Photos, Photos, Photos!

It's taken awhile to upload all of my photos to Picasa (I actually got them on Facebook first).  But I thought I would at least try to get them up before I started uploading photos from my Asian Adventure.

Spring/Summer in New Zealand (September - December 2010)


Holiday Touring in New Zealand (December 2010 - January 2011)


Touring the South Island (February 2011)


Saying Goodbye (March 2011)

Until We Meet Again New Zealand

Goodbye New Zealand.  Through my experience here, I've learned about myself, this country and my own country too, its people and people in general.  It's been an amazing year.

Thank you New Zealand for:

• Showing me that it isn't actually necessary to finish sentences, particularly the similes.  Why bother, there really isn't a comparison worthy enough anyway ("Sweet as" "Cheap as")
• And a vocabulary lesson.  Jandals, Holiday, Boot and Bonnet, Biscuits (instead of cookies), Lemonade (instead of Sprite), Bach, and so many more.  I'm now fluent in two languages.
• The people who were kind of enough to occasionally mistake my accent for one of yours...when they weren't asking if I was Canadian
• The wine, bread and other carbs that were so tasty and comforting that they aided in my gaining 20 lbs while I've been here.  Without that I may have forgotten that I was in the best shape of my life before I arrived and I wouldn't have such a high goal to achieve when I leave.  Thanks for that.
• The technology: Ahead in so many ways and so far behind in others.  It kept me on my toes and tested my temper all at the same time.
• Destroying my spelling, it's going to take at least a year for me to recover from spelling things with u's and s's and consonants where they don't belong. 
• Your commercials.  There are just no words to describe the variety.  One commercial featured a girl and her pet...a beaver.  That's right, it was a tampon commercial.  Classy.
• Teaching me the difference between Australians and New Zealanders.  They aren't the same country...who knew?

I imagine that people will ask, "What was the best thing about living in New Zealand?"  And I'll say the first thing that pops into my mind and smile. But on the inside, I'll be wondering how I could ever actually put into words the amazing time I've had here...I think without someone having the experience themselves it couldn't be described at all.

I set out last March with very few expectations for my trip here, maybe that's why it's been so successful.  My hope was that I could last until my birthday in May, which would have been three months.  The reality is that it's hard for me to leave now, 12 months later.  There are still things that I didn't accomplish on my "To Do List" but I actually knocked off the majority...and many more if you consider everything I've done that wasn't on the list.  I've experienced vacations, time with friends, gorgeous landscapes, remote islands, romantic flings, new adventures and so much more.  I wanted to "Live like a Kiwi" and I'd like to think I've done a pretty good job. 

A big thank you to all of the people I have met here who have helped me enjoy this past year to the fullest.  And a thank you to my friends and family back home who were excited for my travels, followed my ramblings on this blog and kept in touch while I've been away.  It's nice to feel loved by so many people around the world.

Next up:  Southeast Asia tomorrow where the adventure continues...

Shaken Up

Well my travels on the South Island have come to an end and I am back in Auckland as I write.  First I should send out a thank you to everyone for their concern.  I received numerous calls, emails and texts after the Canterbury earthquake.  I was one of the fortunate ones to be back safely on the North Island praying that volcanoes weren't going to follow suit and erupt (they didn't).

But it's eerie to see the places we toured in Christchurch that have now collapsed.  And it's so sad to hear about the tragic loss of life.  While we were there the people were incredibly friendly, more than once we struggled with maps and they offered directions.  Now as we still hear stories of survival and community it's even more evident how much they care about others (strangers or not).

Christchurch Cathedral before and after the quake

The death tolls are still being estimated but sadly it is clear that the area won't make out as fortunately as they did in September when the earth first shook. It will be a long road to recovery.

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As for the rest of my journey on the South Island it went really well.  Although my car never really recovered (which is unfortunate since I did foot a bill of $600 in an attempt to repair it), it got us safely back home after 2 1/2 weeks of travelling.  Along the way we had some great experiences but I've discovered I'm definitely not as big of a fan of the South Island.  I just felt like one of the many tourists visiting New Zealand instead of someone who has been living here for nearly a year.  Seriously, people, can't you tell that I've become one of you... I find myself spelling things wrong all over the place!  (favour, travelling, specialise...come on, what has happened to me!!).  

On the South Island I was just another American on vacation, but as far as the landscape goes, it was pretty impressive.  I wouldn't be opposed to shorter trips down there again someday.

Milford Sound in the morning before the wind kicked up

Highlights along the way:

• Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound cruises.  My favourite part was when the engines were turned off and the people were asked to stand deadly still so that we could hear what it could have been like to arrive in the inlet many years ago.  It was mystical.
• Stopping at random points as we travelled north to see things on a whim, like the Blue Pools (where Dad went for a swim in the glacial water and I felt obligated to at least get in up to my knees)
• Seeing the amazing power of water, wind, pressure and ice.  It turns out I have just as much appreciation for the natural science of things as my Science teacher mother (ok, maybe not quite as much) but it's still pretty incredible to see what the elements of this earth are capable of.
• Strapping on crampons and boots to hike on the Franz Josef glacier with my dad
• Kayaking in Abel Tasman.  We had a half day and I think I could have easily spent at least 3-4 days hiking and kayaking through that park, so beautiful.

I have realised that I get lost when I have one incredible thing after another though.  It melds together so that when the popular question comes up about my favourite part - I can't pin it down, there were just too many things to appreciate and enjoy.  Where do you begin?

 

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On a sad note, I was told about the passing of a friend and past co-worker in Chicago just a few days ago.  He encouraged me to travel, read my blog, kept in touch with me through Facebook, and checked in on me after the earthquake.  He died just a few days later of what was possibly a heart attack at the young age of 39.  Life can be short, he will be missed.

My Fellow Americans

Mt. Cook, South Island

I have found the Americans in New Zealand and they are all on the South Island.  Today I met someone from Kansas City, chanted MIZ…ZOU with someone else wearing an MU shirt, and passed someone else wearing a St. Louis shirt.  Welcome to Queenstown, the tourist mecca of the country.  

And for once, when I hear the now all-too-familiar American accent I’m not vying to find out where they are from and how long they are here – instead I don’t say a word because maybe then they won’t know I’m also an American…maybe I can pass myself off as a Kiwi instead.  Then my dad happily (and boisterously) introduces himself to find out where they are from and how long they are here.  Just like that my cover is blown…oh well, at least we’re friendly Americans.

More highlights of the trip:

Me, Dad, Debbie in Queenstown

• Meeting my dad and Debbie in Christchurch.  It’s been a year and a half since I last saw them.
• Spontaneously deciding to camp in Mount Cook.  We could hear the ice falling periodically as it crashed and thundered down the mountain off the glaciers.
• Making it through the windiest night of camping I’ve had in my recent memory.  It was the longest night ever and in the end (when I decided the tent was going to stay pegged down even without me holding it down) I went to sleep for the last few hours of the morning in my favorite spot – the passenger seat of my car.
• Lake Wanaka, which I’m sure would have been even more impressive without the three foot waves breaking on the shore (the wind didn’t die down when we left Mount Cook)
• Arriving in Queenstown, despite the transmission threatening to die in my car, and spending a few days in the Adventure capital while we wait for the auto shops to open back up on Monday morning
• Watching my Dad paraglide down the mountain, even if we did miss him at the top, we still managed to see some spirals as he came in to land

Dad getting ready to land

It's getting harder and harder to imagine leaving this amazing country.  Up next:  A few days in Fiordland National Park while my car gets fixed in Queenstown.  Then we start heading north along the West Coast.