Jeff, Millie the Magnificent, and I did a whirlwind road trip of many corners of the country of New Zealand in fifteen days. We're talking north end of the north island to the south end of the south island, and lots of stuff in between (3500 km ~ 1400 mi, driving our awesome camper van, Millie!). Highlights of the past 2.5 weeks:
~ Acquiring Millie from wonderful folk, Jordan and Susanna from NH (1988 Mitsubishi L300 – hippie van all the way, baby!) and learning how to drive a manual column shifter! Getting comfortable camping in any roadside designated picnic area (which are very common) for free!
~ Mountain hiking with Jeff amongst active volcanoes and gassy (rotten egg smelly) sulfur pits. Whew! Get in shape, girl!
~ Rotorua: Maori heritage site and cultural performance, geysers, more sulfur gas pits, cool hostel experience, cool town walk
~Wellington: downtown camping (museum parking lot) in Millie, in the middle of a HUGE waterfront NZ bands concert (6 bands), in the middle of a rain-and-wind storm. Awesome!
~ SPECTACULAR 3-day drive (and ferry) from Rotorua (north end of the north island) to the Te Anau, Fjordlands (south end of the south island). Millie is my HERO! (So is Jeff :) ) Hitchhikers galore on the South Island – we assisted 4 inspiring, passionate individuals in the past 10 days. Native homelands: Italy, England, and France (2 FULL-OF-LIFE femmes being the most recent car mates!) .
~ Flying in a prop plane over Milford Sound!
~ Glow worm cave! Unbelievable! Seemed at first like it might touristy, but was actually jaw-droppingly awesome.
~ Kayaking in much less visited (but every bit as impressive) Doubtful Sound (fjord)! Really great guide, and wonderful fellow kayakers from all over the globe.
~ Otago Central Rail Trail 1.5 day bicycle trek…150 km (90 miles)…on a TANDEM hybrid bike…GRAVEL/muddy track…horrific cushy springy seats (really bad on the nether regions)…MOUNTAIN pass…lots of sheep and cows and not much else…but it brought Jeff & me closer together! (Ain’t it grand how things work out like that?) We relaxed our tired, cramped muscles and nerves with an under-the-stars private hot tub in a nearby town.
~ Now, Jeff has flown home, is safe and sound and more than a bit jet-lagged. I miss him very much. I am regrouping in a wonderful little farm hostel on the Banks Peninsula in a town called Akaroa, just SE of Christchurch. Magic! Here’s why: many fellow international, very social and friendly travelers (predominately German – reasons unknown), gorgeous view of the harbour (a volcanic crater), wild hikes on hillsides even sheep can barely tolerate, peahens and peachicks to clean up cooking refuse (same niche as dogs!)…
I finished reading Capt. Cook's Journal of his first circumnavigation on the flights home. Here is something he wrote that I thought you'd appreciate, concerning the Australian Aboriginals:
ReplyDeleteFrom what I have said of the Natives of New Holland they may appear to some to be the most wretched people upon the Earth; but in reality they are far more happier than we Europeans, being wholy unacquainted not only with the Superfluous, but with the necessary Conveniences so much sought after in Europe; they are happy in not knowing the use of them. They live in a Tranquility which is not disturbed by the Inequality of Condition.
The earth and Sea of their own accord furnished them with all things necessary for life. They covet not Magnificent Houses, Household-stuff, etc.; they live in a Warm and Fine Climate, and enjoy every wholesome Air, so that they have little need of Cloathing, and this they seem to be fully sencible of, for many to whom we gave Cloth, etc., left it carelessly upon the Sea beach and in the Woods, as a thing they had no manner of use for; in short, they seem'd to set no Value upon anything we gave them, nor would they part with anything of their own for any Article we could offer them. This, in my opinion, Argues that they think themselves provided with all the necessarys of Life, and that they have no Superfluities.
Nessa appears to be away from the internet at the moment, and somebody's got to add some content to this thing. So while we're waiting for her to make another post, you all can entertain yourselves by cutting and pasting this into your browser:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cTJla0i_Kw&NR=1
How ironic that Captain Cook, arguably the most accomplished of all our European discoverers, was eventually put to death by the Pacific people whose tranquility he disturbed and who are still suffering from the inequality of condition the good captain describes here. Good stuff Jeff, and ah humanity!
ReplyDelete