..Site Maintenance

Thought I'd give the blog a bit of a spring clean.

May change back in a few days if I think it's crap. To be honest, I'm feeling that excited I'm just finding things to do to waste away the time until tomorrow's flight....

Cutting down on walks + partying more + climbing a glacier = Finishing New Zealand on a high!

So it's been a really enjoyable last 10 days in New Zealand which consisted of, as the title of the post suggests, a few less walks and a bit more partying!

Moving down through Westport on the West Coast there was some really beautiful landscapes of valleys, lakes and mountains. Our first stop on the way down though consisted of a themed party at a pub which is almost as old as the owner (Age of Pub - 95, Age of Les the Owner - 84). The theme was "Anything beginning with P" and so with a tight little affro, a sheepskin coat, some outlandish black and white trousers and a daring purple top I went as a Pimp! Unfortunately I didn't win the competition as best dressed, that went to the Parrot with the lad who came as a Prostitute a close second.

With a slight hangover we made the journey down to the Franz Josef glaciers where we went on a day long hike up the glacial mountain. It wasn't the toughest treck I've done but it was probably the most fun as we were scaling walls and trying to fit our bodies through impossibly tight cravasses.

From there we had an unevenftul stop over at Wanaka before hitting the party town of Queenstown. Not much sleep and plenty of booze was had as this was the last place before the people on our bus went there seperate ways. A cool little town and a fitting way to end the Kiwi Adventure.

Through a mixture of bus and plane I'm now back in Auckland with loads of great memories to take away. The people are friendly, the scenery is jaw dropping and the activities get your blood pumping.

So now I'm waiting for tomorrow evenings flight to Argentina and I honestly can't wait. South America is a place rich with history, culture, music and by all accounts is one of the best continents to visit in the world.

And with that I bid "E noho ra" (Goodbye in Maori) to New Zealand and "Hola!" to Argentina.

Speak soon!!

Landscapes, walking and lots and lots and lots of sheep - Welcome to New Zealand

So after taking the scenic route travelling to Auckland (Cairns-Sydney-Auckland, when the much shorter Cairns to Auckland would have sufficed) I arrived in the country that has a ratio of 10 sheep to every one person (that's not a lie: 40 million sheep and 4 million people!)

Now with such a big country and so few people I made a mental note to approach the next few weeks as an opportunity to take stock, slow down on the beers and get a few nice picturesalong the way. 

Having spent a couple of days in Auckland without much to write home about, I jumped on the Kiwi Experience bus and set off on a 17 day trip through the North Island, over the sea and around the South Island. 

First stop was a small place called Mercury Bay. There we embarked on what I would later find out to be the first of many walks along New Zealand's rich parks and landscapes. It was a relaxing day and my body was thankful for the brief interlude in beer drinking and injection of exercise.

From there we made the short journey down to a place called Rotarua and the place absolutely stunk...literally. Now Wikipedia will have you believe that it is due to the geothermal activity in Roturua and the strong presence of Sulphur in the region. I will tell you that it smells like the population have been living off too many egg sandwiches and have let off a huge collective fart! Anyway, despite it's bad smell I went to a traditional Maori night which was good fun and also refreshing to see a country embracing it's indigenous past rather than shunning it.

Having survived the smell we moved on down to Waitomo - Population 40! I stayed one night went for a LONG walk in the morning and then moved on. 

The next stop was a place called Taopo which offered the first glimpse of a township or city since Auckland. In Taopo I had a lot of fun going Zorbing and Luging and even managed to have a few beers and a party in the evening. 

The Kiwi gods must have sensed I was having too much fun and meeting too many people as the next stop was a place called River Valley - Population: Us! Seriously, the hostel was in the middle of nowhere with the next town, people or shops 35 minutes away. The reason we went there though was to go White Water Rafting, which I did do and which I must say was a lot of fun. Amazingly as well, I managed to catch the Arsenal game at this hostel which considering we were in the arse end of nowhere was a huge surprise. 

And so I rushed through Wellington, Nelson and have now arrived in Westport for a night. Population - Not many. However, this is only a stopover before the South Island really comes alive with the Franz Josef Glaciers (which are rumoured to be stunning) and then Queenstown where you can do the highest bungy in the world (134metres = pretty high). You can also do this....not sure about that one yet!!!

Anyway, despite my cheap and unfunny jokes about the sheep and population, New Zealand truly is a stunning place. It is rich in mountains, hills, volcanoes, lakes and rivers which consistently provides awe inspiring scenery.

So with many miles clocked up walking and some brilliant postcard photos, I look forward to the South Island which by all accounts offers a good mixture of adrenaline, scenery and of course....walks. 

Speak soon!!

Australia shines - A truly memorable two weeks

Having just re-read my previous post I think there was a tinge of dissapointment running through it as I didn't feel Oz was really living up to it's reputation. However, I've just spent the last two weeks in probably the two most beautiful places I've ever seen as well as conquering a (hidden) fear of heights by skydiving at 14,000ft and doing a 90ft bungy!!

So after a day more in Surfers Paradise (that seems bloody ages ago), I made my way to Brisbane for a weekend of continiuous partying with the locals. A really cool little city with a bohemian feel that matches the laid back nature of the people who live there. Making my way further North I stopped off at the Australia Zoo (aka the Steve Irwin Zoo) where I think my camera almost exploded such was the amount of pictures I took of the place. A quick stop off on the beaches at Noosa gave me the chance to read a couple of books and relax.

It was after this however when Australia really came alight. I'd already booked myself on a trip for a self drive 4X4 safari along the sandy panes of the Island and so at 5am last week an Englishman, 2 Frenchman, a German, a Scot, two Norwegians and an American set off to camp on an island for two days.

Now the deal was we were to take the 4X4 jeep, buy a load of food and booze and spend the next couple of days and nights camping and wandering around this beautiful little island. It really was an adventure and apart from the occassional annoying moment where we got stuck in the sand, some of the memories I have will stay with me for a long time. Things like driving along the wet sand, with the sun shining and the stunning scenery before me. Also waking up at 5am to catch the sunrise will forever be etched into my memory. Perhaps the most stunning part of this particular trip was a little lake called Lake Waby. That picture doesn't really do it justice but the lake was a unique bluy/green colour and the sand dunes when you reach the top give off a sensation that you're in the middle of the desert. A really great couple of days.

So if Frazer Island was impressive, sailing on the Whitsunday Islands literally took my breath away. I won't ever forget how I was literally speachless when I stepped onto the viewing point and saw this . I didn't think or know places like this actually existed. After dragging myself away from quite honestly the best piece of scenery and landscape I have ever seen I went down to the beach itself and spent the next couple of hours swimming in the clearest blue sea and continually telling myself how lucky I am.

That's something I actually haven't mentioned on this blog yet. Every single day I wake up and I feel extremely fortunate. Whether it is witnessing a sunrise, visiting a historical monument or simply having to decide how I'll manage a hangover, the same feeling occurs every single time and I am truly grateful for the chance to be on this trip.

And so with Australia bursting into life I made a 10 hour bus journey from Airlie Beach up to Cairns and took in great scenery that seems to permeate Australia's roads. Stopping off just before Cairns in Mission Beach I went for a skydive. Now my nerves weren't reassured when we arrivied at the runway and all the instructors were recalling how drunk they were the previous night and how they were feeling truly awful that morning. The morning I was to trust one of these guys to jump 14,000ft out of a plane. I wasn't reassured either when Igor, my instructor from Moscow, wandered over and absolutely stunk of booze. Anyway, before I knew it I was freefalling at 200km an hour and having the time of my life.

With the adrenaline well and truly running through me I made the short journey to Cairns and went for a bungy jump. Now this was extremely frightening. With the sky dive you don't really have a choice. Once you're up there whether you like it or not the instructor will jump and as you are tied to him....you will too. However, the bungy is different and stepping on the edge of a platform and diving forward goes against the most fundamental human instincts. Nevertheless I did it and whilst I would say a sense of relief rather than elation came over me, it is still something that I'm glad I did.

And yet still there was more to come. Having got my PADI Open Water diving license in Thailand, I went for a couple of dives on the Great Barrier Reef. Whilst the first dive site was slightly underwhelming the second dive was sensational. The reef itself is like another world and the marine life under water so varied and and rich in colours and textures. I also saw a couple of turtles ambling along which only added to the experience.

So the Oz adventure is drawing to a close. It's been an exciting and relaxing 6 weeks and at points along the east coast I have truly been mesmorized and blown away by some of the sights this country can offer.

Thus a flight to NZ awaits me tomorrow where I will begin 3 weeks taking in the Kiwi Experience. From what I hear it can compete and possibly beat Australia for scenery, landscape and activities. If this turns out to be true I can't fail to have a good time!!

Until then...