"You're either on the bus, or off the bus!"

Preface: Before I begin, this is just a warning...this post is going to be very very long, but once you start reading it, you need to read it in its entirety because it just gets better and better. Also, I forgot something in my last post. Last Tuesday at school, there was a huge ceremony that the kids had been practicing for a while. It was a welcome Haka for a new teacher coming into the school. It was all in the Maori language and was very cool to see. There was a television station filming it for the news because it is something unique to Clyde Quay School and is trying to be spread to other public schools in the Wellington region. After, the camera crew came in to the staff room, and video taped the new teacher and myself having a conversation. Moral of the story...I'm famous. And now for the real blog post...

The dull, grey Wednesday morning greeted us, but could not get us down, not today. After a rough nights sleep due to eagerness and excitement for our travels, we got into the Green Cab that took us to the Interislander Ferry Terminal in Wharf's Bay, Wellington. The Ferry was definitely an upgrade from the Staten Island Ferry...I would call it more of a small cruise ship. The ship blew its horn and we were off. The slow moving ship took four hours to reach Picton, our drop off point in the South Island. The boat ride was relaxing and slow, but unfortunately, it was too cloudy to see the spectacular views of the Alps Mountain Range that covers a majority of the South Island. Before docking, the ship weaved in and out of sporadic land masses that were stunning. I felt as if I was going to see a dinosaur climbing up one of the rocks in search of some food because of its prehistoric beauty.

After getting off of the boat in Picton and collecting our huge backpacks, we decided that we were happy we weren't spending much time in the small city because there was literally nothing to do. Little did we know that we would soon be in places with even less then nothing to do. We hopped onto the Naked Bus (don't worry, nobody was naked) and started the two hour journey to Nelson. We made our way over to the first hostel, YHA Nelson, and put our things in our rooms. It was nicer than I expected, and looked more like a college dorm more than anything. It was clean and safe which was enough for us. Noah, Jeff and I then went on an exploration, as people tend to do when they arrive in a new and unfamiliar place. The city was small, but had a plethora of restaurants to choose from, and a street of bars to keep the city's residents satisfied. We also found a really secluded beach where we sat for an hour and just enjoyed the warmth and the views. We had an early dinner at a great Thai restaurant and then went out to a bar. I'll just say that we met some pretty interesting characters.

Anyways, the next day, we woke up early, again, and got on the Abel Tasman Coach Bus to the Abel Tasman National Park. We did not know what to expect for the day, so we were just going to play it by year. When we got onto the bus, we found out that we had payed for a short scenic boat cruise on the ocean that surrounds the National Park, and then got to hike 13 km on the Costal Trail back to where the bus would pick us up. The bus ride to the park was horrible. The combination of fast speed limits (about 100 kph) and curvy mountain roads made me nauseous...especially because one wrong move, and we would have fallen down the mountain. Thankfully, we made it safe and sound with nothing but sweaty hands from holding on to the armrest so tightly. It was definitely worth it though. The park was stunning and we were not let down throughout the day. The trail was beautiful and changed sporatically from dense rainforest, to a dry desert-like area. The view from the trail had the beautiful golden beaches and bright blue ocean on one side, and the rainforest on the other. We never got bored, especially when we were surprised by some small but amazing waterfalls. We finished our hike two hours early, so we explored some marshes and had a snack to celebrate at the Park Cafe (we were ecstatic that we had managed to make it out without getting lost). I was also really excited because the cafe was playing the Dark Side of the Moon album by Pink Floyd in its entirety. The bus back was much nicer because I was so exhausted that I just passed out. After we were all showered, we went for a nice pizza dinner and were surprised to see a street carnival later on that evening. We wondered through it and then went back to the Hostel. Noah made some friends at the hostel, so Jeff and I went to McDonalds for a mid-night snack consisting of my favorite, fries and a Diet Coke. It was well deserved after the long hike.

Saturday morning we finally boarded the Magic Bus. We were happy to see that it was crowed with about 40 people in total. Five minutes after getting on the bus, we were off again exploring the Saturday morning Nelson Market. There was a large variety of things from fresh fruit to herbal soaps to crepes. When we got back onto the Magic Bus, all I could think of was Ken Kesey saying: "You're either on the bus, or off the bus." This was not that type of bus though, so no need to worry. When we got back onto the bus, Sittin on the Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding was playing. Later on, Cat Steven's Father and Son was playing. The driver, after finding out that I like Pearl Jam, decided to dedicate an entire hour to Pearl Jam. So much camp! It was all I could think about while all of this was happening. I couldn't have done this trip without camp (and CITYterm of course too). We stopped again a few hours later in the middle of nowhere for lunch. After, we stopped at a beautiful beach, probably one of the nicest beaches I have ever been to, to see seals. Since Jeff and I had already done that and now hate seals because of our mishap on our seal adventure, we hung out on the beach while Noah and the rest of our bus hiked down a trail towards the seals. While waiting, we saw a really cool flightless native New Zealand bird called a Weka. We thought this was the last stop until Greymouth, but we found out that we had two last amazing places to see until our final destination of the day. Next was a short trail to spectacular views of caves and rocks and ocean. We took photographs and then were once again on our way. Our last stop was at the Pancake Rocks where when the tide is high, the rocks become blowholes for the ocean. Unfortunately, the tide was pretty low and we were only able to see a few small blowholes.

The whole bus was pretty disappointed when Disco, our Magic Bus driver, pointed out that Greymouth consisted of a Woolworths Super Market as the city's big attraction. We got to our second hostel, YHA Kainga-RA. It was the sketchiest place I have ever slept in in my life. The building was a beautiful old church, but was dark and sketchy and smelt old. I am still alive to tell the tale though, so no big deal. We had about thirty minutes until the taxi picked us up for the brewery tour of Monteith's Brewery. It was nothing interesting for me because I hate beer, but it was fun for the guys. There was a big beer sampling at the end, and I only liked the crushed apple cider. After, all of the Magic Bus people went to the Railway Hotel for our included dinner where I ordered some of the best baked Macaroni and Cheese that I have ever had in my life. Some drunk people from the bus also attempted karaoke while I just sat and laughed at them. It was a great night because Noah, Jeff and I got to meet everyone from the bus and make new friends! We walked back to the sketchy hostel in the rain. I then fell asleep with the lights on, and Coldplay blasting from my iPhone like I played for my campers when they could not sleep this past summer.

The next morning, which was again early, was rainy. We were really nervous because at our next stop, Franz Josef, we were supposed to hike the Franz Josef Glacier. But, if the weather was too wet, we wouldn't be able to do it. Our first stop of the day was in Hokitika where we saw a Greenstone/Jade factory. I bought myself a little necklace that is the symbol for new beginnings (I thought it was appropriate). We then stopped in a small gold town to see their gold museum. It was pretty lame and we could have down without that stop. We finally got to Franz Josef at around noon where we had five minutes to check in to the hostel, YHA Franz Josef, which was pretty nice and had beautiful snow covered mountains surrounding it, eat lunch, and get ready for the long awaited glacier hike.  I grabbed the Uncle Ben's rice out of my backpack and ran to the kitchen, shoved it in the microwave, and stole a fork. I would never recommend to try eating and walking with a pouch of rice...it is a very difficult task. After a quick briefing at the headquarters of the glacier hiking business, we got warm and waterproof clothing, and went on a bus to get to the glacier. We had to walk down a long trail, then walk about an hour over rocks (which used to be part of the glacier) to get to the actual glacier. When we were finally at the bottom, we had to hike up this massive hill (100 meters high) to get to the starting point of our time on the ice. We put on our spikes and got right to it. It was easier then I thought to walk on the ice, and I seemed to get a good feel for it pretty quickly. Phil, our group leader and ice picker, nicknamed me the group's "Fearless Leader." After walking up a bit, we crawled through a cave. I was the first one to go, so I had no idea the best way to make it through. My backpack was so big that I managed to get myself stuck while I was sitting in a puddle of freezing water. When I finally got out, I couldn't feel my hands. When we reached the high point of our hike, a beautiful mountain bird called the Kia came to entertain us. It was mostly green, with beautiful red coloring under its wings that was only visible while it was in flight. I met a lot of amazing people on the hike from the Magic Bus and it was nice to have some time away from Noah and Jeff (not that I don't like them, but I needed some girl time). They went with the first group that was doing the hike extra fast. I wanted to be more leisurely so I could enjoy the beauty and take photographs. When we got back, we all went for yet another pizza dinner at the one restaurant/bar in town. After, Noah, Jeff, another girl from Canada who I forgot her name, and I went to the Glacier Hot Pools. It was very relaxing to be in such warm water after a good hike! We went back to the bar to hang out with everyone after.

Monday was our last day on the Magic Bus and we were sad to be leaving it. We had such an amazing time with the people we met and we didn't want it to end. The morning was covered in a fresh coat of snow on the mountains and tree tops. Before we even arrived in our final destination, Queenstown, I knew I wanted to stay there longer. Its reputation and beauty was enticing me to change my flights and stay with Noah and Jeff for the rest of the week. I was talked out of that one by dad though. I guess I will just have to come back to New Zealand soon! Our first stop of the day was Lake Matheson, a beautiful still lake that reflects the snow covered mountains surrounding it. We then stopped in Wanaka, which is a small but beautiful lake town. A few people decided to stay there for a few nights because there is enough to do and it is gorgeous! Our last stop before Queenstown was the famous first bungy bridge. We saw people take the daring dive off of the bridge, and at that moment, I knew I would never do it. One person even got completely dunked under the freezing cold water below. I still want to go skydiving, just not bungy jumping!

Queenstown was better that I ever expected. It was a beautiful lake town surrounded by water and mountains. The city itself is known as the adventure capital, of the adventure capital. There were tons of bars and restaurants and shops. I felt like I could stay there for a month and never be bored (with all of the money in the world to do everything of course). My room at Nomads, the last hostel I was staying at, was more like a hotel room than anything. I had a huge bed, a plasma television, and my own bathroom. Noah was too tired to go out that night, so Jeff and I went for a delicious Mexican dinner. After, we went on the famous Queenstown Blindfolded Bar Crawl. Best night I have had since I have been in New Zealand. The group was hilarious and so were the guides. We went to five bars and were give one shot at each bar (sorry mom and dad). Jeff was almost walked into the lake by one of the guides, and other hilarious things happened to that I don't need to discuss further here. The next morning was raining and cold. It was nice to shower and relax while watching television though. Noah and Jeff had headed off to see the "eighth wonder of the world," Milford Sound. I was so jealous, so I decided to make up for it by buying myself Starbucks for breakfast. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by none other than Noah and Jeff. Their trip had been rescheduled due to blizzard conditions on the road to Milford Sound. We spent the morning at an underwater observatory. I realized how cool ducks were when they started diving deep under the water to get food. It was really interesting (I know I'm a nerd). I said my goodbyes, and headed on the bus to the airport where I then flew to Christchurch to get my connecting flight to Wellington.

The flight to Wellington was the worst flight of my life. I felt like I was on a roller coaster and was unsure if we were going to be able to land due to the high speed winds in Wellington. If you didn't know, we made it. It was nice to come back home, but I was still upset that I wasn't in Queenstown for longer with the guys. Yesterday, the kids were really happy to see me back at school! Last night, all of the interns went out for drinks to meet the two new girls that came while I was away. They were really cool and nice! I am looking forward to the rugby game on Saturday night with everyone (All Blacks NZ vs. England...should be intense)!

That's all for now...7 more days of adventures in New Zealand to come.

P.S. Look at my pictures from the South Island by clicking here!