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Fantail Bay to Fletcher Bay

Fantail bay to Fletcher Bay.

The night is filled with half-waking moments as rain spatters through the heavy branches of the tree we have parked under and smack into the roof of our campervan. Finally we give up on sleep and really open our eyes to air so thick with moisture it is practically raining inside our van.

Breakfast is the usual - Fake-o-Wheatbix for me and oatmeal with raisins for Christina. After unrumpling ourselves the best we can and making the obligatory visit to the less-fearsome of the campsite's long drops, I pull forward around our sheltering tree and out of the park's, as the way we drove in is beginning to look boggier than I trust our campervan to back through.

The rain is basically done as we drive north along the coast. The unsealed road ahead of us is certainly no better than it was last night, and under the onslaught of what must have been at least a couple of inches of rain is rather muddy in places and full of bone-jarring potholes. We wind up and down, dodging the occasional other vehicle and enjoy the views. Up here there are no holiday homes, just the occcasional worn farmhouse and the undulating hillside patchwork of cattle-tracked green, pine forest plantation, and regenerating bush. After a bit, we skid down a muddy clay stretch of the road into Port Jackson, which is nothing more than a cluster of a few farm buildings and some road maintenance equipment parked in a neat row on a nearby rise. A bit of confusion ensues as we debate which path of the road's fork to take, but a careful examination of the rather unhelpful road signs eventually clears matters up. Course decided, Christina pops out to open a gate and I drive through into Fletcher Bay Recreational Reserve. For a bit, the road seems to have improved, but that turns out to be a delusion fostered by the fact that its course runs briefly through a flatter, broader way. Momentarily, we find ourselves once again climbing and descending the outside lane of a narrow, gravel path which appears to have been surveyed by a rather drunken engineer. Though we are in a protected area, we are still surrounded by grazing land and cattle and sheep. I still have not found out exactly how that arrangment works, since it's pretty obviously (from the visible amounts of erosion) not good for the conservation aspect of the park, but perhaps it's like we were used to at Point Reyes, where privately-owned farms were allowed to continue within the park, but no new development was permitted.

A few kilometers along and we find ourselves faced with the first ford of the day. It's at the bottom of quite a dip in the road and is swollen and running swiftly near the middle from last night's rainfall. We get out of the van, find a stick, and begin poking as far towards the center of the watercourse as we are able. It turns out that the stream is really no more than 6-8 inches deep at the worst (at least that we can feel), and that the bottom appears to be layers of gravel rather than mud. We get back in the van and through we go! Perhaps on the upslope the tires slipped a bit, but we were soon through and on our way.

A couple more kilometers along the north coast of peninsula, and we drive down into the DOC campground at Fletcher Bay. The wind is blowing strongly, and the surf is crashing just a few meters from the beach, then gushing up the sand in frothy waves. We park a ways back from the water in a cowpie-strewn meadow that is at least somewhat sheltered from the wind, quickly nibble lunch, then set off on the hike which runs around the NE tip of the peninsula to Stony Bay. As with virtually everywhere we have gone on the Coromandel peninsula, we are criss-crossing in and out of beef cattle and sheep farms. The track is muddy and half-overgrown with the thick green grass which seems to carpet this entire section of the world. We clamber uphill, looking north out over the Colville Channel at Great Barrier Island, crossing fences, getting suspicious stares from skittish cattle, and fighting a strong headwind and the occasional burst of rain. The views everywhere are beautiful, and we make far slower time than expected on the track because we find ourselves stopping every 5 minutes to take pictures or investigate some unfamiliar plant or bird. Right at the coast, there are sections fenced off from grazing which are thick with native brush. Where the hillsides plunge into ravines, water trickles down to the ocean through groves thick with tree ferns, mossy trees and rocks.

After an hour and a half, we begin to descend from our path high above the sea. Here the trail runs steeply through switchbacks covered by 10-metere tree ferns and overhung by great gnarled trees whose hanging branches are half-covered by a nest epiphyte which we have seen elsewhere, but not yet in such great numbers. (epiphytes in NZ: http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Bio28Tuat02-t1-body-d1.html) Nikau palms dot the undergrowth, elder specimens occasionally breaking through the canopy to point their shaving-brush fronds at the sky. Light is dim until we come to the bottom of the trail and walk out into Poley Bay.

Poley Bay is very small, not much more than a beach perhaps 50 meters wide and 20 meters deep, bordered on each edge by steep, rocky bluffs. Though their numbers are nothing compared to some of the other beaches we have seen in NZ, the shell selection on the beach is fantastic, and we alternate between staring out at the island-dotted sea and peering at the shell-spotted sand. Perhaps our favorite find are the numerous small-but-whole abalone shells, glowing with their iridescent sheen. Here and there in niches on the bluff edges are left the collections of previous visitors, which we examine but leave in place.

We clamber over some slippery rocks and watch the waves roll in. After awhile, conscious that we really don't want to be making the return trek in the dark, Christina and I set out back to the van. We make much better time on the way back, and after eating dinner listening to the local farmer round up his cows on a motorbike, finish out the night with a walk on the beach, watching the moonlit waves roll in. It's chilly again and despite a clear sky and a breathtaking view, we are soon crawling back in the campervan for the night.

Coromandel to Fantail Bay

Woke up this morning in our campervan outside the Lion's Den Hostel.  The
windows were thick with condensation inside and out.  It doesn't really feel
like early winter here.  The mornings are quite chilly, but on days when the
sun comes out, by 11 am it becomes quite pleasant.

After a bit of breakfast - enjoying the luxury of having a toaster! - Christina
did some laundry and I cleaned up the van, then we walked around downtown
Coromandel - a town of about 1600 people.  It's a very pretty, rather quaint
seaside sort of town, full of cafes and shops in old, mostly Victorian and
later wooden buildings.  We stopped by the tiny town library, and Christina
bought an old novel from their 'for sale' rack for a dollar, then we grabbed a
pie and a sausage roll from the bakery shop, had our propane tank filled by
a rather taciturn local down at the petrol station, and headed north out of
town along Highway 25.  The passenger side seatbelt is misbehaving again, so
Christina is forced to sit in the center seat of the van.  I suppose we must
look like newlyweds, driving along shoulder-to-shoulder.

Highway 25 continues to wind its way north along the west coast of the
Coromandel peninsula, only occasionally dodging inland for a few km.  When it
does head inland, it always does so with a steep, twisting climb over the
hills.  The road is often narrow and drops off abruptly on the left.  Everywhere
we drive through bits and pieces of coastal rainforest.  5-10 meter tree
ferns hang over the roadway and cluster in patches of the remaining forested
hillsides.  There are bits and pieces of the native first- or second-growth
forest left, but many of the hills away from the road are either grazing
land - thick with greenery, but obviously eroding and criss-crossed by mazes
of cattle trails - or owned by logging consortiums, and covered by replanted
pines or their stumps.  Still, the scenery is beautiful.  The coast curls in
and out around the sea, and every turn of the road reveals a new view full
of different small islands and verdant green headlands.

The further north we drive, the less traffic we see.  With each kilometer, we
drive further and further into an area where people only live by very
deliberate choice.  The only industry up here is tourism and logging.  For
the first hour or so after Coromandel, we drive by one tiny seaside
settlement after another, each made up of a dozen or so holiday homes
("batches") tucked away in their own tiny bay, looking across
shell-strewn rocky beaches at the firth.  Around 1pm, we pull off the highway
for lunch, and eat ham-and-cheese sandwiches at the table of our van,
sliding door open, looking out at the glittering sea.  Everywhere there are
tiny islands popping up steeply out of the Hauraki Gulf.  Some are denuded of
trees, evidently due to past logging or agricultural usage; others are
still thick with forest.  Once in awhile we spy tiny houses peeking out above
sheltered sandy beaches on these islands, many of which must be no more than
5-10 acres in size.  Here and there, great flocks of sea birds sit out upon
the waters - eating, socializing, or just passing the time.

By the time we reach Colville, we are truly in the sticks.  Colville itself is
not much more than a cafe, a general store, and a school.  Not many houses are
in evidence in the town itself, and I suppose most of the population which
calls Colville home must live somewhere up in the surrounding hills.  A bit
north of Colville the pavement ends.  Unpaved roads here are called
'unsealed', and that term can apply to anything from gravel to muddy clay.
It is the latter that we encounter as we continue along the coast.  What was
a narrow paved road becomes an even more narrow unsealed one.  The edges fade
away ambiguously, which is not too bad on the landward side, where the worst
you face is a brush with the grassy, muddy hillside into which the road has
been cut, but is a little more nerve-racking on the seaward side, where shallow
drainage ditch slides off 10 meters through steep hillside of tree ferns,
gnarled trees, and rocks down to the ocean.

It has been mixed sunlight and thick blue-gray clouds for most of the day.
We pull over on one of the many 'slow vehicle' turnouts and watch a double
rainbow pop into sight over the hills to our southeast, then continue north.
It begins to rain lightly, but we press on, desirous of reaching our campsite
and figuring that rain is less of a driving hazard than darkness.  High up
above the sea, we meet one of the giant Isuzu trucks I keep seeing roll by,
and manage to squeak by each other after the truck backs close to the hill
and I swing out, creeping by the truck with our passenger-side wheels treading
the edge of the road.  It is a bit of a hairy moment, but soon over and
forgotten.

Finally, after 3 hours of one-lane bridges and shifting up-down-down-up through
2nd, third, and fourth gear, our campervan lumbers around a bend and we reach
the DOC campground at Fletcher Bay  We are eager to stretch our legs, but
it continues to rain sporadically, and we are not gung-ho enough on the hike
from the campground to test out our rain gear.  In the cool air and shadowed
light, and with the sound of the light rain on our roof, we nod off in the
back of the van.  An hour later, there is no longer enough daylight for a
hike, but plenty for a walk at the rocky beach across the road.  In the early
evening light, fish jump out in the water, and a pair of pied shags loiter
about, then fly away as we get closer.  A couple of far-away fishing
boats are visible out on the water, and to the north we can see the
mountainous shape of Great Barrier Island, to which we hope to take a ferry
in a few weeks.

I move the van to a spot under a great spreading glossy-leafed tree that is
also rather importantly further away from the campsite's pit toilet, locally
(and accurately) known as a 'long drop'.  I suppose my physics education
would enable me to calculate the depth, but it doesn't seem worth the figuring.

Dinner is quick - leftover 'Italian' meat sauce with rice heated up in the
growing darkness while small flies immolate themselves upon our camp stove,
then we cross the road once more to take in the sunset, and a sky filled with
blue-black clouds.  Against the fading light, the twisted trees near the
waterfront make strange black silhouttes from atop their rocky perches, and
far across the water a lighthouse flashes.  Waves lap the shore and drain
back through the smooth rocks with a gushing sound.

Almost dark, we return to the van, wash our dishes, then sit at our respective
keyboards trying to remember the events of the last few days.

Waharau Park to Coromandel Town

Quick summary for today - we woke up and headed south along the coast. Stopped to see lots of shorebirds and popped into the Miranda Shorebird Centre to by guidebooks. Met a really nice woman there from S. Africa. Kept driving south around the Firth and over to Thames. Did some shopping, and then continued on the very scenic road up to Coromandel (Town).

Omana Beach to Waharau Park

Wednesday

Our first morning in the van and we woke up in a beautiful place! Several people at the hostel told us how exhilerating it is to arrive at the campsite at night and have a spectacular view revealed in the morning. We were right on a beach, a beach made of seashells instead of sand, with a glorious view over the ocean to some islands and back towards Auckland. It was however very windy so we decided to drive down the road to a more sheltered spot to make breakfast. We drove to Duder Point Regional Park (which we had tried to camp at the night before - but it had been gated.) This was a much more sheltered spot, so we cooked breakfast (oatmeal, Wheet Bix, and tea) and sat outside watching all the local birds. The parking lot was in a very pastoral setting, surrounded by pasture and there were dozens of these big native birds called Pukeko. I haven't gotten a good picture yet. They are very pretty birds, but slightly comical with their big legs and feet.

We went for a nice hike around the point that leads through cattle and sheep pasture and gives great views of the ocean and inland. The point (and a lot of the coastline) reminds us strongly of Pt Reyes in California. Duder Pt, and a lot of NZ, used to be all dense native forest, but has since been logged and turned to farmland. It's depressing to think about how much it has been changed, but it is still quite beautiful. Besides the logging, all the non-native introduced species are a big problem here. Opossums, rats, cats, and stoats are endangering the native birds and plants, and we saw numerous traps on our hike.

The tide was very low with the full moon and the beaches are very shallow so we saw lots of different shorebirds (that I can't identify.) And on the way down the hill we saw our first wild parrots! We could hear the squawking in the trees and suddenly a pair flew out and over our heads. We didn't see them for long, but they were medium-sized parrots with red heads, green bodies and blueish tails. I'm fairly certain they were Eastern Rosellas - a non-native introduced from Australia and fairly common in this area of NZ. (I think I caught a glimpse of one during breakfast too - but I wasn't certain.) Anyways, they were beautiful and I can't wait to see the native NZ parrots :)

And to cap a perfect afternoon, a complete rainbow appeared in the sky over the Firth of Thames (the body of water east of Duder Point.)

After the hike, we had lunch - peanut butter and jelly sandwiches... again, and then drove south along the coast for a ways. We stopped at a local fruit stand and bought some madarins and local raw honey (very good) and continued on to our next campground at Waharau Regional Park.

We were the only people at the campground which was great, and we cooked a big meal with the meat and veggies we bought the day before - don't worry, they were kept cold in our "chilly bin" - the kiwi term for a cooler :)

I should tell you a little about our van. It is a Toyota Hi Ace van that has been nicely kitted-out for travel. The back converts into a queen-sized bed or two benches and a table, with plenty of storage underneath. And the kitchen is at the very back, with a dual burner camping stove, a small sink with a 20L water tank, and some storage. It's all very convenient and we are very happy that we didn't get a smaller van instead. A lot of the vans are just a bed in back, and so you have to set up your kitchen outside (ie. in the rain) and you have nowhere to sit inside. Ours is very cozy and stays pretty warm at night too.

First week in Auckland

Auckland, Monday 12-May

Lost a day as we flew over the date line from Rarotonga to Auckland. Nice flight, and no trouble getting to the hostel - although the shuttle bus driver drove the van like a race car!

We checked into the Lantana Lodge, a hostel in the Parnell area of Auckland.

Tuesday 13-May

Since we had no groceries, we got up early and walked up to Parnell Rd for breakfast. Pastries and little pies (both sweet and savoury) are very popular here and all the convenience stores and cafes have them, so we found a nice cheap place and had great coffee and pastries for breakfast. The fact that you can get a fresh baked lamb & mint, or steak & mushroom pie for $2-3NZ at every corner shop has me wanting to stop twice a day!

Then we wandered around Parnell for a little bit - it's a very nice neighborhood with charming shops and many Victorian houses. Auckland is hilly and has lots of coastline so this older part really reminded us of San Francisco. Eventually wandered back to the hostel, got directions to the nearest supermarket, Foodtown, and went there to stock up. Food and household goods seem fairly expensive here - even considering the exchange rate. We will definitely be eating a lot of oatmeal, sandwiches, rice, beans and pasta while we're here. The cheapest meats are fresh sausages and they're pretty good. I expected lamb to be really inexpensive but it's about the same price as ground beef (called "mince") at ~$9-10NZ per kg. We bought some marinated lamb chops on sale for dinner - very good :)

In addition to jelly babies (my favorite), they have lots of strange gummy candies here, everything from gummy volcanos to mushrooms to eskimos. Lots of wine gums too, but I can't find the good pastilles. Oh and good licorice of course.

After shopping, we walked around Parnell some more and had a nice chat with a mobile library bus driver... who turned out to be from Shreveport, LA! He'd been in NZ for about 10 years and sounded like a native kiwi to us. He told us when he first came over he did roofing, and impressed everyone here because he could take the "terrible" summer heat better than the locals... haha.

Wednesday 14-May

Today we went to the nearby Auckland Museum which has a fantastic collection of Maori and pacific islanders art and artifacts. Amazing handicrafts - woven, carved, beaded, stamped, etc. (Dianna - you would have loved it!) They also had a nice exhibit on NZ flora and fauna - included a stuffed moa... they are truly huge. We only managed to see about half the museum before we ran out of time, so we'll have to go back. The museum is situated in a large park called the Auckland Domain and we walked around for a bit - just beautiful and full of tree ferns and magnificent old knarled trees. That evening after dinner we went out with some folks from the hostel and had a great time- Artur, Felix, and Francie from Germany, and Harry from London (originally France). Everyone of course has perfect English...

Thursday 15-May

Today we started looking for a van in earnest. We went to the backpacker car mart and test drove a van owned by a nice German couple. The van was nice, but not exactly what we wanted so we kept looking. That afternoon we walked the length of K Rd and Ponsonby Rd... lots of shops and people watching. We went inside a promising used bookstore, but the prices were very high so we didn't get anything. I had hoped to visit a famous pie shop that is in the lonely planet guidebook, but sadly they have moved. Then we caught the bus home and spent more time researching vans...

Friday 16-May

Today we test drove another van, named "Harry", but it was kind of on its last legs (or wheels?) So we didn't buy it. The owners were a very friendly Finnish couple - everyone has been really friendly here. We walked by another promising van and called the owner, but the van had completely died in just the past few days... And the guy would've talked to us about it forever :)

Since we hadn't found a good van yet we decided to check lumber prices at a local hw store to see how much it would cost to kit out a van ourselves. Lumber and tools are a little more here, but if we had had a place to do it we could certainly build a bed platform and kitchen stand.

After that we walked home through the Auckland Domain park and got to spend a few minutes in the tropical hothouse before it closed. Justin asked an employee about a particular plant and they guy turned out to be extremely friendly and told us it was the largest cycad sinesis in the southern hemisphere and that "she" was a really special tree. She was outgrowing the hothouse though and so they were trying to decide what to do with her when she hits the roof in a few years... Probably move her to another hothouse. Anyways it was a beautiful place and we planned to go back. By the time we got back we were dead tired so we splurged and went to the local Irish Pub for dinner, The Bog,... more steak pie for me :)

Saturday 17-May

Today we went to another car market but didn't find anything good. Went back to the backpacker mart and test drove a really nice but big van owned by a dreadlocked couple from Spain - very nice and amusing... but we couldn't agree on a price. Had lunch at an Indian restaurant because we we're too far from the hostel to go back, haggled about the van price some more but still couldn't get anywhere so we gave up and went home. Stopped at Foodtown again on the way. Shopping for vans is NOT a holiday... ugh.

Sunday 18-May

Today we caught a ride to the big weekly car fair in Ellerslie with Francie who was trying to sell her station wagon. We found a nice looking red van that was all kitted out, but the mechanical inspection found severe rust damage and various other problems that would've cost a lot to fix before it would pass the NZ inspection. So we had to pass and go back to the mart. We felt terrible for the owner - an extremely nice but shy German girl who had been here working on horse farms for the past year and was leaving the next day...

Then we talked to an American named Ryan who had a nice van that we hadn't considered before due to price, but he had lowered it by the end of the day, so we test drove it and agreed on a price - hurray! It was too late for the mechanical inspection, so we agreed to meet in the morning and get it inspected...

He gave us a ride back into town and dropped us off on K Rd, where we stumbled upon a great international foodcourt and asian supermarket... finally some good prices! Justin got to eat at a similar foodcourt all the time in SF.

Monday 19-May

Waited all morning to hear back from the mechanic (NZ has it's own version of island time), but we eventually got an appointment at 3pm. The van passed with no problems so we did the transfer of ownership and afterwards went to a pub with Ryan - a very nice guy - to celebrate and to get some tips on where to go and camp in NZ. The name of the pub was The Dog's Bollux. Lamb for me and chili for Justin.

Tuesday 20-May

Today the plan was to get up, stock up the van with supplies and head south to a campground but it didn't work that smoothly...

First our shopping took longer than expected, then we couldn't find our shops because we had lost our good map, but a stranger on the street offered to help and actually called Information on his mobile for us to get directions! This act of charity was by far the highlight of the day :) but it was sadly followed up by mean ladies in the fabric store chewing me out for taking photos of the store - humph. So I have posted the ones I managed to take just to spite them.

And then the coup de grace - we walk back to our van, but it had been towed! Argh... we had unknowingly parked in a lane that is parking during the off-hours and a bus lane during rush hour... fortunately some nice folks at a nearby petrol station helped us out and we called the police and walked to the impound lot and got the van back. Way easier than it would've been in the US... and the ticket was only $112.

Then we still had to go to the supermarket and when we were almost done the fire alarm went off and everyone had to vacate... By now we were hungry, tired and just a little cranky. Eventually we got to go back in and buy our stuff.

Then we hightailed it out of Auckland - stopping at a Burger King on the way (which is decorated as a 50's diner here). We made it out of town, found a campground and went to bed - whew!

Photos of Auckland

Last post for Rarotonga

Hi all - we finally splurged and stayed in a hostel (indoors) for a night, so we can take advantage of the high speed internet to catch up...

Here's the last post for Rarotonga, and hopefully before long we'll be caught up on NZ posts as well:

Rarotonga Day 6, Saturday 10-May
Today we headed to the south side of the island again to tour the Maire Nui Gardens that we had only glanced at a couple days before. We took the bus and arrived at the gardens after what appeared to be a heavy rain shower - good thing we missed it. The garden was kind of boggy but the water droplets on all the flowers and leaves made for some beautiful pictures. The gardens are full of big blooming tropical plants, palms, and wild versions of all the house plants we have at home.

After that we strolled down the road to Tikioki Beach expecting to eat lunch and rent snorkel gear again, but alas the shop was closed for the weekend - "island time" at work again...
So instead we walked along the beach for awhile taking in the scenery until I had my Jimmy Buffet moment - I "blew out my flip flop"! I didn't "step on a pop-top" but we did cruise on back home. now I understand the song completely :)
So we had lunch at the hostel, repaired the flipflop (trusty sewing kit) and went back to the beach for a swim and another sunset walk. This was our last full day and we were not ready to leave - we'll definitely have to go back someday!

Rarotonga Day 7, Saturday 11-May
Didn't do much today other than pack up and lug our giant packs to the airport via the bus. The airport is very small and quite pleasant, with an outdoor waiting area at the gate! So it's off to Auckland, and we crossed the date line and lost a day. Absolutely beautiful clouds during the flight as well...

Here are the photos

Progressive Dinner in Rarotonga

We'd been debating for a few days about whether we wanted to go to one of the "island nights" that were advertised everywhere. They were supposed to be big events with food slow-baked in hot rocks, buried in a pit, and traditional dancing by the locals. While this might have been fun, I have to confess it sounded a bit too tourist-oriented for my tastes. On one of the days we were in town, we stopped by the local tourism office and asked about the "Progressive Dinner", for which we'd seen a couple of very small fliers. The lady at the desk was happy to set us up for the one that week, and that night we were picked up by one of the organizer's sons and dropped off at the first location. It turned out the first home we were to dine at was just a block or so away from our hostel!

There we were met by our first host, Dan, who explained that his wife was busy with her new shop, and that he was in charge for the night! After a van carrying the rest of the guests arrived, we set out on a tour of Dan's garden, which stretched out behind his house towards the center of the island and covered a good 2-3 acres. There were quite a few familiar and unfamiliar fruits and vegetables, from 2-3 varieties of mangos - sadly not in season - to papayas, starfruits, cacao, vanilla beans, 2 varieties of taro, pistachios (our second host, Timu, informed us that the islanders ate the fruit and not the nut!), Several kinds of bananas, pineapples, coffee and numerous citrus trees whose varieties were not named. There was also a fair-sized vegetable patch, full of green leafy plants locally known as "rocket" like those we'd already seen for sale in the supermarket as well as several other vegetables.

After the garden tour in the fading daylight, we retired to an outdoor patio on the south side of Dan's father-in-law's house, which sat immediately behind Dan's house, where we were served steamed taro, a lemon-juice cooked fish soup with bits of scallions and tomatoes in the lemon-juice coconut milk base, and fresh starfruit. Champagne and homemade tropical fruit juice blend were available to drink. The 'fish soup' was both Christina and my personal favorite - we'd been used to a similar dish in Tucson, but made without the coconut milk. The steamed taro was very mild, and not especially flavorful, but tasted fine. I think that I liked it better than Christina. To my palette, it would have been better used as a base for a more involved dish with a few spices added. Whatever else, it was certainly filling - like eating starchy bricks! I suppose I'm not doing a very good job of selling taro; it really seems to be one of the polynesian cultural equivalent of potatoes, along with kumara. The starfruit we had already been enjoying since we'd picked up a bag at the local supermarket. Their taste was watery but refreshing - in a manner reminiscent of grapes.

After about an hour, we got in the van and moved on to our next hosts, Timu and his wife. On the drive over, which took perhaps 15 minutes, we found out that virtually all the other dinner guest were Kiwis, a set of 4 middle-aged couples who were long-term friends and took vacations together. Once they found out we were heading to NZ next, we were deluged with suggestions as to where to go and what to see. Everyone seemed rather concerned that it was going to feel terribly cold to us, although given the weather we've been having, I haven't quite figured out why. While we drove, Dan and a friend played island (and other) music on ukeleles.

At Timu's house, we had barbequed chicken drumsticks and fresh-caught fish, along with a bit of salad, cookied greens (spinach-like) in coconut cream, and slices of cool watermelon. While we ate, Timu told us a bit about his business, which was a black pearl farm. It's one of the few industries which the cook islands supports besides tourism. We were serenaded towards the end of the course by Dan and friends on ukeleles and some sort of upright instrument made out of a box with a single pole running upright through it and supporting a single string from a pivoting bar at the top of the pole. By pulling the end of the bar, they could stretch the string tighter and thereby produce notes of different pitch.

Finally, with the sun completely gone and twilight almost over, we got back in the van and travelled to our final hosts' house Tim and his wife, whose name I did not catch. Tim was a decendant of the famous William Marsters, who travelled with 3 of his 4 wives to the Palmerton North and founded a great clan. There we enjoyed orange upside-down cake (made from local oranges), fruit salad made from papayas, starfruit, guava, watermelon, passion fruit and oranges; and coconut macaroons, along with a bit of ice cream if one wanted. The evening ended quietly with tea or local coffee at your choice, and finally we all got back in the van to be dropped off wherever we were staying.

a note from the Coromandel Penninsula

Hi all - just a note to let you know we're still here :) We've been touring the gorgeous Coromandel Penn. and the internet access has been limited. Will post lots of photos and entries in a few more days.

Cheers :)

Rarotonga - Days 4 and 5

more catching up on old entries:

Rarotonga 08May:

Hmm, today we took the anti-clockwise (that's how they say it) bus into Avarua and bought local flip-flops... A purchase we should have made the moment we landed. Then we window shopped around town as I tempted myself with lots of nice souvenirs that I couldn't buy (those of you who saw our packs when we left know why!) Beautiful black pearl and mother-of-pearl jewelry, woven baskets and bags, wood carvings, etc. I did pick up a colorful sarong - or pareu as they're called here - for wearing on the beach and to use as a wrap when I come out of the shower at the hostels. My little REI camp towel doesn't exactly cover me up!

For lunch we indulged and ate at a touristy place that had pretty good food - we split a paw paw (papaya) salad and grilled fish. Yum.

Then we visited the local information center and the very nice woman who runs it helped book us for the "progressive dinner" that night. We had considered an expensive "island night" at one of the resorts - a polynesian feast and performance, but instead opted for this and it turned out to be great fun. It consisted of a three-course dinner of local food, with each course served at a different local family's house. Including a descendant of Marsters - the man who "colonized" Palmerston island in the late 1800's (with the help of his four native wives.) We had a fantastic time, but I'll leave the details for Justin...

Rarotonga 09May:

Today we went to another beach renowned for snorkeling on the south-east side of the island, Muri Beach. This part of the coast has the biggest lagoon on the island and within the lagoon are three islands or motu that you can swim to and explore. After renting our gear, we headed for the southern most island that is supposed to have the best snorkeling. The swimming was great, but the snorkeling wasn't nearly as good as Tikioki beach so we were a little disappointed. Although we did see several new fish - including the unicorn fish and a fancy tropical flounder. And it was fun to swim out to the islands and walk around. Afterwards we went to a local cafe for another tropical smoothie and then walked along the beach until the sunset. The sunsets here are spectacular. Magnificent clouds and colors and all reflected in the calm lagoon waters.

Rarotonga - Days 2 and 3

Rarotonga, 06May

Jetlagged, we didn't get going until about 11am this morning... already on "island time". After failing to snag a couple free bicycles from the hostel, we caught the bus to the south side of the island which is known for it's good snorkelling. We had planned to eat lunch at a place called Maire Nui, but the bus driver told us it had just burned down - too bad. So instead we walked along the road for awhile and explored the area and eventually ate lunch at Fruits of Rarotonga - sandwiches and tropical smoothies... Very good!

Located directly across from the best snorkeling beach on the island, they of course rent out snorkel gear - so after lunch we went snorkeling for a couple hours, which is great here! At first we were just in the shallow water, with an impressive array of fish, but once we got out further to about 10-12ft deep, the coral gets better and there were whole schools of big beautiful tropical fish (tasty looking too.) We would slowly float through the coral maze following a particular school of fish or just observing all the activity on the coral. After awhile we realized that we could hear the parrotfish chomping on the coral underwater! It was a great experience... I tried out my waterproof camera bag, and it certainly kept my camera dry, but my pictures were just so-so. I think it takes some practice. Many of the fish were very curious about us and followed us around. And at one point, I had to stand on top of some dead coral to adjust my mask, and these tiny electric blue and black fish started nibbling on my legs! It didn't hurt, but I guess I was in their territory :)

After snorkelling we walked partway back - which was a mistake. We killed our feet by walking in wet Chacos... We learned later to just wear flip-flops like the locals.

Anyways, we caught the night bus (runs after 5pm) and made it back to the hostel in time for the bbq party (the hostel has activites planned each night.) The party was a lot of fun and very tasty - they grilled fresh-caught tuna steaks - excellent. We got to chat with some other folks at the hostel too, and even bought a new Lonely Planet NZ book (to replace my 9 yr old Rough Guide NZ) from a German girl who was on her way home. She thought we were Danish btw... haha.

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Rarotonga 07May:

Woke up to dark clouds and overcast skies so decided to avoid snorkeling. Instead we went down to the beachside house, spent a little time catching up on email and watched part of a NZ movie that a guy had on called Once Were Warriors, about a modern-day Maori family. Looked interesting...

Then we lucked out and got a couple bikes (free) from the hostel. They were not in very good shape, but the brakes worked - mostly -and we took off to ride on the inner island road all the way into town. The inner island road is the older road (pre-european) and goes through breathe-taking countryside and farmland with amazing views of the mountains. We really enjoyed leisurely riding along as there is much less traffic on it and a lot more to see. I made Justin stop every few minutes to take photos but he didn't seem to mind :) He just kept threatening to repair the bikes with his leatherman...

At one point we missed a turn and ended up going up a very steep road to the hospital - it has the best view on the island! Of course, our bikes were completely rusted out and couldn't shift gears, so we had to walk them up - and the brakes barely worked so we had to walk them down too! We got passed in both directions by a pro cycler who was probably training for the Rarotongan triathalon on Saturday. Needless to say, his bike was not so rusty...

After that we made it back to the main inner road and passed all the school kids on their way home. (The island has lots of kids and we got a kick out of riding the bus with them - the main bus is their school bus.) Shortly after this, I got the bright idea to stop at a gas station and air up my low rear tire... Bad idea. The station attendant was very helpful, but the tire had a strange air valve and between the attendant and Justin I soon had a completely flat tire! After some more fiddling they managed to get a little air back in the tire. It was enough to ride home, but that was one bumpy road!

As I reread what I just wrote, it sounds like we didn't have a very good day - but quite the contrary. The bike ride was very enjoyable. That night we ate more of our huge batch of curry and watched some Fry & Laurie (tv show) on the laptop. This is a full day in the tropics!

Rarotonga - Day 1

catching up on the Rarotonga entries...

Rarotonga 05May08

After a nine and a half hour flight from LA (relatively painless) we arrived on Rarotonga shortly before dawn. The airport is very small and laid-back, and you exit the plane onto the tarmac and walk to the terminal. As we did the sun was just starting to come up and the island was very quiet and still.Everyone took the opportunity to take photos in front of the plane - including us.

Inside the airport we were greeted by a local guitarist playing polynesian music.. Very festive!



Anyways we made it through customs easily enough, even though we had camping gear and had been to a farm recently (they didn't seem to care). However we had trouble getting local money. Even though we had notified the bank ahead of time, our ATM cards didn't work and the airport bank was closed. Fortunately the hostel folks didn't mind and later loaned us 20 NZD for bus fair to the bank downtown. Problem solved :)

The hostel had a van to pick us and several other guests up at the airport, and the ride around the island in the quiet, early dawn was spectacular. I lucked out and got to ride in the front seat (wonder if they call it "shotgun" here?) The island has one main road that circumnavigates the island and is all of 32km long. There is also an inland circular road that goes around most of the island and is very scenic... more on that later. Anyways, we were on the main road and most of the time you have fantastic views of the lush, volcanic mountains, the beautiful coral lagoon or both. The buildings are mostly rustic cinder block construction with corrugated metal roofs. Some are brightly painted and all have many chickens, dogs, goats, etc wandering in the yard. The vegetation is lush and tropical as you would expect, but I'll leave it to the flora expert (Justin) to describe it in more detail :)

We're staying at Rarotongan Backpackers on the west side of the island - at the hillside location. The hostel is in a great place, tucked into the lush hillside with views of the ocean, and the beach only a 5 minute walk away. The hostel has a beachside location as well, but it is more crowded and closer to the busy main road, so I think we made the right choice. We lucked out and got to stay in a bungalow for the first two nights with our own private bathroom, kitchen and balcony because our standard double room was still occupied. We were tempted to pay extra to stay in it the whole week, but decided that wouldn't be a good way to start off our "budget" trip ;)

Our first day here, we took the bus into town to get cash and groceries, and had lunch at a nice little chinese restaurant. I know Chinese sounds funny, but there weren't any inexpensive local cuisine shops!

Buying groceries was an experience as well. We stocked up on local fruit (papaya, starfruit, avocado, lemon) but the meat and drygoods are mostly imported and very expensive! Fresh milk was $7NZ per liter, but fortunately we found the cheaper UHT milk (milk in aseptic cartons that doesn't require refridgeration until opened - like the individual half & half for coffee in the states.) We decided to make a big batch of curry and rice to eat for several days with a curry packet. And for breakfast we got the cheapest cereal, Wheatbix - a NZ staple (kind of like wheaties but compressed into bars like big shredded wheat.) Tastes fine, but goes soggy instantly.



Of course our first day wouldn't be complete without a visit to the ocean... We went to the nearest beach and waded way out in the lagoon. In some places you can walk all the way to the coral "wall" separating the lagoon from the deep ocean without even getting your knees wet. There are millions of sea cucumbers here (although we did not snack on them raw as the locals do!) And you have wear sandals in the ocean to avoid cutting yourself on the coral. The beach is gorgeous and we got to watch a very nice sunset.





After it got dark, we went back to the bungalow where I got to display my MacGyver talents (haha)! For the curry and rice we needed two burners, which we thought we had, until we realized that one would only light and flicker for a minute before going out. Using a needle from my trusty sewing kit I was able to clear the clogged gas outlet and voila, we had two working burners! and Justin thought it was silly to bring sewing supplies... now if I can only find a dual use for those knitting needles...

Link to full flickr set

Cook Islands Update

Howdy - it's our last day on Rarotonga and we hate to leave, but we are looking forward to NZ. We should be able to update the blog with loads of pictures etc as soon as we get to Auckland. The internet here is limited and expensive...

anyways, in short we've had a great time - snorkelling, eating, snorkelling some more :)

cheers,
Christina

IMG_0379

IMG_0379
Originally uploaded by cmcfall

In Laura's garden, right before leaving for the airport

Departure Day

Hooray! We are mid-air on our way to our first stop - the South Pacific paradise of Rarotonga, Cook Islands. We'll be staying at Rarotonga Backpackers hostel as we while away 6 days swimming in the coral reef lagoons, hiking in the tropical jungle, and of course eating loads of papaya and coconuts. We are really looking forward to it.

We'll probably just stay on the main island of Rarotonga the whole time... a couple of beach bums. I bought a waterproof enclosure for my little Canon, and so if I'm brave enough to immerse my new camera (eek!) I should have some fantastic photos of the tropical fish to post in few days. Of course, the islands are supposed to be beautiful above water as well.

We just finished up visiting Justin's family in Oklahoma, and my family in Kansas City and fortunately got to visit with most everyone before we left. Spring has sprung and it is just beautiful in both places. It's been a long time since we've been there in spring so it was great to see again.

We're flying out of OKC through LAX (as I type this in fact!) One of the great trip gadgets that we got is an ultra-compact PC - the Nokia N800. For my Agilent friends: the N800 has an Arm processor, runs linux, great battery life and power mgmt, NO FAN and only weighs 8ozs :) impressive, huh?

We'll that's all for now. The internet on the Cooks may not be so accessible (the tubes are narrow there - haha.) So I'll post again in the next few days.

After that we'll be touring NZ for a full 3 months... more on that later :)

Cheers,
Christina

We are finally on our way

I almost can't believe it. We've been talking about this for what seems like forever. Pretty much our entire lives outside of work have been absorbed in one project or another related to this since April 2007, and you could argue that we were deep in the 'planning/dreaming' stages of this for some time before that.


What are we doing?


We are fulfilling our dreams of seeing more of the world, and of doing so at our own pace and on our own terms. Both of us have travelled outside the USA before, but never like this. In general, our trips have been the kinds of vacations that most people we know are familiar with - family or personal jaunts to some desired location for a few, short, jam-packed and exhausting days, or endless drives across North America, Scenic Attraction on the horizon, Texaco in the rear-view mirror, and empty McDonald's wrappers jammed in the car's ashtray.


Not that we haven't enjoyed those trips, but they've always felt like being allowed 5 minutes at an epic feast. We would find ourselves chased away by iron-clad schedules with the bittersweet realization of finding places and people we wanted to know better but to which we would probably never return. How can you see any place in 2 weeks, much less 3 days? I know we will still leave each new location we visit with experiences forfeit by the push to travel onward, but hopefully we will have at least burned some strong images and impressions into our memories to carry with us.


What was the impetus for our trip? I like to tease Christina that it was her doing. Years ago, after spending 6 weeks with her family in Beijing, we talked about travelling more, and she introduced me to the idea of round-the-world tickets. We aren't travelling on this kind of ticket, and many years have elapsed since we first considered long-term travel, but the dream is essentially the same. Since the time we first talked about such a trip, both of us finished college (several times), got jobs, bought a house, and in general didn't think much about long-term travel. But though we lived in a beautiful place, had a house that we liked and had invested much time and effort remodelling, and were employed in careers that paid well, we both still had itchy feet. In this last year we came to the decision that now was the time to take our trip. We were both ready for a break from our jobs, and we already knew that Sonoma County, though full of charm, was not to be our permanent home. The cost of living, if nothing else, would force us to both keep working full-time indefinitely or else move away.


We are engaged in travelling to see as much of the world as we have time and energy to spend. Our itinerary begins on Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, then moves on successively through New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, SE Asia, India, Nepal, China, Russia, Eastern and Northern Europe, the UK, then back to North America where, after spending some time with family and friends, we hope to continue onwards and see Mexico, Central America, and South America. It's a long list of places, and quite honestly, there are many others we would like to see as well that we are currently not planning on going to for reasons of cost or political stability. I have no idea if we'll get to see every place I have listed, and I'm sure we'll go to ones I haven't. We are making travel arrangements as we go, which gives us the flexibility to slow down, speed up, and change our route at will.


The idea is to travel lightly - although our packs do not appear to have heard about this part of the plan - and inexpensively. We are looking to mostly camp or stay in places like hostels, depending on what makes more sense for the location, as well as to cook much of our own food when possible. By travelling at this kind of 'street-level' I hope to meet more people and see places more as locals do, as well as save money. I've always had the most fun in places I visited when I got away from tourist attractions and just spent my time doing what the people who lived there enjoy doing.

-Justin