North Island in a Nissan - Part II

Well, Andy and myself eventually stopped driving when we reached Wellington. I'd been behind the wheel so long there was literally an imrpint of my ass on the driver's seat! Driving into Wellington City was easy enough, although we did get initially confused with the one way system and ended up out in the Ferry Terminal. But we were just too tired to keep going to the South Island!

Found some great accommodation in Wellington. The YHA hostel there is like a 2 or 3 star hotel! And so, we spent two nights there, cooked some good dinners and even did our laundry! (It;s always a mini-celebration when you get laundry out of the way!) Unfortunately, the eather in Wellington was ANTARTIC while we were there, so it was difficult to get any real sightseeing done. Every time we put our heads out the door iof the hostel there was a gale force wind howling and rain battering the docks, so most of our two days was spent indoors in the excellent Te Papa Museum! Its a must see if you go to Wellington, but you need at least a couple of days to do it any justice.

The first day, we thought we'd do the tourist thing and visit the Lord of the Rings exhibit! When in ROme and all that....

But it turned out to be areally great exhibition, with very little focus on the Hollywood stars, providing a really in-depth look at how the film was made and the artists behind it. A great way to spend an afternoon if you are a Tolkien enthusiast! The following day, we returned to look at some exhibitions on New Zealand and Maori culture (of which the Kiwis are extremely proud!) and to learn about what's causnig NZ to move a little every year! Here we are right on the Pacific Ring of Fire! Without doubt, Te Papa is one of the best museums I have ever been in. It;s really interactive...having lots of computer screens for you to play with and keep you interested during the long hours there. And to make it even better, ITS FREE!

While, we were in Wellington we also managed to get out and see some of the nightlife. Sunday night was a bit dead, understandably, but we stumbled across an after party for a hip hop/gangster rap band called Mobb Deep. Apparently, the band had \, in fact, never showed at the venue...but there were a few hopefuls lining up att he after party in the hope that they were there. Mysefl and Andy forked out $15 to check it out. The night had great potential - if the band had showed and there were more people, it would be have been great, but as it was, the place was a bit empty. We still enjoyed it though, and since South America I'm really starting to develop more of a taste for this kind of music. It was funny to see all these Kiwis dressed up in their ganster gear.

Our second night there turned into Lord of the Rings fest in the TV room. Due to the sub-zero conditions outside, no-one from the hostel was venturing anywhere! so we cooked dinner, made some tea and settled into our beanbags for the 9 hr marathon! I lasted until the end of the second movie before I started nodding off.

Rain was hammering down the next day as we left the hostel. We tried to pull a not so ingenius car park scam before leaving, but it went against us! but it was worth a shot! As darkness fell, the traffic started to jam up on Route 1 out of Wellington. Landslides and fallen trees. An hour later, we had clearde the other side and were on the open road, heading for wine country of Martinborough. The drive over the mountains was quite treacherous in the fog and slippy conditions, and it was a relief when we FINALLY reached Martinborough, which appeared to be in total darkness except for the hotel and a small restaurant with a glimmer of light behind its fogged up windows. In we went, in search of food. We were met by a nice old man and his wife who served us up some good food and wine and even helped us out trying to find some accommodation for the night.

In the end, however, after long hours driving , passing what appeared to be ghost towns in total darkness, stopping at many a hotel and motel with no results, we arrived in Napier, about half way up the east coast of the country. Every hostel, hotel and B&B said "No Vacancy", and about one in the morning we were starting to accept the fact that we would have to kip down in the local car park for the night. Ugh. As we were driving up a side street, we suddenly spotted a lit up sign in a little alleyway. "Toad Hall". It was or last resort. Andy hopped out and rang the bell, and after what seemed like hours, a creature vaguley resembling Mole from Wind in the Willows opened the door and peered out at us. She has small wirey, thick glasses and interesting slippers. "You're lucky I'm a night owl", she winked at us. She guided us up the stairs to her office where a half empty glass of wine and some accounts sat on the table. A ginger cat regarded us from the corner of the room. Before long, she had provided us with a room, some sheets and blankets and bade us a good sleep.

In the light of day, Andy said she looked so much older and he was right. Also, she seemed less like a mole. She and her husband ran Toad Hall, which definitely has the most character out of any of the hostels Ive been in so far. They also owned an art gallery and cafe around the corner, which we paid a visit to before we left. They were extremely helpful and friendly, and very relaxed vis a vis checking out, etc. If anyone is heading towards Napier anytime, I recommend checking it out.

Napier is a really interesting little town - full ofArt Deco style buildings, which were constructed in the 30's after the earthquake that devastated the city. It's situated right in the heart of Hawke's Bay wine country, where you can sample the best reds in New Zealand! And we did. We booked a half day wine tour and were picked up by a lovely old man called Graham Ferguson. We really didnt feel we were on a tour with him - he was so laid back and chatty. It was just myself and Andy, and after the wineries he took us on an extra little tour of Napier to point out the historical sites and places of interest. The wineries were great! Some of the best I have been to so far..which is saying a lot after Napa Valley, California and Mendoza, Argentina and Chile! The first one was called Mission Estate. It was originally set up by an order of priests who used to make altar wine, but they eventually sold up and moved. The woman who arrnged our tasting was really informative and had a sarcy sense of humour. Probably my favourite of the three we visited. NExt, was Trinity Hill wineries..which wasnt as good but they did give us around 10 different bottles to taste. Finally, Graham took us to Church Rd. where were met a lovely man called Don who seemed really interested in what we thought of his Malbec compared with the Argentinian varieties. It was a really enjoyable afternoon and we bougght some really nice Reserve bottles in each of the estates.

And so, that brings us to nearly the end of the week. We left Napier the next morning and drove back towards Taupo again. Just North of Taupo we stopped, on recommendation, at the geothermal site of Wai-o-Tapu. This was excellent! and you really could get an idea of what the earth was probably like millions of years ago before humans came along. We enjoyed boiling mud pools, simmering water holes, and multicoloured lakes with steam rushing up from the 100 degree water underneath the earth. We were hoping for a swim, but were told that if the boiling water didnt kill us first, the acid definitely would. Hmm..right so. No swimming then!

Further up the road, we spotted some cars pulled in on the side of the road next to a little bridge and saw one or two ppl draped in twoels running furtively from the bushes! So, we had to check that out. It turned out to be a natural hot spring in the middle of the trees, deep enough to swim in. Off with the clothes, on with the wet swimwear yet again! It was a overall a nice experience, marred slightly by two pervy local NAKED types paddling in the water. They seemed friendly enough to begin with, but just got a bit weird on us, so after an hours soakage, we fled their nakedness!

Hamilton was, once again, a stopping point and we bedded down there for out last night, tired from our weeks adventures. We edned up sharing a room with a lovely SIngaorean girl called Madeline, who is here in NZ to set up her own jewellery business. She talked A LOT! but was a very nice genuine person. The next morning she dragged us out of bed and frog-marched us to the kitchen for breakfast with her, before piling various jewellery samples upon us and sending us on our way back to Auckland.

So, we're back in Auckland again. Andy is flying out on Monday to Brisbane, after which I have to get down to the seriuos business of finding somewhere to live and a job. Fingers crossed, as I have no idea what's out there. I meeting my friend Fiona this evening, and Im hoping she might be able to give me some good tips on how to get settled here.

North Island in a Nissan - Part I

So, what have myself and Andrew been up to for the last week?

Well, Thursday morning saw us up and out at 9 o'clock, hair and teeth brushed, bags repacked, and we even managed to squeeze in breakfast - one meal of the day with which we were neve familiar in South America. We picked up our white Nissan Sunny (the most desired of all rental cars, tis true) and drove out of Auckland with a full tank of petrol and a map. The sun was shining, spirits were high and we were both looking forward to the week ahead.

Our first port of call was the small town of Hamilton, about 2 hours south of Auckland. Not much to recommend this place, except the absolutely OUTSTANDING bangers and mash in the Irish pub on the main street! The drive was pretty interesting with the scenery becoming more interesting the further south we went. We decided to head for Rotorua, in the middle of the island, for some serious soaking in the thermal springs. The guide book informed us that we would smell Roturua long before we would see it....and we did! GOD THE PLACE STINKS! They say it's the sulpher....

We found a hostel with a car park, dumped our stuff and wasted no time in getting to the Polynesian Spa. The water in the natural springs is 42 degrees! and there we soaked our tired limbs for 2 long hours. I had a particularly disturbing time in the ladies changing room when a flapping bunch of naked japanese ladies descended upon my quiet time in the shower...but that's another story. Quick shower.

Next morning, we had an early breakfast and headed for the local forest for a 3hr trek. Packed a lunch and off we went. It was great to get back into the outdoors again, breathing clean air (both us noticed the difference in the air between here and SA immediately upon arrival). After lunch, we checked out the local Zorbing centre...What's Zorbing? Well, basically you get into a giant plastic-like ball and roll down a steep hill! This time around though we decided to participate only as spectators...$45 for 1 minutes fun was just out of our price range this time. But we will be back! In the afternoon, we were back in the car again bound for a little place called Waitomo.

When we arrived in Waitomo darkness and a dense fog were descending on the area. The town is literally in the middle of nowhere and would surely b bypassed by most travellers were it not for the famous glow worm caves. The landscape is quite unique - full of hills and saucer-like depressions indicative of vast subterranean cave systems. We found some cheap but adequate accommodation for the night in the form of a cabin. Andy took himself off for a soak in the hottub while I indulged in an hour of girlie pampering before we hit the hay, both of us hugely looking forward to the next day's planned activities.

Saturday morning - up bright and early ready for action! We got ourselves to the Black Water Rafting Center for about 9 and decided, after some deliberation, to sign up for the Black Labyrinth tour. Part of me was quite terrified, as those who know me know that Im not so great in the dark or in deep water. But, I decided to face my fears! The trip sounded quite intense, involving two backward jumps down waterfalls aided only by a rubber rube, not to mention the floating into pitch darkness and some serious scrambling about in the underground rocks. Gulp! However, the thought of gazing up at glowworms in the dark was enough to spur me on. Having half an hr or so to wait around before our tour, we headed into "town" to the Museum of Caves for a bit of a run down on what makes glowworms tick (and other interesting stuff about limestone and so on). At 10:30a.m. we were met by Lucas our guide for the morning....good looking Maori guy with a slightly unhinged sense of humour. I had a feeling he was just going to suddenly disappear into the black abyss leaving us in the dark....because it would be funny....thankfully, he didn't!

Next, came the most unsavoury part of the week so far...stripping off, donning an already sopping wet bikini, and then struggling (and I mean STRUGGLING!) into a wringing wet, freezing cold, icky wetsuit. Ugh! Not only did it take me an ETERNITY to wriggle into the accursed attire, but in one of my usual ingenius moves I managed to put it on backwards. Off to a great start! This didnt bode well for the rest of the tour.... A short van ride brought us to the mouth of the caves where we had to select a rubber tube big (or small ) enough to fit our respective bums. I'n telling you, if looking sexy or dignified matters in any way to you, Balck Water Rafting is not for you! And, then came the hard part....we watched as the group in front of us vaulted backwards on their tubes into the 10 degree water. I looked desperately for possible escape routes through the trees...but suddenly, it was my turn. As Lucas counted down 3, 2, 1, I tried to think about diving into a vat of warm chocolate or something. That didnt help at all! It only made the shock of the ice cold water on my body 10 times worse! But it did wake me up! We paddled after Lucas like a trio of physically challenged swans to where the water disappeared into the black underground. No going back now...as Lucas disappeared into the darkness. We stumbled over moving unsteady rocks, fell into holes, and waded through rushing waist-high water until we came to our second waterfall. My adrenaline levels were pumping as I launched myself backwards and down into the water far below. The current took me and swept me further into the caves, as a thrashed about looking blindly for a rope that Lucas swore existed on the side of the cave wall. I found it and clung for dear life as I waited for the boys to follow. Lucas then directed us to form into a line each of us holding on to the white boots of the person behind us. He took hold of my feet, turned off his headligth and pulled us gently in the dark through the caves as we lay back and gazed transfixed at the sight above our heads - thousands upon thousands of glimmering lights clinging to the black canopy above. It was a thing of rare beauty.

An hour later, we emerged into the daylight again shivering and teeth chattering but on a high after our experience. Lucas took us straight back for hot showers, followed by soup and bagels, and our bodies slowly warmed up again. An excellent adventure! Worth every penny. Once we felt human again, we boarded the Nissan again, this time bound for Lake Taupo and the skiifields. I couldnt wait to go snowboarding! It was quite a long drive that evening through bad weather to Taupo. We stopped there for some sustenance and to weigh up our options re where to stay. The Whakapapa skiifield is about an hr and a half south of Taupo so we decided to look for somewhere to stay in a nearby town. We happened upon some great accomodation and spent the evening soaking our still chilled bodies in the heat of the jacuzzi and sauna.

HOwever, sadly, our skiing trip was not to be. Next morning, the weather on the mountain was wet, extremely windy with almost no visibility and only the lower pistes were open. We sat at the base of Mount Ruapehu in dismay watching a few hardy skiiers and boarders battling against the high winds. Back on the road again, having no real plan for where to go next. We had planned 2/3 days in Whakapapa. What were we going to do now??

As we drove, the weather worsened and driving became tiresome. This part of the north island is a bleak place \, populated only by forest. After some hours, we arrived in a little town called Waiouro. Just outside the town, we spotted a sign for an army museum. I really wanted to check it out, so we decided to get out and stretch our legs for a bit. The museum was maassive and covered NZ's involvement in all the major wars..so we ended up spending a few hours there. I really enjoyed it! Before we left, we had some lunch...and stole some cake from a group of veterans who were there on a tour! Hee hee.

And so, back into the Nissan YET AGAIN! not knowing where we might end up........

Pining for the Good Life

It~s coming to the end of my time in Argentina, I~m very sorry to say. I~m writing this on the triple borders of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay in a little woodsy town called Puerto Iguazu. I arrived here 2 days ago after a long 22hr bus journey from Buenos Aires. Immediately on arrival, despite the sunny skies and soaring temperatures, I began to feel acute loneliness for Buenos Aires and, particularly, for the friends I made there.

Those 3 weeks in B.A. have been among my favourite in all my time in South America. It~s funny how attached you can become to relative strangers. It~s one of the sadder aspects of being on the move. You constantly meet these amazingly interesting people with whom you just click, people you dont seem to meet in your bubble back at home, but because you happen to be going in different directions, have different plans, you go your seperate ways. Of course, emails are exhanged and promises made, but the very nature of travel is moving on, meeting new people, seeing new places...and you tend to forget about the promises. It happens everyone. The people I met in B.A, the people who became my band of friends for nearly a month, were some of the funniest, most interesting people Ive met in SOuth America, and if I manage to stay in touch with even just one of them, I will be happy.

My Welsh roommate, Ciaran, and I hit it off from Day 1. In fact, he has been my favourite roommate of my entire trip. Sometimes, you just meet people with whom you dont have to try at all, and Ciaran was one of those people. It helped that we both had the same ridiculous sense of humour and I will definitely be swinging by the south of Wales on my way home.

Nico and Anthony, the closest match to Bill & TEd that Ive ever seen!, were the life and soul of our group. Ive never laughed so much in all my life as I have around those two. Anthony was one of those people who, when he started to tell a story, managed to paint a total picture for everyone by describing every little detail. One of the Top 5 Moments in BA is his story about this nutter called Chris who was in his class at school who once picked up a barking jack russell and just threw him over a fence! Nico was my drum´n´bass buddy and I have some great memories of our nights out around the city - a very unique guy who reminds me a lot of an old friend.

Next up was Andy, a really sound guy from Westmeath, who moved into our dorm. Andy and I became really good friends and had lots of ¨lying in bed¨ chats. Andrew and Evelyn´s Day of Culture is my favourite memory of Andy! We set out one day, frazzled from a week of heavy dancing and partying, in search of some soul satisfaction. Inititally, we had great plans - museums, churches, various murals, etc. We thought we´d go for a ¨spot of tea¨ to get us kickstarted for our mission, and decided to check out Cafe Tortoni (BA´s oldest cafe), but ended up having a massive afternoon tea, after which we couldnt physically stand up, so it seemed appropriate to go the whole hog and order a bottle of champagne! A very giggly, silly afternoon was had! Needless to say, the Day of Culture never really got under way! Going to be meeting up with him in Auckland, NZ which Im hugely looking forward to.

Every day in Buenos Aires was exciting. You never knew when you got up in the ¨morning¨ (2pm onwards ) who you~d be having dinner with that night or where you might end up. Like New York, it is a city bursting at the seams, full of possibilities. There´s never an excuse to be bored in BA! Ive never partied so hard. Its funny because I thought I had grown out of clubbing...or at least I had at home...but I´d forgotten how much I enjoyed it, especially drum n bass. We had some ammmaaazing nights dancing!

And then, there were the restaurants!! Oh god, in Buenos Aires you can grow fat happily. If anyone ever needs a recommendation for eating in BA, you know where to find me!!

Favourite moments were going hat shopping with Nico and Andy, dinner and a tango show with a big group from the hostel, Anthony doing my make-up for a night out , going to th zoo with Ciaran, getting kicked out of an Indian restaurant! (not our fault!), our last night together, and of course Tuesday nights in Bahrain!

Life is somewhat quieter after B.A. We all happened to leave around the same time and go our seperate ways. Ive been spending the last few days relaxing in the tropical weather of Iguazu. Up here near the jungle its stickily hot, but it~s great to feel the sun~s rays on my body again.

Yesterday, I visited Iguazu Falls with my roommate Belinda and her boyfriend Ollie (an Ozzie couple). Iguazu Falls are spectacular, even though right now the water levels are the lowest in 9 years!

Legend has it that the falls were created when a young warrior named Caroba incurred the wrath of a forest god by escaping downriver in a canoe with a young girl named Naipur, with whom the god had become infatuated. Enraged, the god caused the riverbed to collapse in front of the lovers. Naipur was turned into a rock at the base of the falls, and Caroba into a tree which overlooks the river.

Im not wild about the hostel here - its more like a hotel. Its like a shopping center or something - big and white with lots of lights. The staff arent friendly and theres a weird vibe about the place. Having a good laugh hanging out with Belinda though....she´s a really interesting girl who has been a tour guide in Vietnam and Cambodia for the last 2 years, so she has a lot of good stories!

PLanning on moving on to Rio in the next day or two, which seems like the perfect place to finish this great adventure in South America!

Stuck on Santiago

God, I cant believe I had only planned to stay in Santiago for 2 nights and Im still here a month later! Its like the Bermuda Triangle of South America - people get lost forever in the HI hostel! In fact, Im really just enjoying taking some time out from the hectic pace of bus journeys and taking tours. Its great to just unpack your backpack for a few weeks and relax.

Ive really enoyed the last week here actually . My American friends Matt and Sky also came back to HI and we had a little reunion the other night. The week started with a stupid jokeamong all of us about pirates (which I wont explain because it would take too long) but it just grew and grew and got more and more ridiculous, and it ended up with us all dressed as pirates on Saturday night. Ive never had so much fun in one night. There was a bbq on the same night for one of the staff members birthdays, and so there were a lot of CHileanos in the house. At the start of the njight, they were all huddled at one side of the terrace looking at us like we were crazy, but it wasnt too long before they just got into the stupiduty of it all and it turned into a great night. I salsa danced for so long, I just love it! We have some hilarious photos of us with big black eyes,bandanas, hooks, a parrot and lots of rum!

The last couple of days have been spent job-hunting, which is proving fruitless so far. I am leaving here in a couple of days to go South to Patagonia, and if I havent heard anything back from any of the schools at that point, I probably wont come back to Santiago but continue on to Argentina instead. At this stage though, I have my heart set on living here for a while and I will be disappointed if I cant find work. Im also considering an Irish bar but my lack of Spanish is a problem in applying for any kind of job other than English teaching.

On Sunday we spent the day wandering around Santiago´s flea and artisan markets and I bought a lot of stuff which I probably dont need, but it was really enjoyable. My favourite purchase was a fantastic black Russian military hat which i will have to send home. They have the weirdest stuff in these markets, including one stall with tonnes of old Nazi memorabilia which you can buy for a song.

Santiago is hurting my pocket significantly though and Patagonia isnt going to be any cheaper!

Held Hostage in La Paz

Well, I finally let Cuzco after a long stint there! Two of the girls from the hostal insisted on accompanying me out to the bus station to see me off, which was very nice of them. Boarded the coach (which looked nothing like its fancy picture on the companys brochure, by the way!) at 10:00p.m. and settled down for the llllong journey to Puno. Fell asleep almost immediately but then KING KONG came on and lucky me was sitting right next to the speaker!! Aghghghghghg. Thank GOD for MP3 players - I stuck my earphones in for the next 8 hrs!

Arrived in Puno at 6a.m. and stumbled into the station looking for coffee or anything containing a stimulant to keep me going for the next few hours while I waited for my connection to Copacobana. Watched the sun rise over Lake Titicaca as I tried to chew a dried up chocolate pancake and chatted with a Norwegian girl whom i{d met on the bus. The journey to the Bolivian border took a couple of hours. Once we reached the frontier we all had to get off the bus, get our exit stamp from Peru and then walk across the border to Bolivian Immigration. It was good to be out in the fresh air for a few minutes and I finally started to wake up a bit. All back on the bus again for the short ride to Copacobana. Once we arrived, I sussed out a lovely hostal which cost me only $5 for the night. For that, I had a lovely spacious room with own bathroom and breakfast! Bargain. Was very disappointed to find that YET AGAIN there was no hot water.

Instead of climbing into bed, I decided to push on through the tiredness and booked a tour for 1:30 to visit Isla del Sol on Lake Titicaca. It was exactly what the doctor ordered. The lake is a spectacular sapphire blue colour, and that particualr day, was very calm and serene. As the boat bobbed back and forth on the waves, the lake winked and flashed in the sun, and a tremendous sense of calm came over my frazzled body. At that altitude, you feel as if you could almost stretch out your arm and pluck the sun out of the sky. I, of course, forgot (having spent almost 3 weeks indoors sick) how easy it is to get sunburnt at this height and slowly fried in the afternoon sun. Isla del Sol was beautiful, although we just had an hour to explore. It, and nearby Isla de Luna, are believed to be the birthplace of the Incan civilization and there are many lovely ruins to see there. Not in the mood for much of that, I climbed to a high point on the island and played with some local children. I gave them presents of the many finger puppets Ihad been cajoled into buying in Cuzco. You{d think Id given them gold! They were so happy.

Th next day, after a much needed 12 hr sleep, I was up and rearing to go again! After a short wander around the town (which is v small) I hopped on a bus bound for La Paz. As the bus wound its way up the hills, we were able to see Lake Titicaca in all its glory. Its huge!! At one point, the road ends and we all had to get on a little motor boat to take us across the lake, while the coach drove on to this rickety looking wooden craft which looked as if it would almost certainly sink! The crossing was very short and a small bridge would really take care of the problem, but I suppose maybe they cant afford to build one...

Arrived in La Paz yesterday evening at around 6ish. The carnival was in full swing and we were literally dumped into the traffic choked streets wth our bags! All around us devilish looking masks leered at us and waterbombs were fired through the air. I tried as quickly as I could to find my bearings and made off in a particular direction, hoping it was the right one. Thankfully, it was and before long I found the street I was looking for. In Copacobana, I made myself a promise that when I got to La Paz I was going to splurge and book a hotel as I hadnt had a hot shower in over a month. The place I{m Staying in is costing $25 a night (the equivalent of 5 nights accomdoation just for some hot water! but its sooooo worth it!) I hopped into the shower straight away and stood there for about an hour! Bliss!

This morning I met a lovely English couple at breakfast and we ended up spending 2 hours chatting.They are both photographers and their favourite place is Cuba. Ruth is 60 and Mike 72. He{s a jazz musician. Had a very interesting morning talking to them. They{ve been everywhere and had lots of great stories! After breakfast I headed out into the streets looking forward to a day of sightseeing and exploring. Ten minutes later I was back in my room soaked to the bone and changing my clothes! You cannot go out into the streets today unless you dont mind getting wet! EVERYWHERE people are throwing water, buckets from balconies, kids with supersoakers, waterbombers! Its great fun, but considering the fact that Im just over a chest infection I thought it wiser not to get stuck in. So, along with a lot of other tourists, I am a hostage in my hotel today. Its so crazy here, even the staff in the hotel are throwing water at each other!

Tomorrow night, I leave for Potosi to see the silver mines. Apparently, its a terrible experience but worth doing, according to most travellers Ive met whove come that way. Seeing as I{m so close I might as well check it out!