Day 12
Today was take it easy day. We’re leaving tomorrow, and just wanted some down time. We ate breakfast at home. I made an omelette. Then we went and saw Brent’s work area at his downtown office. We ate at a place called the Beach House and we shared a prawn pizza, BLT with avocado, and calamari. The calamari was huge, like chicken strips. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was all good though. After that, we went shopping, I got a few more souvenirs for people back home, and then rented a movie, and went home and packed. Then I just relaxed for a few hours, and watched TV. There was an interesting Beethoven documentary. Went to bed early.
Day 13
Flew back, pretty lagged and bored the whole day. Watched a couple of good movies on the plane. Window seat was kind of a bitch b/c every time i had to pee with my tiny bladder, i had to wake up the aisle guy. Most interesting thing...watching the sun rise in Brisbane, set on the flight, rise in LA, and set when we landed in Omaha, all over the course of about 20 hours!!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Day Eleven - Death Hike, River Fire
Day 11
Woke up with a bit of a hangover and tried to cure it with some greasy McDonald’s and a huge water bottle. Didn’t really work, but it would be gone soon enough. We drove a bit to the Glass House Mountains and readied ourselves for a “hike”. We soon found out that it was pretty much climbing. Mostly vertical walls at parts, you’d have to find holds and climb up. Looking down not recommended. I was genuinely frightened for the first time in a long time. But, it was challenging and definitely rewarding with the view at the top. We stopped there, ate a snack, took some pictures, and enjoyed nature’s beauty. The climb down was very scary and slow, but not as difficult as it looked. I’ve found the cure for a hangover. Death defying climbs up mountains at a pretty good pace. We had a barbecue planned at 3 with some of Brent and Kristin’s neighbors, so we headed back and got ready for that. We met poolside at their apartment at a gathering place and we met Janet, Brooke, Allison, Carl, and Kevin. It was Allison’s birthday, and we had quite the spread so an informal gathering. Lamb kebabs, pasta salad, crackers, bread, hummus, salad, and pavlova for dessert. It was fabulous. Washed it down with my favorite new Aussie beer, Touhy’s New, and got ready to go to the yearly celebration, River Fire. We all walke a mile or so and set up chairs and blankets near the river front to watch fireworks and jets fly overhead. It was really cool, we drank a few beers, and met a couple girls next to us and had a good time. We arranged to meet at the bar later and have drinks. Tom and I met up with Hannah and Kat at the Ice Bar, and we hung out for an hour or so. It was nice. Tom called it our Aussie Independence, as it was really the first time we went out without Brent and/or Kristin. The girls had to go to a friend’s going away party, but wanted us to meet them again after. Tom and I went home, had a couple beers, and, probably due to the full day and climbing, both of us passed out.
Woke up with a bit of a hangover and tried to cure it with some greasy McDonald’s and a huge water bottle. Didn’t really work, but it would be gone soon enough. We drove a bit to the Glass House Mountains and readied ourselves for a “hike”. We soon found out that it was pretty much climbing. Mostly vertical walls at parts, you’d have to find holds and climb up. Looking down not recommended. I was genuinely frightened for the first time in a long time. But, it was challenging and definitely rewarding with the view at the top. We stopped there, ate a snack, took some pictures, and enjoyed nature’s beauty. The climb down was very scary and slow, but not as difficult as it looked. I’ve found the cure for a hangover. Death defying climbs up mountains at a pretty good pace. We had a barbecue planned at 3 with some of Brent and Kristin’s neighbors, so we headed back and got ready for that. We met poolside at their apartment at a gathering place and we met Janet, Brooke, Allison, Carl, and Kevin. It was Allison’s birthday, and we had quite the spread so an informal gathering. Lamb kebabs, pasta salad, crackers, bread, hummus, salad, and pavlova for dessert. It was fabulous. Washed it down with my favorite new Aussie beer, Touhy’s New, and got ready to go to the yearly celebration, River Fire. We all walke a mile or so and set up chairs and blankets near the river front to watch fireworks and jets fly overhead. It was really cool, we drank a few beers, and met a couple girls next to us and had a good time. We arranged to meet at the bar later and have drinks. Tom and I met up with Hannah and Kat at the Ice Bar, and we hung out for an hour or so. It was nice. Tom called it our Aussie Independence, as it was really the first time we went out without Brent and/or Kristin. The girls had to go to a friend’s going away party, but wanted us to meet them again after. Tom and I went home, had a couple beers, and, probably due to the full day and climbing, both of us passed out.
Day Ten - Australia Zoo, Sunshine Coast AUS
Day 10
Very, very sore today. Rock climbing kicked my ass. But no time to sit around, we have been filling our days thus far with great stuff to do, and today was no exception. We headed North today and went to the Australia zoo. This was where Steve Irwin worked and his family still does. There is evidence of this all over the zoo. It was a really cool experience. They have Crocs, Roos, Wombats, and of course, Koalas. They have a few areas where you can go right into a whole field a kangaroos and pet them and feed them and whatever, that was my favorite part. We also got to hold a koala and get a photo with it. After the zoo, we headed to the Sunshine Coast and set up a tent at a campsite right by the oceanside. We walked around and looked for somewhere to eat. Somehow along they way, we met Abbey, a 22 year old California girl, and she joined us for dinner. We went to a little bar and grill and it was dead. No one there. The two bartenders were super hot and friendly. The menu looked good, so we stayed and ordered. I had a strip steak and potatoes and vegetables. While we waited, we decided to play pool. It was very strange. The table, balls, and sticks were all miniature. It was very difficult. Abbey and I lost to Brent and Tom, and we sat and ate our meal. By the end of it, the place was packed, and everyone was beautiful. After that, we went and bought some wine, and went back to the campsite. Abbey provided a little fun to the conversaion and we all sat around, talked, and caught a good buzz. Then we crashed under the stars.
Very, very sore today. Rock climbing kicked my ass. But no time to sit around, we have been filling our days thus far with great stuff to do, and today was no exception. We headed North today and went to the Australia zoo. This was where Steve Irwin worked and his family still does. There is evidence of this all over the zoo. It was a really cool experience. They have Crocs, Roos, Wombats, and of course, Koalas. They have a few areas where you can go right into a whole field a kangaroos and pet them and feed them and whatever, that was my favorite part. We also got to hold a koala and get a photo with it. After the zoo, we headed to the Sunshine Coast and set up a tent at a campsite right by the oceanside. We walked around and looked for somewhere to eat. Somehow along they way, we met Abbey, a 22 year old California girl, and she joined us for dinner. We went to a little bar and grill and it was dead. No one there. The two bartenders were super hot and friendly. The menu looked good, so we stayed and ordered. I had a strip steak and potatoes and vegetables. While we waited, we decided to play pool. It was very strange. The table, balls, and sticks were all miniature. It was very difficult. Abbey and I lost to Brent and Tom, and we sat and ate our meal. By the end of it, the place was packed, and everyone was beautiful. After that, we went and bought some wine, and went back to the campsite. Abbey provided a little fun to the conversaion and we all sat around, talked, and caught a good buzz. Then we crashed under the stars.
Day Nine - Gold Coast AUS, climbing
Day 9
Woke up and made breakfast at the house pretty early and got ready to make the hour drive to the Gold Coast and the beach for the afternoon. Got to a cool little area, not too busy, and Brent and I rented a couple of surfboards. Tom and Kristin set up a little beach tent, and we all relaxed a bit and read, played some beach football, and got some sun. Brent and I hit the waves, my second time ever. They were about 3-6 footers, and I did pretty well. Got up several times and rode a few waves all the way in. I was happy with my effort, and got a little exercise with new muscles in the process. Brent had a bit of a harder time, as he had chosen a 7 foot board, and I had a 8 ½ foot board. We did that for a couple hours, played some more football and set out to get some food. We walked throug the shopping area, which was a cool little place, kinda reminded me of Fort Lauderdale beach area, and chose a “nothing over 10 dollar” place, and it was actually really good. I had a crumbed snapper with chips and calamari. After that we headed back into Brisbane and met up with some of Brent’s church and climbing friends at Kangaroo Point, a large rock wall located on the riverfront. They have it lit up at night, and it’s pretty popular with many people. We set up our ropes and Tom and I tried our first climbs ever. It was very difficult. I tried twice and didn’t even get half way up. I’ve never used so many new muscles at once before I don’t think. It was a really fun experience, though, and I’m probably gonna try and do some climbing back home, if there is anywhere to go. I think UNO has a decent one. After that, sun, and surfing, we were beat, and promptly went home and to bed.
Woke up and made breakfast at the house pretty early and got ready to make the hour drive to the Gold Coast and the beach for the afternoon. Got to a cool little area, not too busy, and Brent and I rented a couple of surfboards. Tom and Kristin set up a little beach tent, and we all relaxed a bit and read, played some beach football, and got some sun. Brent and I hit the waves, my second time ever. They were about 3-6 footers, and I did pretty well. Got up several times and rode a few waves all the way in. I was happy with my effort, and got a little exercise with new muscles in the process. Brent had a bit of a harder time, as he had chosen a 7 foot board, and I had a 8 ½ foot board. We did that for a couple hours, played some more football and set out to get some food. We walked throug the shopping area, which was a cool little place, kinda reminded me of Fort Lauderdale beach area, and chose a “nothing over 10 dollar” place, and it was actually really good. I had a crumbed snapper with chips and calamari. After that we headed back into Brisbane and met up with some of Brent’s church and climbing friends at Kangaroo Point, a large rock wall located on the riverfront. They have it lit up at night, and it’s pretty popular with many people. We set up our ropes and Tom and I tried our first climbs ever. It was very difficult. I tried twice and didn’t even get half way up. I’ve never used so many new muscles at once before I don’t think. It was a really fun experience, though, and I’m probably gonna try and do some climbing back home, if there is anywhere to go. I think UNO has a decent one. After that, sun, and surfing, we were beat, and promptly went home and to bed.
Day Eight - Flight Back to Brisbane
Day 8
I didn’t make it past 9. We started watching Spiderman 3, and I passed the f@#! Out about 15 minutes into it. Holiday Inn was cool though. It was the gateway back to civilization. Comfortable beds, lots of space, Futurama, Family Guy, AFV, and a hot shower, with, more importantly, a warm place to change after the shower. But it was an early morning. We woke up about 405am, got all our shit in order and got a cab to the airport. Christchurch is a beautiful little city, one stretch of one the main roads is bordered by a park, lined with willow trees and tulips. Stunning. Saw two tansvestite prostitutes out in full form on the way, but other than that, the scenery was beautiful, good way to say goodbye to New Zealand. Got a little flak at the airport for claiming my DUIs on the landing page, but it was pretty easy. The guy was nice, but they have to question everybody with any sort of conviction. They were also filming a COPS-type show at customs/quarantine, but they were in a different area when we were there. I planned on getting a few hours sleep on the plane, but after about one, I was awakened by the flight attendants laughing hysterically at what must have been the funniest thing in the world. Oh well, I struck up a conversation with one who kinda looked like my 6th grade girlfriend, and told them I’d rather wake up to laughing than an annoying alarm clock or something.
Brent picked us up from the airport and we went back to his place, unpacked a bit, showered, and went shopping. We grabbed a bite to eat at a Portugese place called Nando’s and then relaxed at home for a bit. Brent had set up a reservation for lawn bowling later in the day, and we headed off for that about 245pm. For $5, from 3-5pm, we played lawn bowling. Super fun. It seems to be a traditional game, but has caught on with the younger crowd as well. Our club was right by the riverfront, it was great. We bought a couple “jugs” of beer and learned the game. The lanes are on a large lawn that is cut just like a putting green on a golf course. You first roll the jack and center it to the middle of the lane. You then take six balls and see who can roll them closest to the jack. The balls are weighted on one side, so they curve with the roll, making it more interesting. Scoring is exactly like shuffleboard as far as the closeness to the jack. It was a good time. A bit more refreshing than regular bowling, being outside and all. Brent was the only one that played before, and he and Kristin won the first game. Then, the “Amiricans” took over. Tom and I won the last two games to go home victorious. We saw the weirdest thing when we were about done bowling. Outside in the street, an older woman had a pet dog on a leash, and a pet SHEEP, not on a leash. They crossed the street and the sheep was kinda disobeying its owner, we’ll call her Mary, and it ran off a bit, with the cutest little jumping, kicking gait. Seriously, a pet sheep? Brisbane has at least 2 million people. It’s a big city. A pet sheep.
After lawn bowling we went to get something to eat. Brent and Kristin have wanted to try a steak house called Breakfast Creek. It was unique for sure. You order cafeteria style, you can pick your steak out of the window like a butcher shop, and all the seating is basically outdoors with awnings and coverings and canopies all over. I got a Wagyu striploin with “a 7+ marbling”. Wagyu is supposedly some of the best beef you can buy anywhere. It was fantastic. Buttery, melt in your mouth awesome. I paired it up with a unique glass of shiraz, which beyond the berries and plums, had mint and eucalyptus undertones as well. It was a great, satisfying meal. Kristin hd to go home and work on a project after that, so Brent, Tom, and I went and had a couple pints at the Ice bar, a nice little establishment near his apartment. It was refreshing to kick back a little and have some bonding conversation. A lot of bars here are very concerned with serving very cold beer. Ice bar is one of them. Several of the handles had a thermometer on them to tell you how cold they were, and they had a Glycol system which was set up to have the metal pipe that has the handles on it, frozen over at all times. It was pretty cool. After the bar, we walked home and went to bed. Looking forward to the Gold Coast and the beach tomorrow.
I didn’t make it past 9. We started watching Spiderman 3, and I passed the f@#! Out about 15 minutes into it. Holiday Inn was cool though. It was the gateway back to civilization. Comfortable beds, lots of space, Futurama, Family Guy, AFV, and a hot shower, with, more importantly, a warm place to change after the shower. But it was an early morning. We woke up about 405am, got all our shit in order and got a cab to the airport. Christchurch is a beautiful little city, one stretch of one the main roads is bordered by a park, lined with willow trees and tulips. Stunning. Saw two tansvestite prostitutes out in full form on the way, but other than that, the scenery was beautiful, good way to say goodbye to New Zealand. Got a little flak at the airport for claiming my DUIs on the landing page, but it was pretty easy. The guy was nice, but they have to question everybody with any sort of conviction. They were also filming a COPS-type show at customs/quarantine, but they were in a different area when we were there. I planned on getting a few hours sleep on the plane, but after about one, I was awakened by the flight attendants laughing hysterically at what must have been the funniest thing in the world. Oh well, I struck up a conversation with one who kinda looked like my 6th grade girlfriend, and told them I’d rather wake up to laughing than an annoying alarm clock or something.
Brent picked us up from the airport and we went back to his place, unpacked a bit, showered, and went shopping. We grabbed a bite to eat at a Portugese place called Nando’s and then relaxed at home for a bit. Brent had set up a reservation for lawn bowling later in the day, and we headed off for that about 245pm. For $5, from 3-5pm, we played lawn bowling. Super fun. It seems to be a traditional game, but has caught on with the younger crowd as well. Our club was right by the riverfront, it was great. We bought a couple “jugs” of beer and learned the game. The lanes are on a large lawn that is cut just like a putting green on a golf course. You first roll the jack and center it to the middle of the lane. You then take six balls and see who can roll them closest to the jack. The balls are weighted on one side, so they curve with the roll, making it more interesting. Scoring is exactly like shuffleboard as far as the closeness to the jack. It was a good time. A bit more refreshing than regular bowling, being outside and all. Brent was the only one that played before, and he and Kristin won the first game. Then, the “Amiricans” took over. Tom and I won the last two games to go home victorious. We saw the weirdest thing when we were about done bowling. Outside in the street, an older woman had a pet dog on a leash, and a pet SHEEP, not on a leash. They crossed the street and the sheep was kinda disobeying its owner, we’ll call her Mary, and it ran off a bit, with the cutest little jumping, kicking gait. Seriously, a pet sheep? Brisbane has at least 2 million people. It’s a big city. A pet sheep.
After lawn bowling we went to get something to eat. Brent and Kristin have wanted to try a steak house called Breakfast Creek. It was unique for sure. You order cafeteria style, you can pick your steak out of the window like a butcher shop, and all the seating is basically outdoors with awnings and coverings and canopies all over. I got a Wagyu striploin with “a 7+ marbling”. Wagyu is supposedly some of the best beef you can buy anywhere. It was fantastic. Buttery, melt in your mouth awesome. I paired it up with a unique glass of shiraz, which beyond the berries and plums, had mint and eucalyptus undertones as well. It was a great, satisfying meal. Kristin hd to go home and work on a project after that, so Brent, Tom, and I went and had a couple pints at the Ice bar, a nice little establishment near his apartment. It was refreshing to kick back a little and have some bonding conversation. A lot of bars here are very concerned with serving very cold beer. Ice bar is one of them. Several of the handles had a thermometer on them to tell you how cold they were, and they had a Glycol system which was set up to have the metal pipe that has the handles on it, frozen over at all times. It was pretty cool. After the bar, we walked home and went to bed. Looking forward to the Gold Coast and the beach tomorrow.
Day Seven - Christchurch drive
Day 7
Got up, showered, and going about 8am, and just wanted to bomb out to Christchurch. We stopped for breakfast and a couple places to take pictures, but made really good time to CC. One place we stopped, Lake Tekapo, had the most awesome, blue/green water, it looked fake. But awesome. We returned the van to the company in CC, and took a cab into the town centre to get a hotel room for the night. We tried to get hotel SO again, but it was full, so we went across the street to the Holiday Inn. I think the desk girl liked us, so we got a good price on a great sized room with a great view of the city from the 8th floor. It’s a bit more US here…. There are KFCs, McD’s, and I saw a Pizza Hut as well! Oh well, Christ church is a really cool little city, and as we were back with plenty of time, decided to walk around the city a bit. Very cool vibe, got some great pics, found a camera store and bought a polarizer, and found a really cool, hidden square in between alleys. There were about 6 restaurants back in this little cove, and we picked the coolest little place called Fat Joe’s, I think. Anyway, it was kinda Americanized, but cooler. It was a blues bar, but the coolest thrown together furniture, dimly lit, comfortable ambiance. We had a couple of burgers and beers and went back to the Holiday Inn. And here I am. Loved my NZ experience, would definitely consider visiting again. Not looking forward to getting up at 4am, but it shouldn’t be too bad considering it’s 820pm now, and I prolly won’t make it past 9. Peace out for now.
Got up, showered, and going about 8am, and just wanted to bomb out to Christchurch. We stopped for breakfast and a couple places to take pictures, but made really good time to CC. One place we stopped, Lake Tekapo, had the most awesome, blue/green water, it looked fake. But awesome. We returned the van to the company in CC, and took a cab into the town centre to get a hotel room for the night. We tried to get hotel SO again, but it was full, so we went across the street to the Holiday Inn. I think the desk girl liked us, so we got a good price on a great sized room with a great view of the city from the 8th floor. It’s a bit more US here…. There are KFCs, McD’s, and I saw a Pizza Hut as well! Oh well, Christ church is a really cool little city, and as we were back with plenty of time, decided to walk around the city a bit. Very cool vibe, got some great pics, found a camera store and bought a polarizer, and found a really cool, hidden square in between alleys. There were about 6 restaurants back in this little cove, and we picked the coolest little place called Fat Joe’s, I think. Anyway, it was kinda Americanized, but cooler. It was a blues bar, but the coolest thrown together furniture, dimly lit, comfortable ambiance. We had a couple of burgers and beers and went back to the Holiday Inn. And here I am. Loved my NZ experience, would definitely consider visiting again. Not looking forward to getting up at 4am, but it shouldn’t be too bad considering it’s 820pm now, and I prolly won’t make it past 9. Peace out for now.
Day Six - Milford Sound...
Day 6
Woke up very early again and took off for Milford Sound. Hopefully this time for real. We made it! Got there and it was as beautiful as we’d heard and seen. Took about 2 hours of pictures on the banks of the lake/sea, and then decided to have brunch. Tom’s SLR crapped out on him, which sux. He just bought it like 2 months ago. I had a meat pie again, and a great tasting bowl of tomato soup. I’m still thinking about that soup. It was wonderful, and it was a bit chilly, prolly about 11 Celsius, so it hit the spot. After that we went to the boat docks and paid for a 2 hour boat tour. Getting out into the sound was great, I’m very glad we decided to do the tour as well. Great close-ups, and much more area covered than what you could see form the shore for sure. We got out into the Tasman Sea to go to the lighthouse that is usually on the tour, but the captain said the sea was too rough to go all the way. It was pretty crazy. I’ve never been on a boat in a body of water that big, and we were jumping 6-8 foot waves, at least. So we came back into the sound. The captain tried to look for a couple of spots where he had seen penguins nesting before, but we didn’t have the chance to see any that day. :( However, it was ok, b/c we did get to see seals AND dolphins! There were about 10-15 dolphin swimming around the boat as we drove. I got a few decent pictures, but that was an amazing experience I won’t soon forget. After the boat tour, we headed out and after a few hours of driving, made it to Queenstown at about sundown. I got some fish and chips from a small curbside stand, and Tom got some McDonald’s. The town was too busy for us to even find a spot to park, so Tom circled while I got mine, and I while he got his. We went to the edge of town and ate, and then took off to find a place to sleep. The fish was really good, and I got a fresh sea scallop for about $1.40 US, but it was so greasy! I got a headache and felt drowsy immediately after. We made it to a town called Cromwell, and set up the usual night of charging, dumping and wine.
Woke up very early again and took off for Milford Sound. Hopefully this time for real. We made it! Got there and it was as beautiful as we’d heard and seen. Took about 2 hours of pictures on the banks of the lake/sea, and then decided to have brunch. Tom’s SLR crapped out on him, which sux. He just bought it like 2 months ago. I had a meat pie again, and a great tasting bowl of tomato soup. I’m still thinking about that soup. It was wonderful, and it was a bit chilly, prolly about 11 Celsius, so it hit the spot. After that we went to the boat docks and paid for a 2 hour boat tour. Getting out into the sound was great, I’m very glad we decided to do the tour as well. Great close-ups, and much more area covered than what you could see form the shore for sure. We got out into the Tasman Sea to go to the lighthouse that is usually on the tour, but the captain said the sea was too rough to go all the way. It was pretty crazy. I’ve never been on a boat in a body of water that big, and we were jumping 6-8 foot waves, at least. So we came back into the sound. The captain tried to look for a couple of spots where he had seen penguins nesting before, but we didn’t have the chance to see any that day. :( However, it was ok, b/c we did get to see seals AND dolphins! There were about 10-15 dolphin swimming around the boat as we drove. I got a few decent pictures, but that was an amazing experience I won’t soon forget. After the boat tour, we headed out and after a few hours of driving, made it to Queenstown at about sundown. I got some fish and chips from a small curbside stand, and Tom got some McDonald’s. The town was too busy for us to even find a spot to park, so Tom circled while I got mine, and I while he got his. We went to the edge of town and ate, and then took off to find a place to sleep. The fish was really good, and I got a fresh sea scallop for about $1.40 US, but it was so greasy! I got a headache and felt drowsy immediately after. We made it to a town called Cromwell, and set up the usual night of charging, dumping and wine.
Day Five - Lots of Te Anou
Day 5
Woke up early and were off. We blew through Queenstown, even though everyone said it was an awesome place that we should check out for an extended time. We were running a little short on time and wanted to go straight through to Milford Sound, the crown jewel of the trip. This is where they filmed the Lord of the Rings. It is jaw droppingly beautiful. We stopped in Te Anou and had breakfast, and headed to the sound. There were a few places along the way to stop and take short little hikes with great scenery. We passed one called Mirror Lakes and caught ourselves, and decided to turn around and check it out. Little did we know, we see it about 6 times. Our van’s clutch went out as we turned around and went back. Crazy. Luckily, it was a decently busy road, but still in the middle of nowhere. We had no phones, so we asked a man to use his, but there was no service there, either. We asked a couple in another camper van if we could ride with them the rest of the way to the sound and get a phone or some help, and they said no! They said, “we don’t have enough seat belts”, …wow! We would see them a bit later, and they tried to apologize and say they wished they could help, but they were just making excuses. Bad karma will get them back. A bit later, we caught a ride with a friendly tour bus driver who took us to the next stop with a phone. We arranged for a tow and rode with a different bus driver back to the car. After about an hour or so, and way too many pictures of Mirror Lakes, we were met by a friendly, late-twenties tow truck driver from Invercargill who works out of Te Anou. We got a ride back to Te Anou and had to have the camper company call us on a gas station phone to arrange for someone to bring a new van to us from Queenstown, about three hours away. We obviously, then, got to know Te Anou a bit. Walked the streets for awhile, and ended up in a theater using their wi-fi to pass the time and having a beer. The only wi-fi in town was the theater, a laundromat, and the grocery store. Weird. We went back to the gas station to meet the van and it arrived a bit late, but was an upgrade. We went from basically a Dodge to a Mercedes van. It was very late at that point, so we changed our flight (for only 35.00 US!!) and stayed the night there. We changed our flight and got another day. It’s one less day with Brent in Australia, but it is also the best part of the NZ trip we would be missing, and we really didn’t have anything planned for that day anyway.
Woke up early and were off. We blew through Queenstown, even though everyone said it was an awesome place that we should check out for an extended time. We were running a little short on time and wanted to go straight through to Milford Sound, the crown jewel of the trip. This is where they filmed the Lord of the Rings. It is jaw droppingly beautiful. We stopped in Te Anou and had breakfast, and headed to the sound. There were a few places along the way to stop and take short little hikes with great scenery. We passed one called Mirror Lakes and caught ourselves, and decided to turn around and check it out. Little did we know, we see it about 6 times. Our van’s clutch went out as we turned around and went back. Crazy. Luckily, it was a decently busy road, but still in the middle of nowhere. We had no phones, so we asked a man to use his, but there was no service there, either. We asked a couple in another camper van if we could ride with them the rest of the way to the sound and get a phone or some help, and they said no! They said, “we don’t have enough seat belts”, …wow! We would see them a bit later, and they tried to apologize and say they wished they could help, but they were just making excuses. Bad karma will get them back. A bit later, we caught a ride with a friendly tour bus driver who took us to the next stop with a phone. We arranged for a tow and rode with a different bus driver back to the car. After about an hour or so, and way too many pictures of Mirror Lakes, we were met by a friendly, late-twenties tow truck driver from Invercargill who works out of Te Anou. We got a ride back to Te Anou and had to have the camper company call us on a gas station phone to arrange for someone to bring a new van to us from Queenstown, about three hours away. We obviously, then, got to know Te Anou a bit. Walked the streets for awhile, and ended up in a theater using their wi-fi to pass the time and having a beer. The only wi-fi in town was the theater, a laundromat, and the grocery store. Weird. We went back to the gas station to meet the van and it arrived a bit late, but was an upgrade. We went from basically a Dodge to a Mercedes van. It was very late at that point, so we changed our flight (for only 35.00 US!!) and stayed the night there. We changed our flight and got another day. It’s one less day with Brent in Australia, but it is also the best part of the NZ trip we would be missing, and we really didn’t have anything planned for that day anyway.
Day Four - Puke to Lake Waimea NZ
Day 4
Woke up really early as would become very normal on this trip. We stopped at a good little place for breakfast and I had an egg, bacon, and cheese pie. We moved on, and went to the Franz Josef glacier. It was awesome! The scenery all the up to the glacier was amazing, striated, rounded rocks, waterfalls everywhere, and the glacier looming in the distance. I got dangerously close to the glacier, near a water cavern. There were rockfalls and snow falling, as well as dripping water all over it. Took a few pics there, got a little worried and moved on. We decided to follow a tour group up the actual glacier itself, instead of just watching it, like the rest of the suckas. It was kinda scary, especially cuz I had a pack on and basically sneakers. The tour group were all wearing spikes. Got up there and it was completely worth it! What an awesome experience! We took off and headed down the coast. There was a great little pulloff for sunset. We saw the Tasman Sea for the first time up close, and right near sunset there was a great spot to watch and photograph it. Part of it looked like the end of the Goonies to me. It was breathtaking, though. After dark, we pressed on a bit, found a spot by a lake to take nighttime long exposures. The moon was full and reflecting off the lake. After that, we found a spot to camp at Lake Waimea. The nightly process has become this: pulling into a campsite, paying, plugging in, charging batteries, dumping picture memory cards, and me falling asleep early as shit. Seriously, I’ve been asleep at 10 at the latest for several days in a row now. I’ve been up at like 6 or 7 though, so I guess that makes up for it.
Woke up really early as would become very normal on this trip. We stopped at a good little place for breakfast and I had an egg, bacon, and cheese pie. We moved on, and went to the Franz Josef glacier. It was awesome! The scenery all the up to the glacier was amazing, striated, rounded rocks, waterfalls everywhere, and the glacier looming in the distance. I got dangerously close to the glacier, near a water cavern. There were rockfalls and snow falling, as well as dripping water all over it. Took a few pics there, got a little worried and moved on. We decided to follow a tour group up the actual glacier itself, instead of just watching it, like the rest of the suckas. It was kinda scary, especially cuz I had a pack on and basically sneakers. The tour group were all wearing spikes. Got up there and it was completely worth it! What an awesome experience! We took off and headed down the coast. There was a great little pulloff for sunset. We saw the Tasman Sea for the first time up close, and right near sunset there was a great spot to watch and photograph it. Part of it looked like the end of the Goonies to me. It was breathtaking, though. After dark, we pressed on a bit, found a spot by a lake to take nighttime long exposures. The moon was full and reflecting off the lake. After that, we found a spot to camp at Lake Waimea. The nightly process has become this: pulling into a campsite, paying, plugging in, charging batteries, dumping picture memory cards, and me falling asleep early as shit. Seriously, I’ve been asleep at 10 at the latest for several days in a row now. I’ve been up at like 6 or 7 though, so I guess that makes up for it.
Day Three - Christchurch to Puke NZ
Day 3
Woke up with a hangover from clubbing, but got going at a decent time. We ate breakfast at a place right by the hotel. I got eggs, toast, mushrooms, and sausage. I asked for sunny side up, but they evidently don’t know what that is, so I got them over easy. No matter, it was still good. Christchurch has a lot of immigrants, and a really cool vibe to the town. The houses were not like I expected them to be. Very hard to explain, but it was a very cool town. We got a cab, with a very friendly and interesting cabbie and picked up our rental vehicle. A Britz camper van, two small beds, microwave, fridge, shower, toilet, etc. Pretty nice. The representative was cute and had a great accent. She hooked us up with a free extra blanket. After that, basically our whole day consisted of driving form Christchurch to Puke, and stopping about every five or ten minutes to take pictures of the awesome beauty surrounding us at every second. Streams, waterfalls, snow capped mountains, tropical plants, cattle, horses, sheep, and even emu are all around us, all the time. It is unbelievable here. We stopped at Arthur’s Pass NP and had lunch. I had meat pies, one with mince and cheese, and the other with lamb. Very good, I’ve never really had a meat pie, but they seem to be really popular here. Stopped at a supermarket, got some fruits, nuts, herbs, meat, snacks, etc. for the next couple days. At sunset we pulled over and spent about a half hour taking pictures of the mountains with a bright full moon right above them, it was absolutely awesome. Hopefully they turn out… At that point, the sun was down, so we drove and stopped when it got dark at the first campground, a small one in a place called Pukekura. Hooked up the van to power, set up our charging station, music, etc., read a chapter in my book, drank some wine, saw a goat, and went to bed.
Woke up with a hangover from clubbing, but got going at a decent time. We ate breakfast at a place right by the hotel. I got eggs, toast, mushrooms, and sausage. I asked for sunny side up, but they evidently don’t know what that is, so I got them over easy. No matter, it was still good. Christchurch has a lot of immigrants, and a really cool vibe to the town. The houses were not like I expected them to be. Very hard to explain, but it was a very cool town. We got a cab, with a very friendly and interesting cabbie and picked up our rental vehicle. A Britz camper van, two small beds, microwave, fridge, shower, toilet, etc. Pretty nice. The representative was cute and had a great accent. She hooked us up with a free extra blanket. After that, basically our whole day consisted of driving form Christchurch to Puke, and stopping about every five or ten minutes to take pictures of the awesome beauty surrounding us at every second. Streams, waterfalls, snow capped mountains, tropical plants, cattle, horses, sheep, and even emu are all around us, all the time. It is unbelievable here. We stopped at Arthur’s Pass NP and had lunch. I had meat pies, one with mince and cheese, and the other with lamb. Very good, I’ve never really had a meat pie, but they seem to be really popular here. Stopped at a supermarket, got some fruits, nuts, herbs, meat, snacks, etc. for the next couple days. At sunset we pulled over and spent about a half hour taking pictures of the mountains with a bright full moon right above them, it was absolutely awesome. Hopefully they turn out… At that point, the sun was down, so we drove and stopped when it got dark at the first campground, a small one in a place called Pukekura. Hooked up the van to power, set up our charging station, music, etc., read a chapter in my book, drank some wine, saw a goat, and went to bed.
Day Two - Brisbane to Christchurch NZ
Day 2
Woke up to what sounded like a pleasant rain forest of birds chirping at about 430am. Wandered around the apartment for awhile, then everyone else kinda woke up too. Don’t think I mentioned it, but everyone I’ve met or overheard, seems to be absolutely polite and considerate and welcoming in Australia, and the women are amazingly beautiful. It might just be the places we go, but everyone is in great shape as well. Anyway, back to the topic… Brent and I decided to go to his gym and workout. We got there about 730am, and worked out for about an hour, then came back and had breakfast with Tom and Kristin. I tried all the new fruit I bought the night before. Tangelo, Black Sapote, Kiwi, Banana, Blood Orange, Cantaloupe, and mixed some of them with some really good yogurt and some muslie, which is an oat heavy breakfast mix. Everything was great except the Black Sapote, which evidently wasn’t fully ripe. It was interesting to watch when I cut it, as it oxidized immediately. It went from white to wooden brown in about 5 seconds. But it was the most bitter, nasty thing I’ve eaten, and it left a tickle in my throat that lasted for like 20 minutes. I don’t recommend it.
We went shopping after that, took the bus downtown and went to a cool, major shopping center. I bought all my souvenirs to bring back to the states. There were some really cool stores, I really wanted a Brisbane soccer or cricket jersey or t-shirt, but they were all ugly so I got a random shirt by a cool local brand. This was kinda just a kill time before the airport day, so we rode back in time to repack, eat some awesome kangaroo burgers with avocado, and try some of the different candy bars I bought at the store. We headed to the airport, checked in, and hung out for an hour until the plane came. The whole flight was full of beautiful women and young people. The check-in lady was super nice and gave us seats in the front, and Tom snuck his overweight carry-on for regular price. The flight was good and short, got a small nap in. The biohazard team came in and shut the door until they got to look at some documents. Finally, we got out, and went to customs. Tom got stopped and questioned b/c of our short stay, they said. They searched him and emptied his bag, but everything worked out. We caught a cab to the city center and checked into the hotel SO. We’re in Christchurch, New Zealand at this point, by the way. The hotel was a European style, and was pretty cool. It had blue “ground effects” under the bed, the shower/bathroom was contained in a pod-like structure with a curved sliding door, and also featured a lighting system controlled on the wall. Pretty crazy. We went out and hit a few bars, or clubs as they call ‘em, and Tom described the night with the ladies as Hideo Nomo, or 17 strikeouts. It was really fun though, we met a few really cool people, and realized American culture dominated the scene. The first bar we went to was a karaoke bar and everyone was singing and dancing wildly to Sweet Home Alabama. It was all young people and they danced like 60s and 70s Americans.
Woke up to what sounded like a pleasant rain forest of birds chirping at about 430am. Wandered around the apartment for awhile, then everyone else kinda woke up too. Don’t think I mentioned it, but everyone I’ve met or overheard, seems to be absolutely polite and considerate and welcoming in Australia, and the women are amazingly beautiful. It might just be the places we go, but everyone is in great shape as well. Anyway, back to the topic… Brent and I decided to go to his gym and workout. We got there about 730am, and worked out for about an hour, then came back and had breakfast with Tom and Kristin. I tried all the new fruit I bought the night before. Tangelo, Black Sapote, Kiwi, Banana, Blood Orange, Cantaloupe, and mixed some of them with some really good yogurt and some muslie, which is an oat heavy breakfast mix. Everything was great except the Black Sapote, which evidently wasn’t fully ripe. It was interesting to watch when I cut it, as it oxidized immediately. It went from white to wooden brown in about 5 seconds. But it was the most bitter, nasty thing I’ve eaten, and it left a tickle in my throat that lasted for like 20 minutes. I don’t recommend it.
We went shopping after that, took the bus downtown and went to a cool, major shopping center. I bought all my souvenirs to bring back to the states. There were some really cool stores, I really wanted a Brisbane soccer or cricket jersey or t-shirt, but they were all ugly so I got a random shirt by a cool local brand. This was kinda just a kill time before the airport day, so we rode back in time to repack, eat some awesome kangaroo burgers with avocado, and try some of the different candy bars I bought at the store. We headed to the airport, checked in, and hung out for an hour until the plane came. The whole flight was full of beautiful women and young people. The check-in lady was super nice and gave us seats in the front, and Tom snuck his overweight carry-on for regular price. The flight was good and short, got a small nap in. The biohazard team came in and shut the door until they got to look at some documents. Finally, we got out, and went to customs. Tom got stopped and questioned b/c of our short stay, they said. They searched him and emptied his bag, but everything worked out. We caught a cab to the city center and checked into the hotel SO. We’re in Christchurch, New Zealand at this point, by the way. The hotel was a European style, and was pretty cool. It had blue “ground effects” under the bed, the shower/bathroom was contained in a pod-like structure with a curved sliding door, and also featured a lighting system controlled on the wall. Pretty crazy. We went out and hit a few bars, or clubs as they call ‘em, and Tom described the night with the ladies as Hideo Nomo, or 17 strikeouts. It was really fun though, we met a few really cool people, and realized American culture dominated the scene. The first bar we went to was a karaoke bar and everyone was singing and dancing wildly to Sweet Home Alabama. It was all young people and they danced like 60s and 70s Americans.
Day One - Brisbane
Day 1
After leaving the Omaha airport, Tom and I landed in Salt Lake City for about 10 minutes and then got on the connecting flight to LAX. PS – the flight to SLC was pretty bad. We had a tiny plane 2-2 plane, which was full, and we were seated near the bathroom, which smelled like the most pungent urine smell the whole time, especially if someone opened the door. Which only happened about twenty times. Anyway, I ate my peanuts and drank my tomato juice and we were already in LA. The girl that sat next to Tom didn’t stop talking for one second the whole time, and was almost louder than my headphones could go, and I was in the row ahead of them. We had about two hours to kill, so Tom and I went to Chili’s and had a beer, a shot, and I had some southwest eggrolls. We met a couple next to us who were about to do North and South island New Zealand in about 11 days, and, as we were about to do the South Island in about 5, we had a bunch in common. They were from Oregon, and were fun to talk to. We then made our way to the terminal<>
Got into Brisbane at 605am and went through customs and such. I had to report my DUIs and got a little extra security attention. It was all good, though. Brent picked us up and we loaded our bags into his Nissan Tiita, and headed to his apartment. His place is only a block or two from the riverfront, and his place is nice, and roomy. We showered, shat, met up with Kristin, and went to breakfast at a cool little outdoor restaurant. I had egg and soldiers, bacon, and I tried Vegemite and toast. Vegemite is an Australian tradition, mostly popular with older people. It’s made with a yeast extract, and is pretty salty. In small doses, it’s good, though. Brent and I both enjoy a bit of Vegemite. “Mate” and “Cheers” are very common, and the people here wonder where our accent is from. Brent wanted to keep us up as late as possible to acclimate us to the time change, even though I would have loved a nap. But we packed a full day. We drove around the city after breakfast, went to a really cool lookout over the city, then B and K dropped us off downtown, and we rented bikes to ride in the park, and they were gonna meet us with their bikes later. We rode to the 7-11, got drinks, and browsed a skate shop. Australia doesn’t have pennies, they just round to the 5. Their lowest bill is also a 5. They have 1 and 2 dollar coins. And getting used to the left hand driving was weird. I almost got in the driver’s seat, and most times we turned, I thought we were gonna wreck. Brent met up with us and we rode around for about 2 hours through a really cool riverfront area called South Bank. It was beautiful. Their riverfront has miles of paths and it’s really cool. It was as cool if not more than when I rode across the Golden Gate bridge. We saw where we were going to climb rocks, and rode across the main bridge in Brisbane, the Story Bridge. We went shopping at the grocery store and I bought a bunch of candy and fruit that we don’t have here. After that, we went and hung out at Brent’s place for a bit and went to dinner at a Moroccan restaurant. We split some chicken pastries, bread and dips, lamb kebob, and a Moroccan pizza. Everything was great, the lamb a bit overdone, but otherwise, everything was awesome. After the meal, I just wanted to crash. We got some beer, went back to the house, played a few games of dominoes, and went to bed.
Australia/New Zealand Trip Intro
I completely forgot about posting this, so sorry for the lateness and for the large post at once but here we go...
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