Arthur's Pass English (Lisa) 28/1 Arthur’s pass is one of the best known highways in New Zealand. It connects the westcoast to Chirstchurch. We read and heard that driving on it would be quite adventurous, so we only expected to reach a campsite located 2 hours away from Chirstchurch. The road turned out to be about the same as some of the ones we’d already driven on. It went through some valleys and over some hills. There were plenty of lookout points along the way. At some point we drove through a valley and everywhere around us were mountain ridges ranging from looking nearly black to being covered in light grass. Another infamous local specialty was the Kea. Birds that literally eat EVERYTHING. Even if it’s not edible, they’ll still repeatedly try to nibble on it ... read more

Punakaiki & The West Coast English (Lisa) 25/1 We left Reefton this morning to see the Pancake rocks at Punakaiki, a town located at the West Coast of the South Island. Panakaiki is known for its Pancake Rocks and blowholes. I always wondered how on earth something like these Pancake Rocks could have been formed and now I finally know. The Pancake Rocks consist of layers of limestone and mudrock. The distinctive shapes of the rocks are caused by the wind and water slowly breaking the rocks down. They are beautiful and very impressive to look at. We continued our way along the west coast. Evening had already kicked in when we arrived at our Holiday Park near Fox Glacier. Nederlands (Anouschka) 25 januari 2011 Tijd om de ruige west coast te verkennen; een gebied ingeklemd ... read more

The Golden Bay English (lisa) 22/1 After seeing the beaches yesterday, we instantly decided to spend today (then it was still called tomorrow) on the beach. When we arrived, the tide was high and no beach was to be seen. We installed ourselves in the dunes waiting for the low tide to kick in. At the end of the day, a sandy, 40 meter wide beach had been formed. Some other people were there as well, but the beach never became something even close to crowded. I love beaches and can’t resist collecting all pretty shells even though there’s no way we can take them all with us. So… we’ve made them into a piece of ‘art’ (see picture). Nederlands (Anouschka) 22 januari 2011 De aanblik van de idyllische baaien gisteren heeft ervoor gezorgd dat we ... read more

The Capital: Wellington English (Anouschka) 18th January 2011 The longest drive so far, to Wellington, started off in the rain. Because it’s been dry for very long and there’s all kinds of oil and dirt on the road, it was quite slippery too. After the first small slip we were forced to use the break with a little more caution. Late in the afternoon we arrived at the holiday park closest to the city center and, more importantly, the ferry terminal. We agreed to meet Lisa’s ‘achternicht’ Tessa at the Te Papa Museum. She took us out for a drink in one of those bars you would never find as a tourist, although it’s located very centrally. After that, we walked around the city and the harbor. The atmosphere of this ‘windy city’ (they are right ... read more

Tongariro Alpine Crossing English (Lisa) Saturday we woke up at 6 (- a.m. that is), in order to be at the starting point of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing hike at 7:30. This hike is one of the most popular 1-day hikes of New Zealand. It is 19,4 km long and encompasses 800 m of climbing and 1100 m of walking down. As you can see on the picture, trying to get back down the mountain sometimes isn’t as easy as it sounds. In the first part of the hike we went through a volcanic area. Only low vegetation was present and the landscape was very rocky. Everywhere, you could see lava – if you spot a black rock on the pictures: it’s lava. The views were stunning. Sadly Mt Doom was partly covered in clouds today. ... read more