I Shall Return, NZ!

My flat in Auckland, New Zealand (Nov 2014)

I left New Zealand upon completion of my postgraduate studies in November 2014. After more than 2 years away, I finally get a chance to visit my alma mater in Auckland. The wedding of my nephew Neeko later this year opens an excuse for me to go there with my family.

See you soon, Aotearoa!

Visiting Neighboring Australia

Sydney Harbour

One of the great things about New Zealand is its remoteness from the rest of the western world. Unlike the UK, Switzerland or the Netherlands, which are all inside Europe, and thus, so easy to travel to and fro, New Zealand is so far away from everyone else. Corollary, while postgrad students based in London or Amsterdam get to travel to the rest of Europe during their breaks, thereby missing out on what the UK has to offer, postgrads based in New Zealand are "forced" to explore the island nation. And I wouldn't have it any other way. Because of its isolation, I got to discover everything Aotearoa had to offer, from its wineries to its lakes to its volcanoes to its ski resorts. And I got to do everything there was to do like bungy jump, skydive, and kayak. I loved every single minute I was travelling there.

However, this is not to say that you can't travel outside New Zealand during your stay. Not so far away is neighboring Australia, which is just a reasonable 3 1/2 hour plane ride away. So in the event you get bored with tiny and remote New Zealand, you can plan a short vacation to the land of kangaroos, koalas, and Hugh Jackman.

The first thing you have to do, of course, is to apply for an Australia visa. You can do so at the Australian Visa Application Centre (AVAC) in Auckland. The process starts by choosing the kind of visa. There's the Visitor Visa (Subclass 600), which can be for 3 to 12 months validity, but expensive, and there's the Transit Visa (Subclass 771), which is for 3 days, in transit to another country and FREE.

If you plan to return to New Zealand, then you must apply for the Visitor Visa (Subclass). I availed of the Transit Visa (Subclass 771) as I planned to visit the Philippines right after, so it was perfect for me.

The Application Form can be obtained from border.gov.au. The supporting documents you need to prepare are as follows:

• Completed Form 876
• Valid Philippine passport
• Signed passport photo
• Your travel itinerary (your flight schedules)
• Your onward plane ticket

Although the Australian government won't charge you for the visa, the processing center will. AVAC will charge you NZ$37 for the service fee for the Transit Visa (Subclass 771). After submitting your documents and paying the fee, AVAC will email you your visa approval within a few days (the website says at least 10 working days, but I got mine in just 6 days).

The processing center in Auckland is located at TT Services New Zealand, Level 1, West Plaza Building, 3 Albert Street, near Downtown Mall. It is open from 8:30am to 4:30pm.

Paddleboarding in the Central Coast, NSW

I visited my brother in Sydney, New South Wales. I found the city to be a cross between Auckland and Manila. It had the cleanliness and beautiful landscape of the former and the business of the latter. It's a bigger and richer version of Auckland for sure. I visited the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. Went paddle boarding in the Central Coast and checked out some beaches. There were other areas to explore and activities to do, but there's only so much you can pack within 3 days. From my experience I suggest a proper visit in Sydney to be at least 7 days. Of course, you can extend your stay and travel to Melbourne and Canberra.

So, there, if you get bored in New Zealand, and/or you have family in Australia, you can easily jump on Air New Zealand or Jet Star and visit the Land Down Under. Other travel options near New Zealand are the islands of Fiji, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia, all in the South Pacific.

Happy travels! 

Around New Zealand in 600 Days

I spent a total of 21 months or roughly 600 days in Aotearoa (from February 2013 to November 2014). Within that almost two year period, I visited and explored so many places which the island nation had to offer, and I posted my trips and activities on this blog. Here is a comprehensive summary (with links) of my adventures. (I'll do it geographically, from north to south of both the north and south islands of New Zealand.)

Let's start with the northern tip of the north island. I drove all the way up to picturesque Cape Reinga. My friends and I were blessed with good weather that time as we were able to take beautiful pictures of the Cape Reinga lighthouse. We also passed by Te Paki Sand Dunes and did some sandboarding.

Still up north, I got a chance to stay at the Bay of Islands. Our group got to tour the Treaty of Waitangi grounds and watch a Maori Haka performance.

In North Auckland, I got to kayak on the Puhoi River, and all the way out to the Hauraki Gulf. Afterwards,  went picnicking at Wenderholm Regional Park.

MTB biking in Auckland

I tried out mountain biking at Woodhill Mountain Bike Park deep in the Woodhill Forest northwest of Auckland. The cool crisp weather was great for MTB biking.

Skydiving in Auckland

Also in northwest Auckland, I went to Parakai Airfield and went skydiving over Helensville. I conquered my fear of heights as the guys of Skydive Auckland pushed me out of an airplane 13,500 feet above ground.

I watched a rugby game between New Zealand's All Blacks and England's national team. After the match, I still didn't understand the game, but it didn't matter because the All Blacks won 20-15.

I hiked up the mountain top of Rangitoto Island northeast of Auckland with my fellow postgrads. It was a lovely trek up Auckland Region's most active volcano island.

East of Auckland, I rode a ferry and went wine tasting in Waiheke Island. New Zealand is home to many vineyards and wineries, and is well known for its white wines.

I biked up Mount Victoria in Devonport, just across Auckland CBD. In my opinion, this hill has the best view of the city.

Moving south, I visited the home of Bilbo Baggins at Hobbiton in Matamata, near Rotorua. Enjoyed taking photos on the actual set of the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit series. 

I traveled to the center of the north island, at Tongariro National Park, and went skiing on the white slopes of Mount Ruapehu. It was my first and probably the last time to ski as I did not find going down a hill with no brakes fun.

I returned to Tongariro National Park and hiked the famous Tongariro Alpine Crossing. Got to enjoy viewing the beautiful emerald lakes and its surrounding volcanic formations.

And then I rode a plane to the southern tip of the north island and toured the capital city of Wellington. Visited the Beehive and the NZ parliament. Also explored the the plant and wildlife preserve of Zealandia. 

I flew to the middle of the south island and visited the universities in Christchurch. Went on a road trip with my fellow scholars and passed by the rock formations of Castle Hill, where they shot the battle scenes of Chronicles of Narnia. 

Traveled south to Lake Tekapo. Enjoyed the view of the lake with the snow capped Southern Alps in the background. New Zealand is home to many beautiful and picturesque lakes. Also visited Mount Cook National Park, and saw some more snow capped mountains. Another lake worth stopping by on the way is Lake Pukaki. 

Further south, I visited the adventure capital of New Zealand, Queenstown. There, I bungy jumped off Kawarau Bridge, the site of the first commercial bungy jump. What an adrenaline rush! I did this after I skyjumped, so I was not that scared.

Southwest, I visited the majestic Milford Sound. Rode a ferry and traversed the fjord to view the high cliffs and waterfalls, as well as watch the seals play.

The southernmost place I visited was the old Scottish settlement of Dunedin. I got to tour the local Cadbury chocolate factory.

And that about covers it! Traveled around New Zealand in 600 days, all while completing my masters degree. I had so much fun in Aotearoa! 

Wine Tasting at Waiheke Island

Enjoying CabSav with my nephew Neeko.

If you like drinking wine or want to learn about it in Auckland, you can go wine tasting at nearby Waiheke Island. My friends and I went on a half-day wine tour, which included wine tastings at three vineyards, last November 2014. We got a discounted coupon from Around Waiheke Tours on GrabOne for NZ$59 each (from published rate of NZ$119). 

We bought separate tickets for the ferry ride from Auckland to Waiheke and back. You can choose between Fullers or Explore. We chose Explore because it also had a special rate on GrabOne. We got our roundtrip tickets for only NZ$18 each (regular fare is NZ$36).

We rode the 9:30am ferry at Auckland Ferry Terminal. The trip to Waiheke took roughly 40 minutes. When we arrived at the Matiatia Ferry Terminal, we transferred to the Around Waiheke Tours bus.

Our first winery stop was Peacock Sky Vineyard.

This was my first wine tasting ever so I was both amused and intrigued with the table setting. Apart from the wines, they provide water to cleanse your palate after each tasting. They also prepared food to pair with each glass of wine.

At Peacock Sky, we tasted their Pinot Gris--a white wine, which was paired with a white creamy soup. Next, we sampled their Rose--a pink colored wine. This was paired with a sausage. Our third wine was a traditional Merlot, which they paired with chicken. The last wine we tasted was their Cabernet Sauvignon, and they paired it with chocolate. This was my personal favorite because it really tasted like a liquid black forest cake, which was exactly what the sommelier described it to be. Anyway, after a few minutes, the alcohol kicked in and I was woozy boarding the tour bus.

The next vineyard we visited was Te Motu. This time, the setting for the wine tasting was outdoors. We were blessed with sunny weather that day, and so Te Motu's cool white wines tasted refreshing. Unlike Peacock Sky, there were no food pairings. Instead, we washed our palate with glasses of water.

Wine tasting at Te Motu with other tourists.

At the vineyard with Grace and Lara.

The vineyard at Te Motu.

Our last stop for the wine tasting tour was The Batch Vineyard. 

This difference with this vineyard was the sommelier took us around the winery while we tasted the different wines. He showed us the vats, tanks and presses where the grapes undergo the fermentation process.

Once fermentation has finished, the wines are placed in oak barrels to complete their maturation.

By the end of the tour, I had drank 12 glasses of various red and white wines, that I must admit made me a bit tipsy right after. But our group just scratched the surface, in terms of wineries. Waiheke is home to over a dozen vineyards. They say New Zealand is better know for its white wines, especially their pinot gris, but what do I know. I prefer reds anyway. One thing is for sure though, if you enjoy wines and are staying in Auckland, you must make a trip to Waiheke Island.

PS: You don't have to take the wine tasting bus tour if you don't want to. You can bring your car or bike on the ferry, or to make it easy, you can rent a car or bike when you get there. A lot of people also spend the whole weekend in Waiheke and stay in baches. For more information about the island, visit Waiheke.co.nz.

South Island Road Trip

Our group photo in Queenstown, courtesy of Jam Jacob.

If you plan on visiting Christchurch and Queenstown in the South Island of New Zealand, you might as well drive from one city to the other, like what we did last year. Ditch the plane. Driving from Christchurch to Queenstown (or vice versa), you’ll get to see Lake Tekapo, Lake Pukaki, Lake Wanaka and Mount Cook. I promise you, the road trip is worth it because the views will take your breath away.

This post covers the leg of our road trip from Christchurch to Queenstown.

We rented two cars in Christchurch and began our road trip by heading southwest. If I haven’t mentioned it before, driving in rural New Zealand is so pleasant compared to the Philippines. Once you get the hand of driving on the right side of the road, everything else becomes easy. No tricycles that jump out of nowhere; no foolhardy pedestrian dashing across the street; and no reckless truck or bus drivers on the road. 

View from YHA Lake Tekapo

We left Christchurch at 11am. Stopped in the town of Asherton to have lunch. Proceeded with our journey and arrived in Lake Tekapo at 3pm. We checked in at what I believe is the backpackers/hostel with the best window view in the entire world--YHA Lake Tekapo.

View from Mount John Observatory. Photo courtesy of Giulia Soria.

The town of Lake Tekapo as seen from Mount John Observatory.

At 4pm, we drove up to Mount John Observatory. On a clear night, I was told you can see thousands of stars up in the sky. Mount John also offers a great view of Lake Tekapo.

The Church of the Good Shepherd next to Lake Tekapo.

Afterwards, we visited The Church of the Good Shepherd next to the lake. I imagine the church as a venue of many destination weddings here. The view of the church with the lake as a background is just spectacular.

Lake Tekapo in the morning.

Giulia and I obstructing the beautiful view of Lake Pukaki.

The next day, we continued with our South Island road trip. Our first stop for the morning was Lake Pukaki. It’s another beautiful lake, mirroring the snowcapped mountains of the southern alps. Ang ganda talaga. Parang postcard. I didn't want to leave. I just wanted to sit on a rock, drink a cup of hot coffee, and enjoy the view.

South Island Road Trip. Photo courtesy of Jam Jacob.

From the lake, the group drove up Mount Cook National Park. We stopped at the Hermitage resort and went on one of the suggested quick hikes of the area. There are other treks available, including a hike up to the peak, but those take longer.

Nice and easy walk around Mount Cook National Park

Clowning around at Kea Point

View from Kea Point

We walked 30 minutes to Kea Point. When we got there, we had our lunch and posed for a group photo with the mountain range on the background. And then we walked back to our cars. From there, we proceeded south, passed by the town of Twizel and crossed Lindis Pass.

Enjoying coffee with Kristine at Lake Wanaka.

Our next stop was Lake Wanaka. This is a great place to skydive as the jump offers a fantastic view of the lake and the snow-capped mountains. I was supposed to skydive here in 2013, but it was cancelled due to the strong winds. Que sera sera.

View from Crown Range Road. Photo courtesy of Jam Jacob.

Anyway, from Lake Wanaka, we drove up the Crown Range Road—reputedly the highest and scariest highway in New Zealand. It's high up the mountains with winding curves along cliffs--really scary for a driver.

With Mau at Arrowtown.

We passed by Arrowtown--the site of the first gold rush in New Zealand, way back in the early 1800s. The town looks like a movie set for one of those old western films.

At our backpackers in Queenstown, Pinewood Lodge.

And then we proceeded to our final destination for this road trip--the picturesque tourist destination of Queenstown. What a road trip. One of the best.