30 days in NZ~~

Oh dear, it has been so long since i wanted to post this.. 

now the memories are mostly gone.. =(

It has been 2 years, and the post is stuck with blankness..

Summary:

I went to NZ during May 2011 with my mum, uncle and aunt just after my Degree graduation.

The weather is very cooling and its autumn, wearing wind breaker and long sleeve jacket most of the time.

It rain quite often during this month. But I super enjoyed it. As i like cold weather country a lot...

Was hoping to see snow... but just a lil bit.

We actually went from North to South, almost the whole NZ we have visited.. including valley, beaches, village, city etc. 

The place that i enjoyed the most is Queenstown.. such wonderful little town with a 2 storey apartment stay,

facing the lake and the snowie mountain. Superd view... * i miss it so much*

Well, NZ south island is actually the best place to travel comparing to the north. But if you like nature and valleys+ super winding roads... North island suits you.. but not for me... hahaha..

We spend most of the time renting cars and driving around... its very easy to get accommodation, important thing to have is the New Zealand map in your hands with a little help from an outdated GPS map we have. lolz

Most of the time we stayed in Motels. NZ motels is not what you think, it actually more like a mini apartment than sum 18SX place to be... and prices are quite reasonable with comfy bed and some simple kitchen utensils. Good stay for family too...Just be reminded that most of the motels closes at 8pm. Better get a place to stay if you are travelling by yourself before night fall including getting food in the restaurant.

New Zealand does have a lot of farms which is famous with a lot of cows and sheep. You can even smell the cow dunks if you wind down your car window while driving through the farm. XD

While in north island, we actually bought tickets for Dolphin watching in Bay of Island (north island), but to our disappointment, there is non, might be due to weather and changes of breeding grounds. We only manage to see Seals in the sea. I got a lil sea sick after that, just a lil bit more to vomitting. Pity the lady beside me vomits the whole journey since the boat rides to the sea cause its very very rough and shaky. @@ still feeling sea sick when i'm trying to think about it.

Car rental can be done anywhere in New Zealand city. Most important thing is to check the cars condition before getting one. the charges are according to the size of the car. if you are using the cars for weeks, you can try bargaining. Most of the car rentals are run by Indians. Pick up any free map from there, it is very useful. 

There were few nights that I actually stayed in my relatives house (Auckland), meeting up with the cousins etc. It was quite a pleasant trip, Chinese restaurant is also available and the food is very nice. But in NZ most of the shops does not open till very late, its quite quiet during the night. Even the supermarket closes early. Probably Western lifestyle is just like that.. including the ones in the UK. 

Whats cheap in NZ? I will probably go with Manuka Honey.. Pure and real. You cant really get them elsewhere unless its a fake one. Salmon, muscles are super fresh and taste very nice. Don't forget the kiwi fruit and also avocado. 

While heading to South Island, we actually taken a budget flight from Auckland to Christchurch, Christchurch during that time was devastating due to it was just after a big earthquake. Broken streets and thorn down buildings are everywhere, it was very devastating to even take a picture of the tallest hotel and also the scenery. It was also quite scary. Many roads and shops were close. We stayed there for a night before joining a tour to other place in south island. My aunt actually felt the thermos while she was sleeping at night, but i din. luckily is just a mild shake. we actually left after staying one day in Christchurch and drove to Kaikoura, (a small town by the sea). It was quite a long distance which takes about few hours of drive from Christchurch with lots of winding road, its a bit scary cause we need to pass by hills and some you can see some small rocks on the ground which was fallen from the top due to earthquake. Luckily there wasn't any earthquake while we are travelling in NZ. Kaikoura seems like a quiet town even in the day, we pick up a small restaurant to have our lunch, the black fungus mushroom soup was the tip especially during cold weather+ drizzling. Once finish our lunch, we then head back to Christchurch the next day to join the south island tour....

TO BE CONTINUE....