Look To My Coming, At First Light On The Fifth Day, At Dawn Look To The East!!!

This one will be the most random set of rambles. 

My original plan for New Zealand was to land, explore a little bit of the country, and go on some LOTR tours. I honestly didn’t save up that much money for this trip. I got my working visa so that I could work for accommodation whilst traveling. When I was checking out hostels to work at most asked for a minimum of 3 week stay. I thought this was cool. I could get used to the town, see their culture, and experience life as a Kiwi.

As you know that wasn’t even close to what I did. I traveled like a maniac then spent a few weeks in Dunedin and a few weeks in Christchurch.

If you can remember back to my first post I said that the best travel advise given to me was to plan 5 things you really wanna do. Do them and for the rest of the time just go with the flow. I did the top 5 things I wanted to and more. I’m really satisfied with how this trip went. 

I think it was good for me to do this all by myself. I learned a lot not only about myself but about others and the whole travel experience. I now know that I would prefer traveling with someone I can share unforgettable moments with (that means you Damian - hurry up and finish school). Yes I learned a lot but I would still consider myself a novice in terms of world travel and backpacking. It’s definitely a way of life and I’ve only scratched the surface of it. The tip of the iceberg some would say. For example, one of my room mates in Christchurch is from France. She hasn’t been home in over 2 years. She spent a year in Asia and a year in Australia/New Zealand. She left a week or so ago and headed to South America for a year. After that she plans on going to the USA and Canada. She has no clue when she’ll go home.

When I met people I was always asked or asked why did you decide to travel? Most people I met hated their jobs back home and wanted an out. Travel was the answer. Younger people didn’t want to go to school without knowing why they were there. Or they had graduated (a lot with Masters degrees) and couldn’t find work in their field/didn’t want to start working. I didn’t fall into any of those categories. I had a wicked job and finished school. When I get home or whenever you see me next ask me why I decided to travel. Writing this right now I don’t even know if I’ll have a definitive answer. But I did it and it opened my mind. No regrets. This was an experience that I have and will learn from. It will only help me grow.

What’s in store for round 2? I already know I’ll be coming back to NZ and when I do I have a new list of things to do. Some of those things include, Travel and sail in the Northland; Blackwater Raft the Waitomo Caves; See the West Coast of the South Island and Catlins. There is plenty more but I don’t wanna get too far ahead of myself.

Not only do I want to come back to NZ but I want to continue seeing the rest of the world and experiencing al it has to offer. Some places on my list include Antarctica, The Galapagos, and India/Nepal. 

I’m sorry this post doesn’t have any cool stories in it. It’s my conclusion - which is a recap of what I did. As you can tell this is the worst conclusion ever. As such I know you aren’t suppose to end a paper or piece of writing with a question. The reader should know definitively what point you are arguing and not have to question themselves at the end (ahahaha look at the Pauly, your school funding wasn’t a complete waste [I could be wrong though]). I am no writer though.

What’s your “New Zealand” ??? It may be a trip you’ve always wanted to take. Your dream trip for a week or maybe a year. It may be a career/job you’ve always wanted; It could be a fear you want to overcome. Whatever it may be all I can say is that it doesn’t have to be a dream or unachievable. Have you started pursuing it? It’s never to late to start and if you really truly want something to happen you’ll make it happen and it will happen (if that makes any sense at all).

I’m not good at endings and I could ramble inspiring quotes/sayings you’ve all heard before. I could try to end it with an epic sentence but I know I’ll fail at that. Instead I’ll end with a quote.

“It’s pretty simple. Adventure is what you make it, and whether it’s the travel, the discovery, or just the feeling of letting go...The only way we’ll ever find out is to get out there and do it.”

White Shores And Beyond, A Far Green Country, Under A Swift Sunrise!!

It’s weird to leave NZ. As I was packing my stuff it felt like only 2 weeks ago I was going over everything in Toronto and heading off to the airport. I was just starting to get comfortable with things. I am starting to look the proper ways before crossing the street, without triple taking both ways. And so now when I get back to Canada I will most likely look the wrong way. Being accident prone I will get honked fiercely at or tapped by a car. Oh well.

My flight to Rarotonga was on a Monday morning and so instead of staying at a hostel 1 extra night and trying to get a cab/shuttle to the airport for 3am. I went there late Sunday afternoon. I had over 12hrs here and there was no internet or carpeted floors for me to sleep on.

It is now Monday 5:30am. I found a carpeted area to sleep on after getting kicked out of the departures building. Unfortunately it was in the international arrivals building. I got a little bit of rest but not as much as I would have like to. I have checked in for my flight and am waiting at my gate. I went into the Air New Zealand private lounge and talked to one of the concierges about becoming a member etc etc. She told me to have a look around. I did and BAM found the user name and password for the wifi’s!!! I have a few torrents on my computer that still need downloading and right now I’m getting 1Mb/s  AMAZING. Plus I’m the only person here. Time to DL as much stuff as possible ahahah.

Our flight to Rarotonga was about 3 hours. Unfortunately I had an aisle seat and wasn’t able to see the whole island as we were approaching and landing on it. When we landed it was 430pm and about 30C outside. The sun was shining and it was hot. For my first night I relaxed on the beach and gazed at the night sky. I know I said the New Zealand sky was amazing but when you’re on a remote island in the middle of the Pacific and there are literally no light around, the stars shine plentiful and bright. Probably one of the best night sky’s I’ve ever seen.  

On Monday I went into town and go my drivers license. Best idea ever! For the rest of my stay I had a scooter to drive around on and it has definitely been worth it. After driving back to the hostel I spent the day at the beach opening coconuts, working on my base tan, and catching hermit crabs. Now that I can open a coconut I have planned on husking and opening everyday I’m here. On Monday night we went out for dinner. Once we were back the rain started, and as the saying goes, when it rains, it pours. 

Tuesday I went snorkeling on the reef. INCREDIBLE!!! The water is ridiculously clear and there is sea life everywhere! It was another relaxing day. Tuesday night a group of us from the hostel went out for a sunset BBQ. I met 3 girls from England at the BBQ each with pretty sweet stories. I initially met girl #1 on the beach at the backpackers. She asked me how I got my scar. We ended up swapping stories and hers is more intense than mine. She was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy. A little while later they found the cancer had spread to her liver and it is terminal. The doctors gave her 3 months to live. That was this January. She had another operation to remove her ovaries and so now she has approx 1-3 years left. Even though all these horrible things have happened to her recently she is probably one of the coolest most energetic, live life to the fullest (literally) people I’ve ever met. Inspirational. The other two are 23 year old doctors who were working here and also on vacation. Also really cool but not as interesting a stories.  

Back to the main events. Tuesday night was a fantastic BBQ. We all got to know each other and had a good time. The BBQ was kinda a buffet style and no one else there was going up for seconds so I figured why waste this food when I can just eat it all. I took every last piece of teriyaki steak and probably ate 4 corn on the cobs. I was hungry. People sitting near the food area actually asked me if i had worms. I had to say no just a fast metabolism and large appetite. 

Back at the hostel after the BBQ we decided to have a fire on the beach. I mean you can’t not have a fire on the beach when your in the middle of the Pacific. We ended up catching running around catching crabs and putting them into a cup. I slowly got over my mini fear of them and picked a few up. One managed to pinch the tip of my finger and draw blood. I wasn’t impressed so I threw him in the fire. 

Wednesday was just another relaxing island day. I went for a ride of my scooter, tanned on the beach, husked and opened another coconut. I might add I’m getting quite good at it. Wednesday night we went out for mini putt and dancing (island clubbing). Again no cover charge at the bars or clubs here. At the dance was the a german guy, myself, and the 3 english girls. The german young blood didn’t dance though so it was pretty much just me and the ladies. As I was dancing with the girls so A HOLE Australia came up and pushed me as hard as he could. RATTLED!!! I was the bigger man and just walked to the bar while the girls tore him to shreds. They told me later that he asked them why they were dancing around, and with me, like I was so sort of king. He was obv. jeal. He continuously followed me around and when I was at the bar getting drinks he would just stare at me. It was weird and he was being kind of a dick. I may also mention that’s the first time I’ve been pushed at a club. After dancing the night away we got in the back of some guys truck and have gave us a ride back. Again we made another fire on the beach but instead of chasing crabs we just sat and chatted with one another. Another beautiful night. Im really loving Rarotonga.

All the friends I have made here at Raro Backpackers are leaving today (Thursday). We went into town for some milkshakes and souvenir shopping. We spent most of the day there and when we got back everyone was packing while I husked another coconut. 

I don’t think I did anything on Friday... everyone was gone. I just husked and tanned. Saturday was the Rarotonga farmers market. I headed to that with a family that was staying at the hostel. The market was really cool and had the freshest of fruits. They taste much different from back home. They are fresh and delicious and just...ahh nothing like it. Fresh banana, pineapple, coconut, passionfruit, etc. On our way back to the hostel we got pulled over by the police for having 3 people on a scooter. I had to hitch the rest of the way. It wasn’t very difficult. The people on the island are very friendly.

After a few bumps in the road I made it to the airport. I was the first in line and as I was checking in the system crashed. There was a power outage on the island. The flight was delayed by 1 hour. After 9 hours of flying I landed in L.A.

I’m officially on my way home now. My stories here aren’t as good as the ones you’ll hear in person.

"It Is A Strange Fate That We Should Suffer So Much Fear And Doubt Over So Small A Thing!!!

I only have a few more weeks before I head to Rarotonga. Since I changed my flight plans I have decided that I would like to save the majority of what’s left of my cash money for the islands. As such I went grocery shopping. I will tell you that I will be living off of canned beans and spaghetti noodles for a while. This to me is a source of protein and carbohydrates. Really though it is just substance. I also bought breakfast shakes and OJ (don’t worry mom). When I get back home I’ll really be looking forward to SPK’s, KD, and my Babci’s pirogies (and anything else she makes. So get busy Babci. No slacking! I need to keep you busy even while I’m gone. I expect results). If anyone else would like to make me delicious meals that is acceptable. I won’t say no.

  

Saturday night I met some guys from the U.K and Canada. We ended up going out for a bit then headed to the casino. I think this was the first time I’ve been to a casino. The only other time I can recall something similar was on a cruise in the Greek Isles. I played the slot machines for like a minute.

We headed to the casino because it is the only place close-by that has cheap drinks, food, and television. The guys from the U.K wanted to watch the Liverpool  

Chelsea match. With the time difference it didn’t start here until 4am Sunday. For a few hours before the game we went down to the gaming tables and played some roulette.  

At the beginning of the night I told myself I would only play $20 worth because I was willing to lose that much cash. I lost all of it. 20 minutes later I went back. I had a feeling I could win this time and put down another $20. After some intense rounds I decided to walk with $60. First time at a casino coming out with an extra $20 on a backpackers budget, not to shabby.  At 3:30am I was starting to get tired and didn’t really care much for the match, so I headed back to the hostel.

My plan for Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday was to go to the Antarctic Center. I checked it out online and for the full experience it costs $85! I have budget for the next week and $85 for a activity is not in the cards. Instead I spent half that money on 4 litres of O.J, milk, steaks, cookies, and fruit. So all about that stuff up top saying I’m eating substance for the next while is false.

I bought more kiwis and asked if I could eat the skin. I’ve seen some people do it before and I’ve tried before but I just couldn’t. This time I was able to and found a few difference between the kiwi’s we get a home and the fresh ones here. Essentially ours have very thick tough super hairy skin, theirs not at all. I bit into the fruit and the taste of the kiwi over powered the skin and there was no weird texture to it. 

I went out for some Indian food when I was at the library and had the Makhni Chicken. If you like Indian food and are willing to try new things I’d recommend this dish. It was fantastic. 

It’s been a pretty quite week. On Saturday I’ll be heading to the west coast via train. IF I can get decent internet out their I will try to post another entry. If not I’ll have to wait till I get back to Christchurch to post it. Then I’ll be heading to Rarotonga.

Other cool things from my time in CHCH are. 1. That we found a Towers of Hanoi puzzle. The one they make the apes do in Rise of the Planet of The Apes. With 4 disks I can do it in 15 moves. With 6 disks it took me 63 moves. If you ever come across it try it out. See how logical you are!

2. Flip flops, thongs (as they are refered to in Australia) are called Jandals here. The word Jandals comes from Japanese Sandals. Kinda weird name but I guess it makes sense.  

Wake Up Sleepies. We Must Go, Yeeeessss, We Must Go At Once!!

I forgot to mention this in my last post. Everyone knows of six degrees of separation. Well here in NZ it is called two degrees of separation. That’s because the country is very small and has a small population. I think it’s kinda crazy that it’s only two degrees but I guess that is what makes everyone here so friendly and welcoming. 

Sunday night I arrived in Christchurch. We left at about 5:30pm and got in at 10pm. On Monday I woke up relatively early and decided to see the city, or at least what’s left of it. The destructive earthquake that devastated Christchurch happened February 22, 2011. Since then they have had a few other earthquakes. The city center is completely off limits. The Anglican cathedral in the middle of the city is the icon of Christchurch. Unfortunately it is in the city centre, which means I cannot see it or even get pictures of it. I walked around most of the day getting rerouted every few hundred meters from more fenced off areas. Buildings are still being torn down and the rubble isn’t even close to being fully removed. Stores, shops, restaurants, and cafe’s are few in Christchurch now. The information center is simply 2 portable containers put together. I don’t know what the city looked like before the quake so I can’t say how bad it is. What I can say though is that it’s pretty crazy and kinda dead here. I’d consider heading back up to Kaikoura but first I’ll see what I can get up to in my first week here.

On Tuesday my plan was to go to the museum and check out the World Wildlife Photography exhibit. Even though it was cloudy, windy, and cold out I decided to walk to a cafe for breakfast, then continue on to the museum. Unfortunately on my journey I was informed that the museum was recently closed from a building inspector who said it was unsafe. That is closed and so is the art gallery. My options are quickly running out.

Wednesday was another LOTR tour day for this guy. I know I’ve mentioned before that I have been fortunate with the weather and today proved my point. At 9am I got picked up for my Edoras tour. The Edoras location is located on Mt. Sunday, which is in the Mt. Potts area. It is right on the edge of the southern alps and oh boy was it a BEAUT. On our way there we chatted about this and that and got to know each other. Our group consisted of 5 people plus the tour guide. A couple from Adelaide, Australia, a couple from Orlando, Florida, and me. The couple from Orlando got married just over a week ago in Nelson, NZ. They came down here on a two week vacation of the south island and decided to tie the knot. I didn’t ask if it was a random decision but after talking with them I figured out that it was planned and they just wanted something small. Congrats to them. 

The interesting things we talked about before our arrival in the Mt. Potts area were:

1. How the van we were driving used recycled canola oil for fuel. These Kiwi’s and their love for the environment.
2. How 900 buildings were planned to be demolished after the Feb. earthquake with a plan of taking down 50 a month. Do that math and figure out how long it is expected to take if everything goes smoothly. (Hint: It isn’t going smoothly)
3. How the new church for the city will be rebuilt out of cardboard and other recyclable materials. When they finally rebuild a real church they can recycle the old one. SMART!

Our drive through the Canterbury Plains was  full of cow and sheep farms. Nothing too exciting. Once we got more towards the west coast the scenery changed in the most glorious of ways. Mountains shot up from flat lands like it was nobodies business. Usually there are hills and it kinda builds up, not here. That’s why it is so epic. I really want to see what the other side of the alps has to offer but I will be patient and wait until I come back with someone and have a car. I got a little taste of what shall come, and it tasted good..HEY OH!! sorry. 

I want to describe the area but I don’t because this is one place that not even many locals have seen. You can see it when you watch LOTR but even then it’s nothing compared to when you actually see it. I will say that a rich Russian businessman came to the area and once he saw the land he decided to buy the local lodge. He was blown away and apparently it was the only business decision he made with his heart.   

Back to the weather and my luck with it. The area is known to have up to 180km/h winds. Especially at the top of Mt. Sunday. The area is like a big wind tunnel. Today though there was not a cloud in site, the sun was comfortably warm, and absolutely no wind! Our tour guide was stunned. That only happens on 2-3 days of the year and we got one of them. 

I haven’t planned anything for this weekend. Before I leave Christchurch I would like to visit the Antarctic center. That’s all for now.

By Nightfall These Hills Will Be Swarming With Orcs!!!!

Some people have noticed that a bunch of my LOTR quotes (titles for my blog) come from The Two Towers (The seconds LOTR film). Because I have been relaxing in Dunedin I don’t really have any significant quotes to my adventures. Well at least the quotes I want to use. Looking back I don’t think I’ve used any quotes from Return Of The King. Ok after writing all of that I made myself curious as to how many quotes are from each film. Funny enough I have 6 from The Fellowship Of The Ring and 6 from The Two Towers. HA HA! 

I have a list on my computer with the quotes I would like to use and all of them are from the first two movies. No Return of The King quotes. As such I would be fun if you guys gave me your favorite quotes from the 3rd film. Leave a comment, email me, iMessage, or Facebook the quote.

Now let’s talk about Elves. In The Hobbit, Brett McKenzie, Orlando Bloom, and Evangeline Lilly will be playing Elves. So it would be “Sweet As Bro” (it’s a Kiwi thing) if I got to be in a scene with them, or even just meet them.

Enough about movies. Thursday late afternoon I finally got the bus pass people to give me my refund. I have multiple credit cards and the one I used to buy the bus pass with just randomly got put on hold, Thanks Visa. As such I gave them another one to have the money put back onto. The amount of the refund paid off this credit cards balance so that was exciting. Now I don’t have to worry about paying that one while I’m here and I have some extra credit on it. The only thing that was exciting about Thursday night is that we got pizza. Mine was stuffed crust from Pizza Hut. 

Friday was another relaxing day. Skype, movies, sitting in the sun. Friday night I went to a rugby match. Some of you may know that New Zealand won the Rugby World Cup in November 2011 on home soil. Pretty much on the same level as us winning Gold medal hockey at home. 

The stadium in Dunedin was built especially for the RWC. It is the only closed/roofed stadium in New Zealand. I was with Dan. Anna’s brother. It was a huge stadium with no empty seats. It was a big game because it was The Highlanders (Dunedin) vs (Auckland) Blues. The Blues are usually the favorite but The Highlanders were doing much better this year. It was also the ANZAC day game. Before kick-off there was a service for all the WW1 & 2 troops. The game was pretty good but the atmosphere is really what made it memorable. At NHL level hockey games you’ll see maybe a small group of students up in the nose bleeds doing their thing. The games are catered more to regular fans, kids, and business people. Not the same for Rugby. There is actually a full seating area just for students. It’s called the zoo and it’s located behind the “end zone” area. It was full. The thing to do on a friday night is go to the game then continue partying. 

  

It was really cool to see some of the All Blacks play. When I was watching I could tell they were playing or in possession of the ball because the way they move and react is much different from the other players on the field. One guy we saw was Ma'a Nonu AKA Predator.

Everyone knows that rugby is a physically demanding sport. The crowd gets really excited over good tackles. Getting hit by one of these guys would kill me, and probably most people. Some guy tried to block a runner and got demolished!! He was stiff armed and pushed back like 6ft. It was insane. There were a few other really good tackles with guys being airborne and smashed to the ground and closed lined. These guys are definitely tough.

There weren’t many trys in the game. But when one happened the crowd went wild. I was told that NZ and other polynesian countries prefer running the ball in to drop kick goals. Both teams played well and the final 10 minutes were intense. The Highlanders held their 3 point lead till the end of the game. Epic win and the crowd went wild.

(My camera fell out of my pocket in the car, so I had to use my phone camera. Check out the game highlights.)

http://www.3news.co.nz/VIDEO-HIGHLIGHTS-Highlanders-vs-Blues-Super-15-2012---Live/tabid/317/articleID/251244/Default.aspx

Saturday and Sunday I was suppose to go with the gang on a tramp in the Silverpeaks. Unfortunately I was feeling really shitty and the air is getting really dry so I opted out for safety reasons. There is no cell service in the mountains and yeah if things went bad. They only would have got worse. What made me decide not to go was the walk home from the rugby match. We had to walk up a relatively steep hill and it was didn’t go as well as a few days ago when I did it. Oh well. Safety first. 

The gang got back today and I asked them how the tramp was. After hearing their reactions it was a good call I opted out. Bretts feet are torn to shreds and the rest of them said the inclines were pretty intense. They were sweating and panting which for me would have been dehydration and passing out

Tuesday night we went to The Avengers midnight show. It won’t be coming to North America until May 4th so HA HA. I had an awesome time at the movie and would encourage everyone to see it. Brett and a few other people we were with hadn’t seen the previous films and walked out enjoying the film. Joss Whedon wrote an amazing script and pulled everything together nicely. I’ll probably see it again in the next few days lol

Wednesday was ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) day. It is the equivalent of Remembrance day in Canada. Being such everything was closed. We wanted to go to the dawn service at 6am but The Avengers assisted in not letting us achieve that goal. It was a relaxing day. We eventually ventured out to the cafe and got some eats.

That night I went with Brett to his parents for family dinner. It was a nice feeling to relax in a “parents” house and enjoy a home cooked meal. Mrs. Garrick made an excellent meal and the best part was Brett and I got to take the left overs home. During dinner we discussed the next stage of my trip. And so here it is.

 On Sunday evening Mrs. Garrick will be driving me up to Christchurch. I will probably stay there for a few days then take the TranzAlpine Train across to Greymouth. Supposedly it is one of the greatest train rides. My first thought was ok, a great train ride. Must be quite lengthy. Nope maybe 4 hours. I SPEND MORE TIME ON THE TRAIN FROM OTTAWA TO TORONTO!!! 

Anyways. With my travels recommencing on Sunday, my internet and communication accessibility will be back to limited. Probably more limited because on the west coast there are no cities and they are quite isolated. It’s a mining and forestry area in the mountains. Don’t worry it’s only for five and a half more weeks.

He’s Twitching Because He’s Got MY AXE EMBEDDED IN HIS NERVOUS SYSTEM!!!

I don’t even know what to say. It’s crazy to think that when I left for New Zealand I said to friends and family that the coolest things that could happen would be me being an elf in the Hobbit and the Flight of The Conchords playing a show. What do you know! These “jokes/wise cracks” I made turned out to be true. Well kinda. The Flight of The Conchords announced another tour for NZ in the months of June/July. This week they extended the tour into Australia. Since I am planning on coming home in June I didn’t get tickets. Yesterday, the 12th of April a casting call announcement was made for The Hobbit. They need extra elves. On the announcement page it says looking for 5’11” male or female with a slender build. THAT’S ME! I am going to apply for a position. If I were to get it I would have to live in Wellington at the studios till July. I hope they pay well because it would mean I would need to change my flight date and my living expenses would go up.

On Saturday Brett and I went to the Dunedin Farmers Market. He told me I had to try a supreme veggie burger. It was alright. I was a fan of the pineapple and hummus on it but I think that when I have a burger I need some sort of meat patty. Walking around in the Farmers Market I noticed again how friendly Kiwi’s are. While we were eating Brett invited two girls who were looking for seats to sit with us. The people here are very welcoming and it’s kinda nice to see that. I am going to try an work on this when I get home. After our lunch with the random girls we went ice skating. 

  

This time I was with all Kiwis. When I got my hockey skates I took a double take and was in shock. The skates were made of thick semi-hard rubber. RUBBER SKATES!! SERIOUSLY! Anyways. Compared to my friends in Canada I am a noob skater. I can barely go backwards, stopping doesn’t really exist for me, and I am used to playing goalie. When I got on the ice I was just skating like normal and yet I was “skating circles” around everyone on the rink. They said I was so graceful. HA! Me graceful on skates. Negative.  

After skating Brett and I went to pick up a french backpacker who was staying with us for two nights. When we picked him up we headed off to Tunnel Beach. It was a pretty epic beach. On the beach we did some bouldering. It was a good time. I want to do more of it when I get home. The boulders weren’t too high..maybe 18ft max.

After Tunnel Beach we took Matthieu to Mt. Cargill and Baldwin Street. This time we drove up Baldwin Street. It was fun. When we were on the steepest part I felt like I was an astronaut taking off. So cool. 

Saturday night we went to one of Brett and Anna’s friends birthday party. It was alright. I met some interesting people. One guy was from Cornwall so we started talking about Canada and the Ottawa area. One of the tenants of the house had a telescope so we were looking at the moon with it. It was really cool to see the craters and everything else the moon had to offer. 

When we left I was the only sober person. Being that, I got to drive home!! YAY!! Driving in NZ. It was a little weird. I think I’ll have to do it more to get use to it. I was safe and it was pretty late so no one else was on the street.

Sunday we went out to the Otago Peninsula. We started off by going to a Kanuka forest. Within this Kanuka forest there were magic mushrooms. Yes the ones you eat to hallucinate from. After the forest we went to Allans beach. It was a nice little beach that didn’t require hills or mountains to climb to reach. We sat on the beach for a little while just chilling out. Watched a male and female sea lion playing around. There was a domestic disturbance on the beach when the male started attacked in slamming his skull into the female. Vicious I tell ya. After the beach we drove up to Cape Saunders. It is a very easterly point on the peninsula. When sitting on the edge of the cliffs you can only see the ocean around you. Apparently it is beautiful area to be at when the sun is rising.

Before we headed home we made a quick stop off at an Albatross Colony. On our way there we saw a King Fischer. I’ve always wanted to see one and now that “dream” has come true. They are ridiculously fast birds. Once we got to the Albatross colony we decided to not pay $40 to maybe see one from a higher point. After about 10 minutes of waiting we saw one glide right above us. They are massive birds! I personally couldn’t tell if it was a Royal Albatross or a Wandering Albatross. Either way it was really cool to see one in flight. I’ve now seen one taking off, sitting on the water and in mid flight. I can easily say that Sunday Funday was a good day.

I spent Monday in town mailing my extras application off to Wellywood and dealing with the bus station. One reason I’ve been in Dunedin so long is that I am trying to return a bus pass I bought when I landed in NZ. I haven’t used it at all because I’ve been getting rides with people I meet. I called and asked if I could  return it since it isn’t activated and they said yes. But I need to be in Dunedin and deal with the manager who was on vacation last week. So inevitably I will be here until I get my full refund for my bus pass.  

This weekend we plan on doing a tramp (hike) through The Silverpeaks. It is suppose to be a relatively easy trip. 5 hours each way, and we stay in a cabin over night.

Nothing too exciting right now because I am waiting for the bus pass and maybe to hear back from the casting company in Wellington.

Looks Like Meat’s Back On The Menu Boys!!!

Easter weekend in Queenstown. I have been here for a week and loved every minute of it. I mentioned that a lot of people said the weather is usually crappy here but everyday I’ve been here the sun has been shining bright with not many clouds in the sky. All the locals have said that this summer was the worst one ever. It had rained everyday. So I guess I’m lucky to be here in the fall with no rain. They have also said that because of the crappy summer weather don’t buy any 2012 wines from NZ, they probably won’t be the best.

I had a nice easter weekend. On Saturday I met some Canadians from Saskatchewan. We chilled for most of the day in the mall stealing wifi. One of our room mates gave us the password for a really fast network. While sitting in the mall I was able to watch movie trailers, youtube videos, and the Kony 2012 video. It’s cool to see that some people I know are still supporting it. There isn’t really anything around in NZ. One great thing about that video is the use of Flux Pavilion, a dubstep artist. A lot of people saw us using the internet and asked how we got on because no other networks were working. We had to lie to the people because we didn't want anyone else on this wicked network.

On Sunday we went back to the mall and streamed the final hockey games of the regular season. Leafs didn’t make it yet again. Ottawa made 8th. I wish them luck against the Rangers. I would like to see a 24/7 Rangers - Flyers Eastern Conference Final. Hopefully Philly wins. After watching the games we decided to go play hockey. There was no one at the arena and the owners and people working the desk were all Canadian. NICE! It was fun to skate around and play some pick up. One thing that remind me of home was my rental stick. It was a Muskoka stick.

We walked through the Queenstown Gardens on our way back to the hostel. We saw the coolest tree ever. The Female Monkey Puzzle (Aruacaria Araucana). Check it out if you have time and let me know what you think.

Monday was a travel day. Got on the 7:45am bus heading to Dunedin. I feel that when I get back traveling from Ottawa to Toronto or Bracebridge it will seem like a short ride for me. Most of my buses or road trips have been about 6 hours and they go by really fast now.

Brett had the day off so once he picked me up he showed me around all of Dunedin. He says that it’s big enough to have all the things you need and small enough to be friendly. On our tour we went to St. Clair Beach. It was a really nice beach. People were surfing, swimming, and camping out. There was a memorial for the people that had been taken by “The Great White Shark” of the beach. The list was short and apparently the shark is rarely there. While we were on the pier looking over the Pacific we noticed everyone wearing full body wetsuits while surfing or swimming, then we noticed one girl wearing a bikini swimming around playing in the waves. Seriously!! When I was swimming with the dolphins in a full suit I was cold. She’s obviously crazy. Who does that! I myself went in the water with just my shorts on but I was cringing and screaming. She was laughing and, well it was insane. 

Tuesday and Wednesday were very relaxing. I have been organizing all my stuff. I may need to throw some stuff out if I want to bring back bottles of wine, some L&P, and other souvenirs. I also managed to do laundry.

Wednesday we went to Mt. Cargill. It is a mountain in North Dunedin that looks over the entire city and the Otago Peninsula. It was sunset. It was one of the coolest views yet. The view of Dunedin and the surrounding area was awesome. Mountains, farms, grassy hills, forests, the city, and the Pacific Ocean all within view. I would say it captures most peoples view of New Zealand (the ones that haven’t been here. This place and Kaikoura).

I’m not sure how long I’ll be in Dunedin but I still have lots to do while I am here. Yellow-eyed Penguins, Albatross Colonies, A rugby match.

What Steve Has Noticed.

1. The toilets here are flushing counter-clockwise. Don’t they do that back home?
2. There are no North, South, East, West street signs. Just the closest big cities.
3. When using the 24hr clock they put, 23:05pm. Isn’t the point of the 24hr clock to not use am or pm 
4. The word “special” is sometime spelt “specil” (probably someone made a mistake) but I’m counting it
5. License plates can be say anything you want them to say.

Many of you may be asking how is any of that relevant to “Looks Like Meat’s Back On The Menu Boys”. It is because Lent is over and now I can have sugar candies again!!! YAY (candy = “meat” and “on the menu” = in my horrible diet.)

I Want To See Mountains Again, Mountains Gandalf!!!

Queenstown. The adventure capital of New Zealand and maybe even the world. I arrived in Queenstown on Friday, April 30th in the early afternoon. On our drive here I noticed the mountains getting taller and larger and the ranges getting longer. Queenstown is a town surrounded by mountains with a lake at its base. One of the ranges enclosing Queenstown is “The Remarkables”. Whoever named this mountain range got it quiet right. They are remarkable! They look like perfect mountains that you would see in an artist’s painting. The Queenstown area reminds me of Whistler/Blackcomb, but I feel it would look more like Lake Louise. I’ve never been there so I don’t actually know, I’m basing this off of pictures. Once I unloaded all my stuff at the hostel I decided to walk around the town. One thing I wanted to do here was the luge down the mountain. It was another beautiful day as I was walking around and everyone I talked to said the weather in Queenstown was usually rainy and crappy. Since it was a nice day I decided to use the weather to my advantage and luge during a beautiful sunset. 

I walked over to the gondola at the base of the mountain and bought my ticket for 5 luge rides. The luge isn’t like olympic luging. It is more like go-carting down hill but you don’t have an engine, gravity does all the work. It was definitely worth it. Even though I was by myself I had a wicked time. It was really fun and when I get back to Canada I will do it again. I found out that they have recently opened one at Mt. Tremblant. During my luges I didn’t really follow the rules. 1. I have a heart condition - wasn’t even suppose to do it. 2. Follow the signs and slow down - On the advance track there is a steep drop followed by a tight corner and you are suppose slow down. I went full speed and got some air on it. On the following corner my luge was on 2 wheels vs 3. It was awesome. After the luge rides I went back to the hostel and we all watched some movies.

Saturday was another beautiful day. I went into town and headed to the waterfront for Saturday mornings arts in the park. It was fun just walking around and looking at all the local handmade jewelry and paintings.

Saturday night. Oh what a night. I don’t really know how to start this story. There were a bunch of people hanging out in the lounge and I decided to join them. We started talking and I told them I was one of the few travelers from Canada, and I worked at Apple, etc. I found out that they were Kiwi’s and visiting Queenstown for the weekend. There was Brett, Anna, and Penny. Now if you know Flight of the Conchords you know that with a NZ accent Brett sounds like Brit. It was funny listening to the germans try to get his name. Someone thought his name was “prick”. We had a good laugh about that. I was pretty happy to finally sit down and talk with Kiwi’s. I love their accent so much. It is awesome.  

We started talking about our cultural difference and similarities. I brought up a sex study that I found out about just before I left, which says that New Zealanders are the most sexually active people with a female having an average of 23 sexual partners. I was curious as to how they obtain such high numbers and I got an answer. I don’t think I should mention anything more here because my family and Babci are reading this. All I will say is that in that respect their culture is very different from ours. When I get back or if we are on skype I can tell you the story. It is pretty interesting, or at least I thought so.

At 11ish everyone decided to go out. I am not much of a party person, nor do I do much going out or clubbing. They finally got me to join them. It was actually pretty fun. The bars here in Queenstown don’t have any cover charge. We went to a bar and listened to live music. It was pretty cool. I met more Kiwi’s and some Australian’s. After the bar we got some food. In Ottawa most people go out for McDonalds after a night of partying. Usually it is quite delicious. From now on that will not compare with what we ate after the bar. Deep fried lasagna!! OMGosh. WHY DOESN’T THIS EXIST IN CANADA!!!! AMAZING!!! Who ever thought of this was a genius. I found my new calling. When I get home I am opening up a deep fried lasagna stand in the middle of the market. BTW it is squares of lasagna. After a regular lasagna is made they cut it into squares (as you normally would), bread them, then deep fry. The only thing that would have made this better would have been a bowl of KD for me to dip the lasagna square into. SIDENOTE - They don’t have KD here (tear). So my first meal when I get home will be a big bowl of KD.

After the lasagna we went back to the hostel and slept. That was about 3am. Back to the subject of food. One “kiwi” dish I guess is potato wedges with sour cream and sweet chili thai sauce. The dips can either be separated or combined. Either way it is delicious. 

In Queenstown the one thing everyone is suppose to do is have a FERGBURGER. I got the “Tropical Swine” Fergburger. Which is the classic burger with cheese, bacon, and pineapple. This burger was phenomenal. It was huge. The sauces, toppings, and meat all complemented each other in a way that created magic in my mouth. I’ve never felt the same sense of satisfaction from any other burger. While I was eating I had a great conversation with a dentist from Dunedin. The people here are just so cool and interesting. One thing I’ve also noticed is that   New Zealanders are very modest people. They tend to talk themselves down. The dentist I was chatting with was like, “Yeah Im not a really smart guy, I’m just a dentist who does his job and I know that there are people out there that are way better than me.”  WHAT??!! You’re a dentist. In Canada that’s a big thing. From my experiences dentists in Canada act like big shot know-it-alls. They brag and boast that they are dentists.

Anyways, Sunday and Monday were both very relaxing days for me. I just walked around town and tried some local cuisine. As I was walking around I was checking out LOTR tours and activities around the area. The majority of the activities involved sitting in a car and driving to the general location areas. Finally I saw some small brochure that said “Horseback riding through LOTR filming locations”. Interesting. Since I hadn’t done anything in a few days I figured I could spend some money, see the locations, and go horseback riding. 

This was the first time I had been horseback riding on a trail. I lied and told them I’d been before because I’ve done it at the zoo and the circus. Our group consisted of our guide Georgie, a couple from Australia, and me. It was nice to have a small group and it was a beautiful day outside. I don’t want to boast but I think I may have been a badass cowboy in a previous life lol. I was behind Georgie riding like a boss. My horses name was “Doobie” but I referred to him as Shadowfax in disguise. At some points we were cantering (yeah I’m a pro equestrian now, knowing all the lingo).    

During our ride I was looking around noticing certain locations. I told our group I was a huge fan and nerd of the movies. We stopped a few times and I instantly noticed what location of the movie(s) we were in. I was soo happy. We were in the forests where they filmed Lothlorien and Amon Hen. I saw the location where Boromir dies and the tree that Lurtz pins Aragorn against with his shield. That is one of my favorite scenes so I told the group to stop so I could take it all in.     We also saw Isengard and where they had the tower of Orthanc. My second favorite area that we saw was the mountain tops where they lit the beacons of Minas Tirith. I know many of you may not understand what I’m saying but all you need to know is that I was in disbelief. Near the end Georgie showed us where the largest set for the Hobbit was built and what scene it was for. She also gave us a bunch of insider info. On one of her rides Gloin waved at her tour. Jealous

Other movies that were filmed there include, The lovely bones (never saw it), Prince Caspian, and X-men Origins Wolverine. The guides got to meet Hugh Jackman and watched as they filmed the chase scene where he is naked and runs into the barn. The barn that he runs into was actually a full scale barn built and blown-up for the movie. They had the day off to watch them blow it up. After our tour I got to meet one of the girls that was in the movies as a rider in LOTR, and the horse she rode, Elvis.

Wednesday and Thursday were also very relaxing. I called the hostels in Wanaka to see if I could get a room for a few days. Then I would meet up with the girls. Unfortunately every hostel in Wanaka is booked for Easter weekend. Warbirds over Wanaka is a big event over the Easter weekend and so every accommodation is full. I sent the girls a message telling them the deal and if I don’t here back by saturday night then I will head to Dunedin and stay with Brett and Anna for awhile. Hopefully during that time I can pick up the Kiwi accent.

As I was walking around town on Thursday I saw a parking lot being converted into a slopestyle course for BMX and downhill riders. I then saw a poster saying Teva Slopestyle event tonight, free, time, blah blah blah. I went. They had pro riders there. Holy Shit are they good. One of the riders was from Canada. I can’t remember his name though and another rider was the first person to pull a triple backflip on a bike and land it. These guys were doing double backs off a relatively small ramp and other crazy tricks that just fill you with energy when you see them pull them off. They were giving away amazing prizes. They handed out 4 pairs of $260 Teva shoes to people and bottles of whisky. They def know how to party here. One club/bar here is like spring break everyday. They have, Swinging Sundays, Mustache Mondays, Topless Tuesdays, Ginger Wednesdays, Wet-Tshirt Thursdays, Miss Backpackers Fridays, and Best Booty Saturdays. I have been behaving myself and I have not gone to this club. I don’t want to be getting into any trouble, here or with anyone back home. It’s also kind not my scene if you will.

The town is getting ready for Easter weekend. They are actually really respectful of the true easter meaning. Starting at midnight on friday everything is closed, even bars, no alcohol is served all weekend, and yeah pretty much everything, even some restaurants are closed for the Easter weekend. One New Zealander put it like this, “Jesus is a pretty cool guy, just for us he decided to have this whole event on a friday and wake up on a monday. It must have been a pretty good bender if he didn’t wake up for three days. He gave us a four day weekend. Thumbs up Jesus, You rock.”  Admittingly I did laugh a little. But it is good to see they take it seriously down here.

I don’t know what the rest of my weekend looks like. I gotta hear back from the girls and if I don’t than it looks like I’m heading back to Dunedin.

Happy Easter Everyone!!! Enjoy your Easter Weekend and for all you sinners out there go to church for the next 3 weeks minimum and the Easter Vigil!  And confession!

1 month down, 2 to go.