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Travel Notes |
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Wed Jan 23 03:58:35 2002 (rr) Book: New Zealand LP Location: Christchurch Spent two days in Christchurch at a backpacker's called Bealey International. Got in late on Sunday off the bus and caught Lord of the Rings later that night. I really want to see Lantana, which they were playing there but only for a sneak weekend preview so we'll have to wait until the 31st now. On Monday we wandered around the city centre and walking along the Avon river. A worldwide busker's festival was taking place, so we occasionally wandered past Australians atop twelve foot high poles juggling swords and past 19th century costumed people painted entirely in gold. The botanic gardens in Christchurch are impressive. We spent a number of hours wandering around the various gardens - native New Zealand, Australian trees, herb gardens, rock and heather, etc. The weather that day was sunny and windy, which led to us staying out in the sun a little too long so by the end of the day we felt totally worn out. Saw a lot of the city in the process though. The next day (22nd) we rented the car and swung out onto the Banks Peninsula to the small town of Akaroa. Akaroa is supposed to be like a French town. This meant that the local Shell station had a mostly french sign (L'essence, Toilettes, ...). A french flag also flew over the town. That was about as French as it got. The town is more famous for its swim with the dolphins excursions. We walked around, ate lunch, drove by the lighthouse and moved on. The peninsula was quite beautiful and the drive scenic (very very windy roads, it must be due to my amazing driving that Nathan did not get carsick). Wed Jan 23 03:38:13 2002 (rr) Book: New Zealand LP Location: Dunedin Yo! We're in Dunedin, NZ. Yesterday we finally worked up the nerve to rent a car and drive it on the wrong side of the road. It's not so bad after all...so far we haven't violated any traffic laws. Since my last entry, we've hiked the Abel Tasman Coastal Trail, which was a fabulous four day camping trip. The weather was excellent with only a little rain the first day and the rest of the days were sunny but not hot. The tramp itself consisted of hiking along bays and beaches and cutting inland across various ridges. Some of the bays could only be crossed at low tide (at which point it looks like False Bay for you San Juan Islanders). The water level changes up to four feet across the tides. One afternoon while waiting for Awaroa Bay to empty, we watched some people cross the bay carrying their packs and their tiny silouhettes kept getting shorter and shorter as they crossed. The water went up to their chests. About an hour later we crossed and the water went almost knee high. People also seem to swim here but the water is almost as cold as in the San Juans. The hike went through some interesting wooded areas, with Nikau palms and what I hear are five types of beech. But I didn't really notice the beech. However, the Nikau palms have fronds that flip upwards, like an inside-out umbrella. As far as wildlife is concerned, we saw the weta, a huge insect (three inches long?), many cormorants (pied shags), and lots of California quail. After the hike we briefly hung out in Takaka, a town full of organic food stores and crystals and camping equipment. They have the weirdest books in their library (New age New Zealand books). Basically we showered away the accumulated grime and ate everything that we didn't have on our tramp (vegetables, ice cream, meat). The next day we took two long bus rides through Nelson and back to Picton. The following morning we were to take the train to Christchurch. After hiking around and looking at the harbour from a nearby ridge, we went to board the train to find out that the track had gotten washed out the night before. So we got to take a scenic bus ride to Christchurch instead. Not quite as cool. And rather expensive for a bus ride...however, it was faster. Ah - a note on the roads of NZ. They are all narrow two lane affairs. Very windy. Very hilly. That's all. I could complain about their engineeering, but then I would sound American (don't they know how to make straight roads? kind of thing, but I won't do that.) |
nmcfarl.org email us email Rachel email Nathan See the pictures. Palau Pictures Yap Pictures Hawaii Pictures Taiwan Pictures View the original itinerary
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