Thumbs Up to the Catlins

Last Wednesday I was asked by friend, Mark, if I'd like to leave the week long party known as "O-Week". He suggested taking a 3-4 day trip south through the Catlins. I agreed to the proposal, and we were to leave the next day. After finally catching a bus at the train station (we missed the first one), we were on our way to Barclutha (a small town about 1.25hrs south...15miles from the shore). Our goal was to reach the ocean by nightfall. We arrived in the town, and that was about it. We had no real plan on how to get to the Pacific. We decided to start walking East. After about 45min of walking through the country, we started "thumbing"...hitchhiking. Soon thereafter, we were in a car with a young guy and girl who were studying at a sheep farming school in the direction we were going. After passing their stop (after about 5min of driving), they said that they would drive us all the way to the beach. About 20min and a long dirt road later...there it was. We arrived in Kaka Point a small town of about 200 people; almost all of whom were sheep farmers. Once again, we started walking...this time south...down the beach. Unlike the beaches we think of, there were only a few small houses in sight...it was just a long long strech of empty beach. In the distance were giant bluffs and a lighthouse. We had about 4hrs of light left (4pm), and we made the bluffs our new goal for the day (see 3rd to last picture). After a few hours of hiking, we ran across a house and decided to ask to fill up our water bottles. The owner suggested stopping halfway up the bluffs to take a look at the penguin reserve on the back side. We had another goal to add to the list. Once again we started walking, switching back and forth between beach and gravel. When we were about 1/4mi from the bluffs, a man in a van (see 4th to last picture) stopped and asked if we would like a place to stay for the night. Although we had planned to tent our way around, we decided to take him up on the offer (hesitantly). He drove us up to see the penguins and the lighthouse, and gave us a local's tour. It was awsome (see next 2 pictures). We got back to "his" house. He does repairs for a friend in return for a place to stay in the fall. I'd say it was a good deal...the place was right on the shore. Francis (his name), Mark, and I were having a glass of wine when an old woman crossed the street to see who the visitors were. She then invited us all over for tea. Gene was a great host, who clearly enjoyed having new people to talk with. Her stories were fascinating (she had toured the world with her father, a horse trainer). After tea, Mark and I went back with Francis and were treated to food/drink yet again. He is a botanist and a vegitarian. His cooking speciality is juicing vegitables...basically the only way he eats. That night we drank sea-weed, cucumber, carrots, ginger, grass, green pepper...the list goes on. The next morning he drove us to another destination we had hoped to see. It is called Jack's Blowhole. It is a deep virtical hole (about 100ft deep and about twice that in diameter) that is fed with water through a 200m tunnel in the face of a cliff. As water hits the cliff, it pulses water through the tunnel and blows it out...Jack's Blowhole. It was low tide, so not overly dramatic, but still worth watching for 15-20min. The next picture in the sequence is a veiw from above Jack's Bay (just above his blowhole). In far right distance of the picture, you can see the small islands from the previous picture. After walking back to the van, we asked if we could help him with anything in return for his generosity. He asked us to help him collect food. The next picture was what we had to work with. At the time there was about a foot less water. The kelp beds were still very present. For about an hour, we walked around filling buckets with certain sea-weeds, plants, and kelp. He even served up some raw delicacies on the spot (all the aforementioned + sea-snail & clam). It was the coolest thing I've done in...a long long time.

We soon parted ways with Francis and hitched to a small town not far away. We discovered that there was a substantial hiking trail about 15miles away. It was supposed to take about 5hrs to hike, and have a campground at the end (finally we'd get to pitch a tent). We hired a taxi to get us there, and started our hike following a small river (see next two pictures). Skip the next 3hrs 45min...yeah, beat the quoted hike time...with packs on. We got to the campground...but Mark wasn't happy with the location. He wanted to camp on a BIG hill. So...back we went...about 15min up the trail. We crossed the river, and comprimised on a smaller hill to save our legs. The next picture was the view from our campsite. That night was cool...I used sheep shit to help start a fire...almost as good as the buffalo chips from the movies. The next day we crossed back over the river by slided down a fallen tree (so as to keep our feet as dry as possible). It was intense at the time. We walked for about 3hrs down an empty dirt road towards the main road that we'd be able to hitch from. We stopped to fill our water bottles up at the only building we had seen all morning. It was a small lodge that was under construction. While filling up, the only two men there came over to see who we were. They promptly asked if we wanted a ride...then took us back to their house for lunch. They took about an 1.5hr break to sit and talk...made us get out maps and mark where we were from. They were travelling to Dunedin (my town) that evening, and offered a ride if we would wait the 4hrs until they left. They then suggested we try and hitch our way back to save some time. If worst came to worst, they would pick us up if they saw us on the road (only one road along the coast). We never did see them again...we were in Dunedin before 4pm. We had no problem hitching rides. Each person was as eager to find out about us as we were to save our legs. It was a damn good exchange.

Since then, I haven't travelled anywhere. School started on Monday. It is done a bit differently over here. Final exams are typically worth 50% of the final grade. One of mine is worth 60%. This semester I am taking Operations Management, International Management, NZ/Aus. History, and Fundementals of Dance...for a total of 16credits. My dance class is a joke...the professor is a bit...out there. The course is not really about learning any styles of dance...it's about integrating our mind, body, and spirt with the earth that surrounds us. The only thing that concerns me is that the major project requires me to create a self-descriptive dance with a partner...I really hope I have the skills to bullshit my way through that one. The other three classes are fairly legit...with concessions to the guys at 1165...not my fault your in engineering classes. Well, I think that's about it...my great adventure thus. This weekend we'll be leaving for the west coast...not hitching either. I'm sure I'll enough to write though.
Cheers,
-Ben

Dunedin

What a sweet city. When we arrived last Thursday, it was a bit dreary and cool. Each day since has been infinitely better. The mornings are always cool (50F) and sunny. Around noon it heats up to around 70F and gets windy. At around 3 or 4pm we get a short stint of rain, and then a nice cool, clear evening. My days have been spent touring the city as much as possible. The botanical gardens are out of this world. I should have pictures of them on my next post. The gardens surround the entire north end of the city. They engulf about three small mountains. I spent about 4hrs hiking through the closest portion the other evening, and still haven't seen a fraction of the entire garden. I'm going to leave the pictures to do the explaining...worth a 1000 words right? Yesterday we took the bus to St. Claire Beach...the primary beach in Dunedin. No houses along the shore, just a large sand dune with a park behind it. The water is fairly cold, but still swimmable. The breaks were amazing. Apparently yesterday was a small day, but the waves were about 8ft from trough to crest. The body surfing was awsome.

This week is orientation week, and is designed to get freshman and internationals accustomed to the campus. It is also the #1 party week in all of New Zealand. People actually come in from out of town to join in the festivities. The town goes a bit nuts from what I can tell. Don't worry mom and dad. I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon to do a night or two of hiking north of town.

We American students still tend to cling together a bit. We tend to go out in groups at night, although we've befriended a few kiwis that seem to enjoy taking us around. I have been branching out a bit, but it's been a bit tough...last night I went with my French roommate and her three friends to the bars...I don't know how I do it. The nights previous were primarily spent at a big Chinese festival that was going on about 20min walk from my flat. For about three nights they had live bands (mostly NZ rock...) and cheap food without admission fees...couldn't pass it up.

That's about it so far...hopefully these pictures work.

This is of lake Roturua (mentioned in first blog). I hope I can find a faster computer. The pictures take about 4min each to upload.

the next two are of a group of us at the pub (first night) and Lake Roturua respectively.

Assuming the last two uploaded correctly...the next two are of of Dunedin. The first is the view from my flat. The second is of Dunedin from the far side of the bay.

Auckland to Roturua...Roturua to Dunedin

The plane flight from Los Angeles to Auckland was the longest I've ever been on (12.5hrs + 1.5hrs waiting to taxi out of LA). Luckily, however, the plane was well equipt to keep one occupied. Seat-back television monitors were pre-loaded with dozens of free current movies and programs. We had an entire multimedia center at our beckon call. Even better, all meals and drinks were complimentary...wine and beer included. I highly suggest New Zealand Air.

On to New Zealand...

We flew into Auckland (North Island), the largest city in NZ. They call it the city of sails...being that it sits on a large popular bay. Within an hour, we left for our first destination, Roturua (Roe-too-rah). Within 5 minutes of driving (as soon as the airport stopped blocking our view), we quickly realized we were in a completely different world. There are more hills in New Zealand than anywhere I have ever been. It seems that every building somehow sits on its own personal hill. The land is incredibly 3D. We drove through what I suppose are Auckland's suburbs for almost 20 minutes. They couldn't be any more different from suburbs in the states. There were no business parks and shopping malls, neighborhoods were not clearly defined, small businesses were mixed in with housing developements, and livestock grazed in backyards. It was overwhelming different. As we left the outer boundaries of Auckland, neighborhoods turned into giant bulging hills of farmland. Sheep were everywhere. So far, the drive was scenic...but not what I'd expected.

That changed as we entered the valley that Roturua sits in. The town is built around a large lake (Lake Roturua). In the center is a large island/mountain. The entire place is encompassed by high, rolling hills (not quite mountiains). Like everywhere else in NZ, the landscape is dominated by the color green. Even the lake itself was a bright, transparent, emerald green. The thing about Roturua, is that it confused your senses. Visually, you are overloaded (except for the beach town-like archetecture.). The lake and the surrounding area are beautiful. However, Roturua is a geothermal hotbed. The town itself is like a cherry sitting on top the crust of a steaming hot pie. Only it doesn't smell like a pie...its smells like fart. Throughout the town, there are hundreds of bubbling mud pools. Each emits its own share of gaseous sulfer...hence the aroma. The pools themselves are fascinating. Some are the size of a small pond, while others are no larger than your feet. Most have been fenced off and act as tourist attractions, but there are many smaller ones that are scattered even throughout the downtown. It was somewhat scary actually. Just two blocks away from our hostel, there was a pit of bubbling mud where a house stood just six months ago. The town is literally imploading. Even the local rugby field was shut down due to a man-sized hole (although they filled that particular one with concrete).

We spent four days in Roturua, travelling each day to see sights in the area. On the second day in town, we travelled 30min to a traditional Maori (May-or-ee) village (recreated of course...but done surprisingly well). Cooking in giant sand pits, filled with red hot rocks, and wet leaves, they served the best plate of fish I have ever had.

On the Maoris.......

The Maoris are the indigenious peoples of New Zealand. They arrived in the 8th century, and are related to most of the tribes found throughout the south Pacific. Unlike Native Americans in the U.S., their culture has been heavily integrated into New Zealand life. The language here is full of Maori vocabulary. It is about 80% English, and 20% Maori. It reminds me of Tex-Mex along the U.S./Mexican border.

The last day in Roturua was by far the best. We left that morning at 8am for a small town about 3hrs away. I forget its name (it was Maori), but it meant "place of caves and water". We were going caving. There were two different caves we could go in. One was advanced, and required repelling and climbing skills. The other was for the average person. Unfortunately, the 10 spots for the advanced caving filled before I could get on the list. I thought I'd be walking on paths through lit caves (like in the U.S.). I was wrong. When we arrived at our "base-camp" we suited up in full body wetsuits (6mm neoprene...thick stuff), large water boots, and helmets with lights on them. I was a bit surprised. To get to the cave, we walked about half a mile through mountain pastures (breathtaking). After climbing down a hole (even I had to squeeze through) on a 15ft ladder, we ended up in the cave. However, this cave was special, because in it, there was a large stream. It would take forever to get to all the details (this post is getting too long as it is), but the highlights would include: crawling down little rabbit holes to advance in the cave, swimming sections of the underground stream, and turning out all of our lights to see the constellations of glow-in-the-dark larvae that clung to the cielings...I'm talking millions...and they lit up entire portions of the cave. It was a cool day.

Sorry about the segue here...I'm running out of time.

Yesterday I left Roturua for Dunedin...my final destination. The 2hr plane ride was incredible. The south island is even more beautiful than the north....somehow. To the west lie the Southern Alps...an incredible mountain range with peaks that fall only a few thousand feet below Everest. To the east is a clear, aqua-blue, Pacific Ocean. In the center, there are nothing but giant rolling hills and saphire blue rivers. What blows my mind the most is that the land is so uninhabitted. Towns are surrounded by rural farms, but beyond the farms lies nothing but wilderness. To give you an idea of how little of the land is populated...just last month scientist discovered a new and very distinct species of moose (large animal...hard to miss) just 200km northwest of where I am.

But on to Dunedin...

It's a town of 110,000 people...20,000 of which are university students. I can't really compare it to any town/city that I've ever been to. It is an intense contrast of classical European/Scotish and "new-age" archetecture. Picture the Macnamara Alumni Center sitting next to a gothic cathedral. The campus is absolutely beautiful. It is primarilly buildings of the classic architecture I spoke of, with gardens and green areas tying them together. It even has a swift little stream that runs through the center of campus. I wish I could say more, but I haven't had the time to do much exploring yet.

My flat...

It's about 4 blocks north of campus in an apartment complex. I do not live with any New Zealanders...despite being told that I would. I have 5 roommates...2 guys and 3 girls. We are all from the U.S. (only one AustraLearn student), except for Anuk (female) who is from Paris. The two other males have yet to arrive...so at the moment, I'm swimming in estrogen...not all bad. The flat is nice, but not great. It has a decent sized kitchen, a large living room, two showers, but only one toilet. I have MY OWN LARGE ROOM on the second floor with a lovely view of a parking lot/alley way.

I've got to go...time is about to run out. I am having trouble uploading pictures, but should have them up soon...65 taken so far. Mom and Dad...I plan to call Saturday at around 7pm your time. Gooday..