D57 -- Milford Sound

We woke up at 7 to catch a boat to tour Milford Sound. Actually, it isn't a sound, it's a fjord - "A long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between steep slopes" that's carved by a glacier. See, kids, our blog is fun AND educational!

Anyhow, it was a clear, chilly day, and most of the waterfalls we'd seen yesterday were gone. All of us were loaded on a bus and taken to the dock to wait for our boat. I saw a sculpture of my nemesis, the sandfly, in the waiting area.

The boat took us to where the Tasman Sea enters the fjord. It was a nice ride, but I'd had enough scenery and was content to sit inside the boat with some of the other trekkers instead of standing on deck.

The one exception was when Thomas sent one of our fellow hikers in to fetch me because there were three bottle-nosed dolphins swimming with the boat. We were on a powered catamaran, and they swam between the two hulls at exactly the same speed as the boat for about 20 minutes. At times they would swim on their sides so that one eye was facing up. It really seemed as if they were trying to look at us. I even found myself waving to them! It felt so exciting to be communicating with them in a way and observing their playful behavior. Even Thomas was all excited - it was probably one of the highlights of our entire New Zealand trip. And the dolphins were obviously having fun, too. At one point our captain slowed down to see if he could get them to follow a passing boat so that other tourists could see them as well. But they just slowed down to stay with us.

After all that fun we loaded into a bus that would take us back to Queenstown and end our Milford Track journey. The ride was uneventful except when our laptop, which was stored in the compartment above us, fell 6 feet to the floor. Aaaagggghhh!

We said goodbye to our hiking companions in Queenstown. One British man even made a little speech, telling us how great it was to have the company of "ex-colonials and convicts" on the track. He was quite a character! Some of the Aussies made us lists of places to see in Australia, and we made plans with one of them to see Sydney together. Even with the torrential downpour, it was a wonderful trip.

-Elva

D56 -- Monsoon hiking

Wake up time was 6:30 this morning. Ah, vacation. It was raining steadily when we set out for Sandfly Point, the last leg of the track. And it kept on raining. And raining. And… you get the point. After the first couple of miles our boots were soaked from the rain seeping in through our socks and from stepping in puddles. It was miserable but we managed to keep our spirits up because there were so many beautiful waterfalls to look at. Every mountain had waterfalls streaming down its sides, as if it were erupting water. The waterfalls were too numerous to count, and some of them had so many tributaries they seemed more like tree roots than waterfalls. Our guide Neil said that most of them are only present when it rains, so in a way we were lucky to be trudging through a downpour.

We got to a rest hut about 5 miles in, where our guides were waiting with a heater and soup. (Bless their hearts!) We took off our shoes and wrung out our socks. About ¼ cup of water came out of each of Thomas’ boots. The weather never improved, and in fact the rain seemed to get steadily worse. We knew that there were two boats out at the end of the trail, and although we had been among the last hikers to leave this morning, we decided that we were going to make darn sure we caught the first boat. We were on a mission! We ended up passing a lot of our fellow hikers, only stopping briefly to appreciate some of the more stunning waterfalls.

Around mile marker 29 ½ we came to a raging stream, probably 12 feet across. Aussies Ted and Janet were waiting on the other side for their friend Bill, who was the only one of the older Aussies that had some difficulties with the terrain. It was a good thing they were there – the water was up to our knees and was rushing so fast that we couldn’t see the ground and therefore couldn’t place our feet with any confidence, a big problem given the rocks and tree limbs. It was also hard to get a secure footing because the current was so strong. We held hands as we crossed and then Ted took our hands when we got to the middle. They continued waiting for Bill while we rushed ahead to the lunch shelter to tell the guides that the crossing was getting a bit out of control. We passed through several smaller streams, and walked over a wooden bridge that was under about 4 inches of water. A bridge for heaven’s sake! When we got there Junko said she hadn’t received a call to close the trail so we’d have to keep going. Luckily Bill made it across fine, but we worried that the water would get worse and some of the later hikers would have problems.

All of us at the lunch spot were determined to make the first boat, so we commiserated for just a few minutes while we wolfed down our food and then set off. Thomas and I hiked with Aussie Max for a while (in the red cap on the right) but couldn’t keep up with him for long. He was fast! After 13 miles, we finally reached Sandfly Point, cold and drenched but glad to be in time for the boat. We huddled around the heater and had some soup while we waited for the boat. Once it came, the ride was short and stunning. We could see dozens of waterfalls emptying into Millford Sound, and one (Lady Bowen Falls) was absolutely raging. The water falling was so powerful that it sent spray halfway back up the falls. We arrived at the lodge and were assigned our private room (yeah). We were delighted to learn that there was free washing/drying machines at the lodge, and so we wasted no time shedding our wet clothes and starting a load. Hot showers followed, and they were great. After my shower I took a look at my feet. Eek! The blisters had doubled in size and my toenail was a grim sight. To protect my foot-phobic friends I haven't put pictures on the blog, but if you want to be grossed out, click here!

We went upstairs for predinner appetizers, and then a little ceremony where we all received certificates. Very fun. We enjoyed our last dinner with some of our new friends (Thomas particularly enjoyed dessert), and then went to the pub next door to continue the well-deserved celebration. We did it!

-Elva

D55 -- MacKinnon Pass

The snoring was not as bad last night but unfortunately I was kept up by my itchy sandfly bites. Sandflies are about the only thing I don't like about NZ. They are vicious, vile little creatures worse than US mosquitoes. Horrid!

Breakfast and make-your-lunch time was earlier this morning to give us all extra time to navitgate the climb. The forest leading to the pass was different from the first part of the track in that there was much more moss. Everything was so green!


It was very misty out, and we worried that we'd get cheated out of a view at the top of the pass. The way up was a little difficult, but luckily there was a lot of zig-zagging so the trail wasn't that steep. This, we thought, is where the older members of the group are going to have some real trouble. Yet it was me stopping to catch my breath on the way up and complaining about my knees at the end of the day! Sure, there were a few older stragglers at the end, but then there were people like 60-something Peter from Switzerland, who zoomed past the entire group each day. The fact is that many of the senior citizens were in much better shape than Thomas and I.

As we got close to the top of the pass it started to drizzle more steadily and get colder. Sure enough all we saw was white when we reached the summit. A bit disappointing. Shortly after the top we got to stop for lunch. It was really cold by then, so I was thrilled to see our guides Nikki and Neil serving hot soup along with our bagged lunches. Ah, soup is good food!

The way down was much steeper than the way up, and we were both physically exhausted by the time we got to Quintin Lodge. I was pretty proud, because this is the first time I've done several days of hiking while carrying all my own gear. We were thrilled to learn that some of the staff had taken pity on us when they heard we'd had a snorer two nights in a row and arranged for us to have our own dorm room. Hooray!

We put our stuff in our room and set out for a short hike to nearby Sutherland Falls - the 9th higest permanent falls in the world. You can kind of get a feel for how tall it is compared to Anderson Falls (behind Thomas), which we'd seen during the descent.

Back at the lodge I noticed some pain in my feet during a much-needed shower. When I took a look at them I realized I'd gotten two blisters and worse yet- one of my toe nails had begun to separate from my toe. Ouch! Not surprising, though, since we'd hiked about 11 miles today.After Nikki bandaged me up, we enjoyed dinner with the Aussies and some celebratory wine. All six of them were in their late fifties/early to mid 60s and I was so impressed that they were all so fit. We had a great time talking with them, and getting Australian movie and sight-seeing recommendations. We have learned our lesson - older folks rock!

-Elva

D54 -- Flat trails & friendly birds

Last night was pretty tough. Jill wasn't kidding when she described Mike's snoring. At one point we just decided to go outside and check out the stars because neither of us could sleep (they were amazing, by the way!). Thomas sacrificed himself and gave me his earplugs, though they didn't help me sleep. Foam alone cannot block out that kind of sound. If only we had some of those headphones the guys that direct planes on the runways use... Jill told us that he usually snores worse on days when he's had a lot of exercise. A troublesome thought, as we were about to head out for a 10-mile hike!


We got up at 7:15 to make our lunches from a selection of sandwich fixings and snacks that were laid out for us and then had breakfast with 2 women from the UK and 2 New Zealand. We liked them a lot :) We hit the trail, which was actually very flat and well maintained. NOTHING like Torres del Paine! It took us along the Clinton River through a beech forest over a few swing bridges and past several lakes. The water was so clear that we could see trout and eels in the water from several feet away.



The best thing about the walk was that the forest was so alive with songbirds. We saw fantails, robins, tomtits, and a few bell birds. The little robins and tomtits would come right up to you if you stood very still. A couple of the robins even pecked at our boots! At our lunch stop there was a big kea (a large parrot) waiting to steal whatever food (or camera, boots, etc) it could. I would call him crafty or bold, but apparently the adjective "cheeky" is the most appropriate NZ descriptor of his behavior.

The walk was not difficult but it was long, and we were glad to finally make it to Pompolona Lodge. Our happiness turned to dismay when we realized we'd be rooming with Mike and Jill again. They were lovely people, really, but the snoring!!! We played a few games of Rummy 500 with a pair of Japanese sisters and then had dinner two other couples. It was really fun getting to know so many people from so many different places. The slide show was a bit scary, as we learned that we'd be hiking up about 2,640 feet to MacKinnon Pass and then hiking back down the other side. Lights out was at ten, when the generator shuts off, and we went to bed hoping that the snoring wouldn't be too bad tonight.

-Elva

D53 -- Traveling to the track

We, along with 41 fellow hikers, boarded a bus in Queenstown and rode to a place called Te Anau Downs, where we would catch a boat to the head of the trail. We stopped for lunch and sat with a couple from Hawaii, two women from New Zealand, and a man from Switzerland. I always find those first conversations a bit awkward, but everyone was nice and it was a pleasant time.

After the boat ride we walked about 15 minutes to get to our first lodge, the Glade House. It was a series of buildings next to a small river. A pretty setting.

There were some rooms with bathrooms "en suite" but most of us stayed in the cheaper dorm rooms and used a shared bathroom. We learned that we were to bunk with Mike and Jill, the couple from Maui. After we got settled we went on a nature walk through the forest with one of our guides, Neil. He pointed out different types of beech trees and orchids, and had us try a leaf that had a Maori name. He said the name meant “sweet.” After several of us had started chewing it he said it meant “pepper plant.” It tasted horrible, and ended up making me feel pretty sick. I guess I should have spit it out instead of swallowing it – not funny, Neil!!!

When we got back there was cheese and crackers waiting for us and we had the option to purchase wine and beer. This was already shaping up to be quite a different experience than Torres del Paine! We were shown a slide show about tomorrow's hike and given an orientation by our four young guides: Nikki, Junko, Shaun, and Neil. They had us come up by country to introduce ourselves and sing a song from our country. The 11 Australians went first, and they were a rowdy, funny bunch. The 15 Americans were second, and I gotta say we looked pretty reserved compared to the Aussies. Along with those folks, there were 4 from the UK, 2 from Canada, 1 from Switzerland, 4 from Japan, 2 from Korea, and 4 from New Zealand.

Dinner was a pretty fancy considering the fact that we were out in the middle of nowhere. A 3-course meal with ice cream for dessert! After dinner we went to get ready for bed, where Jill warned us that Mike snores. She actually said "there isn't a word for what he does." Fantastic!

-Elva

D52 -- Now we get sun!

Wouldn't you know it, the day we have to leave Fox we wake up to beautiful weather! We were due in Queenstown at 4:00 pm so we didn't have time to do any hiking, but we did stop by the Glacier one more time to take a peek. The drive to Queenstown was very pretty. We followed a gorge for much of the way, and it had a beautiful light green-colored river at the bottom of it. We even got a short view of snow-covered Mt. Cook in the distance. At one point we stopped by a pretty beach, but didn't stay long because of the sandflies.


The reason we had to be in Queenstown was that we were scheduled to attend a briefing for a five-day trip we'd signed up for. It's called the Milford Track, and is dubbed "The finest walk in the world." We arrived for the briefing and were surprised to find that we were by far the youngest people in the room. There were a few other people that looked as if they could have been in their 30s, but everyone else was 40 to 70-something and the average age was probably 55 or 60. This was a stark contrast to our experience in Torres del Paine, where the average age was probably 28 or so. We immediately figured that the trail must be fairly easy for all these seniors to sign up. I was a little relieved, thinking that surely I could do this if people twice my age can. Thomas, on the other hand, was a little disappointed, thinking this couldn't be all that adventurous of a hike. And you know how he loves adventure! (Yes, we realize now that we were both being completely ageist. More on that later...)

After a slide show about our trip a guide talked with us about what to expect. She mentioned that it can rain a lot, especially on the part of the trail that passes through the Southern Alps. She said we shouldn't worry about it, though, because the rain only enhances the beauty of Fiordland National Park. Yeah, right lady.

-Elva

P.S. Hiking - which is called trekking in many parts of the world - is called tramping here in NZ. Don't worry mom, this makes me a tramper, not a tramp!

D51 -- Rain day two

Another rainy, rainy day! I was content to organize photos, call the States to talk to family, watch CNN, and veg out some more, while Thomas was starting to go stir crazy. After one day of rest- can you believe this guy?!? So he decided to go for a hike on the Copland Valley Trail. While he was gone I spent an hour and a half trying to find us a place to stay in Queenstown. I must have called 25 places and they were all booked. When Thomas came back I handed the chore over to him, as I’d had enough of it. Wouldn’t you know, the first place he called had space. Again – can you believe this guy!?! Luck of the Irish, I guess.

After dinner we drove to Fox Glacier. After a short, steep walk uphill and a walk along a very muddy trail, we came to a look out point where we could see the glacier. It was very pretty, but definitely not stunning like Perito Moreno in Argentina. Geez -we’ve become glacier snobs!

-Elva

D50 -- Rain day

We woke up to rain that lasted all day, so we had to cancel the helicopter ride/glacier hike we had planned. We weren’t too disappointed. We’ve been moving around so much lately it was nice to take a day off to blog, e-mail, write post cards, and be couch potatoes. We watched SO much TV, including the final episodes of Amazing Race Season 3 (that Flo was SUCH a baby!) and Whale Rider. If you haven’t seen Whale Rider and/or want to get a feel for where we are right now I highly recommend it. It was filmed on the east coast of the north island of New Zealand and really gives you some good glimpses into Maori culture. I want to watch The Piano again now that I’m here, too. And if we have a spare 9 hours… the Lord of the Rings trilogy!

No pictures from the day, so I thought I’d include this.

All the toilets here have a half-flush and a full-flush option. As a water-saving measure, you only use the half-flush unless you’ve got a lot to flush. Yes, these are the things that interest me during our travels – international toilet flushing variations!

-Elva

D49 -- Driving the west coast

Early to bed and early to rise… that seems to be the motto in small-town NZ. I guess the 10:00 a.m. check-out times at the hotels make sense in the light of the fact that restaurants close at 8 or 8:30. Visitors from places like Spain and Argentina must go crazy here!

Today we drove to Tauranga Bay Seal Colony. There were many more seals than in the colony we saw while kayaking, but you couldn’t get nearly as close and instead looked down from cliffs above the colony. It was still great, though, and I loved seeing all the pups playing and the adults lounging in their natural environment.

From Tauranga we drove down the west coast, which is supposed to rival coastal drives in California. It was very pretty, though I have no basis for comparison to CA.

We stopped in Paparoa National Park to visit some interesting rock formations, and got to see a large pod of Hector dolphins in the distance (that's Thomas in the pic).

After that, we stopped in a town called Hokitika, famous for its jade carvers. I did all the driving today, and it went pretty well except for the occasional “windshield wiper instead of turn signal” issue. When we got into Fox, where we’ll be staying for a few days, we bought a few groceries and I made salads and cup-of-soup. It’s the closest thing I’ve done to cooking in two months!

-Elva

D48 –- Cave Tubing

We ate breakfast with the B&B owners and a young Englishman named Ryan. Like literally every other meal we’ve shared with others here, the conversation turned to, “We can’t believe Bush got re-elected. What’s up with that?” People from Australia, England, and New Zealand have all expressed confusion about his re-election, not only because they have negative opinions of Bush’s administration, but also because most of the American travelers they meet don’t approve of Bush. I guess Republicans don’t travel as much?!? Of course, as Thomas mentioned before, many people we meet have pretty hard feelings about their own country’s leadership as well. Aren't we lucky we live in contries where we can express dissent and vote! Though all three countries we’ve visited so far have had anti-Bush attitudes, we haven’t run into any anti-American sentiment. Quite the contrary, actually. The French, on the other hand . . . people really seem to dislike them. Yikes!


Our plan for the day was to go cave rafting in Charleston. On the way there, we stopped at the longest swing bridge in NZ, which spanned the Buller Gorge. Nothing too thrilling but a nice detour.

The cave rafting started with a really long walk through an extensive cave followed by tubing. It was actually great. Some of the stalactites and stalagmites were 300,000 years old. It was pretty amazing to see them. It made me feel very insignificant to see how much of a blip we are in the grand scheme of things. Near the end of the cave we got in our tubes and turned off the lights on our helmets to float through areas full of glowworms. They are long, skinny worms that hang on the ceilings of caves and give off a little point of light “out their bums.” They looked like huge bunches of stars in the sky. Very pretty and relaxing. From there we “tubed” down the Nile River, which turned out to be no more than 8 inches deep in some places! The other bummer of the trip was the wetsuits. First, putting one on is not a self-esteem builder for me – they’re really, really tight. Second, they smelled like mildew. Yuk!



We were really surprised that one of the women on the tour was six months pregnant. The walk through the cave was difficult at times because the passage was very cramped and we had to crouch to half our height to be able to squeeze through. Also, a recent flood had deposited some mud and that caused some of the walk to be very slippery. You know they’d never let a woman that pregnant do a similar trip in the US.

-Elva

D47 -- We Should Have Kayaked

Today we opted to walk along the Abel Tasman coastal track instead of kayak. The walk was nice but in the end we wish we would have kayaked instead because the view is so much better when you are on the water. We walked for about five and half hours (all of it in Tevas) and spent most of this time in the temperate rain forest that comprises the park.

We did have a very nice lunch stop at Stillwell Bay, where we had much of the beach to ourselves (except for some birds!).

After the hike we decided to stay another night in Motueka instead of moving on to the west coast. This turned out to be a brilliant move because we were treated to one of the best meals we’ve had so far at the local Indian restaurant. Elva tried a new dish, Murg Jhal Faraizi, and it was really yummy (she usually orders the Vindaloo). We also got a chance to check our email and update our blog, which we’ve had trouble doing because it is pretty hard to find internet access in this region of the South Island. It is really great to get emails from friends and family as it helps us feel more connected to what is going on back in the States. So keep those emails coming!

-Thomas

D46 -- Beautiful, beautiful

Elva and I each have a country on our itinerary that we have always wanted to visit. For Elva, that country is Italy. For me, it is New Zealand. One of the first girls I ever had a crush on was from New Zealand (I was only 10), and the country has always had a special place in my heart since. (Whatever you do, don’t tell Elva!) I had pretty high expectations when we landed, and I was worried that no country could meet such lofty expectations. But luckily I was wrong. Almost every day I am in this country, I think that the scenery can’t get any more stunning. But then a new day arrives and I am awed by what I see. Today was no different.

We spent the day sea kayaking through Abel Tasman National Park, which sits at the northwestern tip of the South Island. We were blessed with excellent weather – warm sunshine with almost no clouds and, best of all, no wind. We were in a two-person kayak with Elva in the front and me in the back. We began our day by kayaking across the bay to Tonga Island, a small island that is home to a fur seal colony.

While kayaking around the island we got to see a number of seals (maybe 15-20), including some babies. They were hanging out on the rocks by the shore and a few were frolicking in the water. We also lucked out and saw a small blue penguin. We weren’t sure it was a penguin at first because it looked like a duck as it floated in the water. But then it dove under water and took off at lighting speed, a really impressive sight. After visiting the seal island we kayaked to a beautiful lunch spot. The setting was spectacular because the water was all kinds of shades of blue and the landscape was pristine. Lunch was beef kabobs, chocolate croissants, pita bread, shredded salad, and cookies. We also tried a green mussel (unique to NZ) – very fishy and chewy!

We really enjoyed kayaking but were glad to finally get to Torrent Bay and the lodge where we’d be staying the night. Torrent Bay is not accessible by road, and as a result it feels wonderfully isolated. The beach was next to an estuary that filled and emptied with the tides. We got to swim in the channel that led into the estuary as the tide went out, which was like swimming in a strong current and lots of fun. After the swim we showered and then had drinks while sitting on the deck overlooking the bay. During dinner we got to meet some of the other people staying at the lodge, including two Kiwis (an older gentleman and his middle aged daughter) and an older English couple. After dinner we were taught “speed Scrabble”, which turned out to be great fun and cured the normal boredom I often associate with Scrabble. All in all, it was another great day in New Zealand, maybe our best yet.

-Thomas

D45 -- Off to the South Island

During breakfast we met an older woman from Scotland who holds a lot of strong opinions and isn’t afraid to share them. We were surprised to learn that all public schools in Scotland are religious in nature, either Protestant or Catholic. A recent wave of Muslim immigrants has created tensions in the region because the growing minority is demanding that Muslim public schools be created. Her story made us realize how thankful we are that US public schools don’t teach religion (not yet, at least). We also got an earful on the many other social problems that are plaguing Scotland, most of which are apparently caused by inept government leadership. It’s funny that no matter what country you are from, you can always list all the problems you have with your government.

We noticed that Susan, our B&B host, was wearing a Greenpeace t-shirt, so we asked her a little bit about the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior, something we were ignorant of until we arrived in New Zealand. For those of you who don’t know the story, in 1985 the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior was set to sail from Auckland to the South Pacific where it would campaign against nuclear testing by France. Before the ship left Auckland French secret service agents bombed it, and one person drowned. You can learn more about the sinking here or here. When we asked about the incident, Susan’s first comment was that she will never drink Champagne again. She and her partner John both gave the impression that New Zealand’s attempts to seek justice against those involved backfired as the nuclear powers (including the US) closed ranks in defense of nuclear testing. From looking at the above links, however, it does seem that there was some significant political fallout for France.

After breakfast we jumped on a flight to Christchurch and then drove five hours to our next stop – the town of Motueka, which is just outside the Abel Tasman National Park. We saw a LOT more sheep on this drive. We only went through a few towns, and all of them were very tiny – they wouldn’t even be big enough for a DQ if they were in Texas, so you know they must be small!

-Thomas

D44 -- Wine & Olives on Waiheke

Breakfast at Te Whau was awesome – I will spare you the details as I'm sure you’re all getting sick of us obsessing about food!


After leaving the lodge we took a short stroll through a garden across the street from the lodge. It was quite pretty with lots of small but interesting sculptures throughout, but it was a little hot so we didn’t linger for very long. Plus, the noise from the cicadas was deafening. It reminded me of those old summer days back in the trailer park.


We stopped by Vino Vino to pick up my purse (the waitresses had used our camera to take a few pics!) and then headed over to picturesque Mudbrick Winery. We tasted six of their wines and had lunch in their café, which is set on a hill overlooking the bay and Auckland. Our last stop before leaving Waiheke Island was Rangihoua Estate, where we got to taste several different blends of olive oil. They all had really strong flavors to them, with some tasting like apple and others tasting like grass. I didn’t know olive oil could have such diversity!


The wind had really picked up by then and on the ferry ride back to Auckland we saw tons of windsurfers speeding through the bay. Back in Auckland we checked into the historic Braemer House B&B. Much as we love to save money, we weren’t going back to Xbase, especially after hearing from my mom that there’s been an outbreak of bedbugs in NZ and Australia. We walked around Auckland a bit and went up to the observation deck of the Sky Tower, the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere. There were very nice views, including the sail boat-packed harbor and lots of extinct volcanoes around town. We saw the words “Mexican Café” on a roof from the Sky Tower and made a beeline there for dinner. My margarita was pretty awful, but the rest of the food was very good, particularly the chips and salsa!

-Elva

D43 -- Valentine’s on Waiheke

After laundry, a bite to eat, and some quick shopping for necessities, we took a ferry to nearby Waiheke Island. It was very pretty there, with several beaches, lots of wineries, and some olive groves. We had lunch at a place overlooking the water called Vino Vino, where I had a dish I just have to mention: roasted tomatoes with melted feta and pesto on crispy wontons. Yum! I tired one of the local wines, as well. Yum again. I liked the food so much I decided to leave my purse there in hopes I could eat more when I came back for it. (Actually, it was an accident, and one that caused us much worry as our passports were inside. Luckily, we recovered all later!)

After lunch we went to Onetangi Bay. Onetangi means weeping sands, and it’s so named for two reasons. There was a massacre of Maori tribesmen here (by another Maori tribe), and also there is a line of natural springs that becomes evident during low tide, which gives the appearance of weeping. The beach was nice – it was a very long crescent shape with light grey sand, gentle waves, and clear water. I lazed around on the sand while Thomas went for a long walk and swam for a bit. (I thought it was too chilly since it was cloudy.)

We drove to Te Whau Lodge to spend Valentine’s evening there. Our friends Sarah and Michael stayed there on their honeymoon and raved about it so much we had to check it out. It definitely lived up to their reports - it’s a beautiful lodge that overlooks two bays, a winery, and has views of Auckland in the distance.

Our hosts Liz and Gene were waiting for us when we arrived. We were served canapés and wine with the other six guests, and then we sat down for a gourmet dinner cooked by Carl the chef. Our dinner companions were an older married couple from Australia (they were originally from Cape Town) and a dating couple from LA (although she was from NZ). Dinner conversation was lively and covered everything from politics, NZ sights, car racing, property ownership and family. Gene and Liz joined us for portions of the meal. We really liked them a lot – they were very warm and friendly and seemed genuinely interested in conversing with us. It was interesting to hear Gene speak about the US’s influence in NZ. At one point he made the comment that when the US gets the common cold, NZ contracts pneumonia. I think that is true for so many countries, and I think most Americans don’t realize this, or don’t think about the awesome responsibility that goes along with our influence and power. (End of soapbox moment.)

After dinner we decided to go for a dip in the outdoor hot tub. The night was cloudy but we could see the lights of Auckland in the distance and I even got to see a shooting star. Romantic, no?

-Elva

D42 -– No room at the inn

At breakfast our host informed us that she’d accidentally booked someone in our room for tonight, even though we’d reserved it long ago. Of course Thomas smiled and said, “No problem.” Hmmm… is there such a thing as being too nice? It was a shame to have to leave, but it was pretty pricey, so perhaps all for the best.

We drove back to Auckland, stopping to take a walk around gorgeous Hokianga Bay,

eat lunch at a nice waterfront café, and take a look around a small local cemetery where there were a number of Maori buried.

We also stopped at the Waipoua Kauri Forest sanctuary, and saw the tallest living Kauri, which is called Tane Mahuta and stands about 168 feet high. Later we saw Te Matua Ngahere, the widest Kauri, with a girth of 56 feet. Both of them are estimated to be about 2000 years old, and it was amazing to stand next to them knowing they’d been around for two millennia.

In Auckland we decided to save some money by staying at a youth hostel called Xbase. We were definitely out of place with all the 20 year-olds running around. When did we become such adults? We had to keep the window open because of the heat, but the downtown noises kept us up. At one point, it sounded like there were people on one of those window washing rigs making their way down from the roof to climb in our window and “get us.” Or at least that’s what my half-asleep mind thought.

-Elva

D41 –- Northland

We ate breakfast on a deck overlooking 90-mile beach – beautiful! After a quick walk through the dunes to check out the water (chilly) we drove toward the north end of the island. Our first stop was Ancient Kauri Kingdom, a workshop that makes furniture and decorative items from the enormous and once abundant Kauri tree. Apparently there was some meteorological event that occurred 30,000-50,000 years ago that felled lots of trees in the area.



They’ve been buried in swamp land ever since. Because logging has wiped out much of the Kauri forests, the ancient trees are now being unearthed and used instead of live Kauri. To give you an idea of the size of these ancient trees, we climbed a staircase that was carved out of one of them.

Our second stop was the highlight of the day. Cape Reinga, the northernmost accessible part of NZ, is where the Tasman Sea and the South Pacific Ocean meet. Besides the breathtaking beauty, it is special because it is the place where the Maori believe their souls go after death to return to their ancestral land. There was an 800 year-old pohutukawa tree that sat alone on the side of the cliff, and it is from that point that the Maori believe their spirits leave this earth.

We decided to go to some sand dunes on the way back from Cape Reinga. On our way we drove though farmland full of cows, horses, and sheep. Neither of us had been this close to sheep before, so we were quite amazed to see this…

I don't know how they walk with those things!

The size of the sand dunes was just as impressive; Thomas said the dunes were bigger than the ones in White Sands. We climbed a couple of them, which was not easy because you sink into the sand so much. The second one we climbed must have been about three stories tall and was really steep. At the top we got a cool view of the other dunes, a sand-rock formation, and the ocean. Getting down was much easier than going up – it was almost like walking in quick sand.

Unfortunately, we didn’t end our wonderful day on a high note. Whereas in Argentina you can’t eat dinner before 8 p.m., here in NZ you can’t really eat dinner past 8 p.m. Many towns are small and things can shut down quite early. We had only one choice for dinner – Sea Dragon Chinese. If you are ever in Kaitaia, skip it!

-Elva

D40 -- Sailing the Bay of Islands

Today was a good day. Lesley (the very nice B&B owner) made us a fabulous breakfast this morning complete with eggs from her chicken coop. We headed to the harbor to catch our ride for the day, an enormous catamaran that is the fastest commercial sailboat in New Zealand. We boarded with about 18 other passengers for a six-hour tour of the Bay of Islands. It was wonderful! There was plenty of room to lay out and just enjoy the breeze and the views of passing islands, and we enjoyed talking to other couples on the boat. The three crew members were really laid-back; they truly had the “no worries” attitude.

We took a dingy (small powered raft) to Robberton Island, where we walked up to a lookout point that afforded beautiful views of the Bay with its turquoise and cobalt blue waters.

On the way up one of the crew showed us a hidden spot where we could go down to a sinkhole and see a view of the water through an opening in the rock. It was beautiful, but the climb down (and up) was difficult. Luckily there were tree roots that formed natural grips for our feet and hands. At the bottom, though, there was nothing to hold on to and everyone just kind of slid on their butts. Some man (German, I think) was kind enough to catch me when I slid a little too fast!

We stopped at another island to swim. The only snorkeling gear left when we got to it was kiddie-sized. I wore flippers that were for size 5-7. Those of you who’ve seen my enormous feet can imagine the entirety of my long toes sticking out the front of the flippers. But at least I had some - Thomas couldn’t get his feet in the other 5-7 pair so he had to go without. There weren’t too many fish, but we did see a big purple octopus. It was pretty scary, actually, especially when it moved.

They fed us lunch and then gave us the opportunity to participate in something called the halyard toss. Basically, a rope runs down from the top of the mast of the boat to a dingy in the water. The rope has a loop on it that someone in the water holds onto while a guy in the dingy accelerates away from the boat. This causes the rope to get taught and the person holding on to it to raises into the air. When the rope is completely taught they can’t go any higher, and drop into the water. Thomas did it three times and loved it.

The next 2 hours were spent sailing back to port. It was great – we had speeds of up to 11 knots, which is fast for a sailboat. The highlight of the return trip was when we came upon a school of dolphins. There were about 15 and they swam directly under out boat. We have never been so close to wild dolphins. It was really beautiful. We got to see several of them jump completely out of the water and a few others swam with us, staying just under or next to the twin hulls of the catamaran, as if they were racing us.

The lodge where we are staying is actually a home with two guest rooms run by Connie, a Maori woman, and her husband Ron, a fifth-generation kiwi (New Zealander). It’s truly one of the most picturesque places we’ve ever stayed. The house sits on 90-Mile Beach (which is actually 64 miles long – go figure). It’s about 50 meters from the ocean, and is almost completely isolated. We could see only two other houses for miles and miles in either direction. When we arrived we were treated to a unique sunset

and a delicious gourmet dinner prepared by Ron. We had chowder with some fresh snapper that Ron had caught earlier in the day, and lamb rump. During dinner Connie and Ron took turns sitting with us and chatting, telling us about New Zealand and Maori culture. We ended the night with a brief soak in the hot tub (more of a warm tub, really) and some stargazing.

-Elva

D39 -- Exploring the North Island

Today was our first full day in New Zealand. We rented a car to drive around the North Island for the next few days. Thomas did all the driving, as he’s had more experience driving on the left side of the road. He has not, however, had experience driving cars that have the driver’s seat on the right side. It was funny (and annoying after a while) seeing him turn on the windshield wipers every time he wanted to turn or change lanes. Of course I doubt I could do any better.

We headed north to Russell on the Bay of Islands, which early missionaries called “the hellhole of the Pacific” due to its reputation as a sex and alcohol haven for whalers. On the way we stopped at our first New Zealand beach – Orewa. It was impressive, with hard-packed, fine brown sand and greenish-blue waters. After eating some surprisingly yummy Thai food we went to Whangarei Falls and took a 30-minute walk to its base and back. It was very pretty.

Finally, we took a ferry to small, quaint Russell. It reminded us of an Irish village we’d been to with Sean and Heidi. (All the prostitutes and drunk whalers seem to be gone.) We stayed at Lesley’s B&B, a cute house up in the hills owned by an artist. For dinner we had “take away” pizza and salad on a bench in front of the harbor while the sun set. This is the life!

-Elva

D38 -- Finally, we arrive

We woke up somewhere over the Australian outback – vast, flat, brown. My jetlag had improved from “almost comatose” to “just a little tired.” Thomas was feeling well too, though it hadn’t hit him as hard for some reason. We landed in Sydney for a 4-hour layover, where we raided the free food and drink at the Qantas lounge. We also browsed the airport shops, where there was kangaroo and emu jerky as well as crocodile meat for sale. One store had some little coin purses made out of kangaroo fur. I really hoped to see a kangaroo in Australia, but that wasn’t what I had in mind. (They have very soft fur, if you were wondering.)

On the plane ride to Auckland I tried my first Sudoku puzzle. I'm not sure I see what all the fuss is about. We were pretty happy to land in Auckland and get to our motel. It wasn’t anything special, but it had a real bed in it, and that’s all we wanted!

-Elva

D36 & D37 – 32 hours down, 22 hours to go

We are sitting at the Hong Kong airport waiting for our next flight. Although it was wonderful to get free tickets using frequent flyer miles, we are really paying the price on this leg of the trip because frequent flyer seats on the direct flights from LA to Auckland were not available. We arrived at the Dallas airport at 8 p.m. on Monday. We caught a 3 hour flight to Los Angeles, then a 15 hour flight to Hong Kong where we have a 16 hour layover (yikes!) before boarding our 9 hour flight to Sydney, where we have a 4 hour layover, and then finally a 3 hour flight to Auckland. By the end of this journey we will have spent 54 consecutive hours in either an airplane or an airport. We are both exhausted and yet we still have 22 more hours to go.

The upside is that we had enough miles to fly business, which is a huge advantage, especially on Cathay Pacific. Our seats recline almost all the way, the service and food on board is great, they have tons of movies to choose from, and we get to use the airport lounge, where there is free food and drink, wireless internet, and showers. They had one of those rainfall shower heads - I love those. We also managed to find a paid lounge at the Hong Kong airport that has futon beds. We paid $40 each for 4 hours of mostly-quiet sleep. Expensive, but definitely worth it!

-Thomas