A word about flora OK I'm not one to usually comment on flora (or is it fauna? ...Flora...flower...plants...right, yes, flora). In fact, the 'flora and fauna' section of the guidebook is usually the one I skip over entirely. That, and the history section up until around 1900. (The first Vietnamese were...next... Having broken away from Gondwanaland 10,000 years ago... Zzzzzzzzzzzzz...where's that 'Food and Drink' section) So imagine my surprise that I'm ac...

The people you meet New Zealand seems to have its fair share of eccentrics - probably due in large part to the population per square kilometer factor offering many places to hide out from the world and be left alone. I met the first eccentric in Christchurch, day 1, in the hostel dorm room. Daz was an American who came to NZ 35 years ago and now worked half a year as a yachtie on the South Island, and the other half as sailor somewhere off the coast of the ...

Things for sale on the side of the road in New Zealand Figs Pork... "or pigs" Miniature horse Sawdust Kindling Wooden lawn art Pickles Compost Free range eggs Poo, chicken Poo, sheep Poo, horse Poo, pig Poo, cow Poo, unspecified Pine cones Stonefruit Berries Walnuts Feijoas Kiwifruit (of course!) Fish bait Crayfish/lobster Bluff oysters (...drool...) Cheese...oh the cheese...

Hostel Life I entered the NZ hostel system thinking I was an old hand at this game - the strategy for claiming the best dorm bed, sussing out the best hostel, accustomed to shared living space and unisex bathrooms. So, it took me a few days to work out that accommodation in NZ is quite different to the other places I've travelled. The first difference is that NZ is essentially a self-catering place...I stopped asking whether the hostel had a kitchen early...

New Zealand is not Tasmania I lived in Australia for 10 years of my life and never ventured across the Tasman Sea to New Zealand. Given I was heading across the Pacific back to the US, I thought it was about time to meet my Kiwi neighbours properly. The relationship between Australia and New Zealand is not dissimilar to that of the US and Canada: New Zealanders are often mistaken for Australians (though the accent is quite distinct when you learn wha...