Farewell New Zealand!

We bid farewell to New Zealand heading up the west coast to see the Fox and Franz Joseph glaciers, then cut  across the Alps by way of Arthur's Pass to drive back east into Christchurch to catch our plane home.  It was a whirlwind trip done in three days but the views were well worth it.

Fox Glacier was impressive because we could get right up to the front of the glacier (well a safe distance anyway)  We could hear the ice groan as it cracked, the rocks covering the top of the glacier falling into unknown fissures.  The wind was fierce but the sun made the glacier glow a deep blue.

Franz Joseph is said to be the more spectacular of the two glaciers but we found the rock formations on either side of the canyon to be much more impressive.

Arthur's Pass was a scenic mountain drive through the Southern Alps, unfortunately the campsite was sandwiched between the railroad and the road but the views the next morning at Bealey Spur were well worth the late night trains!

We bid farewell to New Zealand in Christchurch with a lamb roast and a glass of pinto (all from NZ of course) in a pub while watching rugby...

Milford Sound and Fiordlands National Park

Milord Sound

In New Zealand they spell it Fiord not Fjord...more fitting to English phonetics?
We rented a car in Queens town...el cheapo they call it, because it has high mileage and a few scratches and dents, only $19 a day!  We headed to Fiordlands NP and some car camping.  We camped along the Eglington River for two nights and took a cruise on the famous Mildord Sound, which we got a two for one deal with our 'el cheapo' rental car!

The Sound, technically a Fiord because it was carved by glaciers, was beautiful, with soaring peaks and massive waterfalls all plunging into the sea.  The boat could practically touch the sides of the fiord  because the water was so deep, getting us close to seals and getting us wet in the waterfalls.

We hiked up Gertrude Saddle for a birds eye view of the glaciers diligent work on the granite mountains of the fiordlands over the past 200 million years, where we found glacial lakes, glacial topped mountains, alpine daisies, and the west side of the saddle plunging straight down 1000ft to the valley bellow, with a view of Milford Sound and Mt Tutoko (tallest Fiordland mountain) beyond.

Hollyford Track

Lake Alabaster on the Hollyford track was our destination.  A 15 mile hike through 'Middle Earth'.... a lush Beech forest, teaming in moisterladden vegitation, moss hanging from every tree and stump, an abundance of tree ferns, mushrooms, and lichens with rushing waterfalls, gurgaling streams, and playfull birds filling the air with sounds.

Lake Alabaster is pristeen and placide, reflecting the surrounding mountains.  The hut was comfortable and we had it to our selves the firt night.  The sun was out in full force the following day so we decided to stay by the lake and enjoy the cool waters and the hot sun.  Unfortunatley Fiordlans is plauged with the sand fly, a small blood sucking fly who swarms any bit of skin left expsed for only a minutes time...bathing was tough and we had to stay in the hut a read for frea of being eaten alive by the flys...regardless it was an enjoyable day.  In the afternoon 7 Kiwi hunters arrived by jet boat ( an amazing feat since they had to make it up the shallow river by dragging their boat through a strech of forest) who brought with them good food, beer, and rum, all of which they shared in excess.  We spent the night getting drunk on their rum and trying to understand each other through talk of favorite movies (Platoon), music (Toby Keith), and politics...ours and theirs.  It was a good time but the 15 mile hike out the next day was not nearly as easy as it had been on the way in :)

Reese Dart Track

We embarked on our 6 day 'tramping' adventure with the Rees-Dart track.  A 60km (or so) hike up the Dart Valley and Down the Rees Valley with a side trip to Cascade Saddle and Dart Glacier.  We hitched a ride from a fellow tramper going to a different trail head, and using his cellphone GPS he kindly dropped us off in the wrong valley, which we were only aware of after he had left and there were no other cars in site.  Fortunately for us two nice old Kiwis on a Sunday drive picked us up and took us farther up the valley to the 'end' of the tramp.  We figured it was getting late and who says you have to hike the Rees Valley first...so off we wet up the Dart Valley instead, hoping we would find a fellow tramper hiking the 'wrong' way to drive us out in 6 days...

The Dart Valley

The Dart valley is beautiful, grassy terraces along a meandering glacial river with tall rugged peaks along both sides of the valley, some caped with snow and glaciers.  New Zealand has an intricate system of back-country huts throughout all of their National Parks, with beds (no blankets) wood burning stoves, sinks with piped in water (river or rain water) and pit toilets.  We figured that we would try the 'American' way and bring our tent (only $5 instead of $15) which worked out well because we had no rain the whole 6 days (a rarity for NZ).  However, we soon realized that tent camping is not common because there is no flat or dry place in the NZ 'bush' and we were thus forced to camp all most on the doorstep of the hut...no tent for us next time...the huts are just so nice and only $15!

Cascade Saddle and Dart Glacier

After two long days of regaining our hiking legs after beaching it in Asia we reached Dart hut and the glaciers.  We decided to take a day to enjoy the river and the grassy campsite and let our feet rest before hiking the 10 hours to Cascade saddle and the Dart Glacier.  The brake was well worth it for the bath in the ice cold river.  We set out early to the saddle the next morning.  The valley walls are so steep that the sun didn't reach us until well after 10 am and the surrounding tusucks and rock were covered in frost.  We had to scramble up old glacial moraine deposits up to the saddle but were well rewarded with amazing views of the Dart Glacier, Mt. Aspiring, and the Matukituki Valley on the other side.
We then spent the next two days hiking down the Reese valley with a German friend we made at Dart hut who, fortunately for us, had a car and a friend waiting to pick him and us up and take us back to Queenstown...no 37km hike out the road for us!

The hike up to the Reese Saddle led us through Snowy Creek valley, a scramble to reach it and then a long rolling landscape of grassy hills and a fast flowing creek, then up to Rees Saddle and the valley beyond.  The Reese Valley was much more barren than the Dart, with crumbling Schist mountains and sparse vegetation.  We saw a group of curious Kia birds, the world's only Alpine Parrot native to NZ.  They are notoriously mischievous and playful.  The last night we stayed at Shelter Rock Hut along with 25 other Kiwis starting their first day of an Easter weekend tramp...we were happy for our tent to be away from the crowds!  The last day we hiked fast in hopes of catching up with our German friend who must have ran because we only found him at the end of the tramp in the car park lounging in the sun...napping!  We drove back to Queenstown, showered, did laundry, and then met up with the two Germans again for the famous Ferger Burger, a two handed burger full of any delicious topping you can think of and fries and a beer on the side....our after tramp victory dinner!

Rees Valley

Queenstown

A beautiful city at the edge of a lake surrounded by mountains.  Famous for skiing, mountain biking, and any other adventure sports...sound familiar?  No wonder we feel so at home here!  The weather is crisp but sunny, being now into the southern hemisphere's fall.  Leaves have just started to change color and there is a dusting of snow on the mountains.  The lake is clear and cold but the strip of rocky shore-line beach is full of people soaking up the last of the summer sun, kind of like home.
So far we have been recovering from our long journey and trying to wrap our heads around the endless possibilities...backpacking (in Kiwi its called tramping), mountain biking, bungy jumping, sky diving, jet boats, river surfing, paragliding...all in our budget of course :)

New Zealand

Ahh the fresh air, the infrastructure, the drinkable tap water, the organization, the traffic laws, the quiet, the views, the mountains!
We aren't going to lie... it was quiet a relief to finally be out of the crazy, overpopulated, chaotic world that is Asia, and be back in the western world with its cleanliness and order.
After 55 hours of airports and air travel we were sick and tired but our flight over New Zealand was amazing.  From our window we could see Auckland and Egmont Volcano, the vast farmland and the mountains of the south island.  Then we flew low into Queenstown down the valley flanked by the Remarkables Mountains on one side and lake Wakatipu at the far end.  At the airport we were not hassled by taxis or hotel scouts just easy, unbiased advice from the information desk...what a breath of fresh air!

Farewell Asia

The things we love about Asia

• Soda in a bag and gasoline in a soda bottle (or a Johnny Walker black label bottle if its premium)
• re-use of anything; old tire as a garbage can, bumper, flower pot, Styrofoam bowls as a net bouy, old posters as an awning or roofing
• bamboo can be made into or used for anything
• anything you could want to eat on a stick; fruit, meat (and any innards you would like as well), rice (I know..how?), soda (frozen), ice -cream (or sandwiched between white bread), eggs (even in the shell.. not sure about that one...), egg rolls, sea food...even their houses are on sticks!
• the whole family, mom, dad, two kids, a baby, and maybe a family pet as well on one motor bike...who needs a mini van!
• alters everywhere...so many shrines with such simple offerings; a soda bottle, a stick of gum, a cigarette, rice, flowers, candy bars, incense... all for good luck, to keep the evil spirits away, to remember your ancestors, to pleases the gods...and the stray dogs :)
• Traffic! (well maybe we don't love this one!)

Bali

These offerings are everywhere, in front of stores, on scooters,  at the entrance to temples, on a rock, by a stream, on the beach...offerings to the appease the spirits 

A short flight from Malaysia to Bali over the equator, through the rain clouds, and into the monsoon...

We stayed in Kuta for the first night because it was close to the airport and we thought we could take a surf lesson at Kuta beach if the rain ever stopped...it didn't so we slogged through the puddles forming on the street by our hotel for the post office (those same Thai post cards still didn't get mailed), then bought a ticket for Ubud, a town in the foot hills that we deemed more suitable to rainy weather, having rice terraces, palm plantations, and jungle.

Here in Ubud we celebrated Nyepi, the Balinese/Hindu New Year.  It is a day of silence and self reflection, where the balance between good and evil in ones life can be restored.  This means that any activity that would interfere with meditation and self reflection is prohibited; no fire or light (electricity too), no working, no traveling (including walking), fasting and no self revelry.  What this meant for us is no leaving the hotel and closing the blinds at night, we had to eat at our hotel and stock up the day before on food and drink...


Bhuta Yajna Ritual 

Hanuman, Hindu Monkey diety

The night before is the Bhuta Yajna Ritual where the towns youth constructs large monsters or daemons called ogoh-ogoh that are paraded round the center of town to ward of real daemons that might want to take up residence.  Some of the 'ogoh-ogoh' are pure fabrications, while some are Hindu deities or represent characters from traditional Balinese folk-tales.  Some of the tales are acted out during the parade, all set to loud music from drums, cymbals, gongs, and chanting.

Nyepi

Our 'silent day' was spent editing photos, posting this blog, swimming in the pool, and mostly reading...not to bad a day because our hotel is so lovely! 

Poetry Hill

11th century tombs carved from the bedrock  




Bali Sunset

Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur

Petronas towers

Central Market

After quite an ordeal with our high speed ferry boat and too many passengers to keep it afloat, we left Ko Lipe and with minutes to spare caught our bus to Kuala Lumpur...Just like that we left Thailand for the big city.
We stayed in China town, a part of the city where every knock-off you could want is for sale along with plenty of noodle shops and mini-marts.  We arrived at 5am checked into a hotel and went back to bed, on awakening again we decided to do some sight seeing, we visited the Petronas towers, the tallest twin towers in the world, the central market, and the post office (we had to mail postcards from Thailand...).  We flew out the next morning for Bali.

The Andaman Islands

We reluctantly left the comforts of Noi's house and Phuket to catch a flight out of Mylasia on the 20th.  We opted for boat travel because the area has stunning islands and we were down right sick of the Thai tourist bus travel and all the headaches that accompany it.  We took a ferry named the Fjord Prinsessen (a Norwegain boat no doubt) to the famous Ko Phi Phi where we snapped some photos of the resort filled beach and headed on our way south to the less touristy Trang Islands, more specifically Ko Muk.

View from our Bungalow

Ko Muk means pearl in Thai, and it is quite lovely...white sandy beach, turquoise water, soaring limestone cliffs, only four resorts...ours a cheap bungalow on the beach.  It was so quiet and peaceful...it seamed the little hermit crabs had control of the beach, wandering in all directions in a variety of amazing shells, leaving beautiful 'art' of their tracks in the sand.  The next morning we kayaked around the south side of the island, snorkeled a bit and were off again on the Fjord Prinsessen to Ko Lipe and the Turatoa National Marine Park.

The beaches of Ko Lipe are the photos you see of Thailand's paradise islands...crystal clear water, bleached white sand, and a long tail boat...Ko Lipe is also a typical Thai 'paradise' complete with mini marts, loads of resorts, and bars...lots of them.  They say Ko Lipe is just now being discovered...We say it was found and maybe should be forgotten.

The marine park was stunning.  Never have we seen such clear water with such beautiful coral of all shapes and sizes.  The fish were so curious surrounding us when we weren't looking and then scattering when we turned around.  There were amazing little sea creatures too, anemones, urchins, shells, starfish...and such amazing colors!

  

Noi's House

Charlie Noi Ben
Rika and Rosie

After Ben's uncle left for work we moved in with Noi and the girls for a few days.  Noi was a great hostess teaching me (Amanda) how to cook Thai food and Ben how to drive 'Thai style' and on the left side of the road.  The girls loved pestering Ben and playing 'I spy' with us in the truck while we toured the island.  Noi took us to the beach, the market, to see the sunset, temples, stores, took us on errands, and each day Ben drove to school to pick up the girls.  When Noi wasn't directing us Rika or Rosie would guide us on our errands, surprisingly knowing all the directions for being 8 and 6 respectively.  They also constantly reprimanded their mother for her improper use of left and right (in English).
It was great to be with family and be in a home, running errands, cooking, shopping...what a nice change from 'tourist' travel!

Ao Phang Nga

Towering limestone cliffs jutting out of the sea covering the horizon in all directions...that is Ao Phang Nga....the most famous among them, the James Bond island, featured in 'The Man with a Golden Gun' and now a major tourist stop though most tourists don't remember or care about the movie, its just package tour and 'here we go'....

James Bond Island

We took a 'family trip' with the Thai girls (Noi, her two girls and a friend) in the back of Charlie's pick-up while the westerners sat in the air-con cab for a two hour drive north, off the island and into the limestone cliffs of the Phang Nga province.  We hired a long tail boat to explore the many islands and caves.  We stopped by James Bond island for a photo and found a beautiful white sandy beach tucked between two large cliffs and a tourist trap in the middle...selling crap...that's right tourist crap...oh and tons of tourist boats!  We then stopped at a cave, also a well know tourist destination, where you could hire kayaks (complete with mandatory guide) to go through the cave.  The girls, Rika and Rosie, were so excited about the kayak and the coconut they would get to drink while on said kayak, that Ben and I decided we better not spoil their fun by not taking the kayak tour with the other hundreds of smiling Chinese tourists in small kayaks crowding the cave entrance.

Noi, Rosie, and Rika

Our guide was funny, pointing out all the karsk formations that reminded him of specific body parts...and insisted that I (Amanda) continuously turn around so Ben could take pictures.  We paddled through the cave and then into a lagoon that was quite impressive because so many kayaks full of Asians could actually fit in side it with still more able to enter!  After the kayaking was over and the coconut drank, the girls promptly decided that it was no fun because they had 'seen it all before', and we got back on the boat and headed back to town.

Phuket

Phuket and Ben's uncle Charlie

Our view of Hat Kata from the deck

We arrived in Phuket on the 8th to Ben's uncle Charlie and daughter Rika awaiting us at the bus station.  So nice to have smiling, friendly, familiar faces to greet us rather than being hammered with questions about taxis, tuk tuks, and hotels!  His uncle put us up in a hotel over looking Kata beach, where we can hear the waves while sitting in bed, we have our own private deck where we can watch the snorkelers and beach goers, and the pool overlooks the bay and the ocean beyond.  Best accomodation we have had!  We had a great Italian dinner with the whole family, Noi Charlie's wife, Rika 8, and Rosie 6.  Noi then took us out to Patong...the hopping night life town on the island, to meet some friends visiting from England.  We drank beer and watched 'lady boys' pole dance till the wee hours of morning.

The next day after a leisurely morning at the hotel, Charlie took us to see 'The Big Buddha', a project that is still under construction after 7 years.  We then had a delicious dinner at Charlie and Noi's house, where Noi cooked us homemade Italian food (I know what your thinking...Italian?!)  Noi, while being Thai, is a fabulous cook and their neighbor is Italian and taught her among other things the art of ravioli making (from scratch) lasagna, and bruschetta, all on the menu for the night.

Ao Nang and Railay Beach

After two long days of buses and a night train and more buses we made it to the south of Thailand to a beach town called Ao Nang.  It is quite the Asian beach town; lots of sunburns, swim suit/tee shirt shops, a fair number of business suit shops, souvenirs galore, massage parlors on every street corner, tour agencies abound...and oh ya a beach.  This town is the town you have to start from to see the famous lime stone islands of the south.

Today we caught a long-tail boat...a quintessential Asian boat complete with diesel engine and and deafening noise...to Railay beach, famous for limestone cliffs and rock climbers.  We rented a kayak and explored the limestone islands and caves, found our own secluded white sand beach, and swam with the schools of tinny silver fish that leaped out of the water when our kayak crossed their path.  While we were kayaking the tide dropped so low that we had to drag our kayak back to shore in a few inches of water!
We made it back to Ao Nang for sunset, most impressive due to the threatening storm clouds, and took over 60 photos! (don't worry we deleted some!)

We are up to date!

So we have finally finished editing all our photos and posting about all we have seen thus far.  From here on out our posting dates should correspond with the actual time we were there.  We have added a lot in the last few days so you will have to go back quite a few posts in the blog archive (right hand side of the web page) ...Tham Lod was the last chronologically of the 'new' posts Found under 'February' the rest are under 'March'.  Also check out our Web Album.  Each post corresponds to an album with the same name (the place name).  We also have a map (right hand side of web page) that shows where we have been thus far! Enjoy!

P.S. in case you haven't noticed Amanda is writing the blogs and Ben is editing photos and writing their captions.

Koh Chang

So here we are in beach paradise...Thai style.  Which means lots of souvenir shops, lots of sun burned tourists and lots of resorts!  We stayed at Hat Ta Nam, once known as lonely beach, a beach with cheap bungalows and hoppin' night life...after a few days of pumping base all through the night we moved to a quieter more tranquil beach called Hat Klong Kloi and relaxed, swam and mostly updated photos and the blog!

Our Beach, Hat Klong Kloi

We checked out Khlong Phlu waterfall for a swim in some fresh water...along with hordes of other tourists!



I think we have decided that the sound of the waves and the blue waters are beautiful but we want the mountains!  Give us snow, clear water, and clear sky!