We're in our minor stop over in Nelson tonight. We woke up VERY early in Wellington to catch a ferry to Picton where we took a bus to Nelson. Adventure adventure, lemme tell ya!
While in Wellington I was exceptionally boring. And by that I mean I finally caught up on sleep. YAY!! We went to Te Papa and I got the new experience of the Dr's office with Fallon. I did a little shopping with the girls and had every intention of checking out the botanical gardens that afternoon. Instead I did some laundry, watched a movie and passed out. Naps are good. Except when you wake up disoriented. Whoops...too long of a nap.
When I woke up I got to hear the stories of what everyone did that day. 6 of them went to the 'Adrenaline Forest' where they were tied by carabiners to trees and other such things really freaking high up in the air. I think they said at one point Ray was over 90 feet up. Before leaving the states my boss told me, "You couldn't pay me to do study abroad." He doesn't understand the appeal of the stress and logistics and moving around a lot and the lack of sleep. For me, you couldn't pay ME enough to climb on a ropes course over 10 ft off the ground. Even that would take some negotiating.
So this adrenaline forest was a series of challenges hanging in the air. http://www.adrenalin-forest.co.nz/wellington Go to that link and then throw up in your mouth a little. I mean...I didn't do that...no one did....just read the link.
Rebecka told me she was so physically and emotionally exhausted from constantly talking herself into going to the next activity or the next level but not having the strength, then somehow finding it. Yikes. No me gusta. I tried to do 10 pushups the other day and my arms were sore for 48 hours. I cannot even imagine the muscle strain they all had. When they walked in the front door of the hostel they looked absolutely exhausted. Their stories were great and it was amazing to hear how high they went and that Ray completed the course. I would swim with sharks every day rather than do anything up high.
Ok...that was an overstatement, I never want to swim with sharks again. But at least I can't be talked into that up high crap. The sharks was a lapse in judgment and my last three dreams I've had I got bit by one of them. So obviously my psyche thinks I got off too easy in that tank.
After a hearty meal of pasta and sauce and salad and some homemade garlic bread they all passed out. Hard. Good thing, too because today was a lengthy travel day. Unfortunately, tomorrow is worse. We are meeting in the lobby of our hostel at 6:30 am to go to the bus station to leave at 7:15am. We arrive at our hostel in Franz Josef at 5:15pm.
Needless to say, it's going to be rough for them. Not only is this our longest bus ride, but it also is on one of the windiest roads I've ever seen. Who knows, maybe it has more curves than any other road. All I know is the first 100km has over 300 turns/curves and since I get wicked car sick backing out of the driveway I will be attempting to sleep as much as possible. I am even going to try to stay up wicked late tonight so I am ridiculously tired tomorrow to hopefully sleep as soon as I get on the bus.
The reward for that heinous bus ride? Two-fold. Well, I've been told (but have not yet seen) that there are beautiful views of the Tasman sea, countryside, mountains, you name it I miss it every time. Because I sleep on this leg...every time. We do stop for lunch at the Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki. (http://www.punakaiki.co.nz/about_punakaiki/)
This I have seen, and then went back to sleep. Thankfully Mark doesn't get motion sick and he takes wonderful photos from the bus so I get to see all the stuff I missed. 100% of the time I choose missing out on the view instead of carsick and grumpy. I'm sure the students would agree if they ever saw the grumpy....just saying.
The second part of the reward? Arriving in Franz Josef, only my favorite place on Earth. The town is so incredibly small and I love every square inch of that place. The glacier, Peter's Pond, the Landing, the hot pools, Speights on tap at the landing....souvenirs that are not found anywhere else in NZ.
The best part? When you go outside at night not only can you see every star in the sky (which I have never been able to see so many before!) it is absolutely silent. I mean creepy silent but in the most serene way. You just want to take a deep breath, look around, and have a relaxing sigh when you see it. I have never felt more relaxed than I feel in that town. Especially when it's not loud at the hot pools. Even though it's kind of bright there you can still see the stars through the steam. I have been saying for years I wish I could live there. No idea how I would make a living but I'd find a way and live in that small community of about 300 people and be happy as a clam.
I'm almost too excited to sleep now. You wait months to see something, be there and experience the magic all over again. That happens tomorrow and I'm almost as excited right now as I was the night before I got married. This is a close second, I just wish I could share it with my husband. One day, I will show him the magic of Franz Josef, and I hope he'll see the wonder of it all in a four block radius with one tiny grocery store and only two restaurants. That tiny town holds a lot of magic for me. In 18 hours I get to step off that bus and feel that magic once more.
I wish you all could be here to experience it.
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