The Catlins 12-15 February 2014

Again, the road to the Catlins was quite beautiful...and winding! I feel like we haven't seen a straight road since we arrived. The day was gray and drizzling as we set out, and continued to be lousy. I was greatly anticipating our next accommodation which had been so highly rated online. Boy, were we in for a surprise.

It seems our hosts were also surprised. I had booked the place in November, and sent an email the night before saying we were due to arrive the next day and enquiring about whether or not they had laundry facilities. And yet, when we showed up, they didn't know who we were. We should have taken that as a sign.

This "home stay" has a cottage and an "annex". We had booked the annex, which included limited kitchen facilities and two bedrooms and a bathroom. After waiting for them to make up the bed before we could enter, we discovered the limited kitchen included a grungy hot plate in a very dark (completely unlit, in fact) hallway and a few odds and ends for cooking. The window sills in the bedrooms were full of dead flies and the only sink was the tiny bathroom sink. The garbage was full.

Miss Kitty, who turned out to be a Mr.

We were starving and there weren't any alternative accommodations, so we made the best of it. While our host wiped down the sketchy outside furniture for us to eat at ( yes, it was freezing out), I began making our pasta and meatballs -- from scratch, of course. Meanwhile, the owners' cat, I called her Miss Kitty, came to make friends with the boys. Dinner was a hit, and we cleaned our dishes with laundry detergent (no dish soap provided) in the puny bathroom sink. Did I mention we had booked for four nights?

Another issue was that Bill had planned to work for all four days there and the only indoor seat was an Ikea 'Poang' chair -- not exactly ergonomic. Oh, and our cell phone didn't work. Yes, just kept getting better and better.

So, the next morning at the crack of dawn Bill went up the road to the highest hill by the cow pasture to get cell reception to call in to work -- for real. Then, the owner knocked on the door and offered us the cottage for no additional charge because it had just become available and the weather was crappy and he felt sorry for us. Well, that changed everything!

We moved up the driveway to the little cottage as fast as we could. When he returned from the cows, Bill was thrilled to see that we now had a table and chairs at which he could work. There was a tv/DVD player and Steve, the owner brought over some family movies and games for the kids. We set Cheri, Steve's wife, to work doing our laundry (which was a little weird for me because only my mom and Bill have ever washed my undies, but I got over it). We spent most of that rainy and depressing day inside until Bill finished working. Then, we drove up the road and walked halfway out to Slope Point -- you'll see the windy shots in the video. It was something else!

 

On Friday, the boys and I went on a fantastic 3 hour hike to see some nearby falls. The track was mucky from all the rain, but the vegetation was lush and green. The ferns were huge! The forest was certainly unlike the forest at home. To us, it was a jungle!

Side note: We've since been on several NZ Department of Conservation (DOC) hikes, and I have to say they are very well-kept. This particular one was wheelchair accessible for the first 30 minutes or so -- how civilized! All have been really well marked too. I'm not at all nervous about letting the kids run ahead a bit. Today we went on one that stated we should "approach it with a sense of adventure", so we kept a closer eye on the boys!

This hike culminated with a pretty spectacular waterfall. It's so nice when the force of nature impresses even the boys. They were, however, hungry; so we guzzled down our sandwiches and walked the 90 minutes in the rain back to the car.

The lower falls

 

We arrived home to the wonderful aroma of the red beans and rice made with the smoked hock I bought from the vendor at the Oamaru market I had started earlier that morning. Soooo delicious! After dinner we headed out in search of the elusive Yellow-Eyed Penguin (the rarest and seriously endangered).

By the time we got to Curio Bay, three pairs had already come to shore. We were on the cusp of moulting season where they stay in their nests for a couple of weeks (too embarrassed of their appearance to show their faces, I suppose), so we assumed the three pairs were all we were going to see. There are only eight pairs in the whole bay, so three was pretty good. These guys were much bigger than the little Blue Penguins of Oamaru. So cute, and such a privilege to see them. Curio Bay itself was pretty cool. It was a petrified forest and fossilized trees line the floor at low tide.

The Yellow-Eyed Penguins

 

Right beside Curio Bay was Porpoise Bay filled with, you guessed it, porpoises! Actually, they were Hectors' dolphins, another extremely rare breed. The boys begged for me to take them swimming there the next morning. Of course, it was raining and cold, but we went anyway. Jack, the bravest of us all, actually dared to go in the water while Brody and I waited in the rain on shore. A young German tourist joined Jack, but quickly escaped the frigid water and returned to her soaked towel and clothes. Jack persevered and was rewarded with a visit from at least 8 dolphins!! Yes, he swam with dolphins in the wild! How many 12 year olds can say that?! Sorry, it was pouring rain, so the iPad didn't make the trip, but he has two eye-witnesses to vouch for him! Super cool!

Later that day I went for a windy walk alone down our country road. I chatted with cows and sheep and had a really lovely time by myself. It had been awhile. I made it to very desolate and still windy Slope Point, right to the southernmost point (see my selfies). Just as it was getting a little lonely and scary too to be honest, I turned around to head back and Brody and Jack were running towards me. It was so perfectly timed, right on cue. Instead of walking the 6km back to the cottage, I caught a lift with them. I really felt like we made the most of a crappy day.

The day, however, wasn't over.

Our host, Steve, came over and offered us the use of his kayaks. Of course, we agreed and he loaded them onto a trailer and led us out to a lagoon. We had a fun paddle across the lagoon out to the sea where we watched the humongous waves crash against the shore. The boys had a quick swim in the lagoon and we began to head back to the beach from where we began. There was a problem. As we were watching the surf and swimming in the lagoon, the tide was going out! About halfway across the lagoon my paddle hit bottom, then my bottom hit bottom. Laughing hysterically, we all had to drag our kayaks and paddles across the rest of the lagoon in water as deep as our ankles. Pretty funny sight to see.

When we returned to the cottage, Steve came to visit again. This time, he wanted to show the kids the eels that lived in the creek that ran through his property. They were massive! The family had been feeding them their leftovers and expired food. The boys were impressed, but I just longed for a black dragon roll. Mmmmm.

Steve and Bill hung out outside and had beers while I returned to our room to pack up for our departure the next day. Eventually Bill came in and just as we were getting the boys settled, there was Steve at our door again. This time, he brought us fresh fried blue cod (caught by him). It was really tasty, and we agreed it was totally worth brushing our teeth a second time. Finally, we were ready to hit the sack, hoping our host was not going to visit yet again before our early morning departure.

Side note: Trip Advisor is a wonderful thing. Small hostels and home stays really depend on your positive reviews to make or break their businesses. It was pretty obvious that Steve was concerned that our initial experience would taint our whole stay. Though I would never write a horrible review for a small business (unless they were truly wretched), I guess some would. He really bent over backwards to make sure our stay was great!

Next stop: Te Anau.

Just me and the wind at Slope Point

 

 

Dunedin and the Otago Peninsula 11-12 February 2014

 

A view of the Otago peninsula

After allowing Bill a few hours to work before leaving the Chillawhile, we began the incredibly winding and amazingly beautiful drive down the coast to Dunedin. We had been told that the country only gets more beautiful as you head south, and I daresay it's true. We grabbed a quick Vietnamese lunch in Dunedin, and found our way out to the peninsula and The Penguin Place Lodge, our accommodation for the night.

To say the road is winding doesn't really sufficiently describe its harrowing nature: completely blind S turn after S turn after S turn, back and forth over the same train tracks, within about two feet of an oftentimes very steep cliff down to the ocean -- and not a guard rail in sight! Seriously. The thing that makes it especially scary is that when you are unaccustomed to driving in the left lane with a right-side steering wheel, the tendency is to pull to the left. Too far left on this road and you're down a cliff or in the ocean or down a cliff and in the ocean. I suspect it is more "thrilling" for the passenger than the driver. Bill and I shared the adventure! I felt seriously nauseated by the time we arrived.

Brody and I went out while Bill attempted to get in a couple more hours of work. We toured through the Royal Albatross Centre (didn't see any), then walked down to the ocean where we met up with this character:

Seeing the blue penguins come ashore last night (sorry too dark for decent pics) followed by the sea lions today was pretty magical. Not that we've had any doubts about making this trek to NZ, but wildlife encounters were a big part of our rationale for coming and the last couple of days confirmed our choice!

The next morning we ventured down that windy road yet again to return to Dunedin. Dunedin is NZ's oldest city. It is a university city, and it is centred around an octagon at the heart of downtown. The hilly city is bustling with tourists and students, and is really quite a lovely mixture of Victorian and modern architecture.

Bill headed to the public library to work for a short time while the boys and I went for a tour of the Cadbury's factory. I suspect they were more impressed with the samples than the tour, but within a "chocolate mash" storage silo we did see a tonne of melted chocolate fall from above our heads down to a reservoir about 50 feet below. Pretty cool.

After our tour we met Bill for lunch at an excellent Mexican restaurant and then went to see the steepest street in the world -- Baldwin St., Dunedin. Regrettably, there is no way our photos can aptly capture the severity of the slope of this road. It is a 19 degree angle. Ridiculous!

After spending the farm on groceries, we set out for our next destination: The Catlins.

 

View from Baldwin St looking down.

View from bottom of Baldwin St.

 

A Visit to Oamaru 7-10 February 2014

After a final tramp about Mt. Cook, we proceeded down the Waitaki River valley towards Oamaru. The scenery was breathtaking. Once again, I'm going to allow the video to demonstrate for me. The rolling hills and jagged limestone cliffs are quite unlike anything I've seen before. I'm wondering when it's going to get old seeing field after field of sheep.

 

I have to be honest that when we pulled in to the Chillawhile Backpackers in Oamaru I was regreting booking four days there. The backpackers (hostel) is just off the main drag on the outskirts of town. The area feels really quite like home, and not in a good way! If you know Oshawa, you know what I'm saying ;-). We signed in to Chillawhile and received a warm greeting and a tour around the big, old Victorian home. The place is really cool. We were encouraged to try our hand at painting -- supplies are included -- and Brody and I soon set up to create some masterpieces of our own. The walls are adorned with beautiful artwork created by past guests, some really quite stunning. There are African drums, guitars, and a piano for guests to further explore their creative side. Four days there didn't seem such a bad idea afterall.

Our first day we ventured a little further down the road and soon discovered what Oamaru is all about. It is a beautiful Victorian town adorned with impressive locally-sourced limestone buildings. There are people walking about in Victorian-era costumes and several streets downtown are dedicated to preserving this historic charm. I've begun reading Eleanor Catton's The Luminaries (GG winner!) set in Victorian-era NZ and I feel like Oamaru captures the setting perfectly. (Okay, okay, it's the wrong coast, but we haven't seen Hokitika yet!)

Oamaru is also the Steampunk capital of NZ. You'll see some examples of sculptures found around the HQ building in my video. The kids' favourite part of the town was most definitely the park. We had a great time there! And there was free wifi available too! Canada could learn a thing or two about how to make parks truly fun for all ages.

We made a trip south of the town to see the Moeraki boulders. These large boulders are scattered like marbles along a stretch of beach. The literature tells us they are formed like pearls and then escape from the cliffs and tumble onto the beach. This all takes thousands of years of course! A few of the boulders have cracked open, and they look like segments of an orange inside. Pretty cool.

We spent one night freezing our butts off waiting for three hours for penguins to arrive -- to no avail. It seems we were in the wrong place. Armed with better directions to a guaranteed sighting, we are going to give it another go tonight. To prepare, we went to the Salvation Army shop and bought a bunch of Merino wool sweaters from the $0.50 rack. The nice woman there was so embarrassed by the state of some of the stuff we purchased she gave it to us for free (along with directions for darning -- LOL!). The one $10 sweater (for Bill) she sold to us for half price. I really don't care how we look as along as we're warm!!

Moeraki boulders

Speaking of warm, I went to a beautiful wool shop today and bought some lovely NZ alpaca/merino blend (so soft) to make myself a hat. Only knitters will appreciate the compulsion to buy beautiful yarn when the opportunity arises. I bought a $0.25 circular needle at the Sally Ann on which to make my hat. I will post photos when I'm done!

Today we ventured to the Elephant Rocks. They are in the midst of a sheep pasture, and are natural rock formations. Very freaky looking. I've included some pictures because they were post video production!

In the morning we're off to Dunedin...

P.S. As I sign off, there's a guy here at the Chillawhile playing the didgeridoo. There's something you can't say everyday!

 

Mt Cook and Glentanner Park - 5 - 7 Feb 2014

We had a fantastic time at Mt. Cook/Aoraki. The weather was sunny and beautiful, the accommodations were clean and friendly, and the scenery was breath-taking. I would have gladly stayed a few more days, but unfortunately that would have been at the expense of someplace else. It is difficult when you are on a limited time frame and there is so much to see. Going on the philosophy that a picture is worth a thousand words, I figure this video I created sets the scene far better than my mere description ever could. Besides, once my video is on Youtube, I can delete the original from my iPad, leaving me more space for more! This trip is all about conservation!

 

My one regret is that no one has yet invented smell-o-vision. At several points throughout our hikes we were overcome by the most beautiful scent. It was unlike anything I've smelled before. At first I thought we walked past a woman with some really amazing perfume on, but then it lingered. Bill and I sniffed out every plant in the vicinity, but really couldn't figure out what the smell was. My best bet is a berry that was growing on a low, evergreen looking plant. Whatever it was, it was gorgeous.

Brody and I left our Canadian mark with an inukshuk.

The landscape of the Mt Cook region is quite diverse. Lakes Tekapo and Pukaki are a brilliant turquoise, much like Lake Louise in Alberta. There are sheep all over the place, some roaming quite high up into the mountains. Glentanner, where we stayed, is a working sheep station. We were relieved that our little sheep-buddies were Merino sheep -- destined only to be sheared, not eaten! They graze on the grass amongst some pretty nasty thorny bushes. We were able to walk among them on our way to Lake Pukaki. The boys even ventured in for a swim! It was cold!!

Some of the mountains are grassy with few bushes and trees, others are rugged and snow-covered. I guess the video shows that best. It was really neat how the mountains just jet out of the perfectly flat area surrounding the lake. I have to look up whether or not the mountains are volcanic -- I'm not sure about those on the Southern Island.

Glentanner Park was our first accommodation after leaving the Drayton's. The beds were comfortable, and the facilities were very clean. There were plenty of tourists from all over the world sharing the kitchen facilities. One large group of Japanese people made the most amazing feast the first night we were there -- pork, squid, veggies, rice, etc. I was embarrassed by our pathetic burgers and slaw! The next morning, a French guy baked some rolls (or brioche) for breakfast from scratch. We decided we need to step up our cooking game; we are making Canadians look bad!

Speaking of food, it is VERY expensive. We are avoiding eating out (a standard 2 eggs and 2 strips of bacon with toast, etc breakfast was $17 at Glentanner), but groceries are crazy-expensive too. Yesterday we stopped for a picnic lunch, and popped into a grocery store for a few things. A single can of pop was $2.05. That's good -- we will learn to drink water all the time. Four bagels were $5 -- ouch! A small box of fruit (peaches and apricots) from a fruit stand was $12. Yes, we may lose some weight on this trip! Our dollar is only a little higher than the NZ dollar, so it is pretty significant. What can you do??

After a hike yesterday, we left Mt. Cook and journeyed down the Whaitaki River valley to Oamaru, but that's a story for another day...

 

A Day at the Drayton's - Feb 4

Without a doubt, the best part of our travel to NZ was seeing a familiar face greet us in Christchurch.

As expected, our luggage did not make it to CHC. I knew when we were delayed in YYZ that our luggage wouldn't make it onto the flight from LAX to SYD in the 50 minute-long layover. Then, as we sat in the airport in Sydney, we didn't see our luggage loaded onto the plane, so it was no surprise when it didn't show up on the carousel in CHC. So, we completed all the paperwork and were issued 4 sets of Qantas pyjamas and toiletries. After clearing customs, we passed through the gate to find Al's smiling face.

Abby and Al. Abby looks so cute in her school uniform, and Al's all orange (his house's colour) for Sports Day.

Many moons ago, I worked with Al's late wife Robin at BHS. Al, a Kiwi, and Robin had just moved to Bowmanville and Robin and I began at BHS at about the same time. We both worked in the English department. Thanks to Facebook, I was able to remain connected to the Draytons after they moved to New Zealand just a few years later. Al and Robin soon had a couple of kids, Abby and Nick. Soon after, and far too young, dear Robin tragically passed away. I have thought of Al and his kids often over the years, and it was thrilling to get to meet them this week.

Here's young Nicholas!

By the time Al returned us to his home, it was after 1 a.m., and we all went to bed. We didn't get out of bed until after the Draytons had all gone to school, and so we spent the day (in our Qantas PJs), getting our rental car (Woohoo left side driving!), exploring Christchurch and the earthquake devastation, getting mobile phones (thanks to Bell for not really unlocking my phone after paying them $50 to do so, I had to buy a new phone), and so on. Finally it was time to go home and "see the people" (in Brody's words).

And Andrea, sporting her angelic garb (white house) for sports day at her school.

The old-time BHS crowd will be happy to hear that our friend Robin's family is awesome! Abby and Nick are adorable, confident, friendly, and super-cool. Al's fiancée Andrea is just lovely, a great mom, loving and caring, and so welcoming to us total strangers! Their home is bright and open and modern, and great for chasing one another and Honey the pup around -- right Brody and Nick? The neighbourhood felt very much like our South Carolina family's place -- a little tropical and immaculate.

A little kiss goodbye from Honey.

We had the honour of attending super-star Nick's touch rugby game -- he's a great little athlete! Then, we picked up fish and chips and had a big greasy feast. Delish!

The next morning we got up in time to see everyone off to school, reclaimed our luggage (hurray!) and headed off to Mount Cook.

 

 

 

En Route - Feb 1 - 3

Well it certainly has been an adventure so far!

After a hectic day of laundry, last minute packing and tidying, seeing the dog off to Bill's sister, and welcoming our house-sitter, my mom came to see us off and our friend Mike arrived to drive us to the airport. This was no easy feat, as the snow that had been gently falling all day really began to pick up. It started to accumulate very rapidly, especially, it seems, on the 407 where we followed an assembly of seven snowplows on our way to YYZ. We saw several cars in the ditch and another completely turned around 180 degrees. The conditions were terrible! Of course, I expected our flight to be delayed and began to worry about making our connection.

Eventually we did make it to the airport, and then began a strange series of events. It seems I have only ever travelled during peak times like March Break, and so I assumed the airport is always chaotic. However, the airport was eerily quiet and deserted yesterday when we checked in. There were hardly any other people around! Freaky.

After we did the self check-in (which saved no one any time in my estimation), we learned that our Australian visas were not valid because they were all registered to our old passports. The travel agent assured me we would be fine, but no. So, off I went to a computer to enter all of our information one at a time and pay for them again, one at a time. Finally, we were off to customs. Bill's and my mugshots both came out of the customs declaration machine with a big X going through our faces. I assumed again that there was a problem. After some good-natured razzing from the agent about why we would want to go to Christchurch, we were off to security. Again, there were miles of cues set up and not another sole. So bizarre. Yet again, I assumed the worst and figured everyone else but us knew about a cancellation and they were all home waiting to fly out the next day.

The seven snowplows were just a couple vehicles in front of us

Aboard the flight from LAX to SYD.

When we found our gate I was assured to see many keeners there waiting for us. Since it took us so long to get to the airport and then the long delay while I re-applied for our visas, we didn't have much of a wait before our flight to Las Angeles was called to board. When they began boarding, the also announced that a meal was NOT included, which we were expecting, so off we went in search of a meal! Thank goodness we did, because although we boarded on time, we sat on the snowy tarmac for two hours. After de-icing we departed for Los Angeles. I have to honest, the 15+ hour flight to Sydney wasn't that bad. We were served dinner with wine at 5:30 a.m. Toronto time. That was interesting. I think it worked to help with the jet lag!

The long haul menu. I had the chicken.

Jack is ignoring the de-icing procedure

(Yes, there were plenty of on-demand movies to choose from. I watched Blue Jasmine, the James Gandolfini - Julia Louis Dreyfus one, and 127 hours. I also watched 2 episodes of House of Cards.)

 

We spent Super Bowl Sunday/Monday in the Sydney airport. Pretty uneventful. We found some shady grass outside and chillaxed for a while, climbed up to the observation deck, played card games, and made friends with a wee little girl who liked to high-five. Yes, we could have gone to town, but decided it wasn't worth the stress to our over-tired minds and bodies to figure out the transit system.

View from the SYD observation deck.

So, we were off to Christchurch soon enough. Brody fell asleep immediately, and I managed to eat my meal (all the Qantas food was remarkably good, btw) before passing out. We made it on time, but as feared, our luggage did not!