Day 51 – 53 : Te Anau / Milford Sound : “I’m an uncle … again.”By Lee

Situated on the southwest coast, Milford Sound is one of New Zealand’s many “sounds” pocked around the coastline. Acting like tar-pits to unwary tourists, enticing them with their stark beauty and kitschy cruises, they’re a popular location for locales and visitors to the country alike.

As we’re unfortunately unable to just drive across the mountain range, and it’s 200km away from Queenstown, we set off early and make good time.

Tags: dolpins, Mildford Sound, Te Anau

Day 49 – 50 : Queenstown – “Back for more, eh?”By Lee

Leaving the beautiful serenity of Wanaka, I’m almost dreading the built-up city of Queenstown.

Surprisingly, Queenstown follows more the Wanaka model than it does Wellington and is nearly as scenic as the lakeside town we’d just left, albeit with a few more streets and people.

Queenstown is the end of our New Zealand road, and we’ll fly out of here on day #54. Before then we’ll spend a few days here with Te Anau and Milford Sound sandwiched in between.

Tags: Queenstown, Trip

Day 46 – 48 : Wanaka – “Holy shit …”By Lee

The mountain drive to Wanaka, which consists of racing beside oceans before charging up into wild valleys brimming with natural wonder, is awe-inspiring.

The mountains we viewed at Fox Glacier remain for the duration of the trek. Forever towering in front and beside us, the coach traverses narrow vales and crosses rushing fjords under their ancient watchful eye.

We’ve been joined on this leg of the trip by a couple of German guys who proceed to document the journey extensively, snapping anything that looks vaguely interesting from the comfort of their seats.

Tags: Trip, Wanaka

Day 44 – 45 : Fox Glacier – “Worst hot chocolate. Ever.”By Lee

The majority of the day is spent sitting in hope. Hope that I don’t spew all over myself.

Six hours south and we pass through New Zealand’s numerous and varied climate zones. The trip itself is thankfully non-descript with only a mild feeling of nausea intensified whenever I try to read for long periods. With the west coast of the country tearing along beside us, hammered by giant waves that appear to break just at the edge of the very road the bus is taking, we’re treated to some truly epic scenery.

Tags: Fox Glacier, Trip

Day 43 : Nelson – “Where are you from!?!” – “Far, far away.”By Lee

We backtrack to Nelson and prepare for a day of doing nothing, casually recharging batteries before enduring a mammoth journey south to Fox Glacier, Wanaka and, eventually, Queenstown.

It’s pissing with a ferocity I haven’t seen since Rotorua as we locate the YHA Hostel, drop off our bags as we can’t book in before 2pm, and then brave the rain again in search for coffee and muffins. We find both at an almost hidden cafe on one of the town’s main-streets run by friendly Chinese ladies. A veranda protects us from the bad weather as we sit and eat and talk.

Tags: Nelson, Trip

Day 40 – 42 : Motueka – “We call them shags. They pretty much shit all over the place.”By Lee

Broken up by an obligatory Burger King stop-over in Nelson, we arrive in Motueka relatively refreshed.

Only a couple of hours south of Picton, Motueka resembles Rotorua in terms of size and function, acting as a gateway to numerous attractions in the region.

The biggest of these is Abel Tasman, one of New Zealand’s smaller national parks which, despite its diminutive size compared to some of the country’s other parklands, is big on spectacle and adventure.

Tags: Abel Tasman, Motueka

Day 37 – 39 : Picton – “Show me your dolphins.”By Lee

Taking three hours to sail from the bottom of the north island to the top of the south, I manage to work out the distance between New Zealand’s two islands by comparing the voyage with a trip I’m familiar with. Similar in journey time to a cruise between Ireland and the UK, I deduct the mileage and I experience the fact that, though many maps show the two islands as one contiguous mass, New Zealand is very much a tale of two halves.

Tags: Picton, Trip

Day 35 – 36 : Wellington – “We have a bathroom. And it’s talking to me.”By Lee

We hit the road from Taupo and endure a long six hour journey south to the tail-end of the north island.

As nation capitals go, Wellington is a shocking disappointment. Up there with the likes of Canberra (officially the most boring city on the planet), Wellington is devoid of character or anything pretty much anything that resembles popular interest.

A port city, we emerge from the bus next to our accommodation to blustery winds and docklands wet from recent rainfall. As we’re practically in the ferry car-park and it’s hardly picturesque, I decide to reserve final judgment on New Zealand’s capital until we’ve at least seen a little more of it.

Tags: Trip, Wellington

Day 30 -34 : Lake Taupo: “Oh, it’s ok. Payment on survival.”By Lee

We escape Rotorua and its watery clutches and partake of another Naked Bus journey south to Lake Taupo and the eponymously named town beside it.

Taupo is a breath of fresh air (both figuratively and literally speaking) compared to the rainy, foetid deadness of Rotorua. The lake is New Zealand’s largest, and during our week long stay more than one Kiwi tells us that it is exactly the same size of Singapore.

I absently wonder at what point in the near future as Singapore does what Lake Taupo can not (continue to expand) will the Tauopians cease telling visitors this particular nugget of trivia.

Tags: Lake Taupo, skidiving, Taupo Bungy

Day 27 – 29 : Rotorua: “I think someone is being murdered outside.”By Lee

Rotorua is a squat, nondescript town about a couple of hours south-east of Auckland. We take the Naked Bus (no nakedness detected) and are soon spat out in the rain at an i-Site office, i-Site being the ubiquitous tourist centres found all over New Zealand.

Our first reaction to the town (apart from where did all this rain come from) is the fetid eggy smell emanating from its streets. We quickly learn that it’s the local sulphur tracts that give the town its unique and famous stench. I’m instantly reminded of the sulphur trail we walked in Hawaii and the similar god-awful reek similar in odour to rotten eggs. Of course, no Hawaiian would be stupid enough to pitch a tent right next to such a malodorous phenomenon or even live downwind of what is truly a powerful stench.

Welcome to Rotorua – where sense is not necessarily something available in droves.

Tags: Rotorua, Trip, zorb