The Final Countdown

Hi all, several reasons for todays update. Firstly, we are coming to the end of our Kiwi adventure, also to fill in the gaps (or more importantly, the bits that Polly missed out!) We also feel the need to celebrate that last night was our final sleep in EZY camper! (see below!)

Today we are going to stay with Polly’s aunt here in the fine city of Auckland and we are looking forward to some proper food, a proper bed and more importantly, some other company. Now that doesn’t mean that we have argued, but its been a tad lonely at times with not many opportunities to meet other like minder adventurers. As this has been the case, we feel that for anyone else thinking of the doing the same, seriously consider what you want from the country. If you want to have a laugh or meet people, use the traveller bus networks. Stray and Kiwi Experience seem to be the transport of choice for most of the people we have met and we havent heard many negatives about it. Travelling in a group of friends for instance would be the only exception to this no campervan rule. The big vans that sleep eight would be cost effective and a helluva laugh!
Now that’s out the way, we want to highlight the fun that we have had on our journey round this fair land.
Drive over to Milford Sound.. This without a doubt was THE highlight of our trip in the South Island. All the guide books and programs we see in the UK recommend that this trip be taken, and it’s a must.
The South Island was amazing, the West Coast in particular was like something from a film… Our journey over Arthurs Pass to Queenstown was shrouded in mist and rain but it made it even more exciting. The waterfalls that cascaded down the rock face literally feet from the road and the endless stops to investigate what lie beyond the green DOC (Department of Conservation) signs which usually meant some beautiful scenery or a waterfall. Yes, it does rain quite a lot in the Southern Parts of New Zealand, its kind of to be expected and it didn’t disappoint us, although days of being constantly damp can irritate! Milford Sound was made all the better by the rain and this meant we could view some of the more spectacular waterfalls that are not visible when dry.
Activities we have done in Auckland:

Auckland has been fun… we were slightly reluctant to head over this way last weekend as we felt that nearly two weeks would be incredibly difficult to pass. How wrong were we. The first day we went to Kelly Tarltons Underwater and Antartic adventure. We had a bit of a chuckle when I announced to Pol that Kelly was in fact a World Famous female Scuba Diver. We we got there, either Kelly had been the patient in an amazing sex change operation, or I was wrong. I think the former is the most likely… with all that hair! Anway, the place, other than costing $28 each (roughly ten pounds - not a lot really) was pretty good. The Antartic part of the centre consisted of a bob cat ride around a medium sized Penguin enclosure while we were treated to a cheese on toast commentary telling us how successful and humane the breeding program was. We both couldn’t seem to forget that penguins are supposed to be wild and no matter how much snow or food they get fed… they still didn’t look too happy, they were cute though!
The Suburbs around Auckland are pretty impressive and have taken a major role in keeping us occupied. We have been residing in a small beachside town called Takapuna for the last week, it consists of a main street with shops and restaurants and a nice sheltered beach where it seems that the whole population of Auckland run. We have spent our time drinking cups of coffee and writing our diaries… well we haven’t managed the latter since Thursday as the Cricket has started and we’ve been too busy watching the Pommies get an Oz styled whooping.. Seriously though, we are a tad nervous about going to Melbourne now, especially as it looks like the first test will be a white wash!
The campsites we have stayed in have been ok in general. There have been A few however that deserve a mention.
Opononi Holiday Park: Comes in at number one in the RIP OFF charts. $32 dollars a night! The park consisted of three tiers of grass, a kitchen block and a shower room. The kitchen was ok, but the shower room was the most disgusting place I have ever been in. It reminded us of the toilet from Trainspotting! The ceiling was down and leaking and FULL of spiders!
Twizel Park was the BEST! - $22 a night for a secluded camping spot with spotless toilets and a lovely manager who would have done anything for her guests.. Shame Twizel was like the village from Silent Hill.
In between we have had picturesque DOC campsites in the middle of nowhere with no facilities other than a stream for water and a hole in the ground for poo pooing! We stopped using these when news of a Dutch couple being kidnapped reached us and although NZ is a relatively safe place, we both felt more at ease in the populated camping grounds! The Dutch couple were ok and were inundated with offers from the local population. One company even offered them a free campervan and a holiday to Queenstown staying in Luxury accommodation.
The driving in the South Island was notoriously poor. Although the roads are dead at the best of times.. Often a car will appear in your rear mirror and will attempt to pass at 150kmph with scant regard for anyone else in the vicinity.
To Sum up this rather lengthy entry, we both feel that the south island deserves far more time than the north. With the only places of interest in the North being Rotorua, Tongariro National Park (Mount Doom from the Lord of the Rings)
and Auckland itself. The list for the South is endless: the beautiful scenery of Queenstown, the Glaciers, the Wine of the Marlborough region, the endless National Parks.
Next time we catch up, we will be in Melbourne, Ali will be sunburnt and we may indeed have joined the mass working population.. (gulp!) so until then.. Ttfn.