Hi everyone! Just a quick entry about my hike up the Franz Josef glacier before I collapse of exhaustion. Before leaving Barrytown we went bone carving which was really great. I made a necklace and it was bloody hard - my first attempt snapped in half after I nearly lost a finger on the scary machine! Was so cool to actually make a necklace that they sell all over NZ and did not realise how difficult it was. Arrived in Franz Josef yesterday afternoon after seve...

Well I am now in the South Isalnd and having such a brilliant time. Left Wellington on Friday morning and had a very wet ferry ride to Picton - thought it was meant to be their summer! Arrived at Abel Tasmen National Park late afternoon and stayed at Old Macdonalds Farm - seriously! It was pretty nice being in the middle of nowhere and the views were great. Saturday I went sea kayaking which was actually a bit disappointing and not worth the money. Was expecting ...

Hi from Wellington! Well I am nearly finished with the North Island and ready to move onto the South! Arrived in Wellington on Tuesday and stopped off at a few places along the way - the Weta Caves where the props from the Lord of the Rings, King Kong etc and got up close and personal with Gollum! Was a really beautiful day and had a look around the harbour before meeting up with Martin (who I am now staying with) for a drink. Went out with my Canadian friend for...

Hi everyone! Well it has been a mad 5 days, can't believe how much I have done in less than a week - I'm bloody exhausted!!! 12/2 - Auckland to Hahei. Left Auckland and started my adventure on the Stray bus. Our driver was called 'Skins'! Made friends with an English and a Canadian girl almost straight away and we all got on really well. Our first stop was to Mount Eden, which had fantastic views over Auckland. It was really cold and windy and I was shattered ha...

Hello from Auckland!!!! Arrived yesterday lunctime and it was a bit cloudy and drizzly. Had no real expectations of Auckland and it seemed pretty nice. My hostel is right in the centre of town and I spent the afternoon along the main strip Queen Street getting my new NZ sim card etc - very exciting! The hostel was offering a free BBQ which turned out to be 1 questionable hot dog but it was free so I wasn't complaining! Made friends with a guy in my dorm and we we...