Here 'tis, the end of our Kiwi Adventure draws to a close. The whole thing was just unbelievable. I had no idea one small country could be so beautiful...and friendly!
As I suspected, the dinner in Paraparaumu was delicious. Chicken stew, kumara (sweet potato), yams, steamed brussel sprouts (which I actually sorta liked), and sauteed broccoli. Not to mention the apple crumble, custard, and ice cream for dessert. Wow, I haven't eaten like that in ages. Mary proved to be excellent company and she just loved having us over. The following morning she took us and the dogs to the beach for a walk and from the beach we saw Kapiti Island, a bird sanctuary.
We drove on to Tongariro National Park, in the middle of the North Island. We stopped in Ohakune, where the cast and crew of LOTR stayed while filming. Most of the scenes of Mordor were filmed at Tongariro. Mount Doom is actually one of the three volcanoes that comprise the Park. They are still active--the last one, Mt. Ruapehu, erupted exactly 10 years ago. Nath and I drove into the park and did a short bush walk through the snow (literally, it was up to my knees) and got an amazing view of Mt. Ngauruhoe (aka Mt. Doom). That night we chilled at the hostel in Ohakune and chatted with some British folk. Awesome conversation that night. Probably my favorite part of travelling is meeting all kinds of different people.
The next day we went skiing at Turoa Skifield on Mt. Ruapehu! That's right folks, we skiied on a volcano. It had snowed right before we arrived and it was packed powder on every trail! However, every trail meant exactly two, maybe three. They didn't get enough snow at the top of the mountain so it wasn't open. So we skiied a half day and it was so weird being back on skis after five years. I really enjoyed it until my fingers and toes started going numb and that's when I remembered why I've stayed away all those years.
After skiing, we drove to Taupo where we spent a quiet night in and soaked in the free spa. The next day, we went on a walk to Huka Falls, saw the Craters of the Moon (a thermal park), and went to the Honey Hive where we tasted lots of different kinds of honey...mmmmm. Then we drove on to Rotorua, the Sulphur City.
Ah Rotorua, how can I properly describe ye? Just imagine a rotten egg and pretend nobody ever cleaned it up. That's Rotorua...really smelly. It has thermal springs, hot pools, and natural mud baths throughout the city, and apparently that's what makes it smell like that. But good lord, it was not fun walking around. And we stayed two nights! But nothing compared to what awaited us at Wai-o-Tapu, the Thermal Wonderland. Oh man, I actually paid money to subject myself to acres of sulphur lakes, streams, and pools. I'm sure it's pretty awesome, but I almost passed out from the smell, so I barely noticed.
Rotorua is not only the thermal capital of NZ, it's also the Maori cultural capital, so every night several companies do these Maori cultural events with a concert in a simulated Maori village and a hangi (a traditional dinner cooked in the earth all day). We went on Friday night to the Tamaki Maori Village and were treated to one of these Maori experiences. So, it was pretty cool and definitely great seeing the different dances (especially the haka) and songs and the food was really yummy, but it was all really touristy. Plus, some of the performers looked like they were really sick of singing and dancing and acting for all these bloody tourists, even though I'm sure they're glad to share their culture with everyone. It all just seemed a little contrived to me. It was an enjoyable evening, nonetheless. On the way back from the village on the bus, the driver had everyone sing a song from their country, so I sang "American Pie." What a laugh.
Yesterday, after leaving Rotorua, we drove around the Coromandel Peninsula...just spectacular. And the weather was perfect, sunny and warm. However, the road is insanely curvy and narrow. We stopped at Hot Water Beach for lunch, which was so cool. There are thermal waters underneath the sand on the beach, so you can dig yourself your own hot tub. And the water is really hot...something like 60 degrees Celsius! Really bizarre. From there we drove all the way around, stopping in Coromandel Town for a stroll, and stopped in Thames for the night. This morning we left Thames and drove to Auckland where we dropped the car off. We walked around and went to the harbour. The weather has been holding up beautifully. So tonight is our last official night in NZ. Tomorrow night I fly to Christchurch and both Nathalie and I will be sleeping at the airport (she in Auckland) before our flights at the ass-crack of dawn the following morning. Then it's back to Sydney...
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Monday, June 19, 2006
Lake Wanaka was brilliant! So beautiful. We decided it was way too cold for kayaking, so we went for a hike up Mt. Iron for some spectacular views of the lake and mountains and then back down to flat ground to visit Puzzling World! LOL, Puzzling World is this bizarre sort of museum/fun house that has an outdoor labyrinth. First, we went through the museum, which had all these optical illusion tricks and holograms and the like. Then we did the maze, which was a real laugh. Well, it was half a laugh and half a frustrating mess, as I would assume most mazes would be. I ccompleted it in 45 minutes but it took Nathalie an hour and a half!
The next day we drove along the West Coast to Fox Glacier, where we had booked a guided tour of the glacier. It was so cool walking on the ice. We had to hike up about 2 hours before reaching the glacier. Then we walked on the ice with things called crampons on our boots for another hour or so. The crampons made sure you didn't slip on the ice cause, man, would that hurt! Such a cool experience.
The following day, we zipped through the rest of the West Coast, stopping at Hokitika for some Pounamu or greenstone (also known as jade). It's really valued by the Maoris. We also stopped at Punakaiki (the Pancake Rocks), also very cool. There are these holes in the rocks that create blowholes that look like geysers. And because it was raining and the sea was rough, the blowholes were really spewing the water far. We continued North all the way until Motueka, which is a gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park. The next day, we were driven to Kaiteriteri Beach where we took a water taxi up to some of the furthest beaches up into the park. Then the taxi dropped us off and we took a dazzling walk through the park where it picked us up again 4 hours later. Truly gorgeous. The weather held off for us again! We totally thought it would rain but it was nothing but blue skies. Then we departed for our drive to Picton to spend the night before our ferry to the North Island.
We spent today and last night in Wellington, where the weather was absolute crap! It seems we left all the nice weather behind on the South Island. It's been rainy and windy and cold, not to mention the little hailstorm I got caught in this morning. I'm sure Wellington is a really nice city, but the weather really ruined it for us. We spent most of the time in the national museum, Te Papa. It's this immense sort of natural history/cultural history museum. There's a Lord of the Rings exhibit on now so we went last night after we'd checked into the hostel. It was really interesting. It had all the costumes and props from the films and lots of interviews with the actors and plenty of behind the scenes interviews with Peter Jackson. We spent almost 3 hours in there! We also went back today because the museum closed before we got to see everything else. Great way to spend a rainy day.
So right now we are in Paraparaumu, a suburb of Wellington, where the couple that Nathalie stayed with and worked for the two weeks before I arrived lives. Mary is cooking us an amazing dinner...it smells so good right now! We have real beds to sleep in (instead of bunks) and clean showers. I'm very excited. We're only staying the night, though, cause it's off to Lake Taupo tomorrow morning. Hopefully the weather improves by the time we get there because there's been a lot of snow up there. Maybe we'll do some skiing. I can't believe we're nearing the end of our adventure. Just one more week to go and then it's back to Oz...
The next day we drove along the West Coast to Fox Glacier, where we had booked a guided tour of the glacier. It was so cool walking on the ice. We had to hike up about 2 hours before reaching the glacier. Then we walked on the ice with things called crampons on our boots for another hour or so. The crampons made sure you didn't slip on the ice cause, man, would that hurt! Such a cool experience.
The following day, we zipped through the rest of the West Coast, stopping at Hokitika for some Pounamu or greenstone (also known as jade). It's really valued by the Maoris. We also stopped at Punakaiki (the Pancake Rocks), also very cool. There are these holes in the rocks that create blowholes that look like geysers. And because it was raining and the sea was rough, the blowholes were really spewing the water far. We continued North all the way until Motueka, which is a gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park. The next day, we were driven to Kaiteriteri Beach where we took a water taxi up to some of the furthest beaches up into the park. Then the taxi dropped us off and we took a dazzling walk through the park where it picked us up again 4 hours later. Truly gorgeous. The weather held off for us again! We totally thought it would rain but it was nothing but blue skies. Then we departed for our drive to Picton to spend the night before our ferry to the North Island.
We spent today and last night in Wellington, where the weather was absolute crap! It seems we left all the nice weather behind on the South Island. It's been rainy and windy and cold, not to mention the little hailstorm I got caught in this morning. I'm sure Wellington is a really nice city, but the weather really ruined it for us. We spent most of the time in the national museum, Te Papa. It's this immense sort of natural history/cultural history museum. There's a Lord of the Rings exhibit on now so we went last night after we'd checked into the hostel. It was really interesting. It had all the costumes and props from the films and lots of interviews with the actors and plenty of behind the scenes interviews with Peter Jackson. We spent almost 3 hours in there! We also went back today because the museum closed before we got to see everything else. Great way to spend a rainy day.
So right now we are in Paraparaumu, a suburb of Wellington, where the couple that Nathalie stayed with and worked for the two weeks before I arrived lives. Mary is cooking us an amazing dinner...it smells so good right now! We have real beds to sleep in (instead of bunks) and clean showers. I'm very excited. We're only staying the night, though, cause it's off to Lake Taupo tomorrow morning. Hopefully the weather improves by the time we get there because there's been a lot of snow up there. Maybe we'll do some skiing. I can't believe we're nearing the end of our adventure. Just one more week to go and then it's back to Oz...
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
More Magnificence
Dunedin was cool, but we felt the need to leave the city and get back to nature (take THAT Thoreau/Emerson!). Before we left Dunedin, however, we went to a local pub with an American couple from the hostel to watch the rugby. So not only did I find out that it doesn't cost ANYTHING to do a working holiday in New Zealand (apparently NZ Immigration grants you a visa the day you apply), I also found out that the female half of the American couple went to the same school as me in London and was there during the same semester! Which means we very likely passed each other in the halls...too weird.
The following morning we drove the Southern Scenic Route to Te Anau. It took almost eight hours, but it was raining a lot so that added much time. It was pretty spectacular so I'm glad we did it. The alternative was to drive straight through the middle, which is just a lot of farmland and not that interesting we were told. We stayed two nights in Te Anau, which is at the base of Lake Te Anau and close to Milford Sound. We wanted to do some kayaking on Milford Sound, but found out it wasn't possible without booking ahead. Instead we took a cruise on the Sound. Unbelievably beautiful. The weather was impeccable, which is funny because it rains there about 150 days out of the year. We were expecting a lot of snow too because the woman at the hostel said she heard from several authorities that there would be, but there was not a flake on the road.
This morning we set out for Queenstown and arrived just before noon. Queenstown is a quaint little town with a kind of alternative/ski bum atmosphere. We weren't sure if we were going to stay because, basically, it costs a lot if you want to do anything in Queenstown, not to mention you have to have balls of steel--it's the adventure sport capital of NZ. We would have been down for skiing but the mountains weren't opening until Thursday. Instead we took a nice walk through the park around the lake and took the gondola up to the summit of a mountain that overlooks the town. We decided to continue to Lake Wanaka, our next destination, because there was more for us to do there that's affordable (hiking/kayaking). So here we are in a hostel in Lake Wanaka called, you'll love this Mom, The Purple Cow! There's also a resident cat named Smokey (the name of one of my childhood cats) and (s)he's a tabby as well!
So tomorrow we might do kayaking if it's available this time of year, or maybe horseback riding. Definitely some hiking and then it's off to Franz Josef Fox Glacier.
The following morning we drove the Southern Scenic Route to Te Anau. It took almost eight hours, but it was raining a lot so that added much time. It was pretty spectacular so I'm glad we did it. The alternative was to drive straight through the middle, which is just a lot of farmland and not that interesting we were told. We stayed two nights in Te Anau, which is at the base of Lake Te Anau and close to Milford Sound. We wanted to do some kayaking on Milford Sound, but found out it wasn't possible without booking ahead. Instead we took a cruise on the Sound. Unbelievably beautiful. The weather was impeccable, which is funny because it rains there about 150 days out of the year. We were expecting a lot of snow too because the woman at the hostel said she heard from several authorities that there would be, but there was not a flake on the road.
This morning we set out for Queenstown and arrived just before noon. Queenstown is a quaint little town with a kind of alternative/ski bum atmosphere. We weren't sure if we were going to stay because, basically, it costs a lot if you want to do anything in Queenstown, not to mention you have to have balls of steel--it's the adventure sport capital of NZ. We would have been down for skiing but the mountains weren't opening until Thursday. Instead we took a nice walk through the park around the lake and took the gondola up to the summit of a mountain that overlooks the town. We decided to continue to Lake Wanaka, our next destination, because there was more for us to do there that's affordable (hiking/kayaking). So here we are in a hostel in Lake Wanaka called, you'll love this Mom, The Purple Cow! There's also a resident cat named Smokey (the name of one of my childhood cats) and (s)he's a tabby as well!
So tomorrow we might do kayaking if it's available this time of year, or maybe horseback riding. Definitely some hiking and then it's off to Franz Josef Fox Glacier.
Saturday, June 10, 2006
There Are No Words...
To describe New Zealand as "spectacular" would be a gross understatament. The place is unbelievable! It's just so interesting and every corner yields a new kind of landscape.
After arriving on Wednesday in Christchurch, I met Nathalie at the hostel and we walked around the city, which is really pretty and very England-esque. There's even a river running through it called the Avon River and a lot of England-inspired architecture, such as Tudor and Gothic. That night we went to a restaurant/bar and listened to a really good jazz singer who sounded a lot like Diana Krall and sang a bunch of Joni Mitchell, all whilst drinking awesome New Zealand pinot noir. The next morning we met our rental car, a '98 Toyota Corolla. I drove first, on the SH1 toward the lakes region, our destination Lake Tekapo. The drive up was breathtaking...we passed the small town of Geraldine, where a lot of the scenes of Rohan in The Lord of the Rings were filmed. Once we got to the lake I took about eleventy-billion photos of the mountains surrounding the lake. We took a bush walk up to the top of Mt. John, a pretty arduous hike for me, not being used to inclines of any kind, not to mention steep ones. At the top, Nathalie sprinted up...she's in much better shape than me, needless to say. The view was worth it, though, and the whole setting was very peaceful. Since it was getting dark by the time we got down, we decided to stay in a hostel on Lake Tekapo. It was a very clean and cosy lodge-type backpackers. Nathalie and I had our own dorm room, a plus after the noisy night we had previously in Christchurch. We had a quiet night in, cooked dinner and watched a couple of videos with the rest of the backpackers, mostly from the Magic Bus tour, a hop-on, hop-off bus company. I also mapped out my road trip in Oz a bit more. I decided to start going up the coast rather than down to Melbourne because after the cold NZ weather, I'm going to be jonesing for some warmth.
Yesterday morning, we set out for Mt. Cook, the tallest peak in all Australasia. Although we couldn't see the damn thing because the clouds were surrounding it. I guess they call it Aoraki ("The Cloud Piercer") for a reason. We did a couple of small bush walks to see the mountain better and to see the Tasman Glacier. After that, we drove to Dunedin, about 3.5 hours Southeast on the coast. Dunedin is the second city of the Southern Island (the first being Christchurch) and home of the first university in NZ. So there are plenty of students everywhere and all the typical chatacteristics of a college town. Dunedin is also Gaelic for Edinburgh and they call it the "Edinburgh of the South." I can't say that it really reminds me of Edinburgh, but I suppose it has a very UK feel to it, just like Christchurch. It has plenty of cool cafes and music shops, so I instantly liked it. Especially after I saw a "Bronx Bagel" shop and a cafe called "Tull," which was Jethro Tull themed. The hostel we're staying at is really nice and homey, sort of like the hostel Alli and I stayed at in Liverpool. It's just a renovated house and pretty small, so everyone cooks and eats together. We got in around dinnertime last night and just walked around the main streets a bit. This morning, we walked to a small market where they were selling hand-crafted jewellry, knitted hats and other crafts. Then we visited the train station, the first one in NZ, the botanic gardens (saw some great birds in the aviary) and the University of Otago. We then took a tour of the Speight's Brewery, "The Pride of the South." The tour was very informational, but a bit on the boring side. I was expecting something like the Heineken Brewery tour or the Guinness Factory, where you get to do fun things. We did get to sample 6 beers at the end and watched a bunch of different advertisements for the beer, pretty funny stuff especially since they are all about these meat-headed cowboy types who epitomize the "Southern Man."
So that's the news to date. Tonight is the first rugby match of the season between the All Blacks (the NZ national team) and Ireland, so it should be interesting to witness some of the antics. Tomorrow we leave Dunedin for the scenic route along the South coast of the island toward Te Anau. Then Milford Sound, Queenstown and the West coast toward Fransz Josef Glacier. And maybe if we have time Kaikoura. Then on Sunday it's off to Nelson and Picton for the ferry to the North Island. Man, time is really flying...
After arriving on Wednesday in Christchurch, I met Nathalie at the hostel and we walked around the city, which is really pretty and very England-esque. There's even a river running through it called the Avon River and a lot of England-inspired architecture, such as Tudor and Gothic. That night we went to a restaurant/bar and listened to a really good jazz singer who sounded a lot like Diana Krall and sang a bunch of Joni Mitchell, all whilst drinking awesome New Zealand pinot noir. The next morning we met our rental car, a '98 Toyota Corolla. I drove first, on the SH1 toward the lakes region, our destination Lake Tekapo. The drive up was breathtaking...we passed the small town of Geraldine, where a lot of the scenes of Rohan in The Lord of the Rings were filmed. Once we got to the lake I took about eleventy-billion photos of the mountains surrounding the lake. We took a bush walk up to the top of Mt. John, a pretty arduous hike for me, not being used to inclines of any kind, not to mention steep ones. At the top, Nathalie sprinted up...she's in much better shape than me, needless to say. The view was worth it, though, and the whole setting was very peaceful. Since it was getting dark by the time we got down, we decided to stay in a hostel on Lake Tekapo. It was a very clean and cosy lodge-type backpackers. Nathalie and I had our own dorm room, a plus after the noisy night we had previously in Christchurch. We had a quiet night in, cooked dinner and watched a couple of videos with the rest of the backpackers, mostly from the Magic Bus tour, a hop-on, hop-off bus company. I also mapped out my road trip in Oz a bit more. I decided to start going up the coast rather than down to Melbourne because after the cold NZ weather, I'm going to be jonesing for some warmth.
Yesterday morning, we set out for Mt. Cook, the tallest peak in all Australasia. Although we couldn't see the damn thing because the clouds were surrounding it. I guess they call it Aoraki ("The Cloud Piercer") for a reason. We did a couple of small bush walks to see the mountain better and to see the Tasman Glacier. After that, we drove to Dunedin, about 3.5 hours Southeast on the coast. Dunedin is the second city of the Southern Island (the first being Christchurch) and home of the first university in NZ. So there are plenty of students everywhere and all the typical chatacteristics of a college town. Dunedin is also Gaelic for Edinburgh and they call it the "Edinburgh of the South." I can't say that it really reminds me of Edinburgh, but I suppose it has a very UK feel to it, just like Christchurch. It has plenty of cool cafes and music shops, so I instantly liked it. Especially after I saw a "Bronx Bagel" shop and a cafe called "Tull," which was Jethro Tull themed. The hostel we're staying at is really nice and homey, sort of like the hostel Alli and I stayed at in Liverpool. It's just a renovated house and pretty small, so everyone cooks and eats together. We got in around dinnertime last night and just walked around the main streets a bit. This morning, we walked to a small market where they were selling hand-crafted jewellry, knitted hats and other crafts. Then we visited the train station, the first one in NZ, the botanic gardens (saw some great birds in the aviary) and the University of Otago. We then took a tour of the Speight's Brewery, "The Pride of the South." The tour was very informational, but a bit on the boring side. I was expecting something like the Heineken Brewery tour or the Guinness Factory, where you get to do fun things. We did get to sample 6 beers at the end and watched a bunch of different advertisements for the beer, pretty funny stuff especially since they are all about these meat-headed cowboy types who epitomize the "Southern Man."
So that's the news to date. Tonight is the first rugby match of the season between the All Blacks (the NZ national team) and Ireland, so it should be interesting to witness some of the antics. Tomorrow we leave Dunedin for the scenic route along the South coast of the island toward Te Anau. Then Milford Sound, Queenstown and the West coast toward Fransz Josef Glacier. And maybe if we have time Kaikoura. Then on Sunday it's off to Nelson and Picton for the ferry to the North Island. Man, time is really flying...
Wednesday, June 7, 2006
Off to the Land of the Long White Cloud
I so did not expect to be this sad about leaving Sydney. Sophie was really upset, crying and everything, and I think that was it for me. I'm trying to keep thinking about my travels and how exciting they'll be, but I can't help but feel a huge sense of loss. I know I'll be back, but it just won't be the same...
Tuesday, June 6, 2006
Monday, June 5, 2006
Tomorrow is my very last day of being a nanny! I am supremely happy about this. Granted, I enjoyed it most of the time and I'm still happy I did it--I would never have been able to stay in Sydney as long as I have, perhaps even in the country. But I'm looking forward to being independent from a family unit...and travelling, of course.
Last Friday was the last time at the Mercantile with Kate and Shaylee. It was good times and everyone I know who is still left in Sydney (not too many) was there. It was pretty empty, however, due to the shocking weather (hehe, "shocking" is my new favorite Aussie word for bad). Lord it's cold. Good thing I bought a winter coat. And it was only $49 at a boutique in Newtown! Man, Newtown rocks for cheap clothes...cheap everything really. Sarah helped me pick it out so some credit goes to her.
Speaking of Sarah, Saturday night we went to see "The Lord of the Flies" as a stage play. It was excellent! All the boys were played by men, but it was really believable. The acting was fantastic. It was such an intense and disturbing experience, but in a good way. It really worked well as a play. I recommend it to anyone who is still in Sydney if they want a great theatre experience. Not for the faint of heart, though.
Yesterday, Matt and I took the train to the central coast to visit the Hunter Valley (the wine region of New South Wales) and stayed overnight in his hometown of Wamberal. We drove from Gosford to Wollombi, which is in the lower Hunter Valley, and had lunch at this amazing restaurant that looked like it was straight out of Provence, France and where we made our own gourmet pizzas. I felt like Kramer in that Seinfeld episode where he proposes the idea of a pizzeria where people make their own pizzas. Except we didn't really make it--they prepare the crust for you and you just put the toppings on yourself, then you give it back to the chefs to wood-fire it for you. But still, it was fun and it tasted amazing! After lunch, we drove around some more--some great scenery--and visited a winery where I tasted a few wines and bought a bottle of 2003 Semillon. We drove back to Matt's house and had a nice dinner while chatting with his mother and brother. They are really nice people, I felt very welcome in their home. That night we watched "Help!" one of The Beatles' movies. What a terrible film that is. It's pretty much the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. But it's great fun and if you're a fan of The Beatles, you'll get a kick out of seeing them run around like idiots. Today, Matt showed me a bit of Wamberal and we walked to the beach. Gorgeous beach! Although, the weather was shocking again and a bit rainy.
I said goodbye to a few people this weekend. Sarah went back to Liverpool today, Angie leaves for Central America tomorrow and I probably won't see J until this December when he visits New York. I'm super excited for New Zealand but unfortunately I don't get any mobile reception in Middle Earth. So e-mail and LJ will have to suffice in terms of communication. I'll be back in Australia (and have phone service) on June 27.
Last Friday was the last time at the Mercantile with Kate and Shaylee. It was good times and everyone I know who is still left in Sydney (not too many) was there. It was pretty empty, however, due to the shocking weather (hehe, "shocking" is my new favorite Aussie word for bad). Lord it's cold. Good thing I bought a winter coat. And it was only $49 at a boutique in Newtown! Man, Newtown rocks for cheap clothes...cheap everything really. Sarah helped me pick it out so some credit goes to her.
Speaking of Sarah, Saturday night we went to see "The Lord of the Flies" as a stage play. It was excellent! All the boys were played by men, but it was really believable. The acting was fantastic. It was such an intense and disturbing experience, but in a good way. It really worked well as a play. I recommend it to anyone who is still in Sydney if they want a great theatre experience. Not for the faint of heart, though.
Yesterday, Matt and I took the train to the central coast to visit the Hunter Valley (the wine region of New South Wales) and stayed overnight in his hometown of Wamberal. We drove from Gosford to Wollombi, which is in the lower Hunter Valley, and had lunch at this amazing restaurant that looked like it was straight out of Provence, France and where we made our own gourmet pizzas. I felt like Kramer in that Seinfeld episode where he proposes the idea of a pizzeria where people make their own pizzas. Except we didn't really make it--they prepare the crust for you and you just put the toppings on yourself, then you give it back to the chefs to wood-fire it for you. But still, it was fun and it tasted amazing! After lunch, we drove around some more--some great scenery--and visited a winery where I tasted a few wines and bought a bottle of 2003 Semillon. We drove back to Matt's house and had a nice dinner while chatting with his mother and brother. They are really nice people, I felt very welcome in their home. That night we watched "Help!" one of The Beatles' movies. What a terrible film that is. It's pretty much the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. But it's great fun and if you're a fan of The Beatles, you'll get a kick out of seeing them run around like idiots. Today, Matt showed me a bit of Wamberal and we walked to the beach. Gorgeous beach! Although, the weather was shocking again and a bit rainy.
I said goodbye to a few people this weekend. Sarah went back to Liverpool today, Angie leaves for Central America tomorrow and I probably won't see J until this December when he visits New York. I'm super excited for New Zealand but unfortunately I don't get any mobile reception in Middle Earth. So e-mail and LJ will have to suffice in terms of communication. I'll be back in Australia (and have phone service) on June 27.
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