Besteckshublade

Melbourne at the moment is a about 4 movies (hmm ... maybe not, I have seen all of them already) and 25 Satay-Sticks away from me. Next week I will be home to celebrate and smile at the upcoming 40 and then it is back to KL until mid November. So I am quite happy, that Philipp not only loves visiting kangaroos and has a job that keeps him busy but also has frequent visitors to entertain him.

Why? Because we have a green airmattress that frequently hosts couchsurfing guests. What is couchsurfing? It is sleeping on your best friends couch - and replace "best friend" with "people you have never met before".
Curious? This is where you find us on couchsurfing.org.

Last week we (Philipp) had a guest who is on a mission: Surfing couches for 12 weeks (in Melbourne, where he actually lives himself) and writing 12 songs about it. Our green airmattress was his first couch. And the first song is out now: Besteckshublade. Music & Lyrics: Brett. Voice: Philipp. Location: Our home and surroundings in Elwood.

See the video on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/12-Songs-In-12-Weeks/104152136313890

Amazing project - I am looking forward to the final concert (and hope I am not again a third of a day away ...)

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.

Quickie

This blog entry is going to be a quick one for a few reasons:

1. My laptop clock says 13:33, which means it is 1:30 am in the morning where I am currently sitting.
2. Wireless and Internet (it seems like) just recently arrived here in New Zealand and is a) not very much available and b) hideously expensive.
3. There is so much to tell what happened over the last few days that we rather do it in pictures.
4. I am freezing (did I say that already?). It is summer. In New Zealand. We have about 5 degrees at night.

Check out the the new pics in the picture album - there you can find our (partly crazy and scary) story of the past few days. And to all who do: please be careful where you couchsurf! But on the other hand - no holiday without adventure, right ;-) ?!


To Lee: I know you have said it all along ;-). We are allright, the police did a great job.

Road music

We carry about 20 GB music data with us, 2 iPods and an iTunes Library and our brand-new Suzuki Vitara, called "Victoria" luckily features an AUX-IN.

So this is the song of the day today:

Already drove 500kms today, hoping to arrive in Armindale, NSW, by 9pm. That was a long day on the road through horse country and Hunter Valley.

And by the way: Seems like we have x-mas sorted out. We will meet a bunch of Couchsurfers in Auckland and have a cooking-brunch with local traditional dishes. So much looking forward to it!