Fiji!

Fiji is the first third world country I have been to and I did not know what to expect at all. I have never felt out of my comfort zone while traveling until I got to Fiji where I immediately felt like I was in between two places. You get of the airplane and are in a semi-rundown airport where men in Hawaiian print t-shirts are playing guitars and ukuleles and singing to you while another man puts a seashell lei around your neck and says "welcome home". Then, you are seated in a van and driven out into the dirty city. My first thoughts were, "What are we doing?" as we passes groceries, dilapidated buildings that would be condemned anywhere but are still open and fully functioning in Fiji and piles of trash all along the roadside.

Our hotel, The Grand West Villas, was about 5 minutes outside of downtown Nadi (pronounced, Nandi) and a short walk to Wailoaloa beach and several other backpackers and small hotels. Grand West Villas is a budget hotel, but is actually quite nice for the location. They had a fantastic swimming pool, decent restaurant (decent meaning prices were a bit much but the food was good) and very friendly staff. After dropping our things off in our room, Eoin and I got a taxi into to town to see what Nadi was like. Let me just interject for a second here and say that we were running on about 4 hours of sleep in the past 36 hours or so having spent the night in the Auckland airport. Not comfy. Anyway, half awake and definitely unaware of where we were and what to expect we got out of the taxi outside of a big gift shop called Jacks.

After poking around in there for a few minutes we walked down Main Street and took it all in. Downtown Nadi is not a place you want to be on 4 hours of sleep at 11:30 in the morning on an empty stomach. It is dirty and a bit sketchy and every single shop employee is trying to get you into their store with "good deals for you". One man came up to us and said "Bula", the Fijian word for hello and brought us to his shop. I'm not sure how it happened but we ended up sitting down for kava with this strange man and his friend. Kava is a drink made from kava root and is said to be tranquilizing, mind clearing and relaxing. Did I know this at the time? No. I thought I'd just be polite and go along with the Fijian tradition (I had read about kava before our trip and knew that in the villages it is customary to partake in the kava ceremony, never read about partaking in the ceremony in a shop though). Eoin opted not to drink the kava, as he was at the state of sleeplessness paranoia and thought it was drugs that would make us die. Silly Eoin. We clapped three times, said Bula, sipped some kava and clapped some more. The kava was a bit spicy, almost like ginger, and gritty. After the kava the shop keepers tried to get us to buy things, and we managed to sneak out and find something to eat. For about 9 Fiji dollars (which would be something like 4 USD) we got fish and chips and fried rice and some cokes. Delish.

Here I am drinking kava.

We were still feeling slightly unsafe and extremely tired so we got another cab back to the hotel and took some much needed naps. That was the extent of the excitement for day one in Fiji, and the next morning we felt much better. We woke up at 6 AM and caught a bus to the pier. There, we boarded a boat to South Sea Island, a private island where you can spend the day laying in the sun, snorkeling, kayaking, swimming, and scuba diving (for an extra charge) as well as free drinks, a buffet lunch and afternoon tea. It was by far the best day in Fiji and perhaps the best beach vacation I have been on. The beach was pristine, the water clear and warm and the sun was out all day. Eoin and I went snorkeling once with a large group out by a coral reef and once by the beach of the island. While out with the group we saw sea cucumbers, several types of tropical fish, and apparently there was an octopus but I didn't see it. Another thing I did not see, but definitely felt was sea lice. They are little critters that love to bit/sting you while you swim through the ocean. It hurt, and Eoin said he could hear me whining under water, but I seriously thought it was a jellyfish or something, those suckers hurt! Eoin went out a second time with another group to another reef afterwards and I took the opportunity to relax in the sun. During our buffet lunch, some of the Fijian's did a bit of a song and dance for us. It was somewhat like the Haka we saw in Rotorua, but not as theatrical and more focused on the singing. It was a really enjoyable day and I would totally go there again if given the chance.

South Sea Island as seen from the boat.

The performance during lunch.

Eoin and me on the beach at South Sea Island

The next day we had a lazy start and hung out at the pool for a while before going on a tour of Nadi. First, we went to the oldest/first village in Fiji. It was not what we were expecting because it is also the richest village, and all of the tours stop there so it is very modern and the locals have tables set up with things to sell. Our guide told us not to buy anything there though, because they go into town and buy their trinkets there and then up sell us in the village. Tricky! Anyway, we learned that the village owns several of the small islands tour companies use for day trips (much like South Sea Island) and gets a percentage of money from them. Our tour guide then brought us to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant. The Sleeping Giant is what the locals call one of the mountains outside Nadi as it looks like a sleeping giant (creative, eh?). There is a garden at the base of the mountain filled with all different types of orchids, ferns and other interesting plant life. We wandered around the garden for about half an hour before heading back to the main hut for some fresh mango nectar, delicious! From there, we went into Nadi town and stopped by the oldest Hindu temple in Fiji, the market, and did a quick round of shopping for souvenirs before heading back to the hotel for dinner. It was a nice relaxing day but we also got to see more of the real Fiji which I don't think many vacationers get to see when they stay at the resorts.

Part of the village.

Orchids in the Garden of the Sleeping Giant

The market in Nadi

For the rest of our time in Fiji we mostly stayed at the pool side and occasionally wandered into Nadi town for gift shopping. We also checked out Wailoaloa beach which was about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. We were expecting the same sort of beach as South Sea Island, but were let down when we got there and saw a trash covered beach with no stalls of any kind (ice cream, snorkel gear etc). however, we made the best of it and read our books and watched the locals fish and ride horses, which was actually really cool to see. We had a quick lunch at one of the other hotels and made it back to Grand West Villas right before the rain started pouring.

Our last day in Fiji was spent sunbathing by the pool and drinking fruit smoothies. Can it get any better?

We are now back in Whangarei and I have found myself a job! I am a nanny for two little girls, Frida (3) and Zita (15 months). I work MTuThF and the occasional Saturday if needed. Not bad at all! They are very easy kids and I am glad I found the job. Eoin is still looking, but hopefully he hears back from a few places soon!

That is all for now, hopefully something exciting happens soon so I can update you all again!

Bye!

Rotorua and Auckland

Rotorua. Definitely one of my favorite places in New Zealand. Eoin and I were fortunate enough to get to visit this place three times. Our third visit was with Mike, and was very enjoyable. No visit to Rotorua is complete without Zorbing, and we all went rolling down the 200 meter hill. For those of you who don't know what Zorbing is, imagine being inside a hamster ball with warm water that is rolling down a hill. Super fun! Mike and Eoin each went seperately and then Eoin went again with me. I am a bit of a wuss (if you didn't know) and did not want to go Zorbing by myself. We also went luging in Rotorua. Just like in Queenstown, there is a skyline gondola with a luge run at the top. Unlike Queenstown, the tracks are much longer (2 km I believe) and there are more to choose from.

We definitely took advantage of all that we could while in Rotorua. My favorite part of our time in Rotorua this time was Mitai Village. Mitai Village is a reconstructed Maori Village that gives tours during the day and at night gives guided walks, hangi (a traditional meal cooked in the ground), and a cultural show.The hangi was chicken, lamb, potatoes, kumara and stuffing that is placed in the ground over hot rocks and covered with blankets and left to cook for three hours. It was delicious! While we waiting for the hangi to finish cooking, though, we watched a show about the Maori culture. We saw several examples of how Maori warriors trained for battle and used weapons. They also sang us several songs, and did a very impressive haka. A haka is a chant usually done before battle to intimidate the opposing side. The All Blacks do a haka during their rugby games. If you have time, look it up on YouTube...very cool stuff!After dinner (which was amazing!) and dessert (which was also amazing!) we went for a brief night walk through the village and saw some glow worms and eels. Ooooooo!

The next day I had a migraine, which was no good. So, unfortunately we didn't do too much exciting until later in the afternoon. We went to Waikite Hot Pools which is a place we had gone before. It is a bunch of hot tubs and pools that are filled with natural hot spring water. For $12, you can relax in hot pools with amazing views all around you. I enjoyed relaxing and Eoin enjoyed pretending he was stranded in the ocean and hung onto the decorative rocks for dear life.

If you ever find yourself in Rotorua and don't know what to do...Zorb, Luge, visit some mud pools and go to Mitai Village. You will not regret it.

After our time in Rotorua, we headed to Auckland. While there we didn't do too much as our funds were running low and Mike was headed home. We did get to go to the Auckland Museum which was pretty interesting but not as impressive as Te Papa. We also saw Wolverwine! Amazing! The cool thing about seeing Wolverine was that large portions of it were filmed in and around Queenstown. Eoin and I recognized a few places and that was really neat. This entry is really rushed, but that's mostly because we leave for Fiji in two days and I wanted to make sure I didn't leave you all hanging!

Right now we are in Whangarei (pronounced: fawn-guh-ray). It's not very impressive and there isn't anything to do. The job situation is looking pretty grim, and while I have applied to about 6 places I haven't heard back from anyone (except Glassons and they turned me down! Jerks!). So I don't know what the situation will be when we get back from our holiday in Fiji, but I will keep you posted!

Next update...Fiji!!!

Abel Tasman and Wellington

After we completed the glacier hike we got back in the car and drove to Greymouth. Greymouth is another place that no one really goes to unless they have to. And really, it was a 2 hour drive after a long day of hiking and we were really tired. We arrived at the hostel, cooked dinner and went to bed. The next morning we packed up the car again and went on a brewery tour at the Monteith's factory. I am not a big fan of beer, or brewery tours but the boys were into it so that was fun to see. They gave us samples of all their beers (7) and a glass of our choice after we had tasted each sample. Since I don't really like beer and Eoin had to drive, Mike got most of mine and Eoin's. After the tour we got back into the car and drove up to Marahau, the top of the south island, where the Abel Tasman Coastal Track is located.

The Abel Tasman Coastal Track is a 3 -5 day walk along an incredibly scenic section of beaches. To get to the end of the track you have to do the five day walk, so by doing the three day walk we got a little more than half-way on the track. We did the hike in three days, because (if you remember), I really hate hiking. But this one wasn't actually so bad. For the most part it was fairly flat with a few steep uphill climbs that wouldn't have been bad if I didn't have a backpack on. The best part was definitely the views and the various beaches along the way. We had beautiful, sunny warm weather the entire time and it was so nice to relax on the beach after walking for a few hours. While I was relaxing in the warm sun, Eoin and Mike went off exploring the beaches. The climbed on giant rocks, explored some caves and caused mayhem wherever they went. We spent our nights camping out in our tents just a few yards from the shore. It was like having one of those sound effect machines but 100 times better because it was real waves. Very relaxing! When we finished our section of the hike we waiting for a water taxi to pick us up and bring us back to the start of the track, where our hostel was and where we had left the car. We changed into normal clothes (we had been in polypro/dirty shorts for the hike) and drove off towards dinner and Picton. We ate a delicious dinner of KFC and McDonald's. Yummm?

After filling up on processed meat and deep fried potatoes we drove on to Picton, where our ferry to Wellington would leave the following morning. Our night in Picton was SO exciting. We showered and went to sleep. Jealous? We woke up early and got on the ferry by 8 AM and arrived in Wellington by 11:30. We dropped our stuff off at our friends, Jason and Tammy, house and took Mike on a bit of a walking tour of Wellington. I stopped in Glassons to say hi to the girls and then we went to a few of the book shops downtown.

The next day was definitely more exciting, Eoin and Mike went out to explore for a while I stayed back and worked on stuff for school. When I had finished my school work, I met the boys downtown and we walked through the botanical gardens.We took the cable car up and walked down the main walkway and back through down via Lambton Quay. Once again, I popped into Glassons (it's an addiction) and bought a nice coat. THANKS MOM!After I had my fun shopping, we went to Te Papa and did the abridged tour. We took Mike to our personal favorite parts of the museum and by dinner time we had made good use of our time. Dinner was a delicious meal from our personal favorite Fish n Chips place, Leo's. Tammy and I were girly girls and stayed in to watch Project Runway, but the boys went out and ran amok in downtown Wellington. The next morning was our last day in town, and we spent it packing up and eating as much Nando's as possible. Nando's is a Portuguese chicken restaurant that Eoin and I love more than anything, it is SO GOOD. Anyway, after eating we got back into the car and drove 5 hours to Taupo. Taupo is where Eoin was planning to sky dive.

Next time I will write about Rotorua, Auckland and Whangerei!Thanks for checking in everyone.

A view of the Abel Tasman Coast. Amazing!

A limestone structure with trees on it. This is one spot Eoin and Mike climbed up.

Eoin and Mike walking ahead of me on the way to one of the campsites.

The beach where we waited for the water taxi. Not bad, huh?

Franz Josef- it's cool!

After Doubtful Sound, Eoin and I headed back to our last weeks of work. Eoin's last day was two days before my last day which was April 14th. That same day, Eoin's friend Mike arrived for a two and a half week visit. It was good timing for Mike, because he not only got to see Queenstown (where there is SO much to do) he also got to join us on our road trip from the south island to the north island. Mike's time in Queenstown wasn't too exciting because Eoin and I had to pack up, clean the flat and sort everything out for the trip (get directions, book hostels etc). However, we did manage to get to Deer Park Heights (the now famous Queenstown attraction where I fed a llama) and Eoin and Mike also went to the luge. On our last day in town, we packed up the car and did a last minute clean up before heading out to Franz Josef.

Franz Josef is about 5 hours (by car) from Queenstown. It is the type of place you would drive right through and not even know it, seriously. Why would we stop off in a place more boring than Alfred during winter break? GLACIERS! Franz Josef village is home to the Franz Josef glacier which is 12 km long, and is the only glacier in the world that is growing and retreating as opposed to simply retreating. Now glaciers are cool to look at and all, but you really can't get a feel for how massive they are until you walk on one. Even I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into, but it was definitely worth it.

The day started early, about 8 AM, with a quick breakfast followed by a short walk to the Franz Josef Glacier Guides center. There, we put on thick socks, hiking boots, gloves, rain pants, hats and a rain coat before we climbed on board the bus. The bus drove us about 10 minutes down the road to the start of the park in which the glacier is located. We walked about an hour before we made it to the base of the glacier, where we were separated into groups of 10 and put on our crampons (metal hooks that go on your shoes to help you walk on the ice). THEN the fun could begin!

In order to get onto the glacier you had to climb up a series of steps carved out in the ice. There was a rope attached to the side to hold on to, and even though we had crampons on, it was still a bit slippery. We hiked up and around the glacier, a total of about 12 km (up and back) going through several ice tunnels, jumping across huge ravines and shimming our way through tight crevices. Oh, and did I mention the blue ice? Yeah BLUE ICE!! Eoin may say that the huge ravine was not huge or a ravine, but to me it was. If I have to go into a split to get to the other side, its huge. And if I were to misstep and fall, I would be several feet down and probably dead, so it was a ravine. Despite this, I still had a good time and was surprised at how well I did on the glacier, despite my lack of outdoorsy-ness and love of hiking. After about 6 hours we had hiked the glacier half-way up and back and were getting back onto the bus to the village.

On a side note, our tour guide was insane! He was constantly chipping away random pieces of ice, trying to start new caves by himself, climbing up on dangerous ledges and chopping away at them while he was standing on it and kicking over huge boulders that weren't even in our way. Ridic!

The glacier from afar...still about 45 minutes away from the base.

Here I am climbing up out of a huge hole!

Coming through a tunnel.

Mike, Eoin and I at the heighest point in our walk.

Doubtful Sound

Before we left Queenstown, before we quit our jobs and before Mike came to visit, Eoin and I went on an overnight to Doubtful Sound. We left on a Tuesday morning and took a tour bus to Manapouri, a small town situated on a lake. We hopped off the bus and waited for our ferry to arrive. The only way to get to Doubtful Sound is by ferry via Lake Manapouri. The ferry ride was about 45 minutes and when we disembarked we were met by another bus that took us to the dock at Doubtful Sound where our cruise would depart.

The Navigator is a good sized ship with several bunk rooms, viewing decks, dining room and an observation lounge. It sleeps 70 people (plus staff) and they have an amazing dinner and breakfast buffet, not to mention the fresh muffins and soup available as well.

We left the dock and made our way out into the fjord (yup, just like Milford Sound...Doubtful Sound is actually a fjord). There are three "arms" to Doubtful sound, and we went down each one. We stopped off in Crooked Arm (guess why its called that) and had the option to go kayaking or take a cruise in a tender boat. Eoin opted for the kayaks and I went in the tender boat (basically a small little motor boat) and took pictures. We were out cruising and kayaking around for about an hour before we got back on board, when they made the announcement that the "swimming pool" was now open. Guess who jumped in the freezing cold water....EOIN. Four other people also had a lapse in sanity and joined him in the water. Crazy crazy crazy.

After everyone was back aboard the ship we continued out of crooked arm and towards the sea. I got a bit seasick and wound up sitting the observation deck with my head on the window trying not to puke, while Eoin and everyone else on the boat were outside watching the fur seals play. I managed to watch the seals a bit, but really, all I could think about was not throwing up. Finally, to my relief, the captain turned the boat around and we headed back into the sound/fjord.

Then, it was (in my opinion) time for the best part! BUFFET DINNER! Lamb, chicken, roast beef, potatoes, kumara, 3 types of salads, rice, and bread. So delicious! Followed by an amazing dessert buffet...pavlova, chocolate cake, cheesecake and fruit salad. Definitely the best part.

By now it was probably 8 PM and they had a bit of a nature slide show for those that were interested, so of course Eoin and I went to that. It was about the animals we might see in the fjord and also about animals all over NZ (kiwi, possum etc). Apparently, there used to be Moose in the Fiordland National Park, but no one has seen them for years. There is one guy, known as the "Moose Man" who is determined to prove/find a moose. He goes out everyday looking for droppings, prints, fur ...anything. Well, apparently he found sound moose hairs a while ago and is 100% sure the moose are still out there. No one else thinks there are any though. Poor "Moose Man".

After the slide show, at about 9, we went to bed. Seriously. We were exhausted. Oh wait, Eoin and I played a few rounds of Connect Four and THEN we went to bed. The next morning there was another fabulous buffet... cereals, fresh fruit, yogurt, toast, hash browns, baked beans, sausage, grilled tomatoes etc. Followed by a "Sound of Silence" in one of the arms. Basically, we all stood outside on the deck and made no noise for about 5 minutes...this was a difficult task for Eoin. But it was cool, we could hear all the birds in the forest, the waterfalls, wind blowing through the trees...very neat experience.

We then went back to the dock and disembarked the ship, got on a bus and headed home. :( Back to work.

Eoin and some other people kayaking in crooked arm.

The Navigator

Another scenic shot of Doubtful Sound with the kayakers.

Update coming...I Promise!

Been sooooooooo busy with Mike's visit, moving from Queenstown, traveling the two islands and looking for a new job and apartment. Haven't had anytime to update but I promise you...a super long and awesome entry is on the way!

Alexa

PS: got ourselves a room in a sweet house with Filipino roomies. Applied to two jobs...looking promising!

Eoin's Dad visits and we walk the Routeburn Track

It's funny how I can go weeks without anything exciting to update about and then all of a sudden have so much to say. I feel slightly disorganised with this blog entry so bear with me, please. I have a feeling this will be quite a long entry.

Eoin's dad arrived in Queenstown on March 11th (Wednesday). Thursday and Friday are my days off, so the three of us did some touristy things together. On Thursday we did the Lord of the Rings safari tour in Glenorchy. I am not a huge LOTR fan so it was mostly just some nice scenery that I was looking at. We stopped in a few places that were important for the film, though. We saw where the cast and crew met every morning for make-up/costumes/food as well as the spot the elephant battle began. I think Eoin got more out of it than either David or I, but I can't say that he was particularly impressed with the tour either. After the tour, we did some grocery shopping and went home to make some delicious fajitas. Amazing.

On Friday we hopped on the TSS Earnslaw (the boat I also went on with my mom) and cruised over to Walter Peak Station. Walter Peak used to be a working farm with sheep, cows, and deer and is now a tourist attraction. We had a barbecue lunch, which was amazing (and worked out to be only about 10 dollars with our locals discount!) and saw a sheep herding and shearing presentation. The rest of the week I had to work, but I did manage to get up to the luge one last time with Eoin and David.

Here I am posing with a sheep!

All in all, Eoin and I definitely enjoyed eating at restaurants and having astronomical amounts of food in the flat. We don't need to go grocery shopping for the rest of our time in Queenstown (except for little things of course but really, that doesn't count!).

----------

The start of the Routeburn Track

For the past three days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) Eoin and I have been out in the Aspiring National Park and Fiordland National Park hiking the Routeburn. Putting it nicely, I was not excited at all about this trip. I am so un-outdoorsy its not even funny. I sucked it up (eventually) and trudged along for 3 days in the alpines of New Zealand. It was a lot easier than the Tongariro Crossing, but there were still some steep sections and lots of narrow paths with long drop offs if you miss stepped. The scenery was amazing- rugged mountains with glaciers, waterfalls and moss covered trees all around.

Walking on the track. Day two.

We averaged about 4-5 hours of walking each day with water breaks and lunch thrown in. We spent the nights at huts situated along the trail. Our first night we each had our own bunk on a bunk bed. The second night we shared a platform with two other people. It's a bit odd but there was enough space that it wasn't too awkward. We were in bed by 9:30 at the latest each night, and on the trails by 9:00 AM each morning.

Not a very attractive picture, but this is me walking along the waterfall.

As much as I hate (and I do mean hate) hiking the Routeburn wasn't that bad. My legs are definitely sore today, and my feet are a bit tired but I had an "okay" time. (I am not saying I had "fun" though haha).

One thing I noticed on the hike, though, is the vast difference between Americans and people from other countries. While on the hike, there was a group of four Americans, roughly our age that were staying at the same hut as us. They were talking rather loudly and I overheard them talking about how the hike the next day was "only" 10 miles and that one of the girls could "run that in an hour". They planned to finish by noon the following day, and wanted to be the fastest ones on the track. They were complaining that the trail wasn't challenging enough and it was too easy.

Meanwhile, while they were rushing through the Routeburn, everyone else was going at a nice slow pace, enjoying the outdoors, taking in the scenery and having a good time with their friends. No other place I have been as had such competitive people as the Americans. It's not about finishing the quickest, or being first. It's about the overall experience. If you can run a mile in 6 minutes, that's great, but did you look around while you were running? Did you have fun? Did you take it all in? If you can run a mile in 10 minutes I bet you see more than the person who ran it in 6. Being fast, first or the "best" does not make you a better person. In fact, I felt embarrassed by the group of Americans in the hut. I feel that people everywhere get the impression that we ( Americans) are "too good" for them. We aren't. We just like to think we are better.

I could go on and on about this, and maybe its "anti-American" (which is a stupid term anyway), but no other country, that I have been to, parades their patriotism as extremely as we do.

Alright, enough babbling. I need to get showered and dressed and off to work. Today is Otago Day (which is somewhat like Independence Day but on a smaller scale and only in the Otago County) so I get paid time and a half!

Miss you all!