Traveling here and there, without a spare….

This activity was one of the main reasons we went to Rotorua and proved well worth it. What is zorbing, you ask? Let me describe. Zorbing is an activity, invented in New Zealand, where you get inside a transparent plastic ball, with water, in our case (“hydro-zorbing”) and have someone push you down a hill. Yes, I know, it is hard to picture, so let me provide you a short video to help you out.

Paula

After some disapointing weather in the Bay of Islands we decided to head south to see some worms. These are not your garden-variety worms though, these worms create a beautiful light in the dark that look like the stars in the sky. The Waitomo Caves provide the perfect conditions for the glow worms (moist and dark). In the caves we also saw the usual cave attractions including stalactites and stalagmites but the worms definitely took center stage. Sorry, I can’t provide any pictures of these creatures because photography is not allowed in the caves. The worms use their light to attract bugs to eat and any light you shine on them may interfere with dinner, and hey, I don’t want that kind of responsibility.

Paula

So after Auckland, we’re starting a country-wide road trip of New Zealand. You can rent campervans here that are converted (in our case) Lumina minivans. Basically, the back seats have been taken out and there are two bench seats going long-ways on either side of the van. Under the bench is storage for the pillows, pots/pans, silverware, etc. that comes with the van. When you open the rear hatch, there is a sink, a gas cooker, and a cooler. We learned the hard way that when you pour water down the sink, it immediately drops out the bottom of the car and splatters everywhere (including Paula’s feet)… at least it was just water.

And now the fun part… driving on the left… it definately takes some getting used to.

Dan

P.S. We have pictures/videos to post but last time we tried it took an hour so once we hit a fast internet connection, we will try to get them up

Our last day in Auckland was great. We strolled along Ponsomby road and checked out the sights. We hung out with the locals in their annual Christmas festival in the Domain (a large park). But alas, the first on many farewells to fine cities has begun. Auckland is definately one to re-visit. Do you like pie?… and by pie, I mean pie with steak, turkey, eggs and ham, etc Do you like sandwiches? Spefically, would you be tickled by a cafe called “Sandwiches and Cookies”? Would you like excellant hot chocolate which could be found in virtualy any of the many cafe’s on almost any random block of the city? Do you like kebabs, which are almost as prolific as the cafe’s? Ah, Auckland… i digress… The only problem is that the food in restaurants and cafe’s are so darn expensive. We’re talkin’ $10USD for eggs… but at least we can always count on Thai (and plenty of it here).

dan

Thursday’s salsa night at Mexicali… apparently not the rage. We were the only two salsa people there in addition to the DJ and the three girls he was entertaining. We slept through our 8:30pm reservation at Minus 5, a bar where everything, including the people, are made of ice. No, but really it is a complete ice bar with ice glasses, seats, etc. Maybe we will go back tonight.

Auckland is a great city with beautiful parks, neighborhoods, the ocean all around, and a bustling city center. We woke up at 6am yesterday and decided to take a walk. Three hours later we had seen Albert Park, the University of Auckland, Auckland Domain (the largest park in Auckland) and Parnell, a trendy neighborhood. For lunch we took the ferry to Devonport, a quaint island town. US Comparison: Martha’s Vinyard. We dined on some excellent fish and chips and climbed up to Mount Victoria, an inactive volcano. From the top we had wonderful views of Auckland and it’s surrounding volcanos. We then walked up the beach and watched dozens of people kite surfing.

Still suffering from jet lag, we took a nap at 6 and didn’t wake up until 10pm. While alcohol was quite easy to find, late night eats were not. We ended up at one of the many kabob stands. The food here is quite expensive so it is hard to stay within our $100/day travel budget, but hey, no worries, as the Kiwi’s often say.

The plan for today: Up to the top of the Sky Tower (the tallest building in NZ), lunch in Ponsomby (a nice neighborhood in Auckland), and the Christmas in the Park festival at the Auckland domain.

Paula

Paula and I have left the country… We planned to wake up at 7am and leave for DCA at 8am to give us plenty of time for the 9:15 flight. But while it is said that “Even the best laid plans of mice and men, often go astray”, for us it is just par for the course. We woke up about 20 minutes late, left for the airport around 8:20, hit terrible rush hour traffic because of a few drops of rain (and maybe, just maybe, a snowflake or two)…. once at the airport, though, it was smooth sailing… Tuesday is the only day to fly.

So after a 5 hour flight to LA, we had a 9 hour layover for the international flight so we rented a car and drove to Pasedena. We met up with a Elisa, who happened to be in town for work, had lunch, chatted, browsed, etc and then it was hugs and back to LAX. PS – Very special thanks to Elisa for some last minute shopping and repacking help that Paula is very happy with.

So 15 hours of flight on Air New Zealand later… I watched 3 movies, ate a few meals, acted as grand pillow for Paula, walked and stretched here and there, and grabbed a few hours of shut-eye as well. It actually goes by faster than you think. Once on the ground, we had about the shortest customs line ever. We grabbed a taxi to the Queen Street Backpackers hostel in Auckland and found that we couldn’t check in for a few hours. We left our packs in the storage room and strolled around the city for a bit. We saw an STA Travel shop so we stopped in to check out flights costs for other parts of our trip. During the stop-in, we learned from the travel agent that Americans flying into NZ often must present proof of onward travel in order to enter the country. Many people have had to buy a ticket out of NZ right then. I guess they missed that we had only booked the flight one way so we go lucky.. phew.

SO… here we are, all caught up. We’re now settled into the room, showered and happy, contemplating where to have lunch, one of the various kabob stands, perhaps. By the way, we are 18 hours ahead of you guys on the east coast (i think). The fun for tonight: Apparently it is salsa night a local bar so we’re going to go shake out our weary travel legs and try and kick the thing into high gear….

dan

So the good bye party was great and we were able to say farewell to a lot of good friends. At this point, we’ve had our last pizza, our last cheeseburger, our last thai food, our last walk with Dudley, and the last of our non-travel personal items have been boxed and placed in Paula’s parents attic. We had lunch with my mom and dinner with Steve, Claudia, and Alicia. A last drink with an old friend and a last parting hug. A final game of cribbage seals the deal and closes our last night in the USA until June of ’08.

We depart in the morning (9 hours and 45 mins from now…) from DCA. We have a flight to LAX and a 9 hour layover before Air New Zealand kicks off the journey into high gear. We actually booked separate flights… a one-way to LA with a separate one-way to NZ. I’m not quite sure why this turns out to be cheaper than simply booking one carrier straight through (with or without stops) but the bonus is the non-US carrier for the international portion of the flight (as non-US carriers are generally better about service and ammenities).

dan

Today begins the longest continuous period of time that I have gone without working or studying since the age of five. Yes, that’s right, Dan and I are now not just homeless, but unemployed. I guess there is no turning back now. Our goodbye party will make it official with the friends and then we are off on Tuesday to begin our new nomadic existance.

Paula

So, we have been getting our travel visa’s lately. At this point, we only need to have visa’s for Vietnam, India, and Ghana. With the maps and photos on the walls and the decor of the consular offices, we’ve been getting a small glimse of what’s to come, which is exciting.

So far: India – Long talkative line; Vietnam – Long quiet line; Ghana – No line.

It’s been a ‘fun’ process. It takes more photos than you’d ever expect (Ghana needs 4 per person) but we found a good deal at CVS ($8/16 instead of $10 for two at the passport photo places just outside the passport renewal place). Right now we’re waiting for our final visa, for Ghana, and then we’ll be good to go.

dan

9 days left ’till we leave…. We’re packing up our non-trip stuff and storing it in Paula’s parents attic… Paula asks me how many pairs of boxers I’ll need until we leave… the negotiations, apparently, have begun…

dan