NZ Road Trip #5: Wellington

Its a while since I last wrote on my trip around New Zealand - I have to catch up before my alzheimer starts having short-term effects on good memories (I'm not sure if these issues as caused by the alcohol or by the overload of finance-related issues that bounce in my head - of course, I prefer thinking its the latter).

Wellington was probably the most trendy city I had seen in a long time. Unfortunately, we only stayed for 2 days, and didn't have time to check all of it, but for the time being, this is what impressed me most:

• The second hand shops - time or weather conditions don't seem to be an issue, there will always be trendy people with big sun glasses, a boho hat and some shopping bags. Only for this reason, I could already picture myself living in this city. The city has a huge second-hand market (specially for clothes). Shops vary in price and style - you can find from elegant charleston dresses for a special event up to H&M t-shirts from last season for half-price or even less. I had to join the trend and bought a nice 70s style silk dress (I swear - you can't resist the shopping!).

• People like wearing hats - yes, its a trend! Besides, if you don’t wear one, you feel uncomfortable. They mostly match them with their stockings and/or handbag (girls) or wearing nerd glasses and slim jeans (guys).

• Bars are awesome - Seriously, I wish I could find this type of bars in Switzerland: affordable, familiar and really stylish. Bars offer a considerable wine menu and I strongly recommend to try a local pinot gris if you like dry white wine.

• It's windy - If I had to name a flaw, it would be the sudden wind - those days, you can't expect having nice hair and the best alternative solution is probably to live under a hat.

I felt sorry for not staying longer in Wellington, but we still had a long way to go....!!

NZ Road Trip #4: Tongariro

An insight of the day we found out that Frodo and Sam were NOT as lazy as we thought - at least they made it!

The attempt of walking the 8 hours Tongariro Alpine Crossing (classified as one of World's top 10 one day walks by National Geographic) started at the information desk. As we got there (of course, not as early as we had planned) the first thing we were told that some showers were expected in the afternoon. But we felt strong and full of courage - we had our hiking boots and a simple raincoat we had bought, that fits in a surprisingly small bag.

Of course, we warned the information desk assistant that as good as we look like, we are not sporty people:

Us: "I know we are young and pretty, but please consider, we have absolutely NO physical condition and NO hiking experience" (we lied - me and my best friend HAD some hiking experience... but it was a nightmare and as we almost died we didn't want to consider it as "experience").

Assitant: "Oh no don't worry about that, it's a easy path"

Us: "Yes, uhm, but how steep is it?"

Assistant: "Well, the only difficult part is the beginning, which is pretty steep... but you can avoid it by starting on the other side of the walk (in Ketetahi Car Park)".

That sounds like a plan!

Here's a map of the 19.4km walk.

And just fyi - this actually was quite useful for our decisions- here's a picture of the different steeps and heights we were going to face that day (our tour started on the right side).

Anyway, now you must be wondering why anyone is willing to go through this suffering. Well, there are some good reasons I guess:

- It was the location of Mordor and the Plains of Gorgoroth (Lord of the Rings)

- You get to see a variety of natural scenes: volcanoes, geysers, lakes, forests...

- You meet other healthy/motivated people on your way...

Unfortunately, despite our good intentions, we did not lie about our physical condition and had to turn back after reaching the Ketetahi Hut. This is what we managed to see on our 4.5 hrs trip.

Recommendation: Be prepared. Practice some sport regularly before trying to do the Tongariro Crossing, even if the path is easy... half of the time (at least) you will be walking up the hill. Take 2L of water with you (per person) 'couse there's not such as a water fountain on the way. Take comfortable shoes and not too many coats and jackets (you'll start sweating after the first 45 min walking).

I'm sure that walking the complete path must be amazing... and I regret my laziness! I just hope to be fit enough next time!

NZ Road Trip #3: Rotorua

Next stop - Geothermal Paradise

With a huge hungover after trying out different shots at the hostel's bar, we hit the road on Sunday as early as we could to make our way to Rotorua.

We arrived just on time to leave our stuff at the hostel (this time, Base Rotorua) and take a look at what was surrounding us. When getting near to the city, the smell of the air is suspicious - it reminded us of rotten eggs. At the time we got nearer to the bubbling mud pools, we were so amazed that we (almost) forgot about the rotten eggs. The hostel was 2 min walk from a public geothermal park - Kuirau Park - which is still very active: the latest eruptions just took place around 7 years ago!

At sunset we decided to try out the Polynesian Spa, which offers several different hot spring pools. Its worth to pay the entry fee to enjoy the afternoon view over Lake Rotorua. I would have taken pictures, but it was too confi in the hot pools :)

The next day we headed south to another geothermal park called Waimangu (where I took the pictures above). This is a protected Scenic Reserve and Wilflife Refuge. We didn't want to go to some typical touristic attraction - and this was definitely the best alternative. Upon arrival, you get a map with some short clarifications to each number pointed out in the map. We barely met other people on our way which made us appreciate much more the sounds of nature. I know, this must sound quite weird - but I swear, the sound of bubbling mud and hot sulphuric water got me hypnotized....

NZ Road Trip #2: Auckland

The journey begins.

I met my friends in Auckland, for a big start. I was the last one arriving from Sydney, just on time to catch one of the last mini vans driving into the city. We had decided to stay in a centric hostel, since we were not planning to stay many days in Auckland - there are hundreds of hostels around Queenstreet (which is pretty much the center of all the happenings), with quite similar price ranges.

We decided to pick BASE Auckland - it's big, centric, with many facilities and is probably one of the best options to party. We stayed in one of the top floors and had an amazing view of the skyscrapers! The hostel has its own bar in which they offer specials every night: free pizza, drinks at 5 NZD (about 2.5 EUR), ladies night, games night...

Our first night out we tried finding some local bars and pubs. There were some nice places in Vulkan Lane, a small pedestrian street located perpendicular to Queenstreet. People start drinking quite early - so when we finished dinner, people were already heading to the clubs. The clubs we found were located near the Waterfront (some are a little picky about the dresscode, maybe because it was weekend...).

After our first big night out, we woke up the next day ready to walk around Waiheke Island, taste their wine, visit their beaches, and try out some of the famous hiking tours! However, when we got out of the hostel, it started raining. No, raining is not really the word... it was more like the Apocalypse! As a reasonable alternative, we decided it was probably the best day to learn something about New Zealand - geography, history and its flora and fauna - we went to the Auckland Museum. It's definitely worth a visit to learn about maori culture and about the many volcanoes that shaped New Zealand - Did you know that Auckland lies over 50 volcanoes and not all of them are extinct?

After some hours wandering around, the raining ceased and we decided to take a afternoon - evening shot from Auckland's skyline. Therefore, we took a short ferry that brought us to Devonport. It has one main road on which you can find several nice cafes and restaurants with local wine and beer as well as some good and cheap food!

Later on, when back to Auckland city itself, we gave a try to the hostel bar which ended up to be a very funny night, again. My only recommendation: don't waste your time on ordering gin tonics or vodka lemon, as cheap as it might seem, generally, the wine and beer is much more worth it!!!

NZ Road Trip #1: The Journey...

New Zealand

In order to remember this journey with as many details as possible - and taking into account my lack of long-term memory - I aim to describe our 2 weeks along the north and south island of New Zealand.

Trying to make it as practical as possible - with impressions, pictures and suggestions for those who have thought about taking the step sometime soon - yes, I specially mean you two australians ;) - or for those who just feel curious about the country itself and want to see some pictures!

Ours was a quite tight schedule as you can certainly imagine, we drove a long way to make it from north to south - however, it was completely worth it and I would definitely do it again.

First stop........ AUCKLAND !