Hello All,
I've arrived and New Zealand and have had a few eventful few days. The plane ride was great i had no one sitting next to me so it was easy to stretch and sleep. Lucy a friend I worked with in Aspen was kind enough to pick me up at 5am and house me for my stay in Auckland. My first day was surreal, I has very jet logged but made the most of the day. I hung out with Lucy, drove around Auckland and the went the Piha Beach with Lou (another friend from Aspen). Piha is located on the West Coast and walking along and exploring the untamed Beach was amazing.
The next few days were spent in Auckland searching the local hostels and backpackers places for a cheep car. After two days of searching and site seeing I found a man in Christchurch who was looking to sell a 1985 two door Honda Civic for a price I couldn't refuse. The only problem was he lived in Christchurch on the South Island. No problem though after running the numbers I figured out a plane flight would cost as much as driving down to the south island (with ferry ride of course). I quickly organized a cheep plane ticket and spent the next two days hanging out in Auckland walking and taking picture of everything I could. Highlights of Auckland included the Museum, Sky tower, and Devonport.
Sunday Night I arrived in Christchurch where Allen the man I bought the car from came and picked me up from the Airport. Allen was nice enough let me crash in his guest bedroom and I looked at the Civic the next morning. The car is no chick magnet but it runs and has snow chains!! Most important it was the right price. Allen showed me around Christchurch Sunday where I attended the local market and checked out the sights of New Zealand's second biggest city.
Monday was very exciting, I learned how to drive on the left side of the road but the right side of the car and then Drove halfway across the South island. I woke up with the sun and drove, and drove and saw a lot of sheep, beautiful lakes (see picture of jumping by lake) and I arrived in Wanaka just in time for sunset. Lucy's roommate Spike had told me of some housing near the lake and I'm currently renting a Caravan down by the lake. It is a rather interesting place but there are many other backpackers and travelers in the same boat as me. They call themselves the "Trailer Park Posse" or TPP for short and they seem like a good group to hang with.
Since I've arrived in Wanaka I've been applying for jobs, reading and figuring out all of the local attractions and hangouts. The vibe down here is very similar to Aspen at the beginning of the season so I'm not totally lost. It only snows down at the bottom of the valley in Wanaka a few times a season and it snowed two days last week. They don't plow the roads here so everything was shut down for three days. I guess it is a catch 22 with the snow for the resorts and all.I'm going to be a volunteer for Cardrona's adaptive ski program which is New Zealand's version of Challenge Aspen. I'm very excited to share the sport of skiing with non-able bodied skiers. It should be a great experience!!!
I've arrived and New Zealand and have had a few eventful few days. The plane ride was great i had no one sitting next to me so it was easy to stretch and sleep. Lucy a friend I worked with in Aspen was kind enough to pick me up at 5am and house me for my stay in Auckland. My first day was surreal, I has very jet logged but made the most of the day. I hung out with Lucy, drove around Auckland and the went the Piha Beach with Lou (another friend from Aspen). Piha is located on the West Coast and walking along and exploring the untamed Beach was amazing.The next few days were spent in Auckland searching the local hostels and backpackers places for a cheep car. After two days of searching and site seeing I found a man in Christchurch who was looking to sell a 1985 two door Honda Civic for a price I couldn't refuse. The only problem was he lived in Christchurch on the South Island. No problem though after running the numbers I figured out a plane flight would cost as much as driving down to the south island (with ferry ride of course). I quickly organized a cheep plane ticket and spent the next two days hanging out in Auckland walking and taking picture of everything I could. Highlights of Auckland included the Museum, Sky tower, and Devonport.
Sunday Night I arrived in Christchurch where Allen the man I bought the car from came and picked me up from the Airport. Allen was nice enough let me crash in his guest bedroom and I looked at the Civic the next morning. The car is no chick magnet but it runs and has snow chains!! Most important it was the right price. Allen showed me around Christchurch Sunday where I attended the local market and checked out the sights of New Zealand's second biggest city.
Monday was very exciting, I learned how to drive on the left side of the road but the right side of the car and then Drove halfway across the South island. I woke up with the sun and drove, and drove and saw a lot of sheep, beautiful lakes (see picture of jumping by lake) and I arrived in Wanaka just in time for sunset. Lucy's roommate Spike had told me of some housing near the lake and I'm currently renting a Caravan down by the lake. It is a rather interesting place but there are many other backpackers and travelers in the same boat as me. They call themselves the "Trailer Park Posse" or TPP for short and they seem like a good group to hang with.
Since I've arrived in Wanaka I've been applying for jobs, reading and figuring out all of the local attractions and hangouts. The vibe down here is very similar to Aspen at the beginning of the season so I'm not totally lost. It only snows down at the bottom of the valley in Wanaka a few times a season and it snowed two days last week. They don't plow the roads here so everything was shut down for three days. I guess it is a catch 22 with the snow for the resorts and all.I'm going to be a volunteer for Cardrona's adaptive ski program which is New Zealand's version of Challenge Aspen. I'm very excited to share the sport of skiing with non-able bodied skiers. It should be a great experience!!! Take Care,
Ty
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