Not quite ...

... all pictures from New Zealand were online before - but now they are (start with pic 181). Hong Kong pics are in preparation while enjoying "backpacking deluxe" with another Business Class flight to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.*like*

PS: Ever seen a giraffe chase after zebras? no? Here you go.

Memories

A quiet day like today is perfect to take a break and look back. Our apactravel journey started on September 27, 2009 - about 3 months and a little bit ago. So far we have visited 5 countries, 4 are still to come until our return to Frankfurt on Jan 31, 2010. We have seen cities, lakes, mountains, caves, villages, animals big and small, people (mostly absolutely wonderful, some weird), cars, trucks, trees, glaciers, islands, bikes, boats, campgrounds, hotels and many more. We have lost only 2 cameras and did not experience any theft or serious injury. And in addition to all of this there are so many fantastic news from home to keep up with!

Looking at the pictures - we have roughly uploaded 1,000 pics already (about 20% of the pics we actually took) - most of our days were simply packed. Just wondering, how do you keep the memories of a journey like this?

One way might be my little red travel diary which by now holds wonderful stories from all the travellers we met along the way, I even have collected some handprinted pictures. The actual "travel-diary-ing" though is a tough job to keep up with. Ever tried to write a diary really every day?!

Another way could be our "Natural Tan" project which by now holds over 170 pictures and shows how we changed along the more than 40,000 kms we have already travelled. What do you think about the progress we made so far?

Von Natural Tan

Quite relaxed for an average moving speed of 101 km/h, isn't it ;-)) ?

For sure it is a day like today or our days on the Fijis where we simply did nothing. Apart from breathing, maybe. And as the Fijis were just wonderful we have added a few more pictures to the Fiji album.

 Do you remember the best day of your life?

Nachtelfirokesen (engl. night elf with a mohawk)

A short note upfront: this is one of the rare occasions where the German word is smoother than the English. We will stick with German.

"Nachtelfirokesen" are probably know to everybody who plays WOW (World of Warcraft). So was I told. I also was told they originally were thought to be an invention by some smart marketing guy to help promote the game by the help of Mr. T.

All bull***, we met one on Piha Beach in Auckland ;-)

The new 17 pics (Start with pic 164) were the last pictures of New Zealand - Good-bye southern hemisphere. We are already in Hong Kong, busy with hotel-room-window-sightseeing and sleeping as Philipp doesn't feel very well (either the Sushi or the Nashis ...). So we rest until the "Po Chai Pills"  (I cannot believe there is a Wiki-page for them) do their work.

@Mums, don't worry, he is already feeling better! And yes, I make sure, he drinks a lot ;-)

Something old, something new...

Something old: We are still on holiday ;-) .
Something new: Welcome to 2010!!!
Something borrowed: The fins to follow the Manta Ray.
Something blue: This was our "neighborhood".

Our New Year started slowly and remote on Nanuya Lalai Island at the Cold Coast Inn Resort. No electricity, no hot water, but a lot of sun, dancing and relaxation. Luckily our camera runs on batteries so we can show you some of the best pictures just here. But still, the highlight was the Fiji Beach Resort & Spa beach bar. Yes!

Happy New Year!!!

Unbelievable - our week in Fiji is already over. We are back in Auckland, busy preparing to leave to Asia in 2 days. 600 pics want to be sorted, geotagged, commented and (a few of them) uploaded.

The short version: Very blue water (or turquoise?), Manta Rays are giganto-enormeous when they swim 2m left of you, snorkelling was amazing and the Gold Coast Resort literally is at the end of the world! We have worked hard on our tanning project and are so relaxed that even our Fiji cab driver became nervous today waiting for us ;-)

Hope 2010 started off well for you - it seems to be a promising year already ;-)

Holiday ... actually

In about 9 hours we will waive "Good-bye" to the 3rd country of our apactravel and check into the Air New Zealand flight from Auckland to Nadi, Fiji. We will spend 7 nights on the islands, 3 of them at a couchsurfing home in Nadi, and 4 nights on two different Yasawa Islands. New Year takes place somewhere here, 12 hours earlier than in Europe.

And we will actually be on holiday. We will not take the laptop, we do not take the hiking boots, we will not read e-mails or post pictures and I will finally finish nbr. 3 of the Millennium-Triology, can't wait. See you next year. Maybe. If we come back. Maybe.

Have a great New Year, a hell of a party and arrive safely in a fantastic, happy and successful 2010.

Finally ... big picture post

163 pictures were uploaded today. So brew a coffee, put on some music and enjoy a journey from the South to the North Island with us. Our last route description finished in Dunedin and on Dec 11. Let's get started:

1. Dec 12 - We start off with the steepest road in the world in Dunedin and then drive up the coast to the Moeraki Boulders. These "pearls" are formed below the surface and then washed out until they get stuck on the beach. We enjoy a hidden DOC campsite with a pet wild pig, a self-build dam and a geocoin in surprising dimensions.
2. Dec 13 - The day of the bush! From the DOC campsite there is a track towards some limestone rocks. After a loooooooooong breakfast (Thank God no check-out at 10). The climb is beautiful, even challenging, and the views are amazing. We decide to not return the same way but keep on walking looking for a track to go home ... 5h later we are back, exhausted, tired and so happy that apart from some heavy scratches all over our bodies we did not suffer from anything else, while crouching through dense "furze" forest and knee-deep swamp. But, anyhow, we saw wild horses ... and sheeps (of course).
3. Dec 14 - We meet Aoraki / Mt. Cook. After a few morning clouds it is a beautiful hiking day with crystal-blue water (glacier flour!). Only the Nazi-campsite and the snow at night weren't actually part of the "ideal holiday-day" plan.
4. Dec 15 - Again Aoraki / Mt. Cook, this time from the air, on a tiny helicopter. Amazing, breathtaking views and clear-blue sky with only some clouds. We did a snow landing and also flew over Fox Glacier. Well worth its money!
   A big part of the night we spend driving - and hoping - to catch the ferry to the North Island the next day (Dec 16; Dec 17 we drive up north to do the Tongariro Crossing).
5. Dec 18 - A 5:50 am alarm clock. Nuts! At 7:30 we are on track, walking/climbing the Tongariro Crossing - what a unique adventure ,-) But the blue is convincing. We enjoy two nights at the perfectly organized Whakapapa DOC campground - incl. UMTS *yeah*! It seems like all Germans (speak "I am fffrommm Tschöarmaniiiieeeee") have retreated to New Zealand by now ... they are simply everywhere here.
   
6. Dec 19 - We continue north to Lake Taupo and come across floating beaches, curious swans and warm rivers. 360 degrees Jet Boat spins sound a lot more dramatic than they actually are, but squeezing through canyons with 40 degrees hot waterfalls is actually fun. And I am so thankful to Philipp that he actually did not mention that there were waterspiders running around where I had my nose ... The treat of the day is the Lake Taupo Top 10 Holiday Park - best facilities ever, close to hot springs. A must-stay! And it didn't even rain. Lesson-learned: Being a camper does not mean you cannot turn on the x-mas lights!
   
7. Dec 20 - belongs to the hot and boiling elements. Volcanic valley, bubbling mud pools, fuming busses and sparkling camper-x-mas-trees fill the day.
8. Dec 21 - The Pueroa Forest contains some left overs, some 50 others 2,000 years old. The Deer Jaw-Inbox is another reason why hunting is not on my fun-thing-to-do-list. Groce!
9. Dec 22 - 100m down, water, rocks, crawling, climbing, swimming, jumping, screaming, eating. This is our Waitomo Epic Cavetour experience in a few words.
10. Dec 23 to Dec 26 - Our campingtour is over. We say good-bye to Pippilotta after we "checked-in" with our lovely couchsurfing host in Auckland. 4 nights in Auckland, no driving, sunshine (finally!) and good food are waiting for us! We visit sparkling Franklin Street and celebrate x-mas with a bunch of couchsurfers from around the world. Santa was here. But not only he, also Markus flew in from Guzbach to make sure we keep up the BBQ-spirit.
    

Wow, by now it is 3am in the morning and the SD card already holds about 100 new pictures from our day out at the famous Karekare and Piha Beach. But for now I am going to say "Good night!".

All pics from this post can be found in the new picture album on facebook.