Spending time with family

It's hard to describe the sense of relaxation that comes from spending time with family after being on the road for so long. Distance (ie Australia) has made that I have never spent much time with my Mum's side of the family but somehow it didn't seem to matter. It felt right and relaxing to be there.

I drove up to the Gold Coast to see the matriach of the family, a pretty sturdy 86 old and an absolutely amazing 98 old (I want to be like him when I get to that age). It's hard when you try and pile up 30 odd years of absence in one day ... and ultimately it has to disappoint somewhat. But the effort was made and that's what counts. What we lack in memories, we get in the comfort of doing the right thing.

It has especially been fun to spend time with my cousins. Due to the age difference it is the first time that age hasn't mattered and that I have been able to share a great deal with them from hanging out with friends to having conversations about how odd and beautiful our family is. Being an adult ain't half bad.

Time to move on. Early start tomorrow - flying from Brisbane to Sydney to Hong Kong.

Last leg.

Sydney - vibrant and kicking

After a few days of faffing about in Auckland, I finally arrived in Sydney. And excited, I was. A friend I had met on the Magic Bus in NZ picked me up from the airport and kindly hosted me for 3 days. It's funny how you can meet people, not really know them for a long time but really click.



I got introduced to what life could be like in Sydney (if i ever...). On the first night we went out for drinks and (amazing) Vietnamese food - here we were all huddled up around a small table, someone from Italy who'd lived in China, an Aussie from Chile, a few Spanish, French, Asian...everyone was represented. It was an exciting melting pot of ideas and experiences. It reminded me of London, a heterogenous buzzing society of people connected by their current location and thirst for new experiences.

I visited the sights, the opera house, the bridge, the Harbours, Bondi...and the weather was just stunning (which made for some pretty good photos!).



Highlights include the free ice cream (thank you Virgin), hanging out with B, seeing cute surfers in Bondi, ice cream, hanging out with an awesome group of people, the lime green bridesmaids (what not to do!) eating home made chicken pie and having tortilla (i know!) .



I could definitely live in Sydney. It's one of those places that seems to be right for so many people. Although I get the feeling of a you and us type of society where you have "foreigners" craving for some Aussie culture and interaction...and finding it hard to get.

Final stop in NZ - Sleepy Christchurch

Sleepy Christchurch has been the final stop in my NZ adventure. And sleepy it sure is. I had planned to only stay 1 night and move on to Kairoura but shere laziness and the inability to swim with dolphins (too cold) convinced me that the best I could do was stay put for a few days.
But luckily (for me) things turned out pretty well. I had a fun night out on Manchester St's famed Disco Crazy institution aptly called Boogie Nights, saw way too many prostitutes for comfort and walked home with Spiderman. Or was it a drunk Kiwi pretending to be Spiderman ? ... I am confused.I then had the delight to meet two english cousins who happened to be exactly what I needed...a massive laugh! They just kept coming (the laughters) ... from trying to go out on Sunday night (spleepy town = impossible), trying to find a decent pie (same night - same result) ... riding the tram...eating fudge...and well planning to meet up in Sydney.


Overall Christchurch was a little like Geneva but with less Pezaaaaaz ... neutral, slightly bland but does the job quite well.

Next stop Sydney.

Dunedin...Dunedin....Dunedin

I am sure that there are heaps of amazing things to do in Dunedin. The town looks rather nice and quaint but frankly I couldn't muster the strength to do more than eat (massive) NZ mussels and visit the Cadbury Factory.

Two very important things I might add.

The day I conquered the Nevis

Not much needs to be said really. I gave my myself the fright of my life. It is completely illogical to throw yourself of a platform 134m up in the air, I know. But at the same time it is possibly the most exhilarating thing I have done in my life (yes, better than the skydive). The adrenaline rush that enthralled my body afterwards made me shake like a leaf for a good 20 minutes after the jump. As I screamed my way down the canyon, I couldn't help but think " what the f@#ck are you doing!...this is craaaaaazy". Yes, I screamed like there was no tomorrow.












You should do it too (famous last words!)

South Island, New Zealand

The first part of my itinerary round the South Island started in Wellington across to Picton, Nelson, Greymouth, Franz Josef, ending up in Queenstown for a few days. NZ is one amazing place, I've been oooh-ing and aaah-ing my way round this country. The north has a lot of beautiful scenaries and cool Maori stuff to check out. While on the south island it's all about the scenary and the cool activities and the sheer fact that it seems that NOBODY lives here.


I have on this leg met a few people on the Magic Bus. While you definitely feel like you're being pulled along (ie. like a tour) it does make things a little easier in terms of meeting people as you see the same people hop on and hop off at different places/times. So I have spent the last few days with a French girl called Emilie (a midwife working in New Caledonia), a Spanish girl called Bea (who changed her life and moved to Sydney!) and a Scottish guy called Grahame from Aberdeen (that i can barely understand hence I don't know much about it). So we've spent the last few days together hanging out and travelling around.


The highlight so far has been doing the ice hike on the Franz Josef Glacier. I had had the opportunity to strap on some crampons whilst in Argentina (Perrito Moreno) but I am glad I refrained and got to do it here. The hike to the glacier was quite challenging, scrambling across rocks, climbing up and down ladders ... walking a fair bit! Then we reached the foot of the Glacier, put our crampons on and up we went. Walking on ice is rather strange but heaps of fun. Unfortunately I opted out of the heli hike to the top of the Glacier so our ice was rather rocky and grey but we got to see some pristine clean blue ice and climb through an ice hole (magic!). I felt like a true adventurer !!!










The weather has been bitterly cold. I have been wearing pretty much all my clothes and I am still feeling the cold. The ski season has just opened here in Queenstown and I am still undecided as to go up for a day or not. The "domaines"are pretty small (4 lifts!) and it's rather expensive (count 100 Eur for the day) but it would be cool to get some snowboarding in this year...especially in June!

Other than that I will be facing my fears this afternoon and doing a bungy jump (The Nevis). Thought that if I was going to do one, I might as well do the BIG ONE. I am cacking myself. Literally.

Maori discovery in Rotorua and Lake Taupo

Leaving the northern shores of Auckland behind, I arrived in "smelly" Rotorua as it is affectionately called. Smelly? Yes, rotten eggs smelly. Blame sulfur! It lies right bam in the middle of a geothermal area and this results in smelly fumes coming out of nearly everywhere! Although it provides a eery landscape it can be quite overwhelming especially when you are not used to it.

Another reason for its appeal as one of the main tourist attractions in the Bay of Plenty is its deep rooted Maori heritage. I attended a cultural show that was run by a company called Tamaki. They state that their aim is to educate and share their culture. They did a great job at getting us immersed in the culture for the evening. We boarded our Waka (our bus but for the night but it would serve as our pretend Maori boat), elected a chief , sang Maori songs, courageously overcame the Te Wero (challenge) and entered the village in peace. From there we entered the Wharenui (meeting house) where a group sang, danced and performed the famous Haka. We were then treated to a succulent Hangi (where the food is cooked in baskets underground). The entire evening was very educational and entertaining. A great event which I would recommend.

The next day, with a very full belly I visited the Waitopu Thermal Park. The different sites were absolutely breathtaking, with vibrant colours mixing with fumes and water. While in the park I met a french couple who were visiting from New Caledonia. I have met a number of french people who live in the french TOM and visit New Zealand or Australia. They told me about their lives on the island, their relationships with the locals (les Kanaks) ... and my overall conclusion is that it might look like a paradise but I get the impression that by digging a little deeper is might not be soo ' paradisiaque'. Expensive imported products, poor communication with the locals and even perhaps a slight colonialist atmosphere make the french TOM (Territoires d' Outre Mer) a little less appealing than they might have been before.



Next I moved Southward to Lake Taupo. En route I saw the Mt Doom from the Lord of the Rings film (not sure what the real name is). As I moved south the weather was getting bitterly cold. Taupo supposedly offers the best (and cheapest) skydiving experience in NZ. By then I was a bit tired of spending money on such exhilarating activities so decided to take the free (and safer) option of walking from Lake Taupo to Huka falls. I wonder if I will get tired of seeing so many beautiful sights. NZ is definitely full of them!

I also saw the latest Indian Jones film. Harrison Ford was as entertaining as ever but I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if I was 10 years old again. Aaah...yes I have also discovered TIM TAM chocolate biscuits and Vegimite. Probably the best edible products to come out of these shores (without risking to offend the Ozzies...I will include Oz in this statement!).