Farewell New Zealand

We left Nelson via bus and train. It was hard to leave, we had a great time with Lynn and Jay, but hopefully we can come back again. Our bus took us out of the city to Blenheim, of course going through gorgeous scenery the whole way. In Blenheim we got on the world's shortest train. Four cars total and so cute. It was manned by just two conducters, who provided interesting facts about the countryside throughout the journey. The train took us along the coast down to Christchurch. We had a great time, the views of the ocean and mountains entertained us as we sipped wine and ate New Zealand cheese. The only distraction was a pair of very loud beekeepers who had just went to a bee convention. Apparently it was an exciting convention because they talked about it for six hours.

We spent the night in a hostel and then had one day to explore Christchurch before flying out the following morning. Christchurch seemed huge compared to Nelson, but it was a very pleasant city never the less. We wandered through the public square and stopped to watch a Maori group perform. We then went to the Art Gallery, museum and gardens. That evening we met up with Nicole, a high school friend of Dan's who lives in Christchurch. It was great fun to meet her and her fiance, and a nice way to end our two weeks in New Zealand.

Takaka Hill

We reluctantly left our wonderful guesthouse on Monday and began the winding drive back to Nelson. However, Lynn and Jay indulged us with an important stop along the way - a Lord of the Rings filming location. The scene is from The Fellowship of the Ring, when Aragorn leads the hobbits into the wilds after they meet at the inn at Bree ("No second breakfast? What about elevenses? Afternoon tea?"). After parking we eagerly tramped up a steep hill and through an uninviting forest path looking for the spot, all the while quietly wondering why it looked so different from what we pictured. After giving up and driving on we realized we were in the completely wrong spot. The real place was actually quite lovely, and we enjoyed some tea and pie on the spot where the film catering once stood.

Nearby, a hike through a forest brought us to Harwood's Hole, the deepest hole in the southern hemisphere and the 10th deepest in the world. We couldn't get a view all the way down without falling to our deaths, but our impressions of the size of it were impressive enough.

Our last couple of days in Nelson were spent hiding from the rain and preparing to leave. We did have a most excellent wine tasting experience at two local wineries with some gracious (and generous) German hosts. We were a little reluctant to leave; Nelson was a nice home away from home and we had a great time with Lynn and Jay.

No Admittance Except on Official Party Business

We had extra cause to celebrate while in New Zealand. Dan's 27th birthday was on May 23rd, and although it wasn't quite his One Hundred and Elevent-ith birthday, we still had to ring it in Middle Earth style. We spent the morning kayaking through beautiful green water and giant rock formations. Then we headed to our new favorite bar, the Sprig and Fern for some hearty ales and pizza. New Zealand was really made for Dan. The pub was filled with babies, old locals and an incredibly fit pack of Marathoners. Although lacking in Hobbits, it might as well have been the Green Dragon. Interesting fact, the Sprig and Fern brewed the beer used in the Prancing Pony scene in LOTR. Pretty awesome way to spend a 27th birthday!


Dan's make shift birthday cake.

Wharariki Beach

The next day we picked up an Austrian hitchhiker named Christian and headed to a beach. It certainly wasn't swimming weather but we had some fantastic baby seal encounters and spotted a pilot whale.

That night we downed some wild pork pie and home-brewed beer and feijoa crumbles at the Mussel Inn. For a bar in the middle of nowhere, there was quite an alternative crowd for Jacky Tar, an Irish band that was quite fun. There was a baby at the bar, not the first time we've seen it here; they even have play areas in the bars. We danced the night away with the old, the young, and the dreadlocked. New Zealand brews some really excellent beer, which easily rivals the best breweries I've known in the US.

The following day we finished off our weekend with some memorable sea kayaking in the Golden Bay area. We had a pleasant lunch on a beach, looking at the shells and feeling like we were the only people for miles. After we finished, Nissa lingered in the water for a while and suddenly began waving her arms frantically. Turns out a giant sting ray was passing by, a little too close for comfort, and I caught its shadowy figure as it swam away.

Mushrooms

For some reason I've become obsessed with taking photos of mushrooms in New Zealand. It must be the hobbit in me.

Pupu Springs Area

Last Friday was an easy day, and we stayed in the area of our guesthouse. Our first walk was a grove that was thick with jungle vegetation and featured some of the limestone rocks that are found only in this area and in Italy.

Our second walk was in Pupu Springs (yes, pronounced "poo poo"), which supposedly has the clearest freshwater in the world.

We also visited Greg, one of Lynn and Jay's many friends in the area. Greg is a "reclusive science guy" in a beautifully isolated home with its own laboratory. He had been working for a biofuel company, but has lately been more involved with building elaborate rat traps. He told us that most of the local dinner conversation revolves around trying to get rid of rats and possums. A surprisingly high number of the people we've met in the area are originally from Europe or North America (the US in this case), and a well-worn passport seems to be almost a prerequisite of living here.

We rewarded ourselves that afternoon with some tea and scones (and feijoa macaroons) and were back in time for the local news. We love the New Zealand news. Some of the big stories of the night:

• Ukeleles are replacing the recorder as the instrument of choice for school children (cut to dramatic shot of recorders being thrown into a dusty closet)
• Redheads brace themselves for "Hug a Ginga Day" (New Zealand seems to have inherited the weird British dislike of redheads). This was the day for everyone to "hug a ginga" to make up for being mean to them the rest of the year. We were pretty remote, so Nissa missed her chance to be hugged by strangers
• Rugby racial slur controversy. 40% of the news seems to be about rugby
• A nice looking local man had his "baby blue" Jeep stolen, and now he can't get home because his house is so remote
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Abel Tasman

On Tuesday, after a quick stop at Golden Salami (salami in a vending machine!) and mountainous road curves extreme enough to make an Uruk Hai car sick, we arrived on the north side of Abel Tasman National Park. We'd had a late start, so the beautiful views of the sunset over the water soon disappeared as we continued hiking (or "tramping" as it's called here) in the dark for the last twenty minutes.




Our accommodation was in a former homestead in the park, and with this being the off-season and the general lack of people everywhere in New Zealand, we figured we would probably be alone. As it turned out there was an entire global village sharing the cabin with us, and we had an enjoyable night talking European history and learning an Israeli card game with the other travelers. Although I saw it as a spacious cabin, it was properly known as a "hut," and the New Zealand government has created a wonderful system of huts all across the country to make tramping more convenient, at a very low cost per night. Most huts are apparently smaller and more primitive, but we even had a toilet with plumbing (but not in working order).

a weka, a flightless New Zealand bird

fan tails, lively little birds that have been following us on most of the trails

the building in the center of the photo is our hut

On Wednesday we did a loop trail in the park and returned to the same hut. The weather was gorgeous. Throughout the trip we've been so impressed with not just the amazing scenery, but how easy it is to enjoy it in the complete absence of any other people, and Wednesday was probably the best day yet. Even the seals were relaxed.












This morning we had a rainy hike out of the park, and have had an indoor day in our guesthouse. It actually belongs to a couple that are friends of Lynn and Jay, and the very attractive main home has been around since 1870, almost the oldest in the region. They grow and sell feijoas, a tasty green fruit we've really warmed up to on this trip. As with most of the trip I have very little idea of what we are doing tomorrow, but I'm not too worried about it. I love being on vacation.