The Center of New Zealand

It is definitely a change going from Queenstown with a population of about 14,000 to 60,000 in Nelson. After my first night, in the strange hostel, I left in the morning to find a hostel that was more pleasing. Travelers I had met in another town had recommended the Paradiso. I decided to check it out. It had a pool and a free breakfast to offer. I did the unthinkable. I booked two nights. I normally book just one night at a time in order to get a feel for the hostel. If I don’t like it, I go somewhere else. By booking two nights at the hostel, they were able to keep me in the same room both nights as well as gave me a $2 discount each night. I discarded my stuff before hitting the town, getting some food and enjoying the sunny weather. When I arrived back at the hostel, there were two others in the room and another joined later. We began talking and somehow the topic of religion and Christianity came up. Each of us having a different perspective, the conversation lasted a good 2 hours.

The next day, Friday, I went into town, going to the library for internet before walking to the geographical center of New Zealand. While upon the hill in which the center was located, I met Christina, another traveler. We talked for a bit and proceeded to walk along the ridgeline as the sun went down. It was dark when I returned to the hostel. Being a Friday evening, one of the tour buses had dropped off a load of travelers. Those that travel via tour bus are generally those ranging from the age of 18-20 on their gap year and tend to party their way around the country. Not my cup of tea. That being said, I spent most of the evening in my room which I shared with some of these travelers.

Nelson

The Center of New Zealand

There were cows along the ridgeline. Of course, I had to take a picture.

The next morning, I had had enough of the atmosphere at Paradiso so I went out to find another hostel. Upon recommendation of another traveler, I found the Green Monkey; a small hostel with only 17 beds; much more my style. I spent the rest of the day bumming around, contemplating what to do in the days to come and going to the Saturday market. A guy who I had met at the hostel while in Queenstown was on his way to Nelson and there was a chance that we would meet up. It didn’t happen.

                           

On Sunday, leaving some of my stuff at the hostel, I packed my bag and went into town with the hopes of catching a bus going towards Abel Tasman. There were no buses going that way in the afternoon. All buses going that way leave in the morning. I spent the next hour and 45 minutes at the I-site planning my trip to Abel Tasman. It’s not as easy as it may sound. I had to arrange the bus to the national park which is an hour away, the water taxi, and book campsites. It only gets more complicated when parts of the walk are dependent on the tide. Because it is a costal walk, there are two places that you can only cross during low tide. The hostel had a tent that I was able to rent so I decided that it would be considerably cheaper for me to camp than to stay in the huts along the way. By the time I had left the I-Site, I had everything booked. I would be leaving the next morning at 7:10 and I would be spending 4 days and 3 nights in Abel Tasman National Park.  Even though I don’t like planning that far in advance, it was a good feeling. Later in the afternoon, I biked 20 minutes to the beach and although a bit cold, I stayed for a bit before returning to the hostel where I got my stuff together for Abel Tasman. I also went to the supermarket where I purchased enough food to last me for the 4 days I would be out in the middle of no where. Included in my purchase were 2 large bars of chocolate (a necessity when hiking), a lighter (for having campfires), and bug spray (to ward off those pesty sand flies). By the time I went to bed, I had everything ready for the morning. All I would have to do was change, eat, brush my teeth, and put my shoes on before walking out the door. Let the journey begin.

In other news: Over the past few days, thanks to my good friend Twigz, I have had this song stuck in my head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tAWwqKNI7g