South Island: Day Two

OK, let's see if we can get some momentum going with these posts; after all I've got 21 days to get through!

Thursday 14th February

Geraldine - Moeraki - Dunedin

Up a little late (damn that noisy fan). But, fueled on some gorgeous free range eggs, pork schnitzel and United 1 -0 up against Real Madrid in the Champions League, we set off. Our immediate destination is Moreaki and it's famous boulders. We first make a quick stop at Oamaru however, to grab a coffee. There is a Steampunk museum here and while we don't have time to stop, we grab some photos of some works outside.

Arrive at the the boulders just after low tide. Sweet, anyone would think we planned this ;0)

The boulders are cool, stone balls, most half buried in the sand. Many, many photos were taken and some tomfoolery was had. Unfortunately it turns out we did not take any exceptional shots; a nice sunset would have helped. However, here are few of the best for your delectation. [Must work on my handstands!]

Head a little further south to Shag Point (insert your favourite carry on witticism here) and follow a steep path behind some houses down to a tidal shelf. There are more boulders here, which owing to their larger size and variety are probably more impressive than their more well known cousins.

Some look like fossilized dinosaur eggs; some are intact, others split in half; some have water in them; some are literally covered in guano; some are half embedded in the cliff side; all are interesting. We heard that this places was popular with seals, but see none.

Spend a good hour here wandering and snapping away. There are plenty of rock pools filled with crystal clear water, left by the high tide. Some wildlife in them, but not loads. Far more lively is the kelp that lines the shore. It's in constant motion as the tide sucks in and out through it. Amanda is transfixed - "it looks like taglliatelle!"

Speaking of the tide; it decided, rather inconsiderately we felt, to start coming back in more aggressively. Time to start heading back. Take a route nearer to the sea to watch the kelp; and almost walk straight into a fur seal, literally!

Very well camouflaged, it's not bothered by us and we calmly walk on. Only to spot another one. Larger, more active and blocking our path back to the cliff. Not only that it starts heading towards us.

Retreat is blocked by the incoming tide. What was once tidal shelf is quickly becoming simply tide, thick with kelp and in most places waist deep or higher. Queue some mild panic.

Mr Seal keeps moving forward towards us; stopping and eye-balling us every few meters. We are slowly flanking it all the time getting ready to wade; thankfully we manage to get to a higher part of the shelf which only requires some scrambling and rock hopping as supposed to wading. We've managed to flank him and he saunters past and plops into the sea.

After that little bit of drama a cup of tea was in order. So we drive on a little further to Shag point itself, park up and get the kettle on. Brew with a view. The sun then comes out and take a short walk along the headland. Spy a seal colony below us, lazing on the rocks. Amanda is disappointed not to spy any penguins - even taking some convincing that the birds she can see are gannets and not penguins.

Amazing views and some great surf - would make a lovely spot if not for the rocks, seals and kelp. Back to our room with a view for some leftover "Brocolli Bolognese". A lovely spot we wanted to spend the night - our first bit of "freedom camping" - but it is forbidden here.

So, push on south to Dunedin. Lot's of steep hills and the camper struggles a little. Worth the climb however as you descent into Dunedin from atop one of the steepest. Fabulous views.

Campsite is on the outskirts of town. Grab a drink in a nearby "locals" bar. Miranda is playing; Amanda is happy, as are half the bar - unexpected!

Roads so far have been easy, but the steep descent into Dunedin aside, boring to drive. That said, flat straight roads mean we are still on our first tank of gas. :0)

Odometer: 384km

South Island: Day One

A little delayed, but here is the first post on our recent (ahem) trip to New Zealand's South Island.

For many people the South Island is the "real" New Zealand and no trip to NZ is complete without some time spent here. We had three weeks here and while we limited our plans to less than two thirds of the island, it was still not enough. The journey started with a short flight from Auckland to Christchurch - which some of you may know suffered a devastating earthquake in 2011.

Wednesday 13th February

Christchurch - 11km

We arrived with a rough itinerary, forged over the previous few weeks by studying various guide books and of course the internet. One book that proved particularly handy was the NZ Frenzy guide. Thoroughly recommend to anyone travelling across NZ, it lists many places that are not on the normal tourist route and not even on their minds. We were not going to hold ourselves to it but it was nice to have a rough plan - particularly for Amanda!

First job however was to collect the campervan. Again much research was undertaken before we chose a small independent company called CamperCo. They offered a very good deal and the vans were free of all livery - so it did not shout out "TOURIST!". In fact the deal seemed a little to good to be true; would there even be a van waiting for us there?

Thankfully, yes. A quick inspection showed it contained all we expected and was thoughtfully laid out. It was however a manual. Expected, but neither of us had driven a manual car since we left the UK. A few laps of the car park however and I was brave enough to venture out on to the road; the large blind spot over the right shoulder was a bit disconcerting though!

It did not take long to feel comfortable at the wheel and we came to love the advantage of sitting up so high. The van was also surprisingly sprightly. The next job was to head into town to get some lunch and pick up some supplies for our journey.

No easy feat. The recent earthquake has resulted in the streets of Christchurch resembling the M25 with roadworks everywhere and many closed or one-way streets.

In fact the city centre was quite eerie. Large areas have been reduced to rubble; either by the earthquake itself or controlled demolition since. Meanwhile, many condemned buildings are cordoned off as they await theirs. Chain link fences, concrete blocks and protected walkways abound. There are some positive signs however. Small gardens have sprung up across the wasteland, while temporary art exhibits attempt to lessen the feeling of devastation.

It was hard not feel a bit of a ghoul wandering the "red zone" and taking photos. Judging by the number people we saw doing just the same it would appear the red zone as become a tourist attraction in itself.

With so much of the city in ruins it is hard to imagine what it was like before. There are however some signs of recovery, with shipping containers leading it. In some places they have been used as makeshift walls or covered walkways. The heart of the city has been given a little life by a mall made out of stacked shipping containers. A handful of shops and plenty of eateries inhabit their colourful shells.

Geraldine - 150km

With not much going on in Christchurch and a packed itinerary we left Christchurch after lunch and hit the road. Our destination the sleepy little town of Geraldine; think country village with little art and crafts shops. We were to stay at the holiday park of the same name.

We arrive rather hungry and so first job is to get the dinner on. Rather than use the vans small two burner gas stove we decided to use the holiday park facilities where possible.

Amanda had promised to eat "primal" for the duration of our trip. While we broke the "rules" occasionally for the next three weeks we would be avoiding wheat, sugar and processed foods. Why!? Because I have eaten this way ever since I trialled the Paleo diet for 30 days shortly after joining a Crossfit gym. It promised to improve my energy, balance my sugar levels, improve my immune system and decrease joint pain. And in short, it worked.

Paleo / Primal

Both these diets (as in a way to eat, not a short term weight loss diet) promote eating real food and eating in a manner that reflects how our ancestors (before civilization) ate. The premise being that our bodies evolved eating certain foods and that optimum health lies in eating these same foods.

In short, the diet is simple. Eat real food. Eat lots of veg. Eat real meat, ideally free range and ethically raised and slaughtered. Eat good fats (saturated / mono saturated) and avoid bad (polyunsaturated/trans fats)fats. Avoid both sugar and wheat. If you are Paleo avoid dairy also.

But I digress!

The park itself was a pleasant affair; with some nice decorative touches. With dinner gobbled up we take a stroll around Geraldine. Very quiet with only one restaurant open. It's been a long day and with another 200+Km tomorrow we hit the hay - after setting it up of course.

It is then we discover our first (and thankfully) only problem with the van. The cooling fan on the fridge is very noisy and neither of us get a good nights sleep.

West Coast City Break

We decided to stay in and around Auckland over the 4 day Bank Holiday weekend to beat the traffic; most journeys were taking up to twice as long - yuck!

To make up for it we decided to hit the Waitakares on the West Coast, just one hour's drive from Auckland. We visited three of these famous beaches - Karekare, Piha and Anawhata.

We first visited Karekare beach shortly after emigrating when we completed our first NZ tramp. However our reason for visiting this time was to watch the annual Karekare Beach horse races.

The races are a joint fundraiser for the local one room school and surf life-saving club. Some tents selling cakes, hot dogs and coffee were erected in the middle of the beach and the various horse races took place along the sea's edge. Some were over very quick; the pony and cart races, somewhat slower. Far more scenic than the Grand National however!

After watching our fair share of races we decided to get out of the sun and have a spot of lunch. So off to Piha, probably the most famous west coast beach and the most populated. Whereas Karekare has a surf lifesaving club and nothing more, Piha is a small community complete with Library, Cafe, Gallery, RSA (Royal Legion) and of course, it's own surf club. It also happens to have a campground, where we stayed the night.

The afternoon's entertainment was a climb up Lion's Rock followed by an hour just taking in the view.

Before heading back to cook dinner and marvel at the sunset. Finished the night off with a few jars at the RSA - thankfully barely affected by the power cut that was to last all weekend in Piha.

A quick brekkie and a very slow coffee at Piha Cafe(half the town was there for brekkie due to the power cut). Then on to Anawhata beach a shortish drive North of Piha. Only accessible by gravel road followed by a steep walk down from the car park - so much less people here.

A black sand beach much like both Karekare and Piha, complete with rocky outcrops and enclosed on all sides by bush. Thankfully, some clouds rolled over as we started the walk - it was very hot again. The rain came just as we arrived back at the car; perfect timing to end an almost perfect weekend.....

Lake Taupo

Howdy - As some of you know we spent the majority of February travelling around the South Island by campervan; however, we had only been back in "real life" for 3 days before we were off again - we headed to Lake Taupo ("toe-paw") for the weekend to celebrate a friends birthday.

450km South (by car) from Auckland, Lake Taupo is actually a volcano crater and the largest lake in New Zealand - 616km2 or to put that into perspective, twice the size of the Isle of Wight!

The main reason for visiting was for me to join Jan on his surprise birthday gift - White Water Kayking. We spent almost 2 hours riding the grade 2/3 rapids of the Tongariro river.

We were told to expect to fall into the water a lot. But, after navigating the earlier, harder rapids without much trouble we both thought we could reach the end without taking a dip.

So of course we didn't. Well, I didn't. On a rather innocuous piece of water I managed to clip a submerged rock and flip the kayak. A rude awakening I must say. The current soon dragged me into the next rapid and I spent what seemed like an eternity getting bumped against rocks; my hands getting colder all the while.

Finally, with the guides steadying the kayak I was able to pull myself back in. A little battered and bruised, I would later find out I was cut in a few places too. Still not time to dwell on the aches as the next rapid was soon upon us..!

While Jan & I were mucking around on the water, Amanda & Matylda took the chair life up Mount Ruapehu, one of the worlds most active volcanoes and NZ largest - not sure Amanda knew that before the ascent! All the more surprising given that it has a cafe on top!!

At they top they completed the 1.5 hour Skyline Ridge Walk, a tough walk on scree where they gained 300m in altitude. After Snowdon it is probably the hardest walk Amanda has done - not helped by the scorching heat.

To reward their efforts, Jan & I cooked up dinner beside Lake Taupo - all washed down with a rather nice Pinot Noir :0)

Mission Bay, Baby

As some of you know and as was hinted at in the last post, Amanda and I have had to move again. Our housemates, since May, have decided to move to Nice, France and so we needed to find a new place to live. They originally thought they would be leaving for France the first week of the new year and so we had approx 6 weeks to find somewhere else. A little daunting given how long it had taken us to find them and how little was on the market in our budget and more importantly somewhere we wanted to live! One reason for moving to NZ was to spend more time outdoors and ideally, in order to be "living the dream" we wanted a place near the beach.

Amanda's shifts were not kind so I was charged with viewing potential flats. Thankfully I only had to view two. The first seemed very nice, the second awful. Along with everyone else at the viewing I entered an application to rent the first flat. We then had to wait what seemed like forever for a response - but was in fact only 3 days.

Lady luck, she must have been smiling on us - we beat the competition and were soon signing a 12 month lease on our first place together - be that the UK or NZ. A couple of days later and Amanda could view the flat for the first time!

I had to make a snap judgement on the flat and now that we have been living here a couple of weeks, I think I did pretty well. Apparently Amanda trusts my decisions now!

View of Rangitoto from the end of our street

Palm lined front of our block

View our of our Kitchen - sea view possible with the right angle

The only concerns at the time were, one, it's a flat - would it be noisy? And two, the kitchen. It's tiny - but a perfect excuse to improve our Mise en place.

Thankfully, while a little noisier than our last abode, it has proved pretty quiet despite being a block of flats and despite being one road back from the busy village centre. The building itself is afforded a slight Mediterranean feel by it's orange tiled roofs.

The previous tenants (Kiwis who had moved there from Brighton!) had been there for 2 years and it was completely refurbished just before they move in - we have a bathroom that would make Faye Kidd proud; and a load of new white goods. It's on the first (top) floor and we have a gas cooker again (yeay!).

We've managed to furnish it by making some pretty sweet purchases on TradeMe, the pick of which must be our solid wood dining table. The chairs, brought separately need a little love but that is going to be a little side project...

The flat lets in loads of light, but not direct sunlight so it's bright, yet cool. Best of all however, is the location. We are set just one road back from the seafront and so the flat is filled with fresh sea air :0)

The beach itself is just a 90 seconds walk away; and that would be less if there was not a road to cross.

Mission Bay is a little like Brighton in some respects. It's a lively place and sometimes it can seem like half of Auckland is visiting. That said, even then, it's still nowhere near as busy as Brighton on a sunny day.There's loads of cafe's, bar's and restaurants on the strip and even a cinema.

The beach, sandy of course, with great views of Rangitoto and the city, is backed by lawns shaded by Pohutukawa and fir trees. It's great for swimming and we can also hire paddleboards, windsurfers etc.

Finally, it's an easy 8km cycle to work along the seafront - although it can a be a little harder when the wind gets up!