A
Résumé of the Art of Collecting
Ideas, Memories and Experiences
We are
Thomas & Katja, the German WWoofing couple cycle-touring through NZ
for 1
year. We have to go home soon, but before we leave this beautiful country, we
wanted to write our final good bye.
Bushbashing near Tauranga
"What
brought you to NZ?" A question we have been asked several times.
Actually
it's all Thomas' "fault" He wanted to go travelling with his bike
and see
another side of the planet, and Katja just came along. The Rest kind
of
developed along the way... What we found was a small country with a
great
variety of landscapes, nature and characters, welcoming us warmly and
amazingly
trustful.
So
let's get started with the people and their places:
1.
Glendair, Chris and Johann, Banks Peninsula
A
meeting of old friends, Thomas was waiting for so long, and the starting
point
for our NZ journey. A special tx to Chris getting us started and organized. We
will never forget the view over Little Akaloa Bay waking up in the morning.
Savouring the warm autumn sun we went on walks seeing Fantails and Cabbage
Trees for the first time in our lives. Hope everything's working out fine for
you.
Okarito, West Coast
2.
Onuku Heights, Eckard, Banks Peninsula
Our
first Wwoof experience we encountered high above Akaroa Bay made Katja
wonder
how she'll ever survice this cycle trip, her elbows nearly breaking,
pushing
uphill. Thomas felt like an Orc, shifting huge makrocarpa logs
within
this scenery and the "Lord of the Rings" Soundtrack in his ears. The
relaxed
dinner conversations we'll keep in good memory as well as our first
possum!
We appreciate your well organised and structured wwoofing schedule.
3.
Marc, Kaituna Valley
How
patient can someone be! You taught us about strawbale building, passive
solar
heating and let us play and experiment with plaster. Nights were
freezing,
but the incredible vegan feasts kept our energy levels right up.
Kayaking in Abel Tasman National
Park
4. Tigh
Solias, Mike, Christchurch
Working
with 73 year old Mike made us feel old, how much energy can someone
have!
It must be all this healthy steamed fish and silverbeet! We were
amazed
by how many people know Mike Brosnan, when we mentioned your name along our
wwoofing way. Also a big thanks for being our CHC Base - that was a good help
for us and made things easier.
5.
Hohepa, CHC
Working
together with mind challenged people made weeding and preparing
orders
so much more fun than it would have been without them. Happy faces!
Here we
met another Wwoofing couple for the first time and we really enjoyed
exchanging
ideas and viewpoints with you, Johanna and Mosez hope to see you
soon!
Breakfast in Kauri Country
6.
Sirocco Wines, Paul, Rakaia
Your
sense of humour and jokes delighted our day, especially your talent
with copying
accents. Sharing some glasses of wine gave us another approach on your
"Labour of Love". The grafting of routestocks sparked our interest.
7.
Waihi Bush Org. Farm, David, Geraldine
Real
cattle farming, combined with interesting architecture, hidden pathways
and
artistic evening sessions made this an unforgettable visit. Goats
heaven,
lovely bush tracks and a fantastic panorama made it worthwhile going
out
feeding, on freezing mornings. Best Regards to Jim for introducing us to
the
hungry bulls, to Oliver for warming us up with some Milo and Hannah for
the fun
she spread.
Beach Time in the Abel Tasman
National Park
8.
Pinehill, Jenny, Timaru
Your
almost Bed and Breakfast Style Accommodation was certainly a highlight.
We
cherished sharing moments in front of the cosy coalrange with you,
sorting
out the garlic. The trip to Timaru was a nice change. Also the lift
over
the hill turned out to be a big help ;-).
Thanks
to Aidy and Haley for spoiling us and for their hospitality.
9.
Arnstead, Maurice and Neroli, Waimate
South
island organic sheep farming with working dogs, tractor with post
driver,
very funny kids and most kind parents make us often think back in
joy of
the time we had on Arnstead. Here we got introduced to Starcharts,
Hunterways
and Thomas catching sheep. How to freak out a wwoofer? Send
him
miles away and up a steep hill with hundreds of old tyres on a trailer
an see
if he can handle it. :-)
Avalanche Peak - Arthurs Pass
10.
Ruzak Park, Veronica, Oamaru
Medical
Center and Bike Depot in one. It was a bit unfortune that Katja got
sick
and Thomas had to do all the work. In the end it all worked out fine.
Katja
got fit again and Thomas figured out how to handle the weed eater,
which
was useful on coming stops of our journey.
11.
Hoimed, Richard and Kate, Ida Valley
The
freezer of NZ, and sure cold it was! A huge hot outside tub heated us
right
up into our hearts, while we were counting shooting stars and looking
for the
Southern Cross. Looking forward to build something like this bath by
ourselves
- in the name of "schwaebisches Weltreich"!
The Remarkables Mountain Range
12.
Felton Road Winery, Gareth, Bannockburn
Then it
got serious. Heading towards Queenstown, we were running out of
money
:/
With
finding our first paid job at Felton Road we felt really lucky and so
we
were. Living in the Portacom, a good working atmosphere and the organic
approach
made our first two weeks of paid work outstanding. Big Hello to all
the
staff.
13.
Dennis, Wanaka
There
was much more than your big knowledge about trees. You surprised us
everyday
with different interests and skills. Variations reached from
cryptic
crosswords, acting and wearable arts to Indian techno music.
Cooch
grass roots are still haunting us in our dreams ...
Brewster Hut – Mount Aspiring
National Park
14.
Makarora Valley Organics, Raymond and Carol
How was
the raspberry picking this season? We hope our sculptural tying up
made it
a bit easier. Mt. Constitution was a mission, the stunning views and
the
soaking outside bath the relief. Hope your new house construction is
working
well. Katja is still doing her flax weaving (lots of souvenirs!)
15.
Konuku Lodge, Cindy and Rainer, Okarito
Being
able to have a fire at night (esp. after capsizing with the kayak),
living
on the beachfront and having stunning views over rainforest to the
Southern
Alps made this place very special and hard to leave. First time
that
we
regret having a schedule to stick to.
Water Tramping
16.
Hokitika, Kim and Eileen
We
enjoyed sharing your paradise and the evening conversations. Your travel
stories
about working in a Kibutz, cycle tour in the U.S. and Outward
Bound
made us feel like talking to soulmates. Moving on was a bit harder
than
usual.
17. the
Nook Guesthouse, Cathy and Dennis, Pohara, Golden Bay
Our first
wwoof stop after our side trip to Japan grounded us back to
normal.
Your kindness and living in the housetruck watching Pukeko chooks
introduced
us warmly to the Golden Bay and the easy going lifestyle there.
Smoko (Resting time)
18.
Hinterland, Bill, Onekaka-Golden Bay
Spending
X-Mas with you and your family was the best gift we could get. We
enjoyed
the bondfire, the ducklings and the life inside the Barn. Helping to
save
the stranded Pilotwales made this stay a lifetime memory.
19.
Hope Organics, Brent and Kevin, Nelson
Sharing
a cosy cottage with a French wwoofer couple and working along with
you
guys made our time passing by way too quickly. We were impressed by the
huge
variety of veggies and fruit you grow and all in an organic way.
Helping
to sell the crops on the Saturday Market made the circle of
planting,
growing
and harvesting complete. Celebrating New Years Eve in Nelson with
Celine
and Simon was lots of fun and Floyd and Charlie were the best
entertainment
we have had!
20.
Landhaven, Maud & Frans, deep in the Marlborough Sounds
If we
would ever get in a situation of leaving Germany, NZ would be the
country
we'd choose to life, and Marlborough Sounds would definitely be the
place
to get settled. We didn't need much time to decide on this. The fact
that
you so openly shared your paradise with us, made it very easy to fall
in love
with Landhaven. We had the most "stormy" welcome and the help from
Tyst,
Iske and Muske pushing our trailers up the steep driverway was very
needed.
Your insight on "parenthood" made us think in different ways and
prepared
us for the "the next big adventure".
21.
Cathie Ellis, Wellington
You
have been our capital base and our infomation source about the North
Island.
We will remember the days we've spent with you of endless planning,
looking
at maps and routes to take. A part of you was always with us as the
new
flags gave us a bit of a new identity because it shows our regional
origins.
They
will be tavelling home with us!
22. Sun
Nest, Alex, Mt. Taranaki
The sounds
of the Smiths and your yoga exercises kept us energized while
cycling
the North. The Feng Shui Wisdom taught us to look for good campsites
balancing
Tigers and Dragons and tidying our tent as it was our home.
Unfortunately
the summit of Taranaki was hiding from us in clouds, mist and
rain,
but we tried to find your house from the top of Mount Ruapehu 2 weeks
later.
Best of Luck with the new born baby which must be due soon. Regards
to
Aileen.
23. The
Flying Fox, Annette and John, Whanganui River
We felt
like lucky dogs being able to wwoof at your place. Arriving by cable
car to
this fairytale island made our stay even more exciting. We admire
your
building skills and the fact that you used those materials available to you.
Preparing your garden for a TV team, set a whole new perspective on weeding
for us.
A pity that we stayed during the busy season, as there was not much
time
for relaxed evening talks, but none the less we really enjoyed our time
with
kayaking and blackberry picking (Katja). A beautiful good bye being
sent
over the River - a memory we will take with us.
24.
Tauhara Centre, Andrew and Moira, Taupo
The
whole week was dominated by wedding preparations and jigsaw
puzzeling.
Swimming and mountainbiking and spending time with other
wwoofers,
we had a relaxed and carefree holiday all together. We especially
like to
thank Geoff for showing us around and Emily for adding quality and
meaning
to our stay.
25.
Rachel and Henery, Coromandel Town
After
10 exhausting days of cycling we looked forward to a place where we
could
rest our bones. Meeting Rachel in the arty co-op shop briefly, we
already
knew it's gonna be good.
Welcomed
into their fantastic adobe home, we entered a world of magic. We
really
much enjoyed the work which was something different to weeding,
especially
when Henery let us help creating a part of the garden wall in
adobe
in situ style. It's good to see two healthy, happy people enjoying
their
time together with a positive and playful attitude towards life. You
set a
meaningful example for us. Also thanks for introducing us to the art
of
playing tambourelli.
26.
Mara Whenua, Yvonne and Wayne, Honeymoon Valley
Pedaling
deep into Honeymoon Valley and finding Mara Whenua at the very end
of the
gravel road, was like diving into native bush forest. We felt
insignificantly
small.
Your
settlement seemed to have grown out of the bush as it is nestled into
nature,
being well integrated. Same to say for the gardens and orchards. The
matured
state of your applied permaculture concept taught us how natural you
can
live of the land. Our days were filled with the sound of hammers, Kiwis
and
running water from the river. Needless to say that we were mesmerized by
the
waterfall climbing track, what an adventure!
While
being on the road, we have had many encounters with friendly and
helpful
people being interested in our travels. We want to thank you for
your
help, providing us shelter and fuel (i.e. delicious food), giving us
ideas
on where to go and what to see and the opportunity to meet "real kiwi
characters".
Especially
we want to express our gratefulness to Steffi and Bruce in
Wanaka
for helping us out in Winter times with a place to stay, Sue and John
in
Christchurch for giving us the keys to a university cottage in Arthurs
Pass;
Peter in Motueka, a likeminded cyclist on Takaka Hill; the McWilliams
Family
in Tauranga for the surprise invitation; Nina in Taipa for a wonderful
50th
Birthday party and last but definitely not least Sara and Eugene in
Auckland
for being our "travel family".
Apart
from cycling and Wwoofing we explored the country by foot and with
kayaks,
climbed mountains and walked many tracks. We melted snow for
drinking
water, washed our salty skins in crystal rivers and soaked tiered
muscles
in hot thermal pools. We fed our souls with stunning views, waking
up with
bird songs at the crack of dawn, got covered in cobwebs all over,
bugs
and spiders were our friends, except sandflies, though!
For
being Europeans we'd say, we spent a year in nature.
Blessings
on this land!
Thomas
& Katja
