Travel Highlight :: Hostel Life

Hostel Life

Check out some photos of some hostels that I've stayed at so far. Those featured are mainly of big-city hostels that are very well maintained, such as Auckland, Wellington and Whitianga. Keep looking to this gallery for more interesting scenes of hostel life. Especially for those who had not had the experience.

A hostel is a low-cost option of accomodation. The quality can range anywhere from a slum, to a B&B and even a hotel. Each hostel in my experience has a different personality, depending on who runs it and where it is. Staying at hostels for $15 on average per night is one way I've made my 24-day trip affordable. What makes a hostel so cheap is that you must be willing to compromise some comfort (down-feather bed), privacy (you share a room with 2 or more people) and at times security (you trust your roomates not to browse through your stuff). However, the type of people who come to hostels are usually hippies, part-time socialists and free spirits who just want to have a good time... like me.

Day 9 :: The Road to Wellington

Day 09 - Wanganui to Wellington

As soon as I woke up, I packed up and left the town called "National Park" near the Tongariro National Park and headed for Wellington - my last destination on New Zealand's north island. The road to Wellington passes through pastures where thousands of sheep graze and winds through steep mountain passes and narrow valleys.

I made a brief stop in the town of Wanganui for brunch - a large town with a charming character, much like a small town in Vermont but with bustling promenade of shops. I sat at an internet cafe and uploaded yesterday's pics from the Tongariro Corssing before heading back onto the road.

Halfway to Wellington, I found sunny skies and a wide sandy beach. I decided to jump into the ocean, take a nap and tan for a little while... while there were no clouds in sight for a change.

I finally reached Wellington around dinner time. It surprised me how much the cultures, geography and temperature reminded me (but not exactly) of San Francisco. Wellington sits on the fringes of steep forested hills and the shoreline of a harbour. Wellington has a great mix of ethnicities as witnessed by the people walking around as well as through the flavours of its many restaurants. Wellington is known as New Zealand's windy city and today, it was very breezy and sunny with a slight chill - much like my experience in San Francisco.

After a short walk along the harbour, I took a 2 hour night tour at the Korari Nature Preserve. This preserve is a wildlife sanctuary for native New Zealand birds (such as Kiwi, Weka, Kaka, etc.) which are devastatingly endangered by mammals introduced by later settlers. With a 5-mile long perimeter fence with tiny holes and specially designed fringes, the preserve reminded me much of Jurassic Park. Luckily, it's birds and not dinosaurs that they keep in the cages.

Day 8 :: Walking through Mordor

Day 08 - Tongariro Crossing

Today, I did the Tongariro Crossing which is about an 8-hour day hike in Tongariro National Park. The hike starts in the highlands above tree line, before encountering 2 steep but short ascents. The trail winds through 2 dormant volcanoes, 3 emerald-colored lakes (because of high mineral content, and geothermically active features such as fumaroles and springs. I actually encountered 2 French girls trying to make boiling water for their hot cholocate, right on top of an active fumarole. In the end, they decided not to drink the water for fear of volcanic chemicals and what not. The second half of the hike goes through a foggy land of tussock grasses before diving into wet fern-tree forests. The fog is so thick, you can't see more than 50 feet ahead of you at times.

As a side note, Tongariro National Park is where they filmed Mordor for the movie Lord of the Rings. Although, I didn't meet Frodo and Sam on their quest to destroy the Ring of Power, I did meet Toby from Switzerland (who I had run into the day before). His intent was to complete the "Northern Circuit", which is a 3-day loop through 3 of the park's volcanoes: Tongariro, Ngaruhoe, and Ruapehu (the tallest peak on New Zealand's north island. Today, however, he was intent on climbing Mount Ngaruhoe - this is the same mountain used to film Mount Doom in Lord of the Rings. We parted ways, as he headed towards the summit, while I continued with The Crossing.

I finished the trek in about 7 hours, with plenty of time to take rest stops. Surprisingly, I don't have any blisters but I passed out as soon as I got to the hostel.

Day 7 :: R&R in Rotorua and Taupo

Day 07 - Rest and Relaxation

On my 7th day on the North Island, I decide to take it easy and treat myself to a morning hot mineral-rich bath at the Polynesian Spa in downtown Rotorua near Lake Rotorua. After so many days of hiking, driving and sleeping in hostels; it's about time I actually make a vacation out of this trip. The Polynesian Spa's pools are fed with steaming water naturally heated and enriched by geothermal activity all around the Rotorua area.

After a couple of hours at the spa, I drive south to Lake Taupo where for some more sights before I ultimately prep myself for the day-long Tongariro Crossing trek the following day. For this, I make the town of Turangi my base camp and prep food, water and my pack.

Cultural Highlight :: Maori Culture

Day 06 - Maori Culture

I spent the evening of day 6 with Mitai, which puts on a daily show of Maori culture and serves dinner according to Maori hangi preparations.

Day 6 :: Rotorua, Spanish for "rotten eggs"...

Day 06 - Rotorua, Wai-o-tapu

I arrived late the night before in Rotorua, a beautiful city that lies in the heart of North Island as well as Maori culture. As I approved the city, I already noticed steaming geothermal vents and the odor of sulfur (also better known as "rotten eggs").

Almost 1 week in New Zealand, I decided to take it easy in Rotorua and soak in some sights, culture and hot springs water. After a hearty breakfast of (ironically) fired eggs on toast, I spent a few relaxing hours with the locals at a local internet cafe updating the blog and video in the morning.

I spent most of the early afternoon at the Wai-o-tapu (meaning "place of sacred water" in Maori) Thermal Park, which is a collection of geothermally active springs and mud pits.

Tonight's activites will include Mitai's Maori cultural show, and possibly followed by a swim in the geothermal pools at the Polynesian Spa.

Day 5 :: Taking the plunge...

Day 05 - Taking the plunge...

My first taste of true New Zealand adrenalin... abseiling, rock climbing, cliff diving - ALL in a cave a few hundred meters below ground! When I walked into the small town of Waitomo Caves, little did I know I would drop $350 NZD on one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Thanks to Waitomo Adventures and very special thanks to our guides Ryan and Gavin.
The adventure started with introductions - our guides Ryan and Gavin, and my companions: a couple from Paris - Catherine (England) and Arnaud (France), as well as a lone traveller like myself - Jason (San Francisco). We took a small tour van through a private farm to a base camp several meters from the mouth of the cave. We suited up into specially-padded wetsuits, helmuts fashioned with torches ("flashlights" as we know it in the States) and white booties. There being 4 of us (one of us female) in our gettups, we resembled the Fantastic Four comic book super heroes. The guides teased us with views of the deep chasm through "The Window", while we practiced use of caribiners, cow's tails (lobster claws) and other safety devices and measures.
The first and most anticipated leg of the trip was the abseil. Abseiling involves locking onto a dangling rope and with specially designed tools, sliding down the rope to some sort of bottom. Ryan rigged us into the rope, and we were on our way down the ropes. Unlike the movies, where sexy athletic ladies just zip down the ropes, we took it slow. Because of the long descent, speed could create enough friction to heat and then glaze the skin of the rope; this would reduce friction and cause us to slip to our deaths. Lovely. We reached the bottom where we had a quick lunch prepped by our guides and had a few photo ops.
The next part leg of the adventure was entering the cave. I think we all expected this leg to be the most boring part - hand rails, interpretive signs, lit catwalks, etc. - the sort of lawsuit-proof safe-guards that pansy american outfitters put in place to maximize clients, and therefore profits. However, the abseil was just the beginning of amazing things.
For the next 3 hours we would wade through downstream currents, climb ladders, clip into safety ropes, swim through channels where we could not touch the bottom, jump from upper levels back down into narrow pools of water in the dark, step through waterfalls, crawl through narrow claustrophobia-enducing spaces, cliff dive some 30 feet into a pool no more than 10 feet wide, feel our way through spaces in the dark, and gaze at bio-luminescent glowworms.

My favorite part was a high chamber that was walled-in by steep cave walls and a waterfall. We all had an option to climb up to a ledge and jump into the pool of water below it. We could either climb a ladder to the ledge, or climb, shimmy and brace up to the ledge. I chose the hard route up, climbing craggy rocks right next to the waterfall. We all took our turns jumping in, from 10-12 feet above. If we jumped too far, our bodies would slam into shallow cave floors like a rag doll. Having never cliff-dove before, I said a prayer and just let go.

Soon after we all had our turns, Gavin asked if anyone wanted to climb even higher to a ledge about 30 feet above us. No volunteers. Gavin demonstrated with a back-flip dive. Cheers. Jason was the first to volunteer, but no one else. Splash. Cheers. Gavin asked again if anyone would go... I rose my hand. Here we go. I swam across the pool to the ladder where I secured myself to the safety line. The climb up the ladder was made more difficult by all the weight of the water trapped in my boots and wetsuit. Ryan directed me to the ledge. I looked down and my headlamp shone to the water below. It was much higher than I thought. There really is no science to jumping off a cliff; just don't under- or over-shoot. The most difficult part of jumping off, is finding the courage and will to do so. I paused for a good 30 secs, telling myself that I needed to get ready. But for what? Wait too long, and the fear simply consumes you. That's when I dropped in... SPLASH. 30 feet down and 6 feet below the water. I couldn't feel the floor of the cave. Surface. Breathe. Cheers.

It was quite adventure. In a matter of 20 minutes, I'd done more rock climbing, swimming and cliff-jumping that I've done in my life.

Video Highlight :: "F-stop Blues" at Cathedral Cove

Another rainy day on the North Island, but a well spent day at Cathedral Cove in the Coromandel Peninsula. Soundtrack by Jack Johnson, "F-stop Blues" from his "Brushfire Fairytales" album.

Day 4 :: Cathedral Cove

Day 04 - Cathedral Cove

Yet another day of the "F-stop blues" (reference to Jack Johnson song and photography science). No sun, gray skies and enough rain to make the Gobi an oasis. But who says you need sun to have fun? Anticipating uncooperative weather, I decided to sleep in (actually, this meant getting up at 7:15 AM). Though after taking one look out the window and looking upon choppy water in the harbour, I decided to venture forth anyways to Cathedral Cove just 20km south of Whitianga, which lies to the east coast of the Coromandel Peninsula.

At the trailhead carpark, I suited up into togs (that's kiwi-speak for "bathing suit") and started the 40min hike through fern forests and private pastures to reach the cove a few hundred feet below. The drizzle actually made it feel warm, as I began to remove the layers of clothing. Near the end, I said hello to a few cows that were kept in their place by electric fences! (I definitely knew enough from cartoons not to take a piss there; don't ask me what kind of cartoons I grew up watching.)

When finally I reached the cove, it appeared nothing more than a crescent beach surrounded by high cliffs - a sight you can see in California or Maine. As you walk closer to the water, however, giant arches and caves start to appear - the largest one to the left. At the southern end of the beach, I found a little sea cave that was accessible at low-tide. However, high-tide was approaching fast, and I braved going in before it was too risky to enter. The cave was about 30 feet deep with 7-ceilings. Judging by the still-wet gr

Video Highlight :: Drive through Kauri Coast

A video of my drive through the Kauri Coast in the Northland Region of New Zealand. This drive takes me through pasturelands, then through a subtropical fern tree rain forest. A picked up on driving on the left-hand side of the road without incident or close calls!

Soundtrack by Mat Weddle of the band Obadiah Parker, a folk cover of Outkast's "Hey Ya".