New Zealand
NORTH ISLAND - dedicated to the hospitable local people that inspired our journey.
Anna's entry:
We heard so many great things about cycling in New Zealand, and finally decided to give it a try. Prior to our departure, I've attempted to make some contacts with the locals via our homestay organization, and received an overwhelming amount of replies and offers of hospitality. I also received something unexpected... Many people wrote "Anna, we don't mean to scare you, but you have the right to know... About eight cyclists are dead this week due to the collisions with motor vehicles..." That's not the encouraging endorsement one wants to hear a few days prior to departure... Nevertheless, our bikes were already set in the boxes, camping and cooking equipment packed, biking gear and tools prepared, and non-refundable tickets bought, so we proceeded as planned. We were met by a host family (originally from my home town of St. Petersburg, Russia) at the Auckland International Airport. We spent a few days in Auckland coping with being horribly jet-lagged, and eventually took off on our cycling adventure. We planned to cycle both the North and South Islands. It was evident very quickly, that the wonderful cycling in New Zealand, that we heard so much about, came to an end about eight years ago - greatly improved roads and cheap used cars from Japan turned New Zealand into a pro-motorist society. There were a few cycling routes around the Auckland proper, but then they got more and more scarce, and eventually disappeared completely. We had very detailed road maps along with the local GPS maps (thank you, Maxim!), however, the busy roads were frequently the only options for the route, which we had to share with logging trucks and fast cars. Majority of the drivers were respectful and mindful to us, but narrow shoulders and constant flow of loud traffic did not make the journey pleasant to say the least. Several times we had to ride our loaded bikes on the freeways alongside of the heavy traffic. Sharing the narrow bridges was the scariest - especially when we could feel the logging trucks passing so close to our bikes and bodies.... We would cherish the rare minute of silence before it would be broken by the roaring sound of approaching motor vehicles. We got used to the constantly rolling hills - a typical landscape of New Zealand, but getting used to the traffic just didn't seem possible. What kept us going though was an amazing hospitality of the locals! North Island (against popular believes of other tourists) offered us the best hospitality and kindness we encountered elsewhere! Random strangers we would meet while cycling, would offer us their assistance and genuine welcome. We would be offered a pie, glass of cold juice, place to camp, place to stay, etc. We ended up staying with complete strangers in their homes who we met while riding our bikes on busy roads or camping in the national parks. Also, throughout our homestay organization, we visited numerous families that gave us an excellent insider perspective into the real life of a New Zealander. We quickly gathered, that the NZ "utopia" perceived by some did not exist, and that the country was dealing with the exactly same issues -- environmental changes, high unemployment rates, problems of alcoholism, domestic violence, ethnic tensions, etc. to name just a few... The food prices were really high, which probably contribute to the great looking slender bodies of Kiwi's. :) We did tremendously enjoyed affordable local cheeses and wine though, that made a welcome addition to our "home/camping cooking". The local hospitality was the main factor that kept us going despite of the traffic insanity. I must say that my most favourite (and peaceful) part of cycling journey on the North Island was in the area called East Cape. The latter is the territory belonging to the native people called Maories. Unfortunately, there seems to be present an on-going sensitive confrontation between the Pakhias (white people) and the native Maories, primarily over the land disputes (let's call it "colonization" for historical purposes). However, on our end, we received a warm welcome from both. On the East Cape journey, we received a warm gift from a local Maori lady - the delicious Manuka honey, and from a kind white gentleman - freshly caught halibut, that he kindly wrapped us for us so we could cook it fresh when we reach our next destination. What we also liked about the East Cape was the lack of traffic; we would see local kids on horses and occasional trucks and cars, but all was manageable. The camping sites were also beautiful - right on the water edge surrounded by picturesque hills and mountains. We did go through an intense windstorm through, wondering if our tent would fly away one night, and where we might end up at. But, all ended well after all. We also got through a heavy rain storm in the Tangariro National Park, and I ended up walking my bike (that continued getting flat tire issues) for five miles under pouring rain, my clothing soaked to the last thread. But except veracious sand flies (that still give me creeps when I see a similarly looking innocent fruit flies), overall, the journey in the North Island went well.
Note - the attached photos are some of the Rob's fav's.
SOUTH ISLAND
Anna's entry:
Normally, I would give a detailed diary of places, events and people we encountered on the journey. This entry would be an exception. Several reasons for that - I am writing this part of the blog almost a year later, and also because of the uncomfortable memory of the accident. I might include more detailed entries at some point later (I am actually typing this while travelling in another country)...
Both Rob and I both were looking to our cycling adventure around the South Island. We had three months to do it, the nature was stunning, and most importantly, the traffic was a lot better compared to the North Island. We took our bikes on the ferry crossing from Wellington onto a port of Picton. The South Island did seem quieter indeed! We cycled through a beautiful scenery overlooking the ocean, many long hills, but we had used to them by now. We found a great camping site by the ocean in the Marlborough Sounds area, and met a local family who introduced us to the local seafood specialty (enormous size clams), and showed us how to "hunt" for clams - a skill that would come in handy later on. Everything was going great at first - we were enjoying cycling on the South Island, we liked the scenery, weather, and the landscape and seascape were stunning. The cycling came to an end very shortly - just a day before Christmas, while cycling in the mountains, Rob fell off the bike and ended up with the badly broken collar bone. Luckily, he ended up about half a meter away from the cliff edge, so it could have been worse. I did end up getting help from the local drivers who took us and broken bike to the nearest camping ground (there was no hospital near by). After two days camping in the middle of nowhere, a local family "scraped" us up, and Rob was taken to the hospital in the city of Nelson. The fracture was bad, so cycling was out of the question. We were very fortunate to have a local family to stay with for about a week, and we even ended up going on a sail boat with their neighbours as part of the crew for three days to a gorgeous national marine park (I got my feel on the kayaking finally) - that certainly proved to be a nice escape for our broken spirits and especially Rob's broken bones. We did face a big issue though - we did not have a long-term place to stay in NZ, we could not get flights back home, we could not cycle, the trains were not available, the buses would not take our bikes and all the equipment, and most importantly, Rob could not move without pain for at least four more weeks. After all the research, the decision was clear - we had to continue our journey by renting a car and camping, and I would have to be the driver. I had never driven on the left side of the road, plus because of the holidays the traffic was heavy, and due to the rain and floods the roads were washed out. Needless to say, I was feeling more than a little over-whelmed with the responsibility. I had no choice but to re-learn my driving skills - first hours were scary, first days were over-whelming, but slowly about a week or so into it, I was starting to feel OK. The round-about rules in cities did no longer seem complicated, the washed out roads were manageable, the one-lane gravel mountain pass roads became easier, and one-lane long bridges brought less and less white knuckles... I even ended up "conquering" the highest mountain elevation pass in the world and the notorious "Port Underwood" road. Traffic conditions sometimes were scary to say the least, but we survived (one time, a speeding car caused our window shield to be smashed by stirring up the road rocks, but with the help of local police we got at least 50% damages paid by the violators - there is a special story about that for another time). In some ways, having a vehicle instead of a vulnerable bike, allowed us to explore the mountain tops and isolated areas of the country that would have been very difficult to explore with a bike. Though, we did not feel as much connection with the locals by being a driver v.s. a cyclist (when driving, you are just one of many tourists), we still encountered wonderful genuine individuals, and were honored to stay with several local families.
Our favourite part of the journey on the South Island were probably the Southlands, or a "deep south" as it's called here. The landscape, sand dunes, dramatic ocean cliffs and the scenery were absolutely stunning. The area was a lot less populated, and there was an over-all sense of genuine tranquility here. Throughout the journey, we encountered the penguins, seals, sea-lions, various marine birds; I loved the ocean and sea-scape; and wandering around the glaciers and snow mountain picks was wonderful. The variety and beauty of the South Island was apparent, it was breath-taking... All of it helped us to accept the accident, and we actually enjoyed the journey after all. Sometimes, the broken plans create the most unexpected encounters, which create only the best memories...
We returned back by ferry to the North Island and spent a couple of weeks in Wellington staying with two wonderful local families, which up till today we continue our friendship with. We also were able to figure out how to transport our bikes back to Auckland for a flight back home. I found a rental car agency that needed to relocate a vehicle back to Auckland - we only had to pay for the gas used. It was the perfect option for us. We loaded our bikes and equipment, and crossed the North Island in two days driving from Wellington to Auckland. The rental company allowed us to do some sightseeing stops on the way, which was also a nice bonus. So, all is well that ends well...
Now that I am looking back at the journey in New Zealand, I feel that the unexpected things that happened to us actually had some important value. If not for the bike accident, we might have not been able to avoid the devastating earthquake in Christchurch, and a few other floods where we would have been cycling and camping. But, the most important thing is that because of the accident we met incredible local people which accepted us as part of the family and created long-terms friendships; it gave us an unbelievable amount of gratitude, hope and believe in the genuine personal connection; it gave us strength to cope with the circumstances that were beyond our control. After all it made us stronger and more understanding towards others. And, therefore, this blog is dedicated to the people of New Zealand, whose kindness and generosity will stay forever in our hearts.
Special thanks to Rob for documenting the photographic journey.
posted by Rob and Anna @ 10:57 AM
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