LEAVING THE SOUTH ISLAND

I took the bus from Lake Takepo to Christchurch, where I stayed a night in the lovely YHA opposite the arts centre and old university. I decided to treat myself and go for a lovely meal because I have been self-catering for a long time in the hostels to economise. I had read about the restaurant called Cooking N'Gas in the Lonely planet guide and it was only a short distance from the hostel.
I have to say it really did live up to my expectations.The food was delicious and the service was really good,and thankfully it was not too expensive.
I had chosen to fly from New Zealand's South Island back to the North Island because I had managed to find a flight for as little as twenty three pounds from Christchurch to Wellington. I checked in for my flight about five hours early then walked to the Antarctic Exhibition Centre near the airport in Christchurch.
(ME ON A SNOW MOBILE JUST BEFORE EXPERIENCING A SNOW STORM)
(VEHICLES USED IN THE ANTARCTIC)
It is a fascinating place there are exhibits and information about all the Edmond Hilary expeditions and the history of the Antarctic.You can also experience a snow storm at first hand.You have to don a heavy duty jacket and some rubber overshoes, then you are all shown into a snow covered room. A loud speaker gives you a commentary which gets more frantic , warning of an impending snow storm. Then the wind speed increases to over twenty eight miles an hour and the temperature drops.It is a bit scary and very exciting! I can actually say that I survived a snow storm!!Even if it was in very controlled conditions..hee hee.
(AN EXHIBIT DEPICTING A CAMP AT THE ANTARCTIC)
(UNITED STATES HQ FOR ANTARCTIC FLIGHTS FROM CHRISTCHURCH)
Initially I was in two minds about going to the Antarctic centre but I am glad that I made the effort to go to the exhibition because I learnt so much about the Antarctic that I did not have a clue about and I found it very interesting.
Eventually I got my flight to Wellington and then met up with Stephanie and Jason again that evening. They had got the boat over with their campervan. It had been a VERY ROUGH crossing and they were still feeling a bit wobbly.
The next day they gave me a lift to Napier in the Campervan. It took us about five hours and we stopped along the way for lunch by the roadside.
(STEPH AND JASON ON OUR LUNCH BREAK ENROUTE FROM WELLINGTON TO NAPIER)
We passed the largest windfarm in New Zealand onroute. Napier is a port city in Hawkes Bay, it has a population of 57 thousand and one of its interesting facts is that it has the largest crossbred wool centre in the southern hemisphere(WOW I hear you cry!!) Napier was levelled by an earth quake in 1931 and subsequent fires killed over two hundred and fifty people. The town was rebuilt in the Art Deco style of the time and many of the buildings still stand today. I loved wandering around the streets spotting the Art Deco houses.
Jason and Steph and I went out for a meal, then they went to find their campsite.
(CAR IN THE RESTAURANT IN NAPIER)
I booked into the YHA which is just over the road from the sea. I could hear the sound of waves crashing onto the beach and it was so nice.
The next day I went knicker shopping then met up with Steph and Jason for a coffee. I love the way they put the pattern of the silver fern(The symbol of New Zealand ) on top of the coffee.

Then Jason and Steph headed off for Taupo and I stayed another day and night in Napier. I went for a very long walk along the beach around sunset and it was very relaxing.
That night in the YAH there were three more girls in my dorm ( I tend to stay in dorms for four females.) They said that they needed to be up early, so to be considerate I got into my pyjamas early and placed my tooth brush and face creams so that I could sneak in and get them in the dark without disturbing them. (That is what most people do to be considerate to the other people in the room). Well you can imagine how angry I was in the morning when one of the two German girls got up at seven and switched the light on and started banging around the room. I asked them to open the curtains as there was enough natural light for them to see their things without disturbing me. And if they needed to check out their bags they could drag them into the hallway, like lots of people do.(The previous day two girls left early and no one in the room heard a thing when they got up and went!! so it can be done) they were not happy at being asked to do this. I then pointed out how considerate I had been the previous night and they apologised,albeit begrudgingly. Eventually I just left them to it and went down to the kitchen for a coffee. But I have to say in all the months that I have been travelling this is one of the very few incidents where I have had problems with people in the dorm. Which is very good really!and it will not stop me being considerate in the future, as most people who use YHAs are very considerate and it works well.

WANAKA AND LAKE TAKAPO

I had a lovely walk around the lake in Wanaka and I could notice that there was a lot more snow on the mountains than when I was staying in the town a while ago. But sadly Treble Cone ski resort was still not opening because there was not enough snow on the slopes. It was now due to open the day after I was leaving. So I thought I would try the other ski resort,Cardrona, but when I went along to inquire about ski hire they said there were going to be very high winds the next day and there was a high probablility that the ski lifts would not be running for most of the day!!! It seemed I was destined not to ski. But All was not lost, someone told me that when I get to Lake Takapo there is a ski area called Roundhill and that is where the New Zealand ski team train, so it should be good. I made up my mind to go skiing there.

Later on when I was talking to some of the young snowboarders in the hostel, I said I was moving on to hopefully go skiing at Roundhill by Lake Takapo, they said to me "oh are you Chasing snow!!!" and I have to say before I could think I said "Yeh!" as if it was the most natural thing in the world for me to be doing..and it made me giggle to myself..who did I think I was kidding that I could ever be some kind of snow junkie who needs my fix of Skiing!! In reality ,I just fancy another challenge and thought it would be nice to ski for a day in New Zealand.

I met up with Rachel, who was kicking her heels because she could not start work in Treble Cone until the snow arrived. So we went for a lovely walk by lake Wanaka and chilled out together for the day.
I left the next day on the bus to go to Lake Takapo. It was very snowy and icy and the roads were very dangerous.

Everyone was stopping by the roadside struggling to put their snow chains on. We just managed to get through, but my heart was in my mouth at one point when the bus began to slide.

The YHA in Lake Takapo is right on the edge of the most amazing lake and the views of the snow capped mountains were breathtakingly spectacular.
It is just impossible to put into words the beauty and serenity of it all. I was so glad that I had booked in for three nights!.
I went for a walk to explore and came across a very old church on the edge of the lake it had the most wonderful views out of the window behind the alter.

When I got back to the hostel my chasing snow epic continued...I enquired about going to Roundhill to ski. There are no shuttle bus services to the slopes. You can only get there by car!!! and I did not have one. Not deterred I planned to hitch a lift the next day.

But later in the evening the snow began to fall very heavily and the next morning everywhere was covered in the most beautiful blanket of snow...And guess what..there was NO SKIING AT ROUNDHILL because there was TOO MUCH SNOW!!!
(VIEW FROM MY BEDROOM WINDOW AT THE YHA)
So much for my chasing the snow. First in Wanaka not enought snow, then the winds are too high in Cardrona, now there is too much snow in Roundhill!!! It made me laugh. I was not so cool now!
But I have now found out that there are some good snow fields in the centre of the north island, so all is not lost. Lets see if I can catch up with the skiing there and get to the slopes!!!

But in the meantime I went for a lovely walk in the snow with two girls I met in the hostel. We climbed to the top of Mt St John.
It took us three hours for the round trip. It was very blistery at the summit, but the views over the lake were great, so it was worth the climb.
Down the road from the YHA there are some newly opened thermal pools. So I spent a few hours just chilling in the 40oc pools overlooking the lake and mountains. It was magical and I have to say I did wish that I had been there with someone. Mostly I do love my own company and I do not feel lonely at all. But this was one of those moments when it would have been nicer if I had someone else to share it with.

The next day I walked to the top of Cowand Hill through the woods and I was astounded by the view of the snow capped mountains all around me. It was a great feeling being up there overlooking the lake and mountains.
The sun was shinning and I felt so happy to be alive. I sat for ages just taking in the beauty of it all and hoping that I will be able to remember this feeling if things get tough in my life. It will make me feel happy. I walked back down and sat by the lake reading my book for a long time, until it was too cold to stay put.

In the evening I sat in the big sitting room by the fire at the hostel talking to some really interesting people.
A group of girls from Bahrain and Kuwait, were explaining all about their cultures and how they felt nervous in some parts of New Zealand during their travels because of the way they dressed and covered up their bodies. Sometimes they were laughed at in the street. Which I found so sad. Then I got chatting to an amazing guy called Solomon who comes from Taiwan. I said to him that I had to admit that I did not know much about his country. Well he went off and came back with a little broach with a symbol of his country and he gave it to me. He showed me a map of the world and eplained exactly where Taiwan was. He proceeded to tell me the history of his small country and how China is not letting them be independent, and how passionate he was about it maintaining its independence.
(SOLOMON IS 3RD FROM LEFT)
He was amazing and I really loved talking to him. He has promised to give me a personal guided tour of his country if I visit and after his enthusiam I am going to try to visit it one day. He really was a remarkable ambassador for his country and he was thrilled when I told him that he had spurred me on to want to know more about his country and its relationship with China.
(VIEW OVER LAKE TAKEPO FROM HOSTEL SITTING ROOM)

CAMPERVAN.

I spent a nice day alone in Te Anau, just walking and reading. I then got a message from Jason and Stephanie (whom I met on the Doubtful sound tour) saying that they would pick me up in Queenstown the next day and I could stay the night with them in their six birth campervan,then they would give me a lift to Wanaka the next day. I was excited about the prospect of a night in the campervan as I had seen so many travellers with them and wondered what it would be like.
My bus was late getting into Queenstown and it was freezing but Stephanie and Jason were there to greet me and take me up to the five star campervan campsite.
Jason (who it transpires comes from Mayfield, which is not far from where I live in Kent) cooked a lovely meal and we watched the tv in their van and had a good chat before settling down for the night.
The campervan was very specious and cosy.

The next day we drove to Wanaka through some lovely countryside. We had lunch at a little cafe on the lakeside called Relish (That is also the name of the cafe where Sammie worked through her schooldays in Tunbridge Wells)
One thing that I have been missing on my trip is a good soak in a bath. So I was particularly pleased when I came across a beauty place called 'Soak'. And for a few dollars they fill the baths up with warm water and you can just chill in the water for as long as you like. So Stephanie and I booked into one of the rooms with two baths and Jason kindly waited for us to have a fabulous soak and a natter.(They even let us bring in our own wine!!)
Afterwards I checked into the YHA and they went off to their campsite.
Before I arrived in Wanaka everyone had been telling me about the little cinema 'Paradiso' that bakes cookies during the film, and they sell them during the interval. So I was intrigued and wanted to find it. I met up with Jason and Stephanie and we went along to see the new Indiana Jones film. It was a quirky place. There was a massive sheep on the roof!...don't ask me why.
And inside there was a selection of old sofas to sit on and enjoy the film. You could also take food and drink in. I presume it was trying to create a similar atmosphere as to the one you get if you watch a film at home on your sofa. THE COOKIES WERE DELICIOUS!! I had a white chocolate and ginger one!! yum yum!!
Afterwards we went and sat by the outside fire at the nearby cocktail bar and had a nightcap. Then I said my goodbyes to Stephanie and Jason who were leaving the next day. I was staying on in Wanaka another couple of nights, hopefully to do some skiing and to meet up with Rachel again.