Our first wwoof location, the staging post, was just south west of kaikoura. After our arrival, several DVD days were to follow.. Infact, every day! ( wind? Rain? Sun?
- DVD day) Here,we met fellow wwoofer and Canadian Joe! Also in the house were the three westies meesh meesh, Harry and Churchill, as well as the 18 yr old cat squeaks (squid?)
Overall we had a nice time, walking the kaikoura coastal track, feeding the wrong horses and making Linda think hers was dead, painting the floor, and drinking margaritas by the pool.
{oh, I dont want that!}
-Lh (srry forgot to do that to the last two)
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Stonehurst
Christchurch was full of fun times: paragliding, botanic gardens, art galleries, endless trips to to pack and save! But, perhaps our favorite memories are that of our hostel. Stonehurst was the cheapest place we could find, but our room was surprisingly nice! ( besides the Asian girl who hadn't moved from her bed in days and was beginning to ferment).
Folk at Stonehurst:
1. Laren the slavanian - he seemed great and wanted to travel to Queenstown with us, but the night before we were destined to leave, he spent 10 minutes screaming and swearing at the whole grocery store because he was ID'd and denied a bottle of wine. He went to Queenstown alone
2. The French boys - presumably good at staring contests.. Not very good at being subtle.
3. The Swedish girl - screams 'is something wrong?!?' at them after 20 minutes without them blinking
4. The 40 yr old - mocked which tea cups we used (???) for tree nights then tried to offer us beers (nah thanks bro ur my dads age)
5. Bart - walks past us on the street, then two minutes later comes running after us to askfor our number. We'll admit, his gangsta nz slang has provided hours of entertainment
Despite our time of travel, we felt no eathquakes! ( bitter or sweet we couldnt decide)
Folk at Stonehurst:
1. Laren the slavanian - he seemed great and wanted to travel to Queenstown with us, but the night before we were destined to leave, he spent 10 minutes screaming and swearing at the whole grocery store because he was ID'd and denied a bottle of wine. He went to Queenstown alone
2. The French boys - presumably good at staring contests.. Not very good at being subtle.
3. The Swedish girl - screams 'is something wrong?!?' at them after 20 minutes without them blinking
4. The 40 yr old - mocked which tea cups we used (???) for tree nights then tried to offer us beers (nah thanks bro ur my dads age)
5. Bart - walks past us on the street, then two minutes later comes running after us to askfor our number. We'll admit, his gangsta nz slang has provided hours of entertainment
Despite our time of travel, we felt no eathquakes! ( bitter or sweet we couldnt decide)
Is this guy real?
Okay cool shift number one commenses. My throat kind of hurts, hopefully not from drinking the glass of coke already waiting for us apon our arrival. Anyways, after our summit of Franz we figured we would live in the lap of luxury (contrary to this instanse) and take the trans apline train through arthurs pass. It departed from greymouth, taking us through the scenic southern alps and to the east coast city of Christchurch. The 50 yr old couple across from us kept sneaking beers out of their bags when the workers werent looking and there was a guy dressed up like a 1940's train men, but it was pretty fun! When we arrived im Christchurch we remembered that we had no food, plans, maps or place to stay.. Bt after a welcoming hug from a drunk man sitting in a park, we quickly settled in. (but not with the drunk man lol)
The sixth toe
I just finished a load of our dinner dishes in the mcdonalds bathroom. If anything cuts through grease, it'll be mcdonalds very own soap. Also, you should also see the plungers they use to compact the garbage in the rubbish bins. Backpacking is so educational!
The sixth toe was born in Abel Tasman.
Allow me to share with you a journal entry I wrote on dec 1 2010, 10:25pm- YHA hostel lounge- Franz Josef
"I think the 6th toe is growing. It resides between the big toe and it's neighbour- or what used to be the neighbour. Once just a small blister, now a whole other occupant of the upper foot region. We're all at peace though; until something blows up atleast. Hopefully that will not happen."
I regret to inform you, the sixth toe no longer travels with us to this date.
My ma hates it when I share stories such as this, so to balance it out, I will tell you about the glacier we climbed in Franz Josef.
It was a soaring 1500 meters to the top and we summited it- free solo style. It was a gruesome climb to the top, but the refreshing ice water urged us on. Ofcourse, the only way to descend is to be lowered through the ice crack down the ever fragile cliffside that claims 30 tourist lives yearly. We made it though. Anythings possible with a little self determination.
Yeah okay, I truly do wish that did happen, but my ma would have killed me before any cliffside took my life. The half day tour we took was great fun though and we were able to have a short taste of the snow your all are inhabited within.
Perhaps this is my que to take a sleep break.
-LA
The sixth toe was born in Abel Tasman.
Allow me to share with you a journal entry I wrote on dec 1 2010, 10:25pm- YHA hostel lounge- Franz Josef
"I think the 6th toe is growing. It resides between the big toe and it's neighbour- or what used to be the neighbour. Once just a small blister, now a whole other occupant of the upper foot region. We're all at peace though; until something blows up atleast. Hopefully that will not happen."
I regret to inform you, the sixth toe no longer travels with us to this date.
My ma hates it when I share stories such as this, so to balance it out, I will tell you about the glacier we climbed in Franz Josef.
It was a soaring 1500 meters to the top and we summited it- free solo style. It was a gruesome climb to the top, but the refreshing ice water urged us on. Ofcourse, the only way to descend is to be lowered through the ice crack down the ever fragile cliffside that claims 30 tourist lives yearly. We made it though. Anythings possible with a little self determination.
Yeah okay, I truly do wish that did happen, but my ma would have killed me before any cliffside took my life. The half day tour we took was great fun though and we were able to have a short taste of the snow your all are inhabited within.
Perhaps this is my que to take a sleep break.
-LA
Pancake rocks and disapproving mothers
Ah yes, this is when our eating habits become a bit more rugged. On the plus side, this is also the event that brought us to getting a can opener for Christmas! What lucky kids we are! (you may recall the video of us opening a can of beans via knife {only one finger was lost - sacrifices are mandatory in terms of survival})
Back to the pancake rocks- these are located in Punakaiki. It took us approximately a week to figure out the proper pronunciation. (poo-na-cock-ee) haha
-LA
Back to the pancake rocks- these are located in Punakaiki. It took us approximately a week to figure out the proper pronunciation. (poo-na-cock-ee) haha
-LA
Nelson and Abel Tasman
This is quite some time ago, but if my memory doesn't deceive me, it was a good time. Nelson is the center of New Zealand. It also happens to be one of the sunniest places. At this point in our travels, we still ate whole-hearted meals, traveled by bus, and paid a minimum of $25 a night for hostels. What a luxerious life!
Abel Tasman was breathtaking to say the least. If you can imagine bright blue oceans, pristine beaches, rain forest jungles and creeks, streams and small waterfalls, then you may be able to imagine a tenth of how amazing it really was. We did two days of tramping here and had our first encounter with fellow Canadians (which was pretty exciting at the time).
-LA
Abel Tasman was breathtaking to say the least. If you can imagine bright blue oceans, pristine beaches, rain forest jungles and creeks, streams and small waterfalls, then you may be able to imagine a tenth of how amazing it really was. We did two days of tramping here and had our first encounter with fellow Canadians (which was pretty exciting at the time).
-LA
To sleep at the mcdonalds or not sleep at the mcdonalds? That is the question.
We finally got Internet!! Haha.. Jk
Here's the situation. We're stuck in the southern most part of the south island (invercargill) and mcdonalds just seems so much more appealing to sleep in rather than a random park. So here we are, with free wifi, and our packs, but seem to have lost our dignity.. Ha so, for the rest of the night, Lindsay and I will take shifts posting the last three months of our travel, while the other nonchalantly sleeps (perhaps in the childrens play tunnels). Sit back, relax (or try to) and enjoy the read :)
Here's the situation. We're stuck in the southern most part of the south island (invercargill) and mcdonalds just seems so much more appealing to sleep in rather than a random park. So here we are, with free wifi, and our packs, but seem to have lost our dignity.. Ha so, for the rest of the night, Lindsay and I will take shifts posting the last three months of our travel, while the other nonchalantly sleeps (perhaps in the childrens play tunnels). Sit back, relax (or try to) and enjoy the read :)
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