The Beautiful South
I must admit to feeling more relaxed down here in the south island. It generally feels like things move at a slower pace. I guess the fact that there are only 1-1.5 million people in the south that there is plenty of space to get lost in.
I have for the time being settled, if I can call it that, in Nelson which is on the far nothern coast. This is a fairly small town but large for New Zealand and definately large for the south island. Walking into town from the hostel the other day I hardly met a soul until I got close to the town centre. It has a good feel to it, or a good karma, as Simon the guy who dropped me off in Nelson would have said. I will gladly take some of this karma around with me on my travels.
Apart from one or two people I have met, I seem to be the grandaddy of the bunch. I am still amazed at the amount of people who are here for a year. They have so much time to enjoy where they are, I just hope they realize how lucky they are. I am sure they do.
We walked up to the “Centre of New Zealand” yesterday. It seems to be a reference point from where NZ maps begin. It has great views of the city and bay area but as Gav mentioned after we struggled the last 50 yards to the summit, why couldn’t they have put it at ground level. I hope to improve my level of fitness and not embarass myself too much in the future as people who smoke seem healthier than I at the moment.
Some of my travelling companions are keen to work here. In fact , only yesterday Neil my room mate went for an informal chat with a company which does lab work. He is torn between getting a job here in Nelson and just travelling about. Me thinks he will stick with the travelling for a bit, in fact I will put money on it…
Tags: New Zealand
