I’m singing in the rain!
Arrived in Westport this afternoon in the rain. It is still 20 degrees but is marginally better than the 30s! I am getting into this backpacker lark! When I’ve travelled before i have never shopped and cooked for myself in the kitchen of where i was staying. I would have bread etc but would get breakfast with the place i was staying or go out. Similarly the evening meal would be somewhere cheap and out. You not only carry your case, backpack etc but bags of food. Like little donkeys we are arriving at hostels! We have to label the bags with room, name and date leaving. Then we put them in the fridge. So far the hostels have varied considerably in cleanliness and organisation. Tonight we are in the Tipin hostel in Westport – absolutely amazing! SO clean and the toilets, showers and kitchen are well resourced. You have to take the rough with the smooth! We stopped at a lookout point for seals at Cape Foulwind, named as such by Cpt Cook who thought the smell from the seals was dire! It was beautiful there though and the rain had stopped so we didn’t get wet walking up to the viewpoint. On the way over from Abel Tasman we drove alongside the Buller river and gorge, a beautiful muted green and very wide. We had passed the Kauharangi national park, heavily forested and hilly where the rangers were trying to kill off the possums because they are eating all the leaves on the trees and killing them. They even fly over dropping poison pellets to kill the possums. Not good in my book as what else will they kill? Anyway i doubt if my opinion will hold much sway here!
Did i tell you about the Pukeko bird? Well Caroline will laugh at this if she reads it. I saw this bird about the size of a skinny chicken with long legs, red on head and midnight blue feathers. Wow! I say. Oh that’s a Pukeko – very common round here! There’s me with mouth wide open only to be told no big issue here! What’s more i was in the Pukeko dorm in Abel Tasman! Serendipity!
I am the oldest on the bus by about 45 years which i find quite interesting to have an insight into how these young people think. It’s not nice really – egos inflated to enth degree, more money th
an me and so widely travelled! Where does the money come from? They wont pay $20 for a meal but will pay $319 for a glacier trip!!
Ok, it’s £160. But – every stop has activities. The hostels are cheap. They have paid for the bus – about £700, but then they have to do these activities. I’m glad I’m a cripple!
Onwards and upwards. As you may have noticed I have not succeeded in getting pictures on here but as i have a reasonable connection tonight i will try to download an app called WordPress which apparently helps with these things on android phones.
Other thing I’ve learned IT wise or phone wise is i can move my
photos to Dropbox to save them. Clever stuff.
Ok I’ll try to do that now. Just got back from a group meal at the local hostelry which was a new experience for me. I had chicken and they bring it uncooked on a hot stone and you turn it and cut it up until cooked. This comes with salad, chips, garlic mustard mayo and a beer for $15- £7.50. Quite good really! Off to Franz Joseph in the morning.
Tags: Travel
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