We made it!

On December 2, 2012 Alex and I said a goodbye to a rainy San Francisco.

We fit an enormous amount of stuff into our bags...

...made a last minute stop to exchange some pants...

...and we were off. 

 

After 14 hours on a very turbulent flight, we landed in Auckland, New Zealand. We waited in a few lines, flashed some official documents, let a quarantine agent sniff our hiking boots and then boarded another flight to Wellington. At around 9 am on 4 December we stepped off our final flight.

We stuck to our original plan and immediately left the airport in Wellington heading for the bank to activate our account. We walked out with a large bank check and bought our big girl a few blocks away. We’re falling in love with her more every day...

Alex doesn’t drive standard transmission yet, so for the time being driving is up to me. On the very first day, after having slept sitting up in an airplane the night before, I was a bit overwhelmed with driving our humongous diesel stick-shift baby on the left side of the road in downtown Wellington, but I managed it unscathed. Now I’m feeling seasoned and happy to cruise around in her.

 

  

The van is tall enough for Alex to stand up in. It’s got a bench seat in the front. The section behind the seats is the headboard for our bed. The bedroom transforms into a bench seat and dining room table. The kitchen is in the back. 

We have been very busy with logistics related to settling in and preparing for a year on the road since we arrived. We are quite excited to announce that we are the 48003rd member of the New Zealand Motor-Caravan Association! Before coming to NZ we’d never heard of our new club, but now that we’re in I feel as though we’ve achieved something.

We had to buy a portable toilet to pass the inspection. Our van is officially “Self Contained.” This gives us green-tinted warm fuzzies over the environmental consciousness of this concept and it also means we’ve got permission for heaps of “freedom camping” across both islands. No power, no water, but no charge, either. 

The toilet feels silly to have because I can’t imagine creating a bathroom in the midst the living/dining room and the kitchen. But as it turns out the purchase was not a loss...it makes the ideal bed extension! On its own, the bed length only makes it to mid shin for Alex. The night we bought the toilet and he discovered the box is the same height as the bed he told me it felt like sleeping in a five-star hotel. Voila.

   

We’ve slept somewhere new almost every night. No matter where we are, we wake up to the sound of birds every day. I knew that seeing birds would be a big part of the trip, but it hadn’t occurred to me how musical they would make this place. The tui, for example, is a bird that can utilize two voice boxes at the same time. It makes a habit of mimicking other sounds. I read that they’ve been known to sing cell phone ring tones and car alarms. Those we have heard sound like one-bird bands with percussion and horn going at once. Incredible.

I want to especially thank Hervé for giving us the field guide to New Zealand’s wildlife. We have used this book every day so far and are marking down each new species we come across. I also want to tell Giedra that I think of you every day as we grow to love bird watching. I remember you telling me that this activity would be “something to look forward to.” You had no idea we would be traveling to the land of birds, but you certainly predicted well. 

I will finish with a handful of more photos from our adventure so far. All of these are from the greater Wellington area. Most of them, and all the photos I’m posting on the blog, have been taken by Alex.

 

We are now heading to the south island to see what we can see. Stay tuned. Meanwhile we send much love to our friends and family. Thank you for being wonderful support. Please stay in touch, we love to hear from you.