New Zealand

Lala & her purse On our way up north, apart from the siteseeing along the way, we visited the lovely town of Nelson and the Abel Tasman Park. We decided to go for a kayak trip (always nice in winter) to see the park up close. I can only imagine what it’s like when it’s a little less cold. Seals swam by curious to see what we were up to, finally a pinguin emerged & the sites were absolutely stunning. Of course James & I managed to get into a waterfight about 30 minutes into our trip, after which we got to spent the rest of the day not only cold, but also completely soaked When the rest went for a hike & I decided to kayak some more with a different group, James bribed my guide, so I did not exactely have a dry afternoon either! I liked Nelson, but I didn’t mean to stay there as long as I have. Somehow I managed to get through Asia without a serious bug, but landed myself a parasite in clean, western New Zealand. Fortunately for me, I could take a break from the days on water, tea and dry stuff, a nice antibiotics course and a lot of rest, by dropping by the Amsterdam Cheeseshop for a chat with a very nice Dutch couple. After a few days I was on my way again to join the rest of the group in Wellington. In an attempt to catch up I took a plane, but contrary to what they said before, there was nobody to pick me up from the plane. Having found them in a quite drunken state, not even bothering to apologize for not showing up at the airport (except for James), we went out to party. The next day we moved to discover the rest of the North Island. Unfortunately, the rains were against us & we spent the next few days, trying to do some siteseeing in between loads & loads of rain. By the time everything was absolutely soaked and I had spent my 3rd night in a row on a parking lot waiting untill it was 9 so I could finally go to sleep, because some would not spend money on a campground for some shelter, I had had enough. I was not gonna spent the trip I’ve dreamed of for so long like this. The group drove me to Auckland, where we parted our ways. Unfortunately, once the money issue came up, the traveling together for a month didn’t seem to matter much anymore & we ended up parting without even saying goodbye. To me a sad ending to a beautiful trip, but also a lesson learned. Determined not to let this fight get to me, I went looking for another way to spend my time. How about some sailing or surfing? I actually managed to get another crazy Dutchie quite warm for this plan. So of we went, we rented a car (leaving Auckland 3 days before the group) to do some siteseeing on the way north. The weather still wasn’t with us much and except for a lovely day in the Bay of Islands, we had loads & loads of rain. At some point the teletubbiehills did not seem that appealing anymore….. every turn we took, there was just a new load of them. Wanting to go all the way to the most northern point of New Zealand, there seemed to be absolutely no end to the rows & rows of green hills covered with gray clouds. After the sites, we were looking forward to our surftrip & went to the rendezvous point. Giggling (like Simone & I spent all our days together) we came up with all sorts of desastergroups we might end up with. Little did we know, that the truth was actually worse! The truck came up and poured out a group of kids between 11 & 16! We could absolutely not stop laughing at ourselves, being stuck in the middle of nowhere (just a small dairy-take away around) on a schooltrip. I know I have not exactly acted like the mature 32-year-old I’m supposed to be over the past year, but this was just too much! Fortunately the people from the trip thought so too, and getting our money back was no problem what-so-ever. But now what? Trying as best we could, we have enjoyed the time we spent together, every little bit of sunshine we could catch in between the rain, had lots of laughs, but the both of us couldn’t wait to get out of New Zealand & be on our way to different (preferebly dryer) places. On our way back through the endless rows of green hills, we finally figured out what Lala has in her purse…… It’s gotta be Prozac, cause even beautiful green hills can get depressing PS. Non-Dutchies probably will be slightly confused about Lala & her purse, but it’s been a big thing in the public opinion in Holland for quite a while.   So many things to see & stories to tell….. September 13th, 2007 Wanna know what me & the team are up to? Check out some new details under New Zealand. But because I don’t wanna bore you guys with day to day descriptions on how amazingly beautiful it is down here I’ve tried to put up more pictures this time…. (half of them actually, but my teammates are breathing down my neck, cause they wanna do more siteseeing… so I’ll put up the other half asap) Take care! Just a little sign of life! October 2nd, 2007 Things seem to be changing so quickly lately (except for the weather…. and I thought as a proper Dutchie I was quite used to rain) that I am gonna have to do a lot of catching up soon… but as it turns out slow computers are not solely patented by Asian jungles… I’ve changed my travelcompany and am now enjoying the very familiar sneers & sarcasm of a very nice Dutchie… although I’m pretty sure that all our giggling mixed with a roar of laughter more often now as then, has completely convinced the Kiwi’s that Dutch women either never grow up or are only suiteble in a nice mental institution with a big fence around it   So if I don’t get put in a straightjacket any time soon, I’ll try and get you guys updated on life in Teletubbieville… About Teletubbie/Lord of the Rings Land & sheep, loads & loads of sheep! September 13th, 2007 All those preparations and yet only Bert & me set of in the direction of Dunedin (James got stuck in bed with a big flu). We spent the first day just enjoying the lovely scenery of the southern part of the eastcoast and found a spot near the beach of Otaga peninsula to camp. Camping in the middle of nowhere for the first time made me slightly nervous and Bert wasn’t helping at all by telling me horrorstories about men with axes But to wake up in the morning and have your coffee with a lovely view of the ocean did my campingspirits loads of good. The morning walk on a beach packed with sea lions after breakfast did the rest Bert & me spent the next day and a half visiting Dunedin, the Catlins and the most southern point of New Zealand. On Saturday afternoon we went to the ‘buzzling’ city of Invercargill to pick up a slightly recovered James. Checking out the town didn’t take us long…. even on Saturday afternoon the town looked as if it got stuck on a Sundaymorning 06.00 am. So we made out of there as soon as we could and found a lovely camping spot near Monkey Island, sheltered by the dunes from the seawinds (or so we thought). Being with three now, we put up the tent and Bert & I decided that the sick boy could have the more comfortable bed in the car. Now there is nothing wrong with a little politeness to your friends like that, but when Bert & I were holding on to the poles of the tent while trying to avoid the rain that seemed to be coming in from all sides, we decided it was time for a threesome . Believe me girls, sleeping in between two guys may sound like a dream, but it took me about 10 minutes to realise that this dream was definitely not too good to be true… I somehow survived being stuck in the middle, only to wake up achingly and find that my backpack was the one that got completely soaked … Oh how I love camping! The next evening when it was still pooring with rain we opted for a 1920′s cabin with a stove in Gunn’s Camp.. The cabins are still exactly what they were like in the 1920′s, but felt like absolute luxury to us We just overdid the fire a little bit, which lead to a nearly “full monty” striptease during dinner by Bert! Over the next two days, with a little help from the weather gods, I got a pretty good impression of what the southern fjords have to offer. On the day we visited Milford Sound, the rain was pooring and waterfalls were flowing & blowing everywhere – even up instead of down. Of course to the boys this seeme like an excellent moment to have “bikini-time”! The next day the clear blue skies of Doubtful Sound showed me the beauty of the fjords in all its sunny glory and just to show off a little more, the fjord threw in a bunch of bottle nose dolphins & a N-Z fur seal. On our way up north we went back over Queenstown to pick up Suzy, who by now had finished work and was quite anxious to join us – and I couldn’t wait either… a little female company to even out the odds was very welcome after a week with the boys With a complete team we set off the westcoast after a visit to Mount Cook and the amazingly blue mirrorlike lakes. At Fox Glacier James & me had our hearts set on a helihike, although the attire we got in order to do that was so fashionable that we nearly changed our minds Looking absolutely stunning we got into the heli to have a short flight with a spectacular view of the glacier, just to be dropped right in the middle. Here we got a pair of cramp-on’s and a short instruction on how to walk “monkeystyle” – I am absolutely convinced that the guides play a game of “how stupid did we make the tourists look” after each hard-day’s work! But looking rediculous or not it was time to explore that glacier… and that is something words cannot describe… the hugely impressive massiveness of the glacier, the beauty of each crevasse or cave, the absolutely astonishing blues & the excitement of walking on, climbing on and crawling over this fantastic piece of nature is breathtaking! So what’s New-Zealand like? Absolutely amazing! A big part down south has such green, round, glooming hills that you expect a Teletubbie to pop up every second. Whatever doesn’t look like Teletubbiecountry seems to be coming straight out of a scene of Lord of the Rings. This is mixed with a spectacular but every time different – no comparing the fjordlands & the east- or westcoast – coastline. And to top that of people are so friendly proud of their country that we pick up tips on places to go and things to see along the way every day.. After only having seen half of it yet, my best way to describe New Zealand to you guys is: definitely put this one on your list of places to go! And what about the camping? Well, it takes some getting used to: you’re always cold, wet and outside – which has it’s moments, but can be very annoying as well, like when the temparatures drop below zero in the evening and you’re cooking outside or a hailstorm decides to drop in when the meat is halfcooked Of course I somehow landed the very doubtful honour of preparing something that resembles food on just about anything I can get my hands on… a stove, a gascooker, a campfire… which is quite a challenge on it’s own. Apart from that – and the fact that we, on average, have a shower every four of five days – it is a great way of seeing and experiencing this amazing country!                       But with a little luck it will be warmer as we make our way further up north and besides, spring has started so maybe we’ll start defrosting over the next couple of weeks! A bit cold, but  fine! September 5th, 2007 Surprisingly enough the camping is agreeing with me a lot better then I thought it would… although I have to admit I did cheat and slept in a bed already 2 nights of the 7 It’s a bit cold every now & then and quite wet, but it is a wonderful way to see loads of stuff and an even more wonderful for my budget. We’ve made a lovely journey down to the south of the South Island and visited the beautiful fjordlands… as soon as I have more time (we just popped back into Queenstown to pick Susy up) I will tell you all about it and make you guys jaleous with some of my pictures. For now, I’m doing fine & really enjoying myself. Am I going camping??? August 29th, 2007 Most of the time wearing everything I have with me on top of each other, it’s been really good doing some skiing again. Being picked up every morning by Skruck & Pat (with coffee!), to be swooped to one of the skiing area’s near Wanaka. Even though the skiing area’s are not as big as what we’re used to in the European Alps, the Southern Alps do however make for some very good skiing and spectacular views! I nearly dropped of the slope a couple of times just gazing at the astonishing views along the way Thinking I had done enough skiing I went further down south to Queenstown, to see if I could make my way to some of the more remote nature parks & fjords in the South of New Zealand. Not quite sure if I wanted to be on desolate roads by my self, I was quite pleased to run into James & Bert here, who also wanted to take this trip down south. James had his mind set on doing some boarding first, so I had to find something to do with my time as well…. And for some stupid reason (my body still does not comprehend why) I came up with the plan to learn snowboarding as well. Basically what I did cannot be considered snowboarding, but just a whole lot of slipping, sliding & falling (especially a lot of falling)! James, however, seemed to find my pointless efforts hilarious and his way of encouragement was to board by every now & then to take a picture. Over the days the three musketeer team we have formed, came up with some more solid plans for travelling not only down south, but doing some proper sightseeing together. Of course (you guys know me) the planning was accompanied by a little beer every now & then. Let me introduce you to my new team: With Bert from France (the one with the hand in the wrong place – and no, I don’t know what it’s doing there!) and James from England, we felt we could do with a little more European blend… so on our way back from the south we’ll pick up Suzy from Germany next week to compliment our little group. In between the beer drinking, we have actually done some planning and I am now the proud joint owner of a Subaru Legacy. After having bought the car, Bert & I went to the Salvation Army to stalk up on other necessities. Having filled the trunk with mattresses, a tent, cooking gear & other camping essentials, we’re ready to start our trip tomorrow morning. And I can hear some of you already laughing ……. I know I don’t like camping in European summer, so why on earth am I doing it in a Southern Hemisphere winter…….. Beg, steal & borrow August 21st, 2007 There’s one thing I’ve always been sure of and that was that New Zealand was gonna be part of my trip. So even though I was quite hangover on the plain, I was bursting with energy. I had a morning flight here and the view was spectacular…. but also got the skiing bug really going! My neighbour on the plain, Patrick, must have caught on to that and offered me a lift to this place called Wanaka, about 5-6 hours from Christchurch…. Well, why not? I wanna hit those mountains! And since the pricelevel is quite different from Asia, I need as much for free as I can Offering me a free ride is one thing… but getting stuck with me?? Unfortunately for Patrick & his friend, Skruck, everybody goes to bed early in Wanaka, so by the time we got to town there was no way I was finding a bed…. which landed me crashing in their room for the night. Now if that wasn’t bad enough, I practically borrowed half the stuff they brought this morning, goggles, beanie, long johns (they’re XL’s but hey if it’s free), socks, extra shirt and then caught another free ride to the actual skiing area But trying to better my life, I’ve just landed myself a dormroom, bought my own long johns & socks….. I’ll try to catch every ride I can though Yes! I’ve made it!!! August 21st, 2007 After exactly 9 months of travelling (starting tomorrow I can start counting down the other 9 months I’ve got left) I’ve made it halfway around the world. And do really find myself in a completely different world now! Check out my first story and pictures under New Zealand & New Zealand Pictures