Today is our last day in Australia and although we are sad to leave, there is also a lot of excitment of finally seeing New Zealand, the country that inspired our trip. We have spent the last few days in a city that has been told by many that it is most similiar to San Francisco, we certainly can see the familiarity but we are biased, there's no place like home. Here, we have been huddling together trying to stay warm and comtemplate our trip and the days left before we are due back. Tonight we will be meeting up with our friend Lisa that we met in Turkey, I must say meeting up with people we met has been one of the biggest highlights of this trip.
T and I both feel that of all the places we have been, Australia is the one place we really felt we absorbed the most, mainly due to the ability to communicate and actually meet locals and visit people that we know. Our time here has been unforgettable...we have listened daily to news about home from an allies' point of view. We arrived right at the beginning of the war, since then, Australia has declared that they are an allie and have deployed their own troops to help. They are now also a target of the Taliban as they have been added to the enemy list, although the views are mixed here, we are personally grateful for their help as well as anyone who is supportive of independence and freedom. Ironically, it is election day here in Australia and since we have followed the election for the past 6 weeks, I am REALLY bummed that I don't get to vote. The current Prime Minister, John Howard was in Washington D.C. on Sept 11, his son, could have easily been at the World Trade Center had he chosen to work there instead of London this year, thus the Prime Minister's feelings are very bias and has a deeper, emotional motive to making sure that they will do whatever they can to help the US. As for me and T, have a much deeper understanding of what our country stands for and how the rest of the world is affected based on the actions of America. The impact is great, we assure you. Every single person has been affected in one way or another by the events that took place on Sept 11, 01....emotionally, physically, financially...We have been asked by many whether we plan to go home early. This is not an option for us, we have worked so hard to be able to enjoy these days of pure freedom, we simply can't let some cold blooded terrorists put fear into our lives. Terrorism works if it causes people to change the way they live their lives and we refuse to allow for this. Life should be cherished now more than ever.
11/11 - Auckland (just me Lyn)
Had a safe journey to NZ, and are more prepared for the cold weather this time unlike when we first arrived in Australia. We headed to the "best" backpackers in Auckland, which turned out to be one of the worst backpackers we've been to. We found a better one and prepared to move the following day but Pete saved us and graciously offered his place to us. It's been a year since I saw Pete in London and Tony hasn't seen him since we left him and Marijke at the Bus terminal in Jaco, Costa Rica last year when we all, by fate found each other on a remote dirt covered town of Cahuita after a long, bumpy 4 hour bus ride..Pete gave us the tour of Auckland...we saw all the shopping districts, the famous One Tree Hill...with no tree...and other sights that Marikje has prepped us on that we will be seeing. For lunch, we met up with Helen and Kees, Marikje's very cool parents and plotted out our itinerary for the next several weeks that we were to be here.
11/15 Christchurch (on the South Island)
Can hardly believe that it was only 4 days ago that we arrived. Since, we have rented a car and drove a straight shot down to Wellington (9 hours) ..quite possibly windier than Chicago. We whizzed through and caught a ferry over to the South Island and now we have driven about 5 hours to arrive in Christchurch. Picturesque Christchurch was a town of pristine gardens, gondolas, and little red telephone booths. Our assessment so far is that, hands down from the people we know to the many strangers that have helped us with whatever we need, New Zealanders are the nicest, most gracious people we have met on this entire trip. I'm already planning my next trip where I will take Odia with me! Our next stop will be Queenstown, where the Bungy Jump was originated...then to Frank Josef Glacier to claim some ice caves....more adventures to come!
11/16 Akaroa (1 1/2 hrs east of Christchurch)
Leaving the very English setting of Christchurch, we arrived to the very French setting of Akaroa where french settlers landed thinking they might claim NZ for their country...unfortunately, they weren't quick enough, as soon as the English found that they were there, they immediately claimed NZ for the Queen. Our first fair weather day and the whole town smelled of Jasmine and Roses. Here, we decided to brave the frigid waters of NZ and jump in for a swim with the rarest dolphins in the world, the Hector Dolphins, the experience was unforgettable...pods of dolphins came up to play with us and tease us as we tried to acclimate to the waters, finally, we were numb enough to enjoy the views and of course, the silly dolphins.
11/16 Queenstown (Adrenaline Capital 7 hrs west of Akaroa)
Here we are in the town where the Bungy jump was originated by A.J. Hackett. Tony contemplated the thought of jumping and I was ready to jump off a cliff with a sail behind me (of course) but, the weather has not been cooperating and we weren't able to be the daredevils we so wanted to be...whew. Instead, we careened down curving hills on the luge course which was well set up with a fully automated chair lift so we didn't have to break out a sweat luging the sleds up and down the mountain.