Ghello, ghello,
Protected by the good old saying ‘no news is good news’ we refrain from
apologising for having been out of the loop for a while. Yet both on request and
somewhat as a make-up for having been so quiet we have put some effort into
committing words to email about our journey from Sydney back to Amsterdam,
starting when we finished work a month ago.
Thinking back it already seems a long time ago, but I can still remember how the
hangover from our farewell party felt as we hopped on the plane the morning
after (thanks to Patrick and Sophie we actually made it out there, again tnx for
everything guys :) As we were on our way to Proserpine airport in northern
Queensland for another aussie adventure, we realised we had pretty much left
organising our trip till this very moment….typical, some will be thinking as
they read this.. but pleasant in a way, we were quite destined to just take
things as they come. This meant arriving in Airlie Beach at the “don’t know
where I am going” bus stop as the driver called it and determining that 3 nights
for the price of 2 on Hamilton Island sounded just like the treat we were up
for.
Half an hour later we were on a ferry to get transported straight from the
harbour in Airlie Beach to our apartment on Hamilton Island, where we crashed on
the bed and did not wake up until the next day. Opening the curtains the next
“morning” we realised where we had arrived. A stunning view of the Whitsunday
Islands around us and sparkling tropical pools and bars all around the complex.
Now don’t get me wrong or consider us spoilt, but this place is ridiculous. We
walked out towards the beach and were immediately met by the first drivers of a
golf cart, a friendly couple giving us way on the perfectly paved winding
concrete pathway. No less than ten other golf cart type vehicles had come across
our paths by the time we arrived at the beach (which was 50 meters away). We had
landed in a freaking 70s television series which has merged “Magnum P.I.” with
“Hidihi Hodiho”. It felt as if someone has been playing SimCity whilst on
laughing gas and created “Hamilton Island” mixing some pristine nature with fun
park attributes.
So we settled down and did absolutely bugger all for a couple of days, suiting
us just fine. Then it was time for some adventure. Pascal had received the best
possible farewell gift from work we could wish for, and with a big thanks to
Chris and Peter we look back to an incredible couple of days sailing the
Whitsundays. On our comfortable Beneteau 32footer we sailed and navigated our
way around the most beautiful spots on the Whitsundays, snorkeling wherever we
anchored (I tried communicating with the sea turtles copying the Nimbin accent
from Nemo, without success though) and taking the bare boating principle a bit
to literally as the freedom one finds sailing around this paradise on earth can
be quite ‘refreshing’.
To all good things, also bare boating, comes an end.. and soon we are back in
Sydney for a last couple of days organising our move. The comfortable Hotel was
our last hideaway in Sydney Wunda (tnx Jur and Tjal) before heading of to the
South Island of New Zealand.
With about 20Kg between the two of us we land in Christchurch still not having
organised anything up front. And this time it looks as if it is going to bite us
in the toe. Even though we believed that late Feb would be the end of high
season it looks as if all campervans have been booked out until the end of
April, and even finding a bed for the night is a bit of a challenge. With a bit
of luck we manage to get the exact model we were after for 10 days after which
we will have to replace it for a 4WD campervan, at the same cost though. The
advice would remain to book in advance, as the safe nature of NZ and the
marketing power of The Lord of the Rings has created a structural influx of
tourism.
Happy with our new mobile home we head of for a counterclockwise loop of the
northern part of the South Island. Our first night we make immediate use of one
of NZ important laws which makes traveling in a campervan so popular, the
permission to camp in the wild (which is rapidly becoming less common across the
world) The area around Akaroa provides us with a beautiful introduction of NZ
sunsets, sunrises and very cool sea breezes. With the upcoming weather the
on-water activities we had planned in Akaroa are best postponed and we head
inland via Hanmer springs for a bit of a skin-cleansing bath (still struggle to
be convinced how something that smells like a box of eggs hidden in a broken
fridge since the early nineties is supposed to be good for your skin!) and then
up to the Abel Tasman National Park. On the way we find a beautiful pre-lunch
walk towards Cannibal Gorge. For us this place is remembered as “The Lord of the
Rings” meets “Bergen aan Zee”. The spooky forest feels as you could encounter
trolls on any of the winding turns, yet the reality is you encounter only Dutch
and German tourists.
Our journey to the Abel Tasman park and Golden Bay area did not result in the
intended sea kayaking and other activities as the rain pretty much resulted in
little to no visibility. Again the campervan proves its value, this weather
would have been quite unpleasant in a tent or when (hitch)hiking around. Yet the
cosey shed-on-wheels and 2000 songs on the iPod ensure that even the rain can’t
get our spirit down. We continue our journey via the scenic route (I have to
thank the friendly farmer and his tractor for helping us get out of a little
ditch which I had volunteered the back of the camper into believing thoroughly
that the camper was front-wheel driven) to Picton for some shopping and more
wild camping (parking lots are less suitable, as we found out being waken by
some drunken teenagers banging on our camper at 5am) before heading on to
Kaikoura. Kaikoura is the city of whales and dolphins, and for us a highlight as
we had been looking forward to going swimming with the dolphins ever since we
new we would be going to New Zealand. This is an absolutely amazing experience.
A boat takes you out to meet with a pod of Dusky dolphins playing around near
the coastline before heading of to get lunch/dinner in deeper waters. There you
get dropped in the water with wetsuit, flippers and snorkel to join in on the
water acrobats whilst a pod of aprox. 300 passes where you have been dropped of.
If you try hard the dolphins will actually take some time to prove to you that
you are an absolute moron when it comes down to moving around in the water. But
with some underwater dives and circling games the interaction is one that puts a
smile on your face for the rest of the day. Completely exhausted we hop back on
board to see the duskies do some more summersaults.
Equally amazing but less interactive is the viewing of the whales. The unique
thing about Kaikoura is the underwater gorge as a result of the continental
shelf comes very close to the coastline, which together with the right currents
causes for very nutritious waters in the area. When you go over the gorge in the
boat you can actually see the depth-meter drop from 100 meters to over 800
meters in several seconds. This means that the waters are very popular with all
types of whales (incl. killer whales) all year through. So this means you are
pretty much guaranteed to have a successful sighting whenever you are in the
area. Today we have the privilege of seeing several sperm whales catch their
breath. (once believed to be pretty potent animals, as the several tons of oil
stored in their skulls was mistaken for sperm by early whalers, they had a bit
of explaining to do when the female species also had the fluid in their skulls).
At night we decide to check out the local cinema as it is viewing “The Last
Samurai”, partially filmed in NZ. Not only the movie is set in the past, also
the cinema itself is a boost back into time. Popcorn, Tom Cruise and afterwards
a local “Sheep Shaggers Lager” make for another fine night.
Soon it proved that switching campervan was not such a bad idea, as the radiator
of the first domi-vehicle was drooling like a mad dog. With our Landcruiser-trailer
we set out for the west coast, this time using the scenically ever changing
Arthur´s Pass. Not sure who Arthur was, but he must have had a very exiting time
discovering a way through this rugged land. This time we had the sun travel
with us and we enjoyed the amazing west coast drive alongside the Tasman sea
coastline before stopping overnight at the Franz Josef glacier. The next morning
we decide to team up with some other tourists and a friendly Norwegian guide to
do a six hour climb of the glacier, named after the Austrian emperor by the
explorer Haast who unfortunately for him, had already named another lesser
glacier after himself. A combination of rainforest scenery with drastic rock and
ice displays make for an interesting summer day. And after a good day of work
one needs to have a good night of ´play´, so we join our guide and the locals
for a bit of a party on behalf of the birthday of a clearly famous Franz Josef
inhabitant.
A bit hung over we get back on track and via the gorgeous Wanaka we move into
the centre of thrills, Queenstown. This is probably the place of birth of all
those nuthead Kiwi’s you always meet when traveling the world. It is the home
town of the Bungy Jump and many other outdoor action-packed activities. Here we
meet up with another ex-Sydneysider John, aka Warrior, who is on his way back to
Ireland. An old fashioned night out on the town is followed by meeting up with
Tony the next morning for breakfast.. thankfully he is in the same state and we
settle on a very relaxed bacon and eggs at his place which has an amazing view
of the picturesque but not humble Shootover river. Tony is a good mate of the
Melbourne possy and Smithy and he is able to point us in some directions we
would otherwise not have traveled. After an excellent morning and happy belly we
head of for a bit of a driving adventure across the Skippers canyon, a little
road described in the 4WD guide (as we found out afterwards) as hair-raising.
The most impressive view of the gorge, the beautiful azure blue river and
aggressive changes in altitudes are mostly missed by Pascal as she is holding on
to any part of the 4WD she can find with any limb she has, and by me because you
are apparently not insured on this road. Mind you, this is actually not a
concern. Any fault means you are not going to be worried about anything for a
very long time. The reward is a lunch in an area not traveled by the average
tourist, and again the comfort of a campervan proves its value by converting
into an “instant restaurant with a view”.
We continue on for a quick dip to the far south-west, here the amazing fjords
have been providing protection for troubled sailors for many centuries. The
landscape is again, tale like, and we very much enjoy our boat ride in silence.
Heading back northeast towards Christchurch we try and negotiate an off the
track route towards the famous Lake Pukaki and Lake Tekapo. Yet a healthy
combination of overestimating my natural sense of direction and a good shot of
pride keeping me from asking directions put us right in the middle of ...
well.... nowhere. Somewhere between Cromwell and Clyde we manage to miss the 4WD
track that would have given us a nice “shortcut” and end up on a large private
property. Now I will have to ask directions, as the afternoon is coming to its
end. The friendly farmer, Philip, is able to fill the gap left by our
shortcomings in map reading and explains the options. At this time offering him
a cold beer as a trade for a night on his grounds seems like the most attractive
and as Philip is just reaching the end of his working day he seems happy to
accept. We find a spot near a little creek between some sheep and old barracks
and spend the rest of the night learning from Philip about farming, New Zealand
and many other topics.
The following day Philip points us towards an alternative track, with an equal
amount of off-the road action. This country seems to have an never failing
ability to continuously change shape. We head on past more amazing mountain
ranges and lakes to spend our last night with our camper on a site near Peel
Forest. Having saved a good bottle of wine from earlier travels in South Africa
is the perfect way to compliment the fresh high mountain salmon we acquired
earlier. And sitting outside our camper we enjoy our meal and southern sky full
of stars. Tomorrow we will start with a refreshing bushwalk and then fly up to
Auckland, for now we are enjoying our last night on the South Island.
After three weeks of trailering around the visit to Auckland is a great change
of environment. Spending time with family and enjoying their hospitality, but
also simply doing the laundry and not having to look at maps to find directions
is a very welcome change. We explore the city from the warm home of Alan and
Viena in preparation of our next episode.. a taste of South America. After a fun
night of games with the whole family we pack our stuff and hit the sack.
In short, New Zealand has proven to be everything we expected and that is only
touching upon a small part of the whole country. I remember my mum telling me as
a kid that New Zealand is a country where they have the packed a whole world of
flora and scenery in one accessible country. It is incredibly pleasing to see a
whole nation aware of its treasures and thus keeping it clean and showing it off
with pride.
As we arrive at Auckland airport we realise that we already have so many people
to thank for their contribution and help. The several emails with traveling tips
and pub stories on the do´s and don’ts have been an essential gap-filler for our
own lack of preparation. Thank you all for helping out, now it is time to give
Gonzalo a call so we can team up with his cousin in Santiago.
E noho ra, Pascal & Richard
email:
pascalschluter@yahoo.com &
wolfe@kawanaki.com
----travel gadget of the month award---
and the nominees are:
1) Travel tube of Vegemite, shockresistant and lifesaving
2) iPod with iTrip FM transmitter and Belkin Battery Pack, for the many hours on
the road without a single radio station in reach (not a decent one anyway) this
is your Backpackers Drive-In Disco essential
3) Evisu Dark Green Rain jacket... a female essential in the kiwi wetlands, how
to look fashionable in raingear ;)
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