Day #25. Kaikoura, cont.

My last day in New Zealand.  It's been glorious!!!!!!!!!!  To apologize for the horrid weather the last 5 days, NZ decided to give me one last day of sunshine.  Kaikoura is cute.  Really really cute, actually.  Of all the towns in NZ I've visited, if I could pick anyplace to live for a year, Kaikoura would be it.  And that's tough for me to say cuz I really loved Wellington too.  Kaikoura is so beautiful and hippie.  It's full of music, art, and vibrant culture.  Like OB but minus the bums and definitely a lot cleaner.  The main strip isn't very large.  Heaps of fish n chip places.  There's a little park with a bridge leading to the ocean.  Today in the park, I saw a group of ladies singing gospel songs and serving free sausage sizzles with fried onions.  Do you know what a sausage sizzle is?  It's simply a sausage wrapped in a piece of buttered bread.  Sometimes people put fried onions, tomato sauce, or mustard on it too.  Every BBQ I went to had buttered bread and I had no idea why they did that.  Who butters their bread before they slap a burger on it??  Well that's the answer.  It's for the sausage sizzle.

A little ways down from the main strip is an area that has some nicer restaurants and a pepto bismol pink Cinema.  They're showing Burlesque tonight.  I asked one of the girls at the hostel if she'd ever gone to a movie at that cinema before.  She said no, every time she walked by they had canceled all the showings. Not a very popular form of entertainment in Kaikoura it appears!  Seems like people are more interested in live music.  All the pubs and bars in the area advertise bands for every night of the week.  Tonight my plan is to attend the weekly killer BBQ here at Albatross :)

I decided to go for the wale watching tour this morning.  It was expensive - $130 - but I heard it's pretty good around here.  I rarely get motion sickness, but there was a swell in the ocean today and I was feeling it by the time we got into whale territory.  I saw 3 total today. They were all Sperm Whales.  The narrator said that they feed way below the surface for about 45 minutes, then come up to the top for 5 minutes to get air, then they go back down again.  So when they see a whale in the distance, they really gotta book it over there to catch it before it dives under.  An older man nearby started throwing up in a bag.  It was pretty rocky in the boat.  We passed around a whale's tooth which is bigger than my hand.  I had no idea, but a Blue Whale's heart is the size of a VW Beetle!  And their tongue is even bigger!!!  Anyways, pretty neat to see these critters in the wild.

When I was walking back down the beach after the tour, I saw a big group of people gathered near the water and it looked like something good was going down.  So I ran over just in time to see 2 guys struggling with a shark on the beach.  Couldn't believe it!  Just as I got my camera case unzipped they succeeded in throwing it into the waves.  I was like OMG why did you put it back in the water?!  "Oh him? We've caught 6 of 'em already today" they said very nonchalantly.  Apparently they like catching and releasing sharks just for the heck of it.  A bunch of fishermen had camper style rigs up above the beach and I went over to talk with them.  Russ, a middle aged, rugged looking Kiwi with white, wind tossed hair and tattoos up his arms, said that most of them were re-located from Christchurch.  Turns out he does hair back home, but his salon was ruined.  (Rough looking stylist, if you ask me… maybe he meant to say "barber".)  He spent a great deal of time telling me all the things he's done in his life, and I started getting the picture that Russell was kind of an exaggerator.  Had the cutest albino Beagle doggie named Alvis, and Bonnie the calico cat hanging around his pad.  Parked near Russ was a young couple whose home was damaged, so they're camping down the road.  He's a DJ, didn't catch what she does.  Seeing these essentially homeless people… people like you and I… struggling in the aftermath of the earthquake, made it very real to me.  After a while I started getting super hungry - it was nearly 3 o'clock.  So I made my way back to Albatross and made myself some lunch.

Then I went to the beach and hung out there for a while with the singing German girl who and the guitar-wielding Swiss guy from last night.  The current at the beach is incredibly strong, so no one was swimming.  Water's so cold though, I wouldn't have gotten in even if it was calm as a bathtub.  Thought maybe I would go surf at Maungamanu tomorrow morning but it looks like renting a board and wetsuit would be difficult, so maybe not this trip.  I did check out the used book store, but didn't find anything I wanted to read.  Was specifically looking for travel books on Fiji.

I'm really excited for this BBQ tonight!  I saw the hot-pink haired owner, Katie, and her partner/boyfriend/husband/whoknows, Ben, making potato salad, baking cubes of butternut squash, and boiling quinoa.  If not delicious, at least I know it will be very healthy :)

Plan:  do the 3 hour seal walk tomorrow morning, then get everything packed and take a bus to the Christchurch AP where I will spend the night

Budget:  $28 hostel, $130 whale watching, $5 backpacker BBQ

Day #24. Kaikoura.

$160 to swim with dolphins?!  No thanks, I'll just sneak into sea world which is about 5 miles from my house.  Or get on a sailboat to Catalina Island and watch 20 of them jump around at the bow.  I'm now in Kaikoura, sea life capital of New Zealand.  The area is famous for their whale, seal, and dolphin watching expeditions.  Most people from the bus are doing the swimming with dolphins thing.  As for myself, I think my last 2 days in NZ will be spent riding around on my free bicycle, hanging out at the beach, and exploring the quirky village.  Perhaps I'll throw in a little ocean adventure of some sort tomorrow.

Oh!  So about this free bike.  The couple who runs the hostel I'm staying at - Albatross Backpackers Inn - take old parts from other bikes and fix up the jalopies they already have.  Old bike parts + disintegrated frames = a contraption that is barely ridable.   After I got checked into my new room, I went for a quick ride to the New World Market for some groceries.  The gears and brake levers were screwed on at different angles and the back wheel was a bit wobbly.  As I was coasting down a slight hill, a couple tried to cross in front of me, and I yelled out "Stop!! The brakes on this thing barely work… sorry!"  They quickly jumped back onto the sidewalk.  "No worries", they said.  No one has any worries in NZ.  Ever.  Made it back to my hostel.  Alive.  Almost veered into a telephone pole on the way back cuz it's so hard to steer.  It's like the bike is possessed or something.

Aside from the transportation situation, this hostel is sikkkkkk.  I have never in my life been to one quite so cool.  You walk in, and there's a table in the foyer with "what to do in Kaikoura" books (handmade), a basket with "free clothes" in it, and a chalkboard advertising their weekly Sunday night BBQ for $5.  Must be a good one too cuz there's a couple of kids staying an extra night just to get the BBQ (they've been at this hostel a week now).  Then you come to the black and red themed kitchen.  It's got a huge "free" shelf with tons of baking ingredients, things like salt and oil, seasonings, and other random things.  Lined up in a row on the far-side are about 6 recycling bins, labeled for hard plastic, soft plastic, paper, glass, food, etc.  They are very green at this hostel.  On the counter are a few glass jars filled with Fair Trade tea, coffee, and hot chocolate that are free to everyone.  Then there is the "cozy corner", the place designated as the music and reading corner complete with heaps of pillows, instruments, and a shelf full of used/traded books.  They even have an "art corner" with an easel and an array of art supplies.  The walls are covered in paintings, most by backpackers themselves who have come through and created their unique donation.  To top it all off are the soft, squishy, velvet couches.  This place is INSANE!!!!  Did I mention their herb and tomato garden out front?  Rosemary, thyme, mint, basil, little red tomatoes… well, they weren't actually red but green due to the starving backpackers having already stuffed any ripe ones into their eager mouthes.  I was lucky enough to get a 4-bed dorm which was, as expected, clean and ever so cute.

That evening I picked some mint sprigs from the herb garden, and to that I added cucumber, tomato, red onion, feta, lemon, and olive oil.  A plate loaded with spring greens, topped with my Greek salad, and paired with a glass of cheap NZ Sauvignon Blanc… delicious.  Some girls had done quite a bit of baking earlier to try and raise money for Christchurch, so I put $5 in the jar and helped myself to two warm, gooey chocolate fudge cookies and a vanilla cupcake topped with icing and mini marshmallows.  As I was eating my sweets, I heard music coming through the front door.  Went out to check the situation.  Two Swiss guys were playing guitars and singing "More Than Words".  I joined in, then a German girl started singing too, and a Swiss girl, and a guy from Holland.  Before too long we had a regular choir going.  Someone started banging around on some bongos.  We sang everything from Kings of Leon to Bob Dylan, Metallica to Red Hot Chili Peppers (again, why are they so dang popular around here??)  Everyone was singing at the top of their lungs, attempting harmonies, dancing, and most enchanting of all… laughing.  The 2 universal languages, simultaneously, shared by travelers from all over the world.  I didn't crash that night until past midnight.  And they were still going at it!

Plan:  beach bum around Kaikoura, check out the shops/used book store, whale watch?

Budget: $28 hostel, $3 Willy Wonka sherbet fizzlers and grape twisties, $7 Subway, $35 produce & a bottle of vino

Day #23. Rangitata River/Methven.

Her name was Betsy.  Betsy from Florida.  By her wrinkled skin and long white hair, I'd guess she was around 67 years old or so.  She was the hippie type, wearing Indian moccasins and gold jewelry, hair pulled back in a messy ponytail.  And she was hammered :)  I had seen her in the Lake Front Lodge earlier that evening when I was checking some stuff out online.  I only had so many minutes left on my internet card, and I was trying to hurry.  But Betsy seemed oblivious to the fact that I was super busy.  She sipped her HUGE glass of white wine (the 2nd one I'd seen her pour since I sat down) and babbled on and on, asking me a zillion questions.  I tried to multi-task the best I could, but Betsy wanted my full attention.  Eventually I went back to my room.

Tossed and turned… just couldn't get to sleep last night!  Finally around midnight, I grabbed my book and went out into the lobby.  Betsy was sitting on the couch with another HUGE glass of white wine, giggling over a TV show and making eyes at a boy from Panama sitting on an opposing couch.  I plopped down and started reading, but the TV show caught my ear and before I knew it Betsy and I were laughing together over the outrageous sitcom.  After the show ended, we started talking about our travels.  She went on about how much she loved Cuban men.  And men from Mexico.  "How do you pronounce that city in Mexico?"  She asked, then garbled a string of vowel-sounding words, looking at the boy from Panama and myself for help.  We tried to help her sound it out, multiple times.  "Poo-wer-toe-vee-ay-hoe!"  But bless her heart, I don't know if it's cuz she just can't speak Spanish or because she drank too much wine.  She absolutely could not even come close to saying it right.

So we played music instead :)  Betsy swayed out the lobby door and to her car, returning with a Cuban mix.  Popped the CD in, and we danced.  Betsy danced by herself, I danced by myself, Betsy danced with Panama boy, I danced with Betsy… it was hilarious!  She kept grabbing at the poor boy's bum and every time he would howl and jump away.  She just laughed… eyes closed, swaying around a bit, arms in the air doing a little hula type of thing.  She was a real kick.  I got winded and sat down for a few minutes.  Betsy grabbed my hand and tried to pull me up.  "C'mon! DANCE!" she coaxed.  I refused, so she picked my bare foot up off the ground and tried to bite it!  Allllllll righty then… time to go to bed.

On to today's adventure.  It  definitely goes down in my NZ top 10.  White water rafting on the Rangitata River.  AMAZING!!!  The Magic Bus dropped 4 of us off in Geraldine where a guy named Steve met us and transported us to the river.  He was cool, had an eyebrow stud, beard, and a 1 1/2 y.o. baby.  The baby was at home with mum, of course, but the proud papa told me that his son is already jumping off the couch.  These Kiwi's, I tell ya.  The staff at Rangitata were awesome.  They had all the gear, hot drinks, and sub sandwiches waiting for us.  After a brief introduction - turns out Steve was to be our white water guide - we piled into a van driven by Tussock, the dreadlocked owner, and took off for the river.  It was raining and cold, the kind of weather that made getting into wet gear and frigid water very unappealing.  But the promise of Grade V rapids further on… well, that made it worthwhile.  I asked which seat had the most action.  They pointed to the front.  I sat in front.  "This one's gonna be trouble" Tussock said as he shook his head.

Steve taught us basic instructions, how to paddle as a team, what to do if we fell out, what to do if we capsized, etc.  "Don't panic, get in the missionary position, and keep your feet up."  He said if he threw the rope bag at us and it hit us in the head, that was 10 extra points for him :)  A couple from CO training in rafting and an instructor from TN were in my rig, so I felt pretty good about our team.  The river started out really calm, then gradually got faster with more rapids.  The last 2 rapids were both grade V.  The 1st set was short but steep.  We kept spinning around in circles before we hit the biggest one head on.  We paddled as hard as we could to work up the momentum to shoot past it.  The 2nd was pretty much the same but 3 x longer!  I dug my feet into the rubber sides of the raft, and when I saw a wall of whitewater coming at me, I closed my eyes and paddled for dear life!  The funny thing is, half the time I just paddled air cuz the front of the boat wasn't even in the water.  Our guide thought it would be great fun to "surf" a particular rapid.  It just so happened that a kiwi girl and myself were the ones who got sunk in the water up to our waists.  The boys to our left thought this was amusing and couldn't stop laughing.  Hmmmm, funny how they were the only ones who ended up in the water at the end of the day.  Get 'em Steve!

Hot showers and a fantastic BBQ were the perfect way to end this incredible adventure.  We were all freezing to the bone.  My left pinky toe was completely numb.  Plus they had me squeeze into this way-too-small wetsuit so I felt like a rubber band anytime I moved.  The photographer, Ben, showed us a slideshow of the pics he'd taken from perch on the bank.  Our faces… hahaha… not the most flattering looks on most of them :)  Btw did I mention the crazy hair these people at Rangitata Rafting Co. had??  Of course there was Tussock, the owner who had golden dreads down to his shoulder blades.  Then there was this photographer Ben who rolled in wearing a mullet wig.  And to complete the trio was Dan whose hair resembled Curly from The Three Stooges.  HA-larious.

A shuttle took the 4 of us to Methvin which is a town so small it isn't even mentioned in my travel book.  It's a detour stop right now as Magic won't take anybody into Christchurch for obvious reasons.  Made myself a grilled cheese sandwich and settled on the couch to watch a movie with the girls.  I'm stoked for tomorrow.  Kaikoura's next, famous for their wale watching, dolphin swimming, and penguin observing tours.  Perhaps I will run into Betsy while I'm there.  I could introduce her to Peter :)

Plan:  check out Kaikoura for 2 days

Budget: $200 rafting, $3 black currant drink, $25 hostel, $1 internet

Day #22. Lake Tekapo, cont.

Lake Tekapo.  This has to be one of the most beautiful areas in all of New Zealand.  Today was gorgeous!  Sky clear, no rain, lots of sunshine.  And another great sunburn.  No lie folks, NZ's rays are way more intense than San Diego's!

I am utterly drained, so I will keep this entry short and sweet.  This is what I did today:  I walked parts of Lake Tekapo, explored the village, drank cappuccino, went crazy with my camera, read a book, ate Chinese take-out, fed the obnoxious seagulls cashews out of my take-out cuz I detest cashews, skyped my boo, went through photos, mountain biked for an hour, and relaxed :)

Now my face is burning hot and all I want to do is eat a bowl of Ramen and go to bed.

Plan: white water raft Rangitata River tomorrow, so excited for the grade V rapids!

Budget: $26 hostel, $13 internet, $5 cappuccino, $8.50 Chinese food, $10 mtn. bike rental

Day #21. Aoraki/Mt. Cook.

Today was a thoughtful, meditative, reflective kind of day.  

Woke up with Christchurch on my mind and sadness in my heart.  Took an early shuttle over to the Aoraki/Mt. Cook Village in hopes of a good hike around the mountain area.  The weather was looking pretty sketchy.  Dark clouds threatened rain.  The top half of the mountains weren't even visible.  But I was armed and ready, dressed in Hot Chillies leggings, a dry fit, fleece pullover, and a warm jacket.  It was freezing!  Besides, everybody knows I ain't got no insulation :)  My Camelback was filled with all the essentials including a rain shell and the usual PB&J.

I wanted to hike the 8 hour round-trip Mueller Hut trail which took you up a steep incline to gorgeous mountain views.  Sadly I didn't have enough time as the shuttle left promptly at 4 pm.  So I took the 4 hour Hooker Valley Track instead which was really lovely.  Quite an easy hike, but that gave me more time to make plenty of photo stops!  There were so many wildflowers of every color and description… yellow, purple, white, pink.  I am a flower lover.  The Hooker Valley Track took me through fields of golden grass, over two narrow bridges, between majestic mountains, past two glaciers, and by two lakes.  Finally some of the bleakness surrounding Mt. Cook cleared and for the first time I caught a glimpse of its snow-crested summit.  I sucked my breath in and stopped dead in my tracks.  It was so magnificent.

Took a break on the giant rocks surrounding the last lake.  The water was a murky, pale turquoise color; the surface shivering from the constant shifting and melting of the glaciers.  Stuck my finger in and it was frigid.

I took my time on the trek back.  Spent a great deal of time thinking about my life and what I want to accomplish.  I thought about my childhood… places I've lived, crazy things my sister and I would do, how hard my parents worked to make sure we had everything possible.  My family and friends, they mean so much to me.  Love.  Thought a lot about love.  How blessed I am to be surrounded by such beautiful love.  Spent some time pondering the world, how it came into existence, all its crazy intricacies.  The first man to climb Everest - Sir Edmund Hillary - a native New Zealander and an avid mountaineer, put some thought into the world's creation like many others before and after him.  "I have the vague feeling ... that the world is so complex and so remarkable in many ways that there must be some sort of intelligence behind it all but as to whether that intelligence is the slightest bit interested in a little person away down on earth, I have my considerable doubts."  It's true, we are small, unremarkable people.  But we each have something special to give.

My mother said that her dad always told her, "Leave the world a little better place than when you found it."  That is what I want for my life.  To love with an open heart, listen with an open mind, and give back even a little of what has been given to me.

It seems the best in people comes out in the worst of times.  It is encouraging and inspiring to see the world mobilizing their resources and rushing to help a town in ruins.  Keep Christchurch in your hearts, thoughts, and prayers.  It will be a long, long healing process.  

Here's to recovery, rebuilding, and restoration.

Plan:  spend one last day at the beautiful Lake Tekapo

Budget:  $26 hostel, $60 shuttle to Mt. Cook, $16 3D imax movie of Mt. Cook, $8.50 wedges w/ sweet chili and sour cream YUM

Day #20. Lake Tekapo.

Fourth day in a row of rain. Very depressing.  Even more depressing is the earthquake that just shattered Christchurch around 1 pm today.  It wasn't as big as the quake that hit in September, but it was closer to the surface.  Judging by the pictures seen on TV this afternoon, the city is devastated.  Rain is the least of anyone's concerns right now.

The day started off alright enough.  It was a long bus ride.  I got to plug my Zune into the bus' speakers and play my playlists Rich made for me :)  Kids were singing along with "California" and "Such Great Heights".  Most everyone on the bus decided to pitch in $5 or $10 (5 for veggie, 10 for carnivores) for a joint effort BBQ at the hostel that evening.  Our bus driver stocked up on the goods at a Countdown grocery while the rest of us grabbed snacks at a bakery.  We stopped at a beach known for its giant pebbles strewn across the sand.  But it was raining so I ran down, snapped a pic, and high-tailed it back to the bus ASAP.  Once everyone was back on the bus, our driver informed us of the tragedy that had just occurred in Christchurch.  We were stunned.  It seemed surreal.  And many of those kids were to be in Christchurch the very next day.  From then on, the mood was undeniably sober.  It certainly didn't improve my mood after reading the entire book Bridges of Madison County which was so sad, I was in tears by the end of it!  Thanks for that, Meg… ;)

Once at the hostel, many of us were scrambling trying to sort out bus and air changes.  The news broadcasts told us of the devastation to the city and unfortunate casualties.  But somehow we pulled together and made a danged good BBQ.  The first thing we did as one big group was to peel 20 lbs. of potatoes.  Then we split up for efficiency.  I was asked to be in charge of the veggies.  Good job for me, eh?!  I enlisted several girls and we stir-fried a huge amount of zucchini, carrots, onions, broccoli, green beens, and Swiss chard.  The meat crew chopped up a heap of onions and peppers and made hamburger patties.  These were taken to the grill masters along with sausages and were BBQ'd to meat lover perfection.  Another group of girls made the salad, and yet another + one boy made some yummy slaw.  That massive pot of potatoes was whipped up with butter and a ton of cheese into a fine "mash", as the UK'ers called it.  There was so much food leftover people were putting aside plates for tomorrow.  To top it all off we had hokey pokey ice cream!

I went outside ad took a look around.  The view of the lake from this hostel was spectacular.  The rain stopped and the sky opened, as if to reassure us, "everything will be alright".  We had a beautiful sunset.

As I was re-packing my backpack in my hostel room later that evening, I got into this crazy deep conversation with my 3 roomies and friends from the bus this past week.  Joan, Alexandra, and Daniel from the UK.  At first our talk centered around the shocking events from the day.  How sickeningly close we actually came to being in the middle of that quake… realizing how blessed we are… and acknowledging the tangible fear that was expressed by our families and friends.

Then we started comparing our travel experiences; specifically, how we felt in the beginning compared to now, are we excited to go home, and how have we changed?  It's crazy how similar we all were in that the first week or two of traveling we have felt depressed, homesick, and stressed out.  We've all cried, and thought about turning around and flying back home.  But after that initial phase it gets so much easier, even turning into a sort of addiction.  I compare traveling to a marathon.  At first your body hurts, you have cramps, you can't get into the groove… most people will say that the first bit of the run is the hardest.  But then you find your pace.  You flow, almost without thinking.  And by the last 5 miles, even if someone were to offer you an out, you wouldn't take it cuz you are so stoked to see the end.  We talked about the ways traveling - seeing and tasting the world's vast cultures - have changed us.  Or have they?  Because of her 3 months away from home, Joan is now certain of the career she wishes to pursue upon her return.  Because of her 5 months on the road, Alexandra is more confident and independent.  Because of his 6 months of travel, Daniel is renewed with more energy to push the boundaries of print journalism as a freelance writer.  And for me, it has made me want to work harder to become a better person; more loving, patient, and selfless.  Traveling… it can be so many things.

frustrating..

challenging..

stressful..

uncomfortable..

rewarding..

enlightening..

reaffirming..

exciting..

life changing..

When it's just you and all of these things, you learn a lot about yourself.

They say that music is the universal language.  I think laughter is also.  Laughter.  The can't-breath-can't-see-cuz-you're-crying-falling-off-your-bunk-bed kind of laughter.  With random strangers in your hostel room!  There is nothing like it :)  As we were turning off the lights last night, Alex complained to Daniel that he needed to charge his cell phone somewhere else other than by hear head.  She "didn't want electrical currents hitting her brain all night."  I said I had a similar fear… at work I keep my cell in my scrub pocket a lot and I'm worried that it will fry my ovaries and I will become infertile.  Daniel started laughing first.  So hard he couldn't stand up straight.  He sounded so funny that Alex and I started cracking up, then Joan couldn't help herself… and before we knew it, we couldn't stop laughing for 5 minutes straight.  "In… in… (*sputter*) in-fer-tile? haha… omg, fry what?!! your.. hahahahaha… OVARIES!!!! BBBBBAAAAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!"

As I write this blog, the front desk guy just came into our room and asked for a "torch" so he could check the "gas"… couldn't really understand his accent.  Then he added, "Yea, need to check gas before it explode" and I was like, "UMMMM do we need to evacuate?!?!"  Earthquake… gas explosion…  Fortunately he quickly fixed whatever was wrong and returned the flashlight (aka torch).  Crisis everted :)

Plan:  Hike around Mt. Cook area tomorrow

Budget:  $26 hostel, $3 internet, $5 BBQ, $8.50 bakery

Day #19. Dunedin.

The "Steepest Residential Street in the World" exists in Dunedin.  Baldwin Street is the name.  Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to inform you, I hiked that sucker in the rain tonight!  :)  It's pretty steep alright, but as to whether it's the steepest… well, that's suspect.

This afternoon we arrived in Dunedin.  I booked my room at "On Top Backpackers" which was pretty central and had good reviews.  It was raining, but that didn't stop most of the bus from heading over to the Cadbury Chocolate Factory for a tour.  Quite a delicious tour, at that.  I learned all about the history of chocolate, how it is made, and why Cadbury is (of course) the best in the world!  After all, it is based in New Zealand.  Chocolate was first brought over to the Europeans by various explorers such as Christopher Columbus and some others in the 1600's.  It was served only as a thick, rich drink that you had to eat with a spoon.  Many years later the British discovered that adding milk to their chocolate drink made it even more spectacular.  Eventually, hard chocolate was made and became a world-wide sensation!  Today, Americans consume the most amount of chocolate per person.  The Cadbury tour was fascinating.  I learned that they were the first company to produce real white chocolate, known as the "Dream Bar."  The tour guide kept throwing all assortments of candy bars at us.  I tried at least one bite each of the Buzz Bar, Turkish Delight, a banana chew one, Cherry Chew bar, Dream Bar, a pink marshmallow-filled bar one that I didn't much care for, and… I think that's it.  I still have a few others in my bag that I didn't try but I was chocolated out!  At one point during our tour we were handed a shot glass full of rich, warm, decadent, runny, straight up chocolate.  It was so sweet I couldn't even finish it, and that is saying a lot cuz I have a huge sweet tooth.

After the factory tour I wandered around the city of Dunedin for nearly 2 hours.  George Street was really fun.  Lots of coffee stops, Asian take-out places, cafes, and funky boutiques.  I didn't indulge in anymore souvenirs today (aka clothes :)  Saw a few spectacular churches.  One was the First Presbyterian Church and the other was St. Paul's Cathedral.  The Dunedin University campus was really nice too, with the old library building and park.  A lot of the architecture here is old Victorian which I love.  Many pastel colors and detailed trimmings on the houses.  And those lace-like porches hanging on to the ancient buildings for dear life!  I loved the "Octagon", or the circular park at the heart of the city.  The restaurants looked amazing there, but I decided to be good and make fajitas back at the hostel :)  I read in my travel book that Gwen Paltrow and Coldplay's Chris Martin were spotted hanging around this area when one of them was doing a film nearby.  Some pub they really liked, but I forgot the name.  Oh, back to those Asian food places.  Would you believe it, but almost every single one was closed!!  Thai, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese… those places NEVER close. I still don't know what was going on.  A holiday or something??

I made myself the most delicious dinner tonight.  Went crazy at the New World Market earlier in the day and bought a whole bunch of fresh veggies!  So I fried up a sizzling pan of fajitas: orange pepper ("capsicum" they call it here), red onion, loads of mushrooms, and broccoli.  I even made some guacamole, chopped a hunk of cheese off the block I've been carrying around the past week, and put a dollop of sour cream on top.  People were staring at my plate of fajitas.  I think they wanted to steal it…. but I've learned my lesson.  HIDE yo tomato!  HIDE yo cucumber!  HIDE yo peanut butta!  Cuz they stealing EVERYTHING up in here!!!

After dinner I went back to my room, and... couldn't  even believe my eyes, but there was one of those Irish girls from Milford Sound!  What are the odds of that?!  :D  Her name is Annie and she's from Mayo (yup, that's in Ireland).  Traveling can be so random.  It was close to 7 pm and raining, but we decided that there was no way we could leave Dunedin in the morning without having walked up the "steepest residential street in the world" (according to Guinness Book of World Records).  We grabbed one of my other friends from the bus, the Irish dude that snores with an Irish accent (Ollie), and started off.  The front desk guy told us it was maybe a 30 min. walk to the street.  Try an hour there and an hour back!  In the rain!!!  It was so worth it though.  I mean, just think of it.  The steepest street in the world…. cooooooool.

We got soaked.  It was chilly out.  When we got back to the hostel, they rewarded themselves with hot showers while I inhaled a cup of tea and some wedges.  Wedges in New Zealand are a beautiful thing.  They surpass anything I have ever had in the States as far as crispy potato products are concerned.  Wedges are thickly cut, immaculately seasoned potatoes (skin on), deep fried to golden perfection and topped with luscious, spicy chili sauce and a huge serving of sour cream.  Ollie came downstairs and helped me finish them.  Then Annie joined us and told stories from her awesome adventures.  She is so cool!  She's 30 years old and has been traveling on her own for over 6 months now.  She's been all over South America, South Africa, Australia, and now New Zealand.  Really neat girl to talk with.  Wonder if we'll ever run into each other again… you never know in this small, small world.

Plan:  Lake Tekapo tomorrow

Budget:  $28 hostel, $25 produce, $8 tea and fresh date scone, $5 internet, $16 chocolate tour, $10 tea/wedges