got my pots to the info and track shop with 8 minuites to spare.
phew.
good day apart from the bus ride.
go to milford sound.
laters xxx
oh and i was devestated this morning cus i lost my mini speakers.

routeburn track

2008-04-01T16:55:00.002+13:00

the first rule of fight club is, you do not talk about fight club.
the second rule of fight club is, you do not talk about fight club.

that phrase got through the past few days. wicked film that one.
well yes, just finished the routeburn maybe 3 hours ago.
first day was fine, beautiful weather, the path led up the routeburn river valley to the hut, mainly through beech forest, but there were pretty views overlooking the valley id just walked up when go to the hut.
second day was erm, vile to put it mildly. after the pretty sunrise over the valley, rain set in. got up to the saddle and could not see anything. then got very cold and wet whilst the alpine wind blew every inch of warmth from my body. a lot of low cloud stopped any decent view from being seen. eventually decended into beech and then drunk 4 hot chocolates and had a nice ricey tuna dinner to warm me up.
after raining all night, it carried on throughout the whole time i walked on the third day. the side streams had swelled into near impassable torrents- ok maybe over exaggeratement slightly, and the tracks had turned into rivers. byt the time i had marched the 12km to the end- all the time rain, was drenched to the bone.
so cold, then had to wait 2 hours for the bus.
arrived at the lodge which it is now sunny, and feel warm after an extended shower and hot chocolates and tunary rice.
more the day after tommorrow,
laters xx

ben lomond- mountain

2008-03-29T10:16:00.003+13:00

kind of become addicted to walking.
yesterday it was supposed to be raining, but it wasnt, so i decided one day was enough for recovery from rees dart, so after watching mallrats and eating peanut butter and jelly toast for bfast, donned the walking boots and transfered the previous nights chilli con carne to a glad pot, headed up the hill.
the track starts as the gondola track through pine forest, then after 40 mins, you turn off up a steeper track, for another half an hour through pine forest, then you come out in a deforested area, which feels much less chlostrophobic. from here you walk up and up, pass through a beech forest, then come into tussock land, onto a ridge system and now the views start getting good. 2.5 hours from the start you get to the saddle, where i demolished an apple whilst looking at the endless mountain ranges the other side of the hill.
wind chill got me moving again- no sandflies here! an hour to the summit, very rocky, steep path. was going to eat chilli con carne on the top, but the path just went on forever and i was so hungry, ate it 3/4 way up.
continued up the path, wind was blowing abit too mcuh for my liking, but id got this far, and it was kinda getting good views an all. got to the top 3 hours after id left the hostel and found myself in a small cloud. this broke away and you could see forever all 360 degrees around you. amazing. i love this area. one of the best places in the world i'd bet.
silence up there. so still and eerie, with the constant change of the clouds, and everything- forest, lake, mountains and hills so still beneath you.
then it started to rain, which broke the spell, so headed back down, checking out the amazing views on the way back down. got back to the hostel in 2.5 hours, being steep downhill all the way it was kind of hard going.
apparently was 12km in total, but a good way to spend a day!
very hungry by the time i got back, had dinner and watched blow, then met up with gab, pete and a scottish guy gab knew. went to biid early, zzzz.
just talked to a guy from california. apparently in cali they have desert, surf and big mountains- all thanks to earthquakes of course. cant help thinking id like to see that state, all the people ive met from cali are just cool.
today im buying food and sorting my stuff out for the routeburn tommorrow, that will take me two nights to complete, then i go to milford sound for one night and a boat cruise on wednesday- with free lunch il have you know, before heading back to queenstown on wednesday evening. i have yet to work out what container to put my showergel, shampoo and conditioner in for that trip, ah the trials and tribulations of tramping eh?
anyway, thats enough from me,
i guess next post will be on thurday when i have recovered from the next few days big and probobly last proper adventure in this part of the country.
go fjordland!!!
laters xxx

rees dart track

2008-03-27T09:48:00.002+13:00

22nd march
met katie, a scottish girl i met in sumner, and we both wernt too inspired by louging, so we walked up the massive gondola hill together. a random chat lead us to deciding to do a four day hike together- the rees dart, which my daddy did when he came to nz like 9 years ago.
the rest of the day was spent buying hut tickets, bus tickets, hiring a stove and buying food for the trip. we were to leave the next morning. spontaneous eh?

23rd march
queenstown- glenorchy- shelter rock hut
got up at 7, ate mini eggs for bfast. katie picked me up in her van at 8 and we navigated to glenorchy. amazing views. got there in time to store the van, fill out an intentions form and get on the bus. bus drove us to the start, well away from phone signal or any sign of life. set off at 10am, along grassy plains with stunning rugged mountains either side of the valley. the rees was glacial blue and snaked its way through the plains. lol, we were warned we should be experienced in river crossings, but had no idea how many. knee deep, ice cold, very strong water battered our bare feet, desperately trying to remain upright, if only for the sake of my camera. in the end wore sandles through bogs and rivers for this bit. abit of hill scrambling and precarious edges. much holding on to plants at the side of the 'path', many 4x4s owned by hunters under trees- why couldnt they givusa lift eh? im surprised theres any left. got into the beech forest, starting to accend, over swing bridges, came to a grassy flat and sat on a big rock for lunch. beautiful clear day. sandflies got us moving again. started to tire at 3.30, all up hill. got up into shrubland. crossed stream, then were lost. path was totally gone. no idea where we went wrong. couldnt see the people who were ahead of us, just bushes, mountains, forest and nothing else. after a long time stood on top of a rock, saw what looked like a cairne perched ontop of a big rock. decided it was our only chance, i guess we couldve retraced our footsteps back down the stream we'd followed up, but hey. anyway, after much stabbage by big spike plants, and lovely wafting of the manauka bushes, got to cairne, and found path! crossed final bridge to hut, where we arrived at 4.30. good going i thought, 16km. dried my stuff out, beautiful view from hut up to big snowy mountain. slept real good.

24th march
shelter rock hut- dart hut
cold night, katie woke me up from a good dream at 7.30. had breakfast, weetabix. left at 8.45, 3.5 hour accent through tussocks and rocks with the sun coming up over the western ranges? very big and dramatic scenery, long and tedious up hill walk. followed streams all the way up. few trees and very desolate environment. climbed steep- what felt like 90 degree hill next to sheer rock face to rees saddle. got there at 11.15. bite to eat and a hot cross bun. amazing surroundings. many valleys going in all different directions. snow capped mountains, awesome. very steep decent followed next to damn deep gorge. vegetation changed from alpine grasses to 'alpine gardens'- cool shrubbery. very pretty indeed.steep drops right next to path into deep narrow cravass. katie talked to cool israeli guy who did the kepler last week- like me! anohter beau day. scenery too amazing to describe. saw glaciers etc, awesome. reached hut at 1345, only 9km day. couldve spent all day walking that path- more like scrambling, quite demanding in places, especially with pack. very strained knees now. laid by river, eaten by sandflies. played cards with some americans. talked to an interesting usa geologist, want to do geology now. some israelis turned up at 9pm, after trecking from the start for 11 hours. crazy people.

25th march
dart hut- daleys flat hut.
amazingly clear, beau day again. set off at 9. after a 'sidle and decent'- lonely planet, more like scrambling up and down streams trying to work out where the path went, relying on cairnes for guidance. two hours through beech forest, came into the cattle flats, ice blue dart river winding through gold meadows, with snowy mountians dominating either side of the valley. crossed many large side streams and managed to navigate our way across them, good for cooling off in the hot sun. thanked god it hadnt rained before, up and down gulleys with a stop off on another said rock with bees and sandflies for company. back into beech forest for what seemed like eternity, came out to flat grassy plain, praying hut would emerge... it didnt instead found lost american girl, we walked the rest of the way together. finally got to hut 5 hours after we started, sandflies galore. terrible things. thats all people talk about here. sandflies. couldnt even wash outside or visit river. siestad til 6pm then had uncle bens mexican rice for dinner. more israelis and american girl turned up, had a lovely evening, filled with laughter. :)

26th march
woke up in the dark at 7.30. 6 of us left in a big bunch, we walked together to the end which was nice. left at 8.40. mix of beech forest, grassy golden flats, gravel flats, with a stunning back drop of massive mountains and winding blue river. amazing, just stunning everywhere. cloud cleared by mid morning, climbed really steep sandy bluff, with major drop offs. new mountain ranges came into view. quite hard to determine path sometimes, glad i wasnt alone. pretty all the way, probobly most scenic today, really felt like were in lotr. got to chinamans bluff, bus pick up at 1230. many sand flies and bees were around until 2pm when the bus came. drove us back ot glenorchy, stunning scenery all around this area. just awe inspiring.

amazing trip, much more demanding than any other trekc ive done before. thankyou katie for coming with me!

nursing

2008-03-22T11:51:00.000+13:00

is the way forward methinks

six months gone by

2008-03-21T10:47:00.002+13:00

and im still here. yesterday we looked on a globe, and found that new zealand is like even more 'down under' than australia, and i mean australia is quite far away.
still even now i dont believe im here, i dont think any of us do. its all quite extrodinary, and i dont feel very far away from home at all. i guess its all this technology lark, and my music. if i didnt have my music i think id keel over.
yesterday i finished a wicked book, 'island' by richard laymon, really thought provoking well ish, it finished really well and you couldnt help but think of how it ended for the rest of the day!
still in queenstown right now, listening avidly to bloc party :)
am not overly sure how long im guna stay, but have had a very enjoyable time so far, omg nearly been here a week already.
talked to a guy called robert? richard? rupert? im so bad with names, anyway hes from south london, and it was so funny to hear a south london accent. maybe thats why i wanted to listen to bloc party.
today is good friday so is a good exscuse to eat hot cross buns. here they got ones with chocolate chips instead of fruit, maybe il go for some of them mmm. otherwise will read the second book of my book by the lake.
its strange how once you run out of one toiletaries you run out of them all. for example four months after i bought my first conditioner i run out, lost my shower gel, ran out of tooth paste, deoderant... it all adds up, maybe i can survive withouut conditioner for the next few months.
got 2000 free texts to vodaphone phones in nz, which is cool, but they took $10 off my credit so i dont have anymore, alas, will have to just text people in nz for the next month methinks.
the play list this internet place is good, kooks, kt tunstall, lemon jelly, lilly allen... its a little confusing when youre listening to bloc party which keeps stuttering at the same time. ah man i love bloc party so much.
maybe tommorrow il deal with kiwi experience, or maybe not, but i really want to go to milford sound, looks like il head straight to kaikoura after this though, see some dolphins and then go up to wellington. shish, im on the return journey now. but il probobly go up to the northland for the last few weeks of my trip to catch some rays.
ah man who knows where il end up. need to get my jacket and scarf from the other hostel now, we had a bbq yesterday and watched the moon rise through the vivid colours of the sunset over the remarkable mountains. today i looked at the mountains that loom over queenstown and they called to me. eek, a girly i met tooday is doing the kepler tommorrow, i hope the weather holds out for her.
ok, well im only procrastinating now, this is like the fifth time ive listened to this flux track by bloc party. ah theyre so awesome.
anyway i got to go, laters, omg this track flux is so good!
woo go bloc party!

kepler trail

2008-03-18T11:39:00.002+13:00

ok, well i laid in bed til 11am this morning and decided to get up and write down what i did...

so the kepler... again il just write it from my diary,

13th march
awoke in the dark at 7am, had fresh pressurised coffee and decided to take my passport with me instead of leaving it in hte car at the hostel.
the hostel owner bob was kind enough to give ursula and i a lift to the control gates (of the dam) which saved us an hours walk on the road.
first bit was through lake level forest of beech, very quiet except for the squeeking on my backpack, eerie mist over still lake te anau as the cloud lifted.
got to the dock bay campsite, where you can be dropped by boat if youre lazy and rich, and then started the long windy killing accent for 2 hours up through the forest to the bush line, after stopping for a lunch of cheese and salami with sour doug bread, under some limestone massive boulders.
came out into tussocky grassland, over board walks, for nearly half an hour, before reachhing the massive luxmore hut which was at first surrounded by cloud, but soon cleared completely after we got there. amazing views from hut over the lake te anau and mountains to hte norht. had a coffee and decided to climb mt luxmore, as it was such a beautiful day. after an hours climb, got to the top and had an amazing 360 degree view, very impressive indeed. spend over half an hour at teh summit, took lots of photos and absorbed the surroundings. worked out we'd covered over 20kms today, nearly all up hill. made hot chocolate and tomato sauce and pasta in the eveing, went to bed at dark- 8.30 pm.

14th march
awoke before light, had porridge and coffee outside the hut in the windless, cloudless sunny day that had been gratefully given to us. retraced yesterdays footsteps up to mt luxmore saddle and after taking in hte view again and recovering, trecked on downhill along the side of the mountains to the next emergency shelter. definately a loo with a view here, precariously positioned on hte edge of a hill which steeply dropped away below you... carried on up the next mountain, every few minuties stopped to take pictures, views were just unbelievable. then reached a ridge system which we crossed for two hours... thank god it was not in the least bit windy, or else i dont know what i would have done. must admit the old heart was racing as we walked along the path with very high and steeply dropping 45 degree hills descended from either side.
apparently we crossed 9 avalanche paths on this day... and the path stays open in winter! no snow around here thankfully. sat at the highest point of the ridge and had lunch. no words could ever describe the view, so i wont bother. continued along the ridge to a look out peak which you could see the lake and valley we walk through and down tommorrow, then walked slowly down an endless zigzagging path for nearing two hours, breaking the bush line into old beech forest then finally reaching the valley floor and the iris burn hut... relieved that we'd got there in one piece, but this was where ursula had her first encounter with the sandflies! baby oil and dettol seems to be the key to keeping them at bay though!
later after a dinner of cheesy, tunary pasta, went for a walk to the pretty waterfall which luckily didnt involve any major hills, but did see some sandflies, walked 16km today. slept really badly, but could hear kiwi birds squawking outside!

15th march- my bday!
got up before 7am in the dark, had a mini snickers bar with a match for a candle, left at 7.30 am , followed the stream- which gradually became a river, through the beech forest for 16.5km, mostly downhill, but definately an unpleasant slog. the previous day the ranger had told us the next hut was at stoat trap number 113- theyre placed at 200m intervals, and both me and ursuala found ourselves avidly counting down. reached the next hut which most people were staying at, but thankfully we wenrt- sandflies seemed to like breeding here, a home near a lake with a mountain view is a good place to bring up baby sandflies dont you know. slowly walked through forest for teh last 6km, to the swing bridge of rainbow reach, which couldnt have come sooner! exhausted we got there by 2.30 so caught the shuttle bus straight to the hostel. had a lovely hot and much extended shower, then dosed for a few hours. got fish and chips for ursulas first ever tasting, along with chocolate and muffins to follow- we thought walking over 50km was worthy of some unhealthy food. called home and then had another bad sleep.

weather was fine for all three days which we were so lucky for. a very worthwhile walk to anyone considering the milford or routeburn, if you get good weather, we couldnt think how any other track could beat the views you see on the second day!
man it was definately a successful trip :)
xxxx

queenstown... il write the kepler later

2008-03-17T11:06:00.003+13:00

well before i tell you of my three day adventure i have to say that to anyone thinking of staying in queenstown, do not, under whatever pressure youre under, stay at the Escape Backpackers- because you just want to do exactly what it says on the tin.
oh btw just managed to work the amazing birthday powerpoint, thankyou so much- its so funny that i cant remember when half those pictures were taken, we all look so young!
well yesterday was lovely, i got a lift to queenstown with ursula who went on a milford boat trip earlier in the morning, we and this other german girl drove through fabulous mountain, lake scenery for around 3 hours to qt. pete had booked me a room in his hostel, which i was grateful for, then i got there and met pete, and he said that gab from wayyyy back- met him when i met pete in acb in september, anyway gab was in town, so we found the hostel with him and it was so wierd to meet up as friends with those two. they and petes friend stew? who id also met previously decided to have a ferburger- a massive burger which apparently are the best in the world- i stuck with onion rings and aoli. then we went to a empty bar, and it was so wierd to be around english boys- it was good to hear some random rubbishy topics instead of the (now) boring generic (is this the right word?) topics always discussed between people meeting at hostels- so all in all it was a lovely evening.
went back to the hostel and the room was windowless, airconditioned, smelly and small, and i just dont know why i just lay there extreemely uncomfortable and unable to sleep. i found myself resorting to going down the road at 4am lol asking the 24hour open base backpackers whether they had any single rooms available. they didnt, so i just went back to the hostel and wathced stupid advert tv and then found this abosolutely awful dvd called the quiet which was in thai at first. by about 6am after watching bbc world, i was exhausted and could hardly think so i went back to my 'bed' and managed to have a nightmare- lol, in my dream i even asked myself whether it was a dream, and i think i slapped myself and told myself it wasnt- anyway it was about the flight home. maybe i just really dont want to go home, but then just now i shed a few tears looking at the pics on the powepoint.
so as soon as i woke up i looked for hostels with single rooms and i found one which wasnt full, and i immediately booked it- $50 a night, by i dont care, my body is doing strange things with this continuous lack of sleep- like not sleeping.
anyway so this morning i dumped my stuff at the new hostel (#37) and got a carton of orange juice, chewing gum and a chicken sarnie and after going to an awfully slow internet cafe, i asked a lady in a jewlerry shop and she suggested this one, and its wicked.
omg i am so sleep deprived i think il sleep for a week.
i can go in my room on my own in half and hour, and will sleep all afternoon and have a lovely shower and just sleep. i cant even remem,ber when i slept to my full sleeping capacity.
omg, this blog is far too long, dreadfully sorry if you were intent on reading something interesting...
il write about the kepler track later, or tommorrow, or next week when i wake up!
anyway laters xxx

te anau

2008-03-12T20:12:00.002+13:00

just logged onto blogger and got abit confused cus it was all backwards in hebrew!
well here i am watching the sun go down over the massive mountains... where i will be sleeping tommorrow!
it has been a strange few days i tell you.
so caught the bus from dunedin to owaka and saw some big hooker sealions and rare yellow eyed pengiuns with an israeli couple in the eveing, at nugget point which was derinately a very beautiful sight. the same cant be said for owaka however and so thus i took the quickest escape route possible, with a couple of english gapyearers, for approx an hour down the road to Curio Bay. the hostel was awse, with only 9 people max, stood right on the beach (which is renowned for the rare hectors dolphins- of which i saw 0), a storm raged outside whilst we sat by the log fire, with lilly the cat, it was definately one of my dream houses that one. in the evening me and this lovely german ladee called Ursula went out in the wind storm to the 140 million year old petrified forest and watched the yellow eyed penguins swim, then waddle and hop in from the roaring waves, then saw a couple right below us petting each other. :)
this morning the weather had not changed, and so idecided to catch a ride with Ursula, she was going to Te Anau, and i was still debating whether to go to stewart island or not. got to invercargil... which looked not so nice, so decided to carry on up the road for 200kms into the red tussock and mountainy regions of te anau of the sounds.
then we decided to do the kepler track together... starting tommorrow! will be two nights, so went to the DOC office, after finding a suitable, if not slightly strange hostel on the outskirts of te anau.
bought two days worth of food from supervalue and then partially exhausted went back to the hostel and watched the devil wears prada.
have divided my stuff into stuff to leave here, and stuff im taking with me up the blooming mountain.
its good when you have such random days as these, its so funny where you can end up and who you can meet.
ok, well i really should phone my parents and tell them where i am and what im doing... it means im going to finish the trail- approx 20km of it, on my birthday.
the weather has been beautiful today, i really hope it stays that way for the next three!
great walk number three here i come!
laters xxx

dunedin

2008-03-09T18:42:00.002+13:00

have to admit now ive been stuck in dunedin for three nights again, i have grown to love it muchly.
freezing my toes off in this internet cafe rtight now, so am drinking a yummy hot chocolate.
so altogether being stuck here hasnt been so bad afterall, my efforts to make it an enjoyable experience have definately paid off, now i love it!
so climbed the steepest street in the world- although the usa has a rivalling street apparently, but it was pretty steep.
the next day i followed some advice in the lonely planet- first time i read it in a long while, and ended up catching a bus to the middle of nowhere and walking to the most beautiful bay ever, big sandrock formations and everything, nice find and beautiful day. talked to a student/triathlon guy who was a local, and had a chat, which was cool.
then later after a reboosting flat white, vistited the art gallery and the old train station, and was thinking i was being cultural really. good bits of art in there, i was really impressed- although i dont know if jessica would be, i liked it though.
then after a cheap mans sushi for dinner- rice and dolphin friendly tuna with pepper and onion, decided to go and watch the Royal New Zealand Ballet- A Tower of Red. Paid like $27 for it, and i think it was my first ballet, there was lots of tutus and some newer wierd contempory stuff. I liked it, I think. The girlies looked very pretty, and the guys could jump very high without touching the ground, they reming me of faeries.
Exhausted i woke up ready to catch the bus at 8am only to be told there was no bus til tommorrow, so went back to sleep for another three hours. Rainy and cold wind blowing today, decided to visit the hot pools at st claires, instead it was not very warm, but a full length 25m pool, completely devoid of people, which i didnt complain about, but swam up and down for over an hour. had to borrow goggles to stop the sea water stinging, and talked to the nice kiwi life guard for a while.
waves were daym big, and walked back along the sea front and caught the bus back, really tired went back to the hostel and ended up watching a few seasons of family guy, which took me back a few years lol.
now im in the internet cafe sending pictures home, something i failed to do yesterday. looking forward to going to the catlins, but am sad to be leaving dunedin, its a very nice area, and the peole ive met have all been lovely.
ok, laters xxx

dunedin- round two.

2008-03-07T14:41:00.003+13:00

yet again i find myself going round in circles. two weeks ago i arrived in dunedin. today i did the same. yesterday travelled for 9 hours from christchurch through to queenstown, and my goodness it was cold- jsut like winter had set in. travelled through some astonishing scenery, saw lake tekapo and very few houses.
got to queenstown, and walked up the biggest hill ever for 2 hours, and then walked bakc down, went on the web and met up with my buddeh pete and we had a natter and a hot chocolate, and then went to sleep ready to get up and leave at 7.15 this morning.
actually had a bubbly happy feeling in me all day, which is nice, havent really felt like that in a while, maybe its because i got a plan... HAD a plan.
was going to get to queenstown for my bday, but now am unsure whether to stay in te anau for longer, and i think i should, considering its the starting place of many major hikes in the area. but then i cant get back to qt for my bday and i think that it would be nice to bearound people you know for that.
ah man, maybe il just get to te anau and see whats going down there- apparenlty not much, but we'll see. thinking about it, im still to decide whether to go to stewart island or not. its very expensive and theres not much there. maybe if i meet a cool person whos up for a four day hike il go.
damn kiwi experience decided not to tell me that i had to spent two nights in dunedin. eugh. and now i might have to spend three nights in the catlins, which im not complaining about. i just wish they could make it abit clearer on whats going down so i could get back to qt for my bday, im torn right now... as per usual.
anyway im having a nice time and might go watch some rugby tonight, on the tv, not the match, im saving that for going north. anyway.
take it easy, and give jessica a hug from me xxx
ps this internet cafe is actually a cafe, the guy next to me just enjoyed a flat white whist checking his emails lol.

saw a kiwi today

2008-03-04T13:56:00.002+13:00

not a fruit or a person, oh no, a bird. two of them to be precise, they live in cathederal square information center in the middle of christchurch and were having lunch at the time i saw them. such funny creatures!
today i wrote a list of what i want to achieve before i leave nz and seeing a kiwi was tops, and i did it the same day yay!
i was so impressed i bought a kiwi shaped bottle opener, lol strange people these kiwis.
the past few days ive been lost, i still am lost right now actually. managed to get a job trial with 'the thirsty mariner' bar just down the road from the hostel, and nearly got accommodation for $90 a week just up the road until the middle of april. but i was like man this isnt a good vibe, so i think im going to just go back to queenstown at the weekend, do the bottom bus- which goes to dunedin, invercargil- shall i go to steward island?, then te anau, milford sound boat cruise and then back to queenstown where its possible i could be for my birthday.
earlier i was going to book the transcoastal train from christchurch to wellington for the begining of april, but i thought against the idea, dont ask me why.
man im confuzed, although im used to being in this state of limbo ( -'what the hell am i going to do now') ive been thinking this for the past 4 days and a revelation has yet to come to me. so im not really too happy at the moment, im afraid to say.
'travel weary' one american girl put it, and i think it fits.
so i think i should just get moving again, see some beautiful country- different beautiful country, and then relight my love of travelling the country.
its strange that what i look forward most nowadays is seeing people i recognise- be it pete in queenstown, nick in wellington or stumbing across someone i met in a hostel a while back. i guess im just so tired of talking to new people all the time, especially when youre not guna see them ever again.
it was nice the ohter day when these sweet american girls just decided to make dinner for like 10 people staying in the hostel, we had a lovely time, and it was really nice change from the hostel life you always experience.
its nearing 6 months living in hostels now and it really is begining to take its toll, i cant seriously cant remember the last time i slept in a room on my own.
man im going to stop this rambiling now.
flat whites are the way forward.
the isle of wight is actually shown on the map which covers a whole wall in the kitchen of the hostel, well impressed.
ok, adios, hope yall are well, xxxx

70th blog post

2008-02-26T18:54:00.002+13:00

tommorrow i will go to what will be my 28th hostel- not counting Tui, Anaura Bay, the girl i stayed with in Auckland or places stayed in twice. thats crazy.

found an awesome little suburb just over the mountain which has a surf beach, surfers, beach, windy rock in the sea, cool esplanade, and lots of part time jobs going. theres also a hostel there too which is a bonus. i leave the lyttel town of lyttelton tommorrow morning.
bus service here is awesome, you pay literally nothing for a very long bus ride and have automatic cards, eat your heart out southern vectis. my toenails are really strange, i filed the top one off to reveal another growing underneath it.
ate sushi today and yesterday mmmm, visited the botanical gardens which had punters on the rivers and ducks and it was lovely.
all the art museums here are really big, empty and have some strange art.
i met a girl- forget her name, who ive met two times previously- once in wanaka, once in dunedin and today in the street in christchurch wierd eh?
christchurch is wayy too big for its own good, but its cool.
laters xxx

lyttleton

2008-02-24T16:51:00.003+13:00

strange isnt it, when a little girl from the isle of wight goes half way accross the world and travels nearly the whole of new zealand that she finds comfort in a small sea side town, next to a harbour, marina and hills. the big city of christchurch is hidden through a big dark tunnel. lol it sounds quite the same place as her upbringing. crazy.
after goodness knows how long travelling from the big grey sealess city of dunedin- left hostel at 7am, and arrived in the little town of lyttleton at 1530. temperatures are nearing the 30 mark, and theres a festival down the road. the hostel is good and clean.
sooo tired and hot, maybe shall go for a little siesta then the beach later on. really cool town, liking it muchly. the patrol boat is the exact same as my daddys. the 'stop' buttons on the bus are aslo exactly the same as southern vectis. all of it made in china no doubt. xchch seemed a very young studious crowd, which looks like fun.
nick starts uni in wellington tommorrow and is living in a hostel til he gets into halls poor guy.
queenstown was cool, abit too busy for me, but il return twice more, when i head back down to do stewart island and the milford sound.
i hope whilst im here i can get a new battery for my zen.
ok well im going now, laters xxx

control

2008-02-20T08:46:00.002+13:00

well its official today i have been away for exactly 5 months.
i think there will be few times in my life when i can say that in the last week i have climbed two mountains, skydived, walked on a glacier and went to the world famous cinema Paradiso where i had a comfy sofa right at the front all to myself eating a fresh hot ginger and chocolate cookie. (audience was also shared with a yellow vw beetle haha!)

i love new zealand.
leaving for queenstown in a bit. its a beautiful day again!

:)

i just jumped out of a plane

2008-02-18T13:33:00.002+13:00

oh my goodness me, that was the most amazing thing ever.
ok description...
got picked up from the hostel and then drove to the airport...
then donned a all in one suite and got harnessed up, and a guy called geff came and told me what to do when i got up there, like lean back and put your legs under the plane.
then we headed towards the plane, he was wearing a parachute and then got in the plane, and there were 10 of us crammed in this tiny back of the plane, and then you could look out and see all of the hills getting smaller and smaller and smaller and then after 10 minuites we were at 12000 feet you could see the tasman sea and mt aspiring and mt cook- theyre big mountains btw! and then we were over lake wanaka and the plane leveled off and the first load of people jumped out, and then we went to the back of the plane and waved at the camera and finally sat out, and then BAM! we were out of the plane for 45 seconds of freefall and it was just damn amazing i tell you. so fast and oh my god undescribable, and awesome, it seemed a really long time free falling but it was awesome. i was like screaming cus it was so cool.
then the parachute was released and we kind of stopped in midair and went backwards and forwards and around in circles and jsut looked at the view and seriously it is one of the most amazing things i have ever done. you could look down at the fields and the houses and the mountains and it was just so peaceful and quiet. shish.
you could see teh other parachutes landing in the field below us, at the little airport. man it was awesome, then after about 4 minuites, we came to landing, and gladly we didnt land in a pig sty like bridget jones, but instead a field, and there was a big pressure on my knees as we hit the ground and stood up, but man it was incredible.
thankyou.
just thankyou.
so right now i want to be a sky diver, and highly reccommend it to everyone :)

i love wanaka

2008-02-18T09:50:00.002+13:00

i do, i do, i do mr fawlty.
wow ive just realised fawlty is a play on words.
yesterady i climbed up and up and up to Roys Peak, which is the mountain opposite the hostel. it took me 3 hours and alot of convincing of oneself to get me up there, but i did it and it was just unbelieveable. i cannot describe it. just awesome 360 degree views. amazing. clear skies for ever, you could see all the islands in lake wanaka and mt aspiring and for all the way you could turn there are mountains in the distance. unbelievable. i felt a nice achievement.
today i woke up and it was beautiful. so i decided to book a sky dive. im getting picked up at 11.45. woo!
need to call my parents cus the bank took money out of my account without giving me any...

laters xxx

wanaka, haast pass

2008-02-15T19:47:00.002+13:00

scenery is out of this world. you will never understand it til you see it. speachless. haast pass, wanaka bakpakas, centeral otago. im not guna come home ever at this rate. so badly want to climb a mountain. seriosly, much better than any computer graphic lotr can come up with. man just unbelievable.
thats all i can say.
x

(still raining in fj when i left.)

franz josef glacier

2008-02-14T17:33:00.002+13:00

the only thing really to do here, is go to the glacier.
when i woke up the heavens were open and the amount of rain drops falling from the sky was just rediculous. the lady at the desk said that all chopper flights were guna be cancelled so i was like... shish, what do i do.
so i went on a full day hike of the glacier- along with about 50 other people. and wow, i didnt really know what to expect, but it was awesome.
never seen a glacier before and it was pretty cool.
walked up the river for a while, then donned crampons in pouring rain and headed up steps carved into the ice, up a very very steep block of ice- the glacier face.
really wierd environment, there were areas which were blue, some which were covered in scree and some were white. there were pinnacles and later in the day when the cloud lifted we could see nearly half way up- today walked a 1/4 of the way up. saw lots of waterfalls and went up and down cravasses and through ice tunnels, and looked down on the river valley below us. awesome. just undescribable.
i am quite honored though to have had that experience, because as the old dude in greymouth quite rightly said, our generation is possibly the last to see glaciers.
there was a kea- alpine parrot, one of the most intelligent creatures on earth, that pestered us for food.
man im so tired, have to catch the blooming bus at 7.15am tommorrow morning, will end up in wanaka which should be cool. the hostel im booked in has been highly reccommended for its views looking over the lake and the mountains in the back ground.
anyway i need a shower and a feed,
laters bro xxx

franz josef

2008-02-13T10:57:00.000+13:00

a big glacier looms above me, along with mountains and rainforest.
im guna go in a helichopper and walk on the glace tommorrow- considered a bday present from grandma btw, someone tell her?
haha
freaked out this moprning after i thought i lost my kiwi experience pass.
anyway laters xxx

greymouth

2008-02-11T18:04:00.000+13:00

have arrived in greymouth, today i saw the pancake rocks, a seal colony and was at cape foulwind, the most eastern point of new zealand.
greymouth is grey and alot like newport. its raining again, and yesterday it thundered so loudly overhead i was so scared, me and qualie have never heard thunder that loud.
really wierd being back on the road again, talking to loads of random people. sat next to a girl whos going to norwich to study in september like me!- really wierd eh?
well im at a complete loss at what to do now. i have three really good options
1. leave stuff in greymouth cycle 130km to christchurch, travel south island then end up in gmth and catch train back to xch.
2. leave stuff in gmth, travel round s island, then catch return train to greymoth when i get to xch.
3. see if i can work with doc.

all my milk spilt in my bag today. sent 765 photos home on dvd so gma can see them. maybe il buy my flight ticket home tommorrow. i think i should.
okies my time is running out on this thing,
laters xxx

Heaphy Track! 82km.

2008-02-09T12:07:00.000+13:00

Ok im just going to copy what I wrote in my diary. Theres so much.

Monday 4th Feb
Woke at 0745 to another cloudless day, caught bus at 9 to the start of the track, waving goodbye to Takaka for the last time, and passing through Collingwood into country far from anywhere. Then set off climbing up a more than gentle slope through bush- green, loud and full of sicodas, bugs the odd view and streams. Had lunch, on the side of the track, cheese rolls yummy. Whole day was continuous uphill, got to flanaghans corner- what a name eh? The highest point on the heaphy. Vegetation turned to alpine, and heard parrot calls- kea? Reached Perry Saddle hut after 17km and 5 hours. Had fruit cake and steak for dinner. Swam in the river pool and it rained all night.

Tues 5th Feb
Slept badly, woke to sunshine, and left at 0810. watched sunrise over mountains whilst brushing teeth. Downhill through forest and then flat grassland savanna. Got to the first hut in 2 hours, then continued in the swealtering heat til the next hut Saxon hut, which we decided not to stay at because of the large elderly group following us. Discovered massive cave hidden away from the path. So after lunch went onwards for another 14km to Makay hut. After 26 km, I was tired and it was raining, and there was a big group commondearing the hut already so I was abit annoyed. Track was uphill through forest with faces made all along out of moss which were pretty cool. Wore my walking sandles for the latter half. Need better socks methinks. Had frankfurters and bread for dinner. Watched the sunset over the sea for the first time in many months.

Weds 6th Feb
I hate Sandflies, real good nights sleep. Left at 0830, gentle downhill all the way through alpine terrain then dense bush and rainforest. Walked 12km to Lewis hut, which was next to the river and had many sandflies. Had lunch inside hut with netted windows. Carried on for a really long 8km, through flat jungly terrain, over rivers on rickety foot bridges, very magical areas- big limestone rock formations. It was like something out of your dreams the scenery round here was. Amazing. Got to the heaphy hut at 1500, the river mouth and the sea, such a lovely sight. It felt like coming home  sandflies are here in their millions. Watched the sunset, and fell over in the sea. It was an amazing moment.

Thurs 7th Feb
Because we’re ahead of schedule we staqyed at the heaphy hut two nights. So walked nowhere but up the beach today. The sea is lacking in boats so I made one in the sand. Went for a swim in the river. The waves here break perfectly its so entrancing. Met a lovely welsh lady who says I can stay with her in Greymouth and she can see if her brother will help me get some volunteer work with Doc. Watched sunset again. Discovered black and white on my camera. Weka birds are like ducks.

Friday 8th Feb
Left at 7.15 am. Not my idea. Along mainly flat coastal pathway. Picture perfect stunning beaches. Pipe waves forming perfectly. Sikodas galore. Next time I go hiking I will go alone. Great green forest plummeting into the tasman sea. Chased by oystercatchers protecting their nests. Got to the end at midday, after a short detour up at stream after we lost the path, had to retrace our steps in the end though. 82 km, real sense of achievement. Got a lift with two Israeli girls who drove us to Karamea. Hung around there til 6pm when I got the bus alone- woop woop, to Wesport. Picked my stuff up from the trip inn and called my marmar and went to sleep real good. All the people in my room are running the Buller Gorge marathon tommorrow. Haha.

still here

2008-01-29T17:04:00.000+13:00

at Tui that is. fourth week now. really excited about doing the five day heaphy track next week with a guy called David who i met in nelson at new year. at the weekend its hopefully going to be lovely too, theres a mardi gras in takaka so i think all of us wwoofers are going to that together.
well its been a few weeks of ups and downs and i certainly feel like ive grown from some of the issues that have arisen, right now theres 5 of us... 4 germans and i, but they are the coolest people and im pleased. a woman called christine came the other day straight from the US to wwoof here, she left today, im not sure she was completely with the vibe of the crew, but we all wished her well on her travels and she left this morning.
last thurday we watched baowolf at the cin in takaka- complete with cushions, sofas and an interval- lovely! then we went to the musscel inn again and drank gingerbeer under the stars next to a nice warm fire, whilst listening to some guys playing the guitar and violin.
the weather is constantly lovely. i think i would like to live here. its just amazing. living in community is certainly a positive experience that if you have the chance, definately go for it.
audrey the french girly left the other day and took nearly all my stuff with her. shes going to drop it at Westport- hopefully sometime soon, so i can pick it up when i finish the heaphy. i pray it gets there.
saw a stick insect yesterday- very odd creatures indeed.
we had a bbq yesterday afterwork, and it was lovely. ate fresh zuchini bread oday. i am learning german. watched a wierd film called Adaption. sharing circles are a good way of connecting and understanding people.
i like this life alot. i met a woman who is from the US- her story is that she was somewhere and met and fell madly in love with a guy who lives in tui, and now a year on theyre living happily here. its such a lovely true story. aaaw.
this is one of the nicest times that ive had in NZ so far. i think il come back before i leave.
oh yeah and now i can look after 10month old babas and 3 year olds. cus im responisble see...
haha anyway xxx

4 month anniversary!

2008-01-20T16:49:00.000+13:00

left 4 months ago today. it should feel along time ago i guess but it doesnt really. anyway woo. i think thats some achievement.
so yeah had a nice chilled weekend at a little- to the extreeme music festival called vistionz- set in a valley surrounded by mountains and buttercups! audrey asked me whether i wanted to go, and sure i said yes and we left like an hour later. we had to wait for 'willyam'- francais, at the dangerous kitchen in takaka, and whilst there bumped into lukas who we had said goodbye to earlier. he decided to come with us to the fest, then one of his friends cavier- mexico, came along and decided to come too, so we all set off together.
yeah well lukas' bug balm, which is made here at tui, managed to attract the fields whole population of bees and the sandflies were in swarms! the festival was spent swimming in the river- which is sufering from didymo, and lounging in the sun- swealtering heat man, making friends with cool norweigen dude, and in the evening looked up at the stars in their thousands. the bass/trance stage could- and did pump out tunes all throughout the night as there was not a house for miles around, and there were some cool reggae bands playing late into the night. we all sat round amazing camp fires- which surely would have never been allowed due to h and s in the uk.
sadly there was no signal anywhere so i couldnt call my daddy to wish him happy birthday but i will later.
it was cool because in our little campsite we were all nationalities- germany, france, uk, mexico and norway! really strange.
it was so good we bumped into lukas as his van was completely equipt with tables, chairs, stove, sun shelter- which blew to bits in the wind, and a fridge! awesome. so hes gone down to the west coast today headed back to christchurch, maybe will see him again in march.
personally i am getting tired of saying goodbye to people. i look forward to settling down with a bunch of good people and just relaxing and laughing a while.
been at tui 2 weeks now, and am staying another- maybe even two. theres a new influx of people arrived, all german so far.
the weather is far too hot, and so i think i will have a little siesta and go to bed- maybe just go to bed really, after all it is 5pm.
need to call my daddy later. anyway im rambling.
over and out xxx

blisters

2008-01-12T20:57:00.000+13:00

yesterday evening majorie, lukas, megan, her friend katie and her partner tony all squeezed into a car and trecked up to collingwood and had a drink at 'the musscle inn'- highly reccommended i must say, a funky layout and lots of cool beers- ie chilli and manuka, along with fejoa cider, quite often they have live music and reggae, too bad its 50km away from tui!
this morning i woke up ready for another lazy day, but no. majorie was heading out to do a circuit in the abel tas, so i grabbed the chance to break in my boots! break my feet they did, after nearly 6 and a half hours walking up and down and up and down, half of it was in agony with big blisters which formed on my heels. owch.
but it was amazing, seriously i cant begin to describe the scenery. went up a big hill and looked down onto the estaury and wainui bay, then went swimming in paradise. sparkling soft yellow sand and chrystal clear blue sea, with amazing rock formations and green green bush covering the hill side- and not a soul around! i had to slap myself to check i wasnt dreaming, magical. seriously. chatted to majorie whos a marine biologist and has done some kewl stuff in her time i must say.
really really awesome day. sooo blooming tired though, i cant even think anymore.
in the evening katie came over just now and shes so cool, i might go stay with her in christchurch and maybe go wwoof there too, so she gave me lots of tips on working in conservation and stuff, again shes done some amazing stuff in her time and right now shes working with the doc just over the hill.
theres lots of baby quails around, they are so amazingly small. their parents are so stupid though.
oh yeah btw today i got called intelligent and competent... by a marine biologist. lol. i dont know if she was just being polite but it kinda made my day!
need to call parents and then bed xxx

french windows and lots of sleep

2008-01-11T08:49:00.000+13:00

deary me, was so unbelievably tired yesterday i went for a little lie down at 7.30pm and the next thing i knew it was 8 in the morning! so yesterday i spent hours varnishing some french windows in the house, and figuring as id never varnished french windows before, i feel i didnt do too bad! outside the weather is bright and the birds are singing, although im very chilly right now, all wrapped up- even wearing socks and got a big mugga tea! so today and the next two days are not working ones, and im not sure there are any real plans which is all good to me! anyway got to go! laters xxx

tui communtiy

2008-01-09T19:04:00.000+13:00

well this is my fourth day and its all good. im helping to build a house in the bush for a lovely family composing of nick, sybilla. theo (3) and marty (10 months). the house is made out of cord wood- wooden block bricks and a mix of local sand, pummice and cement. theres 4 wwoofers at the moment- myself, lukas (germany), margery (alberta, canada) and megan (christchurch, nz). the wwoofers live in a bus/tent/jewlery studio and the family live in a rented house on a hill. in the evenings it has been nice- although todays been the first day with no rain for a while... theres actually blue sky outside atm! im making a flower mosaic for the wall, and yesterday we went and cooked pizza in a pizza oven outside. this evening we had a community meal made by a nice french dude called william who lives in another funky bus a few meters away from us.
the surroundings are wonderul- right next to the abel tasman national park, so there are some fabulous views of the mountains and hills, beaches and ocean. the bird song is amazing and everywhere is so pretty and green and flowery! i had a shower outside in a little bath tub with the ferns and flowers and it was really cool. in the evening lukas and i played cards

the grove, takaka

2008-01-05T21:50:00.000+13:00

after watching the pretty awesome african drumming, i was sat at the hostel pondering what to do when this kite surfing english guy said i should go check out 'the grove'. so after a little persuasion ie 'its the best place around here, far better than the pupu springs' i set off on my bike. and my goodness it was amazing- just when you think a place cant get any better it does, and it was awesome. these strange weather worn massive boulders all different shapes and sizes in amongst the palm trees and ferns of hte jungle. i was half expecting to bump into a few fairies on the way it was just so enchanting. i watched a film called 'dream world' where these kids get lost in australia it was kind of like where i went today. really was a dream world. man, i love this place.

wwoofing number 2

2008-01-05T11:19:00.000+13:00

so yesterday was another beautiful day and i went to the pupu springs to check them out- such clear water it was awesome. got some pretty pics of some ferns, i like ferns maybe theyre my favourite plant now :) when i got back to the hostel had some lunch, tried to work out an impossible puzzle for a while and then had lunch and walked round the town. asked if the doc office ( dept of conservation) took on volunteers and they said they didnt, so i went and checked out this notice board and found a family looking for wwoofers. i called them up and they said i could come on sunday afternoon which is pretty sweet. check out their website... www.tuitrust.org.nz well it looks abit different anyway. dustin the dude from canada is doing a load of bone carvings and bought this interesting book on it yesterday. half the hostel went to the brigand to watch the bloke i saw yesterday and his wife play- absolutely astonishingly the mandolin, banjo and geetars. just did some laundry in town and saw that theres a african drumming thing at 12. laters xxx

takaka

2008-01-04T08:33:00.000+13:00

well been here two days now, and i must say its a pretty funky town- maybe even more so than napier! alas i had a rough night, i couldnt stand the snorage and so set off to find a quieter abode... got to the hammock in the garden and looked up at the stars, then got cold and so cosied on the sofa in the games room which was nice and quiet and warm.
yesterday i went for a bike to the beach, its all flat farmland here with the odd river and two mountain ranges of two different national parks bordering the valley. yesterday there was the most awesome sunset, and it has been so unbelievably hot for the past few days that ive had to have a little siesta to get me through the day- which im liking very much :)
my parents are worried that i wont come home. i promised them i will.
the hostel is well cool- theres a spa pool, free fresh lemons off the tree- which btw are delicious when eaten raw, and i had some icy lemon juice with my kiwi and honey this morning! mmm. yesterday i went and watched a really amazing guy play country/jazz infusions, im not sure what it was but it was pretty amazing. everyone round here is like real hippy and arty, maybe il go round all the organic, pretty fairtrade shops later today... it looks like its guna be another scorcher!
might go and visit the pupu springs aswell, apparently theyre worth a cycle! its crazy i when i went on my bike yesterday i managed to get a wee bit lost from where i was suposed to be, but it was so amazingly beautiful. il try put a pic up here in a sec.
right now the internet is free so il try and up load some photos whilst i can. anway, there ya go, laters yall xxxx

hello!

2008-01-01T00:15:00.000+13:00

hello south island aaaaaand 2008!

omg am sooooo tired right now, got up at 6am this morning to catch the ferry across to picton, and talked to a indian woman for like 2 hours, and she couldnt believe that i was travelling all on my own and im only 18. well she kept telling me i was so brave, and i kept telling her i wasnt. anyway she gave me her address in maambai and i gave her mine. apparently she wants me to talk to her daughters or something.
we sampled two wines and some olive oil when we went on the kiwi bus in malbourough. the ferry journey was truly spectacular at the end... too bad it was so blooming windy and cold, but did sit outside for most of the journey.
got to the hostel mid afternoon like and found that two of the girls staying in my room i met in plimmerton, and one of the girls whos stayed here forever was the girl i met back in thames who had a tummy ache- it took about 15 minuites to work out where we'd seen each other before- thames was like 3 months ago!
in the afternoon of today i went shopping and got lost and saw something of nelson, which i have to say is pretty funky- but not as good as dear napies. i'd like to go to the golden bay asap, but i need some new walking boots. mine are trashed.
after dinner- black bean stir fry, set of to 'the cusp' a alcohol free event which cost me $15 to get in, and was well worth it- apart from the cold... watched three bands- the midnights were an awesome reggae band. at around 10 i was frozen so went back to the hostel and had a cup of tea to warm up. talked to a girly from finland and then went back to welcome 2008 in with a firework display! its so wierd that it was still light at around 9.30- only 2.5hours to go to new year! im used to it being dark the whole day in the uk!
well im locked out of my room right now, and alot annoyed about it. just to be safe i put my key in my wallet- i always lose keys... and when i went out i left my wallet in the room, inclusive with key. im sure one of my room mates will return shortly, hope so anway or else il have to sleep here. :(
tommorrow im going to have a long lie in- theres been too many early starts recently, and then im guna work out what to do, and book some accommodation. shish. its tricky this travelling lark.
ok well im rambling now, in the hope that someone will return. bought some very local honey today, and some raspberries... mmmm looking forward to breakfast! :P

okies laters dudes xxx

the golden compass

2007-12-31T06:31:00.000+13:00

went and saw this film yesterday and was expecting to be dissappointed completely- i nearly didnt go atall! but i was completely wrong- it completely was awesome. best film ive seen in a long while, it completely stuck with the book 'northern lights- phillip pullman', nice one whoever directed it, im well impressed. so just thought id big the film up whist i got some time before i get on the ferry. they did however miss out some of the more grusome parts like the severed head at the begining, but it did make me understand more of what the book was about, and one major thing they missed out was the northern lights themselves!!
anway laters xxxxx

adios north island

2007-12-30T17:38:00.000+13:00

waved goodbye to nick at 6.30am, tried to catch the train at 10, but it broke down. this nice lady who i was talking to gave me and this other guy a lift to the train station and they spoke about their family histories which was quite interesting. then i caught a bus to courtaney place, cus all my stuff is quite heavy. checked into base backpackers and got an upgrade to 'sanctuary'- an all girly part where you get free champagne, shampoo, towel and condtioner. didnt complain.
then went to an internet cafe and spent like over an hour there talking to laurence, and realised ive actually missed him and the rest of home even more than i realised and it just made me want to go home and chill out with the homies. but then i think about it- and the fact laurence is going to sea for the whole summer and im like nah maite, so il stick with my newly formed plan that il go and visit canada with emily for three months in may!
i bought a new lonely planet and wrote my name and number all over it. i laid in a park in the sunshine and thought about what i want to do. i like travelling, and i think it would be really awesome to travel around canada for a while- especially with emily. friends are like cake, they really are, they are so lovely.
now i think i might go to a cinema. i mean two weeks without watching a film or tv, you need to celebrate somehow no?
lol, materialism. well its new years eve tommorrow. looking forward to my ferry trip, even though i have to get up well early!
well there you have it, wellington is wellington after all.
laters bro xxx

welly wind turbine

2007-12-29T10:50:00.000+13:00

caught the train into wellington and ate some sushi and then caught a bus and first got off at the wrong place, so got back on the bus and got off at the right place! well we were abit stuck on what to do yesterday, so we walked up a very very steep hill around a nature reserve for a few hours up to a wind turbine. its surprising how they manage to build one here- next to a nature reserve, and fail to build one on farmland. anyhoo there were really good views, wellington is one of the windiest places in nz- and it certainly shows! we got back to the hostel at around 5, and made some homemade pizza which was certainly awesome. there was a gorgeous sunset and that was it really! today it was beautiful when i woke up, so i think i may just laze on the beach and read my book. tried to call the parents earlier but to no avail, they must be at a raving party.
and jessica brooks if you read this please let me know how youre getting on?
cool, laters xxx

boxing day and lost wallets

2007-12-28T10:00:00.000+13:00

woke up boxing day to the most beautiful morning, and read my book on the beach for a while. at midday i caught a lift with three nice german girlies- charlie, catra and a girl whos name i dont recall, anyway they were all pretty nice and we went in the car for two hours down to a cape with a lighthouse to see a big colony of seals and sealions. as per usual the weather turned, and we were subject to rain and wind, we battled our way up to the top of the lighthouse- 250 steps! then went and saw the cute seals who were just lazing around on rocks and the beach, looking like quite overgrown and obese slugs. but it was quite an experience never the less, and we spent quite sometime just sitting and watching. at one stage we got quite freaked out- the rule is never to get between a seal and the sea, and walking along the beach we realised there was a seal in the grass up on our left! quickly changed direction. there were the most massive, plasticy, hugest sea weeds that ive ever seen in my life- ocean seaweed scattered all along the beach. really was something, and i realised how harsh this rugged wilderness really is.
yesterday i picked nick up from wellington airport and saw all the surfers out in lyall bay, we caught the bus back into wellington and went up to the botanical gardens by the cable car. pretty cool, we ate sushi and then walked along the seafront back to the railway station. got off at new world in mana only to realise that nick had left his wallet on the blooming train. high drama persued followed by panic, i had no money in my asb account and couldnt get any from my nationwide, thankfully we had enough cash to pay for the food.
hopefully itl all work out and the walletll be handed in, anyway laters xxx

christmas!

2007-12-26T11:11:00.000+13:00

well, it was definately abit different this year!
the hostel was crazy on the 24th, everyone was helping to prepare a big meal which was fabulous. had food from all over the globe! israel, sweeden, denmark, germany, oz and the usa all were countries that were influencing what we had for dinner! everyone ate so much it was so cool. so went to sleep and then woke up to call home and open my presents- i was so pleased to see new clothes and english chocolate! i realised why its different over here- first ingredient here is sugar, but in the uk its milk! sadly it was raining but i made my way along the seafront to st andrews anglican church, and went for a service and communion, which was pretty nice, and got me missing being at home alot. then went back and played puzzles, ate chocolate and fruit salad, drank tea, read, played travellers trivial persute- i love trivial persute soooooo much with the americans and ozzys. in the afternoon the weather cleared and i went for a tromph to look at the boats, then later me and two german girlies braved the sea! it was refreshing!
for dinner i ate fruit salad, cake, mince pie, mini christmas pudding and more chocolate.
i called grandma and my mummy, daddy and sister in the evening and said happy christmas to them!
so all in all it was a pretty funky day. whats even better is that nick is coming down to wellington for a few days on the 27th, so that should be real nice.
anyways hope you had a jolly christmas!
love from naomi xxxxxxx

trains

2007-12-24T18:17:00.000+13:00

being a carless traveller in new zealand, i have to say that plimmerton is one of the greatest places ive been to so far. again today i did another nice walk in queen elizibeth park- probobly about 10 miles away from here. i jumped on the train and then after 3 hours of walking round sand dunes and bushes i was able to get back on the train, get off at the super market and walk for about an hour all the way back to the hostel. its quite liberating when you have a train track which is so cool- pretty awesome views aswell, as the track clings precariously to the steep hillside high above the tasmen sea!
everyone in the hostel is preparing a dish, and soon we're going to sit down and eat lots! so many people in the kitchen. germans and most other europeans think the english are crazy for celebrating on the 25th, because after all jesus was born at midnight on the 24th wasnt he?!
something else strange was that the girls staying in my room ive met before whilst doing the 4 day hike. its quite strange to think we talked about hot chocolate together and then met far far away in plimmerton- theyre wwoofing here. lucky them!
well me and qualie are celebrating on the 25th, and shall open our presents tommorrow on the beach and with a mince pie too if the weather is fine. i look forward to it.
my daddy was concerned that id not written a letter to father christmas yet, i said its fine cus me and father christmas have got it sorted- il write one in april, and send it home, and by the time i get home he'll have delivered them all and they;ll all be waiting for me in a big pile in the sitting room! i look forward to that day, especially the chocolate- had a kitkat today and it was no good atall. anyway thats enough nonsense from me.
laters xxx
oohhh! im going to church in nz tommorrow!

another walk

2007-12-23T18:21:00.000+13:00

glorious day. even better to find that the exchange rate is much higher than i ever realised and i have spend far less than i was imagining. today i went on a glorious walk from the hostel heading north up the coastline along the wairaka walkway to pukerua bay. no one around and the most magnificent views of the coastline and islands, birdlife galore and alot of dead things and driftwood along the way. got a little bit sunburnt and an icecream- after nearly 2.5 hours in the fiece sun. went on the train back to new world supermarket and bought some ingredients for the share meal we're going to have tommorrow- oh and some mince pies too! had a lush mango, strawberry and kiwi fruit concoction when i finally got back- yummy.
reading this awesome book called 'call of the wild' by guy grieve- a must read for anyone like myself or my daddy- real survival in alaska, really amazing.
tried my hardest to feel christmassy today. it didnt work.
ive found a really brilliant phrase from the hostel- theres lots dotted around the place. my favourite is this...
'call your mum. she worries.'
anyway, im off to read my book and watch the sunset.
laters xxx

booking woes

2007-12-22T18:10:00.000+13:00

what an effort. have planned to go across to the south island on the 28th dec, and will be staying in nelson for the following days... just called around 15 hostels but theyre all booked up for new year. i thought all hope had failed until i came across one called almond house, so ive got a bed up til the 2nd jan. phew. its so worrying when you fear you have nowhere to sleep!
today was pretty cool. caught the train to poriroua and then used my map reading skills to negotiate the streets to the start of a very long walk up a very big hill. but an hour later i realised it was definately worth it! beautiful views across to the south island, mana island, wellington, up to taranaki and furthar afield. it was such a beautiful day and i was surprised to see fewer than 5 people enjoying this amazing day on my travels. stunning. sometimes i just dont like to take photos because it will never capture the magic- never do the place justice. so if you go to wellington definately walk up to the highest point in the wellington region.
looking at the south island today- on a map, was like looking at a completely different country. i talked to a hollandish bloke yesterday, 'woulter', he was cool, went mountain climbing- literally, using pick axes etc. i cant wait to go and see the abel tasmen national park, and apparently wannika is not to be missed. gosh theres so much to do and so very little time to do it all in. the south island will take alot of planning- more than the north anyway.
i love walking though! love it! its just the best feeling when you conquer a hill and look back on the most spectacular view.
my toenail has gone really wierd. wellington hostels are soooo expensive. maybe shall go on a sealion tour tommorrow. the day after tommorrow its christmas eve! wooooo!
oh btw jessica, your tippex/glue concoction went all powdery and wierd on its journey over me- im sure customs were quite concerned... beautiful snowman btw! and can you thank auntie anne for her five pounds, it will go along way- literally, il take it all the way back to england and therefore will be able to spend it wisely in duty free!
im rambling.
laters xxx

plimmerton/wellington and an earthquake

2007-12-21T19:35:00.000+13:00

so after a few rainy days in taupo, jumped on the kiwi experience bus and went back to whakapapa villiage where thankfully it was raining so therefore we didnt go up the taranaki falls again. however did see the river where gollem goes trying to catch fish in lotr 2.
continued to rain forever that day and we arrived in a place in the middle of nowhere called river valley where theres white water rafting where thankfully the river was 10 times the normal height and it was cancelled. so instead chilled out the whole day and in the evening went in a real sauna with a finnish girl, an english one and an irish one. all very nice.
next day it wasnt raining. we left at 10am and set off straight down to wellington stopping off at bulls for some quiche. me and this cool oxfordshire girly got dropped off at plimmerton- shes staying with family. went to the hostel which has a kin awseome view out the lounge window to the sea, harbour and island. nice one.
yesterday when i was talking to my mummy and daddy, the house gently shook for about 15 seconds. i thought nothing of it til this morning when i was shown the paper. an earthquake 6.2 on the richter scale, just off the east coast. gisborne has fallen apart- well the buildings and the wine has. i hope that the lovely people are ok- and those in anaura bay for that matter. it was nice to get a concerned text message this morning.
today caught the train! to wellington- how i miss trains. went to a massive museum and wandered the streets. then caught the train! again and went to upper hutt- where lotr was filmed. got back at around 6 and made chilli concarne. yummy.
anyway, will plan what im guna do later- or maybe tommorrow.
id like to go to wellington for new year, it looks pretty funky.
anyway, laters xxx

tongariro northern circuit 4 day hike.

2007-12-18T11:31:00.000+13:00

four hobbits- moran, age 29 from israel - joanna, 26 german with american accent - andy, 26 from portsmouth, originally farmer from devon - me.

14th December 8km - Whakapapa to Mangatepopo hut
3 hours spent trecking through dartmoor like terrain. Up and down continouosly. Didnt even realise there were two great volcanoes stood only a few miles next to us.

!5th December 12.5km- Mangatepopo hut to Oturere Hut
Climbed steepest ever hill called the 'devils staircase' and ended up in a raincloud. Saw none of the magnificent views or anything. Very steep hills and very big rucksack. Walked through a desolate, treeless, birdless, landscape which was very eerie. Ash and pummice, with massive lava flows. Felt like astronauts. Got to the hostel in 4 hours. Weatrher cleared in the evening and went for a walk, saw amazing views to snowy mt rhupehu and desert plains.

16th December- Oturere hut to Waihohonu Hut- 8km
Clear in the early morn, low cloud by the time we set off. Desert terrain. Finally found a forest. Massive hill in forest. 3 hours after we left got to hut in little woods, with big stream running through and a beautiful view across to mt rhupehu. Arrived early, so took a walk to 'desert road' about a 10km round trip. Saw a bunny rabbit. Noodles for dinner. Birdsongs everywhere. Making a nice change to the silence of the volcanic landscape. Was able to get phone signal in most of the huts, even though was in the middle of nowhere.

17th December- Waihohonu hut to Whakapapa Village- 14.5 km
Set off at 8.30 am for long uphill climb through deserty, treeless terrain. Viewed oldest hut in the national park- over 100 years old and very red. Wow. Saw a big blue lake and got very tired literally and of the endless hill and shrubland. Eventually had seen mt doom from all sides. After 3.5hours started a decent to the taranki falls, big waterfall.it seems the closer you get to finishing the furthar away it is. Took forever to get back. Finished at 2.30 after abour 5.5 hours walking. Everyone exhausted. Had an iced chocolate, peanut cookie and a long journey and ended up having a wonderful shower back at the Rainbow Lodge. Later went out for the nicest tasting thai resteraunt meal ive had. Probobly cus we hadnt eaten properly for four days- they kept giving us rice!

So what've i learnt from this trip?
I like trees, rivers and birdsongs a lot. The desert not quite as much.
People from devon are funny- All of the ones ive met on this trip have been anyway.
Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are awesome. So is jam and cheese, but not so much.
Peanut and raisen mixes arnt that bad.
Horse flies can be found 2000m above sea level, theyre the only sound there apart from the wind.
Milk powder is amazing stuff- makes good hot chocolate and porrridge.
They dont sell hot chocolate in nz. Just drinking powder. Tut Tut.
Always trust your instinct on not trusting your cameras battery to last a trip.

presents!

2007-12-13T16:09:00.000+13:00

after writing abit more of my story whilst sitting next to the lake in the scorching heat, decided to take a detour back round to the post shop and see if my presents had arrived. the lady said the look on my face was a sight as the size of the boxes came into view! how am i meant to drag these things round!
well thankgoodness the next few weeks are going to be relatively easy travelling. going on a four day hike tommorrow around the national park with two girls- israel and germany, and a guy from portsmouth of all places!
should be good. then will catch the kiwi experience down to a place called plimmerton just out of wellington, and spend christmas there- apparently right on the beach! awesome. looking forward to it!
anyway there you have it, need to buy a wooly hat and some tickets for the huts. laters xxx

taupo again

2007-12-11T18:58:00.000+13:00

so i had to stay in gissy for the kiwi bus to pick me up, consequently they forgot me and i was fuming.
therefore i got a free night at an awesome hotsel on the east coast, a free meal and went stingrays and morray eel feeding.
had an awesome time, i love it when things go wrong and then go right, its a nice feeling. so after spending 6 hours on a coach- from gissy to napier then across to taupo, i was pretty tired- especially as i stayed up til about 2am watching films- pulp fiction and fight club to be precise. it helped me sleep on the coach anyway. now im at the rainbow lodge in taupo, pretty sweet here actcually, cool peeps around. dont know what im going to do tommorrow really, i started writing a story today, so maybe il go to the lake and carry on writing that. will do the toriaroroa crossing soon too.
theres so many options of where i could go and what i could do, but right now il wait here in taupo for my christmas presents.
naomix

wow

2007-12-07T10:33:00.000+13:00

back in the real world man. so where on earth do i begin?
so i over two weeks ago went to taupo from napier and had an adventure on a mountain bike. saw a wicked river and did a cool mountain bike trail, honey farm and volcanic activity center and became knowledgeable on why nz is so volcanic. after two awesome days in taupo, set off on the kiwi experience bus up to a place called te kaha right on the east cape. this little homely place was right on the beach , had a garden with prickles in the lawn and a hot pool by the sea. there were 12 of us on the bus and we had an awse time singing songs in the evening after a beau meal made by the lady.
in the morning we left and headed onwards to tiki tiki- right in the sticks. not a soul around, apart from one guy from holland who was set on cycling round nz, crazy fool. but it was raining so hard we ended up just chilling, building card castles and then bone carving! made a hei matau- a fish hook, and if i say so myself it looks unbelievable. spent about four hours on it- mostly sandning it down. wicked. saw a little church right on the coast where a family of penguins were nested underneath the font! we had a feast of nachos for dinner and went to sleep relatively early in the hope of seeing the sunrise the next morning. this is the most eastern part of nz, so apparenlty-0 though i have heard differently we would be the first people in the world to see the sun! but alas it was not to be, and low clouds prevented us the honour.
so we left and then, oh yeah. i was dropped off in the middle of nowhere and collected by louia who took me to her home in Anaura bay. seriously man, no words can describe it. just astonishing beauty. a big mannor house 120 years old, with little out houses where i slept, massive garden, vegetable patch, salad garden, and orchard right on the long sandy private beach. this bay is mostly mauri owned and so has been protected by development. only about 30 ppl live in the bay.
my time was spent eating lugwots- delicious funky fruits, eeling, swimming, munching on honey and a soft cheese called lubney, reading the davinci code, watching the stars at night, learning alot about the culture, playing eye puzzles, listening to hip hop, being freaked out by a tick right next to my eye and a preying mantis walking over my shoulder.
crafting a chopstick set out of bamboo in the middle of the night, trying and failing to sleep on the beach beacause the sea was too loud, walking with the crazy dogs-bum bum and lady along the beach, spinning round and round in circles til i fell over, the little girls- honey lee and juliette taught me how to surf and decorated me with make up, my first day was spent putting hundreds of retro clothes on in preperation for the fashion show.
eating fresh avacados and learning to like olives. becoming a curtain expert and now know what a white tail spider is and looks like. i can iron curtains til the cows come home, and find i can drink tea continuously, are able to live without the internet and mobile phone signal. can collect pipis from beneath the sand and cook them up after theyve spat all the sand out. the bird songs were just the best, ah, ive been away for less than 2 hours but am missing it already.
so yeah thats what ive been doing for the past two weeks. awesome.
anyway on monday il head to taupo and wait for my parcels, then down to wellington and then the south island in new year!
so excited!
tonight im going to meet up with louia and honey lee and go to an art exhibition! yay!
laters cuz xxx

taupo

2007-11-21T15:26:00.000+13:00

arrived about an hour ago, stunning scenery with the chrystal clear lake in the foreground and snowy mountain ranges in the background. the good news is the hostel made a mistake and i had to move hostels and so therefore they requested they pay for me! lovely scottish folk eh?
scorching hot today, must be at least in the high 20s.
had a pleasant greek salad whilst overlooking the view described above. mmm. not sure what il do today, the first stop has to be the information center.
im staying at burkes backpackers by the way, its quite nice indeed.
not much else to say really. laters xxx

goodbye napier- hello wicked plan!

2007-11-20T12:53:00.000+13:00

well for now anyway. i leave this cool little town tommorrow, and get on a bus to taupo. after two nights there il hop back on the kiwi experience bus on friday and go round the east cape for two nights... and then... il hop off the bus on sunday in the middle of nowhere only to be met by my wwoofing family- in a little place just above gisbourne!
that is the plan at the moment anyway. need to call up a place in taupo to make sure i have somewhere to sleep tommorrow.
just bought a load of kiwi friuts. i think these are the first kiwis ive eaten in nz and theyre yummy!
gosh i can hear music outside so i might pop out and see whats going dawn dawg.
maybe il put a little map on here so you can see where im talking about.
its a beautiful day outside... again, temperatures in theyre mid 20s.
yesterday evening me and the girl i saw the gannets with went to a spa- hot pools, sauna and steam room, we looked up at the stars and moon which was quite pleasant :)
well shes gone off to a wwoofing place which is a rehablitation center for horses- previous to coming here she was a horse tour guide near pahia. so yes my horse loving friends you could come here and become a horse whisperer! she was really lovely anyway and it was nice talking to her, but alas she has gone, no worries eh?
bought some multi vitamens, toothpaste and cereal bars for the long journey ahead of me. it should be enough!
okies im off now, laters ppl xxx

napier day 3

2007-11-19T12:48:00.001+13:00

i like napier alot alot alot. its funky. found a sweet waterfall yesterday, didnt believe it was artificial! the people staying here are fabuous, we had a bbq yesterday- or attempted one. met a cool guy called sebastian- german of course. anyway he stayed at a woofing place just above gisbourne- right on the beach he said it was awesome- sustainable, right on the beach with surf and treehouses and everything! so im guna call these guys up and hopefully hop off their when i go round the east cape in the next few weeks.
just went up to the top of a massive hill, and saw the view over the bays in both direction. very nice. need to get some headphones because mine are completely wrecked.
might go to taupo tommorrow, but i think il stay longer because i like it here, and the weather is beautiful!
anyway, if you go to nz, go to napier because it is cool.
laters people xxx

gannets

2007-11-17T19:41:00.000+13:00

so somehow ended up going to cape kidnappers in hawkes bay with another girly staying at the hostel who is from holland. didnt really know what to expect, but it was awesome. trundled along the beach for 9km on a tractor trailer- looking at absolutely stunning and massive cliffs made of sedimentary materials- so basically could fall down at any minuite! biggest cliffs ive ever seen in my life- just looked like the grand canyon to me!
then we got to the end of the beach and walked all the way up to the top of the cliff to the only area in the world where gannets breed on the mainland. there were 2000 pairs here. an absolutely magnificent sight, and you could get within 2 meters of some of them. their wingspan is so big- approx 2 meters wide. the sounds they made were just like nothing ive ever heard. felt like david attembourogh. there were four nesting grounds that i saw, just a stunning, amazing sight. words cant describe it. these birds are just so beautiful and strong and are like royalty. most of the birds were protecting their eggs, but as they never leave the nest for the duration of this time, the stench was awful!
truly a moment.
on the way back we stopped off at a gannet colony on the rocks, and went into a big cavern rock formation. awesome, all of it. one of the best days so far.
i really hope i can put some of the blooming pics up on this site.
anyway, may go to a vinyard tommorrow or a choc factory!
laters people xxxxx

napier

2007-11-16T14:59:00.000+13:00

so left that which was gisbourne at 9am on the intercity bus which went all the way down the east coast through vast areas of forestry and then into massive areas of fruit farms and vinyards which was pretty cool, i was able to put my two years of environmental science into what was going on- microclimates and all. the american girl showed me a picture of iowa. completely desolate- not a tree in sight- what is the point of that eh? no birds or anything.
anyway got to napier at around one, and after lugging all my stuff to the hostel- which in comparison to the last is much nicer :) then a refresh and set off to explore this little town/city place. ah its so much nicer and much more me than gisbourne- kwirky buildings, the beach like a minuite up the road and cute shops and things.
also met a german girl- i am so bad with names! who i met when i was in pahia- shes in the same dorm as me, how wierd eh? so thats pretty cool- shes been here 3 weeks, got a job and loves this place. the weather is not so good today, so will just go to sleep i think. oh yeah! worked out how to msg the uk by phone... so to contact me- haha like you'd want to, my number is 00642102587290. maybe. or ask jessica cus i successfully managed to contact her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wooooooo!!!!
erm ate fejioa icecream earlier- a small plum like fruit found here.
not really sure how long im guna stick around for, but yeah will check it out and see what happens!
ah thank goodness i remembered- this place reminds me very much so of Bangor, Wales. no idea why, but it just does!
anyway, there you have it, will go exploring tmz.
laters people xxxxxxxxxx

goodbye gisborne

2007-11-15T10:08:00.000+13:00

i dont like gisborne so im leaving to go to napier tommorrow.
haha, i love being able to just move on if you dont like a place much.
but i have had a relatively nice time. i cant even remember how long ive been here. walked for absolute miles the other day through a forest reserve called kaiti hill which is seriuously beautiful for its views, flowers and bird calls. bird calls are crazy here, theres one bird which sounds so much like a chainsaw its untrue! im going to upload some pics on here if i can.
lots of statues of nelson- haha i mean cook. he was the second outsider to discover nz and he arrived here in gisbourne like 200 years ago.
i went to the museum and it was like 20 minuites long. nz doesnt have much of a history, and i miss exploring castles and little historically interesting streets and architecture that we take so much for granted in the uk. here its just like... hmm theres another nice wooden bungalow or line of shops built in the 1930s- the 1890s at the latest!
i talked to the parents yesterday and i kept laughing for so much afterwards- my way of speech is now slow and simple. i never talk normally now because the people i talk to are either from brazil or germany, there is one american in my room but the rest are german.
beautiful day outside, but there was a very chilly and strong breeze blowing through yesterday- it was quite unpleasant and reminded me of those back home in england- i went to the cosy library and studied spanish for an hour.
it is so amazing to meet and talk to people from brazil. their lifestyle is so crazy and different. i was talking to one guy- he had a complicated name which ive forgotten, and it seems his life was much harder growing up than anything that would happen in the uk. left school at 14, worked his socks off, somehow managed to afford university- a month at university costs double the monthly average wage of brazil. anyway hes cool, living in a house in whaihi and goes surfing before working on the farms all day, his main reason for coming here was to learn english which has proved harder than he imagined- considering noone around here speaks it much!
anyway, hopefully napier will be cool,
laters people xxx

wainui adventure

2007-11-12T14:36:00.000+13:00

the lonely planet spoke of a hostel right on the beach offering surf lessons and the like in a place like 6 miles from gisborne. so i thought, yeah its a nice day il go check it out!
caught a courier for $10 to this place... they looked at me oddly when i asked to be dropped there but said no more about it. so there i arrived, the middle of nowhere, hostel had obviously shut down, and there was not a shop in sight. so i went to the beach- stunning and completely deserted.
so i was like... eek what am i supposed to do... it was too far to walk home so luckily id asked for the taxi number earlier that day. i called and they were like 'where are you?' !!!!! i was like 'i dont know' hahaha, yeah so eventually a taxi turned up, i think he was abit confuzed on why i was there and how i had got there, but no worries...
$20 later i ended up at the library. no im refreshed and revived- a toilet break, chai latte and spinach and feta muffins always do the world of good.
realised that none of the hostels here are anywhere near a beach and the only one which was is shut... im like err what shall i do now?!
i know. bought some learn spanish books so will go and learn some spanish yo.
okiedokie... so i thought id write this little adventure down before i forgot it... and the hostel doesnt have internet because its rubbish.
laters dudes xxx

gisbourne spontenuity

2007-11-12T11:02:00.000+13:00

yes so well that was mt maunganui for you... haha, a guy staying at the hostel- chris from brazil was headed to raglan on sunday morning so i decided i'd go with him. why? well mainly because of the fact its renound for surfing, so i thought instead of spending more time dawdling in this beautiful place i'd go somewhere else and learn to surf. but oh no, things we're not to go as planned- haha as if theyre planned anyway... so chris went out partying in tauranga and was too tired to go anywhere in the morning. so plan b it was, jeff- another guy from the hostel and who is returning to brazil next week was headed down to hastings- oh and on the way, he was stopping off in Gisbourne, another place renound in NZ for its surfing- the bloke who gave me a surf lesson in the UK stayed here for 6 months, so i thought why not? and so after 4 hours driving throught flat and mountainous terrain we arrived to some grim weather, but alas the hostel -flying nuns backpackers was once a convent. im staying two nights here, and then tommorrow il move abit closer to the beach around the corner. its cool everywhere here is dedicated to surfing. as soon as i get to a nice hostel- one with internet- im in a interweb cafe right now then il get meself a surf lesson! lots of vinyards and apple orchards around. beach is not as beautiful as the mount but the waves are existant here!
im not actually sure how long im going to stay here for, or what im going to do, apart from surfing... but we'll see what happens eh?
oh yeah, anchor butter is not sold here as far as i can see.
kiwi flavoured chocolate is nice.
laters dudes and dudettes xxxx

wish list

2007-11-10T13:19:00.000+13:00

job was awful the first day and i thought id leave the following day, as it turned out the next day was better- i wasnt working with the pinikity supervisor. rooms are all the same, its no george i tell you.
so finnished at 2 on both days. weather has been awesome, got sunburn yesterday. most of the long term people at the hostel are leaving, so it will just be me and sanna as the originals remaining which will be quite wierd.
its too hot to climb the mount in the day time now, so will have to go in the late afternoons and such. money is all fine too. transfered half of my funds into my nz account easily after a small scare the other day.
bought some ketchup yesterday, hadnt realised how much i missed it! had ketchup on bread for breakfast... mmm.
so if youre considering sending me anything at all then maybe consider-

20 gram pocket size vaseline from boots.... nearly run out!
marmite
real chocolate by cadburys- milk chocolate is fine, it tastes no good here.
ah those layered caramel buiscuts- the old fashioned ones which are chewy and wrapped in paper and can be melted in the microwave.
marshmallow tea cakes
my student recipie book
ENGLISH TEABAGS- good quality ones- tea is not good here either.

thankyou!
any requests can be sent to me and il see what i can do!
oh and im going to stay at the hostel for the rest of my stay at the mount so its all good :)

laters bro xxx

job number 2

2007-11-07T09:28:00.000+13:00

finally managed to get onto a computer which allows me to access blogspot. so due to unprofound lack of hours at zeytins resteraunt i quit and went job hunting again. got a job housekeeping at oceanside resort towers- right on the beach, and right next to the mount!
im working with a sweedish girl called saana who stays at the hostel, we might find an apartment together as we're quickly becoming tired of this blooming hostel.
yesterday was my first day at work... but i felt very ill, couldnt stand up for more than 2 minuites without feeling dizzy. was also sick twice which wasnt fun. so stayed in bed for the whole day. doesnt help that the bed is mightily uncomfortable. ended up sleeping on the floor by 3am this morning. feeling better today... so will hopefully go to work tommorrow.
the weather is not at its best- been cloudy and rainy for the past few days.
got my hair cut a few days ago so its nice and light for the summer time!
the sheep are shawn, the lambs are bouncing and birds are making nests, it is so odd that it is november.
firework night was celebrated on the 3rd of november, there were no real major displays but everyone bought little packs and let them off in the parks.
anyway not much else to say, apart from chai lattes. very very good.
okay well there you have it. im just going to laze about today as i feel a little light headed still.

by the way the address of my hostel is...
Pacific Coast Backpackers, 432, Maunganui Road, Mount Maunganui, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

luff ewe xxxx

update

2007-11-02T09:22:00.000+13:00

work has given me limited hours so am in the process of searching for a new job right now. it looks like marinas are out of access for those without a car, so i thinking i might just set off again around the east cape and down to gisbourne. this area is so so beautiful, but everything is pretty much inconvienient.
no surf still, so gisborne is the next option. anyway will research it today. went running on the beach yesterday and pulled a muscle. bought a recipe book too and made a nice meal without using tinned tomatoes.
haha, it was halloween the other day- all my previous halloweens have been walking round in the wind, rain and darkness at maybe 6 in the evening... well not this time, it was beautiful weather- blue skies, high 20 degrees, and we were sitting outside swealtering some wearing masks and hats from the $2 shop.
i cant really think of much else to say right now, but yeah, there you have it a lil update from me. im off to research gisborne and if, how and when im going to go.
rightyho, toodles xxx

job

2007-10-28T13:48:00.000+13:00

shes a working woman people. haha. yeah confirmed me a job in zetins medeterrainian resteraunt/cafe on the main high street of the mount. apparently it is quite reputed for its quality, and also one of the busiest places in town.
waitressed there last night, serving iskenders, banana pizzas and massive doner kebabs. the people are cool who work there, mostly nz but some ppl from south america. the best thing is that the kitchen closes at 9. so after clean up i finished at 10.30. yay! theyre closed on mondays, so theres one definate day off. i was so good a waitressing- hmm, that they want me to come back tonight.
still have yet to find out what they pay an hour, but will get paid on monday night- first bit of money into my nz account! woo. have to go shopping for some summery clothes tommorrow. have to go shopping for food in a sec.
started to meet some nz people at last, theres a guy who works across the road who is uncannily like my friend alan from the uk and a cool girl who i work with who's name ive forgotten right now. apparently the mount is the place to be for the summer. yay! things are looking hopeful, and now i feel i have a sense of purpose here- to earn lots of money!
sheep are cute.
the end.
hope yall are well. xxx

life atm

2007-10-27T10:57:00.000+13:00

at the moment is composed of breakfast- vegemite on toast, walking along the beach, grabbing a free green tea latte from starbucks, trecking up the mount, contemplating for a while, carefully making my way back down the mount, walking back through town, maybe having lunch, applying more factor 50 suncream, then heading down to the beach to have cool but random converations with argentinians and germans. after making dinner, read some book, listen to argentinians playing guitar, watching a film and going to bed. well thats been the last week for me anyway.
hopefully next week will consist of all of the above and work.
never realised how complicated coffee is, but the food is amazing.
anyway, i got to be off, maybe to do all the above, or just chill on dus beach,
no worries, laters xx

jobs

2007-10-23T18:59:00.000+13:00

so the first time i went handing out my CV was last wednesday.
and to my dismay i recieved no calls from anyone requiring my assistance or offering me money.
so i set off again today and saw where my problems lay.
the number written on the CV was wrong!
shish how on earth does that happen! why oh why!
anyway, so after correcting it and printing out numerous other CVs went down to the town again and asked for a job.
gave my CV in a couple of places, and went back to the meddeterainian resteraunt where they said come back tommorrow morning at 9 for a trail.
so then hopped on on the nearest bus to the bayfair shopping mall and dus bought a black shirt.
hmm.
glad to hear the family arrived safely in espanol!
laters yallxxx

hot springs

2007-10-22T09:15:00.000+13:00

well yesterday, south africa won the rugby- could there be anything worse eh?
then there was a high off shore wind so the waves were non existant thus cancelling my surf lesson.
so went for a walk through the town where lots of musicians were doing their stuff along the roadside in the street at the buskars fair. very nice atmosphere! walked along the beach and saw a volleyball tournament!
the day was one of the best- weather wise so far, went to the beach and there i stayed for maybe three hours, learning german with a german guy staying at the hostel called bubi. germans are well cool, theyre all crazey i tell you!
strand is beach in german.
so had dinner and then was bored, so asked around and went to the hot springs at the bottom of the mount! lovely- pools were in the high 30 degrees, stayed there for nearly three hours! very pleasant.
have yet to hear from the family and theire things in spain, so ya know whenever you can, gimme an email?!
have worked out how to put photos on this blog as you may have noticed, pretty cool bro.
bro is the new word.
yeah bro latersx

fish

2007-10-20T16:45:00.000+13:00

larz from germany got fired from his job in the fish factory...
so when he left he said 'i will leave, but not alone!'
also being a chef it is all good.
so i just put a picture up of larz, myself, gavin and the fish up.
we're going to eat it for dinner!
brilliant!
gavin is a carbon fiberist from devon, hes going to build his own boat asap and sail round the world. maybe shall join him. he hasnt got the first clue about sailing.
i got sunburnt today. not happy. but am very happy altogether.
realised surf lesson at 10am clashes with the final of rugby! eek!
anyway, i thought you needed that update.
hope the family got to spain alright, will be expecting an update from them soon!
xxx

surf and sand

2007-10-20T11:50:00.000+13:00

sand everywhere... in my phone, cards, cameras everywhere! crazy.
surf... finally theres decent waves, so sat and watched the surfers do their stuff for the whole morning. pretty cool. booked a surf lesson for tommorrow morning, eeek! so excited!

anyway theres a buskers fair going on down town today so will head down there in abit.

its labour weekend- like a bank holiday, so its a long weeked, lots of people bumbling around here.

i got quite freaked out today, because i realised that i am actually living my dream. its crazy and just goes to show dreams can come true. im so happy.

the mount

2007-10-18T21:00:00.000+13:00

decided to ignore the weather and head up to the summit of the mount- like 20 minuites walk along the beach. massif. its like all tropical and jungly, and is so peaceful at the top- its definately going to be a place i visit alot. beaches stretch as far as the eye can see in both directions and then you look out onto the pacific ocean and can see the whole of the township of mt maunganui.
on my decent i managed to take the steepest most dangerous option, and venturing only in sandles and on my own was slightly petrified! take the easier routes next time.
gave my cv into a few resteraunts and bars, so will hopefully get a reply from one? have booked another week here, so this is where il probobly stay for a while- at $120 per week its much cheaper than a flat.
theres some cool peeps staying here semi permenantly too.

the ohter day met a australian dude who tandem cycled round the iow and he nicked a gnome out of the gnome garden at the needles. he took the gnome 'mr rocket' back with him to oz, and that is where he is!
its always the same... no matter how far you try to escape the iow its always there lurking in the midst!
reading a pretty awful book called 'cockney waif' which i picked up from a hostel in tauranga. but i feel inclined to read it!
just been to the shopping center with a surfer german, crazeh german and a crazeh guy from devon. therye all cool. chopped tomatoes, spaghetti and butter are the best inventions in the world if you ask me. had stir fried vegetables- beans, asparagus and pumpkin with rice for dinner... yum.

laters dudes xxx

starfish

2007-10-17T11:49:00.000+13:00

hehe, theyre all around on the rocks. well cute. look pretty much like the one off finding nemo! going to search for a job today, lots of cool people around, xx

mt maunganui!

2007-10-16T10:37:00.000+13:00

yeah so didnt much feel for tuaranga- no where near a beach and the hostel wasnt that great... however i did manage to sleep from 4.30pm to the following morning.
anyway signed out asap and caught a beach hopper to mount maunganui across the water.
as soon as i got off i bumped into the cheque guy i played pool with in thames- how wierd eh?!

dumped my stuff and then went in search of the beach. omg. its like my dreams come true, surfers in the waves, the beach stretching for miles in both directions, the sand is all sparkly and pretty, there are sand dunes, and aah im so happy ive found this place. lots of surf shops and schools around as well! this place is called the mount because theres a massive hill at the end of the peninsular. il climb it when the weather is nice for a good photo.
the area itself is quite rich- lots of big beautiful houses around. reminds me of the OC. the hostel is abit out of the way, but lots of people use it as a base for working here. i think tommorrow il go in search of a job- hopefully in a resteraunt or bar- its good to meet people!

people here seem cool, mostly from germany and japan. though i did hear a canadian and an english accent in the midst of it all!

i cant seem to drag myself away from the beach, its just so amazing and beautiful and close.

oh yeah, under the mount itself is hot spring baths... mmm might go check it out tommorrow!

tuaranga

2007-10-14T14:53:00.000+13:00

so arrived and it was all dandy til i got to the bank and found that the machine isnt spitting money at me anymore. so that left me a bit confuzzled. anyway got on here and found the nationwide website is down. im positive that theres still money in there. so i guess il have to wait til 10pm tonight and call nationwide in the uk. the banks here are closed- dude, everywhere here is closed- just because its sunday! in the mean time im just going to live off carbs that ive dragged all the way here until i can get some money and know whats going on. if worse comes to the worse i can always break a travellers cheque.

hmm, so...
arrived in tuaranga today after watching the match between england and france in rotorua, we won- yay!
rotorua smelt of eggs. not cus they like them tehre- but because of the sulphar- there was even a hot spring pool downstairs in the hostel!
yesterday on the way to rotorua visited a working gold mine, a very old gold mine in a mountian, then the bus broke down and we were stuck on the road for two hours. somehow ive managed to conquer being able to sleep whilst doing nothing... we played eye spy an' all which helped pass the time.
then we went on a loge- a taboggan run for 3.5km! it was quite fun, you had to go up to the top of the hill in a ski lift! anyway did that three times, all good!
in the evening went to a maouri performance and then a hangi- a massive feast of vegetabels. it was all quite amazing, with singing, dancing and real poi and stuff!
theres lotsa jobs available around here- which is a relief- especially if i have no money...

will give you an update asap on the money, and will give the parents a call tonight.

laters yallxxx

whitianga- pronounced fit-ee-anger

2007-10-12T19:54:00.000+13:00

yeah, went to cathederal cove today- it was awesome. its a massive sandstone rock formation that you can walk through on the pristine white beaches, with the chrystal clear waters dotted with islands, with the jungle on top of the cliffs. very pleasant- if a little windy!
anyway, so arrived in whitianga around 4pm, talked to many an interesting person apon the way. went for an explore- quite a small, new, industrial town- the beach is made entirely up of sea shells. had broad beans in tika sauce with rice for dinner. wrote a bit in my journal whist listening to the birds chirping away, then paid $2 for a game of texas holdem and ended up coming out with $16. dont worry people i hate gambling. but even i was a little impressed! at least it pays for half a nights stay in a hostel.
so am not guna stay here, but will go straight to rotorua tommorrow- although we are going through matamata- hobbiton tommorrow- hehe!
my sister complained that i wasnt replying to her, but seriously its well hard- with only 20 minuites and the internet costing a bomb- its hard to get anything done atall!
will only stay in roturua for one night. head to tauranga the next day so im there in time for the rugby!
love yall xxx

thames

2007-10-11T11:00:00.000+13:00

so this is my third day in thames...
been quite chilled out really, met two environmental scientists from hudersfield? named matt and andy, and played trivial persute on the first night... which would've been fun apart from the fact that 1. this edition was south african and 2. it was from 1981. haha. it got us through an evening anyway!
the hostel is a beautiful 140 year old building one minuite from the mangroves and vast expanse of water with the mountains in the distance. there are massif hills behind the house and beautiful flowers everywhere.
yesterday me and this german girl- nameless :( borrowed the hostels bikes and cycled up the coast. it was good, apart from the fact that midway the heavens opened. not light rain. oh no. monsoon rain. hahaha!
in the afternoon me and matt went down the road to learn about thames' past. in thames mining school. wow. seriously interesting. even more so if i understood anything about geology! so this area was vastly exploited for gold in the late 1800s. very interesting- a must for anyone who comes to thames. was like a time capsule seriously amazing.
anyway. today... hmm well theres only 3 ppl in the hostel including myself, so a day of chillaxing is ahead of me. ah, also need to find connect 4 and some tiddlywinks.
hehe, aah, this has been a nice break.
anyway have to go now.
laters, love yall muchly xx

furthar update

2007-10-08T20:00:00.000+13:00

still headed to tauranga, but am stopping off lots on the way.

have also become a member of wwoof- willing workers on organic farms, so will hopefully go and live/work/ play/ learn at one of them quite soon, hopefully around the caromondel peninsular.

will catch the kiwi bus tmz to get off at Thames, maybe explore there for a few days before rejoining the bus again. Theres lots of wwoof farms around there so i might end up staying abit longer.

this wwoofing thing is a really wonderful oppertunity, so i think il better take it! sustainability and all, my perfect cuppa tea!

laters people xxx

still in auckland...

2007-10-08T11:15:00.000+13:00

until tommorrow anyway, plans have been drastically changed, so hopefully will head down on the kiwi bus to murcury bay on the coromandel penninsular, perhaps stopping off in thames for a night or two. then im guna head down to whahi the day after and catch an intercty bus to tauranga where apparently job prospects are better.

why on earth has she changed her plans you ask? well yesterday met up with nick and his family and after a discussion with the locals decided that raglan is more of a day trip than a months stay. fair enough. so tauranga is a growing area and good for surfing, so thus im headed there!

went to auckland museum yesterday and saw lots of bugs, then went to mission bay and ate kumara chips and drunk l&p, and ate a green tea ice cream. nicks family are moving into their new house in pukekeho today, which is just out of auckland.

tauranga is very near matamata and guess what that is... hobbiton!

hehe laters people!
xx

fush and cheeps

2007-10-06T21:59:00.000+13:00

for the night anyway. staying with victoria, but at the moment have just left a good game of poker- yes i can play it! with some guys- gab-uk, kalle- from finland, pete-uk, charles-uk and victoria at acb.

had a nice trip down, it was really sad to leave phahia though.

yesterday was awesome. went for a walk with pete and sarah, and ended up meeting up with some guys from the hostel in town; bryce- south of the south island, and joe- usa (maryland?) they'd just been deep sea fishing and had brought back a load of snapper, the fush and cheep shop chopped it up and fried it for us. 15 peices and 5 portions between us, oh my, it was the best fush ive ever tasted! so tender and just muah!

anyway a lovely end to my stay in pahia. saw simon, steve and zoe in pahia just as i left who'd come back up from nelson, which was quite funny. it was really quite sad leaving cus we're like a little family, but this evenings been nice, just playing poker and chilling with the guys.

im catching an intercity bus to hamilton tommorrow morning at 9am. then from hamilton il head to raglan where i hope to work and live for a few months.

laters dudes xx