Whangarei (but pronounced: Fangaray, I think)

So we have finally uploaded some of our New Zealand pictures. Just click on "Our pictures" on the left hand side in order to view them. Hope you like them. :) Especially since it took us a loooooong time to upload them. Technology is just a little behind here...and that is me being nice.

Anywho, today was another lovely day. Actually I could give you a run down of our typical day. Wake up at about 6:00 a.m. because of the sun, get up at about 7:30 or 8:00 (only because we go to bed so dang early), eat breakfast and get the van ready to go, usually drive to the next place we want to travel to, then go for a walk or visit a museum or something of interest once we get there, chill, eat an ice cream, eat lunch, look around a bit more, chill some more, eat dinner, read a little or roughly plan the next day and go to bed around 8:30 or 9:00 because it is dark and we are tired from getting up so early. Exciting, huh? Doesn't sound like it maybe but it really is.

Today we walked up a little mountain overlooking Whangarei. It was a really nice view of the little city. Tomorrow we are going to go to the local museum where they have a Kiwi House so we can finally see some Kiwis. Then we are going to have a look at the Falls here and take a few walks in the Kauri Park. Then the next day we will go exploring the Abbey Caves and see some glowworms and then move on to the next beach we are going to camp at! We have camped on so many beaches now that after a while they all start to look somewhat alike. But still AMAZING!!

Now go check out the photos and give us some feedback on how you like them. :)

The Bay of Islands

Sorry for the lapse in posts, but we have been in the middle of nowhere for a while. We left Auckland about a week ago and headed up the west coast to the Northland. We have seen some pretty amazing stuff so far and met some great people. We spent a bit of time in the Waipoua Forest with the huge Kauri trees and Maitai Bay where we had pretty much the whole bay and surrounding beaches to ourselves. We also went to Cape Reinga which is at the tip of the North Island where they have a lighthouse and Giant Sand Dunes. Christoph and I went sand surfing (well, Christoph more than me). Now we are in The Bay of Islands. A pretty touristy place but it is fairly empty this time of year. We just went sailing all day today on a big sailboat with about 7 or 8 other people. It was so cool! I am hooked on sailing now...we even volunteered to help him the next few days if he needs it. I hope he calls us!

Oh man, there is so much to report, but so little time. I only have 5 more minutes left on the Internet. We will post pictures soon I hope, but everywhere we have been so far doesn't have USB ports. I think once we go back through the Auckland area in about a week or so we will be able to upload some. I will keep you all posted.

I miss you all and wish you could all be here with us to enjoy this amazing country! The people here are really great too and so laid back...a big change from Germany, and so refreshing! But you know I love all you Germans too! :) Thanks for all your comments guys and keep 'em comin'!!

Auckland City

It's funny you know. I hardly ever posted before and now I find myself wanting to post about everything. Maybe it has something to do with all this time I have on my hands. :) By the way, it is really hard to get used to the English keyboard again. I keep hitting the z for the y and when I want make a smiley face it looks like this >)

Anyway, we arrived to Auckland safely as well. From the airport we took a shuttle bus with a crazy driver. We had some time before we could check into our room so we got ourselves an address and opened a bank account. Once we checked in we took showers and slept for like 12 hours straight. But when we woke up it was like 2 in the morning and we were starving and wide awake. But we just read a little and went back to sleep until like 8. Then we had a nice breakfast and a wander around town.

Some things about Auckland: you can get sushi everywhere, it is a little chilly, there are a variety of people and they are nice and friendly. We also signed up to AA. NOT to be confused with Alcoholics Anonymous. AA is the equivalent of ADAC or AAA. Through them we will be able to get our future van inspected and we will get roadside assistance if we break down on the road. Handy since we will be on the road a lot.

Now we are getting ready to go have some all we-can-eat sushi for lunch for only 13 NZD, about 6.50 EUR. That shows how competitive the sushi market is here. And tonight we have an appointment to go see the van that we showed everyone. I hope it turns out to be a keeper. >)

For those of you who would like to write us a letter or something, here is our address for the next year:

Fat Camel Travel Desk
c/o Christina Miller or Christoph Schumacher Mailbox # 4661
38 Fort Street
Auckland City 1010

Top Twizelve times two.

Just in case you were wondering, here are the 12 CDs we each took. Apologies to people who we told what we took, but made mistakes (actually, only I made the mistake of saying I took Black Sabbath and forgetting Phish):

Christina can't stand a year without:

1. Jack Johnson - In Between Dreams
2. Hole - Live Through This
3. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Greatest Hits
4. John Cougar Mellencamp - The Best I Could Do 1978-1988
5. No Doubt - The Beacon Street Collection
6. David Bowie - Hunky Dory
7. David Bowie - Aladdin Sane
8. Johnny Cash - American IV: The Man Comes Around
9. Loretta Lynn - Van Lear Rose
10. Nirvana - Nevermind
11. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
12. The Guess Who - Greatest Hits


Christoph would disintegrate without:

1. Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
2. Metallica - Ride the Lightning
3. Cannibal Ox - The Cold Vein
4. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced?
5. Monster Magnet - Dopes to Infinity
6. Tool - Aenima
7. Phish - Rift
8. Tom Waits - Heart of Saturday Night
9. Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
10. Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin'
11. System of a Down - Steal This Album
12. The Presidents of the United States of America - The Presidents of the United States of America

What we are seriously missing is some soul stuff from like Stevie Wonder or something, and Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin. But I think all in all we have a pretty strong collection here. What do you think?

One Night in Bangkok

So, we made it safely to Bangkok...halfway there! :) The flight from Frankfurt to Bangkok was a pretty relaxing one. We had a whole row of seats to ourselves. The plane wasn't very full. It was nice to lay down and really stretch out. I think that was the first time I was ever able to do so. We also had the pleasure of seeing some major mullitude. The DUDE had it all: permed mullet, pencil-like mustache, bright yellow shirt, cool boots and "the walk". He even said "Servus" to the lucky people he was about to sit next to...but since the plane was so empty he decided to move to the back and we didn't get to see him much until we arrived in Bangkok; where he completed his image by jamming into a crowded little enclosed room to smoke. Perfect!

Also while at the airport, we had another exciting encounter with an interesting fellow. Although this time we only got to hear him. As I was brushing my teeth in the bathroom, he came into my ears via the intercom. He was announcing something about flights (which is of course expected at airports), but this guy was different. He sounded like he was announcing some sort of exciting sporting event. It was so funny that I nearly spit out my toothbrush and fell to the floor with laughter. But I composed myself and carried on brushing. When I came out, Christoph was also laughing and we both knew why. Very funny guy! But maybe that's how he gets his kicks during the long working day. Why should he care anyway...no one can see him. Well, now we just have one more long (bound to be filled with JOY) flight and we're there. Can't wait!