New Zealand

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Ok, ok, I know, before I start, we’ve (I’ve!) been pretty terrible at updating the blog recently! We’ve just spent the last 5 weeks in New Zealand and in absence of any other reasonable excuses; we’ve basically been having way too much fun to do it before now!

Whilst 5 weeks sounds like a long time, it’s flown by during our stay here in New Zealand. We both can’t believe that on 11 February we will be flying out to Chile because it feels like only yesterday that we arrived here in this beautiful country.

For those of you whom we have spoken to during our 5 weeks here, you’ll know that this is by far the most spectacular country we’ve both ever visited. I am very conscious that I am contradicting myself again as it was only a few months ago when I said that Laos was my favourite country so far. Once more, I have to change that statement as New Zealand wins hands down over everywhere we’ve been so far!

We arrived here on 7 January after flying direct from Melbourne. We flew in to Christchurch which is on the east side of the South Island. Our route has taken us through some extraordinary places ranging from lush green countryside and turquoise blue lakes to immense glaciers and balmy bays.

Whilst Christchurch is a pleasant city in itself, we decided to move on fairly quickly to the more remote parts of the east coast. After hiring a car (it was so cheap that it was categorised as ‘el cheapo’) we drove out further east to Okains Bay in the Banks Peninsula. The drive took us along the summit road which was predominantly an unsealed windy road through the mountains and along the Peninsula. The views were amazing and literally took our breath away at each and every turn.

Our accommodation that evening was a beautiful small cottage-style building situated in the middle of a large valley. There were only 2 other couples staying with us in the house which meant that it was a perfect, serene, place to rest our heads for the night. The nearest amenities were at least 17kms away so fortunately we had already brought our dinner before arriving there and were able to use the brand new kitchen facilities in the cottage to cook up our feast for the evening!

The following day we drove further south to our next destination of Twizel. Once again, the drive itself was just wonderful as we passed lake Tekepo, a clear turquoise blue lake set off against the backdrop of several snow capped mountains.

During our stay in Twizel we took a long walk along one of the many Mount Cook walking tracks. Our guidebook reported that it was an “easy” walk but after climbing up several very steep parts of the track we would have to beg to differ! Having said that, the views from the top were simply divine and well worth the climb up. At the end of the track we came across a large glacier lake with ice blocks floating on the surface! With the warmth of the sun heating the rocks that we sat on by the lake, we were able to sit quietly and take in the clear mountain air.

After spending another day or so in Twizel we drove further south to Te Anau where we stayed on a deer farm up in the mountains. As you can imagine, the views were outstanding as the location was at least 10kms out of the main town. We undertook another fairly gruelling walk along a section of the “Great Keppler” track which takes a good 3-4 days to complete in total. The section of the track that we walked crossed over a couple of marsh areas and traversed through a dense rain forest.

During our stay in Te Anau we visited Milford Sound which is a famous inlet on the west coast leading out to the ocean. The drive from Te Anau to Milford Sound took several hours along windy mountain roads although it was worth it simply for the views which were amazing. On arrival in Milford Sound we took a boat trip out to see the Sounds more closely and to explore more of the hidden coves around the area. The weather in this region is notoriously changeable (it rains nearly every day all year!) although whilst it did drizzle when we were out on the water, it added to the atmosphere of the trip. There was an eerie mist that sat above and over the surrounding mountains making the inlet look and feel very mysterious. We were very lucky on our way back to shore as we saw wild seals basking on the rocks near a small cove. It was great to see and it looked as if they were posing for our cameras!

After leaving Te Anau, Queenstown was our next destination and a place renowned for adventure activities! Deep and I both decided to “take the bull by the horn” and booked on to do a canyon bungee swing which included a 60 metre free fall drop and a 110 metre swing inside the canyon itself!

We got harnessed around our waists and were told we could jump off the platform in any way we wanted to. Our first jumps were facing forwards which seemed to be the most logical (and least scary) option. As you can imagine, we were both terrified and it was very nerve wracking! As with any kind of bungee activity, the guys who worked there wouldn’t let us jump again in the same way we’d jumped the first time. This meant that we would have to jump off backwards for our second jump or not at all! One of the other options for our second jump was to be suspended over the canyon face down and for the staff there to slowly cut the release cord above you. As that sounded more scary than anything, I decided to jump off backwards strapped to a plastic garden chair (as you do!) and Deep stepped off backwards! We’ve both since said that it was a terrifying but fantastic experience and we were both so pleased that we’d managed to actually do it.

We also did a speed boat “jet” ride on the same day along the inside of the canyon which was a fast and furious experience through some very tight bends! The driver was exceptionally skilled to be able to keep us on the water and upright, especially during the 360 turns. It’s definitely not a career change for me though as I was trying hard to keep my eyes open!!

After having our fill of adventure activities we moved on to Wanaka, further south from Queenstown. Wanaka is a beautiful place situated around a big lake. We decided to stay there for a few days as the hostel was situated just out of town over looking the water which offered us great views of the lake and town.

For those of you who have been to Wanaka, you will undoubtedly remember “Puzzle World” which is actually a maze and puzzle tourist attraction for children!. Of course, Deep and I wanted to go (Peter will be pleased to know). It was good fun - especially as Deep got lost in the maze!! Ha ha!!!!!

As we were there for some time we did other outdoor activities in Wanaka such as walking a section of the famous “Rob Roy” walking track. The summit of the mountain we climbed offered incredible views of the glacier next to it which we got so close to we were able to see the “blue” ice at the top! We also did plenty of cycling and took a long bike ride out of Wanaka along the lake.

There is a very unique cinema in Wanaka which we visited one evening. It is a tiny place with one cinema screen and inside the theatre guests sit on sofas and comfy chairs! They also have an interval during which you can buy home made warm cookies, beer and wine, etc. We partook in both of these activities (rude not to hey?!).

On our hunt for more adventure we moved on from Wanaka further up the west coast to the glaciers. There are two glaciers in this area; Fox and Franz Josef. Whilst the latter is bigger and often more touristy, we decided to visit Fox as we’d heard it offered walks closer to the summit along with more unique sights.

We were so lucky with the weather as the morning of the glacier climb was clear, bright and sunny. On arrival at the climbing office we got given a pair of hiking boots each and the other necessary gear and with our new found enthusiasm for adventure, we headed off to the glacier. The most physically challenging part of the day for us both was the climb up to the ice itself. We had to climb for one and a half hours up numerous makeshift steps and bizarrely, through a sub tropical forested area. As we reached the glacier side of the forest, the cool air hit us and took our breath away. The air was fresh and clean and the views of the glacier were out of this world. The temperature change from one part of the walk up to another was incredible and even though the air near the glacier was cool, due to the sunshine we were able to sit and admire the view wearing just our tshirts and no fleece.

The glacier walk itself was a wonderful experience and after an initially scary, quite claustrophobic section entering on to the glacier, we were able to explore the open glacier area. Understandably the area is extremely dangerous to those people who don’t know the conditions or who don’t have the right equipment so we were guided throughout the day by a professional who literally knew the glacier like the back of his hand. During the day, Deep had said that he wanted to climb in to one of the crevasses so our guide managed to find a safe one and the group were able to climb in and have pictures taken inside it. My highlight was definitely being able to drink the ice cold natural glacial water on our way down.

In complete contrast to the glacier climb our next stop was Blenheim, the famous Marlborough wine district. As we both wanted to taste the local wines we thought it would be a good idea to cycle around the local area. After hiring a couple of bikes we were all set to go. I think we had visited about 3 of the vineyards when, from behind, I saw Deep go flying over the handle bars of his bike in to the side of the road! He was fine - if not a little surprised at his awesome landing! Luckily the roads are fairly deserted in that area and so apart from a very bruised ego and some other scrapes, all was well.

As a strong believer in karma, I got what was coming to me after that. I couldn’t help but laugh at poor Deep’s classic fall and as I was cycling behind him, was giggling to myself as I was replaying it in my head. At the end of the road, literally only 100metres further up we had to stop at a junction. As I got ready to stop I went to reach down to my foot peddle and missed. I promptly ended up slowly falling in to the ditch at the side of the road myself! I was fine and as you can imagine, now in hysterics! It was a very amusing day to say the least! We arrived back at our accommodation that evening feeling very tired and sore!! Of course, we claim that the alcohol had nothing to do with it but I guess there is something to be said of wine tasting in the hot sun and cycling 35km in the same day!!

We moved on from Blenhiem and traversed further north to Picton, our final stop in the south island. Picton is a small town which predominately serves as a stop off for travellers crossing over on the ferry between the north and south islands and as a base for the Marlborough Sounds. We spent a couple of days there in a lovely hostel which even had a Jacuzzi pool outside!

During our stay in Picton we took a day tour out on our own personal boat! Deep got to drive the boat (I had a go but was terrible) and we were able to explore the Marlbourgh sounds under our own steam. We even got to pick some green tipped muscles directly from the sea and cooked them up for supper with some garlic and white wine on our return later that day.

After crossing over to the North Island on the ferry we drove through Wellington and further up to a town called New Plymouth. The town itself is relatively non descript but it’s the main stop off for the day walk up to the summit of the nearby Mount Taranaki. We managed to do the walk (well, the section we could do without using proper hiking equipment!) and the following day we celebrated by having a few drinks in the local pub.

We ended up talking to some local Maori’s who explained that there was a Maori concert taking place that evening in the nearby park. Deep and I decided to tag along with them and had a great evening watching a live Maori artist called “Bettie M” singing to a massive crowd of people in the park!

The following day we drove further north for another 5 hours or so to a town called Taupo which is famous for adventure activities such as sky diving, bungee jumping, etc. Of course, not to be left out and as Deep had already done one, I decided to do my first skydive in Taupo! It was the most amazing experience watching the earth beneath me as I fell rapidly towards the ground from 15,000feet!

We also got to experience some of the natural hot springs and spas in the Taupo area and on one afternoon we decided to relax in the local hot spa. It was bizarre to think that the water was naturally hot and was coming directly from the volcanic area around the town!

One of the famous walks in the Taupo area is the “Tongariro Alpine Crossing” which is a gruelling 7 - 8 hour trek across a volcano and through the surrounding national park. The climb up to the summit via “the devil’s staircase” (humm, have a guess why the locals call it that!) was very challenging although the views at the peak were outstanding as we got to see natural sulphur lakes and the middle of the red crater. The descent was equally as tough as we had to climb down some very unstable terrain and loose silt. Surprisingly, we did well in terms of time on the walk and actually finished it in good time ahead of half of the group! (Deep was my saviour and kept me going!).

Following our time in Taupo we drove up to Auckland via Rotorua which is a volcanic town renowned for its sulphur smell, hot mud pools, geezers and hot spas. We took a trip to the “Huka falls” which is a famous waterfall caused by a natural surge of water in the river which has eroded the rocks over thousands of years. It was definitely the most powerful waterfall we’ve visited on our trip so far.

During our time in Auckland we met up with our friends, Beth and Fitz, a couple we met in Thailand. They were great hosts and we got to visit their home and meet their families. We took a day or two to explore the city and managed to see Beth and Fitz for a couple of lovely meals at their house.

Our last stop (phew, we’re nearly there!), was the Bay of Islands. We were due to go out on a boat trip to see the various attractions although the weather was bad that day so we just used the time to get ourselves ready for the rest of our trip….

So, what did we learn from our time in New Zealand?...

Lessons Learnt:

1) Do NOT try to go wine tasting for the day whilst riding bikes...Deep fell off after the third vineyard and literally landed on his head! I laughed so hard (after obviously checking he was ok!) and ended up falling off my bike 50 metres further down the road!!

2) Do not believe people who say you can keep up with kids 12 years younger than you - jumping off cliffs and planes really is scarier the older you get.

3) If you are Indian, don’t try to explain your origins to the locals in the smaller NZ towns. Deep is fairly sure the petrol pump attendant in Picton thinks he’s a red Indian from America!

Adios for now and we’ll speak again from South America!

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