Hitting the West Coast

After a sad farewell to my new friends in Queenstown, I hit the road heading up the west coast which is known for being the most beautiful landscape in NZ.

My first stop was in Wanaka, sadly only for a night but it was so peaceful which was a nice change from Queenstown. I was lucky because one of my 210 mates was also on the same route as me so Carlo the German and I made our way to Wanaka and then up to Franz Josef together.

One thing in Wanaka that I found strange was the overabundance of dolls that looked like golly wogs; a little disturbing to say the least.

We were very lucky because on the bus from Wanaka to Franz Josef there were only 4 of us so it was a really chill ride up where the bus driver stopped at spots for us to take pictures including a waterfall. (I’m really partial to waterfalls.)

Franz Josef was a bit of a black hole of time for me. On my trip I decided to not plan in advance because you never know what will happen and I wanted to just let things take its course. This didn’t work out so well for me…

First, I couldn’t book a glacier hike until Tuesday (I arrived on Sunday) because they were all full up and a few were cancelled due to weather.

Second, all the Naked Buses leaving Franz were full until Wednesday. This meant either hitchhiking out or spending 3 days in Franz which is unheard of since it is small and most come for the glaciers.

Third, I was attacked by bed bugs in my hostel. The side effect of the bites is an overwhelming panic that wakes me in the night that had me counting my bites in the washroom and still has me waking up to double check.

I’m still not sure exactly why the universe was telling me to stay in Franz aside from the amazing weather I had on the glacier which otherwise would have been rainy if I had gone the previous days.

The travel up to Nelson I had prefect weather which made it sad that I was stuck on a bus for 9hrs but we did get to stop at the pancake rocks and take pictures.

Of course this delay in departure meant that my time in Nelson was pretty much non-existent which is my greatest regret in NZ. 

XOXO

Sid

The Adventure Capital

After leaving Lake Tekapo and just wanting to stay there for another few days, I was a bit weary of Queenstown. Sure it’s most people’s # 1 stop because it’s the adventure capital but it is also a party town and I wasn’t sure if I was up for the party.

Of course all the sadness disappeared once I rolled into Queenstown.

Immediately after getting off the bus I made friends with an American named Knowing (her parents are hardcore hippies) and we soon realized that we were staying in the same hostel. We checked in and were put in the same room, 210, which turned out to be the most amazing hostel room I’ve had.

 The 210 crew consisted of Knowing, Joel and Daniel (fellow Canadians), Carlo the German and Max the arrogant Dutchmen later replaced by Mr.T (also a Dutchmen but not arrogant). For some reason this mixture of random characters made for perfection. 

Room 210 ripped it up four nights in a row on the mean streets of Q’town. Mostly bouncing between 3 bars all within a half block of each other. I feel bad because Ricki gave me a list of must go bars and restaurants but I only made it to a couple places on the list and only because they were part of the pub crawl we did.

Don’t worry; I didn’t just drink while I was in Q’town…

I booked the daytrip to Milford Sound (which isn’t actually a sound it’s a fiorland) and had perfect weather for it. Crystal clear skies and water filled with dolphins and seals. For a place that receives rain 200 days of the year, I couldn’t have been luckier. 

 Q’town is the home of both the first bungy and the highest bungy in the world and I was told that I had to do it, that everyone does it when they come to NZ. However, the night before I was going to do it I had bad dreams all night and the next morning in my groggy state went to the front desk to book but totally chickened out. I just kept imagining it and it made my stomach do flips so the girl at the desk said I should try the Canyon Swing, she said it wasn’t too bad and the best of both worlds as you free fall for  60m before starting to swing.

 If you know me then you know I am terrified of heights so just imagine what I might be like on the platform...or just take a look!

XOXO

Sid

Where Heaven and Earth Meet

It’s hard to describe just how much I loved Lake Tekapo.

Immediately after I got off the bus and looked around I regretted having only one night in Lake Tekapo. It is known for its night sky, toted as the best in New Zealand.  Anyone who has heard me speak about what I love about Saskatchewan knows just how much emphasizes I put on the sky and stars. I feel very connected to the stars, not because I have studied constellations or anything, but because I feel their energy and power and I like to believe the ones I love that have left this earth are amongst the stars.

Of course the one night I was in Lake Tekapo it was a cloudy night so I couldn’t see any stars.

Since I only had one day I decided the main thing I wanted to do was climb Mt. John. It is about a 1 hour hike to the top where there is a café as well as the observation centre. It was a beautiful wooded hike until closer to the top when the bush stops and it is just a massive field. Once at the top the view of the area was magnificent. You could see a panoramic view of the surrounding mountains and lakes. I could’ve stayed up there for hours but it was getting late and I didn’t want to walk down the hillside at night alone because that is asking for trouble.

Being a Canadian who has grown up with lakes formed from glaciers, you would think I have learnt my lesson from swimming in glacier lakes but nope. When I arrived the lake looked so beautiful and it was actually sunny (it has been shit weather for the past month in Akaroa) so I decided “why not go for a swim”. It was so cold and I lasted about 10mins in the water before I had to get out. I know what you’re thinking, “she’s Canadian, she should be used to it” but I’m also a beaner who wasn’t made to swim in glacier lakes. It was still a beautiful day to sit and read my book while sunning myself.

Oh Lake Tekapo… I can’t wait to return to you and see where heaven and earth meet.

XOXO

Sid

The Fallen City

Christchurch, the fallen city, has been hit with a series of earthquakes first starting in September 2010. Since then the region has been hit by thousands of quakes with no end in sight. The city is saying that it will take 12-15yrs to rebuild the city. Even though the structures will take this long to rebuild, the peoples spirit has been rebuilding at a rapid pace.

I was only in town for 1 day and one that day I was shown the true spirit of the fallen city. It was a beautiful day and people were out. I got a free concert in the park, which is something they do every Sunday, watched a rugby practice and just enjoyed the quiet nature of the people.

My first day of work at the restaurant was on Dec.23 and there were 2 large-ish earthquakes that day. One was 5.8 and the other was 6.0. Considering I have never really felt an earthquake and I was in a strange building surrounded by glass and sharp things that could hurt me if they fell; I did pretty well. It was kind of funny because both the boss and manager were a bit worried about me because they could tell I hadn’t really felt anything like it before. Since that day there have been hundreds of aftershocks, some I can feel and some that I can’t. What amazes me is how quickly I have become accustomed to them.

Christchurch also marked my very first couch surf. I stayed at “The Castle” as it is known by the residents past and present and all those who walk through the doors. My hosts, Hilal, Kayla, Oli, Ben and Logan (who I only met in passing) were so great and welcoming. However, I was a bad guest who went to bed early. They had a party and I just couldn’t stay awake because I was so hung over. Lucky for me they were cool with me hitting the hay early and were more worried that they would keep me up. I loved staying at The Castle because it had so much old school charm since most of the fixtures in the house were the originally ones and because I was able to meet new, interesting people with a similar spirit to mine.

Onwards to Lake Tekapo and then Queenstown!