New Zealand

Pictures!
Synopsis:
Yas, Makiko, and I hang-glided off a mountain, hiked a glacier, kayaked to a vineyard, carved jade, and graced the most famous hotel in New Zealand with our presence. But perhaps the most poignant aspect of our roadtrip of the South Island, were the conversations around joy, fulfillment, and cultural deviance.


More details than you ever wanted to know…
Day One:
Departing from the ship, I had Xeroxed half the Lonely Planet guide (literally, half, thank goodness there aren’t copying limits for staff) so that we could navigate our planned route of South Island. A happenstance stop to buy our airport bus tickets, resulted in a travel agent insisting that we would see more “dramatic” scenery if we rerouted. Releasing my breath slowly and contemplating purchasing the NZ$60 Lonely Planet guide for sake of the other half that I had not Xeroxed, I absorbed this newfound information. A short flight to Christchurch, a few more opinions, and car keys in hand, we hopped into the car, and Makiko pulled out onto the left side of the road as we decided “dramatic” was definitely more our style. J

Day Two:
I do not know if I should blame or thank my mother, but I think I have a deep-seeded love for grocery stores. Isle by isle, the abundance of choices and nuances, sales, they’re just so enticing. Rumored to have the best prices in all of the South Island, Pac-n-Save quickly became a must-see on our way out of Christchurch. A mere 1.5 hours satisfied our grocery store obsession, and with over NZ$130 in groceries, we felt stocked and ready for our week on the road.

En route to the west coast we hiked the Devil's Punch Bowl trail to a beautiful waterfall that sprinkled us ever so gently as we lay in the sun and contemplated life’s inexplicables. I pondered why the lives of families in the US are not punctuated with month long roadtrips of other countries and why having kids made people appear to be immobile. As we headed back to the car, we asked a German hiker in the parking lot about the highlights of the South Island. Just as we thanked him and piled into our car, his wife tapped on our window, she had some more suggestions to share. We then noted their two children, both under ten years old hop into their campervan. I have to ask, where are our priorities? Or perhaps, more aptly, what are our priorities?

An early evening arrival to the booming metropolis of Hokitika (the jade capital of NZ) meant that there was literally neither a store open nor a human in sight. Apparently life after 5pm is contained to indoor – or at least home – living. Despite a tempting suggestion that we check out the local theatre that “might” be playing a movie, we hopped in the car and headed to Franz Josef Glacier. The coastal drive captured the sunset with stunning intensity; a stop at Ianthe Lake caressed our souls as the sun dipped into the trees leaving blushing lavender clouds in its wake.

Day Three:
A morning hike to Lake Matheson allowed us to capture the reflection of the mountains on the water only moments before a light ripple stole it away. Then it was time for glacier trekking. So cool! This is where my dad would have said, “So warm!” in response to my “so cool” exclamation – got to love the fatherly cheesiness. But let me assure you, glacier hiking is in fact a little chilly. Although the hike through the bush there did find me wishing for shorts and a t-shirt outfit as Passang, our Nepalese guide was sporting, I was happily bundled as we went through an ice tunnel and clomped about on the solid river of ice.

With a cloudless sky at our beckoning, we drove the highest road pass in all of NZ to Wanaka and settled into a lodge for the evening.

Day Four:
The next morning we found the information center and a Kiwi (i.e. a person from New Zealand) named Craig humored us with suggestions to fill our day. We knew kayaking and wine tasting to be of utmost importance, and when we mentioned this, he suggested that we kayak to the Rippon Valley vineyard, only a 40 minute row away. Ding, ding, ding! Right answer! With our day carved out we went and had breakfast and came back for our adventure. With a four hour rental, the vineyards in sight from our starting point, and a picnic packed, we pushed off under the sunshine. A mere two hours later we pulled our kayaks on shore and walked up to a shed-like structure. Set against snow capped mountains, the grape vines rolled into the crystal waters of Lake Wanaka; we languidly sipped our wines and chatted with Charlie. The blue-rimmed shed was splattered with photos of vineyard weddings, and was just enough space for us, the tastings, and good conversations. Her family had owned the land for four generations, planted the vines a couple generations ago, and now it is the view for many a wine label photograph. Forgetting the time, we sat out at a picnic table, assembled our lunch, and enjoyed journaling in the warm rays of the afternoon.

Only when a voice asked, “Do you know what time it is?” Did we look up to see Craig attempting to look irritated, but chuckling at the fact that we hadn’t even attempted to leave the vineyard. Our four hours had come and gone, they had watched us with binoculars from shore, and now he had come to “rescue” us in a jet boat. He said that was definitely a first. :)

Sitting on the shore, tossing rocks into the water and watching the local kids jump into the freezing water, we were unable to tear ourselves from all that had been Wanaka thus far.

Craig took pity on our sun-stolen souls and invited us over to hang out for the afternoon. An evening of carving jade (clearly every good Kiwi has a diamond-bit drill in their garage!), chatting about travels and the concepts of joy and fulfillment, and eating incredible nachos and Greek salad (feta makes it betta, baby!) ensued.

Day Five:
Tearing ourselves from the proclaimed retirement destination of Yas, we headed to Queenstown, the adventure capital of the world. A stop in to book our hang gliding adventure off of the Remarkables (used in the Lord of the Rings, views of all of Queenstown, absolutely stunning!), we had a picnic by the lake.

Atop the mountain, we geared up and were literally lifted off the mountains by some serious gusts of wind. Anders, my Swedish co-pilot with over 1500 flights to his name, told me to pick a spot, take the bar, and steer towards it. Only moments after I held the bar, he calmly said, “And now we’re going to die,” as he overtook the bar and pulled us out of nose-dive that I had promptly spun us into, I’m such a natural. J

Day Six:
An overnight in Queenstown, and then we were off to Lake Pukaki which shimmered turquoise in the sun. Contemplating upon the rocky shore, the clouds broke to reveal Mt. Cook in the distance. A quick drive over to Lake Tekapo, we then decide to head to Mt. Cook to spend the night. A late arrival leaves us with nowhere open and no vacancies to be found – well, with the exception of the most famous (and most expensive!) hotel in New Zealand, The Hermitage. Tony (from one of the hotels with no vacancies) takes pity upon our nomadic souls and calls Masa, The Hermitage Hotel Manager, and, coincidentally, the father of his son’s playmate. Masa gets us a our own chalet for half price and thus we spend our last night in New Zealand in literally the lap of luxury.

Day Seven:
A morning rise to views of Mt. Cook, we headed back to Christchurch with a quick stop to try and capture the cuddly cuteness of the sheep who dotted the landscape (New Zealand has only four million people, but 40 million sheep!). A stop for lunch in Christchurch, then we headed to the airport. With Hertz Car Rental distributing free cake and cookies at the terminal, it was a pleasurable wait to board our flight, and a sad goodbye to this island of God’s beauty.