Halloween. It was a long day.
We started the morning by carving pumpkins. Armed in our orange Tui overalls (which are surprisingly comfortable, but a little bright), we went outside of the bar and carved our tiny green pumpkins on the sidewalk. People stared. I suppose two 23-year olds carving pumpkins in orange overalls might look a little strange considering they don't really celebrate Halloween here, and nobody knows what a jack o' lantern is. The 5 year old that was sitting with us thought we were crazy.
After decorating the bar with streamers and cobwebs for about 4 hours, Shaun and I decided to drive to Waimate for "Wacky Race Day", a charity event in which grown men and women dress up as horses and race around an obstacle course. We got lost along the way and I had to ask directions to "Wacky Race Day". The guy at the gas station thought I was nuts that I was trying to find my way to such an event. It probably did sound a bit odd.
When we got there, we found a group of people dressed up like the Kentucky Derby- big hats, tweed jackets and top hats, pinstripe suits. Apparently even if the people are racing, people dress up for the races. We met up with our friend Jock and Adam and watched them run around, pushing other grown men out of the way to win. You could bet on the different "horses" and Shaun and I even won 34 dollars of funny money.
Timaru- the party we threw at the bar was a huge success! Shaun and I dressed up as cowgirls, which we thought was very appropriate for our American holiday. Most people don't dress up here but a lot of people came out for the holiday. It was advertised in the newspaper and on the radio as the Halloween party at the No. 8 Wired, hosted by the California girls. We're somewhat like local celebrities in Timaru, which is a blessing and a curse. People just tend to stare at us a lot.
Anyways, today is our day of rest. Happy birthday Stephen!
I won't have internet for the next few days because we're going to the Milford Sound tomorrow. Back on Friday.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2550544&id=1222862&l=fb7e0fdad4
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Attempt to climb mountain: FAIL
Today we drove 2.5 hours to Mt. Cook. It's supposed to be an awesome lookout over glaciers and glacier lakes and snow capped mountains. Unfortunately for us, we forgot to check the weather report before we left this morning.
20 minutes outside of Mt. Cook, it started raining. And wind started blowing. And the pretty snow capped mountains started blowing snow onto our little car.
Fail.
In other news, Shaun and I are starting to get sick. No bueno. Nothing but hot tea, sleep, and soup for the next 3 days before our Halloween party. I will NOT be sick for Halloween.
Planning is going well- we're making huge progress with the guest list, still designing drink specials, and decorations have been budgeted and planned.
Nap time for me. Go lakers.
20 minutes outside of Mt. Cook, it started raining. And wind started blowing. And the pretty snow capped mountains started blowing snow onto our little car.
Fail.
In other news, Shaun and I are starting to get sick. No bueno. Nothing but hot tea, sleep, and soup for the next 3 days before our Halloween party. I will NOT be sick for Halloween.
Planning is going well- we're making huge progress with the guest list, still designing drink specials, and decorations have been budgeted and planned.
Nap time for me. Go lakers.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Bringing Halloween to New Zealand
They don't really celebrate Halloween in New Zealand. Well, only in the last 6 years, which means that we still have to explain why people dress up or decorate houses and window displays. Most people also think that costumes have to be scary or you have to dress up like a pumpkin. Shaun and I are dressing up as cowgirls- hats, guns, and boots. It's pretty American of us and we think it will go over pretty well.
Our only job while staying at the No.8 Wired Hotel in Timaru is to throw a Halloween party. We're bringing "true American culture" to New Zealand. So if Ping wants a Halloween party, he's going to get a pretty awesome Halloween party.
This week we've been planning music playlists, drink specials, costumes, costume contests, fliers, and networking our butts off with everyone we've met (or haven't met) in Timaru. We're determined to make this party huge. He picked the right girls for this job because this is pretty much everything we ever did in the sorority. And working for Fox in their event department doesn't hurt either.
Today we suited up in some bright orange overalls and fliered around Timaru. Coupled with the fact that everyone stares at us already (because Timaru doesn't have girls, much less girls our age, we're American, and we were wearing bright orange overalls), I think we generated some good buzz about our event.
Yesterday we visited the Moeraki boulders. These are spherical rocks that are randomly on the Eastern coast of NZ. They look like eggs that dropped down from an alien spaceship. They're pretty strange looking. I"m not sure how to describe them any other way. Here are pictures so you can see for yourself:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
Our only job while staying at the No.8 Wired Hotel in Timaru is to throw a Halloween party. We're bringing "true American culture" to New Zealand. So if Ping wants a Halloween party, he's going to get a pretty awesome Halloween party.
This week we've been planning music playlists, drink specials, costumes, costume contests, fliers, and networking our butts off with everyone we've met (or haven't met) in Timaru. We're determined to make this party huge. He picked the right girls for this job because this is pretty much everything we ever did in the sorority. And working for Fox in their event department doesn't hurt either.
Today we suited up in some bright orange overalls and fliered around Timaru. Coupled with the fact that everyone stares at us already (because Timaru doesn't have girls, much less girls our age, we're American, and we were wearing bright orange overalls), I think we generated some good buzz about our event.
Yesterday we visited the Moeraki boulders. These are spherical rocks that are randomly on the Eastern coast of NZ. They look like eggs that dropped down from an alien spaceship. They're pretty strange looking. I"m not sure how to describe them any other way. Here are pictures so you can see for yourself:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Rubgy rugby and more rugby
People in New Zealand take their rugby really seriously. Maybe even more seriously than American football. Ping wanted us to have a "true kiwi experience" so he sent us on the fan bus to the semi-finals of the local rugby league. It was Mid-Canterbury vs South Canterbury. Original names, right?
We hopped on the bus to Ashburton, which is about an hour north of Timaru. The bus was full of older men, armed with a boxes of beers, beer bongs, and face paint. It was like a fraternity for old men. We were 4 of 6 girls on the entire bus. And we were sober, which made the whole situation that much funnier.
When we arrived at the game, we watched 80 minutes of bone crushing play. You can actually hear the bones crushing when they make impact. Rugby makes American football look like child's play. Americans use helmets and pads, and New Zealanders use their muscles and their heads. The final score was 17-16, with the local team (the one that Ping is a sponsor for, hence the free tickets and bus ride), losing the game and ending their season.
Post game, we had been told that we were going to go for a pub crawl. The older men on the bus were pretty drunk and getting more drunk by the minute. Turns out that the players were going with us on the pub crawl. 2 pubs in, one of the managers for the rugby team says that the boys want us to hang out with them on their bus. We were growing tired of the older men's songs about Yogi Bear, so we hopped on the other bus and found ourselves with the same scenario, but a younger crowd. I can't really explain all the funny things that happened on the bus, but there were a lot of funny songs, conversations with coaches, managers, and players, and chants of USA on the bus.
The night ended back in Timaru at a few more bars. So. much. dancing. The boys that stuck with us the whole night were dancing machines and definitely gave us a run for our money. There was also another rugby team in town so the whole place was taken over by boys in matching shirts, mullets, and ties. Overall, it was the best day/night we've had, and we have hopefully recruited more people to come to our Halloween party that we are throwing at 8 Wired next Saturday.
In reference to my previous post, we ate Mexican food the other day. On the same "Mexican" menu, was lasagna, fish and chips, and pasta. Enough said.
We hopped on the bus to Ashburton, which is about an hour north of Timaru. The bus was full of older men, armed with a boxes of beers, beer bongs, and face paint. It was like a fraternity for old men. We were 4 of 6 girls on the entire bus. And we were sober, which made the whole situation that much funnier.
When we arrived at the game, we watched 80 minutes of bone crushing play. You can actually hear the bones crushing when they make impact. Rugby makes American football look like child's play. Americans use helmets and pads, and New Zealanders use their muscles and their heads. The final score was 17-16, with the local team (the one that Ping is a sponsor for, hence the free tickets and bus ride), losing the game and ending their season.
Post game, we had been told that we were going to go for a pub crawl. The older men on the bus were pretty drunk and getting more drunk by the minute. Turns out that the players were going with us on the pub crawl. 2 pubs in, one of the managers for the rugby team says that the boys want us to hang out with them on their bus. We were growing tired of the older men's songs about Yogi Bear, so we hopped on the other bus and found ourselves with the same scenario, but a younger crowd. I can't really explain all the funny things that happened on the bus, but there were a lot of funny songs, conversations with coaches, managers, and players, and chants of USA on the bus.
The night ended back in Timaru at a few more bars. So. much. dancing. The boys that stuck with us the whole night were dancing machines and definitely gave us a run for our money. There was also another rugby team in town so the whole place was taken over by boys in matching shirts, mullets, and ties. Overall, it was the best day/night we've had, and we have hopefully recruited more people to come to our Halloween party that we are throwing at 8 Wired next Saturday.
In reference to my previous post, we ate Mexican food the other day. On the same "Mexican" menu, was lasagna, fish and chips, and pasta. Enough said.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Will someone please send me a burrito?
In the last few weeks that I've been gone, I've discovered a trend. No matter where we are, or when we've just eaten, we talk about Mexican food everyday. Everyday. Burritos, tacos, salsa and chips, guacomole...everyday. Shaun and I talk about Chipotle particularly often, because, well, there is no better food for a hangover than Chipotle.
I realize that I won't get another real burrito for 4 months. I have kinda come to terms with that. Until then, we'll have to settle for subpar "South of the Border" type restaurants.
I started planning my drive home from the airport on February 10th. I have no idea what time my flight gets in, but we are going straight to Tito's tacos in Culver City. And if I still haven't had my fill of Mexican food, maybe a stop to Chipotle in Marina Del Rey.
Never take Mexican food for granted. You'll crave it that much more when your next burrito won't be for another 4 months.
Here's the link to pictures from Queenstown.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
I realize that I won't get another real burrito for 4 months. I have kinda come to terms with that. Until then, we'll have to settle for subpar "South of the Border" type restaurants.
I started planning my drive home from the airport on February 10th. I have no idea what time my flight gets in, but we are going straight to Tito's tacos in Culver City. And if I still haven't had my fill of Mexican food, maybe a stop to Chipotle in Marina Del Rey.
Never take Mexican food for granted. You'll crave it that much more when your next burrito won't be for another 4 months.
Here's the link to pictures from Queenstown.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Field trip to Queenstown
Back in Timaru from our 2 day trek to Queenstown. For those not familiar with NZ geography, Queenstown is about 4 hours south of Timaru aka 4 hours through hills of sheep and cows. There are 40 million sheep in NZ and 4.3 million people. Just a little factoid for those who were curious.
Tom and Andre drove down with us in our little station wagon. The radio didn't work, so we sang along to my iPod and its tiny tiny speakers. Upon arriving, we started the endless quest of teaching the German boys every game we know. They don't play many games so there are many to teach. Smoke or fire, King's, 7-11- doubles, spuds, zoo, hearts, gin, the works. Then upon Ping's suggestion, we went to a burger joint in the middle of town. They serve burgers the size of my head. That says a lot, seeing as I have a fairly large head. Haha.
Post dinner, we went to Minus 5, an ice bar. It was -7 C. Even I was cold in the huge jacket and gloves and I have a tendency to run warm. The bar was pretty cool (no pun intended) and we definitely had a ball posing with the frozen chairs and statues.
Yesterday, the boys suggested we take a hike to the peak. Katie, Shaun and I aren't much of hikers, and especially not in our jeans and tennis shoes. With a little encouragement, we began our adventure on the trail through the woods. Andre and Tom kept saying "We already passed the hardest part." And "We're almost there". I think the hike might have been a little easier if I were as tall as they are (Both are about 6"4") but we made it to the top eventually. I'm pretty sore today but Advil is doing the trick.
Tomorrow, Tom and Andre are going to make us German Apple Strudel and we're going to teach them to make s'mores. Our tutorial will be the camp out scene from "The Sandlot" (naturally). If you're not sure what scene I'm talking about, type "Sandlot s'more" into Youtube and you'll know exactly how to make a s'more. "Some more what?" Hahah I love that movie.
Hope everyone back home is staying healthy. I heard the flu is raging in CA. Much love from the other side of the Pacific xo.
Tom and Andre drove down with us in our little station wagon. The radio didn't work, so we sang along to my iPod and its tiny tiny speakers. Upon arriving, we started the endless quest of teaching the German boys every game we know. They don't play many games so there are many to teach. Smoke or fire, King's, 7-11- doubles, spuds, zoo, hearts, gin, the works. Then upon Ping's suggestion, we went to a burger joint in the middle of town. They serve burgers the size of my head. That says a lot, seeing as I have a fairly large head. Haha.
Post dinner, we went to Minus 5, an ice bar. It was -7 C. Even I was cold in the huge jacket and gloves and I have a tendency to run warm. The bar was pretty cool (no pun intended) and we definitely had a ball posing with the frozen chairs and statues.
Yesterday, the boys suggested we take a hike to the peak. Katie, Shaun and I aren't much of hikers, and especially not in our jeans and tennis shoes. With a little encouragement, we began our adventure on the trail through the woods. Andre and Tom kept saying "We already passed the hardest part." And "We're almost there". I think the hike might have been a little easier if I were as tall as they are (Both are about 6"4") but we made it to the top eventually. I'm pretty sore today but Advil is doing the trick.
Tomorrow, Tom and Andre are going to make us German Apple Strudel and we're going to teach them to make s'mores. Our tutorial will be the camp out scene from "The Sandlot" (naturally). If you're not sure what scene I'm talking about, type "Sandlot s'more" into Youtube and you'll know exactly how to make a s'more. "Some more what?" Hahah I love that movie.
Hope everyone back home is staying healthy. I heard the flu is raging in CA. Much love from the other side of the Pacific xo.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Timaru at last!
After a week in a half in the car, we've finally reached Timaru. Timaru is a port city about 2 hours south of Christchurch. When I last left you, we were in Renwick. We had crossed into the South Island, over the Cook Strait, and traded in trusty Vernin for a new and improved Sunny. She has automatic windows, and automatic locks. Snazzy, yes?
When we got to Timaru, we were introduced to Ping, Katie's friend's friend. He runs the No 8 Wired Hotel and graciously allowed us to stay there for free. He also hyped us up to the whole town, so everyone knew that we were coming. When he met me, he said I looked familiar and then said I looked like Tila Tequila, a trashy, tattoo covered reality star from the States. Lol. When asked if we were related, I said we were probably as closely related as he and I am. Or Shaun and I.
Ping took the liberty of introducing to everyone who worked in the hotel, including two young German chefs by the names of Tom and Andre. We hung out with them at the bar and yesterday, we all went to the Timaru Motorway together. No 8 Wired hotel was sponsoring the event, so we sat in the box, inside from the cold and pouring rain. Then, Ping's friend Kevin (who I think ran the event), came and got us and let us ride in the cars with the drivers!!!! We got to wear goofy helmets and jumpsuits and everything! I took pictures just for you, Uncle Darryl and Auntie Mari. I now completely understand why Brian loves driving so much. It was a ridiculous adrenaline rush.
Today is a laundry day and a day of rest before we head to Queenstown with Tom and Andre. I finally ran out of pants, so I was walking around Timaru in shorts this morning. I looked pretty goofy considering it's about 55 degrees out. Ping said that I might as well have been wearing a sign that said "I'm American. Rob me." Don't worry Mom, he was kidding.
Here's the link to the photos that I've posted. Silly blogger wants to take another hour to load them from the library. Here they are!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
When we got to Timaru, we were introduced to Ping, Katie's friend's friend. He runs the No 8 Wired Hotel and graciously allowed us to stay there for free. He also hyped us up to the whole town, so everyone knew that we were coming. When he met me, he said I looked familiar and then said I looked like Tila Tequila, a trashy, tattoo covered reality star from the States. Lol. When asked if we were related, I said we were probably as closely related as he and I am. Or Shaun and I.
Ping took the liberty of introducing to everyone who worked in the hotel, including two young German chefs by the names of Tom and Andre. We hung out with them at the bar and yesterday, we all went to the Timaru Motorway together. No 8 Wired hotel was sponsoring the event, so we sat in the box, inside from the cold and pouring rain. Then, Ping's friend Kevin (who I think ran the event), came and got us and let us ride in the cars with the drivers!!!! We got to wear goofy helmets and jumpsuits and everything! I took pictures just for you, Uncle Darryl and Auntie Mari. I now completely understand why Brian loves driving so much. It was a ridiculous adrenaline rush.
Today is a laundry day and a day of rest before we head to Queenstown with Tom and Andre. I finally ran out of pants, so I was walking around Timaru in shorts this morning. I looked pretty goofy considering it's about 55 degrees out. Ping said that I might as well have been wearing a sign that said "I'm American. Rob me." Don't worry Mom, he was kidding.
Here's the link to the photos that I've posted. Silly blogger wants to take another hour to load them from the library. Here they are!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Marlborough wine country
LOVE wine country here. We were planning on biking to the different wineries today, but it's been raining cats and dogs. So we drove.
The wineries specialize in white wines (with the cold weather and all). We went to 3 wineries and 1 brewery. 19 wines, 5 beers, and 2 ciders for $7. Pretty good value. And considering we spent 5 hours in a car and 3 hours on a ferry from the North Island to the South island yesterday, I think we have all enjoyed staying in the same hostel for more than one night and relaxing.
Timaru tomorrow. 8 hour drive...From what I hear, they are eagerly awaiting our arrival. Katie's friend, Ping, bought us tickets to the local car race (which is the town activity for Sunday) and even offered to get us into the local newspaper. Haha.
More pictures soon. xo
The wineries specialize in white wines (with the cold weather and all). We went to 3 wineries and 1 brewery. 19 wines, 5 beers, and 2 ciders for $7. Pretty good value. And considering we spent 5 hours in a car and 3 hours on a ferry from the North Island to the South island yesterday, I think we have all enjoyed staying in the same hostel for more than one night and relaxing.
Timaru tomorrow. 8 hour drive...From what I hear, they are eagerly awaiting our arrival. Katie's friend, Ping, bought us tickets to the local car race (which is the town activity for Sunday) and even offered to get us into the local newspaper. Haha.
More pictures soon. xo
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Rotorua smells like rotton eggs. The entire city smells like it. Today we visitied the source, the sulphur lakes. We saw a geyser and waterfalls and different colored lakes. And they all smelled like rotton eggs. Pretty sweet at first, but the smell gets old after awhile. The quote of the day "ew...that's gross"
Last night we saw kiwis too. Cute little buggers. We couldn't take pictures of them in the dark because they have very poor eyesight and the flash would blind them. Too bad.
Driving to Wellington tomorrow and crossing Cook's Strait tomorrow to Picton. South Island, here we come.
Here are a few photos from the "Thermal Wonderland". Not too many, because I"mj a genius and brought the wrong camera charger to New Zealand. Waiting for my momma to mail me the right one from LA :)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
Monday, October 12, 2009
Pictures thus far
These are out of order. Sorry, it took me 25 minutes to upload these few pictures. To see them all, I think you can click here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2542775&id=1222862&l=90a7c57542
This is me in a 4 inch wetsuit before going into the Waitomo Caves to see glow worms. Glow worms are maggots with shiny poo that are on the ceilings of caves. The glow is a chemical reaction in their kidneys. Think of it like tiny twinkle stars on the top of a cave. I found that being a college student helps with treking through water in the bottom of the cave. High knees people. Like when you walk around a frat house so your feet don't stick or slide. High knees.
This is the view from outside of Bob's house in Russell, in the North part of the North Island. This was what I woke up to the first morning there. Good morning, Bay of Islands.
This is me and my backpack(s) in the rain. I still wear flip flops in the rain.
This was after 12 hours in the airport. Flight attempt number two. Besides my haggard appearance, check out my compression socks! They helped me avoid swelling in my ankles. Shaun said only 65 year olds wear them, but hahaha, her ankles swelled and mine didn't.
This is me in a 4 inch wetsuit before going into the Waitomo Caves to see glow worms. Glow worms are maggots with shiny poo that are on the ceilings of caves. The glow is a chemical reaction in their kidneys. Think of it like tiny twinkle stars on the top of a cave. I found that being a college student helps with treking through water in the bottom of the cave. High knees people. Like when you walk around a frat house so your feet don't stick or slide. High knees.
This is the view from outside of Bob's house in Russell, in the North part of the North Island. This was what I woke up to the first morning there. Good morning, Bay of Islands.
This is me and my backpack(s) in the rain. I still wear flip flops in the rain.
This was after 12 hours in the airport. Flight attempt number two. Besides my haggard appearance, check out my compression socks! They helped me avoid swelling in my ankles. Shaun said only 65 year olds wear them, but hahaha, her ankles swelled and mine didn't.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
New Zealand roads can make you carsick
New Zealand has the most ridiculous landscapes. In a span of 6 hours, you can drive from the Cape, with 40 mph winds overlooking blue waters and rocks, then to 90 mile beach with sand dunes 10 stories tall. Do you know how hard it is to climb a sand dune 10 stories tall? It's hard. It's a lot of sand. And getting to the top looks a lot like the landscape out of Aladdin. Just imagine that the sand dune is like the scene out of "The Mummy" and you'll get what I mean.
Drive another hour and you get to beaches the color of apricots, sparkling with white shells. Eat some hoki poki ice cream (it's like butterscotch).
Then drive 4 hours over grassy hills of sheep and cows.
Take another hour to drive over a mountain. Covered in tropical fauna. You have no time to look at fauna because you are driving the car like you drive through Mr. Toad's Wild Ride at Disneyland. It will make you sick, even if you are the one driving.
Be sure to fill up your gas tank when you see a gas station. You might not see another one for another hour and a half. A good bet is if you see a McDonald's, you will find a gas station.
Glow worm caves tomorrow. It's tubing, in a cave, with a cieling covered in fungus gnats. Did I mention I'm mildly claustrophobic and scared of the dark? Oh, and I don't like bugs much. Hahaha I'm looking forward to it. It will be fun.
I'll post pictures when I get on a computer that isn't a step faster than 90s dial-up internet.
Drive another hour and you get to beaches the color of apricots, sparkling with white shells. Eat some hoki poki ice cream (it's like butterscotch).
Then drive 4 hours over grassy hills of sheep and cows.
Take another hour to drive over a mountain. Covered in tropical fauna. You have no time to look at fauna because you are driving the car like you drive through Mr. Toad's Wild Ride at Disneyland. It will make you sick, even if you are the one driving.
Be sure to fill up your gas tank when you see a gas station. You might not see another one for another hour and a half. A good bet is if you see a McDonald's, you will find a gas station.
Glow worm caves tomorrow. It's tubing, in a cave, with a cieling covered in fungus gnats. Did I mention I'm mildly claustrophobic and scared of the dark? Oh, and I don't like bugs much. Hahaha I'm looking forward to it. It will be fun.
I'll post pictures when I get on a computer that isn't a step faster than 90s dial-up internet.
Kiwi Hospitality
Yesterday Bob's girlfriend invited us over to her place for breakfast. She runs a hostel just off the ferry landing on Russell. She brought us in as one of her own and gave us great local tips for hikes and tours.
We hiked up to the top of one of the points on her suggestion. It had a beach with crashing blue
water on stunning cliffs. It was postcard perfect. Later in the evening, Andrea invited us over for a true kiwi meal of lamb, salad with garden raised spinich and other local veggies.
I can see now why people say New Zealanders are some of the nicest in the world. They go out of the way to ensure the comfort of visiters. And compared to the cold, impersonal hostels, I definitely see the appeal of couchsurfing and finding locals to show you the sites.
We are off to the tip top of the North Island today in trusty "Vernon", our snazzy Toyota corolla from the mid 90s. Stops are planned for Hoki poki ice cream along apricot sand beaches,white sand beaches, and the cape!
We hiked up to the top of one of the points on her suggestion. It had a beach with crashing blue
water on stunning cliffs. It was postcard perfect. Later in the evening, Andrea invited us over for a true kiwi meal of lamb, salad with garden raised spinich and other local veggies.
I can see now why people say New Zealanders are some of the nicest in the world. They go out of the way to ensure the comfort of visiters. And compared to the cold, impersonal hostels, I definitely see the appeal of couchsurfing and finding locals to show you the sites.
We are off to the tip top of the North Island today in trusty "Vernon", our snazzy Toyota corolla from the mid 90s. Stops are planned for Hoki poki ice cream along apricot sand beaches,white sand beaches, and the cape!
Transportation is a funny thing.
Transportation is a funny thing. Yesterday we tried to take the bus out of Auckland. We were sitting at the stop, with our 50 lb backpacks on our backs. In the rain. Then an old lady asks us if we needed help. Turns out we must have looked fairly silly sitting there when the buses have been on strike for the last 3 months.
We picked up our rental car soon after that. It began our roadtrip in new Zealand. Driving on the left side of the road is quite difficult, for those who haven't tried it. My shining moment was any time that I tried to turn on my turn signal, instead violently turning on the windshield wipers.
We are currently staying with a family friend of shaun's, who owns a huge house on the north island. He has 270 degree views of the Bay of Islands with its green mountains, sailboat dotted bays, and rainbows. Think Jurassic park and Hawaii but better.
The people in nz are so friendly. Bob has given us great accomodations and he and his girlfriend humor us with ourmany questions. Like "what is the roadkill on the side of the road?" (answer: possums. You should hit them because the are a foreign species and have no predators) and "what is marmite?" ( answer: a yeast spread made in nz. It's an aquired taste)
We are roadtripping more tomorrow to the northern tip. Then off to glow worm caving and black water rafting. :)
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Why you should not like pelicans
My 12 hour flight to Auckland, New Zealand was supposed to be an uneventful flight. Until a pelican decided that it wanted to fly into the engine and weather radar. As many people on the plane said, at least it wasn't a goose. Geese fly in larger groups. So yes, on the upside, at least only one pelican ruined my flight, not an entire group of geese. The woman who consumed 4 bottles of wine next to me might have ruined my flight as well.
My 12 hour flight turned into a 28 hour adventure. New Zealand is pretty cool. So far I've seen the inside of a cab (Note: unless you want to drive the car, you should not try to get into the front right seat), the inside of a hostel dorm room with 8 other people, the inside of a hostel shower (don't worry Mom, I didn't touch anything), and the inside of this internet cafe which slightly resembles a dungeon.
We're driving to the north tip of the North Island today. I've heard that we need to be wary of driving on the correct side of the road, running over bunnies, and not getting too lost.
Keep the emails coming, they make me happy :)
My 12 hour flight turned into a 28 hour adventure. New Zealand is pretty cool. So far I've seen the inside of a cab (Note: unless you want to drive the car, you should not try to get into the front right seat), the inside of a hostel dorm room with 8 other people, the inside of a hostel shower (don't worry Mom, I didn't touch anything), and the inside of this internet cafe which slightly resembles a dungeon.
We're driving to the north tip of the North Island today. I've heard that we need to be wary of driving on the correct side of the road, running over bunnies, and not getting too lost.
Keep the emails coming, they make me happy :)
Monday, October 5, 2009
The Night before Christmas
...and by Christmas, I mean my flight to New Zealand.
When I booked this trip in July with my 2 other friends, it seemed so far away that it was unreal. We planned, and planned, and planned some more. And somehow, October 6 crept up so fast that I'm still scrambling. I'm trying to fit every article of clothing I own into a backpack half the size of me. Trust me, it's not working. My best friend, Jessica, even drove up from San Diego to help me. 4 sweaters, 2 pairs of shoes, 2 shorts, a few shirts, and 2 hair appliances down, I'm a little closer to fitting it all in my bag.
So to those that I have not/ will not have a chance to talk to before my flight- I love you, I'll miss you, and I send you the best of luck for the next 5 months. And don't give up on the Bears...it can't possibly be worse than the 2007 season. Go Bears!
xo-Christina
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