Hi again. I haven't
changed the world significantly since the last time I emailed this group, but I
felt like my last one was incomplete. I
told you about a lot of my personal journey, but I feel like I left out some
important components dealing with this wonderful place I actually am. So without further ado, I'd like to fill in
the gaps I left.
Kiwis
First of all, they really do talk like this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5WKpw_J7x0&feature=channel
.
Kid is "Kud," Thirty is "thutty," and
shrink is "srunk." They are
not, however, whales. Nor can the animal
life here actually talk, although I haven't actually seen all of it yet. It is interesting to me that the relationship
between New Zealanders and the indigenous Maori people is completely different
than that between the Aussies and the Aboriginies. Here the Maori are respected and their
traditions are valued, cherished and remembered. The Haka, performed before the All Black
rugby matches, is a throwback to this. I
think it works much better this way. The
Aussies basically tried to extinguish the Abos and even now there is an
incredibly strong racist sentiment towards them. Pity.
They're also a notably secular place, which is ironic given
the name of the town I'm in currently.
I've been approached by more prostitutes than I have cumulatively in my
life to this point, and was actually called out and questioned about sitting up
in my hostel bed to say thanks before I went to sleep.
Auckland
Auckland is the biggest city in New Zealand. Accordingly it feels the least New
Zealand-ey, as travellers from all over the world basically have no choice but
to come through here. All the big
players have offices - PWC, Deloitte, and ANZ have enormous HQs here, just to
name a few. It feels like a chunk of NYC
was transplanted down here, and then populated with MTV producers and Mountain
Dew enthusiasts. Every bar is "The
Best Party in Auckland," sleeves are outlawed even at nightime (Suns Out,
Guns Out taken too far) and around every corner are five different companies
offering you some kind of gravity-averse thrill. Auckland is, thusly, most Kiwis' least
favorite place to be, despite the fact that just twenty minutes outside
downtown and you're in true paradise settings.
The hostels, accordingly, are populated with the bartenders and coffee
shop workers who form the lowest social strata in the city and not the friendly
nature hippies that I tend to find funny.
They're also cramped and dirty, as per my last email. Auck was fun, but I was grateful to head out. Also there were no sheep here, which was
utterly frustrating.
Christchurch
Christchurch is the "Garden City" of New Zealand,
which is an honor likened to the "Cold City" of Canada or the
"Vodka City" of Poland; the superlative of a characteristic the whole
country possesses. It is dominated by
(surprisingly!) a massive Cathedral which was built 150 years ago once the city
was planned and established. It was a
Dutch Settlement discovered by Captain Cook, who was attempting to gain
notoriety and fame after Captain Morgan became extremely popular with nothing
but a trademark stance and shitty rum.
During the day the city is pristine. As much as Auckland felt like NYC, this
"downtown" feels more like a second-string European town. It felt like the town of Hiedelburg which I grew
up in, right down to the little 5-year old kids walking around town by
themselves without a worry in the world.
Old European-style architecture and museums stand out in this city full
of parks and ethnic food of truly every background - Brazillian, all kinds of
Asian, German, Mexican, and French, to name a few. The juxtaposition of old buildings is bizarre
- IBM headquarters here is adjacent to an old Bell Tower that could have been
built by Charlemagne by the look of it.
Also German/Belgian, about 60% of the restaurants here are beer gardens
and breweries unto themselves, which are open and serving all day. I treated myself liberally at lunch. When in Rome, ya know.
The parks here deserve an extended mention. I tried to walk to the famous Botanical
Gardens ("You gotta go mate") from my Hostel and became lost twice
because I found parks that looked so incredible that I just assumed they were
the Gardens. The pigeons don't even poop
on the statues here. Walking through the
parks is so scenic, you don't merely forget that you're exercising, you even
forget that you're fat. Then a 15-minute
bus ride from the city takes you to a gondola on a mountain, from which the
views could blow you away. Check
facebook for pictures. You'll really,
truly seethe with envy.
And that's all I wanted to add. This is the last time I'll email twice in two
days. My Contiki tour begins tomorrow,
and conquering the South Island will take lots of time and effort. I'll be in Queenstown, Wellington, Waitopo
caves, Lake Taupo, and other such locales, travelling with a busfull of
20-somethings who all just want to see the world like me. Maybe party a little, too...
Please let me know what you're up to. I want to know how my men's league team is
doing (If I'm not still #1 in goals there'll be hell to pay), how second
semester's going, how's Copenhagen, how're the Mooneys, etc.
Hugs and Handpounds,
R
No comments:
Post a Comment