Wine, Naked men and flies ...The North Island. (Nov 10 - 13)

We totally lucked out on the ferry ride over to Wellington and were able to jump on an earlier one even though we paid for the cheap night fare. After picking up pies from the local bakery, we queued up to board the ferry. There were several queues based on vehicle size, and a kind eyed gentleman came around questioning us on where we had been and where we were going to see if we might be transporting a nasty, invasive alga, DIDYMO (also known as "rock snot"), that lives in the water ways. Since we had played in some estuaries and bays, we gave up our shoes for a cleansing as we did not want to be responsible for spreading the little bug...even though we didn't know what he was going on about. Tyler's need to be on time and my somewhat slower nature resulted in a funny moment waiting for the kettle to boil. I just managed to make tea just before we had to close the gas tank and set off to board the ship for our three hour journey to Wellington, and a much needed cuppa it was.

Once on the ship, we had to leave our camper and walk up several flights of stairs to the passenger decks filled with multitudes of cafes and bars. We sat down and enjoyed our tea with a carrot cake. Yum! Free is our favourite word at the moment, and we are trying to bring this word into everything we do! To that end, we enjoyed looking out at Marlborough Sounds (usually only available by tour boat) on the deck of the ship while listening to our iPods.

Upon arriving in Wellington (Capital of New Zealand) late the afternoon, we managed to swing by the Museum Te Papa Tongarewa, which was also free of charge. We stayed until it closed and enjoyed several interactive exhibits along with 'Blood, Earth and Fire', which told of the story about how 80% of the land has been deforested (burned or chopped down) in less that 100 years to make way for livestock. Pretty ugly stuff. A majority of the birds also became extinct (Ever heard of a Moa?) and with each new arriving group, new things were introduced to remind the settlers of home (i.e, plants, bugs, and mammals). New Zealand is inundated with so many foreign invaders that every Kiwi we met seemed to have concern for native species on the tips of their tongues. My personsal opinion after seeing this exhibit is that land loss is the main problem and that the 60 million sheep and half as many cows that now call New Zealand home are just as much to blame as the invasive species. I digress. We headed north at sunset for Napier, which sits in a well known Hawkes Bay wine region.

After a few frustrating hours searching for what seemed like a non existant shop to rent bikes from, we found a tin home where at the very back a lady runs a business renting bikes and helmets out to unsuspecting tourist. She handed us a map, patted us on the back and said, "it is pretty much all flat expect for this one road which has a little incline".

Off we went, water bottles in hand and safety helmets on as we peddled to our first winery, Brooksfield, a lovely family owned business which is apparently rare as most of the vineyards have been bought by large corporations. A lovely conversation with a equally lovely lady named Sharon warmed our hearts and our taste buds. We promised to come back, and then we set off for a second and larger winery. We even enjoyed a chocolate factory and some wooden sculptures cut from tree stumps. We headed along a very, very long road, pretty tired at this point to find our next destination was closed. Without further ado, we set off up the small incline... she lied. We/I died, my legs burned and my heart nearly popped out my chest from beating so hard. We made it and the descent down was a very long one. Happy that we did not go up that way we eventually made our way back to our car as everything had shut for the day.

On our way to Rotarua, we stopped at a place known to the locals as "Secret Cove" or "Hot and Cold". We had a lovely time soaking in this natural hot spring where a cool stream met a warm stream at the entrance of the Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. What was especially nice was the fact that it was free. Free of charge and free spirited as Tyler and I found enjoyable conversation with the locals and other tourist, one or two of whom were completely nude! We were a little on edge due to the really large sign stating "Danger! Do not put head in water - amoebic meningitis is fatal and caused by water entering the nasal passages". Not knowing what the hell the sign was going on about, we looked at the people already enjoying the waters and gingerly stepped in wondering what amoebic meningitis was or indeed how would one know if you had contracted it. Panic over took me as I watched the older naked man splash water all over his face and continue to do so. Well I just couldn't keep my mouth shut, so I asked why he wasn't concerned about what the sign said. Everyone in the pool went quiet and discreetly listened, without actually looking at the naked man. He replied"nar nobody's got it, been coming ere since '74, just remember to blow out your nose if you do. The sign's only ter cause of OSHA." Sighs of relief were heard all around over the rushing water, but I'm made a mental note to look up what hell amoebic meningitis was...just in case.

We made it to Rotaru later that day, and went for a run along the lake front as suggested by the host at our holiday park. We quickly realized that woman had no business giving advice out on where to run as we found ourselves sprinting through massive swarms of sandflies over and over again. After a good night's sleep, it was time to move on with our journey, but not before stopping to check out the local redwood forest. That's right actual redwoods imported from northern california.

A side note on these wonderful characters we've met: The French Canadian man Lucas seem very adapted to a life on foot with a very organised and large backpack. Whereas the lady from Alaska had nothing but the smallest of backpacks (almost a daypack really) and seemed most a home WWOOFing. Richard, a fellow traveling Brit, on the other hand, carried the largest of bags filled with just a few clothes and a bunch rock climbing gear! It was the size of a kiddies car! He also carrying his treasured mandolin separately, which he even broke out and played a few tunes for me with. Very Good! Richard's passion was for folk music, which is something I have not explored myself personally, but it seems very familiar to me...even the young Alaskan lady had a hing for folk and bluegrass music. All under 25! Certainly a change.