New Zealand 2006

It all started back on June 03^rd, it seems such a long time ago now but it was the day I started my adventure circumnavigating around New Zealand, starting from North Island and making my way down to the South Island. Let me just say, it was the best 2 weeks of my entire life. I had the most wonderful time doing all the crazy activities NZ has to offer and meeting all those fantastic (wild) people. Guys and girls, if you are reading this, you know who you are – a big shout out to you!

I flew out of Melbourne on the June 3^rd at midday and arrived in Auckland at about 5.30pm. I didn’t realise that NZ is 2 hours ahead of Melbourne time so I had some minor adjustments to make. The flight across was quite good, Air New Zealand had flight entertainment for each person so you could select from dozens of movies and even play some games using the remote control. The games were pretty shit though, very old school. Why couldn’t they have Mario or something? Instead I watched Big Momma’s House 2 which killed off some time. It takes just over 3hours to fly from Melbourne to Auckland.
This was my first trip overseas, alone. Looking at pictures of Auckland, it reminded me of Melbourne. Stepping off the plane gave me second thoughts, it was quite empty and there were not much people around. Normally Melbourne airport is quite busy. New Zealand’s population is quite small, so I guess not everyone can hang around at the airport.

I took a Skybus into the heart of Auckland and asked the bus driver to drop me off at my hotel. It was the Mercure Hotel which I stayed in and I thought it was very nice place to stay in, I believe its about a 4 star hotel, so I guess it has to be good! Soon after checking in, I decided to explore Auckland so I stuffed my camera into my backpack and wandered around, getting dinner along the way.

I traveled up into the Sky Tower, walked down the city streets, down to the harbour, up some ramps and across some bridges taking many photos along the way. It was quite cold and windy so I only spent a few hours wondering. When you are in NZ you can basically jump off bridges, high rise buildings and even jump on bungee machines on the sides of the street. It is quite bizarre.

Soon after eating and exploring I decided to head back to the hotel for some well needed rest. It is quite noisy at night, partly because it was a Saturday night. But the main reason is that the streets are so empty and there are not much people around, the cars with loud exhausts can he heard a mile away. The loud exhaust are amplified by the emptiness and it echoes quite loudly between the walls of adjacent buildings and do get a bit annoying.

June 04^th was the day my NZ Contiki tour started. I woke up early and headed to the top of the hotel to have my gorgeous buffer breakfast whilst reading the paper and looking out at the harbour. It was a nice view from where I was eating my meal. After that I wandered into the city in search of a camera lens, but they didn’t have what I wanted or the price was a bit too expensive. So I headed back to the hotel and it was time for me to check out.

I waited in the lobby and soon people began to arrive into the lobby and I knew they were all going on the contiki tour. After meeting a few people (Freddy, Austin, Leo, Fabio) we went to grab a quick bite and then soon all jumped on a bus and headed to our first destination, Waitomo!

So began our crazy adventures in NZ, the first activity that we did was Black water Rafting. Waitomo is famous for its caves, limestone formations and sparkling glow worms. Black water rafting is essentially a fun way to explore the caves. Picture yourself in a really tight and smelly wetsuit with only two layers of upper body warmth, rubber boots, a helmet with headlamp and a tire tube. It doesn’t sound comfortable does it? Well it wasn’t. It was also very cold and dark but hey, since we are on vacation we had to do this! First we did some training by jumping off a little pier backwards into some murky water with the tire tube up against our ass, as we float down the river. Everyone had to do this, firstly to feel how cold the water was, and secondly to get a feel for how to jump inside the caves.

We then ventured down into the caves, it got ridiculously colder and it quickly reminded me of Labertouche Caves without so much water. The wet suit did provide us with some warmth but as we sat on our tubes and got wet it no longer became warm. We jumped off mini cliffs into the water, sat around on our tire tubes floating down the rapids, saw plenty of glow worms, floated down some more streams, water was about chest height so staying a float on the tire was a good idea. After spending a few hours in there, cold and wet, we jumped into the hot showers, got some tomato soup and headed back to our lodge. Day 2 was awaiting us!

Day 2 we headed into Rotorua. Before that we had some people do zorbing! Zorbing is basically jumping into a huge ball at the top of a hill and yes, they then roll you down the steep incline and crash into a fence. Okay leave out crash into a fence part. I don’t know who came up with his idea but it’s a strange activity to say the least. After the zorbers were done, I headed to the Agrodome to meet some of the sheep and farm animals of NZ. I had the opportunity to milk a cow on stage in front of the Japanese tourists (thank god for cow milk pumps because milking a cow is gross).

Just on the outskirts of Rotorua, we ventured up to the Rotorua skyline by going up a cable car to the top. It was such an awesome view at the top and I took a nice panorama which you can check out. We did some luging at the top of the skyline. NZ luging is quite fun, you sit on a what looks like a cart and hurl your way down a track at extremely fast speeds and you need to be careful with the corners otherwise you will be rolling down some embankments. It’s like Mario Kart, but on a NZ concrete track. I insist you bring some gloves because it gets cold flying down those hills. It’s extremely fun and recommended if you ever go up there, which you should.

When we headed into Rotorua, I thought the town was on fire because there was what I thought was smoke but I found out later to be steam bellowing out of the ground. Rotorua is full of these weird hot springs which surface in parks, backyards and even in gutters. Most peculiar! The worst thing about Rotorua was the rotten egg smell. If only I had a mask, it would save me from inhaling that potent egg smell. I believe it’s really the rancid smell of the Sulphur Oxide that comes out of the ground.

That night in Rotorua we all went to a Maori Hangi concert where we witnessed a traditional Maori dance and meal. The food was great and the concert even better. It was good to see everyone participating in the dance when they got called up and great to see a different culture. It’s a must do.

Day 3 was traveling to Lake Taupo. There were no extreme activities today but there were lots of walking and exploring. The morning started off by visiting Whakarewarewa (I can’t pronounce it) which was the NZ Maori Arts and Crafts Institute where we learned about some Maori history and culture. It is also home to some amazing thermal areas, bubbling mud pools and hot steamy springs. Next stop was to check out the “Craters of the Moon”. Okay that sounds deceiving but we didn’t go to the moon, we went to an area where there were huge holes in the ground which looked like moon craters and saw steam coming out of them.

Arrived in Lake Taupo mid afternoon and after grabbing some food, I decided to wander around the lake to take some photos and went for a long walk by the lake enjoying the scenery and serenity. Later that night we headed on to the lake itself, and went on a dinner and booze cruise. One of the best party nights by far, good meal, good food and good company.

Day 4 and 5 were nothing strenuous; we basically had plenty of time to explore Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. I must admit that Wellington is a really nice place, houses are built on the hills, and shops are tightly knit and close to each other and it’s got a European look to it. All I did in Wellington was do walkabouts around the shops, went to the gardens, traveled on a cable car, took many photos on top of Mount Victoria, had ‘go to hell’ pizza’s which were delicious. Oh found a photography supply shop finally and purchased a Nikon 70-300mm Lens. It’s a telescopic lens which allows me to zoom up to mountains and distant objects. Visited the museum, had plenty of stuff to see on about 5 different levels and best thing was that it was free, that’s right FREE. Remember to tip on the way out.

Nights were spent dining and going out to the clubs/bars with everyone. It was wild but we all had a good time, I think this was the first club that we went to in New Zealand as a whole group so we definitely had a blast. I don’t think Wellington had any crazy bungy jumps or anything. However you could have done quad bikes, 4wding, canoeing, bike riding, and things like that.

Wellington was our last stop on the North Island. To get to the South Island we took a 3-hour cruise ship from Wellington’s Harbour and ventured into Cook Strait, which was the volume of water that separated both islands. It was a gorgeous sunny day; the wind speed was blowing comfortably so I don’t think anyone got any sort of sea sickness. It’s been said that it does get rough and conditions can turn nasty making the cruise into a motion sickness rollercoaster, so thank the lucky stars for that. I’ve never been on a cruise ship before so this was a new experience. The ship is massive with about 10 levels, a dining area, an entertainment area and of course a top deck to enjoy the scenery. I spent most of my time up on the top deck, taking happy snaps of both islands, although the only difference between the two was the south island had snow caps on the peaks.

The cruise ship docked at Picton, which was our first South Island destination. From there we got back on the bus and headed for Fox Glacier, a long drive from one side of the country to the other. We stopped by Arthur’s Pass for lunch, stopped by Hokitika to learn about Jade (green gemstones) making and visited the beach. I didn’t expect the beach to have black sand, so that was a surprise. We arrived at Fox Glacier later that evening. Fox Glacier is another miniscule town that I have ever seen. It’s basically got some accommodation, basically 2 pubs and a few shops all on the same stretch of road. We were basically exhausted by days end and had to rest up for the 4hr Fox Glacier hike the next morning.

I was planning to do the heli-hike which was a helicopter ride to the upper parts of the glacier and then do a 3 hr walk. Basically the upper regions of the glacier are more pristine and clear of all the dirt. So you get gorgeous and clean glacier formations and ice caves. I was a bit disappointed we couldn’t do the heli-hike because the weather had turned quite nasty. Instead we opted for the standard 4hr Glacier hike. The lower regions of the Glacier were very black because as the glacier moves down the mountain, it pushes itself along side the rocks and dirt covering the ice with dirt and mud. So personally I wanted to see clean white ice blocks instead of black and muddy ice.

The actual hike was quite steep and we had to hold on to chains and climb ladders at some parts of the climb before we got to the actual Glacier itself. Once we arrived at the vantage point of the glacier, we had to don on some crampons to our boots. This provided some extra grip on the ice, so you don’t slip and slide around, it makes the walk on the glacier more comfortable. The entire walk was done under intense rain, torrential rain at times but still we all pushed on. I thought large numbers of people would pull out but the 40 of us kept powering on, good work team! By the end of the hike, we all were totally drenched, even my poor camera was a bit damp which wasn’t good.

After 4 hours in the rain and on the glacier we finally headed for the adventure capital of New Zealand, QUEENSTOWN. We were all very excited about this and it was highly anticipated. It was a good 4-5hr drive from Fox Glacier to Queenstown so we watched Wedding Crashers on the bus to kill some time, stopped by a café for some nice hot chocolate and before we knew it, we had arrived in Queenstown. We arrived under a cover of darkness but that morning when we got up for breakfast, the view from the dining area was breathtaking and amazing. Directly opposite our lodge were the remarkable mountains, it sits below Lake Wakitipu and the snow caps added that extra wow factor to those peaks, absolutely stunning!

We were well in to day 9 now and this is where the crazy activities began. The first activity or excursion I did was the NZone 12,000 ft skydive which was awesome. I enjoyed every second of it from freefall to parachuting, gliding and landing. Although the jump itself is not scary, it still should be marked as a ‘things to do before I die’ list. I have got photos and DVD of the entire jump which were kept as proof that I had done the jump and also as good memories. I had the best burger ever at this burger joint in Queenstown called Fergburger, if you are in Queenstown you must grab a burger from here, it is the finest burger you will ever eat!

Next up was ‘The Ledge’ bungy jump, this was the first of my three bungy jumps. This jump was done on the top of the skyline gondola, overlooking Queenstown. We had to do this jump in the night, and plummet towards the ground with only a few flood lights on. I opted to go first on this jump and called shotgun. I don’t have a fear of heights so bungy jumping was quite casual for me. I opted to do a very fast run up and then jump and spin backwards facing the platform. I thought it was pretty good for my first ever bungy jump. Brendan did a nice double somersault and Leo did a wicked snowboard move, while Deb just screamed.

Day 10 was the morning a few hardcore contiki members did the almighty Nevis jump. A lot of us were worried about this jump because it looked daunting and it was the highest jump you could do. Some of us couldn’t even sleep because they were so worried about the jump, and you know who you are. I was expecting this jump to give me a good rush, although it looked daunting, I wasn’t fazed at all. It took us about 40 mins to drive up to the actual Nevis jump and when we got there, we could see the Nevis booth attached to metal cables suspended between two mountains. People began to worry! shaking in fact.

I was in for a treat and couldn’t wait to take the plunge. It was heaviest person jumps first to the lightest, so I did my jump somewhere in the middle. To do the jump you need to put on a harness around the hips and also around the legs. If you get called up, you sit on a chair where they strap the bungy to your hips and feet. After that you walk like a penguin to the platform, look straight across to the mountains and just jump! Enjoy the free fall and the patient pull back up. It was an awesome feeling doing the jump, definitely a highlight of the trip. If you do a bungy, you need to do this one. You need to go hard or go home!!!!

That afternoon I went to do the Shotover Jet boat ride along the Shotover River. This was one magnificent river with pristine blue water and amazing rock formations. The driver was insane, he must have done a lot of practice because there were moments there we would be flying down the river and shave some of the rocks on the side of the river. We would do 360 spins in the open river and some crazy spins near the rocks. It felt like we were going to hit those things and all plunge into the water. But it wasn’t to be, his skilled driving and precision made this boat ride one of the best rides I’ve been on. The ride was surprisingly cold (on the face and head); this was due to the sheer speed we were traveling at, the icy weather and the cold water. Nonetheless it was another awesome experience and great fun.
That evening was spent up the skyline gondola taking more photos and enjoying the Queenstown lifestyle. After dinner we headed to the Minus 5 bar which is basically a bar made out of ice, cups, seats and everything else you can think of.

Day 11 we headed out to Milford Sound for an overnight cruise. Just before heading out there, I had to do my final bungy jump at Kawarau Bridge. To end off the DVD in style, I opted to take a full plunge into the river below. It was so cold just waiting for the final jump; I just had shorts, t-shirt and no shoes. The jump was trivial but I was waiting to hit the water, the water was much warmer than the air so it was good fun. Once I got out of the water it was so bloody cold, it took a few hrs to warm up on the bus.

Milford Sound is amazing, it felt like Jurassic Park, huge peaks, 1000 of waterfalls, misty, abundant rainforests and it was just so peaceful. I did some kayaking in the sound itself and learnt about some plants and trees that are in the sound. The weather however wasn’t too flash when we got there; it basically rained for the entire stay. The sleeping quarters were very compact, each room had 2 bunks and a curtain, so basically if anyone snore, everyone could hear it where it by next door room or one adjacent. There wasn’t much to do after dinner on the boat so we opted to play some happy sack races and played some board games, then just drifted off to bed. That morning we pulled up the anchor and ventured out into the Tasman Sea to see more of the sound and waterfalls. It was picturesque and dreamlike that such a place existed. This place should definitely on the itinerary. I got up close and personal to a massive waterfall. I guess I didn’t hear the captains warning that he was taking the ship RIGHT UP to the waterfall; I ran back in time and saved the camera for destruction!

After departing the cruise ship we were meant to head to Lake Ohau for our final destination of the trip. Due to the weather bomb and insane amount of snow falling, the lodge that we were staying at in Lake Ohau has had no electricity for 5 days so the announcement that we were heading back to Queenstown was met with excitement! Before arriving back at Queenstown we stopped by Arrowtown to pan for some gold (well not really), just took a toilet break and got some ice-cream.

We got back to Queenstown mid afternoon and I had promised someone to go for a run totally disregarding the other person’s ability to run. We ran around Queenstown, up towards the skyline then down to the main strip of shops, across the pier and then around the botanical gardens. I’m not known for doing cross country running only hikes at walking pace but this was the worst run I’ve ever done, never been so tired and sore in my life. Mind you this was at the slowest pace so if it had been faster, I would have fainted and floated on Lake Wakitipu! It was a good run though, just that my fitness levels were not up to par. Queenstown is by far the greatest city in NZ, we were not disappointed; it lived up to its hype and reputation.

Today was our longest bus drive back into Christchurch where we all had to say our goodbyes and finish off the tour. It was sadly our last day of the tour; everyone was dead tired and sleeping in the bus. We stopped by Omarama for some brunch then got another break at Timaru before finally arriving at the boringest city in NZ, Christchurch. That night we had a group dinner, got each other’s emails and contacts, and fare-welled each other, well those that were leaving that night. We planned to party that night but since we were all absolutely spent we decided just to take it easy and rest up for the flights home the next day. Farewell NZ Contiki!

New Zealand is an awesome place, I definitely would like to go back and do some photography of the amazing landscape and scenery. I’ve done all the crazy activities so my thirst for Adrenalin in NZ has been quenched and satisfied. So next time I’m there it will be more low key and enjoying more of Mother Nature.

Huge amounts can be found here:

NZ Photos

Panoramas:

http://www.trekitup.com/queenstown_pano.jpg
http://www.trekitup.com/rotorua_pano.jpg
http://www.trekitup.com/wellington_skyline_one.jpg
http://www.trekitup.com/wellington_skyline_two.jpg
http://www.trekitup.com/wellington_skyline_three.jpg