Kia Ora peeps!
January
passed so quick - one of the most active and adventurous trips ever –
New Zealand was a blast!
I
started the trip in Auckland, after a day exploring the city with a
friend of a friend I met in Australia, I jumped in Tim's awesome
Camper to finally experience the Vanlife, which I always wanted so
badly!! We made our way up o the Bay of Islands, which kinda turned
out being a fail as it probably is the most spectacular if you see
the scenery from out of a helicopter or boat. But after that flop
things only could start to become good – loved the hot water beach
in Coramandel and the walk to the Cathedral Cove! The next day I sent
the boys to Hobbiton where they came out like the happiest little
kids smiling over the whole face! After a night on a pretty cool
Campground called Reid's Farm visited Rotorua and Wai-o-Tapu, where
we also swam in a river uniting a hot(!) and cold stream before we
made our way through the forest over some roots and rocks and some
climbing to get right next to a massive waterfall, swam like 200
metres in Lake Taupo to get to some Maori carved rocks and jumped
from a 10 metre high cliff (me not until the second time haha) the
day after! Time to relax deserved: strolling through the streets of
the Art Deco city of Napier, finally throwing a ball again at the
Ocean beach and seeing the boys finding out about more and more
things they have in common – if you ask me they were just made for
each other, no doubt they gonna have awesome travels without me as
the third wheel haha. But for one big adventure they had to have my
by their side – Tongariro Crossing including Mount Doom ! One of
the coolest things I've ever done, more or less fun at some points
hiking/crawling/falling up and down the massive volcano, hurt myself
a bunch, still an exhausting but amazing day!!! Celebrated that one
and my end on the north Island the last night in Wellington before
heading to the south Island a little bit nd shit – Call it what you
wanna call it, I'm a fucking alcoholic...
South
Island I started with my dear Pauline who I met in Auckland and also
in Wellington before. After the first 5 minutes in our rental car
picked up our first hitchhikers on the way to Nelson and spent some
nice time with them hiking in the Abel Tasman and enjoying life in
Takaka. Spotting a seal whilst kayaking put the north of the south a
cherry on top – next mission: honour my beloved cat by going to
Franz Josef Glacier (where unfortunately the main walking path to the
glacier was closed...) and Fox Glacier. Further south along lake
Wanaka (fucking freezing cold I remember) and Wanaka town (which
Pauline and I fell in love with) to lovely Queenstown! After that
ourselves felt ready for new adventures what meant exploring
Fiordland National Park! Drove to Milford sound, which was more semi
cool, also because silly us forgot to fill up some fuel why we had to
fear not to make our way back but live in the wilderness for the rest
of our days. Furtunately Campground life is awesome and with our
charming smiles we got a lift to go for some tracks (Lake Marian&Key
Summit) – pretty amazing day!!! And luck stayed with us: after
driving for almost ¾ of the day (with a filled up tank again),
being 100% convinced that it was Sunday until the Radio-Speaker-Woman
finally opened our eyes and enlightened us that it was actually
Saturday we decided to drive until night to check in a hostel (after
ages of searching), chug a bottle of wine and go out to be part of
student city Dunedin's nighlife which was fun (other than waking up
the next morning)! After a long day driving again (because of several
too-fucking-tired-stops and a nap at a beautiful beach getting a less
beautiful sunburn) we ended up at an awesome campsite at Geroge(?)
lake, close to lake Tekapo, from which one we made our way to Mt.Cook
with some stops at the most breathtaking lakes and a wonderful
lavender field! Having a perfect backpacker dinner on a blanket next
to a small river at a biiig campsite with some wine, a doubie and
good talks it was almost time to say goodbye, first to faithful
Filipa and then to my lovely Swiss doudou Pauline after a last day in
Christchurch (New Brighton)...
...time
for two random stories?
I
met so many known faces (well, half of them at least knew mine...) it
was crazy!
First
at a hot water stream close to Wai-o-Tapu where some Israeli guys
remembered me, as well as Sara,Vanesh&Swanni from nights out in
the PO in Moree, then played is it her/is it not her with Ramona&Anna
from my hometown just having a quick random stop at a lake because it
looked so beautiful (and I apparently pretty different than like 9
months ago...), ran into Emilie, the first person I met on my first
day in Australia drinking some Goon in the Ubar, just in a hostel in
Queenstown where she's apparently working and last but not least
Canadian guy recognized me, also from my first days in Melboune.
Left
me standing there don't know what to say but smiling all over the
face – isn't it crazy how big and still small the world is?! Loved
seeing all these people again – destiny is pretty amazing
sometimes!
-----------------------------
Once
again I had to think a lot of my beloved friend Veronika being on top
of the Key Summit Track, I don't know why, maybe she just represents
inspiration for me, and maybe because she often reveals some
beautiful quotes of her grandmother... So, there was this old lady on
top of the Mountain (where I arrived sweating and breathing like a
dying walrus, 86(!!!) years old, and we just started a conversation.
This impressing woman walks up to exactly that spot since 30 years,
every year on birthday, having lunch with her two friends, having a
toast with champagne, just the loveliest humour and lots of pepper in
her ass (do you have that saying in English?)! Anyways, she said she
probably won't make it the next year (what she apparently also did
say the past 6 years), but if your around the Fiordland National Park
on the 30th of January please go up there and give her a
big hug and my dearest birthday greetings – Chapeau to this Lady !
“I
wish you all to have such a good life and feeling as I do at my age.
I laugh everyday and that means my life has been very succesful.” -
Veronikas Grandma
New
Zealand, you left me speechless...I can't get over the fast change of
beautiful landscapes when you drive through the country, as well on
the north as on the southern Island! No doubt left that NZ's nature
is just crazy amazing and a very special one of a kind! Both of my
roadtrips were just awesome and I can only thank my travelbuddys for
making this part of my trip an experience that will definitely be
stuck in my mind forever – I had a blast!
Lots
of love from Hobart Airport,
Lina
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