Jan 2009

OK, let me first get the record straight: This was Amy’s idea, not mine. (I swear!) We had originally planned to spend our full day in Wanaka hiking the Rob Roy Glacier Valley.... but Amy had other ideas. During a lunch stop on our way to Wanaka, she stumbled upon a brochure for canyoning…. and, on a whim, our plans had suddenly changed. Instead of the standard hiking trip, we would now be “hiking” in and through the Niger Stream (which cuts through a steep, narrow canyon) using nothing but some rope, a harness, a wet suit---and a whole lot of gravity. Canyoning involves abseiling and rapelling down waterfalls…. sliding down natural water chutes… swimming and floating through gorgeous,water-sculpted canyons… and leaping off ledges into water pools. (Very, very fun. And such a unique experience.)

I think the pictures and videos explain it best….. (And, yes, we both loved it. Great idea, Amy!)

Hello to all our family and friends!

Wow, it has been too long since we’ve last been in touch. We just spent two fantastic days in the town of Franz Josef, fitting in kayaking, ice climbing, and a “glacier adventure.” So much fun!

Franz Josef is a tiny, two-horse town that thrives because it is at the base of one of the world’s largest glaciers---and the only glacier in the world that is surrounded by a natural rain forest. Due to being in a rain forest, Franz Josef gets a ton of rain: 180 days of rain and an equivalent of 185 inches of rain each year! (As comparison, Seattle gets 37 inches of rain of year…. Franz Josef eats that for breakfast!)

However, that being said, we must have lucked out during our 2 night stay because we didn’t get any rain---and even a bit of sun! (Some overcast clouds, yes, but no rain). While the town of Franz Josef is nothing to write home about (it has maybe 4 or 5 restaurants in the whole town and 1 small grocery that only gets deliveries every 2 weeks – no raw meats sold here), we kept ourselves VERY busy with activities. Franz Josef is truly an adventurer’s paradise. They offer rafting, boating, paragliding, skydiving, you name it. But what they are most famous for is their glacier hiking and climbing. And now I know why.

I first tried ice climbing soon after we arrived Tuesday afternoon. It was an indoor ice climbing facility that we stumbled upon (when I say stumbled upon, I mean that the huge building stood out among the 10 other buildings downtown like a beacon – you couldn’t miss it). Kev decided to sit this one out and take photos (he has elbow issues), but I couldn’t think of anything I’d rather being doing – it was a real ice environment that they created indoors! After a few minutes, I found myself hooked up to pulleys & ropes, with my ice axes in hand and starting my climbs. It was exhilarating! I had such a great time but have never been worn out so quickly – this was easily twice or three times as exhausting as indoor rock climbing walls. After three climbs, I was done…

That evening, Kevin and I joined a sunset kayaking trip on Lake Mapourika. It was gorgeous! The lake was stunning with the mountains and glaciers on display all around us – again a postcard photo moment. Part of the trip included floating through a river that looked like a glass mirror reflecting all the stunning landscapes around us. It was difficult to tell where the water ended and the sky began. It was like nothing we’ve ever seen before.

Yesterday (Wednesday) we did what we came to Franz Josef to do – an all-day, guided hike into the glaciers. This was easily our most favorite experience in New Zealand yet. Our guides started out by providing us with some gear (specifically “crampons” to attach to our boots which looked like the jaws of death – you definitely wouldn’t want to be barefoot around anyone wearing these!). After giving us some instructions we were off. It included a hike to the base of the glacier (about 1 hour) and then the rest of the day we were climbing up, on, and through the glacier itself!! This included some tricky maneuvering at times, such as wedging yourself through walls of ice – one guy even got stuck for a little while until he could free his backpack – climbing through tunnels, using ropes to climb up steep walls of ice, and crossing gaps and ledges.

All the while our guide would be leading us by using his ice ax to blaze a “trail” for us, creating stairs or grooved areas where we could gain traction for our climbs. It was insane! But such an amazing experience. At one point, we were each given our own ice axe (a smaller version of the guide’s) and while it wasn’t as useful for me in completing my hike, it did make for some great pictures!

We left Franz Josef this morning to head to our next stop, Lake Wanaka, where we’ll be staying for two more nights (Thursday and Friday nights). Here we are hoping to fit in a canyoning adventure (www.deepcanyon.co.nz). I know….who is this girl?? I’m starting to not recognize me! It’s the Kiwi culture…it just gets into your skin!

Thanks to everyone who has left comments on our blogs – we love reading your notes and hearing from you. It’s almost been three weeks since we left Seattle, and homesickness is starting to set in a bit. We’ve passed the point of where all our other vacations have ended (2 weeks or less) and when looking at the whole itinerary, we see that we’ve only just begun. We are so excited about all the adventures that lie ahead for us, but we do miss our family and friends. New Zealand is awesome, and we’re meeting lots of great people. However, we know where our hearts lie. We love you!

Okay enough sap and onto the next stop – Wanaka! We hope that you are all well at home and look forward to being in touch soon. Also, if you want to see more, you can check out all of our pictures at our flickr site.

Cheers, mates!

To quote one of our favorite Kiwi sayings: “Sweet as!!” (American translation: It’s all good!!) We spent three nights in the town of Nelson, which was easily our favorite spot on the trip so far. Nelson and its surrounding area was full of “bests” for us: Best national park (Abel Tasman National Park might be the most scenic area we’ve ever seen); Best town (Nelson is a picturesque town with great outdoor cafes and a nearby beach); Best weather (nothing but cloudless, high 70s days); and Best hostel (even Amy was very happy with our accommodation here!). Definitely tough to beat. Sweet as!

On Saturday, we did a hiking/kayaking tour of Abel Tasman National Park, joined by three other travelers from our bus (all from Ireland). We took a water taxi into the Park and were dropped off at Torrent Bay, from where we hiked to a spot called Watering Cove about two hours or so away. The Park is outrageously pretty, with the clearest, most turquoise water we have ever seen. (Our pictures don’t do it justice.) We made it to the beach at Watering Cove about mid-day, where we stopped for lunch and a short swim.

At Watering Cove, the five of us met up with our guide and set out on kayaks for several hours. We paddled around tiny islands, stopped and swam at isolated beaches, and took in the jaw-dropping surroundings. Near the end of the day, the guide has us put our kayaks side-by-side and we attached a small sail to the front (held up at the back by our oars pointed at the sky)….. and we then used the wind to sail us back without paddling. Very cool.

On our second day, we had planned on doing a winery tour of various wineries in the Marlborough region….. but we felt lazy and spent the day at the beach instead. (Yup, those are the tough decisions we face each day!)

After Nelson, we are heading down the west coast of the South Island to Greymouth... which, according to Lonely Planet, is one of the top ten drives in the world. We'll let you know!

FYI, on a different note, we’ve learned that many of you don’t realize that you can “subscribe” to our blog---which means that you will be sent an email whenever we post a new entry. Just click “Subscribe” on the right side of this web page and then enter your email address.

Cheers!

(Written on Friday, 1/23/09)

Hello from the South Island!

Kevin and I just left Picton, the first town that we visited on the South Island of New Zealand. We arrived in Picton on Wednesday (our time) by the InterIsland Ferry. Now, this isn’t like any Seattle ferry boat that we’re so familiar with. When we arrived at the ferry terminal in Wellington, we thought for sure our boat hadn’t arrived yet…since the only thing we could see in the terminal is what looked like a large, slightly-aging cruise ship. Low and behold that was our ferry! But even more impressive than the boat was the 3-hour cruise from the North Island’s Wellington to our first South Island city of Picton. It was absolutely gorgeous! Like cruising through a post-card. I couldn’t keep Kevin in the boat with me (it was a little chilly for me on the deck). Kevin probably spent 80% of the cruise out on the deck enjoying the vistas (so the pictures below are his). I joined him for the last 20 minutes….that’s about as much as I could handle. But – thanks to the lovely Christmas gift from my sister, I kept myself more than entertained, enjoying a few episodes of Gossip Girl (btw, what a great show! I’m hooked.)

We loved the town of Picton. It is a tiny and very cute seaside town nestled in the most gorgeous of settings. We were unable to find accommodation there in a hostel (they were booked everywhere), so we stayed two nights at a small bed and breakfast called The Gab les B&B. It is run by a lovely couple, Paula and Ian, and is an adorable home that used to be the home of the town’s mayor. The room we had was huge!! Plus we had our own bath, which honestly has been a luxury during our hostel stays and not always the standard. (We realized then how much we needed this respite from the hostels!)

We can’t speak highly enough of Ian and Paula. They were so nice and friendly, and each morning they had a wonderful breakfast spread waiting for us in the dining room (again – such a wonderful treat for some home cooked food after eating out for every meal). We really enjoyed our stay there, and it’s going to be hard to go back to hostel living for the rest of our tour of New Zealand. (Since I’m in charge of booking the accommodations, I might find that other towns are completely sold out too…).

During our stay in Picton, we took a water taxi up the Queen Charlotte Sound (one of many sounds around Picton) to hike the Queen Charlotte’s Track, a hiking trail that hugs the coast along the sound (which, if done in full, takes about 3 -5 days to hike). We decided to do a day hike only, so the boat dropped us off at one point (Ship Cove) and picked us up at another point (Fearnaux’s Marina), 14 kilometers down the track . The hike was really beautiful (and really exhausting!). We ended at Feurnaux’s Lodge, a luxury resort on the sound coastline intended as a lodging point for those who are doing a multi-day hike. We had some beers there to reward ourselves for finishing the strenuous hike, and I do think they are one of the most deserved beers we have enjoyed so far!

Today, we were sad to leave Picton and our hosts, Ian and Paula, from the last two days. But we look forward to enjoying our next stop on the South Island: Nelson, where we plan to stay for three nights.

We are kayaking and hiking tomorrow in Abel Tasman Park, and then we plan to do some wine tasting the following day. We hope everyone is having a good time back home. We miss you! Cheers!

It’s difficult to compare cultures after only a week's experience in New Zealand, but here are some very obvious differences (and similarities) that we couldn’t help but notice:

Coffee. For their coffee, New Zealanders drink almost exclusively espresso drinks; it’s very difficult to find the simple drip, filtered coffee that Amy and I prefer. Saying merely that “I’ll have a cup of coffee” is not specific enough here. The usual options are either “a flat white” (espresso with steamed milk), “a long black” (espresso with hot water), or a latte. Starbucks in New Zealand offers a “filtered coffee,” but this apparenty isn’t a popular drink. When I ordered a cup at the Starbucks in Rotorua, the barista had no idea how to brew a cup of coffee. He had to ask somebody else how to do it and proceeded to make one of the strongest--and worst--cup of coffees I’ve had. (I guess I’ll have to stick to espresso…)

Ketchup. Called “tomato sauce” here, it’s far too sweet for our tastes. We met a couple from California yesterday who recommended that we put salt in our ketchup here. Much better.

Barefoot walking We’ve never seen so many people walk around in bare feet. Are flip-flops really not comfortable enough?

Obama-mania. The newspapers in New Zealand have had Obama and the upcoming inauguration on the front page almost every day since we’ve been here. We've been somewhat surprised at the level of interest in Obama and the American presidency here, as well as that of the travelers we meet. (The girl next to us on the bus yesterday—who was from Ireland—was reading one of Obama’s books.)

Coinage. The smallest coins in New Zealand are ten cent coins, and they just round to the nearest ten cents. (The U.S. should definitely do the same. So much better not having to deal with pennies and nickels.) On the other hand, their smallest paper money is $5---which means that I am constantly dealing with a ton of heavy—and valuable—change. (They have $1 and $2 coins.) Not as keen on that one.

Crossing the Street. The most dangerous activity for us is not bungee jumping or whitewater rafting---it's simply crossing the street each day. Because Kiwis drive on the left side of the street, our instict to look left (instead of right) before crossing the street is a dangerous instict to have.

Kiwi english In addition to their accent (which is similar to the Australian accent---but noticeably different), Kiwi vocabulary differs from a bit from American vocab. Here are some examples:

Heaps --- Another way of saying "very". "This pad-thai is heaps tasty."

Cheers --- Can be (and usually is) used as a replacement for "thanks" or "good-bye."

No worries --- Basically a translation for, "you're welcome." Said very, very frequently.

Hire --- in American English, you can hire people, but not objects. In NZ, you can hire speed boats, fences, canoes, and just about everything else that can be rented.

Wee --- small or little.

Rubbish --- garbage; a description for anything poor or disappointing. "The weather is rubbish today."

Queue --- a line (like a checkout line at a grocery store.)

Torch --- flashlight

Tyre --- The NZ way of spelling "tire."

Trolley --- A shopping cart.

Bits-and-Pieces --- A common saying here. "Don't forget all of your bits and pieces before you get off the bus."

-------

Alright, that's enough for now. We’ll reserve judgment on other Kiwi quirks and differences until we’ve been here longer.... Anyway, to give you a quick update on our travels, Amy and I are currently in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand located on the southern tip of the North Island. Unfortunately, our attempt to hike the volcanic Tongariro Crossing was thwarted by bad weather… Too windy and wet, we were told. And with the forecast for the following day being even worse, we cut short our time in Taupo after only one night (we had planned to stay three) and caught the bus the next day to Wellington. (We weren’t thrilled with either Rotorua or Taupo. Great places for activities, but less-than-charming towns.) Here are pictures of outdoor cafes in Rotorua and the nearby Lady Knox Geyser:

Wellington, on the other hand, is very impressive. It’s a gorgeous and very walkable city, and we stayed an extra night here as a result.

Tomorrow we leave Wellington (and the North Island) and take a three-hour ferry to the South Island. We’re staying two nights in the town of Picton, where we plan to hike a part of the Queen Charlotte Track.

Cheers!

Much to Amy's initial hesitation, we spent the past two days enjoying two water-based, thrill-seeking activities: a "blackwater" rafting inner-tube rafting trip through the limestone caves of Waitomo, and a whitewater trip down the largest commercially rafted waterfall in the world. I repeatedly swore to Amy that our lives would never, ever be in danger; in response, she swore that--if she happened to get injured--our relationship might be. (Yikes.)

First up was blackwater rafting. Armed with wet suits, head lanterns, and inner tubes, we floated down an underground stream through pitch-black (and sometimes narrow, other times vast) caverns filled with impressive rock formations and millions of glowing glowworms. Very unique, very cool. (And maybe a little eerie.) Both of us had a blast, although--at one point, when we had to leap over a small waterfall in a narrow cavern--Amy did turn to me and say: "No way. I can't do this." (She did it. And would probably do it again in a heartbeat.)

Next up was rafting down the Kaituna River, a Class V river with a startling 7 meter drop over Okere Falls. The rafting was incredibly scenic... but I suppose it's hard to focus on scenery when a huge, huge waterfall is in your near future. I'll let the pictures tell the story.... (And, yes, that's Amy in the front of the raft in the white helmet!)

And here are a few more pics from a different (and smaller) waterfall:

We're spending tonight in Rotorua and head to Lake Taupo tomorrow. We will be hiking the Tongariro Crossing on either Monday or Tuesday. Stay tuned!

G’ day to all our family and mates back in the U.S.! I know, I know…where have Kev & Amy been? It’s been closing in on a week since we left Seattle, and we have yet to write our first post-departure entry. Well, it’s been a whirlwind of a few days since we left, and we have much to share. We just completed the first leg (Auckland, New Zealand) of what will be our 5 month adventure overseas. But let me catch you up quickly on how we got here, because certainly the journey here has been at least as exciting as the destination itself. (Hopefully that will be the mantra of our entire adventure).

We left Seattle on Sunday evening, 1/11/09, for a short flight to Oakland to spend the night. Our flight to New Zealand wasn’t until Monday evening, so we had most of the next day to explore San Fran before starting our overseas journey. Since I practically lived in San Francisco while consulting for Deloitte several years ago, we decided that I would be the travel guide for our stay in San Fran. That immediately ran us into trouble. We took the BART subway from the Oakland airport to downtown San Francisco, where our hotel was. I got us on the wrong train, going the wrong direction. Luckily, this mistake didn’t cost us too much time, as we figured out the correct train quickly, and eventually ended up downtown. (I have never been known for my innate sense of direction; in fact, I do think I have the innate ability to sense the wrong direction and always feel certain it is the right one. A dangerous combination!)

Monday morning, we decided to make one stop before heading to the airport – Fisherman’s Wharf. It was a beautiful day in SF, sunny and about 70 degrees. We were in heaven! We had left Seattle just a day prior to the most extreme winter weather we had ever seen and were now sporting our sunglasses, tee-shirts, and wishing we had on our shorts. It was perfect. We finally found the street-side seafood vendors and ordered us some lunch—a crab and shrimp cocktail and calamari. However, as we were crossing the street to find some benches—leaving the safety of the covered sidewalk where the vendors resided—I was immediately attacked by seagulls who were at least as interested in the tasty lunch as I was. Luckily, as Kev praised me for, I managed to hold onto the food and fight off the seagulls as we quickly beelined backed to the covered sidewalk next to the vendors. I definitely think I saw at least a few snickers and muttered “tourists” under their breath. (Wow…we’re already being pegged for our naivety and we haven’t even left US soil yet!)

After lunch we headed back to the airport to get ready for our 13 hour flight to Auckland. And boy was this an incredible flight because we flew Air New Zealand in FIRST CLASS! My sister and brother-in-law generously used their airline miles to purchase us first class tickets. As we boarded the 777 and entered the first class area, it felt like we were boarding a ship from Star Wars, or a space shuttle headed to the moon. We were not assigned seats in this section of the plane – we were assigned our “Pod”. The pods were decked out – individual entertainment units with movies, television, music, video games, etc. We were giving slippers, our own sleeping blanket, headphones, toothbrush & paste, sleeping eye masks, etc. On my seat was a menu of the 20 different wine selections as well as a full bar. I turned to Kevin and told him I’d see him in 13 hours….I was retreating to my pod. The beauty of this class, is that our seats turned into beds at night – completely flat. Since it was a red-eye flight, this was perfect. We slept for 6 – 7 uninterrupted hours, before being awaken for our selection of breakfasts. By time our plane landed in Auckland, I felt as if I could have stayed on the plane for a few more hours… it might just be one of my favorite places that we visit on this adventure! So here’s to Jen & Rob – we can’t thank you enough!!!

We arrived in Auckland yesterday morning (Wednesday, 1/14/09 – or Tuesday Seattle time). Since we got in so early, we were knocking on our hotel’s door (Auckland City Hotel) at 6:30am. Our room wasn’t ready, so we were told to come back mid-day to check-in. Kev tried to get more specificity on when in the afternoon our room would be ready – again, he was told mid-day. So again Kev asked – what time approximately? Apparently frustrated, the receptionist said, more slowly this time, “mid-day”. We eventually learned that mid-day in New Zealand is a specific time – 12:00pm noon. That would be just one of the new terms/slang we learn from Kiwis.

We started our early morning with a 3-mile walking tour of the city (we followed the instructions from our guidebook). The city is beautiful – completely surrounded by water. And quite large. Even after this tour we still had some time to kill so we found a park and cobbasquatted (no – that’s not a Kiwi term, as anyone who is familiar with Pretty Woman will know). By time we snoozed in the park and then returned to our hotel, our room was ready.

Later that evening, we did a tour of the Sky Tower. The Sky Tower is the tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere---and looks almost exactly like Seattle’s Space Needle, though it was built recently – in 1996. (I swear they copied us). The view from the top is astonishing; both Kevin and I were shocked at how much water surrounded Auckland. And, in typical Kiwi fashion, they are able to turn a generally mundane activity into an extreme sport. In addition to the viewing towers, there are also “extreme” options to walk around the edge of the structure at absurd heights or bungee jump from the ledge. Kevin and I arrived too late to partake in any of these activities---but we’ll have plenty of thrill-seeking opportunities later on. (I was plenty scared by the glass-bottom panes on the viewing deck. Considering my fear, bungee jumping in New Zealand —to Kevin’s dismay—might not be in my future!)

Thursday morning, we caught a ferry out to Rangitoto Island – a small island 25 minutes via ferry from Auckland. This island is not inhabited by people, and it was created 600 years ago by a volcano eruption. (The island looks like something out of the TV show, Lost.) It was a rigorous hike to get to the top (difficult terrain and steep—and compounded by the hot weather) but well worth it.

Tomorrow we head to the town of Rotorua for the next two nights, home to natural hot springs, “blackwater” cave rafting, and a Class 5 whitewater rafting trip that Kev convinced me to do (we will be rafting down a waterfall – about a 25 foot drop!!). I’m definitely having 2nd thoughts about the whitewater rafting trip – the brochure says it’s the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world. We’ll keep you posted on what we think of Rotorua (and whether I actually go through with this rafting trip).

Cheers!