Adventure

Same Post + Pictures

Wow.  So a lot has happened since my last blog post. I’ll start from the beginning.

I left the farm with Jenny and Perry last Tuesday because we had finished the work and I was getting this subtle vibe from them pushing me to move on. I left Tuesday with only that day planned and a goal to be at my next farm on Saturday. I had a little anxiety not knowing what I was going to do for the next week but I figured that everything would work out.

I took the bus down to Wellington on Tuesday and stayed the night there. I didn’t really do much that night. I went to the bar with the guy in my dorm that was from England and found out that they don’t call the city windy welly for nothing. The wind there literally blows you over as you walk.

I got up really early the next morning so that I could catch the 8 o’clock ferry to Picton, which is on the sound island.

It was a biggg ferry.

You know, just putting some tanks on the ferry.

That was basically the end of my planning. I knew kinda where I wanted to be, on certain nights but nothing super solid. I planned on trying to hitch hike to Nelson that day where I would stay the night and move on the next morning. It kinda worked out like that. I was able to get a ride from Picton to Blehiem, both of which are very boring towns. After waiting in the pouring rain for about 45 minutes another older man gave me a ride to Nelson. He was really nice but loved to talk. A lot. Don’t get me wrong I do too but by the end of the car ride I was tired. He had pulled over at some tourist spots for me and showed me around. I had the sneaky suspicious he was a little lonely. He dropped me off at the Accents on the Park hostel.

I booked my room for one night. I remembered about a bone carving class that I saw that looked kinda cool. I called the guy up and booked a spot in two days because that was all he had. That led me to book the hostel room for another night.  I didn’t do much for the rest of that day, just Skype my brother, call my dad and spend hours on the phone with my credit card company only to get little accomplished.  I also watched the latest pirates of the Caribbean moving which was playing in the bar downstairs.

The next day I rented a bike and explored Nelson:

Self-portrait obession

At one point I sat by a tree and widdled it

I made this myself for dinner. Breaded chicken with onions. I felt like a boss.

Doin' some rock climbing.

The place in is a back alley in a warehouse. It was cool space

The next morning I did a bone carving class, with the two girls I met the night before.

My next target to get to was Greymouth, which in retrospect was optimistic. A more realistic goal was Westport. Getting out of the Nelson area can be a real pain the ass. I hitched for a while. Then hiked for a while to get to a bus station, then took to bus to Richmond (about 15 minute ride) then hiked to a good hitching spot. Luckily I only had to wait there for about three minutes before a local drove by and stopped to give me a ride. Unfortunately he only gave me a ride for about 20 minutes before having to turn off. He dropped me in the middle of nowhere. Literally. I remember scoping out trees to sleep under in case a car never drove by.

Me, Abby and Gillian

I somehow got a ride. It was with the guy my age who was driving down to visit his girlfriend in Greymouth. I swear to you, Levi, could have been my older brother, Chris’s twin. He wore worn out clothing, was rocking a neck beard and had some crazy blonde hair. And he was really cool. We were both the same age, got along really well and had some things in common. So much so that, at the end of the three hour car ride he invited me to his house for dinner and a few beers. I slept at the Duke Hostel that night.

The next morning I got up bright and early to get a head start on any other hitch hikers. It was a little of a hike to get to a good spot to hitch hike but after 30 minutes of walking I had a good spot. I waited for about 15 minutes before getting a ride about 10 km, which if I had known I probably would not have gotten with him. After hitching for a 45 at my next spot a taxi offered me a REALLY discounted price to the next time. I said what the heck and went for it. After that is when my real adventure started.

After that ride I ended up in a town called Hokitika. It’s famous for the Jade you can find laying on the shore. I waited for about 45 minutes before a German girl, Anna, walked up to me and offered me a ride. She was traveling in a van and gets lonely on the road. In addition to her she was traveling with three other people in a truck turned campervan.  I stayed with them for the next three days.

That is the caravan we drove. I slept in the big white one.

This group of people was very eclectic. We had an American(me :), two german (Anna and Selena), a Japanese (Aya) and a Kiwi (Richi). Despite the obvious language barriers as well as social ones we all got along really well. Actually, I had a lot of fun, the most I have had all trip!

After I got over the initial awkwardness of meeting new people I was part of the group. Ricki actually told me that I was officially a hippie.

The day they picked me up we stopped in Franz Jose and went to the glacier hot pools. It was $20, which was kinda expensive but when I think about the fact that we spend THREE hours chilling and relaxing I figure it was worth it.

After we got out Ricki and I went to buy some beer (which I can legally buy) found a side road to spend the night, parked and made some dinner. I felt uncomfortable about eating their food so I bought a sandwich. We played cards for a while then went to bed. The sleeping situation was funny. They had four or five mattresses in the back that we would lay over the bed of the truck. We put some sheets on top grabbed a pillow, comforter and passed out around 12. All 5 of us next to each other.

The next morning we got up around 10, had some cereal and then drove to the Franz Jose glacier. We spent about 3 hours hiking and exploring. Came back made some sausage for lunch with white bait fritters. (Google white bait, I’m not a fan) Then we drove at little and went on another hike around a lake which I thought was a little boring. Then we drove for about an hour and found a spot to park on the ocean shore.  Ricki then made us some DELICIOUS curry over rice. Even though we are travelling around in this ghetto camper we ate like kings. We played a round of cut throat gin rummy, which I substantially lost, and decided to watch a movie. We hooked up Aya’s computer and all layed in bed and started to watch a horror movie. After about 20 minutes I was the only one awake which was GREAT. Not. I was in the middle of new Zealand in the back of sketchy camper, with no cell service, watching a horror movie alone.  Needless to say, I wasn’t too fond of the movie. What was nice was that when I eventually turned the movie off, I feel asleep listening to the waves crash on the shore.

Glacier (Why doesn't that word follow the i before e except after c rule?) 

The next day was basically a driving day. We drove through the Southern Alps of New Zealand. I have never seen such a beautiful place in my life. Any explaining will not do the beauty or the area justice. I promise you if you drive down the west coast of the south island down through Wanaka, you will be rewarded. We spotted at a lake and had some lunch, and split with Anna. That meant I got to ride in the back of the truck. It was a roller coaster to say the least .

Selina and Anna

The gang

Having lunch on Wanaka Lake before going separate ways

Unfortunately this is where my story with them comes to an end. After spending two nights and three days they dropped me off if Roxburgh to be picked up by my next farmer. I wanted nothing more than to continue on with Selena, Aya and Ricki, but knew I couldn’t. I do plan on travelling back north and visiting Ricki where he lives.

On a different note, I realize I tend to paraphrase most of my adventures or write in choppy sentences. I hope it doesn’t convey any sense of unhappiness because I am thoroughly enjoying my time in New Zealand. I’ve met SO many new people, tried so many new things and learned a lot about myself in the process, and I’m only a month in! That’s the longest  I’ve been away from home.  When I think about this I get homesick sometimes. I can miss having my own bed, great parents who always support me, or my cellphone, but then I remember that it will all be there when I get back.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Sorry for the huge post. I’m actually gonna try to proof read this time. Cheers