Feb 2008

Ummm where was I last time? I think we had just arrived in Dunedin.
In Dunedin we were staying at the holiday park - we had a unit just for us with a full kitchen and like 10 rooms - it was absolutely perfect. It was a little ways from the downtown and since it was tuesday and wednesday nights we stayed together and did group activities for much of the time which was great! I introduced everyone to the best movie ever SNL- best of Will Ferrel (thank you Lex!) We toured the Speights brewery on our first night in town - it was pretty cool seeing how beer is made and then getting to sample the different kinds. Then we had a big fancy meal at the Speights ale house - it was so fun. Whenever we have a meal out there is always tonnes of drinking, drinking songs in different languages, singing and dancing, just general craziness. I was sitting at a table with many German trainees for this meal and I was learning to sing the song for The Warehouse commercial which is like Walmart in German. Von zie ein schleptchen cririct or something. After the meal we went out to a pub where a guy was playing acoustic guitar and singing - he was brilliant, it was such a good way to spend the evening. The next day we toured the Cadbury Chocolate Factory in the morning, had a bit of free time in town then went out to the Otaga Penninsula where some people went on a nature cruise, some went to watch penguins, and some including myself went and learned all about the Albatross. Really they are fascinating birds. Ask me about them sometime, I will enlighten you!
After this we went back to the holiday park and made supper then rented out the ice arena and went skating and curling! A truly Canadian thing to do! It was so funny seeing some of my friends try to skate - they just can't do it! One of the French girls asked me why all the Canadians were so good (because we were miles better than everyone else!), they don't realize how much hockey is really in Canada. So that was a really fun night together - then of course we stayed up till about 3 playing cards.
The next morning we had our biggest bus day. Luckily I was so tired that I slept the entire way! We went to Te Anua and all the way down to Bluff - the most southern point in NZ. So now I have been to the most Northern point and the most Southern point of this country. In Te Anua we were staying at another holiday park, it was valentines day and we cooked a romantic dinner of chili (Pauline's recipe was from Sue Dow!) and got a bit sorted out for the next couple days...... An opportunity presented itself to me to do a 32km hike - the Routeburn trail, and so I jumped on it. There were to be 10 of us doing it but there was all of a sudden a few more spots, so I was able to get in on it. From our holiday park we had to walk over to the Department of Conservation office to get our tickets for the hike and so everyone who was interested went over together after dinner, and as we were walking we decided to all join hands so there was a line of like 15 20 something year old people holding hands in a line walking behind Pauline, giggling at our own maturity. Just simple little things like that can be so fun.
So we got sorted and had spent some time at the grocery store getting everything we need for the hike and the next day heading out to Milford Sound! We actually spent the night on Milford sound on a ship called the Milford Wanderer. We kayaked and went swimming ang ate good food, and saw absolutely beautiful scenery and seals and a pod of dolphins - it was amazing!!
When we got back to shore the next day it was straight to the hike for us! We took 2 days to complete it. It wasn't really terribly difficult - but challenging enough that it was so satisfying when we were done! It was so lovely - right in the heart of the mountains. Gorgeous! I have lots of pics. We were so sweaty when we got to our sleeping spot the first night that we went for a swim.....in a mountain lake...... I will never be the same again - cold cold cold. We slept in the Mackenzie Lake Hut. Actually we didn't sleep. There was a room with a few bunk beds but they all were taken so we had to sleep in a line with 20 matresses just laying one beside the other. No sleep because of all the friggin mountain climbers and their heavy breathing. And Evonne's snoring.
So we (7 of us hiked together)finished this hike just a few hours ago and I am so tired! But tonight we are in Queenstown and will have to go to the pub because our friend Fredrick from France is playing his guitar in a pub here! We stay in Queenstown till tuesday and I don't know where after that. But what I do know is that tomorrow I will do the bungy.............
goodbye.........

Hello everyone!
I am in Te Anau right now which is near the very bottom of New Zealand, having the best holiday ever! We left home on Feb. 7th and rode the bus to Wellington (about 8 hours). We spent the night at a backpackers right downtown and the following day exploring the city - me and my friend Marie Rasmussen rented rollarblades and went for a long journey around the warf - it was beautiful! I met Jerome from NZ (he used to live in Calgary) and he took me for a car ride around all the major points of the city and then out for food, it was great to see him again and catch up. 20 of us trainees caught the 6:00 ferry from Wellington to Picton that evening and got picked up on the other side by Pauline Norrish and her husband who are our tour guides for the next 2 weeks. We met the other 26 trainees who were already here at the backpackers and the party began! That was my earliest night so far - I think I was in bed by midnight. Will that ever happen again? Not likely.
The next morning we were up early getting sorted and loaded on the bus and drove to Kaikora where a bunch of people were going whale watching, seal swimming, seal kayaking, or just hanging out in the town. However, is was a foggy morning and everything but seal kayaking was cancelled. I spent some time walking around with Pauline and Mark and talking about Champion and how great my family and Canada is! From there we drove to Christchurch where we stayed at the YMCA for 2 nights. It was a huge YMCA with fitness centre, climbing wall, restaurant/cafe. Not bad at all! We had a welcome dinner that night at a restaurant - lots of fun, every country had to do a song. We did "Grand County Auction", all the Europeans think country music is the strangest thing.... Pauline said on the bus - "we have a cd player for the bus and we may even let the Canadian put on some country music some time. Like maybe once." We met the trainees who are placed on the south island this night and got to know them a bit. So many Danish ones.
When I say "we" I mean 45 trainees all of whom are placed probably within 3 hours of each other on the North Island. We are the ones who are together pretty much every weekend, and every moment we can when not working. It is such a great experience because we are such close friends. I don't think many people can say they have taken a 2 week holiday with 40 of their best friends..... it really is quite special and we are having a great time.
Spent a bit of time exploring Christchurch the next day - had a city tour in the morning then free time for the rest of the day. Eva and I went to the Cathedral, and the marketplace, and walked miles and miles that day. We met the others for dinner at this place where you order what kind of meat you want and they bring it to you on hot rocks on a plate and you cook it yourself! I ate Ostrich this night! It was good. From there we had a soccer game in Hagley Park. There were these two gothic type teenager guys in the park and they saw how much fun we were having and asked to join in and be our goal posts. Optimus Prime was one of their names and the other guy was Chris but he was the goal post for the girl's team so he was Christina. That night me and a few others had a fiasco with the laundry station at the YMCA which resulted in heaps of wet clothes having to be carted around for a few days, but other than that we just hung out, played a bit of cards, put shaving cream on the faces of people who fell asleep early - you know those sorts of mature antics.
The next day we headed to Mount Cook - the biggest mount in NZ. We stopped at the Moreaki Boulders on the way there. Unfortunately I was sleeping and missed the explanation of how and why the boulders look like they do, but they were amazing perfect spheres just sitting on this beach. It was a cold day but 4 of us swam anyways. We made it to Mount Cook that night and had a dinner of burgers at the camp site and played volleyball till dark. There is one french guy on the trip Fredrick and he plays guitar and sings so we listen to him pretty much every night - it's really good. Mount Cook is beautiful. The maori's call it something that means piercing mountain because it pierces the clouds - it was lovely.
From Mount Cook to Dunedin for 2 nights. I have heaps more to say but I have to go now because I am running out of internet time. ok bye