All thanks to a random Facebook post, we decided on New Zealand. Trust me, neither of us had any clue what NZ has to offer so research had to be intensive. The only thing I know was of course, Lord of the Rings. It took us quite awhile to decide which parts of NZ to visit and the fact that we actually came up with 2 separate itineraries; 1 for North & South and another for just South. So due to time and financial constraints, we decided on South! Point to note: If you want to see the Maoris, they are up in the North. Together with the whole Hobbiton. Oh and they have definitely more Halal food there. South has more of the scenic views and your other crazy-where-you-can-leave-your-soul-up-there kind of activities.
But you can visit both! Just add another $200 I think, for your ferry ride down to South, with your car. Imagine that, you & the car, on a ferry! Now, that would be something eh.
First and foremost, WHAT AN EXPERIENCE I HAD IN NEW ZEALAND! OMG. There were so many firsts on this adventure. First backpacking moment, first road trip, first all girls trip, first to almost everything! Where do I begin with this;
Packing was an ass! I was so confused on what I had to pack. Technically it’s summer but yet the weather was fluctuating between 11-16 degrees Celsius. So the bimbo me rather packed for summer, only bringing over 1 thermal top. BAD IDEAAA. cause I technically nearly froze every freaking body part I had over there.
TIP 1: Check the weather forecast and trust it! Google can never go wrong. TRUST GOOGLE. If it’s 18 degrees Celcius and below, and you know you can’t stand the cold, JOLLY WELL BRING YOUR THERMALS, HEAT PACKS, AND FLEECE! Ouhh, & WINDBREAKER too! cause bloody hell, the winds of NZ can be rather C R A Z Y! Don’t bother about packing a brolly. Like I said, the winds are too strong. Your brolly will just float out of your hands.
Wind was definitely too strong! Can’t even open the eyes. Smart people have shades on though. Ehem.
Season: SUMMER. Yes! Temperature here was 3 degrees.
Tip 2: Get a comfortable car. You’ll be driving for hours! Comfort is rather important. Well, there were 6 of us, so the Estima seemed to be the next best option. Of course, the best would be an SUV. Due to cost though, about $900NZD for 2 weeks seems like a good bargain eh. And fuel is rather pricey there, similar to the one in SG. So please, remember to cater that in.
Yes, this was our trusty Estima! It survived through that many hours of on the roads and em’ heavy luggage.
In other news, I totally E N J O Y E D driving in NZ! I would definitely do it all over again and again. You won’t hear me saying this about driving in SG.
Tip 3: The speed limit is 110km/hr on the highway so stick to that. But don’t be surprised if you see camper vans overtaking you just allow them to do that yea. You shall just drive steadily at the speed limit. Heard it’s rather easy to get a speeding ticket there.
Tip 4: Get ready for roadkill! A gazillion of them to be honest, mostly possums. They were like everywhere while we were driving. Totally lost count with the number of roadkill we saw. But the counting will help in keeping you awake throughout the hours of what it seemed like endless driving though! So don’t be alarm okay. Just drive. The roads there are one-way lanes, so you can’t really avoid em’ roadkills.
Tip 5: If there are signs showing “Photo spots”, yah go ahead and do a damn pit stop. You will never see such spectacular sight anywhere else in the world please! (Okay perhaps Scotland or Australia). Anyhoos, the view is phenomenal!! Or you can just follow the crowd. Without a doubt, there will be cars parked and people around the area with their canons and GoPros out snapping some beautiful shots.
I swear, we didn’t even know what this lake was. We stopped and took a photo just cause we saw a few cars parked and people were out snapping shots.
Hah. This one too. But this was our first photo stop.
Imagine if we did not stop. I wouldn’t have gotten to see the beautiful scenery. I can’t even remember where was this!
Yep, a quick one. A shot taken like within a minute or two and we went back to the car.
Tip 6: Check your petrol! Before a long drive, try to top up your petrol. You need to return the car with a full tank anyways. We got so worried when our tank was just a quarter full and we had hours more to go till our next destination. Thank god we managed to see a signboard to remind us to top it up and that there was ONE FINAL gas station before entering the only freeway to Fox Glacier.
Tip 7: Gadgets, gadgets, gadgets. Bring your own camera everyone! Because you will never know when one of your gadgets will fail on you. Did you know that Iphone cannot withstand the extreme cold weather? Don’t know why, but every one’s Iphone died in the cold though we had like what, 60% of battery life left. Hence, always bring around a portable charger. Very handy, it helped in reviving our ‘dead’ phone.
If you see carefully, all had our gadgets with us. Be it GoPro or phones.
Tip 8: Don’t have to eat out every day. A meal in NZ may cost you close to $NZ20. So visiting the supermarket or grocery store SHOULD be first on your agenda! Once done, get cooking! We had fun cooking in our apartments and eating comfortably together. It felt great, eating dinner all together as a group, talking and sharing. There isn’t much Halal food in NZ, hence the need to cook instant noodles and frozen food but we were pretty much okay surviving on those and bread! But to be honest ever since NZ, I have yet to cook any form of instant noodles.
Dinners were definitely one of the best part of the trip. Eating together and just chatting away.
Tip 9: Smile! :) You’ll be surrounded by a large population of beautiful people in NZ. Like serious no joke, every person we met were so sweet. From your airport staffs to the cashiers at the supermarket.We even had a chat with a biker, who shared with us regarding an earthquake or future earthquakes that may happen in NZ. Plus, it’s such a safe place and you don’t have to be afraid to ask for help or directions or whatsoever. Everyone is pretty much approachable. Just be respectful and smile.
To think of it, I believe he’s not even from NZ. But whatevess, he’s still a nice fella.
Yes, we trusted our lives with those back there.
Our tour guide up the glacier. Sweet…. Chili….
Biker dude!!
Tip 10: Have fun no matter what happens! Well, you may plan the perfect itinerary. But don’t forget a misadventure can still be an adventure too! :)
A million times over with em’ ladies.
Shopping was the only time split.
Yipeeeeee!
Kia Ora!
We need an encore, ladies! <3
I had a blast during this whole trip! To think every one expected us, girls, to have some kind of disagreements here and there. But hey, NONE! So thankful for that! :) NEED TO GET MY ASS BACK TO NZ & FINISH OFF THAT MOUNT COOK TREK.
WAIT UP NEW ZEALAND!
an interior gift 