"When God made Heaven and Earth, he must have started with New Zealand" (Steve the Australian photographer - more about him later)

So it's been a while since we last updated you all on our adventures and a lot has happened so there is lots to tell, but let us start where we left off last...

Travelling further South the highlights have been:

Taupo - having booked in advance, we did not realise we had chosen the remotest campsite possible so we began our stay with a trek up Spa road (a new contender for the longest road in the world) with all our stuff in the burning heat. Arriving at the site we then learn our tent site is at the far side of the huge holiday park in Dinasour Valley, but luckily, as soon as they saw how our faces dropped upon hearing this news, we were offered a golf buggy lift. The next day, despite the rain and the previous days walk, we decided to head off on a full day hike (mostly uphill) to visit the Huka Falls and Craters of the Moon. We returned to the camp site 7 hours later, having had no rest breaks, both now equipt with blisters rather than feet, but the sights were well worth the disfigurement. The evening was much more easy-going with star gazing and pear cider. (The rain did not start until we were in the tent and we only got a bit wet!)

Napier - Our visit to the Art Deco Capital was brief, but very enjoyable. The seaside town is very special because it was destroyed by a major earthquake in the 1930's and the city was rebuilt in the Art Deco style, so it is a little like going back in time with the old fashioned buildings, vintage cars and people dressed in 1930's attire.

Wellington - Our first impression of the Capital were blighted by arriving at our hostel to be greeted by police questioning some residents. It turned out someone had been stealing people's clothes and then worn them around the hostel afterwards. There really is no such thing as a perfect crime. The hostel was quite big and messy and the sight of the kitchen immediately took us both back to our Uni days. Marie was much better at dealing with this situation and stayed calm, but Sophie had a minor breakdown at this memory (hair on surfaces and such like - this is problem most places we go actually). The room was cramped and stuffy so we spent as little time there as possible, giving us plenty of time to explore. We went on the city cable car up to the Botanical Gardens for a lovely walk around with beautiful views, wandered along the harbour on Oriental Parade enjoying the sunshine with an ice cream and visited the National Museum, Te Papa. In a spur of the moment decision, we took a bus ride to Miramar and visited the Weta Cave, a small museum attached to the Weta workshop, showcasing some of the props from various movies including the Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit and Avatar. This was pretty cool and gave ideal photo opportunities with Gandalf and Gollum! One evening we also treated ourselves to a trip to the cinema (the Embassy where all the LOTR and Hobbit premieres were held) to see Hitchcock.

That was our last stop on the North Island, so we got the Interislander ferry over the Cook Straight into Picton, and then the coach onto Nelson. Marie was very excited about this as she had never been on "such a big ferry" and spent most of the 3 hour journey taking photos (both inside and outside) while Sophie battled her way through the epic Pillars of the Earth (possibly the worst book to carry around when travelling). The crossing was very breathtaking with huge mountains and beautiful blue sea.

Nelson - we stayed at a lovely hostel that practically threw free stuff at us when we arrived. The weather was brilliant the pool and sun loungers made it feel almost like being back in Fiji. We had free breakfast, vegetable soup and bread for dinner and noodles here so were sad to leave again. The majority of backpackers staying there were young Germans and it felt a little like we were in a different country at times, but no issues there really.

Punakaiki - Arriving at the beach hostel at midday, we were greeted by an eccentric German man who informed us that it was high tide and we must hurry to the Pancake rocks and blowholes which were "amazing" and drew us a little map of where to go from there to find an "amazing" walk along the river, where we would find blue lagoons to go for a dip, which was also "amazing". Who could argue with that? The rocks and blowholes were in fact rather amazing and the walk through the rainforest likewise. The dip in the blue lagoon was amazingly cold! Sophie decided to brave the cold and jump in (and managed this after about 5 minutes of Marie repeatedly counting to 3) - we have this on video, but its not a pretty sight. That night we camped practically on the beach with the waves in the background and we both woke up needing a wee. (Too much information?)

Franz Joseph - Greeted by a barefoot, bearded man at the hostel who told us what walks were good in the area (lots of k*** - names of walks that is), most of which made Sophie giggle. Heading in the direction of the glacier, it started raining and we were stopped by an Australian couple who took pity on us and gave us a lift in their car to the start of the glacier track. Steve was a photographer and his wife Sharon was taking photos out of the car window whenever he yelled: "shoot!", while classical music played in the car. Steve spoke very fondly of New Zealand and said many profound things, and he left us with "and this is where our friendship comes to an end". The glacier itself was impressive, but we were not able to get particularly close to it due to the risk of rockslides. Whilst in the area we felt necessated to do one of the k*** walks and chose Canavan's k*** which led up to a faily nice view of the glacier.

Fox Glacier - After quickly setting up the tent, we headed on the 6K walk to the glacier, which we were able to get much closer to than FJ and so the views were even more impressive. We then headed back to the campsite for lunch, before walking another 6K in the opposite direction to Lake Matheson for the promise of some spectacular reflective views. This was slightly disappointing, due to the cloud and when walking back, after 27K, along the worlds longest road (by far), we began to imagine how much easier life would be if we could fly. Whether we could use our arms or have wings to levetate was a tricky question. That night was possibly the worst nights sleep so far, due to the freezing conditions of camping next to a glacier. Sophie threw the towel in at 4am and went to the slightly warmer kitchen, while Marie battled it out until the alarm went off at 6am.

Queenstown - We are now coming to the end of 6 nights here and have had possibly the most exciting experience so far. On Day 1 we did a day trip and cruise of Milford Sound, which was absolutely stunning; Day 2 we booked a skydive and Day 3 we jumped out of a plane strapped to a stranger. The skydive was amazing with spectacular views over snow-topped mountains and lakes. We went up in the same plane and Sophie went first, which was terrifying and watching her disappear out of the door seemed completely surreal. After spinning around under the parachute, we were loaded back into the minibus soon after touchdown and the drive back to town along the windy mountain roads, made us both feel as though we had had a big night out. So a long lay down was required after exiting the vehicle. We are staying a nice hostel with a fairly small camp site and great views over Queenstown. Now on day 6 of camping, we are getting a little fed up with the multiple layers of clothing and blankets for heat as well as the extremely uncomfortable sleeping conditions and look forward to laying in a bed again.

Tomorrow we get the Intercity coach to Lake Tekapo for one night and then we head to our final stop, Christchurch.

So far all the coach journeys have been excellent with the drivers adding their own personal touch to each stretch. With stories, facts, anecdotes, personal recommendations and stop-offs at sights and fruit stalls even the longer journeys are enjoyable.

As we reach the end of our NZ adventure and Sophie's 25th Birthday, we find ourselves looking back on our experiences so far and despite being terrified at the idea of being one year closer to a mid-life crisis, it might not be all that bad after all. And what better way to start the next quarter of a century, than travelling the world!

High Five!

Marie and Sophie