Picton makes Larne or Portavogie look like a big port. Picton is the gateway to the north island of New Zealand. For those who despise flying as much as me, this place is perfect for getting a boat from the south island to the north island, and vice versa. Plus it ain’t dear. The service, Read more about Backpacking in New Zealand: Twilight in Picton[…]
OK I’m not just throwing old fashioned British names at you. But really I could be. No but these are two remote settlements on the south eastern part of New Zealand, both places which I thoroughly investigated all there was to see of (in my humble opinion) during another of those inspiring buses in New Read more about Cromwell and Lawrence (Oliver and Of Arabia)[…]
Places like this you never appreciate or savour, but you should because YOU WILL NEVER BE HERE AGAIN. And so it was a stop over on route to Wanaka, that we had our lunch time visit to a Salmon Farm, which quite frankly was in the wilderness of absolutely nowhere. We pulled over and there Read more about Backpacking in New Zealand: Salmon Farm, Haast Falls and Bus Tripping West Coast[…]
So what to make of this one?No really, the “party capital” of New Zealand, the “adventure capital” of the world, that is exactly what Queenstown is. There is no reason for this town to even exist. It is a humanly created paradise. Arriving on a sunny afternoon I got off my bus in the city Read more about Backpacking in Queenstown: New Zealand’s One[…]
The question “Which Scottish settlement is Dunedin named after?” would have an obvious answer…and from the Scottish capital city of EDIN- Burgh, we find ourselves in Dun – EDIN. The “Burgh” obviously translating itself somehow as the word “Dun” in either Maori or Kiwi speak. Either way it wasn’t an obvious place for me to Read more about DUN – EDIN / EDIN – BURGH: Same City, Different Hemisphere *[…]
The word “Township” has always confused me in life, and it wasn’t until 2010 that I thought I knew what it meant. I heard reports from people going to South Africa to watch the World Cup and they said they were visiting “townships”, which I seen as slums or working class black or white areas. Read more about Backpacking in New Zealand: Franz Josef Township[…]
There are a lot of glaciers in New Zealand, and they are all in the South Island. For whatever reason it was always my plan to do the day hike up the Franz Josef Glacier. It seems to be the most obvious one to do, there’s the slightly bigger glaciers nearby of Fox and Tasman, Read more about Blue Ice: Franz Josef Glacier Day Hike, South Island, New Zealand[…]
A mini airport and an isolated yellow private jet were the welcoming sign to the village of Makorora. Or rather West Makarora. That and the immense landscape of never ending trees, hills, rivers, valleys and mountains. A feast for your wandering eyes. When everything human has failed you, only nature can set you free again. Read more about (West) Makarora[…]
First night in the cold misty township of Franz Josef and I’m staying in Glow Worm Cottages. Quite mystical and spooky, and in total isolation seemingly from the parties of New York, the business meetings of London and the flair of Milan. Franz Josef Township is an extraordinary little place. Over dinner I met Read more about Glow Worm Trek, Franz Josef, New Zealand[…]
Belfast or Beal Fierste, is obviously the capital city of my home country of Northern Ireland. That home will always be the original Belfast – where the name began, just like New York is really just York with skyscrapers. So around the world there have been scattered a few “Bangors” and “Belfasts”, and spontaneously I Read more about Backpacking in New Zealand: An Intervention of Fate on my Trip to Belfast, South Island[…]