Last Stop: Christchurch

After living on the beach for three nights in Dunedin, we got our van into the shop as the muffler had pretty much disintegrated. The weld that was holding it together broke on the rough gravel roads between Bluff and Dunedin, and we learned after the diagnosis that all of the heavy driving had apparently broken the second stage as well. So, a $500 fix, and with our house on the hydraulic lift six feet off the ground we didn't have a place to sleep that night as the mechanics weren't too keen for us to use it as a tree-house. Thankfully, the O'Flynns, a family that had lived next door to us growing up in Fort McMurray and now in Dunedin, offered us a place to stay as long as we needed. It was great to have a warm, dry place to sleep and warm showers every day, but what was even better was to catch up with the O'Flynns who we hadn't seen in over ten years. We spent most nights talking until late at night/early in the morning, trading stories and reminiscing about Fort McMurray. It was amazing how quickly we were brought up to speed on what they have been doing over the last decade and when we finally left after four nights with them it was as if it had less than a year since they had moved to NZ, not over ten times that long. Except for the fact that the youngest ones had grown up to have their own unmistakable personalities since we had last seen them as toddlers!

Driving northward, our van was purring as we made our way to Mount Cook. The exhaust system had obviously had some cracks in it when we had gotten it welded the first time, and it was a great feeling to be in a quiet cab for once. As we drove out to Mt. Cook we were wondering if we would even be able to sight the peak, as I had heard stories about people making as many as three trips out to see it and having cloud cover obscure Mt. Cook every time. We had clear skies and a great view, and we camped that night just off the road. Nursing the last bit of gas in the tank, we rolled into Lake Taupo in the morning and got into Christchurch later that day. We had time to hit the surf, and I can now safe with no fear of embarrassment that I can actually surf. Consistently standing on each decent wave, the only thing left to get a hang of is reading the ocean, as the current carried us a far way down the beach necessitating a long walk back to the van. Still, shredding or green facing - surfing parallel with the wave as it breaks - has yet to happen, and I may just have to save working on that until Tofino.

Jordache and I took in a Easter Sunday service today, but by the time the new pastor was dedicated and congratulations given to the outgoing pastor, they decided that time had run out for a sermon. An interesting church, but the potluck lunch was good nonetheless. The outgoing pastor shook my hand as I stood beside him picking up some finger sandwiches and said "Good to see you again!" He apparently mistook me for someone else, or it's his go-to line. I must not have looked like someone who lived in their van though, so that's good.

This is my last stop in NZ as on the 8th I fly into Wellington to pick up my passport and from there I start my journey through Asia, flying into Bangkok on the 9th. There has been little culture shock so far what with traveling in English-speaking countries, so I may be in some senses easing into the whole traveling thing. I'm sure Thailand will be quite a different experience from NZ an Australia though, especially since I will begin the solo portion of my trip. Jordache is staying in NZ for a few more days after I leave, basically just waiting on selling our van before he either heads home to Canada or takes a bit of a detour through Fiji and/or the Cook Islands.

Alright, I will probably be putting up my next post from Thailand - until then, enjoy spring in Canada - or the weather in whatever part of the world you find yourself in.