This is Quite Overdue

And for everyone biting their nails while waiting for my next post I apologize.  Much has happened since I last wrote almost 2 months ago.  Highlights include; a trip to the glorious Bay of Islands north of Auckland, a weekend of strep throat and missing the only playoff game in our Sunday soccer league, the Arcadia program’s farewell dinner and later that night my 21^st birthday celebration, and a week guiding my mother and aunt Joan to my favorite places on the South Island.  Currently I’m sitting in the Auckland airport after having missed my 6 AM flight this morning to watch the Italy-Croatia soccer game after seeing mom and Joan off to their flight back home.  I misremembered the time of my departure and thus had to book another flight 6 hours later, but I digress, as I have more interesting things to talk about. 

After returning home after my 18-day travel-bender touring the South Island, I was quite happy to return to Wellington.  It was great to see all my friends and I was surprised to feel at home upon my return.  The days quickly turned into weeks and soon several friends and I were on a red-eye bus north to Auckland on a Friday night.  Here we had our first casualty as one of my friends booked the wrong bus and thus didn’t have a ticket, so we were 6/7.  We arrived at 5 AM Saturday morning, spent some quality time at Denny’s until the car rental shop opened at 9, and finally were back on the road.  We drove north up the coast, past the Bay of Islands to  Peninsula where we spend a grand afternoon on the beach, tip-toeing over sharp rocks to see sunset, and drinking Tui’s and Teacher’s whiskey in a tree.  That night we evaded discovery and pitched camp high up in the bush on a bluff overlooking the beach.  We struggled to gather enough wood for a small fire but soon were warm and content.  The next morning we drove back south to Pahia, kayaked around the bay in a torrential downpour, dried off and warmed up over coffee’s and live music, and later drove back to Auckland.  We crashed at a friend’s friend’s flat, and the next morning had to catch the bus again back home at 9.  Unfortunately this time we were only 3/6 on catching the bus (due to inebriated debauchery the previous night).  The stragglers made it back to welly the next day and all was well.

Several more weeks passed until I had the great misfortune of spreading myself too thin.  One Saturday night I came down with a minor sore throat, and the next morning when I awoke I knew it was bad.  I had strep for 3 days but thanks to excellent foresight on the part of my mom I had brought along antibiotics and was able to kick it by that Wednesday.  Unfortunately I missed our first (and only it turned out) playoff game in our Sunday indoor soccer league as we lost on the last play of the game.  Needless to say I was pretty gutted.

Before I knew it we were in our final week of classes and my birthday was rapidly approaching.  Wednesday night the Arcadia group donned our Sunday Best and all met at a very nice restaurant downtown on the waterfront.  Unfortunately it was a beautiful Wellington night, full with gale force winds and driving, biting rain.  We met Jane and Alex for one last time and enjoyed a lovely evening with great food.  During dessert I was pleasantly surprised when everyone broke into song (Happy Birthday) and our server brought out a small cake for me.  Never before have I had trick candles before but I actually had to pluck them out while still on fire and douse them in my glass of water to put them out.  Afterwards some of us went to a bar for some live music where we stayed until I turned legal (in the US anyway).  After bar hopping for a while (still raining and windy as hell) I was convinced to jump in the harbor.  I actually didn’t have much of a choice but thankfully I have brave friends and there were several of us who took the plunge.  Mildly hypothermic, we did the best we could to dry off and ran to the nearest dairy where we called cabs and warmed up.  All in all it was an awesome night and a good time was had by all.

Two days later, Friday night, my mother and aunt flew into Wellington.  The next day I showed them some of my favorite places in Wellington; Zelandia (a bird and wildlife sanctuary a short walk out of town), the ever-popular Botanical Gardens, and the impressive national museum Te Papa.    Sunday we flew to Queenstown and met Jane for coffee and walked around.  The following day we picked up our rental car, drove north to Glenorchy, and spent the day hiking up the Dart Valley.  We returned to Queenstown that night and the delicious and famous Ferg Burger for dinner.  The next two days we spent in nearby Wanaka, hiking, exploring, and relaxing.  One day mom and I drove 2 hours on a dirt road to a hike we had wanted to try.  On the way we passed hundreds of sheep and cows.  Although we passed no other cars we experienced our first sheep-jam, honking the horn through a kilometer of sheep who blocked the road.  Thursday we returned to Queenstown to hop a plane to Auckland, and now here I am, stuck in an airport once again.

Time has flown these last few months and it will be less than 3 weeks until I am back in the US.  Before I leave I have 2 final exams to pass and much more adventure to be had, so stay tuned because there is more to come!

Fall Break 2012: In a Nutshell

Over three weeks ago, on Good Friday, I left Wellington for a 17 day trek exploring the South Island over our fall break.  It was the longest, independent trip like this I have ever gone on, I rode the Magic Bus mostly, hiked for 7 days, and did a little hitch hiking to fill in the gaps.  The Magic bus is a tour company that runs multi-day, multi-bus loops and pass-holders can get on and off the loops at their leasure, staying where they please.  I hiked over 120km in those 7 days on two different tracks, and traveled almost 2100km in total.  I met people from all over the world, and made friends from Sweden, Norway, Germany, Minnesota, South Carolina, the UK, Israel, and France.  I also ran into several friends from Wellington on different occasions, and it was nice not to be on my own the entire time.  Among other things I jumped off a bridge to plummet over 43 meters at the historic birth place of the bungee jump, walked on a glacier, and had a camping slipper stolen by an aggressive Weka bird, New Zealand’s bush hen.

On Good Friday I rode the Ferry west from Wellington, across Cook Straight to land in the small town of Picton.  Saturday I started the Queen-Charlotte track, a 70km track in the Marlborough Sounds of New Zealand’s south island.  It’s a one-way trail so I hired a water-taxi so drop me at the start, walking west past beaches, bays, and along small mountain ridges over the water.  The weather was clear and perfect, I had 4 days of sun and warm breezes.  The track took me 3 full days with a very full pack, you must boil your own water and tents were the only camping option.  My last night on the trail I set up camp beach-side only to be attacked by sand flies and a nosey Weka bird.  It was looking for food but decided to steal one of my travel slippers I had been using around camp- I never got it back.  The following day, Tuesday, I hiked the remaining few miles to the trailhead and then hitched 2 rides the 40km back to Picton. Upon arrival several hours later I cleaned and repacked at a hostel, and the next day caught the magic bus a short way to Nelson.   Great hostel that night, or backpackers as they’re called here.  I met some friends from Wellington and rode with them down the coast that day to Greymouth.  Our backpackers was more like a classy B&B, high ceilings and nice furnishings, etc. 

The next morning was Friday, start of week II, and I got the magic bus to Franz Joesf Glacier.  We arrived just before lunch so I hitched the few km from town to the glacier.  It was beautiful, and valley was massive and very pretty as well.  That night I met my wellington friends again and dried my boots by a warm wood stove.  Saturday we rode by picturesque mirror-lakes, with beaufitul reflective vistas of Mounts Cook and Tasmen.  We arrived in Wanaka at sunset; the beginning of fiordland and some of the most stunning terrain I’ve ever seen- even if the driver of our bus neglected to tell me the backpackers he booked me at was full.  I wandered around and finally found a place with an empty bed.  Sunset over the lake was colorful and that night after dinner I met friends from the magic bus.  Sunday we rode the short ways to Wanaka, past an old historic bridge where the first ever bungee-jump took place.  They showed us a video about the creators and the history behind its creating in the late 80’s, and in the end I was convinced to do it. It was incredible- well worth it and I was on a natural high for the rest of the day.  We got into Queenstown by lunch, I repacked and bought a map, fuel and alpine hut passes, and by 1:00 I was standing just north of Queenstown on the way up Lake Wakatipu.  I was in 40km north in Glenorchy by mid-afternoon with time to explore the hamlet of Glenorchy.  With a population of 200 and stunning views north to the Rees and Dart valleys and rivers, it is easily the most beautiful place I have ever been.  Both rivers flow into either sides of the very north tip of Lake Wakatipu, creating a massive river delta with two large braided rivers.  My next hike would bring me 25km up the Rees Valley, over a saddle, and  then 35km back down the Dart Valley.  This track was one of the more difficult trips I’ve done and by far the most breath-taking.  Alpine terrain might be one of my favorite landscapes with massive valley flats, boulder fields, and massive towering jagged peaks, in places 900m above the valley floor.  In all it took me 3 days, I combined the last 2 days plus the ride 40 min back to Glenorchy and then an hour to Queenstown all in the last day, I walked over 30km to be able to spend an extra night, Wednesday, in Queenstown.  It was worth it- it has such  an upbeat and fun vibe, I ran into other wellington friends unexpectedly on Thursday and spent all and night with them, ending week II. 

Friday I took a bus to the famed Milfod Sound.  Although extremely beautiful and worth it, I think it was a bit over rated.  The next day I took the Magic bus to Dunedin, explored the city a while and visited the Cadbury chocolate factory for a tour and cup of liquid chocolate.  Sunday we left for scenic Lake Tekapo.  Our backpackers was very homey and nice but a short walk from the small town of Lake Tekapo.  Monday, after the most beautiful sunrise I’ve ever been up for, we rode to Christchurch and arrived at the airport by lunch.  My flight was not until 8:00 but I had little motivation to pay my way all the way back into the city, lugging my bags.  I waited the 8 hours and finally boarded a plane back to Wellington.  I caught a ride with the ma I sat next to on the plane back into town and walked back to my flat, to arrive late Monday evening and after 18 days on the road, I was glad to be back.

The proof

Better late than never...

Several weekends ago the Arcadia group [the exchange university I came here with] met our Kiwi leader Alex, Friday morning [Friday March 16] downtown to catch the ferry across Cook Strait to Picton on the south island.  We got on a bus to Nelson to pick up Jane, our other Arcadia leader.  Jane and Alex are both really great and I love when we get to see them.  Late afternoon we arrive at our hostel just outside of Abel Tasmen National park.  We walked the beach nearby and met for a delicious dinner made by Jane and Alex.

Abel Tasmen was the second nat'l park in New Zealand and is on the north-west tip of the south island.  It's not very large but is on the cost, with miles of beautiful beaches, rocky islands home to animal preservation projects and families of lazy seals.  Saturday morning we woke early to ride a water-taxi up the coast into the park.  We were dropped about 15km from our destination that night and spent saturday hiking back along beaches, through small clusters of old houses, and along ridge trails overlooking white sand beaches and rich aqua water.  Lunch at Bark bay and then onto Cleopatra's pool complete with a natural slide and dunking pool, albeit dangerously cold mountain water.

We finally got to our home for the night, floating in Torrent Bay.  We all climbed to the top of the two story oceanic hostel and jumped off into the bay.  Dinner was a lamb and sausage bbq and after we played Jane's version of Kiwi charades.  The star gazing was unbelievable from the roof and we saw several shooters in under a half hour.  We all slept in the very bottom, it's a converted catamaran and we were very packed in but it was one of the best nights of sleep I've had in a very long time.

Sunday we got up very early to a cloudy and drizzles, motored to the shore and donned life jackets and skirts for our tandem sea kayaks.  We had two great kiwi guides and spent the day paddling back the rest of the way to our original hostel.  We met our bus and dropped Jane off in Nelson in time to catch our evening ferry back into Wellington.  It was an awesome weekend with great company and stunning scenery.      

Slacking

Is we call the act of slack-lining.  By 'we' I mean my last years roommate, Joe, and myself- maybe other slack-liners do too and I figured I'd write a post about my slacking adventures thus far.  For anyone who is unfortunate enough not to know of this awesome sport/past time its a pretty basic concept.  Similar to tightrope walking, one strings a piece of webbing (basically thin, flat rope) between two static objects tight enough to walk on without touching the ground, and then proceeds to walk back and forth on said line.  It is not quite as a tightrope, hence its name 'slack'-lining.  It can be done over ground, but also over water, or over very high places.  Search pictures of Dean Potter- he will blow your mind. But I digress.

There hasn't much to write home about but I think there is great potential here.  I've found a spot in Frank Kitts park, a very nice green space centrally located on the waterfront in downtown Wellington.  There are several stands of trees, and I found two close enough to string a line up- so I did.  I've been back several times, with two main intentions.  First, I just want to get better, good enough to take slacking to the next level.  By that I mean doing it up high or over cool things, like water.  I found a sweet place, on the harbor, that is a perfect distance and high enough over water to make an attempt to walk it worthwhile and quite exciting.  I want to get a few more days of practice in and then I'll try to walk it.  Well, we'll see.

Secondly, at least in at Colgate in the summer, its a great way to meet people.  For some reason a person walking back and forth on a thin line slightly off the ground attracts friendly people.  Its sort of like fishing, but for people, and in my few attempts so far I have little to show for my efforts.  Today I met a troop of middle schoolers who were quite enthusiastic to learn but were shortly called away as their group was leaving soon.  Then I met Tim, an older gentleman who hopped of his mountain bike to join me for a bit.  He had slacked before and was able to stand up on my line, but he was used to an actual slack-line, which is twice as wide as my thinner webbing.  I have not had as much success meeting kiwis this way as I had originally thought, but I think I need to change locations.  Thats all for now- more to come for sure though.  Cheers!

Picture Evidence

I figured y'all might want some proof of all these adventures I've been writing about.
From the top:
1. My friend Tom and I at the geothermal wonderland in Rotorua
2. View from the back side of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing
3. First sunrise in the world! On the day we did the crossing
Next post
4. My friends and I taking a break on the crossing
5. Wellington and the Harbor, view from Mount Victoria overlooking the city.

Enjoy!

Much Has Happened...

Since I last wrote.  Last weekend, several friends and I caught a bus 5 hours north, through farmland, country side, and desert to arrive in what we thought was the city of Turungi.  When we got there we soon realized that it was not a city.  Not even close- Turungi makes Warrensburg NY look like a booming metropolis.  Anyway, we got of the bus and walked the kilometer or so to our campgrounds.  Upon arrival we tried to book tickets the next day to do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, renowned as one of the worlds best day hikes.  Unfortunately the weather was supposed to be terrible the following day, but after some scrambling we finally booked a shuttle to the trail head with company our campgrounds receptionist said had perviously "drove to fast and then accidentally left people stranded" when it forgot to pick them up later that day.  Nevertheless we managed transport to the from the crossing.  After a dry but very windy night, we piled into the big busted old yellow bus that arrived at 7am.  The driver did not drive to fast, nor did he forget to pick us up later that day, but it was still by far one of the most bootleg operations I have had the privilege of experiencing.  The fair was $40, exact change and cash only- and I kid you not it went straight into the wallet of the old, overweight Maori driver.

Finally we get to the trail head, and start off.  It was windy and chilly, but great tramping weather.  As we climbed it got colder and windier.  Unfortunately all views were cut off as we were totally socked in by clouds as soon as we gained any significant elevation.  70kph+ winds threatened to tip us off, and more than a few times we had to crouch down to wait for the stronger gusts to pass.  The trail is very well traveled, almost three-quarters of a million people hike it each year, but in spots it was extremely trecherous, hiking along a loose and icy ridge, plummeting off into nothingness on either side.  We passed by two of the regions three highest peaks, stunning but extinct volcanoes without even knowing, as everything was blocked by clouds.  If anyone remembered Mt Doom from the Lord of the Rings, know that we passed within 2 miles of its summit without knowing until later.  We had lunch by the Emerald Lakes, a pair of brightly colored volcanic lakes, and made it through the pass and down into the surrounding valleys by mid-afternoon.  the last 2km of the hike were the most surprising- we had spent the last 6 hours and 2000 calories trekking through some of the most alpine terrain I have ever experienced, and within a matter of feet the landscape changed from low lying kiwi bush to lush dense rainforest.  It was stunning and a welcomed changed in scenery.  Our driver picked us up no problem, and we spent a nice evening at the campground grilling, playing cards, and drinking cheap wine from the bottle.  The ride home was uneventful as well, and in wellington it finally poured on us as we stepped off the bus and made the 2km trek back up to our flats.

A weekend well spent.

We arrived home on Saturday in time for the farmers market on Sunday, and then on Monday classes started.  All my lectures are easily over 80 people, in large lecture halls and I am really coming to appreciate the liberal arts philosophy.  Not that mass education is a bad thing, and perhaps I am biased (ok I know I am) but i find it much more difficult to pay attention, and also much more dangerous as not everything we are tested on is included in our lecture.  I find that bit rather annoying especially after walking into a bookstore to find the average "throw-away" paperback novels to be well over $20.  Island living in some ways is not all its cracked up to be.  Also, minimum wage in NZ is over $13 per hour so even with the exchange rate everything here is priced higher than it would be at home.

This weekend proved different, as I stayed in Wellington, but just as fun.  Yesterday I got up for the sunrise over the harbor, spent a great morning slack-lining in the park just off the water, and then later on climbed Mt Victoria, not a "Mt" at all, but rather a mound overlooking Wellington with breathtaking, 360 degree views of the city, harbor, surrounding suburbs, and on a good day even the north tip of the south island.  It was a true summer day, and after my dinner at an actual restaurant we struggled on the hill with full stomachs.

Next weekend the Arcadia group is heading off to Able Tasmen National Park- apparently one of the most beautiful places in NZ, across Cook Strait on the south island so stay tuned!

6000 miles later

And so after months of waiting I'm finally here.  We arrived in Auckland Thursday morning and spent the day touring and swimming in the pouring rain.  Its the first time I've been in the Pacific in years and it has not changed much, but it was good to get back in.  

The next day we drove several hours to Rotorua, and on our way passed through "hobbeton" aka The Shire.  Took a picture with Smeagol, his statue is quite prominent, and stopped at a farm to see a sheep show.  Never have I seen a sheep sheared, but these guys can do it in under a minute, quite impressive.  There are also over 20 types of sheep here, some used for their wool, others more for bbq's.  That night we had some down time to catch up on sleep.  

The next day we toured the area's main attraction, a geothermal "wonderland" which was very similar to parts of our Yellowstone, which made the whole town reek of sulfur.  It was great for a few days but I can't understand how anyone with a functioning nose could live there.  Then we were off to go Zorbing, a kiwi phenomena where you jump into a massive inflated, round 3D donut of sorts, partly filled with water and then roll at break neck speeds down a hill.  Sounds overrated but it was actually quite a ball.  You see what I did there?  That night we visited a Maori village, learned heaps (kiwi slang) about their culture, song, dance, traditions and most importantly, food.  We were treated to a most delicious dinner, cooked traditionally over piping hot rocks in an underground oven.  After much singing we returned to the hotel for one final night before departing for Wellington in the morning.

We flew into Welly yesterday, and I made it to my flat and then we walked around the city to start to get our bearings.  Its a very hilly but beautiful and vibrant city.  This morning I started to wrap up some loose ends, got a voltage converter so I don't fry my computer and also went to the grocery.  Although the dollar is stronger here food is still relatively pricey- after dropping $80 NZ dollars I hope I'll be able to eat for the week.  We'll see.  Tomorrow we have the international students orientation, never before have I been an international so we'll see how that all goes.  The rest of the week then is totally unstructured and I'd love to get out and maybe get in some trekking.  

Thats all for now, more to come later.  

One Week and Counting...

Next week at this time I'll be somewhere high over the Pacific, dozing to Simon & Garfunkel or The Band, eating bland airplane dinners, or drooling as I nap on my little fold down desk.  I packed today- 50lbs in the suitcase and 15lbs in my climbing pack and it seems like so little to trek off halfway around the world with, but at this point I figure if I haven't packed it (save for a few items I'm still using, like this here computer) I won't need it.  Its weird to seal all the sentimental pieces for my new room in a 1 gallon zip-lock bag and fit it in between my sweaters, but at the same time its liberating.  Actually I lied, I have a Dead poster (props to Ben) and the 2012 composite too.  Embracing my hidden 'type-A' side (yea apparently I do have one) has been interesting while getting organized but I'm starting to scare myself.  I'm getting more OCD over how my lists look than I did my physics homework last semester, oops.  Anywho all the build up is starting to give way and I'm thinking soon enough I'll be that kid with the accent and I can't wait.  

See you on the other side.

I Wanted To Get This Off The Ground...

...before I leave, Feb 21. You're seeing this because I while I want to stay in touch with many people, I foresee myself getting caught up and forgetting. I want to share my experiences with my family and friends, and also to keep a log for myself. I've been on break since late December and must admit there has been quite a build up, and I still have three weeks to go! Thanks to all who I have talked to for info so far and everyone else for their excitement