A trip to New Zealand to see Tanya...
Did Somebody Say New Zealand?
[My standard disclaimer: I want to share my experiences with you all, but at the same time, I don't want to give everyone unrealistic expectations of Tanya, Dean, Dave, Rich and Elizabeth. I've spent so much time with them throughout all my trips that they consider me more of a friend than just a fan. Please don't expect them to have to let you backstage because you are a big fan. They are wonderful people. Be content with whatever they offer you. That's what I did.]
Okay, the story is a bit long! I've made a table of contents:
When I last saw Tanya in Amsterdam, Holland, she asked me, "So when will we see you again?" "Um, walking on the street in Australia?", I replied, joking. We had a great laugh over that. You see, Tanya and Dean walked right past me in an open market area when I was in Barcelona.
At the time, the European trip was still a fluke event. I sorta "just did it." I didn't think I was going to do something like that again. It was just too much to even think about going to Australia, especially while still in Amsterdam!
Two months later and well... the idea didn't seem so crazy. I had been working very hard at work (60->80 hours per week) and really needed the break. When the first set of Australia/New Zealand tour dates were announced, I began to think. Could I even do this trip?
Looking at a map, I quickly realized that for an Australian trip, I would have to fly to all the cities in order to meet the time constraint: a different city each day. I looked at New Zealand. It looked a lot more feasible. New Zealand didn't look that big. My overall plan, of course, was to see every show, both Australia and New Zealand. I mean, if I was going to do it, do it all, right? ;) I contacted my travel agent and she gave me some prices.
New Zealand it was! The combined Australia and New Zealand trip would cost >$2000 on airfare alone! Just Australia would still be >$1500, counting all those in-country flights. New Zealand would cost $1100, but once there I could resort to driving or public transportation. I could stay at youth hostels to save money on room and board.
My next course of action was to contact everyone on the net that I knew that had any inkling of knowledge about New Zealand. I was able to find two people, Daniel Wiltern, who's on the Tanya/Belly mailinglist, and Jane Gregg, who was introduced to me by Rachel, who runs the Mary Lou Lord mailinglist. Both Daniel and Jane live in New Zealand, which makes them pretty knowledgeable.
Daniel confirmed the Hamilton, New Zealand tour date, which made me a lot more comfortable about going. At worst, I would see one show. Jane helped me better understand what I was getting into, in terms of transportation. Should I drive, take the bus, the train, or the plane, etc. to get to the shows in time?
With this bit of help, I felt comfortable enough about going to return to pouring myself into work. For the next several weeks, I didn't do anymore preparation. I just worked.
A week prior to going, I made the big ticket purchase. There was no turning back! My boss wasn't too happy about me going, but he understood. [I gave him fair warning and he didn't say anything for three weeks.]
Thursday of that week, the tour dates for New Zealand changed! Instead of arriving two days prior to the first show, I was only arriving one day ahead. Instead of the first show being in Hamilton, a "mere" two hours from Auckland, my arrival destination, the first show was in Wellington, a good eight hours away! There was also another show, in Christchurch, added that was on another island! [The bulk of New Zealand is on two islands, simply called the North Island and the South Island.]
Now you may ask, why didn't I make sure of the tour dates with Tanya or Gary, her manager, before buying my plane tickets? Well, I wanted to surprise them of course! I wanted to surprise them with the European trip, but whimped out and told Gary before I went. This time, it was going to be a real surprise!
I was still at work from the night before, finishing some work and writing documentation for the project I was working on. It was 8 AM before I left the office.
I went home and packed my stuff, just one suitcase and a backpack's worth of things. It took a few hours to get everything squared away.
I took a two hour nap.
I woke up around 2 PM and unpacked my backpack to bring it to a shoe repair store. Why? Oddly enough, a shoe repair store can do a great job of stitching up torn backpacks! My backpack has been with me on all my trips so far. I'm not leaving it behind!
After getting the backpack repaired, I rushed home and re-checked that I had everything. By 5:30 PM, my sister was driving me to the Los Angeles airport.
While waiting for plane, I ran across this young woman, or rather she was everywhere I went... waiting at the gate, getting some food, looking at the flight schedules, etc. She was just everywhere! Eventually, she asked me, "What boarding numbers are they up to?" I replied simply, "40 to 60". That was the end of our first conversation.
When I got on the plane, she sat directly in front of me. What are the odds of that!?
Anyway, I settled in my seat. A woman named Victoria sat one seat over. The row was three seats wide, with me by the window. By the time the plane started taxiing onto the runway, we had an empty seat between us. Yeah! We had space to dump our stuff!
I spent the next twelve hours talking to Victoria off and on inbetween watching the in-flight movies (The Peacemaker, Gattaca, and Flubber) and napping. She was a blast to talk to! I detailed my plans about following the band to her. She was very impressed with my dedication. :) When we arrived in Auckland, she invited me to visit her in Christchurch after I was done following the band around. I accepted the invitation.
The plane arrived in Auckland at 5 AM. I got off the plane, went through customs, and picked up my single suitcase. I dragged it to the car rental area. I already had a reservation with Budget, but I wanted to see what kind of deals I could get locally.
I first approached Avis Rentals. The young woman was very pleasant. She quickly got me an estimate for a rental car. I asked my big question, "How feasible is it for me to drive from Auckland to Christchurch in one day?" "Well," she replied, "it takes eight hours to drive to Wellington, then the ferry takes three hours, then it's another seven hours to Christchurch. I don't think you can make it in one day." "Oh." I gasped, disappointed. She then added, "If you decide to kayak across to the South Island, it would take you three days." I just smiled. I'm sure she thought I was crazy. I thanked her and proceeded to the Budget booth.
I rented the car and went to the Visitor Information Center. The young woman from the LA airport and who sat in front of me was there. Strange. I thought she would be out of the airport by now, given that the flight landed almost an hour ago. I went to the rental car, a compact Hundai, and trunked my possessions.
[My first impression of being outside in New Zealand? Geez! The sky is low! Or rather, the clouds are really low! This was true where ever I went!]
I looked at the time - 6:30 AM. Rush hour would begin now, at least in LA. The thought of driving in rush hour on my first day of driving on the opposite side of the road didn't really appeal to me. The idea was a bit scary! I decided to return to the airport and look for the young woman.
I found her heading to the other end of the airport. I said "Hi!" to her. She turned around and was surprised I was still there. Luckily she had time to kill too, so we talked for the next hour and a half before parting on our separate ways in New Zealand - me to Wellington and she to a bed and breakfast in Auckland. It was great meeting Sue. (Yes, I finally got her name.)
[It's odd when you meet someone on a plane or at the airport. You usually strike up a conversation and exchange lots of personal info, but then you part ways and it's over. You'll never see that person again. For me, it always seems like a shame, but it's nice to have casual acquaintances when you're in a place far away from home.]
After saying goodbye to Sue, I started driving to Wellington. It was about 8 AM.
For the next eleven hours, I drove and occasionally pulled off to rest stops to take in the scenery or to take a nap. I took motorway 1, so I passed by some major cities - Hamilton, Taupo (along Lake Taupo), Turangi, Palmerston North, and Levin. I knew I was on the right path when I came across a Donnelly street (yes, not the same spelling, but hey!), a coastal city called "Mana" and Elizabeth street in Wellington. I was in Wellington by 7 PM.
It took me about another hour to locate the Youth Hostel in Wellington. After finding it, I got a bunk in a dorm room. The cost was only NZ$23 or US$14! [All my accomodations varied between US$10 and US$15 throughout my stay in New Zealand! It's not the lap of luxury, but all that I needed.]
I unpacked the car trunk and settled in. After such a long drive, all I wanted to do was walk around, even though I was tired. I wanted to find the James Cabaret, the venue of the first show. It was so closeby too. The only problem - it was closed and looked deserted! Eek! I thought the place would be booming with people. I mean, it was a night club, right? I really needed to confirm the show for tomorrow night! I had tour dates, but I still wasn't sure they were correct.
When I returned, the venue was open, but the band was not there yet. I spoke to Nigel, who I was later introduced to as the New Zealand tour sound technician. He told me they would eventually be there, but no time was set. "It's casual", he said. I told him I knew the band. He was a bit suspicious. That was good though, since anyone can just say that. I left and got some lunch.
An hour later, I was back at the venue. A man in the office asked, "Who are you looking for again?" I said, "Tanya Donelly." He asked, "What does she look like?" "Well, she's this tall," I replied and raised my right hand to indicate height, "blonde, and has a great smile." "She's inside," he confirmed.
I walked through the reddish, port-holed double doors. Elizabeth and Dave were there. Elizabeth was standing by some booths to the right. She was the first to greet me.
"So you made it!"
"Made it? You were expecting me?", I said in disbelief.
"Well, we sorta knew you were coming. We just didn't know when."
I was certainly surprised! Throughout this exchange, I could see Dave behind his drum set on stage smiling and shaking his head. He certainly didn't believe I made it!
Rich walked in the side door. "Vinh! You made it!"
"I can't believe you were expecting me. I didn't tell anyone!"
"Oh, we knew," he said with a knowing nod.
By now, Dave had gotten off stage and joined the rest of us at the booth. He gave me a hug before sitting down. We talked about my trek to get to Wellington and about the Australian tour. Shortly, Dean walked through the side door.
"I can't believe you made it. After Australia, we thought you weren't coming." He gave me a big hug.
I just laughed. My big surprise wasn't so big after all!
Eventally, Gary and Tanya walked through the side door. Gary approached me and said, "Well, well! You came! We were just talking about you."
"Really?!" I said, incredulous.
At this point, Tanya turned away from the stage and saw me. When she first came in, she didn't see me at all. She headed right for the stage to talk to Dean, who was up on stage, tuning his bass.
Tanya just yelled "Vinh!!" and gave me a big hug! It was just too cool.
I was introduced to everyone else on the tour, Stewart, who was the Australian/New Zealand roadie, Nigel, who was the sound technician for New Zealand, and Sean, who was the driver for New Zealand.
After a bit of catching up, I sat back and listened to sound check. The songs played were:
Spaghetti Lantern Mysteries of the Unexplained Breathe Around You Dusted
Ah, it was nice to hear these songs live again! :)
We went to the band's hotel to eat at the restaurant there. After dinner, the band went upstairs to rest and prepare for the show. I went back to the youth hostel to take a nap.
I got back to the venue around 9 PM. The place was about 3/4 full. Quite a nice size crowd. The show was fantastic as usual, except for the echo in the vocals that I didn't expect at all. It was the first time Nigel was mixing Tanya's work, so I guess he didn't know otherwise. Tanya dedicated "Bum" to me. :)
After the show, I was invited to hang out backstage. It's always a cool experience! :)
I reported the accident to the car rental company and their concern was first, if everyone was okay and second, if I wanted a new car. A new car? They weren't upset at all. It's just so strange. I said the car was fine, except for a dent, and that I would return it in Auckland when I got there. They were fine with that!
I got to Hamilton by 5 PM. I went to the Youth Hostel. They were booked! They were helpful though, and recommended another place to stay, The Flying Heghog on Liverpool Street. It's a great place!
I went in and listened to sound check:
Landspeed Song Dusted Mysteries of the Unexplained
The band asked me how my drive went from Wellington to Hamilton. I told them about the car accident. They were really concerned for me. It's nice to know they're looking out for me! They're just too nice! :)
After sound check, we went to the Sahara Tent, a Turkish restaurant, for dinner. The food was fantastic!
The show: [Okay, for you folks who couldn't make it, I took detailed notes. :)]
Lantern Tanya: "Thank you very much." Breathe Around You (false start with Pretty Deep, the band cracks up laughing) Pretty Deep Tanya: "Thanks." (someone in the audience says something) Tanya: "No... thank you." Mysteries of the Unexplained Swoon Tanya: "Thank you." The Bright Light Tanya: "Thank you." Clipped Tanya: "Thank you. Hey Vinh, where ever you are, your friend Daniel is right upfront. He's got the Bright Yellow Gun T-shirt on... Vinh is our friend who's travelled all the way from Los Angeles, to be here, with you fine people. He took a break from work, doing graphics for a movie called Godzilla." [This wasn't exactly it, but close. There was a lot to write, okay?] Low Red Moon Tanya: "Thank you... This is Rich. (cheer) This is Dean. (cheer) This is Elizabeth. (cheer) That's David. Are you orientated to death? (to someone in the audience) Are you orientated? I remember my first beer!" (laughter) Bum (I just love the part where it's just Tanya singing and Dave pounding the drums! Then there's the build-up with Dean on the bass!) Tanya: "Thank you." Human Tanya: "Thank you. This is an old one." Dusted Tanya: "This is our last song. It's called Landspeed Song" Landspeed Song 
The crowd consisted mostly of college students just returning for the new semester. Unlike most US college campuses, this campus was not a "dry" one - i.e. drinking was allowed. There was definately a lot of drinking! The hardcore fans were in the front though, so they weren't in the thick of the drinking. I hung back to observe everything... and so I saw everything.
For the most part, the crowd seemed more into drinking than listening, so the band didn't do an encore. :(
After the show, I met Daniel Wiltern (Tanya/Belly mailinglist member) and his friends, Francis and Dan. They were really nice and offered to let me crash at their places! Thanks guys!
We saw the band off and I went back to The Flying Heghog to get much needed rest.
I got up at noon, even though check out was at 10 AM. The proprietors of The Flying Heghog are pretty laid back, so it was cool.
I got ready and hiked around Hamiltion a bit, mostly retracing where I was the night before. I revisited the Sahara Hut just to see what it looked like during the daytime.
After about an hour or so, I started driving to Auckland. I arrived about two hours later, having driven the wrong direction for twenty minutes. [On New Zealand motorways, there are markers to tell you which motorway you're on, but not which direction you are going, i.e. north or south, east or west, etc. If you know the name of the next big city, you're good, but if you don't, like me, you can get turned around pretty easily. One time, I even came up to a fork in the road that says "1" and "1" for both directions - no indicator of north or south!]
Once in Auckland, I looked for a place to park. Being a large city and on a work day, it was pretty hard to find anything. I finally found a space. My next problem was finding the venue.
I wanted to locate a phone booth so that I could use the phonebook. I looked across the street and behold(!), I was next to a Telecom building. [Telecom is the phone company in New Zealand.] Hmm... I walked into the building and asked the receptionist, "Do you have a phonebook?" "Why yes!" she responded immediately. (hee hee) She helped me look up the address of the PowerStation and even photocopied a little map of the area for me. Due to my poor use of the map though, I ended up driving around for an hour before finding the PowerStation.
When I got there, I found Stewart setting up the equipment and Nigel working at the mixing board. I asked if any of the band had arrived yet. Nigel said it would be around five before they got there. I killed time by scoping the venue.
I settled into a seat off to the side after my look-see. Sean, Gary, Dave, Elizabeth, Tanya, Dean and then Rich passed right by me. I hopped up and greeted them. Dean said, "Well, look who's sitting in the dark." I was, guilty as charged. I showed off my "fan-boy" outfit, a Tanya Donelly T-shirt, which I picked up on the US Midwest tour, and matching beige shorts.
Soundcheck:
Lantern Mysteries of the Unexplained Morna
After soundcheck, we went to the hotel to drop Tanya off so that she could do an interview. Tanya does several interviews in every city. She's always busy!
After an hour, we went back to the hotel and picked up Tanya to go to dinner. Due to a lack of space in most of the nearby restaurants, we had to split up. Tanya, Dean, Dave and Gary went the sushi route. Elizabeth, Rich, Stewart, Nigel and I went the Indian route. I must say, butter chicken is good! Mmmm...
Rich, Elizabeth and I walked back to the hotel to work off our sizable meals.
I hung out with Rich in his room until it was time to go downstairs.
We got to the venue late! Oops! The band went backstage and I went looking for Francis, who said he would meet me at the bar at 10 PM. It was a little past. Luckily he spotted me and grabbed me. He introduced me to his sister, Bridget.
The show:
(This was the prototype setlist, as Tanya was working out the order. The final setlist was from the list on the right.) Encore:
Morna Spaghetti Time of the Season
There was a bit of drinking going on, so things got a bit ugly. A fight almost broke out! Tanya cooly said to the two adversaries, "Watch the show and then afterwards you two can go outside and kick the shit out of each other." The crowd erupted in laughter! Besides the fight, there was the "music professor", who tried to clap like a metronome all through out "The Bees" for some, probably drunk, reason.
After the show, Francis, Bridget and I joined a bunch of other people backstage and hung out til 1:30 AM. During the time backstage, I found out that the Auckland airport was closed until 8 AM! I couldn't go standby for Christchurch til then! Bridget offered me a place to stay if I needed it, which was very cool of her!
When we (the band and myself) left the PowerStation, it was quite clear to me that I was very tired. Tanya and Dean let me go up to their room and use the phone to call Bridget. Luckily Bridget was still up and waited for me to get her place. I crashed when I finally got there.
I woke up at 8 AM. I had thought about getting an early start to the airport, but decided to relax a bit. It would be nice to talk to Bridget. I stayed for an hour or so and chatted with Bridget about New Zealand and travel. It was cool to get another person's perspective on things. By the time I was ready to go, Francis had woken up. I said my thank you's and goodbyes to the both of them and sailed off to the airport.
At the airport, I returned the rental car and filled out an accident report. The rental people were quite nice about everything, so it didn't take long.
I went on standby for Air New Zealand. I couldn't get on the first flight I tried, but the second one was the charm.
Soundcheck:
Morna
After soundcheck, we went back to the hotel. I waited in the lobby while everyone else was freshing up.
We ate dinner at a Thai restaurant a little way down the street from the hotel.
After the meal, the band returned to the hotel and I returned to the hostel. We were all to meet at the hotel later.
Around 9 PM, we all met in the lobby. Since The Edge was closeby, we walked.
Upon arrival, we were led to an elevator to go upstairs to the backstage dressing rooms. Problem: the elevator didn't work! We got stuck in the elevator for 5 minutes, doors closed, crammed in and not moving an inch! I thought it was really funny! Here I was, trapped in an elevator thousands of miles away from home with my favorite group of musicians! (hee hee :)
We hung out backstage until showtime.
The show:
Lantern Tanya: "Thank you." Breathe Around You Low Red Moon Tanya: "Thank you very much." Pretty Deep Tanya: "Thank you very much." Mysteries of the Unexplained Swoon Tanya: "Thank you very much. This is Rich. (cheer) This is Dean. (cheer) This is Elizabeth. (cheer) This is David. (cheer) This is the last day... night of our tour." (aw's from the audience) The Bright Light Clipped Tanya: "Thank you." Bum (false start on Human) Tanya: "This song is called Human." Human Tanya: "Thanks! This is for Wendy!" Dusted Tanya: "This is our last song called Landspeed Song." Landspeed Song
Encore:
Manna (I was so glad they played this one. It's been too long since I've heard it live!) Morna Time of the Season
I went upstairs and just stood outside the dressing room door, absorbing as much as I could of the last time backstage, even though I knew my memory would be transient when I tried to recall the moment. I was somber. The next time I would see them again would probably be on the next tour, which may be a year and a half away. Much will change by that time, for myself and for them. Dave will have a new baby. I know that for sure. Who knows what other things will unfold?
Because of them, I travelled to foreign lands with self confidence, and perhaps with a bit of reckless abandon. Because of them, I grew.
Around 2 AM, we went back to the hotel. We were to meet in Dave's room for that "final" party. Instead, we gathered in Tanya and Dean's room. Everyone chatted about various things, though nothing about the end of the tour. It was as if the topic was taboo.
By 4 AM, everyone dropped out one by one to get sleep before the flight the next day. I was the last to leave Tanya and Dean's room. I had to tell them that it meant a lot to me that they let me tag along, hang around for all the parts of the tour. I know not all bands or people are that generous with their time. They let me have "a piece of their personal space."
With heavy hugs, I said goodbye. I didn't expect to see them again for a long while.
I woke up at 10:40 AM. I thought it was much later since I was up so late. I knew the band was checking out at noon, so I got ready really fast. I had a chance to see them again and wish them bon voyage. I bolted to their hotel.
I ran into Elizabeth and Gary. They were just going out for a little morning coffee. They told me that everyone should be in the lobby by noon and that I should wait. Cool! They left and I left too. I went to the Thai restaurant, where we had dinner the night before, to get some Thai ice tea.
While waiting for the Thai ice tea to be prepared, I saw Dave outside the window. I went out, greeted him and told him that I was going to the hotel after I get my ice tea. He said he would see me there then.
After having my ice tea, I started walking back to the hotel. I saw Tanya and Dean just walking across the street to the hotel right when I stepped out of the Thai restaurant. I started running.
We, Tanya, Dean, Dave, Elizabeth, Stewart, Rich, Gary, and myself, eventually all arrived in front of the hotel. After packing up the van, we all went across the street to a fountain. It was a nice little photo session for everyone to snap the last pics of the tour. I was just so self conscious that I didn't take any photos then. It was their moment to capture, not mine, I felt.
I waved goodbye and wished safe journeys to everyone as the van pulled away...
Thank you Tanya, Dean, Dave, Rich, Elizabeth, Gary, Stewart, Nigel and Sean for looking out for me and letting me tag along!
Well, luckily for me, Jane invited me to have dinner with her and her family! At 2 PM, Jane picked me up at the YHA.
At Jane's, I met Mark, her partner, and her baby Walt. We chatted while Jane prepared a birthday cake for Mark. Mark, being an avid cook, was whipping up some homemade pizza. In a short while, we were joined by Wendy, Willy, and their baby Niles. Later on, another Jane, Robin, Justine, another young woman came for the party. The pizza was great, the birthday cake was divine, and the company was fun!
After the party, Jane, Mark, Walt and I went on a short road trip over to Lyttleton. [Lyttleton is a port city on the other side of the hills from Christchurch.]
When I returned to the YHA, I started my laundry and began filling out postcards in the upstairs lounge. I started chatting with Emma, an English girl of Swedish ancestry, and an Australian guy from Adelaide. We chatted til 3 AM.
I got up at 9:30 AM. I called the rental car company about getting another car. All the cars in the South Island were booked. :(
I got some breakfast at the cafe next door to the hostel. I called Jane and told her I would be in Christchurch for another day. She said we could meet at the Art Centre at 12:30 PM and she could show me the botanical gardens. Great!
When Jane arrived, we had lunch at Le Resaurant in the Art Centre. Afterwards, we walked through the Christchurch Botanical Gardens. It was a nice sunny day, so we enjoyed the walk greatly. Walt just snoozed, so he must have enjoyed the sunny day too!
We parted around 3 PM. Jane had some things to do at home, so she had to go. She invited me to dinner again. I accepted, of course!
I returned to the hostel at 3:30 PM. I knew exactly what I wanted to do until dinner time: find Victoria. All I had was an address, so I went to the front desk and asked for help. Kate helped me locate the street and gave me instructions on which bus to take. It was a snap!
I got to Victoria's fine. The only hard part was walking up a very steep hill. The house she was staying at is situated on a hillside overlooking Christchurch. I found Victoria just recently returned from shopping. Had I gotten there a bit sooner, I wouldn't have found her at all!
Around 5:30 PM, I was back at the YHA. I called up Jane. Jane's son, Patrick, had taken ill, so she had to cancel dinner. She didn't want me to catch a cold. I didn't want to burden her with her son ill. We decided it would be best to wait for another day.
I went upstairs and found Emma. I chatted with her while she ate sushi. Of course, this made me hungry, so I asked her where she got the food. She gave me instructions and I was off to find some sushi. The place was called JoJi's.
JoJi's had a special sushi roll, so I ordered that. Boy, was that a mistake! It was the biggest sushi roll I've ever eaten. Besides that, I was full of wasabi! My eyes just teared up after the first bite! [Wasabi is Japanese hot sauce, except it's green in color.]
After dinner, I walked around Christchurch until 9:30 PM, then returned to the hostel for a half hour nap. I went upstairs to write my journal. I met up with Emma again and chatted a bit more.
I went to bed at midnight.
I got up at 11 AM. I called the car rental company. I would have a car by 3 PM! Finally, I get to sightsee outside of Christchurch!
I called Jane and then Victoria and told them of my plans: drive around the South Island and see as much as possible! I promised Victoria that I would make it back in time for dinner with her and her family.
I bought supplies - sunscreen, chips, and a bottle of soda for the drive.
I went to the airport at 2 PM via bus.
I picked up the car. Since it took three days for them to get me a car, I got a free upgrade! So instead of a compact Hundai, I got a Subaru Legacy station wagon! The first thing I thought, "I gotta pick up some hitch hikers! Look at all this space!"
I was totally famished, so the first thing I did was look for food. I ate at a place called the Jazz Bar. It's tiny! It seats about eight people, tops! The food was really good though, and ambiance was unique! (They had a CD running of Frank Sinatra covering such bands as Radiohead and Smashing Pumpkins. It's amazing to hear "Ole Blue Eyes" doing "Creep"!) I had some Kiwi fruit ice cream for dessert. Yummmm... I wonder if this kind of ice cream is for tourists only or do Kiwis really eat this stuff?
Queenstown is a total tourist trap! Yikes! It's akin to Lake Tahoe in the US, only much, much more commercialized! I didn't like it very much.
I got up around 9 AM to drive to Milford Sound by 3 PM for my 1/2 day kayaking/hiking trip. I was on the road by 10:30 AM.
I got to Te Anau by 11 AM, Te Anau Down by 11:20 AM and finally arrived at Milford Sound by 2:30 PM. The last part of the drive, past Te Anau Down, was intense! It was all driving down really windy roads to the sound.
The guide bus to the kayaks wasn't to arrive til 3:30 PM, so I waited in the Milford Sound Lodge.
When the bus arrived, our group assembled: Wayne (our guide), Courtney (Arizona, USA), Pele (Sweden), Robert (Amsterdam, Holland), Melanie (UK), Sue (UK), and a few other people. Wayne drove us to the kayaks.
We kayaked up the Arthur River to the end of the Milford Track, where we set out on foot. We tramped up the the Milford Track and then back again, going inland as far as we could for our alotted time, four hours. Then, we kayaked back.
The Milford Track is beautiful! It goes through a rainforest, so it's very lush with vegetation. The only annoyances are New Zealand's sandflies, which are like mosquitoes. I got bit quite a few times. [It took two weeks before the itching went away!]
After getting back to the lodge, I had dinner. I discovered that a New Zealand hotdog == US corndog. I'm not too fond of corndogs, unfortunately, due to the number of them I had to eat in elementary school!
My plan after dinner was to drive back to Queenstown. I had a bed waiting for me and I left all my stuff there. I had a big problem though! The petrol station was closed! I used up 3/4 of my tank to get to Milford Sound. I couldn't refuel the car til 8 AM the next day! Argh! Luckily I had the station wagon, so I could stretch out when I slept. Other than being cold all night, I slept okay.
I woke up early, 7:30 AM, probably because I was cold! I went inside the lodge and had breakfast with Melanie, Robert, and another guy who's from Amsterdam, like Robert. Robert was eating something called "marmite". It's probably the most disgusting thing I've ever tasted. It looks like black petroleum jell and tastes salty and fishy like anchovies. Blech! So much for cultural exchanges, eh? ;)
I gave Robert and the other Hollander a lift to the cafe near the visitor center, where I got gas. Since I was there, I decided to go to Bowen Falls and check it out.
I started driving. I got to Te Anau Down at 11:25 AM, then Te Anau at 11:40 AM. I got some more gas at Te Anau. Upon leaving, I came across my first hitch hiker. I stopped and picked her up. She wanted to go to Wanaka. No problem there. I was headed to Franz Joseph and Wanaka was on the way.
I talked to Gail, who's from Scotland, for the next four hours on the way back to Queenstown to get my stuff. She had been in Australia for 12 months. She was spending the next two months in New Zealand, after having been here two months already! Wow! What a traveller! [In general though, I found that most of the people I met travelled for many months, ranging from 6 months to a year. Americans have a different perspective on travelling. Two weeks is considered long!] 
When we finally got to Queenstown, I rushed in and got my stuff. I tried to book reservations for the Franz Joseph YHA, but they were closed, so Gail and I headed for Wanaka.
At Wanaka, I tried again to make reservations, to no avail. The Wanaka YHA main office was closed! I had to get to Franz Joseph before the Franz Joseph YHA main office closed at 9:30 PM. I had to get going right away. No lunch with Gail! :( I said goodbye and sped off!
I drove like a madman, while still occassionally pulling off to the side of the road to take in the view. I made it to Franz Joseph YHA at 9 PM, 30 minutes to spare! I also got the last bed! :)
Though tired and stiff from the kayaking, I had to get some food. I ate at the Blue Ice. I had rack of lamb. Mmmm...
I woke up at 7:10 AM. I needed to make a reservation for the 1/2 day glacier hike by 8 AM and to make arrangements to have my YHA membership card and a forgotten T-shirt sent to Christchurch, since I left them in my flurry upon leaving Queenstown.
By 9 AM, I was at the Glacier Guides office and readying for my hike.
I was on the Franz Joseph Glacier by 11 AM. There was a short bus ride to the beginning of the trail and then a short hike through some cold river runoffs to get to the glacier. (I recommend sandals, since they dry off much quicker! People with normal shoes had to suffer the cold water much longer.)
The hike lasted til 2:30 PM. We didn't get far up the glacier, which was a big disappointment for me. Next time, I'm doing the full day hike!
After getting back, I had a big lunch: soup, chicken, fruits, and a drink.
When I got to the Greymouth YHA, I found that I was booked for the following day. They were already full. I had to go to another hostel, Living Streams Hostel, which was pretty nice.
I had dinner at Steamers, then went to bed early, 9:30 PM.
I woke up at 9 AM. I started my laundry drying. While waiting, I walked around the town.
An hour later, I was in my car headed to Hokitika for the "Wildfoods Festival" held annually there.
The Wildfoods Festival was really crowded, perhaps too crowded for me after being in such remote places for the last two days. I enjoyed tasting the interesting foods none-the-less. I tried venison, lamb, possum, green lip oysters and Dutch donuts. The last two were my favorites.
After about an hour and a half I started driving for Christchurch. I was hoping to return early enough to see Jane and then have dinner with Victoria's family.
I didn't get everything (get into town, return the rental car, ride the bus to the City Central YHA) settled until 7 PM, so I only had time to have dinner at Victoria's.
Dinner at Victoria's was great! I met Jeremy, Victoria's brother, and his wife, Jeanine. I had dinner with Victoria, Jeremy, Jeanine, and Dorothy. We had corn, fish, salad and a nice ice cream dessert. Afterwards, we talked til 11 PM.
I got up at 9 AM. I needed to get to the airport to go on standby for the flight back to Auckland to catch my big flight back to the States.
I called Jane to thank her. Unfortunately she wasn't home, so I had to leave a message.
I went to the airport via bus.
I got on the 10:50 AM flight to Auckland.
I arrived in Auckland at 1 PM. My big flight didn't leave for another 4 hours, so I thought about going into the city. It was raining really hard, so I couldn't do that. I ended up waiting at the airport for the whole four hours. I was lucky enough to catch Bridget and Francis on the phone for part of the wait, so it wasn't too bad.
By 5:10 PM, I was on my way back home...
Thank you Jane and Mark, Victoria and Dorothy, Bridget, Francis, Daniel, Dan, and everyone else I met along the way!
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