Back in Asia

I'm now in Ubud, a "typical" Balinese village with M. We met up at Denpasar airport on the 25th and spent our first two nights in Bali at a very posh hotel in Sanur. While M. battled her jet-lag (there's 12 hrs time difference between Montreal and Bali), I battled the heat and humidity. All the progress I had made during my time in the Philippines and Malaysia was lost in wintery New Zealand! My hair also had trouble readjusting to the heat so I decided to get it braided!

After our days of rest, we headed to Ubud, which, though it's a village, is more lively than Sanur was! Here we treated ourselves to a fish spa:



We also went to see a traditional Balinese dance. I was very impressed by the intricate foot and hand work as well as how they moved their heads and shoulders. The costumes were a sea of color and the hall was breathtaking. A very nice evening activity indeed!



This morning we went to the Monkey Forest, named because of the 300 macaque monkeys that live there. The monkeys were way too accustomed to humans for me. Some other tourists even let them sit on their shoulders and play in their hair... fleas anyone? The forest itself was lush and humid and beautiful. The stone work, which is found just about everywhere here, were works of art in themselves. Then I was chased out of the forest by an over eager monkey. It hissed and then ran after me! Scary business indeed for one who isn't an animal fan!

Diamond Harbour

My last stop in New Zealand. I was here for a few days, WWOOFing at a yoga/meditation retreat center. It was an interesting experience. The words "spiritual materialism" come to mind. Still, I had a good time there and it was a nice way to book-end my kiwi experience. The food was healthy and yummy. The views from my hut were incredible and every morning I woke up to a sunrise. The surrounding walks and country side where lush. Another interesting fact about this spot is that it was just a 10 minute ferry ride away from Lyttelton, which is the center for the Christchurch earthquake. One of my WWOOFing tasks was to go to the Lyttelton farmer's market to get the week's groceries. Walking the streets, I got a first hand view of the quake's destruction. It was an eerie experience. There were still aftershocks to be felt over at the retreat center, but nothing to worry about.

From here I look forward to a night spent on Christchurch Airport's floor waiting for my 6am flight to Brisbane, where I have an eight hour layover before flying to Denpasar. I'm sure that Bali will be worth it!

Otago Peninsula

Today I spent the afternoon on a wildlife tour of Otago Peninsula. We were lucky to have a beautiful sunny day, with just enough wind to make my cheeks rosy. The drive from Dunedin to the peninsula in itself was beautiful.


Our first stop was at the only mainland albatross colony in the world. We were told that we’d have to be really lucky to see an albatross… and I’m happy to report that our luck held! I saw three birds flying and they truly are beautiful and humongous! Their wings span 3 meters! From there we drove to the Yellow-Eyed penguin colony. On the way we saw a baby sea-lion that was really cute. We got to the penguin colony right around sunset and I have to admit that I spent most my time looking at the sky.

Still, I saw quite a few penguins emerge from the sea and waddle over to the hills. We also saw very large male sea lions and a big fur seal colony with lots of pups.


Therefore, on the animal front it was a good day. However, what I will remember most is standing on a cliff, surrounded by farmlands, under a gorgeous ever changing sky. The sunset colors were incredible, the clouds were magical, and I felt truly blessed to have witnessed it all!

Routeburn Track

One of the Great Walks of New Zealand, and it was great indeed! I set off with four other backpackers that I met at different points along the West Coast. I was glad for the company because the track looked much harder than the Queen Charlotte. Higher mountains, colder temperatures, and most importantly no water taxis which meant that I had to carry all my supplies on my back. Food planning was a bit more complicated but I managed to keep weight to a minimum. The weather was more cooperative this time around. I got less wet, though the evenings were very cold -- no heaters during the low season!

Staying in huts instead of hostels was a great experience. I got to really "detach" myself from the "civilized" world. No electricity, no hot water, no heating, no running water (so no showers or flushing toilets) but lots of fun! Luckily one of my travel companions had a little camp stove so we kept warm by making lots of tea.

The views this time around were spectacular. The track went up to Harris Saddle. When in the saddle we were surrounded by all sides by the Southern Alps. Living in Vancouver I am no stranger to beautiful mountains, but still these were breath-taking! Part of the track led us into Fjordland, the home of the thousands of waterfalls that makes Milford Sound famous. The rain that fell on Day 2 was a blessing in disguise: we got wet, but the waterfalls were full and plentiful.




After the trek, we spent the night at Milford Sound. We awoke to a snowy day... I was so happy that I didn't have to finish the trek in the snow! This is a video I took on the bus on the way back to Queenstown.

Wanaka

Finally a few days of great weather! It’s incredible how seeing the sun can change your outlook. This is a great little town on the edge of a beautiful lake, surrounded by the Southern Alps. The only down side is that I wasn’t able to find a spot to go WWOOFing. Winter has arrived and so farm work seems to have disappeared. I hope to find a farm once to get to Otago.



I spent the first afternoon sitting on the beach enjoying the sun and catching up with some reading and writing. Then I went to this amazing funky theater with L., a fellow Canadian that I met on the ferry to the South Island. The cinema was fully licensed, served a full menu, and made freshly baked cookies for intermission! To watch the movie you get comfortable on old comfy couches… or L. and I got to sit in an old yellow car! It was a great fun time and the cookies were to die for.



The second day was spent outside walking around part of the lake with a bunch of people I met in the hostel. The weather was cooperative, the sun was out, the mountains were beautiful, and the lake was shinning. Fall has arrived with a bang; the leaves are colorful and the air is chilly.

Franz Josef Glacier

Today I went on a glacier hike up Franz Josef Glacier! Yes, I do see the irony. A Canadian that heads far south just to go walk on a pile of ice… Still, this was probably one of my best days yet on this trip! The whole surroundings were breath-taking. The glacier itself was intriguing, always changing; I never got tired to observing it. Our guide was funny and knowledgeable which made the whole day more fun. I don’t really know how to describe this experience, so I’ll just let the pictures I got speak for themselves!

Queen Charlotte Track

Day 1: Buzzing bees (15 kms: Ship’s Cove – Endeavor Inlet)

With good intentions and lots of enthusiasm I set out on the Queen Charlotte Track. The water taxi dropped me off at Ship’s Cove, a place that Captain Cook (not Hook!) used many times as a spot to clean off the bottom of his ship. The great advantage of the QCT are the water taxis. They schlep your bags around from hostel to hostel so that all you have to carry is your day-pack. Of course, my day-pack was quite loaded with food, but still – it wasn’t as heavy as my big backpack!

The track began by climbing up a hill to give stunning views of Malborough sounds. Then it was an easy walk through a beautiful rain forest. I saw my first short-beaked kiwi – a Wika I think – and was very excited about the encounter. Further along the track I was momentarily thrown by a long buzzing sound. Thinking there was a helicopter overhead I tried to spot it through the trees. Then to my great surprise, I realized that I was surrounded by bees! (To be fair they may have been wasps…) It seemed like they were harvesting sweet sap off these very black trees. Quite a stunning sight!

I spent the first night at Furneaux Lodge where I had to cook my supper in the closed backpacker’s lodge. It was a bit creepy to be all alone in the building, especially since I had just finished watching The Fellowship of the Ring – Orcs are creepy!





Day 2: Sunny day! (13 kms: Endeavor Inlet – Punga Cove)

A nice easy walk, blue skies, and beautiful views. This was a great day on the track. I spent the night at Punga Cove Resort, which has beautiful grounds looking out over the sounds. Having finished the walk by 2pm, I was able to laze around on a long chair just enjoying the view.



Day 3: Torrential rain (25 kms: Punga Cove – Portage Bay)

Waking up to rain is always depressing. Knowing that this was the longest day of the trek was even more disheartening! I spent two hours debating whether I should take the water taxi to my next destination or whether I should risk the weather and set out. In the end I decided to go for the trek. In retrospect, I’m proud that I did – even though it may have cost me my iPod! (It got wet through my raincoat and stopped working… it’s now in a bag of brown rice, which may somehow save it. Keeping my fingers crossed really really hard!)

There isn’t much to say except that it was a very wet day. I learned that the threshold for my raincoat and hiking boots is somewhere between the 5 hour and 6 hour mark. Before that I’m nice and dry underneath, afterwards I’m wet, cold, and soggy. Arriving at Portage was incredibly rewarding. I treated myself to a very large plate of fries which I ate in front of a wood burning fire trying to warm up. Yummy!

Day 4: Stunning views (23 kms: Portage Bay – Anakiwa)

To my great happiness, on the last day I woke to an overcast sky but dry sky. I set out with high spirits up the hill from Portage Bay to the track. From there it was uphill again for at least an hour. All the rain from the previous day made the track very slippery and it was a hard climb. However, the views from the top were incredible! After the long way up, the rest of the walk was much easier. It passed through a few farms at times, which made for stunning vistas. The rest was spent in the rain forest or along a ridge with more beautiful views.



All in all it was an amazing time! Definitely recommendable to you all!