Moai at sunrise
Day 204 – Hanga Roa, Easter Island, Chile I started the day with a sunrise tour at Ahu Tongariki, where 15 Moai turn their back to the sea – and the rising sun. It is obviously a favoured spot, as a few other buses and quite a few cars were also filling the parking lot.…
Hanga Roa
Day 203 – Hanga Roa, Easter Island, Chile Things are a lot clearer. First, I found someone to confirm the time. My calculations were right, we are 2 hours before Santiago. Then, I found an (open) ATM, and I got some money to pay my hostel and a few groceries. Finally, I got a sim…
Blue Springs
Day 198 – Matamata, New Zealand It is difficult to describe my experience of the Blue Springs. It should have been a simple, delightful walk by a small river with unusually blue waters. But it was more than that. It was the green plants growing in the blue water; the lush exotic species growing on…
Gold mining
Day 197 – Matamata, New Zealand This day has revolved around the gold mining theme. (Well, until we left for the Mount.) First, we went to the Karanhagake Gorge. The hills surrounding the Gorge were exploited in the 19th and 20th centuries by several gold and silver mining companies. They are now riddled with tunnels…
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
Day 191 – Manukau, New Zealand I was awoken before 6 am by a creaking door. Or maybe the wind, or the people getting up, but the door creaking next room over kept me from crashing back to sleep. So I ended up getting up way earlier than I had planned to. My plans, after…
Tongariro National Park
Day 190 – National Park, New Zealand Edit: I updated the article. Yes, National Park is the name of a village. It’s strange, but at least easy to remember. I picked up my rental car in Wellington under rain and wind, because hey, why should I be lucky with the weather all the time? But…
Kaikoura
Day 188 – Kaikoura, New Zealand I woke up full of enthusiasm for my plans of the day. Well, after lingering on my morning cup of tea, that is. The thing to do in Kaikoura is to walk on the peninsula, there is a track at the bottom of the cliff (which may depend on…
Christchurch
Day 187 – Kaikoura, New Zealand I started the day with a leisurely walk to the Art Gallery. In the way, I too a few pictures that struck my fancy -ruined buildings, murals, other strange things… I think my favorite was a series of stonework on a footpath along the river that reproduced woven mats.…
Milford Sound
Day 184 – Queenstown, New Zealand Milford Sound! The name evokes vistas, paintings, famous hiking trails… So it seems a little tame to take a bus all the way to the boat that will take tourists on the sound and then back on the bus… but unless walking there is you life dream, that’s the…
Queenstown
Day 183 – Queenstown, New Zealand Yesterday was the long, long bus day. 8 hours is a long time. That said, we weren’t cramped as we were few enough passengers that I could claim two seats for me. We went through stunning scenery, and the bus company stops often and offer short stops at notable…