A Kiwi Christmas

This Christmas was the first one that I didn't spend with my family, and on top of that, it was also in another country. Although I miss my family a lot on these occasions, I had a lovely Christmas here at the farm in Te Kauwhata with some really nice people. There are many things that make Christmas here different. First of all, it should be darker outside. Second of all, there should be snow on the ground, which I understand can be quite difficult when the temperature is way over twenty degrees (positive twenty, that is). As decorations, the farmhouse featured a small Christmas tree and three socks (or stockings, as they call them) hanging over the fireplace. The food consisted mainly of turkey, ham and salad. Pictures are coming, but it will take a while, so this will have to do for now.

Ho ho ho, to the south island I go,
Simon :)

Napier and lake Taupo.

After working on the farm for two weeks it felt good to be back on the road again. The road took us to Napier and Hastings. In these areas there vineyards everywhere you look. In general the east coast is very beautiful with lots of empty beaches (at least when we where there). Cape kidnappers didn't sound so appealing at first, but it turned out to be a very beautiful landscape.

Next stop was Taupo by the lake Taupo (New Zealand's biggest lake). I took a swim in the lake and it was not so cold that I thought it would be. The hot pools near the Huka falls by the way was so hot. You could barley go in there. One cool thing about it though is that the hot water flows into the Waikato river which is cold. That makes some parts cold, some lukewarm and some boiling hot. Just by taking a few steps you have the temperature you like.

I'm running out of ideas of what to write. If you have any, I would love to hear what you think. I'll do my best coming up with things I think you want to hear about.

//Simon

Rotorua and much more!

Time for a new blog post!
We arrived in Rotorua, walked into the hostel and we got an instant surprise. There he stands, Max (who I met in Auckland) right on the doorstep. It was totally unexpected and I was happy to see him again. New Zealand is smaller than I expected. In Rotorua I walked in the redwood forest and enjoyed this amazing Maori feast. The Maoris showed their ancient training and fighting techniques and the weapons that they used. They preformed the Haka dance, which is a way to prepare themselves for battle. At the end of the evening I got to eat food cooked under the ground like they did long ago. The Americans were very happy about that because it was thanksgiving that day.

In town we met up with two Germans, Luise and Dardan, who we got to know in Auckland. We continued our trip to Tauranga, Whakatane, and finally to Opotiki where we spent a few nights. The hostel was just by the beach, and it was so quiet. We had a giant beach to ourselves. You could really let go of everything and just enjoy the moment. We drove by the coast and have visited places like Hicks bay, The lighthouse at the east cape, and Tokomaru bay. Watching the sunrise at the east cape makes you the first person to see the new day in the world. The view is not bad either.

Also, I have been working on a farm outside of Gisborne for two weeks. The work is mostly making firewood and burning brush up the rolling hills. I've met lots of new people here; on this farm we are around fifteen wwoofers at a time!

I'll try to write another post as soon as possible to make up for this very late one. :)
//Simon  

Enjoy!

Raglan - a surfers paradise

Hello my dear readers!
A new update from the other side of the globe. I have left the farm with the Americans in a car we bought in Auckland. I have been surfing in Raglan, a beautiful place where you can relax and do what you wanna do at your own pace. Raglan is a very small place; the town is just one street and the rest is residents. The hostel, Raglan Backpackers, is one of a kind. They have got a jacuzzi, sauna and these hammocks to chill in, a very cool hostel. Our view from the hostel was amazing, mountain in the background, and the sea. Just beautiful. The mountain is called the sleeping lady, which we climbed and got to see Raglan from a different view and the very blue ocean.

Waitomo was the next destination. On the way we enjoyed the nice landscape New Zealand has to offer. Staying away from the highways and taking detours instead was one reason why we bought the car. We saw many birds including kiwis in the kiwi house. In Waitomo there are some caves with glowworms which I also took a look at.

I had no idea what to expect in Turangi except Mount Doom, known as Mordor in Lord of the Rings. The hostel we stayed at was called A Plus Samurai Lodge. I made it to Mordor without being killed by orcs or Gollum, which is good.

I met so many interesting people at the hostel. I met this French girl and German boy, and we spent hours teaching each other phrases in our languages. I liked it very much. After a few days people left the hostel and so did we. Driving by Lake Taupo to Rotorua wasn't bad at all. We stopped in different places, saw steam coming up from the ground on a thermal walk. As we got closer to Rotorua, it started smelling weird. The smell in Rotorua comes from the sulfur compounds in the air caused by the thermal activity in the area.

More pictures!

Bitten by an eel!

This week has been filled with a lot of activities and strange things have happened as well. When I went with James, Michelle and Graham's son, he asked me if I wanted to feed an eel in a small creek. Guess what happened? It went for my pinky instead of the piece of bread in my hand! I pulled my hand up out of the water quickly by reflex and the eel landed on the ground. I didn't expect that at all. It was funny and I think I'm gonna remember it for the rest of my life. James is a very nice guy, I have worked with him a couple of times now. We have done some lawn mowing, wood splitting and he has a kiwi orchard into which we smacked a few golf shots.

Last weekend we had a Christmas party here on the farm. We played badminton and ate some really good food. The temperature was over 20 degrees, and it's getting warmer every day. It feels weird that Christmas is coming up when it's this hot outside.

On Saturday we went to Hobbiton, where they filmed Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. It was a very beautiful landscape with hobbit holes all over the place. The tour guide told us some crazy stories about the director Peter Jackson. He wanted a scene where some hobbit children picked plums so he planted a plum tree. That wasn't good enough apparently, so he planted an apple tree and made it look like a plum tree with real plums and everything. One other thing was that he didn't make the pathways in Hobbiton with machines, he hired a bunch of people just to walk back and forth to make the trails look like they have been there for a long time.

The other day, James drove us to this amazing waterfall called Hunua falls, where you could climb up a bit and jump into the water. It wasn't until we were up there and had no choice but jumping that James told us 18 people had died there and no bodies were found. Also that there are 20 kg eels swimming around in the water. Apart from that it was peaceful, and a very nice place to spend the evening too.

That's all I've got for now, hope you enjoyed reading it!
Simon  

Farming!

A few days ago I went to Rangitoto Island, a volcano outside of Auckland. I walked to the top of the volcano and then to the lava caves. You'll get a pretty nice view of Auckland from up there... I have also been to the Odyssey maze, where you have to find your way through these rooms, it could be an optical illusion, mirrors, totally dark and more. It was awesome, me and my American friends actually went twice. :)

Right now I am working on a farm with Jack and Kellogg who I met at the hostel, and have been doing this for a week. It's called WWOOFing. The people who run the farm are Michelle and Graham, two nice kiwi's that are really likable. The farm is located in Wanaka, about an hour south of Auckland. We work for about four hours a day and get to live as part of a kiwi family and learn a lot about what it's like working on a farm in New Zealand. I really enjoy being outside working. You get fresh air and exercise. Being on a farm is great, when we have finished our daily work we may do whatever we'd like.

I have met a lot of new people, I'm in a country I've never been to before there are a lot of new experiences and information to process. Everything is new. So in our spare time, Jack, Kellogg and I play a lot of games, mostly cards.

I am slowly working my way down the country and the plan is to be with a woofing family at Christmas. After that I think I will continue my journey to the south island, nothing planned really. We'll see where my feet take me. :P

Keep commenting and feel free to ask questions. I appreciate it.

See you guys!

Simon

Pictures!