Wellington and The Inter Island Ferry

After we left Foxton Beach we had an enjoyable sunny drive down to Wellington, complete with some Salvation Army shopping and cold drinks from tiny towns along the way. The weather was amazing and we were excited to see Wellington. I'd be told that Wellington was much like Portland or Seattle and that I would love it. I'd say that Wellington is more like San Francisco and Portland had a baby and that I am in love with it.

We only had half a day in Wellington and since the weather was perfect, Mike, Dan and I strolled around the Botanical Gardens while Tim fetched some groceries for our ferry ride that night. We had some good discussions about equality, feminism, and LGBT rights. It was interesting to hear the boys opinions and sometimes a little frustrating but our discussion was handled with grace and I'm grateful that it was a mature discussion that everyone left on a positive note. I think Dan and I discuss things in a simliar manner and I enjoy seeing what he thinks about certain topics Pre-College Years. The gardens were fantastic: there were so many beautiful trees and it was kind of humurous how many times we would be in the middle of a heavy discussion and we would just start taking photos or climbing trees without stopping what we were talking about. I hugged and kissed many trees and the views of the city were great.

Afterwards, we spent time looking for and finally finding a place with computers and internet and briefly caught our mothers on Skype (hi mom!). We rushed off to the Inter Island Ferry which was absolutely awesome. Our Ferry ride was about 3 and a half hours long and began at 6:30pm so we caught an epic sunset as we arrived in the sounds of the South Island. We shared seats and a table with a chatty and interesting Canadian couple, Deb and John, who are traveling the world together and doing many tramping tracks throughout New Zealand. They are both professors and have taken a whole 14 months off from work (which Deb was able to do over a 5 year plan where she received 80% of her paycheck for 4 years and then the remaining 80% her 5th year while traveling). We chatted,ate tuna fish sandwiches, read up about Nelson, and laughed at the Jungle Book playing on the television.

As we entered the sounds of the South Island during the end of sunset, I returned up to the Top Deck of the ship (floor 9) to enjoy the weather, the sunset, and the incredibly green sight of the South Island. I felt as if I was entering Jurassic Park (Mike: "If I were the Captain of this ship I would play Jurassic Park. Hey kids, what's down there in the holding cell? There's a reason we have so many sheep on this ship!"). Tim, Dan, and I chatted with an American father from Arizona (maybe the 5th American I've met down here) who moved to Nelson, New Zealand a year and a half ago with his family when his wife got a job down here. The lights of Picton were shining as we pulled into port, rushed to the car, and set foot on South Island land! Yes!

Now we just needed to find a campsite...

Photo Post: Tongariro Alpine Crossing (backwards)

From Top to Bottom: (1) Looking back at Mount Doom,

(2) Looking out towards the craters,

(3) The desert we crossed after Mount Doom,

(4) The desert just after Mount Doom,

(5) Daniel performing at the foot of Mount Doom,

(6) Group photo in front of Mount Doom,

(7) The first two and a half hours of the hike,

(8) An incredibly wonderful fog at the beginning,

(9) Mike hiking along the swampy beginning,

(10) Dan and I at the very beginning of the hike

Photo Post (backwards in time)

Top to Bottom: (1) Tongariro National Park at sunset,

(2) Lake Taupo at sunset,

(3) Lake Taupo,

(4) Thermal Wonderland's sulfer rivers,

(5) a butterfly that loved me dearly,

(6) Bathing at Kerosene Creek,

(7) Waterfall at Kerosene Creek,

(8) Campsite at Simpson Beach,

(9) The actual beach at Simpson Beach,

(10) Tim navigates the Cormandel

Foxton Beach

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore." - Andre Gide

We arrived in Foxton Beach, a small beachside town about an hour and a half north of Wellington, to stay with Heather and Colin: two incredibly generous and passionate individuals. They are the parents of my dad's colleague Nicky and surprise surprise they have actually been to my hometown, Rockford Illinois, multiple times. They hung out a blanket with the stars and stripes on it to welcome us as we rolled into town around 9:30pm on Tuesday after our day at Tongariro.

We could not have been luckier to have the opportunity to be so well taken care of: I cannot wait to meet Nicky when I return to the States so I can properly thank her in person for gifting her parents to us. Heather and Colin's house is amazing: they had beautiful vegetable gardens and a bed for each of us! We were prepared to simply sleep on the floor - we were just excited to be out of the cold and indoors! Our exhausted bodies slept forever in our warm beds and we woke up very late the next morning for fresh tomatoes on toast. Delicious!

Heather and Colin took us on a fantastic 2 hour walk around The Point along the beach. Dan and I had a great discussion about making life choices outside the box and how that can make other people feel insecure about their own choices. The water was warm and we picked up sea shells and chased sea gulls and took many many photos. Heather and Colin were kind of a fascinating novelty for us: they've traveled extensively around the world and had great stories and photo books for us to look through. Heather has a huge collection of little fake turtles that she or others have brought back from around the world and each turtle has its home town written on its bottom. The turtles were such a testament to their life journey and experiences.

We ate so much fresh and delicious food while we were with them - we were terribly spoiled in a very short period of time. They took us Lawn Bowling which was great fun: Dan and I VS Mike and Tim. We kicked their asses. It was a wonderful day that allowed us to also skype with our parents (yay!) and do our laundry (double yay!). We had an incredible dinner: chicken patties, chicken sausages, chicken legs, potatoes, peas, corn on the cob, bread, bread pudding, and a delicious cold salad of avocados, tomatoes, and cucumber. With very full bellies we fell asleep after a much needed laid back day.

Special thanks to Heather and Colin for being such caring and generous hosts to these four Americans. We received much more than expected and will never forget it. Special thanks to Nicky for her making everything possible: you have impacted our trip in a positive and wonderful way.

Photo Post

From Top to Bottom: (1) Driving to Simpson Beach on the Cormandel,

(2) Me at the Hot Water Beach,

(3) Daniel rope swinging at McLaren Falls

(4) Mike enjoying the sun after a cold plunge into the lake,

(5) Mike doing what he does best at McLaren Falls

Music: Wolf Parade

I bought Wolf Parade's album "Apologies To The Queen Mary" just an hour before I left on my trip. I think it's important to share the kind of the music that is shaping your journeys and this is what I have spent some time listening to.

Tongariro Alpine Crossing

I was trying to upload another photo post but the internet I'm currently stealing from McDonalds doesn't want to cooperate. Instead I will attempt to describe the Tongariro Alpine Crossing without the assistance of photos!

From Lake Taupo we drove down and camped at the Tongariro National Park alongside a kiwi family who happily shared their campsite, picnic table, and conversation. We made dinner on our portable stove and Dan and I almost killed ourselves by mis-loading the gas canister into the stove and having it light the entire stove on fire. I don't remember laughing when this happened, but both Mike and Tim have assured me post-fire event that they were yelling and Dan and I were laughing. Don't worry, we all survived- even the food.

Hiking the Crossing the next day was hands down one of the most beautiful and strenuous experiences I've had. We woke up late at 6am and I thought for certain we wouldn't make our 7am bus. Tensions were high and it was absolutely FREEZING - putting on shorts was total torture. We did make the bus (our luck is astounding) and we reached the start of the pass at 7:30am and began about 10 minutes late. We hiked it in 7 hours and 15 minutes with a longer lunch break and many many short rests.

We hiked up craters, past volcanoes, through lava deserts, up and around mountains, down rock slides, through forest, prairie, and past sulfer pools. It was great to be physically active in such a breathtaking environment though I certainly said "I'm going to die. This is hell. The most beautiful hell ever" multiple times and repeatedly requested the boys carry me. I was definitely That Girl. It's hard to say which portion was the most difficult: perhaps The Devil's Staircase which took around an hour to climb up a gravel staircase. The entire hike was filled with looking ahead and feeling as if I could never make it that far and then finally reaching that point to look back and be astounded by what I'd just accomplished.

Perhaps the most surreal thing was hiking past Mount Doom from Lord Of The Rings and having Daniel perform Aragorn's speech from the black gates of Mordor at the foot of the volcano. My favorite views were of the Red Crater: which was just almost as difficult as the Devil's Staircase to climb but this time there was WIND. I've never been so grateful to have my windbreaker with me. Just brutal winds as we climbed up this mountain side with no stairs, just rocks and gravel, and two cliff drops on either side. Finally reaching the top and trying not to be blown off into the crater was incredible: there was this brilliant burnt red crater to our right, Mount Doom behind us, and three emerald sulfer lakes down the mountain in front of us. The rock slide down was sort of thrilling for our legs: Dan literally just ran down the gravel drop to get it over with as the rest of us skied down side to side trying not fall.

After lunch at the emerald lakes, we hiked up to a much larger lake across a flat desert (where the best views back to Mount Doom and the Red Crater were), and reached the Alpine Valley which was one of my favorite parts. Finally walking on relatively flat/downhill paths that wound around this grassy mountain was great and the view encompassed lakes and fields for miles and miles. I enjoyed hiking alone most as I wasn't being worn out by hiking at someone else's pace. After finally relieving ourselves at the second bathroom on the hike, we pushed through the wonderful prairie portion that turned into a difficult downward climb and poured into a tropical forest -- the last part! We were hurrying to catch the 3pm bus and when Mike and Tim stopped at a waterfall to sing Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls, I told Dan I couldn't stop or I'd never be able to start walking again. It felt as if we had gone the wrong way through the forest because there were no people: we'd spent all day climbing over mountains with so many other people (including this German woman who was carrying her BABY strapped to her body as the wind and rocks and cliffs smashed everyone around) and suddenly no one was there. It was strange.

We were the last people on the bus but we made it! We drove to Okahune, about a half hour away, to a ski lodge that had a hot pool that we paid to swim in. It was the most magnificent medicine for my body. We exchanged back massages and while the boys drank their beer I ordered us takeaway from La Pizzaria next door. We drove off into the sunset towards Foxton Beach eating this incredible salty thin pizza, our bodies aching but grateful for the swim.