We spent an uneventful St. Pattys and the next day recuperating in Tauranga and Mt Maunganui (about 10 min. drive apart) on the North Island. Luckily we celebrated early the Friday before after running into our Irish friends from Christchurch at our hostel in Nelson (before running into the "Birmingham Boys" for about the 6th time in 2 countries). We did come away with a funny story after a 2am run-in with our Korean dorm roommate. She did not appreciate having her sleep disturbed one bit and didn't hesitate to make this known to us (well technically not me since I [View Full Entry]

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We managed to complete the strenuous, 6 hour (19K) Tongariro Crossing (some of us in sub-optimal health) after a 5:30AM start to our day. It was scenic and diverse, starting with a landscape resembling the surface of Mars and ending with fields of Heather and a thick Princess Bride-style forest. We had our lunch at the summit, surrounded by 3 radiant turquoise lakes. There were loads of people the whole way (as I suppose one should expect on the "best day walk in New Zealand") with all ages and walks of life. We finished just before 3:00, when the shuttle collected [View Full Entry]

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For our one full day in Nelson, a laid back hippie/boho beach town, we took advantage of our hostel's (The Bug - highly recommended) free bikes for a beautiful morning ride to the beach. While we were parked for photos, a friendly Kiwi grandpa walked past and stopped for a friendly welcome to NZ chat on his way. Shortly following him came a couple who didn't respond to my "hello" greeting as they passed within inches of me. Of course just as I was observing to myself that these were the first unfriendly Kiwis, I see the husband wearing a USA [View Full Entry]

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Wanaka is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been! It's centered around a stunningly pristine lake with dramatic snow-capped mountain peaks as a backdrop. Our hostel, the Purple Cow, has a gorgeous front-row view of it all and is minutes away from "town" and the trails around the lake. We had a glorious, crystal clear, sunny day and came to the conclusion that everyone is perfect and happy in this town by the end of it. Not such a bad life at all - not at all. Impossible to be unhappy in this place. Oh yes, and Val and [View Full Entry]

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Queenstown is a beautiful lakeside town with a ski-resorty feel. After a quick Thai lunch we walked by the lake where there was a man playing the guitar on the open grass and vendors selling various crafts. There's a gorgeous chocolate/gelato shop where we pit-stopped for coffee (and much longing/drooling) before heading for a hike up the Queenstown Walkway where we treated ourselves to breathtaking views of the city below and the mountains around. Back at the Hippo Hostel we picked up a new card came called "Shithead" from a hanful of our hostel-mates before a divine home-cooked dinner of [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday morning we picked up our sweet ride c/o Budget Christchurch, complete w/ gps (and spoiler) for around NZ$1250 for 15 days. We're planning on doing a quick loop of the South Island and a short venture into the North Island to shop around for where we'd like to lay our roots for the next few weeks. Things here are so easy! We reserved the car online the night before and there were no hassles once we got there. The lady who helped us was lovely and there were no add'l charges (ie, for 4 drivers) or pressure to buy 18 [View Full Entry]

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We arrived in Christchurch late at night on the 1st and already are in love with New Zealand. The people are friendly (both locals and fellow backpackers), our hostel (The Old Countryhouse) is gorgeous and the staff lovely, the town is small and charming, and everything is half price since the USD is double the NZD! We already don't want to leave.. Our hostel is a bit outside of the city center, but the weather is mild here after the stifling heat/humidity of Oz, so we don't mind walking. There's a supermarket just around the corner, along with a wonderful cheap [View Full Entry]

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Our last overnight bus (wahoo!) brought us into Cairns at 6AM on Wednesday. The 3 of us checked into our hostel, The Travellers' Oasis, just outside the city center. It's a clean and colorful hostel that caters to the older/more quiet crowd - a great relief after our last night in Airlie Beaches (flea-bag party hostel). There are 2 kitchens, a swimming pool, outdoor shaded picnic tables in the courtyard, and a french press!! Thursday Val and I took a day trip on the Reef Experience boat for some more scuba diving (we're addicted) and our last chance to visit the [View Full Entry]

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On Sunday we caught the evening ferry with our new Swiss travel buddy to Moorea, where we hopped on the bus that loops the one road that circles the small island. The drive let us off at the Moorea Camp grounds which were low on the glam-scale, but beachfront so at 35USD for the 5 of us, we were happy to unload our bags. It being Sunday, most things were closed, so after a quick sunset dip, we headed to a restaurant at a nearby hotel for some grub. Polynesia is definitely not a budget destination with not limited, but non-existant [View Full Entry]

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We spent our first 3 nights in French Polynesia on the main island of Tahiti at the Taaroa Lodge, on a small cliff directly above the water. After a comfy 8.5 hour ride on Air Tahiti Nui, we arrived in Pepeete just after 10PM where our host Ralph was waiting with the van to take us back to our lodgings, Taaroa Lodge. Our "dorm room" was in a mid-sized beach bungalow above an outdoor kitchen with 6 low sitting, futon-style beds lining a sloped roofed loft. We shared it with two guys called Ben and Dan from Switzerland "don't use the [View Full Entry]

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