Wednesday, June 15, 2011

New Zealand


February 2010

There are things about this country that make me love it more than home. Perhaps that is biased. I’ve lived in the United States most of my life and I know it intimately. I know its faults and weaknesses as well as become inured to its graces but I know only what I’ve seen in two months of New Zealand.

It seems to me that this is the way the US should have turned out if we hadn’t spoiled it. I know very little of NZ politics so I have to assume that they can’t be nearly as messed up as US politics. I’ve heard Australians talk and if they didn’t mention names you would have thought they were talking about American politics. Perhaps it is the same in NZ.

I’m struck by the small town friendliness and charm of NZ. I personally, like driving small back roads. I would rather drive 55MPH down a back country road than 75MPH down a freeway any day of the week. I can make a few allowances if it might take me longer. All of NZ except for 20min drive in Dunedin and an hour drive in Auckland is back country rural roads. There are numbers to the highways but forget about them… this road is the road from Dunedin to Gore or Invercargill to Te Anau, at least that is the way the signs read. On the edges of the big cities are sheep farms, farm stays and woods to get lost in and even the busiest are easily navigated and little traffic, well modest traffic.

On the roadsides you see happy smiling people. You see the 50ish man and his wife on a bike ride or the kids joking and laughing, walking from one friend’s house to the other. You have to think that happy functioning families make for these scenes. Old friends in cardigans and driving hats walking together deep in conversation on their way to the pub, perhaps, to catch a game of footie over a few pints.

I’m struck at times with the smell of NZ. I’ve been struck by the smell of a place before… perhaps it is a curse but Bangkok is one such place… sewers and over powering exhaust fumes are memorable. Rural Thailand and Indonesia is at times is very beautiful there still is the smell of burning garbage almost everywhere only a little less so in the resorts, I think the air there is imported though. New Zealand has a scent that seems to remind me of home or at least is very comforting in some way. While driving today I noticed the smell of Scotch broom blossoms, fresh grass, pine trees in summer and surf all at once, perhaps some other blossoms too because it was certainly sweet.

The climate is perfect too, bear in mind I’ve only visited in the summer, January and February.

I don’t care much for the tropics any more. I can do without humidity. Like being warm but not waking up sweating… sweating going to breakfast and sitting by the beach sweating isn’t for me. I haven’t been through a winter here but I can tell you from January to mid March are perfect in both the North Island and the South Island. Well, I have to put in a bit of a disclaimer. The west side of the South Island can be and often is foggy and damp and a bit chilly. Hey you are there for the glaciers, what do you expect… palm trees and cabana boys? Every time I’ve been here has been like an early summer day. The North Island is semi-tropical without the grim humidity and the South Island has more extremes. From Dunedin north to Christchurch can be hot and air-conditioning isn’t a norm in hotels; hell heat isn’t a norm either but an afterthought, in most cases, with push out space heaters. I’m not sure what that is about.

For the hunting and fishing enthusiasts, don’t set your hopes too high. I’m not sure how the hunting is but fishing can be quite challenging. Many streams are fly fishing only, as it should be in my opinion, and sometimes there can be a long way between fish. Trout limits are generally around 14inchs so that will give you some clue as to the size of the fish to expect. Don’t bother showing up on any stream that you can’t jump across with 6lb line or less. When you do hook one, they’ll break it off like a kite string in a gale. There are magic spots though. You might have to come back a few time to find the good ones. I’ve seen streams where walking you can spot twenty plus fish over 24inches and some of them are even dumb enough to take a lure, my favorites.

The people are gems too. If there ever was a place where a stranger is just a friend you haven’t met yet can be true it is here. At the last hotel I was at, the land lady was running around like the pantry was on fire and she had run out of buckets but she still had time to ask me where I was from, how was I enjoying my holiday and passed the time about some going on in town. I checked into my room before she was satisfied with it and as I couldn’t see anything out of place I told her I didn’t see the point of her coming back for a vacuum and scrub, she rented me the suite of two bedrooms, bath, living room and kitchen for $110NZD or $80USD. I was expecting at least $150NZD… very nice place and cheerful lady. I took the last room available and I’m sure she could have charged me a premium as there were few rooms available in town with the sheep shearing competition going on.

There are few places that are truly remote though. You can get there if you try hard enough. If you are a back packer and expect to “tramp” for hours on end and at the end of the day set up a tent and eat freeze dried food and never see a soul for days on end, you can find it… do some research though. It is a small country and a good deal of it is farm land. The joke is that there are 4.9million people in New Zealand and 18million sheep. I suspect the sheep numbers are a bit low but there are also cattle and elk farms too. Generally if you like a drive in Napa or taking the back roads around the rural mid-west or eastern US then you’ll love NZ. If you want a back woods tramp look to the west coast and southern end of the South Island, bring deet… the sand flies are no joke. There are snow covered peaks and glaciers there for the extremists. Me personally, I like a leisurely walk in the pine forests, dipping a line on mountain run rivers, or a look at local wildlife along the beaches then stopping at a comfortable hotel at the end of the day but that’s me and I LOVE New Zealand.

To any who read these words of wit and decide to come I do see a few draw backs. If you wish to see the remote areas and especially the damp ones near rivers, glaciers or the beach then find some local bug repellent and use it frequently! I camped for a night on the Eslington River near Milford Sound and one night was all it took for over 100 sand fly bites. Sand flies are no joke… imagine Alaska mosquitoes only much, much worse. They leave an ungodly welt that itches for a week at least and there is nothing that will stop the itch for more than 20 minutes. The best course of action I’ve found is “Bushman’s” 80% deet, water resistant cream. Strip down to you jocks and put in on every inch of exposed skin… before you need it, reapply if they come close. Sand flies are about the size of a large flea. They’ll crawl under your shirt sleeves and bite through tee shirts, don’t mess around with them, they are the spawn of Satan. Second don’t be afraid to drive on the left side of the road and when you get used to the traffic circles and all the oddities of driving down her (speaking from experience, the locals are patient) get used to driving slow and going to bed early. Generally speaking restaurants are only open at proper eating times. For lunch that means from 11am until 1pm… then they close. For dinner 5pm is early… expect 6ish. There are snack joints that a tourist may not notice. If you are settling for a spell take a walk in the busier areas and see what place might be open when you want to eat. Pretty much everything is closed by 10pm. In the more metropolitan areas all of this is different but the country on the whole closes at 10pm. In the busy time of the year, say February, book rooms ahead if you can or stop early… say before 4pm. There are lots of tourists in certain areas and hotels can book up early. Don’t be afraid to stop at a backpacker or holiday park, if it looks like things are booking up go to an “I” site; they’ll hook you up with a room, a tour or a ferry. Don’t look there for a rental car though, sadly.

Come to New Zealand… you’ll love it.

That’s my two cents worth.

Take care.

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