NEW ZEALAND DIARIES. PART THREE
A STORM IS COMING. CHANGE OF PLANS
Weather is stormy. It is raining. Today (Thursday, 1st February 2018) we head North from Richmond to Collingwood, where we booked our next hotel. The distance is only two hours by road. Due to weather conditions, we had to change our original plans that were to fill in our itinerary for most of the day. We had to think of an alternative.
For today, we originally planned kayaking in the Abel Tasman National Park. It was heavily raining all night, and the wind was strong. We called the tour operator to cancel because kayaking under those conditions made no sense. It was not a problem; the money we paid in advance was quite quickly returned back to our account. This practice, we will see in New Zealand yet again in two days when canceling our glacier walk. Later in Queenstown, we will hear in a coach driving us to our jet boat ride: We are very sorry to all of you who had to cancel because of the rain.
I do not know whether it is a thumb rule or not. But the forthcoming approach by all the operators, with whom we dealt, made me once again confirm the professionalism of the tourism industry in New Zealand. You can book your attractions and pay by transfer long before you come. But, if the weather conditions are too poor to make it, you just call, cancel, and in a manner of days you get your money back. No paperwork, no discussions.
LOCAL COFFEE SHOPS. RECOMMENDABLE
In the night, we were lodging in a hotel with a comfortable living room. Unlike our male companions, who had left earlier, we enjoyed a leisurely morning. Around 10 am, we packed our belongings into our van and departed from the hotel. Due to the weather, the day proceeded at a relaxed pace, and we went to have a unhurried breakfast at a local restaurant in Richmond. Once again, we observed numerous locals and tourists enjoying their morning.
Yet again a slow and rich breakfast in a local coffee shop. And a delicious coffee. Definitely, one of the advantages, while traveling New Zealand
LOCAL WINE AND CHEESE. ON THE MUST-DO LIST
After our visit, we went to two wineries to sample local wines. In total, we tasted around fifteen different types of wine. These wines have a distinct flavor profile, slightly more tart compared to the European or Latin American wines we are used to. We all agreed on only one wine that appealed to us.
Wine tasting at one of the wineries we visited
On our fifth day in New Zealand, we discovered yet again that one of the things we liked most here were New Zealand cheeses. In one of the wineries, we ordered a plate of cheese, which confirmed our theory yet again. To be frank, each time we visited a hypermarket, we bought some varieties and made ourselves a cheese board, whether we were in a hotel or on the road. And of course, we didn’t forget to enjoy it with a sip of wine. It might sound like a luxury, but it was not. Therefore, a recommendation for all New Zealand travelers: the local cheeses are a real country specialty. Do not skip them. Just enjoy.
LESSON TWO. TOO MUCH WINDOW SIGHTSEEING IS LOSS OF TIME
The plan for the evening was to check in at the motel in Collingwood and take photos of the Golden Bay – considered one of the major tourist attractions in this part of New Zealand. While heading there, we were riding in the Abel Tasman Park to sightsee, mostly through our van window as on previous days. We rode and stopped at several bays to take photos, yet again. Boredom, boredom, boredom, as one of the fellows loudly stated. Yes, after yet another day of this practice, I can reiterate once again: New Zealand is green and picturesque. If you rent a car or a van and ride from one location to another on a tourist itinerary, forget about taking additional scenic rides. You will have them almost all the time. The country has much more to offer than sightseeing through the window.
IS THERE A PILOT ON BOARD?
Yet again we had much time and were ahead of schedule. We should call at some famous surfers restaurant to eat a hamburger*. The restaurant turned out to be a food trailer. I skipped this time. Yet again, however, we added some idle kilometers to our journey. And on the steep mountainous road curves, we overheated our brakes. So, we had to stop once or twice for longer minutes to let them cool down. A watch for his next birthday would be a good present idea, I thought.
As we finally checked in to our motel and asked our host about the walk to the Golden Bay, she opened her eyes widely and said: At this hour if you go, I will have to ask the firefighters to bring you down. Soon it will be high tide. Yet again we f…..it up, I thought. How is it possible that none of us checked it? One of the number one rules when you travel to countries with low and high tides: check the low and high tide times.
We had to decide what to do instead. The weather was windy. We knew another storm was coming. But still, it was not raining. The storm was still away. We decided to take a walk. Just a walk around. No map. No specific plan. I think we all had enough of the constant sitting in the van and senseless riding. Some fresh air and stretching the legs would do us all good.
COLLINGWOOD
Collingwood seemed like a real end of the world. Entirely deserted with some old buildings in the small city center (a couple of blocks only) and many properties for sale. Only a few properties seemed to be new or renovated. Street art on walls was a reminder of past times. People in elegant historical clothing. I looked at a street plate. Kings Arms stood there …
Street art. A reminder of past times in Collingwood
The city was very silent. Seemed to be deserted. Maybe, because a storm was coming. Maybe, I was not in a good mood, tired of constant riding. We turned at a crossing to get closer to the bay. A silent city on my right hand and endless horizon on the left one. At the forefront, many colorful wildflowers. I was thinking of people, who close themselves up in a monastery for a weekend to disconnect from the outer world. This place would be perfect for them. I thought. The difference would be the views and the fresh air from somewhere over the Pacific.
Suddenly I heard a child’s voice. Hello, it said. I raised my eyes and looked around. A small girl was waving at me through a window. Naturally, I waved back and returned the greeting. The place is not that deserted as I thought. I smiled to myself.
At one of the streets, we saw a guidepost indicating a historic cemetery in a half-hour distance. (A practice of showing the time to get to a location is widespread in New Zealand. Quite a practical one.) We decided to visit it. The cemetery was an abandoned place, but well-marked and ring-fenced. The old graves seemed to befall. But the gravestones were real storytellers. We read of a man who came to visit but accidentally died in the river. Of a couple, who came from England in the late XIX century, and died one after another twenty years after. And finally of a man, who died fulfilling his duties.
The Collingwood historical cemetery
DID WE NOT FORGET SOMETHING?
This made me think of New Zealand’s history. In comparison to Europe, a new one. But still, it would have been interesting to hear of the immigrants and their stories. How their life at the end of the world began. About the good times and bad times. Hopes and disappointments. We had no such plans. Pity. Later next week, on the day of our departure, while in Christchurch tired and sick, I was sitting on the sofa in our hotel lobby looking at the display of leaflets with tourist attractions. I picked up one with the word ‘heritage’ on it. It was of a historical tour through mansions of two immigrant families. And about storytelling. Having visited the Collingwood historic cemetery, I realized for the first time that we had nothing as such in our itinerary. One of our fellows, a couple of days after, proposed to visit a historical city in the vicinity of our planned route. Was I not the only one who missed something? I thought. We had at least a glimpse of how it was in the old times. But it was too short. One of the major mistakes of our trip itinerary. Not mentioning any insight into the Maori culture.
Like the night before the Thursday-Friday night was a stormy one. We grabbed a bite (unfortunate choice, however), but quickly returned to the hotel. We spent the evening on processing photos.
A PENNY FOR A THOUGHT, ANY THOUGHT…
The morning started with my companions heading out to witness the sunrise at Golden Bay. Despite feeling unwell, despite their lack of sleep two of them decided to go anyway. As for me, I was already fatigued and sensed my immune system weakening. After spending minimal time outdoors for consecutive days, I had grown indifferent to the ambitious plans of the photographers, choosing to skip the excursion this time. An hour later, my companions returned completely drenched. It turned out that taking a long walk during a hurricane was not such a wise idea. I only heard about a field of sheep where the heavy rain caught them, and how the grass was green and soft when one or two of them hurriedly sought shelter from the rain. I envisioned a scene like that in my mind, not anticipating that the following week I would find myself unwillingly falling onto the green wet grass… but let’s not dwell on that. After loading our belongings into the back of the van, we hung up all the wet clothing on the luggage racks to dry. If I recall correctly, the next day we discovered that two more of our companions had fallen ill. The unfortunate morning once again made me reconsider our travel style. Nevertheless, we managed to enjoy a hearty breakfast at a local restaurant, spending about an hour there. In New Zealand, one must embrace a slower pace of life. All the dishes were freshly prepared, albeit with slightly different recipes than what we were accustomed to.
NZ TRANSPORT AUTHORITY
Our journey deeper South was thoroughly planned to be long-lasting. From Collingwood to the Franz Josef glacier area, it is more than 500 km by road. The trip took us around ten hours, mostly through mountainous regions. We only made a few short breaks – one was to shop in a supermarket, and afterward, we visited another coffee shop. However, it turned out to be not the right choice. While on the road, we had to follow the NZ Transport Authority webpage to confirm that roads were open after being damaged by the storms the day before. Luckily, the road to the place we were heading to was opened that day. One thing I particularly appreciated was that, somewhere in the middle of the road, more than a hundred kilometers ahead of our next stop, the road authority’s employees stopped us at a crossing to warn us about the road conditions. They asked us detailed questions about the location of the house we had rented. Initially, our group leader confused the sites, and the man advised us to look for alternative accommodation, as he believed we would not be able to reach our original destination. It was only after we provided the precise address, which turned out to be on the other side of the mountains than previously indicated, that the man gave us the green light, saying: Please, drive carefully. Not all debris has been cleared from the road yet. Please, be careful, guys.
DAY 6 ROUTE
Day 6 route was planned as the longest one on a day with no extra activity in the meantime. But in the aftermath, this was already the third day out of six, when most of us made more than 500 km in the van daily.
LESSON THREE. LOOK AROUND AND ASK THE LOCALS
As we arrived at our rented house, it was still before sunset. We had a reservation in the local well-recommended restaurant, famous for its Asiatic kitchen. However, it was possible to order local New Zealand food there. I decided to eat a hamburger, asking the waitress to give me the most typical one for the region, and a New Zealand beer.
The restaurant was full inside and outside. Dance music was playing all around, and there was a dancing floor behind the bar. It was a well-visited restaurant located in the middle of a busy touristic place, amidst mountains, with people enjoying the evening, especially on a Friday evening. Even if a bit sick, I would have stayed there for an hour or so, as the music and leisurely atmosphere made me feel better. Unwillingly, I followed my company home, as some of the fellows insisted. Tired and sick after the early morning wet ride, it was understandable. I would have done the same.
In hindsight, leaving too rapidly was a mistake, I think. Staying only a bit longer, talking to people, and most of all, looking around the place would have saved us some worries of the evening and allowed us to sleep longer the next day. I only realized this the next day morning, when we returned to the place in the full daylight.
We worried that for the next day we had booked a helicopter flight to a glacier for a walk, but due to the wind and rain, most helicopter trips had been recalled. On arrival, our Landlords informed us that maybe tomorrow helicopters would be flying out. However, our flight was at the other side of the mountain with no access by road. Furthermore, we were concerned about whether the road on the other side of the mountains, which we were supposed to take to ride further South, would be opened. A soil slide of the length of 100 meters had to be removed, and the local forces worked day and night to clear the roads, as 800 tourists were stuck there.
Our mistake on that evening was that we neither looked around the restaurant nor asked around. In buildings adjacent to our restaurant, there were at least two operators offering glacier walks, with all the contact data and info displayed in the windows. Locals would tell us in the evening the same thing that a nice lady from the local road authority told us the next morning. Many people canceled their flights because of the weather. A simple call in the morning to one of the operators at this side of the mountain, or a morning visit by only one of us at the opening hour, would have been enough to arrange our glacier walk.
MORE LUCK THAN THOUGHT
So, with more luck than thought, we made it. In the early morning on a shortage of sleep, we went to take sunrise photos. It did not work. We did not find any genuinely remarkable spots. In the aftermath, a waste of time and the good night sleep for at least two other hours. Right that two of our most sick fellows skipped this time. On the way back, we stopped at the police check-point to get some inquiry as to whether the passage to the other side will be cleared today. In the morning, it was not. But on the advice of a lady from the road authority, we managed to switch our glacier walk from one operator to the other at our side of the mountains. As we arranged our flight, it was around 8 am. It gave us only time to come back to our rented house, quickly pack and return to the flights’ operator building. Consequence: None of us ate any breakfast. I managed only to eat an energy bar that I had in my bag as emergency food.
THE GLACIER WALK. RECOMMENDABLE
At 9 am on Saturday, we were already sitting in a helicopter on the way to the glacier. It was my first time ever on a helicopter and the first time ever on a glacier. The tour operator gave us all the necessary equipment, including waterproof jackets, trousers, and shoes. For almost three hours we had real fun. I even used up the battery on one of my cameras. Photos still to come.
A walk on a glacier. One of the outdoor activities you may enjoy in New Zealand
The tour was very professionally prepared. It turns out that each day before tourists are brought to the mountain, several people prepare each passage by digging ice stairs on steeper ice slopes. At least twice, we had to be escorted on steep, narrow passages where we used ropes as auxiliary equipment to the crampons that we had on our shoes. A couple of weeks before the departure to New Zealand, I paid more attention to my leg muscles workout, which made the glacier walk easy. However, for a moment, I felt stuck between two icy walls. Three guys who escorted us through the walk were of real assistance – kind, helpful, and providing a good mood. Lady, I am not helping you. I just wanted to hold your hand, said one of them, protecting me from a bumpy ride.