Counting Sheep

Well, it seems that a lot has changed since my last post! We did end up going to Norsewood for a night, which was VERY small, but a nice little town. Then we made our way north, stopping in Palmerston North, New Plymouth and Hamilton before spending a night in Auckland at a very NOT nice backpackers downtown.

We then took a bus up to Paihia, where we spent a few relaxing days in the subtropical weather. We went on a dolphin boat cruise and saw some bottlenose dolphins up close. Another day we biked around and did a three hour hike to some waterfalls.

Now I am back in Auckland, staying at a small hostel south of downtown in a nice area called Mt Eden. I visited the Air Pacific offices in Auckland today and changed my flight home. Well, actually I don’t think I changed my flight, but somehow they are “forcing” me on a flight to LA leaving this Saturday! If all goes as planned, I will be back in Toronto this Sunday, the 18th at 2 in the afternoon.

I will be home for about a month before I head to Norway for a while, again if all goes as planned. If anyone has any odd jobs that need to be done that they would like to pay me for, I am MORE than willing!

I’m going to try to post some pictures from the past few weeks now and I look forward to seeing you all soon! Thank you very much for following my blog, I hope you enjoyed it!

After spending about four days in Wellington and going to the Royal Norwegian Consulate to celebrate the 17th of May (ie Norway Day), I took the bus to Napier, city of Art Deco.

There was an earthquake in Napier in the 1930s and the city was destroyed and then rebuilt. Because of the timing, a lot of the buildings in Napier are in the Art Deco style. I took some pictures that I will post at a later date, but I’m not sure how many good ones I got. I spent another four days or so in Napier, exploring the city and enjoying coffee (as I do in most cities).

I am currently wwoofing at an organic farm right outside of Hastings. The place is called Epicurean and it supplies quite a lot of organic food to supermarkets and businesses in the area, quite a large scale operation I think. We are working for accomodation and food, the equivalent of four hours a day. We worked the first day for four hours, weeding in the rain then had two days off to recover. We tried walking to a place called Cape Kidnappers, but after two hours of walking and not getting any closer to the ocean, we hitchhiked back into Hastings and walked around the town. The next day was rainy again so we relaxed and prepared for three days work. We have finished two eight hour days and are feeling pretty sore. Yesterday we cleared fields (I did a lot of sweeping, very hard on the back) and today we spent most of our eight hours weeding around very small and fragile dill plants. One day left and then we have a day off before we will move on.

I think our plan is to go to Norsewood next, supposedly an odd re-creation of Norway in New Zealand.

I have been applying for jobs, but haven’t found anything yet.

Hope everyone is enjoying the heat in Toronto!

Hello everyone!

I finally had an internet connection fast enough to load pictures from Mom’s visit. We saw so many beautiful things!

After returning to Christchurch when Mom left, I spent another two weeks or so there, dealing with a case of mono. That was NOT fun, but luckily I got through it and I’m feeling much better now. I didn’t end up looking for work there but plan to start looking soon.

I am in Wellington right now (took at 55 minute flight from Christchurch that felt like we were in the air for 10 minutes) and will be here for a few days. Then I will be heading to Napier and possibly other cities in the Hawkes Bay area. I may do some wwoofing or look for work right away.

The weather is still pretty nice here. Sometimes it is quite warm, and other times I just need a light jacket. I guess things are starting to get nice in Canada!

I will keep you posted on how things go on the east coast!

Mom just left, but she has been here for about two weeks, and we have had a wonderful time!

She met me in Christchurch where we spent a couple days.  We did a day trip out to a French town called Akaroa, which was really beautiful. We hiked up very steep road and got a nice view of the harbour, and we had wonderful weather.

From Christchurch we took the TranzAlpine train across the south island to Greymouth. We then took a rainy bus ride down to Fox Glacier. The next day pooooured rain but Mom went on a full day hike in the glacier and had the unique experience of crossing a huge river that formed over the day on the glacier.

From there we headed down to Queenstown, where we went up the gondola at night and got a view of the city and surrounding mountains. The next day we hiked up Queenstown Hill for some beautiful daytime views and a good little workout. Then we went to Te Anau to prepare for the Milford Track, New Zealand’s most famous walking track.

In Te Anau we went to the Glow Worm Caves, which mom was afraid of, but things were fine, not too claustrophobic! Then we took a bus and boat ride to the start of the four day, three night Milford Walk. The area is very wet and gets huge amounts of rainfall. They were calling for rain every day, but we got sun every day! We were soooo lucky! We had the best views I have seen in New Zealand yet. Although it was tough, finishing was rewarding and our boat ride back to civilization went through Milford Sound, which was gorgeous.

We then headed back to Christchurch for a night, then drove up the east coast of the south island to Kaikoura, known for it’s amazing sea life. We went swimming with Dusky dolphins this morning, which was so amazing! The water was a little cold and we both felt a bit sea sick, but the dolphins were jumping and swimming right by and around us, so it was so cool!

Mom is now driving north and making her way to Auckland for her flight home. I’m going back to Christchurch this afternoon to start looking for work! I’d love to hear updates from home if you have time! New pictures will be coming soon! Take care!

I always think of clever titles for my blog posts when I’m not around a computer, and when I am all I can think of is something boring…sorry!

Soo, as you might guess, I am in Christchurch right now and my mom gets here in two days! We have lots of things to do while she is here, including doing New Zealand’s most famous walk (a four day hike in Milford Sound), a train ride from the east to the west coast of the south island, and probably some golfing.

I was in Queenstown for a week, which was really nice. The city is pretty touristy, but also really nice buildings and surroundings. After Queenstown I headed to Te Anau, where I did the Kepler Track, one of New Zealand’s Great Walks, as you can see in the pictures. I had heard the the walk was really hard, and although it was challenging at times, it was definitely do-able. There were some amazing landscapes and overall it was an amazing experience (aside from a few sleepless nights, some annoying mosquitoes and some REALLY annoying sand flies).

After the walk, I rested for a few days and then got back on the Stray bus, heading south. We stopped for a few hours in Milford Sound, but the weather was really bad so I didn’t see much. I expect to see more on the hike. Then we went to Invercargill, which was fairly dull, possibly because it was Good Friday. Then we moved onto Dunedin for a night, which was a nice city. We were back in Queenstown for a night and headed up to Christchurch. I have been here for a few days and it seems like a really nice city, not too busy but big enough that everything I could need is here. I think I might look for work here after my mom leaves, but we will see.

Update: I’m finally getting used to people driving on the wrong side of the road!

That’s all for now, hope everyone is enjoying spring time!

Well it is getting harder and harder to update this. Be patient! :)

I am in Queenstown right now and it is St Patrick’s Day, which should be fun! I have been making my way down the south island, which has been absolutely amazing! I started off taking the ferry from Wellington to Picton and drove to Abel Tasman National Park where we stayed for two nights. I did a coastal walk and a half day of sailing, which was beautiful.

Then we headed further down the west coast to some really small towns, which were mostly just for socializing with the bus group. We spent two nights in Franz Josef, where I did a day long glacier hike. That was really cool. What I really need to do is get pictures up and that will better help to describe what I’ve been up to. Hopefully I will be able to do that soon!

I plan to stay in Queenstown for a while enjoying the adventure capital of the world. So far nothing too adventurous on the schedule but we will see. I may be heading out of town for a while to do some hiking.

Pictures will be soon!

I am currently in Wellington, and am heading to the south island tomorrow morning. I have been here since Thursday I think, and have been enjoying the city. It is much more relaxed than Auckland, and prettier. I have hiked up Mt Victoria for a pretty view of the city and surrounding area, and walked along Oriental Place, where there is a beach and lots of people enjoying the sun. I have had really great weather since I got here…every day is sunny!

I enjoyed my time in Taupo and had an amazing day doing the Tongariro Crossing. It took 7 hours, including a one hour side hike to the summit of Mt Tongariro. The hike was through an area where there has been a lot of volcanic activity in the past, so there were no trees, just a lot of volcanic rock. There was a side hike up Mt Doom from Lord of the Rings, but we didn’t have time to do it and I probably would have seriously injured myself. You had to pick your way up the rocky parts for about 2 hours, and then pretty much slide down crumbled rock, which takes about 15 minutes. The side hike to Mt Tongariro was cool…we were walking in the clouds so didn’t get a view, but it was a unique experience. At the top there are some emerald lakes, which are beautiful. I will post the pictures later. Although the incline was fairly challenging, the decline was the tough part for me. The decline lasted for about 3 hours and was very gradual. Apparently I have very bad knees, and by the end I was hobbling along. In the end though, it was worth it!

Tomorrow I head to Abel Tasman National Park where I may do some kayaking or walking throught the park. Then the bus heads down the west coast, which should be absolutely beautiful. Right now I’m trying to figure out how I can do some more of the amazing walks here in New Zealand.

This afternoon I’m planning on taking the cable car up to the Botanical Gardens. Should be pretty and peaceful. Once I settle down for a few days in another place I will post some pictures. Any news from Toronto or elsewhere in the world? Thanks for reading!

I am now in Taupo and it seems amazing here!

So, last night we stayed in Maketu on a sort of replica of a traditional Maori marae, or meeting house. The guys in the group learned the haka, made famous by the All Blacks. The girls are not allowed to do the haka, so we learned the poi dance instead, which was cool, but not as cool as the haka. It was a very interesting experience…I learned a lot and had a great time!

This morning we rushed out of Maketu as it is on the east coast. Because of the earthquake in Chile, there was a tsunami warning for the east coast of New Zealand, but it seems that things will be fine here. I am certainly not near any danger.

On the way to Taupo we stopped in Rotorua, a major geothermal area in New Zealand…it smells like rotten eggs, YUM! Some people went rafting but I decided not to, the rapids were a bit too intense for my first time. I walked around the town but didn’t do much as it is Sunday and everything was closed. Right before arriving we stopped at a secret hot water pool and I went swimming there. It was nice to be in fresh water, but I smelled pretty bad after from the sulphur.

This afternoon a lot of people from my group went sky diving and they all seem to be on quite the high. As of right now, I’m not ready to jump out of a plane. We’ll see if that changes over the next few months. Taupo seems like a great city, it is right on Lake Taupo and there are mountains in the distance. Tomorrow I’m going to see if I can find some windsurfing! I think I will stay here for a few days at least.

I don’t know if I already posted this but yesterday I went to the Waitomo Caves, which was a great time! A little bit scary and claustrophobic at times, but also a very unique experience. We saw glow worms, tubed and swam in really cold cave water.

That’s all for now. After I leave Taupo I’ll head a little bit south and do the Tongariro Crossing and from there I’ll head to Wellington for a while.

Hope everyone is well!

As I said I was really happy to get out of Auckland and things have been great since I left.

I first headed to the Coromandel Penisula where I stayed in a small town called Hahei. I went sea kayaking and saw the famous Cathedral Cove. I then moved onto Raglan, the most famous surfing town/beach in New Zealand. It was the location for filming of The Endless Summer. I learned to surf my first day there, and spent the afternoon of the next day surfing as well. I got up my first try, and even learned to turn on my front side and back side, but only once for the back side, that one is pretty hard. I definitely want to do more surfing as I continue my travels.

I stayed in Raglan for three nights and enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of the nature lodge we staye in. I watched some of the Rip Curl Pro Raglan competition, which was pretty cool. A girl that was in my room at the lodge is from Hawaii and was competing, but unfortunately I didn’t get to see her surf, they let the guys go first.

I left Raglan yesterday to head to Maketu, where I experienced the Maori culture. And my internet is giving me a two minute warning so further updates soon, and hopefully pictures!

Thanks to all of you for reading!

I am leaving Auckland! I have been here for the past 10 days waiting for my new credit card to arrive. It got here today at 3:30, giving me just enough time to book a bus trip around the country with Stray, a hop-on, hop-off bus network for backpackers wishing to get further off the beaten track.

I meet the bus tomorrow morning at 7:30, make a few stops in Auckland and then head to Hahei on the Coromandel Penisula. There will be beautiful scenery and the possibility of digging my own hot water bath on the beach! Then I will be heading to Ragland, a laid-back surfing town where I plan to “hop-off” the bus and learn to surf for a while. Wish me luck!

My time in Auckland has been OK, but for what it feels like, I could be in Toronto (minus the friends, family, my own bed, and Shamus). I went on a free bus tour of the city last week. We visited Mount Eden, a volcano in the middle of the city with great views, and I watched some people bungee jump. It looked like fun, but I feel pretty confident in saying that I don’t think I will do it while I’m here. Another day I visited Devonport, a cute seaside town and found a nice little bakery, which reminded me of Pan Chancho…yum!

Still no sheep, but I’ve seen tons of children playing cricket. I don’t remember if I already posted this, but I saw a rugby game the first night I got here, which was a cool experience. A lot like a hockey game in Canada. I’ve been watching a lot of the Olympics here at the hostel. I haven’t seen any of our gold medals being won yet, just a few of the disappointments (men’s speed skating, the Canada vs. US hockey game today).

A lot of people (mostly Americans) I have met believe that as a Canadian, I say “aboot” rather than “about”, which is not true. So I have been wary of the words/pronunciations typically attributed to Kiwis. However, here are some words that I have actually heard Kiwis say that I think are funny/interesting:

togs-bathing suit (no idea where that comes from)

jandals-flip flops, maybe sandals too

heaps-as in “there are heaps of things to do in Auckland” (not!)

sweet as-I think it’s used in the same was as “sweet”, as in good, but is also used in a more general sense to say “it’s all good” (I haven’t completely figured this one out yet, so I’m going to wait on using it)

Other FIYs about New Zealand:

EFTPOS (pronounced how it looks, efft-pos, like posse)-debit card

THE ATMS DON’T HAVE DEPOSIT CAPABILITIES! So you have to go to the bank to make any deposits…inconvenient!

Anyways, that is all for now. I am really looking forward to my trip from here on out and will hopefully be telling you all about my adventures very soon!