I've made it to the south island


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Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Glaciers
November 28th 2005
Published: November 28th 2005
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Well, it has been quite a while since I last wrote. Internet keeps getting more and more expensive, so I waited until a reasonable place. I'm currently in Franz Josef Glacier. It's a cute little town. Tomorrow I am doing an all day hike. This should be interesting. The city is very pretty. It sits in the foothills of the Southern Alps. Snow capped mountains all around. I love my current hostal. Very cozy...

So, back to where I left off. From Napier I went to Wellington. I was pretty tired on the bus and ended up sleeping for part of the trip. Most of it was grey and raining anyway. I woke up when we were coming into Wellington. This is another unique city. It sits on the edge of hte mountains and next to the sea...Cook's Strait on a bay. Very pretty. The water was an ice blue. The city sits at sea level and then quickly goes up with buildings and homes sitting in the hills. It's all surrounded by forest and nature. Lots of nature here...never gets old. My bus arrived at 3:15 p.m. and I checked into the closest hostal that just happened to be across the street from the ferry I needed to take the next day. From there, I headed out to explore the city. Since I only had a couple of hours, I went by foot and wandered through downtown. This is the country's capital so it is a bustling kind of place. Lots of cars on the streets, city buses, people all about. It's more of a metropolitan place. I really liked it. Again, people were very nice and helpful when I asked for directions and whatnot. I decided to ride the cable car up the hill. I bought my ticket and boarded. Once I had found a sit a large school group got on the car. The kids were maybe around 12. A couple of boys sat by me and I inquired if they were on a field trip. They said yes, but called it camp. Turns out they are from the Hawk's Bay area and in Wellington for school camp. Once they found out I was from the US, they had a ton of questions. They even asked me to say "oh my lord" and they all giggled. It was so fun. Here I am completely amazed by Kiwis and they were amazed by little ol' me. At the top, there were great views of the city and bay. From here I headed into the Botanical Gardens - mostly because it was free and a nice way to walk back down the hill to my hostal. I'm really glad I went though. Since it is the beginning of summer, so many things were in bloom. The colors were rich and everything smelled like honey. I love to stop and smell the flowers and there were too many to stop at. I also wondered through the rose garden. I never knew there were so many different types of roses. Bright colors of orange, yellow, pink, red. I couldn't get enough. I took far too many pictures. From here, I headed all the way down the hill to see Parliment and the other government buildings. The one is called the Beehive and literally looks exactly like that. The other buildings had the traditional look and feel. After all this, I decided to head back to the hostal.

Once there, I re-examined my trip route and decided to change the whole thing. I pretty much reversed the order with which I am doing things. I was very happy with this decision and after re-booking my bus pass, I decided to treat myself to dinner and a beer. I went to the Ferryman, a pub next door to the hostal. I had a meat pie with steak and mushrooms and mashed potatos and gravy. It was so, so, so good!!! To save money I have been cooking quite a bit at the hostals, but this meal with my Tui (beer) was so tastly! I loved it so much, I thanked the cook before leaving. I then headed back to the hostal, read for a little while and went to bed. It was an interesting night. When I checked in, I was the only person in a 4 bunk room with a bathroom attached (this was a special treat...not to have to walk down the hall to the toilet), but later on, three guys checked in. They were all very nice and one of them, Will from England, happened to be taking the ferry as well.

Early the next morning I woke up for the breakfast at the hostal, eggs, bacon, toast and hash browns (what a treat!!!) and then departed with Will for the ferry. Now, when I say ferry, I really mean small cruise ship! There were 10 decks - the first 3 were for cars and trucks, even Semi Trucks! I couldn't believe it. Will and I were all over the ship exploring all the levels. Some other things on it...caffiteria, coffee shop, casino, bar, reclining seat areas, outdoor sight seeing deck. We ended up sitting in the back in a glass enclosed room near the top of the boat. It was raining and hard to see much, but it was still a nice departure from Wellington. On our way to Picton, port on the south island, we hit some pretty rough seas. The captain came on and informed us to be careful while walking about the ship. I ended up a little sea sick, but not too bad, thank god! Once we were getting close to Piction, they allowed passengers up on the outdoor viewing deck. Will and I packed up and headed to there. We were coming in through Queen Charolette Sound. It was stunning. The wind was blowing so hard, I almost fell over, but the views were worth it. Steep inclines from the water all covered in shades of green trees. Several bays with rock formations. Again, too hard to take pictures...I just stood there and absorbed the views. Picton was a tiny little town and I went from the ship to the bus. Will was off to Christchurch, so we hugged and departed. He has been my favorite traveling buddy thus far.

Once on the bus, I could barely contain myself. I was heading to Nelson, the sunniest city in NZ. The drive was pretty. We were really getting into the mountains now. Nelson sits between two mountain ranges at the far north end of the southern alps. When we pulled into town, not only was it cloudy, but raining! I picked a hostal that advertised free breakfast and headed over to check in, unpack and plan the next couple of days. This was my least favorite hostal of all. Most of the people staying there was not friendly and it was a little run down and dirty. The beds were really bad. Now keep in mind that I have not stayed in any place that was a palace, I am comparing apples to apples and this one was rottan. I went into town, which I loved and talked to the people at the visitors center to help me decide which kayaking trip to take. Then I walked through town. The locals were very nice and I could have sayed there forever. Just didn't like the hostal. The next morning I was up extremely early to go on a kayaking trip to the Abel Tasman National Park. I was picked up in a VW van to a great big Maori hello! Harold was our driver and he was great. Played loud music to wake us all up. Made everyone on the bus sing a Maori song because he says that people from the northern hemisphere hate to sing in public. I was laughing the entire trip to Kaieriteri. Once there, we were welcomed by the group. This place was great. They had a tarp up with a table underneath and a sign that said office. Very laid back easy vibe here. I was put in a group with seven other kayakers. We were doing an all day kayak of the beaches and edge of the national park. It was sunny today, but very windy. The water was a bit rough in the morning. We took a boat up to the beach area that we would start from. Our guide, Pania was wonderful and she gave us great information all day. I was paired up with James, a chain smoker from Ireland. The kayaks sat two people and the person in the back had to stear. James took the back and we suited up in our splash jackets (like a drysuit) and splash skirts. The water was very cold. After some brief instruction, we were on our way. About 10 minutes into it, I was sea sick. The water wasn't just rough, we were kayaking through swells. It was incredible. I couldn't believe we didn't tip over. The shoreline was amazing. High bluffs of rock and forest. The forest here is different than at home...more of forest mixed with tropical. Lots of ferns and pines and then palms and these cactus things. Very cool. I tried to keep my head up and looking at the trees. There were huge rocks that jutted out into the water and we had to avoid some of them. James was not very good with directing the kayak. Not that I would have been better, but we were working twice as hard. We pulled into a beautiful beach for lunch. I had a cup of hot tea and wondered around on the beach. Took some great pictures here of caves and holes in the rock. The beach had several sea shells on it to. With the water so cold, I did not do any swimming. After about an hour, we suited back up and kept on paddling. At this point, Pania noticed that I was not looking too good and asked how I was feeling. She led us into a more secluded area of water and we were finally out of the swells. In my opinion, the scenary was better. We saw a seal playing on the rocks and a couple of penguins in the water. We crossed over this little sandy spit and saw some of the best shoreline. Then, back out into the rough waters. We headed over to Fisherman's Island next for our final rest before heading home. I was not looking forward to the rest of this trip. Although it was really pretty, when you don't feel well, you just want it to be over. As we pushed off for the final time and came around the tip of the island, Pania realized the wind was even worse and the water was just plain difficult to navigate. James, my boat mate, was getting really nervous and kept telling me to paddle faster. I was just trying not to puke and he was panicing because he can't swim and thought we were going to tip over. I really wouldn't have minded tipping at that point...my stomach would have felt a ton better. Overall, we made a great pair! We finally made it back to the shore after what felt like the longer jouney of my life. I just stood there and looked out at the sea thinking...today, I beat you! We took a couple of group photos...there is a link with our group picture, but its not working. I will try to send it again later. Then we had to wait for Harold to return and drive us all back to Nelson. I was so tired from the journey. My arms felt like mush. When Harold arrived, we all boarded back into the VW and to avoid anymore sickness, I climbed into the front with Harold. We chatted the whole way back to Nelson. He lives in Nelson and is a Maori. He told me more about their culture and just info on NZ in general. We giggled about all sorts of things. Another truly fine Kiwi!!!

Well, I am almost out of time on the computer...I have to go have dinner...more tomorrow...
CJ

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28th November 2005

Meatpie!!!
Sounds like fun... good thing you did all that working out before you left, or that kayak trip might have been worse! =) Love reading the blogs, keep it up! Can't wait to see you!
28th November 2005

News from the States
FSU lost to the Gators 37-7!!!! It was pathetic. Weatherford played a decent game, depspite all the sacks and the recievers missing his throws. If this is a repeat sorry, it just looks like you didn't get my first comment. Since it is already Tuesday there and you might not get this until Wednesday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!! Can't wait to hear/see the animated and unbridged version of the kayak trip with James the Irish chain-smoking non-swimmer!! Have a blast! Love ya, Miss ya, -R*
28th November 2005

neat
It sounds like you are seeing some really neat things and having amazing adventures. This is better than reading a novel! I was sad when you had to say goodbye to Will. I thought maybe he would change his plans and go with you. haha! I'll bet that the kayaking trip was really cool. It's too bad you got sick!
29th November 2005

Lead the charge, woman!
Hey Court, Thank you for your inspired writing and storytelling! I enjoyed reliving my own trek around the North Island through your words. I hope it stirs the passions of others to get out and see the world as you do. This planet sorely needs Americans with a Global Perspective and I have to believe that your enthusiasm will do just that! Keep living it, Courtney.

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