August 27, 2005
Auckland
I love cities. It was great driving over Auckland Harbour Bridge on my last Intercity bus trip as we approached the skyscrapers and buzz and energy of a metropolis. I watched the sun set from the Sky Tower, visited the...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 12:49 AM
August 24, 2005
Bay of Islands
I wanted to dive the Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior in Paihia. It was blown up by the French Secret Service back in the 1980s before it was due to protest their nuclear tests, and was scuttled up in the Bay of...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 01:32 AM
August 22, 2005
Poor Knights Islands
Jacques Cousteau rated the Poor Knights Islands as one of the top ten dive sites in the world. And who am I to argue? I did two dives around the volcanic formations and they were both just wonderful. I stayed...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 06:19 AM
August 18, 2005
Tongariro Crossing
I had heard so many good things about the Tongariro Crossing - a one day hike (or 'tramp' as they call it here) through the eponymous national park - that I waited around until the weather cleared so that I...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:52 AM
August 16, 2005
Glowworms and Shaved Rabbits
The lady at the call centre I rang to book my bus assured me that the glowworm caves of Waitomo were "incredible" and I would "never forget it." Well, they were nice, they really were, but I have to say...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:48 AM
August 15, 2005
Stink City
Rotten eggs. That's all I've smelt for the past couple of days. It's pervasive and infiltrates one's nostrils from every drain and park in Rotorua. I don't know how people can live here - maybe they just get used to...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:26 AM
August 12, 2005
Lake Taupo
I arrived in Taupo with Mike, a metalworker from Ireland, who made stuff like candlesticks but specialised in swords. Apparently there are a lot of people who want their own sword and he can make them to different specifications. I...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:38 AM
August 11, 2005
Napier
New Zealand is on a big fault line where two tectonic plates collide, so there are a fair few earthquakes and volcanoes. The city of Napier, on the East coast of the North Island, was hit by a big earthquake...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:44 AM
August 09, 2005
Wellington
I took the ferry across the Cook Straits to the North Island, through fog and clouds of jellyfish. I had gone out the night before with Rod (whose dream was to design a ground-breaking mini-gold course with lots of moving...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 05:58 AM
August 07, 2005
Booze Bus
I'd booked myself on a whale watching excursion in Kaikoura as a back up in case the dolphins didn't turn up, but it seemed like the whales didn't want to play ball either so the trip was cancelled. I spent...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 02:36 AM
August 06, 2005
Kaikoura
I'm not that keen on dolphins. I just find them a bit creepy with their staring eyes (do dolphins blink?) and squeaky shiny skin. If this ever happens to come up in conversation, people look at me as though I've...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:54 AM
August 04, 2005
Picton
Hostels in New Zealand tend to be small, family-run, homely places. There are bigger, chain places as well, but it's easy to find nice ones with a bit of character. The Villa, in Picton, was a lovely cottage with a...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:44 AM
August 02, 2005
Nelson
More frustrating and gratuitous cafe stops on the Intercity bus up to Nelson. It was a grim day with teeming rain and I was glad I'd decided to go up the coast in one go as there didn't seem to...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:36 AM
July 30, 2005
Fox Glacier
Caught the early morning bus out of Queenstown through the mist, frosty fields and orchards. We stopped a ludicrous number of times, pretty much every 20 minutes or so, either for photos or "comfort stops." The latter would be at...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:25 AM
July 28, 2005
Bye Bye Bubba
Bill Clinton and I have been travelling together for ten months. Or more specifically, that's how long I've been lugging a hardback copy of his autobiography - "My Life" - around Australia, Russia and now New Zealand. I bought it...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 11:37 AM
Milford Sound
Well, it just shows that good things come to those who wait. It was worth hanging around in Te Anau for another day because Milford Sound was breathtaking and the weather was perfect - gloriously sunny with barely a cloud...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 11:06 AM
July 27, 2005
Te Anau
I arrived in Te Anau in the evening, one of only two passengers rattling around on a big bus with a jovial driver who had the kind of walrus moustache you don't see enough these days, in my opinion. I...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:42 AM
July 25, 2005
Whinge
When I'm tapping away at a keyboard in a cubicle at work, counting the hours until it's time to leave, I picture travelling as a perfect way of living. I think about how fantastic it is to be peripatetic and...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 10:24 AM
July 24, 2005
Dunedin
I left the Queenstown YHA early in the morning and packed my stuff in the dark while the 7 boys in my room slept-talked and burped and snored. It didn't get light until well after 8.00, and the full moon...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 07:50 AM
July 21, 2005
Adrenalin Queen
Queenstown is a lively town on the shores of beautiful Lake Wakatipu, surrounded by snow-covered mountains. It is the home of modern bungy jumping (which was first done with vines by the people of Vanuatu) and plays host to all...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 08:24 AM
July 18, 2005
Mount Cook
The persistent rain turned into snow as the bus drove south towards Queenstown. The driver was an irate type who had no patience for anyone who came back late when we had "comfort breaks" - though to his credit, he...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 08:55 AM
July 17, 2005
Christchurch
Cold. Miserable. Wet. Dreary. Mary and Kerry-Ann had offered me a hat that said "I Love New Zealand" on the front, but I couldn't fit it in my backpack as it is chockers already and I've got two extra bags...Read this update
Posted by Rowena at 08:09 AM