#165-B Nomad Diary. What I LOVE About New Zealand In My First Two Months. And Other Random NZ Stuff. December 2023
What I LOVE about New Zealand! (after my first 2 months) And Other Random NZ Stuff. 2023 December  |
| Darrell Cooking Breakfast at Our Takapuna Apartment, North Island, NZ I’ve come to New Zealand from the US with my husband Darrell. We arrived by a cruise ship from Vancouver, British Columbia at the end of October. This is a place that Darrell wanted to come after he retired. We have planned this trip within the bigger picture of our decision to sell everything except our truck and minimal personal items and live as Nomads. If you’d like to read my Nomad Diary beginning from the sale of our house in September 2020 it’s at www.500saturdays.blogspot.com We are in New Zealand for 4 months. We have just finished a 7 week road trip in the South Island and we are at a house sit in Wellington for the holidays. We will be in New Plymouth for January. February is still up in the air for where or what we will see in North Island. We leave Auckland on a cruise ship in March. 1. I am enjoying New Zealand! On a star scale of 1 to 5 stars, I give New Zealand a 5 star rating!! It’s comfortable; clean; welcoming to tourists; relatively safe; and English-speaking. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) is about 1 NZD to .60 Cents USD. Every $1 price I see is about 40 percent higher than my US dollar thinking. I use a USD to NZD calculator to know what I am paying in USD. The cost of traveling here has been affordable. A nice furnished 1 bedroom apartment has been between 60-100 USD per night. From my recent experience in the US, I would say that similar places would cost us 100-200 USD per night. Restaurants are also about 10-30 percent less than we would expect to pay in the US for something similar. |
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| Really Delicious Chinese Stir-fry in Hamilton, North Island, NZ |
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| Rees River Viewpoint. North of Glenorchy, South Island, NZ 2. International immigrants add to the diversity of people and experiences of cuisines. 3. Spring and summer is September-February. 4. New Zealand has variety of land. There are ocean coasts with rocky or sandy beaches. There are also: fjords, glaciers, farmland, lakes, planes, grasses, deserts, mountains, rainforests, and more. 5. New Zealand offers a variety of visas for travel, work or study abroad. There are seasonal jobs but many people go to Australia for higher wages. 6. There is a unique culture and language with the original Maori and the addition of British, Scottish, Welsh and Irish Immigrants 18,000 by 1852 who came for various reasons. 7. I see or experience something here and I try to make a comparison to explain it to myself or to others. I want to take in this unusual thing that I have never seen or known previously. I have called this an Alternate Reality as a way of taking in what I see and experience but it is totally unique to anything I know. An example of this is being close to the Franz-Josef and Fox Glaciers and then having tropical plants at the base of the mountains. In my mind these two extremes don’t belong together. I think of this when I am engaged in humor with a local. They have humor and express it at times with extreme contrasts and exaggeration. But as I see these extremes in their environment, I’m thinking they are being funny with the natural humor and extremes that they live with all the time. 8. The size of New Zealand is comparable to Colorado with 5 million total people. There are two islands: the North Island and the South Island. There is a ferry between the two points: Wellington, North Island to Picton, South Island. It is a 3 hour transit through the Cook Strait. I’ve done it once each way on clear weather days. You can also get a hop flight between cities within the two islands. 9. A local told me that they have lived on both Islands, and there are many more people and cars on the North Island. Driving in the South Island they can drive without seeing another car or person for an hour or two. |
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| Valley and Mountains Scenery in South Island, NZ 10. The food is enjoyable and varied. There are some things that seem to be everywhere like meat pies. In the US we call them pot pies. Here they are sold in so many outlets. They are a large single meal serving. Food portions in general are larger here than what I’ve been used to. I’ve eaten several pies so far. My very favorite came from the Fairlie Bakehouse. I had read about it online and was ready to go get one. We arrived and found the line was 20 deep! We were hungry and went elsewhere for lunch. We came back, stood in line and got pies to reheat for dinner. I thought I wanted lamb because that’s a popular meat here, but I got the salmon and bacon pie. Darrell got the same as me. At dinner time we reheated them in a hot oven. They were made of a flaky buttery pastry crust, filled with a full chunk of salmon filet and bacon (a lean ham to me) and cheese. It was buttery and crispy and soft and filling in every satisfying way for me. The next pie I ate in Christchurch was disappointing by comparison. As we’ve had a superior meal and then a disappointing meal, I’ve opened up to the idea of a redemption meal. I don’t let a mediocre experience keep me from trying again! Lol! I’m now on the look out for a redemption pie. We did drive through Fairlie a second time and we did buy ourselves another Salmon Pie to reheat at dinner time. It was excellent! 11. There are many immigrants here bringing their foods and restaurants with them. We ate at an amazing, under-rated on Google, Chinese restaurant in Hamilton on our drive through. Not all restaurants are great like this one. I randomly found it with google maps and ignored the ratings while reading high-praise comments. *All local sourced and home made cafe in Mangaweka: The Dukes Roadhouse. *A European couple in Hanmer Springs with MK Restaurant. A high class Super Wow pierogi dinner! *A Spanish Chef’s small restaurant chain Pedro’s House of Lamb we found in Christchurch serving up take-away roasted lamb! Yum! *A Christchurch German woman running Opawa Cafe with her amazing baked goods! And the list goes on and on. 12. Besides restaurants we’ve had amazing meals cooked and served by locals! Our meal with Jim and Ruth at their Mangaweka farmhouse was superior and we had their company too! Our meals with Grant and Chrissy in Christchurch at their home are a memorable and delicious occasion for us with the addition of building friendships too! 13. I LOVE the New Zealand products. At grocery stores most of the foods are from New Zealand and then there are some from Australia, Canada, the UK and then fewer from other locations. Foods are either fresh or preserved, personal care items like toothpaste, teas, jams, coffees, meats, cheeses, ice cream, etc. There’s a Red Seal brand for teas and I’ve also purchased Red Seal herbal toothpaste. Loving all of these that I’ve tried. 14. In Geraldine is the founding of Barker’s brand foods here. We are loving their plum jam! Jed’s Coffee and several choices of granola’s with Hubbard’s brand coming to mind, Huntley & Palmers Sourdough crackers, Pic’s peanut butter made in Nelson. And the list goes on with still more discoveries ahead of us!! 15. We have loved finding small town cheese factories. In the South Island we went to Geraldine Cheese Company, Barry’s Bay Cheese and Evansdale Cheese Factory. |
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| Taihape Town Boot, North Island, NZ |
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| View From Hwy 1 Above Lake Taupo, North Island, NZ 16. I LOVE the people I’ve met here! Before we came here, back in September, we planned out our South Island road trip stays for November through December. As we were booking on airbnb many 1, 2, or 3 night stays, I noticed a difference in how the listings are on the app. There are fewer or no added fees. The price listed is the price to pay. The hosts often would allow for cancellation up to the day before the booking. The hosts allowed for the total fee to be paid in 2 payments closer to the date of the reservation. These considerations are really nice from my traveling point of view. These are not the usual conditions of dealing with US hosts through airbnb. So I was appreciating doing business here with airbnb hosts even before I arrived. I even had pleasant conversations with a few of them through the platform. One of our hosts that Darrell booked through booking.com in Ruby Bay refunded us $100 NZD because they couldn’t in good conscience keep the money when we couldn’t arrive on the first day of the reservation. We were a full day late because of our canceled ferry from the North Island to the South Island (Wellington to Picton). The contract allowed them to keep the funds and they wouldn’t keep it. We have had many conversations with locals. They seem interested, friendly and helpful without any rush. 17. There is no tipping here! Yay! That means there is no confusion or squishy decisions to be made about tipping. We had several dinners on our cruise with a woman from Christchurch. She let us know this detail with emphasis that in NZ they pay a living wage and will not use tips here. Tax is included in the price. The price you see is the price you pay everywhere. The only extra fee added that we have seen inconsistently is with the use of tap and pay, or a debit or credit card. There can be a percentage added for this electronic processing. 18. The roads and other infrastructure. Many of the roads are wide and comfortable two lane driving. There are also many roads including highways that are curvy with steep grades up or down. The road signs are consistent and usually very good. We have used a bunch of one lane bridges while driving on two lane roads. The one lane bridges are well marked with a priority direction and usually easy to navigate. Many one lane bridges we used are on the northwest side of the South Island. There have been some mountain roads that gave me a fright. The pass going to Akaroa was ‘harrowing’ for me. From my rider-side perspective I’m looking over a sheer drop off. Darrell is hugging the centerline, watching his speed and maneuvering curves. I think that I could do it again and know what is coming now. I’ve gotten more used to the roads here over time, and I would go back to Akaroa again! |
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| Sailing Into Picton, South Island, NZ 19. NZ has been in the tourist business for more than a century. They seem to plan for us and direct us in just what our needs are: #1 a toilet! Lol! There is signage to direct to public restrooms in every town, and often between towns. There are signs for picnic tables often and also for photo pull-offs of scenic vistas. There is also a sign directing visitors to information for the area. While I’m on the topic of signs, we were seeing so many warning signs of different varieties that we were laughing about these signs. The matters can be of life and death and explained in detail. The signs are certainly not a laughing matter. The signs are very helpful. They often are stick figure pictures of the danger to avoid. Some signs come with the pictures and a long text explaining the whys and issues of keeping safe. These signs were all in English. When I was at a public restroom in Fairlie on the back of the stall door was a detailed sign explaining driving safely at slower speeds and the known death rates in NZ and it was translated into at least 6 languages. 20. The landscapes amaze me! While Darrell is driving, I have seen something I want a picture of and there’s not a pull-off. The scene goes by quickly and it’s gone. There’s so much to see that looks so different from the US landscapes! I’m glad that Darrell keeps his eyes on the road. I’ve only driven a few hours on this trip so far, and I have to keep my eyes on the road too. I can’t realistically have a picture of every bit of beauty here that I am seeing, and that’s okay. 21. Being in the southern hemisphere means we are in spring and summer in November-February. We are closer to the sun here. I need sunglasses when it’s sunny. The days are long. The sun is up at 5:30 am and sunset is around 9:30 pm. 22. I love wool clothing and I’ve been to two local wool shops (online too) to shop! I’m looking for more. I’m also looking for wool yarn for my friend Amber. I heard directly from Jo at her and Bryce’s sheep farm that the Chinese stretch the wool fibers in ways that they do not agree with for manufacturing. I don’t know all the in’s and outs, but I believe her and I’m looking for more traditional and quality wool fibers now. 23. There are more sheep than people here. |
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South Island Highway with a Landslide Roof System Over the RoadOther Random Stuff1. The surprisingly more expensive items for us here: eggs (about .60 US cents each), sweet potatoes or kumara (We saw 1 pound for about $6 US dollars. There’s a current price increase because of a storm shortage here), gasoline or fuel costs us more (not a surprise). I can’t seem to find an inexpensive pack of thank-you cards. 2. Locals are called Kiwi’s and they love it! The immigrants all have a generational history story of how they got here. They can hold 2 passports. One 3rd generation Irishman told us that his son gets to go to college in Ireland on his Irish passport. In another detail, a woman told me that since NZ is a protectorate of England she had the option to go to England and work for 2 years which she did when she was 18 or 20 years old. She got married to a Scotsman while she was there and stayed 10 years until she divorced and came back. She has children in Scotland as a result. Kiwi’s have told us about their international families when they are married or their children are married to different nationalities. Many of them travel long distances to visit family around the world. The local Maori people marry each other or marry into an immigrant family. 3. Intermarriage used to be as culturally charged here as white and black people marrying in the US 50+years ago. Our cruise dinner friend Lynn from Christchurch (70 years old now and 3rd generation Scottish) was married to a Maori man and talked about the racism toward her raising her 3 mixed sons. |
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| Having Lunch After Sunday Worship with Chrissy, Grant, Paul and Marjo. Christchurch, South Island 4. For over 100 years the Maori language was not allowed here because of British ruling edicts. It is now taught in schools and being preserved and used. 5. The Maori men often tie their long black hair up into a top knot bun! They and the women are tattooed. Sometimes the tattoos carry cultural meaning and some are just decorative. 6. The NZ national anthem is a beautiful hymn and sung in both Maori and in English. 7. At age 65 all New Zealanders receive the same social security payment of $500 NZD every two weeks. If you want a larger retirement sum, then you have saved for your own retirement fund. If you leave NZ for more than 3 months, then your social payment will be stopped until you return. You will not be reimbursed for what you missed. You and your spouse are not connected in this payment. If your spouse dies, their payment stops. The retired farmers Jim and wife Ruth, we had dinner with told us all these details. We’ve seen and heard of retired people here who have an income source like a part-time job, or a rental property. For down-sizing, retired people can buy ‘Lifestyle’ blocks. These are 6-7 acre hobby farms. 8. There are landslides here. I haven’t seen one happening, but I’ve seen clean up crews working to sweep them up. We have driven around the results too. They call them slips. Also the road can wash away. We have been driving and had only one lane to share on the road when a wash out is still in repair progress. 9. Here are some words used here for my words: Take-out= Take Away Gas= Fuel Landslide= Slip Trail= Track Hike= Tramp Thrift Store= Op Shop (Op stands for Opportunity) Sweet Potato= Kumara Hobby Farm= Lifestyle Block Kiwi= a New Zealander Aussie= an Australian Toasted Sandwich=Toastie 10. The roads can be very curvy and the speed limits high, up to 100 km/60 mph. The advice is to slow down for safety. If someone is going fast behind you, pull over when you can and let them pass. 11. Downloading offline maps for driving is helpful through the mountains. Besides this Google maps helps with finding restaurants and getting around! |
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| Lynn from Christchurch, NZ, Dazel age 94 from Florida, Me on my 59th Birthday, and Ruth from Portland, Oregon. Enjoying Oct 22nd on Our Cruise to Auckland Together!! 12. We have joined, interviewed and gotten 3 housesits totaling 7 weeks through ‘housesitters.co.nz’. Darrell has done all of the work with this web site by looking for possible sits, applying, setting up our interviews with the homeowner, and communicating with the homeowners. 13. There are no bears or wild cats to look out for when enjoying the mountains. There are sand fleas that have an itchy bite that can last for days. The amount of sand fleas varies with the area. 14. The sandwich bread at the store is extra large and thicker than in the US. At a restaurant they toast the bread dark here! I like it that way! Lol 15. We easily got our tourist visa for 3 months. Once we were here, we had to submit for the extra 4th month that we wanted to stay. The paperwork online for our extra month took 5 hours to complete and was quite detailed. Once it was submitted we had to wait several weeks for approval. They wrote back once for us to resubmit one of the papers, which Darrell did quickly and then we got our approval to stay. 16. It’s about 3-4 hours driving from the east coast to the west coast of South Island. There are only a few roads, but they are maintained and generally very good and well marked. Sometimes roads can be closed for repairs or have big slow downs with active construction.There will be clear detours around road construction. Road construction detours may add hours to your expected drive. 17. There are an abundance of National Parks with all age and ability levels of touring available. We drive opposite in the US. The most difficult switch is using my left and right hands opposite for the turn signal and wipers. 18. We use an e-sim in our phones for data that we purchase from an online company called Ubigi. We use this company in the US and in Europe too. It keeps us connected. In the US we also have Google Fi. We are going to try out a different data company for January and February. 19. There are birdsongs here that are new to me. 20. I’ve met and seen many single women and women groups traveling in NZ. 21. RV’s are a thing here. We talked to a retired couple from San Diego who were driving an RV around South Island for 2-3 weeks. They found the bed uncomfortable and the living quarters tight for the two of them. The conversation with them made us glad we had a car and had slept in many very comfortable beds so far. Some were studio apartments and some were 1 or 2 bedroom apartments. 22. Common Ice Cream flavors here include Passion Fruit, Mango, Fig and Manuka Honey, Honeycomb, and Licorice 23. Kombucha is a drink that you can order at a restaurant. 24. Towns with 200, 500 or 800 residents will run a summer tourist season on a seeming shoestring with a single grocery store, a gas station, and 2-3 restaurants at a minimum. 25. We crossed the International Date Line on our journey to New Zealand. We are a day ahead of the US. and 18 hours ahead of our Central Time Zone. Our mornings are the best times to call family and friends in the US. 8 am on Saturday here is 1 pm on Friday in Alabama. 26. People can go into stores barefoot here. 27. I’ve watched food shows on New Zealand TV. The current Great British Bake Off; a NZ Christmas Charity Bake Off; and a Show where two men, a chef and a restaurant owner, go to a family and help them eat better and improve their grocery budget. Also an elimination show of home cooks competing in paired teams for best cook prize money: each week all the teams and two judges go to a team’s home and get served a high end restaurant style meal. The final teams have to serve 100 people and have even more foodie judges eating their meals. |
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| A Shared Picture of Darrell and I Taken By Another Tourist at Reflection Lake Walk Near Fox Glacier, South Island |
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| Another Warning Sign 28. We wore out our hiking shoes since purchasing new ones in Edinburgh in Sept 2022 and went shopping for more in Queenstown. Shoes cost a bit more than in the US, but we found a wide variety in this outdoorsy town to choose from. 29. Foods in season now: asparagus, rhubarb, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, tropical fruits, citrus, avocado, kumara/sweet potato, potatoes, mushrooms, most veggies and every salad item. Seafood is fresh. Other meats are plentiful: lamb, beef, pork, chicken, etc. There is farmed deer, but I have not looked for the meat. Bakery goods include: french pastries, muffins, scones, meat pies, seeded wholemeal breads, sourdough, etc. There is a vineyards region with wines, olives and olive oil too. 30. I’m so glad I’ve come to New Zealand! I didn’t know it was this cool! It’s worth the 15 hour plane ride, or in our case, the month-long repositioning cruise! It’s worth staying as long as you possibly can! It’s worth having conversations and meeting the people who live here and learning their unique place in our world. It’s worth falling in love with all things New Zealand and crying a little or a lot when it is time to leave this lovely island country. Ta Ta For Now!! |
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| Bea and Hattie Playing in the Wool Near Winton, South Island, NZ |
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| Penguins on Our Doubtful Sound Tour, South Island, NZ |
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| Wearing Sunglasses During the Long Days Here. Opihi Gorge Near Fairlie, South Island, NZ |
Sherry, how lovely to read your blog and to see how much you are enjoying Aotearoa New Zealand. I hope you had a wonderful Xmas up in Tawa and perhaps are venturing on the road again in this glorious weather - or enjoying more of Wellington? If you need a bed again, please do consider us. You'd be very welcome. Best, Kim and Simon
ReplyDeleteThank you Kim!!
DeleteKim, You are my first comment on my blog! You gave me a big smile today like getting mail from an international pen pal!! Sherry
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