Kia Ora,(hi in Maori. We are back in Auckland to clear out our storage. It has been a month. We pick up Jude tomorrow. We have been on the road exploring and camping out. The first place we visited after leaving Auckland was Bay of Plenty were Matts school is. The first few weeks the weather was rainy, cold and windy, nothing like we had anticipated. We had only packed summer clothes and a pair of jeans each. It keeps us doing laundry regularly.The poly tech campus is gorges, covered halls leading to separate classrooms outside and a huge facility. I fell in love with the library. I may be sneaking in myself. As you see in the picture there is great surf here and one of the loveliest beaches either of us has seen. We climbed the mount as they call it. Everything is volcanic, the beaches have pumice like volcanic rock that floats. There is an active volcano off the coast.
We tried for a week or more to find a place between the beach and school but it is like the cape in the middle of the summer. Everything is rented and it's hard to find a place that excepts dogs. We decided to hit the road and save the money on rent we would be spending to store our stuff and explore the country like we had planned on.
We left for lake Taupo in the middle of the North island. It is an active thermal area that has natural hot springs everywhere. We were lucky to camp out on a Farm for free along a Crystal blue river with a trail leading to Huka falls. There are great bike trails here that gave us a run for our money. We both got new bikes,with disc brakes! We stayed the week indulging in the natural spas. The locals are very friendly and helpful but a hearty bunch. The cold and rain don't faze them in their short shorts. It is a clean way of living. No trash, everyone recycles, thermal energy, half flush toilets, and a great respect for nature. Everyone is active and spends most their free time outside.No one has a large home. If you have money you have more land.
We are headed out of the city for the Corromundell peninsula that is a warmer place. We will write more when we get a chance.Ta
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Thursday, October 25, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Out Traveling Around
Nothing to post now...too busy compiling adventures and getting some amazing pics for all to see!! Picking up Jude in Auckland next week...plan on giving a full update then! Thanks...chat with ya soon!!
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Almost out of the city
Hello mates, greetings from Auckland. We have moved out of the tiny hostel room and into our home on wheels. The other day we dropped the van off with this English bloke who custom built a platform for our mattress and made storage underneath, open the back and pull out a table and cook with a burner.
Our first camp spot was quite a crazy ride. We both almost lost our dinner winding up and down a dark mountain on narrow unlit roads. There were no rails and we could only imagine were we would land with one wrong turn. Finally after an hour of intense navigation up a mountain and down to sea level on the other side we stopped at a camper site. We payed the ten dollars and then the van wouldn't start! How could this be? Don't ask but it started up again to get us to our site. The next morning we took a walk to breath and pray for a miracle before trying it again.
The view of the ocean was amazing. This was a hot spot for surfers with a death wish. We would have enjoyed our stay more here if we weren't in such a rush to repair our van. It didn't start but fortunately kiwis are a handy breed and one then two came to our rescue. He surmised our battery was too small and came ajar on our bumpy ride. They gave us a jump and then detailed directions to a fine electrical mechanic. No problem getting there and repairing it.
We are making some progress. We have spent the past two night outside Auckland city on a farm. You pay five dollars and drive out into a field through gates to your choice of spots amongst the sheep, lambs, cows, horses and even an active peacock. We opened the back of the van pulled out our table and two coolers for seats and prepared a dinner. Our meals have consisted of soup and noodles washed down with some local red wine(no need to chill in the chilly bin) For lunch we have been picking up veggies and fruit. The sunsets are amazing and can't beat our view. There has only been two other campers in RVs near us at a fields distance. They have satellite TV we have a few good books and some trivia.
Early this morning we got the van looked at and got a clean bill of health. Tonight we stay at the same site and shower and eat. Tomorrow morning we get the van tinted in town. After that we are hitting the road and getting out of the city. We are going to the middle of the country, Routora, home of hundreds of natural hot springs and thermal pools. We are in an Internet cafe now using their computers next to local boys playing PC games. We have had trouble uploading pics but we'll fix that when we have more time. Trying to buy some bikes now to explore the North island, talk to everyone later. Thanks for reading. We will keep posting.
Our first camp spot was quite a crazy ride. We both almost lost our dinner winding up and down a dark mountain on narrow unlit roads. There were no rails and we could only imagine were we would land with one wrong turn. Finally after an hour of intense navigation up a mountain and down to sea level on the other side we stopped at a camper site. We payed the ten dollars and then the van wouldn't start! How could this be? Don't ask but it started up again to get us to our site. The next morning we took a walk to breath and pray for a miracle before trying it again.
The view of the ocean was amazing. This was a hot spot for surfers with a death wish. We would have enjoyed our stay more here if we weren't in such a rush to repair our van. It didn't start but fortunately kiwis are a handy breed and one then two came to our rescue. He surmised our battery was too small and came ajar on our bumpy ride. They gave us a jump and then detailed directions to a fine electrical mechanic. No problem getting there and repairing it.
We are making some progress. We have spent the past two night outside Auckland city on a farm. You pay five dollars and drive out into a field through gates to your choice of spots amongst the sheep, lambs, cows, horses and even an active peacock. We opened the back of the van pulled out our table and two coolers for seats and prepared a dinner. Our meals have consisted of soup and noodles washed down with some local red wine(no need to chill in the chilly bin) For lunch we have been picking up veggies and fruit. The sunsets are amazing and can't beat our view. There has only been two other campers in RVs near us at a fields distance. They have satellite TV we have a few good books and some trivia.
Early this morning we got the van looked at and got a clean bill of health. Tonight we stay at the same site and shower and eat. Tomorrow morning we get the van tinted in town. After that we are hitting the road and getting out of the city. We are going to the middle of the country, Routora, home of hundreds of natural hot springs and thermal pools. We are in an Internet cafe now using their computers next to local boys playing PC games. We have had trouble uploading pics but we'll fix that when we have more time. Trying to buy some bikes now to explore the North island, talk to everyone later. Thanks for reading. We will keep posting.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Auckland city
Wow what a trip it has been to get to this point. We are still chugging along ,since Sunday,trying to acclimate to the other side of the globe. It's been an uphill battle since we landed in There Auckland four days ago. We took a $90. taxi ride to a storage unit we rented for a month. After that we were dropped at a hostel downtown. The room wasn't ready so we waited it out for a few hours then took the greatest showers ever. The room has a double bunk and a small bath off it. There is no other room to move. We have used it strictly for sleeping. They do watch allot of American shows like Rachael Ray, CSI , Simpson's and allot of other detective shows. The hostel is 7 or 8 floors of rowdy foreign kids looking to hook up with other travelers to share expenses. It gets pretty loud when they come back to their rooms. There is a bar in the hostel, lounge and computer room to pay for Internet time. We have been going to Starbucks down the st. for free.
Our first night we tried to stay on their schedule. We ate at a rugby bar that served a $3 breakie(as they call it) and saw the American movie Super Bad.It felt good to have a bit of America for awhile.
Woke up early day two to buy the necessities like phone, converters for electronics, and set up NZ bank account. Later we took a hour train ride out of town to visit Jude. That day we must have walked 10 miles at least. This is the first time in a long time we've been without wheels. It's getting us trained for our hikes! We are staying positive. All this work will pay off when we escape the city. There are allot of people here, mostly Asian. The trend in music and clothes are the 80's.
Jude is being well taken care of in kennel. There is a young kiwi girl who loves Jude. She plays with him every day. We got to hang out with him for an hour in his caged area. We left his favorite teddy bear for him. Can't wait to get him back.
It had been a beautiful Spring afternoon. WE enjoyed seeing all the different flowers and trees along the way. Lilies grow like weeds on the side of the road. Trees flower purple and pink and smell like lilacs and Jasmin grows on trees. This was great till the skies opened up and poured down on us after getting off the train. We decided to find our storage and get a few things out -like rain gear. It took longer than anticipated by looking at thew map. Most of the walk was up hill in pouring rain. There are allot of awnings on stores you can run in and out of. We arrive at storage and changed. Matt sat in his boxers and ate his lunch while I dug out the rain gear. No one else was there so we decided to wait out the storm. An hour later we realized it wasn't letting up so we braved it back with ponchos , waterproof pants and gortex boots. The gear passed the test.
Later that night we found a van on line the next day we took a train to the house to check it out. A 10 year old Solomon girl met us. She had been the young sounding woman we've been talking to. Her father speaks broken English. We test drove it and realized it's the best for the cheapest. It has roof racks, four wheel drive and a ram bar. The father was home when we returned. He said all we had to do was follow him to the post office and change names and pay A diesel fee. We keep the plates and all that. Nothing to sign. The line wait was the most painful part. We gave him the cash and we drove off into another rain storm. Matt braved the roads on the right side. We made it to a paring lot a few blocks from the hostel. Looks like we will have to stay a few more nights to get the van fixed up for our execution. We are having someone build a bed, hang curtains, tint it and new shocks. After all that Matt and I travel up to Corromendel Peninsula were everyone goes to holiday.
We will write again when we get out of the city and have more tales to tell. Miss you all.Happy Birthday Meg and Love you Molly and Frankie!
Our first night we tried to stay on their schedule. We ate at a rugby bar that served a $3 breakie(as they call it) and saw the American movie Super Bad.It felt good to have a bit of America for awhile.
Woke up early day two to buy the necessities like phone, converters for electronics, and set up NZ bank account. Later we took a hour train ride out of town to visit Jude. That day we must have walked 10 miles at least. This is the first time in a long time we've been without wheels. It's getting us trained for our hikes! We are staying positive. All this work will pay off when we escape the city. There are allot of people here, mostly Asian. The trend in music and clothes are the 80's.
Jude is being well taken care of in kennel. There is a young kiwi girl who loves Jude. She plays with him every day. We got to hang out with him for an hour in his caged area. We left his favorite teddy bear for him. Can't wait to get him back.
It had been a beautiful Spring afternoon. WE enjoyed seeing all the different flowers and trees along the way. Lilies grow like weeds on the side of the road. Trees flower purple and pink and smell like lilacs and Jasmin grows on trees. This was great till the skies opened up and poured down on us after getting off the train. We decided to find our storage and get a few things out -like rain gear. It took longer than anticipated by looking at thew map. Most of the walk was up hill in pouring rain. There are allot of awnings on stores you can run in and out of. We arrive at storage and changed. Matt sat in his boxers and ate his lunch while I dug out the rain gear. No one else was there so we decided to wait out the storm. An hour later we realized it wasn't letting up so we braved it back with ponchos , waterproof pants and gortex boots. The gear passed the test.
Later that night we found a van on line the next day we took a train to the house to check it out. A 10 year old Solomon girl met us. She had been the young sounding woman we've been talking to. Her father speaks broken English. We test drove it and realized it's the best for the cheapest. It has roof racks, four wheel drive and a ram bar. The father was home when we returned. He said all we had to do was follow him to the post office and change names and pay A diesel fee. We keep the plates and all that. Nothing to sign. The line wait was the most painful part. We gave him the cash and we drove off into another rain storm. Matt braved the roads on the right side. We made it to a paring lot a few blocks from the hostel. Looks like we will have to stay a few more nights to get the van fixed up for our execution. We are having someone build a bed, hang curtains, tint it and new shocks. After all that Matt and I travel up to Corromendel Peninsula were everyone goes to holiday.
We will write again when we get out of the city and have more tales to tell. Miss you all.Happy Birthday Meg and Love you Molly and Frankie!
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