Marlborough Sounds

So I've just spent the last 10 days or so in the Marlborough Sounds. And it was so beautiful! It didn't rain at all, and most days were sunny and hot (just how I like it!). I started off by spending 2 nights in Okiwi Bay, on the road to French Pass. Most of the visitors and locals that live around the Okiwi Bay / French Pass area live for fishing. And they love their boats. The lodge where I stayed in Okiwi Bay constantly had the radio tuned into Maritime Radio. I didn't do much the first 2 days, except relax in the sun and take the drive to French Pass, which was really beautiful. Below are some pictures from the drive to French Pass.

After leaving Okiwi Bay, I spent the next 5 nights at a backpackers called Hopewell, which is also in Marlborough Sounds, just along Kenepuru Sound. Even though Okiwi Bay and Hopewell are really close to each other on the map, it took me about 4 or 5 hours to drive to Hopewell because the road is all windy along the coastline. Marlborough Sounds is cool like that because it has hundreds and hundred of kilometers of coastline, even though it takes up such a small space on the map. Anyhow, Hopewell was the best backpackers I've stayed in since I've been here in New Zealand. It was a remote, small retreat, with plenty of activities, and plenty of time to relax. I did alot of reading (and sleeping) in the super comfortable hammock, some soaking in the hot spa, kayaking, fishing, hiking, and eating fresh seafood!

On my first full day at Hopewell, I went on this motor boat tour around Kenepuru and Pelorus Sounds. The guide has his own motor boat, and then 2 people pair up and ride in their own motor boat, staying within 500 meters of the guide. I got paired up with Willy, a 16-year old from Switzerland who had never driven a car before! He and I split up the driving of the motor boat, and when I was driving, we were going all slow and steady. But when he got behind that motor, we were zippin' all around the Sounds, which was so much more fun! So I was happy when I wasn't driving the boat, and just enjoying the wind blowing through my hair. We made a stop at one point to see a 1,000+ year old rimu tree! And we also saw some stingrays floating along the surface of the water. Below is a picture from the boat trip.



The following day, I woke up at 5:30 in the morning (!) to go fishing with 2 blokes from the UK (Joel and Ray), and one guy from Japan (Ryo). Ryo also works at Hopewell in exchange for accommodation, and he was really hospitable. He did most of the work on our wee fishing trip--rowed the boat, cut up the bait, etc. And he was the best fisherman. He caught 3 snapper (we called him Captain Snapper, cuz he had also caught 6 snapper the previous morning). Joel caught 1 snapper on our trip. And well, me and Ray, we just caught some tiny kowhai that we threw back into the water. So we got 4 snapper for our boat, and upon returning to Hopewell, we each gutted and scaled a snapper, to be cooked and eaten later. I cooked mine the next day in olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon, and it was gooooood! Below is a picture of the snapper I cooked and ate, after it was gutted and scaled, but before it was gracefully beheaded and put in the oven. :)



Another treat at Hopewell was the green mussel nights, compliments of the hosts. On 2 of the nights I stayed there, one of the owners went out and collected hundreds of mussels from one of the many mussel farms in the Marlborough Sounds. When he brought them back, they steamed them and served them to all the guests with red curry, garlic butter, and other great sauces. All the guests sat around a huge table covered in newspaper, and ate these green mussels that were each the size of a cell phone. The cutest thing was when the 2 cats belonging to the owners got up on a chair around the table, waiting to be fed some mussels. And plenty of mussels they got, those spoiled little cats. :) Even though I'm not a huge fan of mussels, I really liked these mussels. It was a meal in itself. And it was a great way for everyone to get to know each other. Below are pictures from the mussel feast.





On my last full day at Hopewell, I went on a hike to Pete's Peak, which is 520 meters high, and about a 5 hour return trip from Hopewell. I started hiking with these 3 girls, and the dog belonging to the owners of Hopewell (his name is King) started following us. I had taken King for a walk earlier that day, and I was afraid he thought we were taking him for another walk. So about 30 minutes into the hike, I took King back to Hopewell, because I really didn't think he would be able to make it on a 5-hour journey, climbing 520 meters. After taking him back, I started on the hike again, by myself. About an hour later I bumped into Christian (from Germany) who was also staying in the same room as me at Hopewell. Christian was also going to Pete's Peak, so we hiked together. Christian was hilarious, so it was alot of fun hiking with him. He kept talking about how he wanted to hurt himself climbing the peak so that he could get a helicopter ride, like I did on the Milford trek. When we got to the top of the peak, after a long, hard climb, the views were beautiful and we met the girls who I had started hiking with in the beginning of the day. We found a bottle under a rock at the peak, which contained a bunch of notes from people over the past few years who had reached that peak, writing their impressions. Alot of the notes talked about how King (the dog belonging to the owners of Hopewell) had also come to the peak! So maybe I should've let King come after all! Anyhow, below are some pictures from Pete's Peak.

After returning to Hopewell, Christian and I were limping around, in pain from the long hike that day. That night, there were 2 American girls also in our room, one of whom was from Maryland and the other from Virginia. They were hilarious, and that night the 4 of us just joked around and laughed so hard it hurt, for at least an hour before going to bed. It felt like we had all known each other for a long time, and it was good fun.

After leaving Hopewell, I went on to stay at Mahana Homestead, which was also really beautiful, for 2 nights. Mahana Homestead is on the Queen Charlotte track, so while there, I took a 4 hour walk from Punga Cove to Furneaux Lodge. Below is a picture from the walk, which was pretty flat and easy.

So that was my trip to the Marlborough Sounds! I'm in Kaikoura right now, and will do some whale and dolphin watching tours while here. Stay tuned....

Onward....

So I've finished working, and from here on I just get to enjoy the "holiday" part of my "working holiday." Yeah!!! Over the next 6 weeks I'll just be travelling around the parts of the South Island that I haven't seen yet.

I've left the Laughing Kiwi, which I'll really miss living at. I met tons of cool people there, and also some weirdos (who made the stay amusing, sometimes frustrating, but gave us all something to talk about). Below is a picture of the Laughing Kiwi, where I lived the past 5 weeks. I would often wake up early in the morning and do a short yoga routine on the patio there.



Amber, who manages the Laughing Kiwi, was really awesome--laid back, funny, and good-hearted. Although she wasn't thrilled about me taking a picture of her when she was so tired, she gave in. Here's Amber.



On my last night at the Laughing Kiwi, I met a lovely girl from Germany. Her name is Sandra. We got to talking, and she told me about how she had been really worried about finding a job, and that she didn't sleep the night before because of it. So I gave her my copy of "The Power of Now" (the most powerful book I've read recently). I had been wanting to pass that book along to someone, and it seemed right to pass it along to her. In exchange, she gave me a book that she really liked--a book on dreams, and how to become conscious when you're dreaming. Because I was telling her how I usually have the weirdest, craziest dreams that I never seem to remember. So I'm really looking forward to reading that book.

Another friendly face I often visited while I lived in Motueka was the one below. Edith has an organic garden in Motueka. She practices chi gong while gardening. So her vegetables are very special. I often went to her garden to buy her amazing orange tomatoes (the best I've ever had!), fresh basil, zucchini, and whatever else looked good, which was just about everything! Edith and I always had nice chats. She would often send me home with some extras, like the flower from her over-grown coriander (because she knew I loved coriander).



After leaving Motueka, my first stop was Nelson Lakes National Park. But I only stayed there for 2 nights cuz I didn't really feel like doing any of the long hikes around there--I was just feeling too tired. And 2 nights was plenty to just hang out on the lake (relaxing), with the gang of sandflies (not so relaxing). Here's a picture of Lake Rotoiti in Nelson Lakes National Park.



So I left Nelson Lakes this morning and came to Nelson for the night, cuz I really like Nelson. Tomorrow I head for Marlborough Sounds, where I'll be spending the next 10 days or so, relaxing, hiking, kayaking, swimming, reading, cooking, sleeping. I'm really looking forward to it.

Totaranui campground in the Abel Tasman National Park

I have now completed the entire Abel Tasman coastal hike. It took me a few weeks, doing different parts of the hike on different days. But I finished it. Earlier this week I had the most amazing time camping at Totaranui, which is a beach in the Abel Tasman national park. I intended to only stay for one night, but I loved it so much I stayed an extra night. And I might have stayed longer if I didn't have to work. On Sunday, I drove to the campground, which was about a 2 hour drive from Motueka. Totaranui is really the only part of the Abel Tasman park you can drive to. When I got there, the sun was beaming and it was hot (that's the way I like it!) The first thing I did was drive around the campground (which is huge) to find a good spot to set up camp. When I found my spot, I attempted to put up the tent I rented. One of my camp neighbors saw me fumbling around trying to figure out how the thing worked, and luckily came over to help me put it up. He got my tent up in just under 10 minutes, which was good because otherwise I might have been there until midnight. Totaranui is a popular Kiwi holiday spot. Alot of Kiwi families come there around this time of year and spend 10 or 11 days camping at Totaranui. And I tell ya'....they camp in style! I was really impressed and amazed by the size of these tents people had set up. Alot of them were the size of a house...no joke! I have never seen such big tents in my life. Some people had set up an extra tent just for cooking, with dining table and chairs, and some with barbecue grills. They slept on air mattresses and had space for hanging their clothes...on hangers! Alot of people brought these "hot camp shower" bags that you hang from a tree, let the sun heat up the water and you get a warm shower. I guess that's the nice thing about car camping--you can bring anything and everything! So my little tent looked kinda dinky compared to the others. :) And all I had was a sleeping bag, cold food, and some clothes stuffed into my pack. All of my camp neighbors were really friendly and offered me hot water and coffee (even though I didn't need either). The campsite was great cuz it was close to the beach, and you can hear the waves crashing on the beach as you're falling asleep and waking up. And the campsite had flushing toilets (big plus in my book!) and cold showers (better than no shower at all). There was also this small laundry room where you can hand wash your clothes in the tub, and then put them through this manual clothes dryer that squeezes all the drip out of your laundry. Below are pictures of my tent, the little inlet where my tent was set up (where you can see the size of some of the other tents), and the laundry room (which I thought was really cool, especially the gadget for drying your clothes).







So I camped at Totaranui for 2 nights. On the first day, I took the coastal walk from Totaranui down south to Awaroa. That walk wasn't much different from the other parts of the Abel Tasman walk that I had already done (from Marahau to Onetahuti Bay). On the second day, I took the coastal track from Totaranui up north to Separation Point, which I've concluded is the most magnificent part of the park. I think this is because Totaranui is the northernmost point for the water taxis to stop, and so the only way to see the park north of Totaranui is by foot or kayak. The further north I walked, the more secluded the beaches became. And alot of the walk from Totaranui to Separation Point was on the sandy beach itself (as opposed to the forest). Below are some pictures from my walk from Totaranui to Separation Point.











Separation Point was cool cuz there were a bunch of seals out there swimming in the water. And you can get really close to them. Other seals were just hangin' out on the rocks. Some of the seals liked the sun, and some liked the shade. Below are some pictures I took at Separation Point.









On Tuesday morning, I had to get up early to pack up all my stuff and get to work at the backpackers in the morning. (The tent was much easier to take down than it was to get up!) So I decided to take my muesli and powder milk (mixed with water) to the beach and watch the sunrise.

Mount Arthur in the Kahurangi National Park

Sometime last week I took a day and hiked up to the Mount Arthur hut in Kahurangi National Park. Mount Arthur hut is one of the backcountry huts under the jurisdiction of the Department of Conservation. Basically, you buy a backcountry hut pass, hike to wherever you want to go, and stay the night in any of the backcountry huts. It's a really cool system they have here, so you don't have to drag a tent around. Mount Arthur hut was nice and cozy, with 8 bunks, a gas heater, and candles. The heater was nice cuz it was pretty cold up at 1300 meters elevation. I started my journey by driving up to Flora's carpark, an uphill gravel road for alot of the way, and my car made it! Flora's carpark sits at 900 meters. From there, I hiked up to the Mount Arthur hut, which sits at 1300 meters. After dropping my pack off at the hut, I attempted to hike up to Mount Arthur, which is at 1900 meters, but when I got about halfway there it got really windy and Mount Arthur was covered in cloud. The view from the top of Mount Arthur is supposed to be magnificent on a nice, clear day. Even though I didn't get the view, the walk was still nice. Here are a few pictures from my walk and my stay at the Mount Arthur hut.

The World of Wearable Arts Museum

A few weeks ago it was raining pretty hard and I had a day off, so I decided to drive to Nelson and visit the famous World of Wearable Arts (WOW) museum. It was one of the coolest museums I've been to. The WOW competition started in the 1980s in Nelson. Artists submitted various wearable art pieces using all kinds of crazy materials. It's grown since the 1980s, and now people from all over the world submit pieces. Each year they have a huge show, with funky music and models doing their thing on the catwalk, showing off the wearable arts. The museum prohibits photographs, so unfortunately I can't share what I saw. But I'll try to describe some of the pieces as best I can. One section of the competition is the "bizarre bra" competition. The most memorable was a bra created by 2 men from India (yes, this is true). It was a beehive bra. The actual bra looked like a beehive, and there were about 20 little bees flying around the beehive/bra. One artist made an entire dress from hundreds of golf tees. Another artist made hundreds of origami pieces and put them together to create a dress. Others used foam, cinnamon sticks, car parts, and other recycled materials to create wearable pieces. The WOW show is in Wellington this year in September. Too bad I'll miss it!

Racism in New Zealand

So the old crew left the Laughing Kiwi (the backpackers where I work in exchange for accommodation). And a new crew came in. Claude (from Germany) and Ling (from the UK) were amongst the new crew, and we got along really well. I only knew them for a week and it felt like we had known each other for years. We shared lots of laughs. Claude and Ling left today, hitchhiking from Motueka to Golden Bay and Farewell Spit. All Claude ever talked about was going to Wharariki Beach (near Farewell Spit), so I'm glad she's on her way there. It was nice meeting Claude cuz she and I shared similar political beliefs (which I don't find alot over here).

Anyhow, now onto the title of this blog--racism. So sometime last week Ling and I were walking to the Department of Conservation office. I was going to drive (cuz I've become lazy and drive everywhere). But then Ling laughed at me, so we decided to walk. Ling was born in the UK, but her family is from China. We had only been walking for 2 minutes when a white guy drove by and screamed out his window, "go back to your country or I'll f--king kill you!" We were totally in shock for a few minutes. The idiot obviously didn't consider that my country is the US, and Ling's country is the UK. I told Ling, "hmmmm...one of the few times I've walked in Motueka and this is what happens....should've driven!"

In general, I'm usually the only person of color wherever I go. So lots of white people ask me where I'm from, and when I say the US, these are some of the responses I've gotten:

• The guy at the vehicle testing center put his arm right next to mine and said, "you don't look US!" To which I responded, "yes, I am US, we are people of all colors."

• A traveler who was staying at the Laughing Kiwi pointed at me and declared, "you're from India!," and when I said, "no, I'm from the US," he started laughing...."hahahaha." I didn't understand what was so funny.

• A guy at the Totaranui campsite earlier this week just comes up to me and says, "we were in your part of the world just last month." I just looked at him. Then he says, "you're from India, right?" I said, "no, I'm from the US." He got confused and then just said, "oh, well we were in India last month."

• A guest at the lodge where I work said, "oh, that's quite a different accent you have, where are you from?" When I told him the US, he responds, "oh, you don't sound like you're from the US." I think my accent is pretty American. But he probably meant that I don't look like I'm from the US cuz I'm not white.

I also heard one of the travelers staying at the Laughing Kiwi ask Ling if she was here studying English. Because Ling was born and brought up in the UK, she speaks English fluently. When she told him she was born in the UK, he responded, "oh, most Asian-looking people I meet here are studying English." But actually, most of the European tourists here are studying, or have studied, English as a second language.

So those have been some of my experiences with race and racism here in the South Island. I guess ignorant people are everywhere. I try not to get angry or upset. I just feel sorry for them.

Motueka and the Abel Tasman National Park

Hey all. Whew! It feels like alot has happened in the past week and a half. I'm living in Motueka (aka, "Mot") right now, which is about 45 minutes from Nelson, and 15 minutes from Kaiteriteri Beach (where I work). I found a flat to live in when I arrived in Motueka. But that didn't work out, so I moved out after 3 days and I've been living at The Laughing Kiwi (a backpackers/hostel) this past week, where I work in exchange for accommodation. Living at the hostel is great fun, so I think I'll stay there for the rest of my time here in Motueka (about 4 and a half more weeks). The other girls who are working/living at the hostel are lots of fun--Amy from Australia, Gina from Germany, Vivian from China, and Amelie from Germany (whose mom is French--hence the name Amelie). Amy is super goofy and hyper and she dances around and sings all the time (never failing to entertain us), Gina is giggly, Amelie and Vivian are mellow, and all 4 of them are really sweet and great to live with. There's also a fat, fluffy cat named Birdie who belongs to the woman who manages and also lives at the hostel. Birdie is very friendly and she loves being pet, which is good for me cuz I love petting fluffy cats! And there are tons of travelers coming in and out of The Laughing Kiwi every night, so it's nice to get to meet and talk to lots of people. Sometimes the conversation with travelers gets mundane--the same basic questions: 1) where are you from; 2) how long have you been here; 3) how long are you planning to stay here; 4) where have you been; 5) where are you going, etc. But still, it's great talking to other travelers and getting tips on where to go and what to see, and also learning a little about other countries and finding out what motivates others to travel.

Earlier this week I had a couple of days off, and thankfully both days were sunny and warm. So one day I just drove around Motueka and discovered all these tiny little fruit and vegetable shops, where the people running the shops have their own gardens and sell the goodies right there. Alot of them were unattended and just had an "honesty box" where you drop your money and take what you need. My first stop was a "pick your own boysenberries" place. That was super cool. I spent a good 30 minutes inspecting and picking boysenberries right off the tree, and eating them within 10 minutes of picking/purchasing them. My second stop was a place that sold the most amazing cherry tomatoes I have ever had. They were orange and sooooo sweet--better than candy! I found another place that had the biggest, plumpest, juiciest blueberries. I ate the whole carton in 15 minutes--I just couldn't stop, and I didn't even try to save some for later. I love having access to all these amazing fruits and veggies here in Motueka.

On the second day I had off earlier this week, I took a one day hike along the coastal track of the Abel Tasman National Park. The Abel Tasman trek is one of the most popular in New Zealand, and the start of it is less than 30 minutes from Motueka. I still have a booking to do the 5-day trek on the Abel Tasman in late February, but I've decided I'm going to cancel that (in light of my trials and tribulations on the Milford Trek last month). So instead, I've decided to do several one-day hikes on the coastal track over the next few weeks. The Abel Tasman trek is nice in that you can take a water taxi to any major point on the trek, hike to wherever you want to go, and take a water taxi back. So this week I got hooked up with a free water taxi (through my work) from Kaiteriteri Beach to Tonga Island/Onetahuti Beach, and I walked about 14 km to Torrent Bay, and then got a water taxi back to Kaiteriteri Beach. The weather was beautiful and I got some really nice views (which you'll see from the pictures below).







The highlight of the trek was a side route I decided to take, leading me down to Sandfly Bay. There were just a few kayakers who had decided to stop at that beach and hang out for a while. The beach was so clean and pristine. Here are some pictures of Sandfly Bay (the first one is the view from the top of the track, and the next two are from the beach itself once I walked down). I think the picture where you can see the ripples in the sand is really cool.







After climbing back up from Sandfly Bay to pick up the track again, I kept on walking and the end of my hike was at Torrent Bay, where the water taxi picked me up again. I had a little time to splash around in the bay before the water taxi arrived. Good thing I wore my bathing suit! Below are some pictures of Torrent Bay.





So that's just a peak into the Abel Tasman. Once I walk other parts of the trek, I'll post some more pictures. Cheers!

From Queenstown to Nelson Via the West Coast

Well I've made the move from Queenstown to Nelson. I think what I'll miss most about Queenstown is my flatmates. Below are pictures of Emma, Lee, and Lee's girlfriend Sharon (aka Britt). The first picture is typical Emma...lounging on the couch sipping her shiraz after a long day at work. Emma's awesome. We're really different, but we got along well. Lee and Britt are also really awesome...always happy and cheery (as you can see from the second picture below).

Well after leaving Queenstown on my journey up to Nelson, my first stop along the west coast route was Fox Glacier. It was cloudy and/or rainy the entire 3 days I was there. I didn't actually see Fox Glacier, but I did drive about 20 minutes to see Franz Josef Glacier (in the rain). So I actually didn't get any pictures of the glacier, cuz again, my camera's not waterproof. But it was a cool sight. My next stop, which was my favorite, was Punakaiki, home of the pancake rocks. The trip was made better because the sun was shining while I was there. I stayed at the Punakaiki Beach Hostel, which is right on the beach! Below are some pictures from the pancake rock viewing area. The pancake rocks are unique (because they look like stacks of pancakes) and even scientists can't fully explain the phenomenon.

Also from the viewing area was a blowhole, from the waves crashing onto the rocks at high tide. Below is a picture of the mist coming out of the blowhole.

And the sunset in Punakaiki was just beautiful, as you can see below. This was the view from the balcony of the beach hostel.



From Punakaiki, I went onto Golden Bay. I stayed in Takaka one night, and the next 2 nights I stayed in Onekaka at a eco-friendly hostel overlooking the bay, with solar power and composting toilets. I wasn't so keen on the composting toilets, and was happy to move on to a place with flushing toilets. :) While in Golden Bay, I took a walk along parts of a long, narrow stretch of sand called Farewell Spit that curves around at the tip of the South Island. Later, I went to a nearby beach called Wharariki Beach, which was quite nice. Below is a picture from the beach.

From Golden Bay I drove on to Nelson, taking 2 German backpackers with me, whom I met at the hostel with the composting toilets. Yesterday there was a cool outdoor market in Nelson's city center, with booths selling fruits, vegetables, fresh herbs, freshly made breads, clothes, jewelry, etc. That was really nice because there were no such markets in Queenstown. And you all know how much I love farmers markets! Yesterday was really hot and sunny in Nelson, so after the market, I went on a short walk with one of the girls at the hostel (also an American) to the "center of New Zealand," which supposedly marks the very center of the country. After that I visited the Miyazu Japanese Garden in Nelson, where you could find a little bit of yin and a little bit of yang.

Tomorrow I go on to Kaiteriteri Beach, just about 40 minutes from Nelson, where I'll be working for the next 6 or 7 weeks.