All good things must come to an end, and so has our Big Trip. New Zealand has been great, mostly when it wasn’t raining. In my opinion it was a great last chapter of our 9 month long journey. We completed 7500km here with the RV, which means on average more than 200km per day.

Here are some stats and facts spanning the entire trip:

We

- set out on the road on May 1, 2007

- were homeless for 9 months, or 38 weeks, or 266 days

- visited 5 countries — USA, Canada, Fiji, Australia, New Zealand.

- traveled by plane, RV, car, boat, catamaran, train, foot and stroller.

- drove over 31,000km, burning way too much fossil fuel.

- spent almost a third of our life on the road (Shir and Orr) and hope to maintain such a great ratio in the coming years.

- shot over 25,000 pictures , but deleted over 70% of them (Digital Rules!!!).

- learned firsthand about more animals, birds, fish, plant life, rainforests, geology than any 4 year old ever has (Ron).

- ran 10% over budget due to the dollar’s freefall and the high cost of living in Oceania.

- are thankful that our parents were able to join us for parts of the trip (Raquel and Alfredo in Australia, Abe and Rachel in New Zealand)

- climbed, swung and slid in over 200 different playgrounds, developing coordination, confidence, and a daily high.

- had one broken bone and 3 cases of flu (Shir had the cutest purple cast in all of Canada, and Paola got sick a few times when the weather fluctuations were too rapid)

- managed to maintain our sanity despite the unnatural state of being cooped all together 24/7 for 266 days (Hemi and Paola + 3)

- skipped winter this year, spending the last 5 months in the Southern Hemisphere

- visited over 50 National and State Parks.

- changed more than 1500 diapers and prepared over 300 liters of milk for the kids to drink.

Thanks for following our adventures from home and being there for us to return to!

Hemi Paola Ron Shir and Orr

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We left Franz Josef yesterday morning and drove most of the day. The weather was good most of the time, with the sun shining intensely upon us as we climbed from the coast to Arthur’s Pass. The views in the mountains around the pass were quite impressive, with a giant gorge just a few km shy of the mountain divide.

We originally planned to stay at the pass for the night in makeshift camping site, but since we were doing well with the time, we decided to push further towards Chch. We did stop along the banks of the Waimakariri river for the kids to play for a while before continuing on the long drive.

A few km before Christchurch, and after seeing over 20 millions sheep in NZ, we finally got stuck in "sheep traffic". Farmers were trying to get the sheep to cross the road, but the animals had their own idea. Paola managed to film the episode.

We reached the campground at 7pm. To be honest, the drive was too long. We completed almost 400km, and the children were going nuts in the back of the RV. At least that left all of today in the city and vicinity without too much driving.

Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse and it was very windy last night and this morning, with spurts of rain and cold. We did get the kids out to the playground for a bit before heading to the Antarctic center.

The NZ Antarctic center was a fun and pleasant place to spend a few cold rainy morning hours. NZ and the US are two of the countries highly invested in scientific exploration of the last continent. There is a huge research and prep center in Christchurch. Flights for Antarctica leave from Chirstchurch airport several times a week in the summer (That’s an ideaJ )

We learned about the continent, the cold temperatures, penguins and human habitation. They have a cold room with a storm simulator that gets the temp down to -18C. Brrr!

The kids enjoyed viewing the blue penguins even though they weren’t doing much. In fact, over the last few weeks, Ron has asked and learned a lot about penguins, including watching Happy Feet and March of the Penguins several times.

After a quick lunch in the RV, we drove into Christchurch city center for a last stroll and souvenir buying. Orr and Shir slept in the stroller for a while and we had some quiet. Later in the afternoon we returned to the Canterbury Museum which we visited three weeks ago. The kids enjoyed playtime in the discovery center, while Paola and I struggled not to fall asleep in the stuffy museum. Seems like there is a lack of oxygen in the museum halls.

Back at the campground this evening, Paola started packing. Writing this last chapter, I am surrounded by mountains of clothes, toys, bags, and equipment that we have been using for the last few months. Tomorrow most of it will go back to the US with us.

It’s hard to believe that our great adventure is almost over. Look for a summary blog in the coming days.

Good night,

-Hemi

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Yesterday started late and lazy for us, after all of us went to sleep well past our bedtime. The sun was shining brightly and we took the kids out to run around the playground for a while. Around noonish we drove a few km to Lake Matheson, and were deeply disappointed. The forest hike to the lake was pleasant, but the supposedly blue water was brownish, there was no reflection of Mt Cook because the wind was rippling the water, and some dead animal created a terrible stench. We couldn’t even see Mt cook because the mountains were covered in clouds.

We drove half an hour to Franz Josef and once again on a gravel road towards the glacier. The sunny weather of a few hours ago was replaced by wind and clouds and a short walk to a Pete’s Pool was enough for the day. If you are wondering about the galciers’ names — Fox was named by then NZ PM Sir Edwin Fox after himself. And Franz Josef in the 1860’s by an Austro-Hungarian explorer, after the Kaiser.

This morning I left the family behind for a few hours and went ice walking with one of the local guide companies. They provided jackets, boots and crampons as well as guiding you around the ice. I opted for the helihike option, which took us from town on a 6 seater Squirrel chopper on a 10 minute flight to the middle of the glacier. We landed about 4km up the glacier and the views were incredible.

The walk was rather easy, with the young guide using his ice axe to pave a path for us wherever there was a bit of a slippery slope. We enjoyed amazing views and got up close to all those crazy ice sculptures. We even crawled through a small blue cave. One daring swimming teacher even plunged into a glacial pool of water. The sun was shining brightly and every few minutes we could hear and see another chopper flying by. Big day for the business when the weather is this good.

When I got back to the campground Paola was finishing the last of the laundry. We had lunch and all took a nap before the afternoon activities. We drove back to the glacier and did a few short walks to viewpoints of the terminal face. But we didn’t get as close as with Fox, because the trail here was longer and more difficult to do with a stroller.

We finished the day off with a meal at an Indian restaurant before returning to the campground for our last night on the west coast.

Tomorrow we head to Arthur’s Pass and then onwards to Christchurch.

Good night,

-Hemi

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We had a long rainy drive today. It started raining last night and didn’t stop all day log. We left Wanaka in the morning and drove north to Haast Pass and then along the west coast. Although the weather was crappy, the views were stunning. Everywhere you looked waterfalls were gushing onto the road. We never saw so much water.

When we reached Glacier Country in the afternoon the rain seemed to stop. The Fox Glacier is one of the most accessible in the world. Although it originates in the Mount Cook area, it almost reaches the sea, at a relatively low altitude. From the main highway we drove 4km along a dirt road, to a makeshift parking lot and we could see it.

We packed the kids and Paola up in multi layers of warm clothing, including hats and mittens purchased in Auckland 2 months ago, and started marching on a gravel path towards the glacier. Lucky for us it wasn’t that cold, and we began shedding some layers as we got warmed up from the walk. Every once in a while a cold wind blew from the glacier to remind us of the millions of tons of ice that lay ahead.

Towards the last few 100 meters we had to abandon the stroller. The path was obliterated by a heavy waterflow that left rock debris in its way. We slowly navigated the kids around and continued all 5 by foot. There was also a little stream to cross. Finally we got to the glacier, almost. For our safety, there was a makeshift fence keeping us 80m away from the glacier’s terminal face. Since the glacier moves down the valley at a rate of a few meters a day, it is very unstable and huge chunks of ice can come down any minute.

We were very impressed by the sheer size and immensity of the ice. It looked like it was at least 100m thick. Many parts were brown, mixed in with dirt, but the top part was white and shiny, sculpted into many beautiful forms and shapes. On top of it all the sun shone for a brief moment while we were admiring the beautiful icescape.

We headed back to the carpark as the weather once again took a turn for the worse. On the way a nice kiwi family helped us traverse the rock fall with the kids. At the carpark we enjoyed seeing kea birds dancing on top of our RV, hoping the inquisitive fellows won’t chew or rip anything off.

We reached the campground at 8pm, with a slight drizzle, and prepared our dinner of chicken soup and couscous inside the RV to warm it up. By the time the kids were asleep it was almost 11pm.

Good night,

-Hemi

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Today we parted with my parents after two weeks of traveling together in the South Island. We had a great time, and are sad to see them off, but the North Island has a few attractions as well. Ron especially was sensitive, but he got over it quickly.

Yesterday morning we left Queenstown, not before Saba and Savta took Ron to a one hour Kiwi experience tour. We stopped briefly in Arrowtown, a former gold mining boomtown, and now a quiet Queenstown tourist satellite. We then drove through the scenic route to Wanaka, winding up and down a scenic mountain range with some tight turns.

Wanaka is supposedly what Queenstown was 25 years ago, a quiet lakefront town blessed with gorgeous views, but without the tourism intensity. We checked into a rather shabby Top 10, and after the kids got their fill of playground time, we decided to go find a suitable hike. Unfortunately Paola got sick, so she stayed behind in my parents’ motel unit.

With help from my parents, we took the kids to climb Mt Iron (sounds gruesome!) which at 250m above the town, affords great views of Lkae Wanaka and Lake Hawea. Mom did a great job walking up the hill, and so did Ron. Shir and Orr did a great job walking down. I did a good job pushing the stroller with dad’s help.

Back at the campground we prepared a tasty supper while Saba took Ron to the swimming pool. On the way back Ron ran, fell, and scraped his knee, which resulted in a tumultuous hour for us, trying to calm him down.

Obviously this morning the knee was fine and Ron was in good spirits. Dad and I got up early for a flightseeing tour of the area (see previous post). After we returned and had breakfast, it was time to say goodbye. We drove together to Puzzling World, where we bid farewell.

At Puzzling world, the kids, as well as Poala and myself, had a great time. It has a maze, several rooms with optical illusions and lots of challenging puzzles for kids and grownup kids. After spending several hours in the air conditioned complex, we returned to our hot RV, the sun above creating on of the hottest days I can remember here.

We headed to Glendhu Bay, 10 minutes from Wanaka, where we decided to stay tonight. The campground is packed full, but it is on the lakefront. After everybody napped, we spent a while outside by the water, the kids playing with the sand rocks and twigs. Paola is still sick, so we decided not to try an afternoon hike.

By early evening it started to get cloudier and now it is raining. The forecast for tomorrow is rain all day.

Good night,

-Hemi

Dad and I took an early morning scenic flight from Wanaka airport today. It was one of the most memorable part of this trip. We took off at 7:30am for a 90 minute loop that included Mt Alta, Mt Aspiring (3200m), several glaciers including Rob Roy, Haast River valley, Milford Sound, Milford track including Sutherland Falls, Rees Dart Vallies, Glenorchy, and back through Lake Wanaka. It was great. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Cheers!

-Hemi

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After our amazing sunny day on the way to Milford, the weather changed and our return to Te Anau was markedly different. It rained most of the way, at times quite heavily. We did stop at Lake Marian for a short visit to the rapids, which were bustling with white water. By the time we reached Mirror Lakes the weather improved somewhat but it was still cloudy enough to block off the mirror.

In Te Anau, Ron got to visit the glow worm cave with his grandparents while Paola and I took Shir and Orr for a stroll around town. We spent the late afternoon moping around in the campground and enjoying the fine weather.

We have spent the last 2 days in touristy Queenstown. Yesterday morning we left Te Anau and drove in a straight shot the 170km to NZ’s premier tourist destination. The last half hour drive along lake Wakatipu, surrounded by majestic mountains, clarified the reason for that.

We got into town and had lunch at the Queen’s Gardens. We then checked into our campground, strategically located 5 minutes walk from the Gondola. We got ourselves together and took the steep lift up the hill to see the great vistas from above. Truly beautiful. While up at the top, dad and I experimented with some rides down the luge, a low adrenaline rush, but fun nonetheless.

We got back down and walked around the town for a while, soaking in the hustle bustle that we haven’t seen anywhere else in NZ, including Rotorua. Lots of languages, many younger tourists, lots of Israelis.

We found a great Japanese restaurant and enjoyed a delicious meal. It was hard to keep the kids off my sushi. Ron enjoyed miso soup, Paola the tempura, and dad had a deeply moving experience with the suki yaki.

This morning dad and I got up early to hike near Queenstown. Not a spectacular walk, but with pretty views, and a visit to an old gold miner’s hut. The sky today was much darker and ominous than yesterday balmy atmosphere. By the time we got back to the campground it was fully covered in clouds.

We decided to stroll around town a bit more and reach a lakefront playground. Just outside the campground we encountered a kiddie bungy, which Ron thoroughly enjoyed, soaring up and down for several minutes.

We walked around, browsing tourist shops (Mom and Paola), and stopped for a late lunch in a mediocre Indian restaurant. When we finished eating, we were trapped. It was raining cats and dogs outside. After waiting half an hour at a nearby mall, we decided to make a dash for it, and ran up the hill to our campground.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in my parents’ unit, which was quite comfortable having two rooms. The kids played with Saba and Savta, and I took a long nap. Although Shir and Orr have been spoken to in Hebrew for less than 2 weeks, they seem to understand a lot of what their grandparents are saying to them. They are already picking up the basic words (Ken, Lo, Od, Maim) and using them correctly. Incredible, these young minds.

Good Night,

-Hemi

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Shabbat Shalom!

We got lucky today, and saw the world famous Milford Sound in good weather. We even joined a two hour cruise that was spectacular. In fact the whole day was one big photographic orgasm.

I’ll step back one day to tell of yesterday’s activities in Te Anau. We were a bit lazy after the long drive from the day before, so only after 10 did we leave the campground. We drove a few minutes to the start of the Keppler track at Lake Te Anau. The walk through a Beech forest was pleasant and not too hard. We stopped at Dock Bay for a rest on the beach before heading back. The sun was shining brightly and it was nice and warm.

After lunch we drove down to Fraser Beach in Marah???. I took a nap while everyone else played in the sand. We then drove back to Te Anau, stopping at Rainbow Reach to check out the swing bridge.

This morning we were a bit more industrious and left the campground early for the scenic 120km drive to Milford Sound. The weather was clear and sunny. The first part of the drive until "The Divide" was pretty but not exceptional after 2 months here. But once we got into the mountains, the last 50km were truly spectacular. We stopped in a few places for photo ops, and also did a short walk just before the Homer Tunnel. The tunnel itself is quite long, over 1km with a stoplight to enable one way traffic.

We stopped at "the chasm" to take some more pictures before heading out to the sound. When we got to the lodge, we booked the last cruise of the day on a small vessel (60 people) called Mitre Peak. We then drove to the sound, and already from the parking lot the view was amazing - high cliffs falling almost vertically into the water of the fiord.

The cruise was great, the weather was pretty good, with only partial cloud cover. The captain extended the cruise time from 2 to 2.5 hour and gave us more time to appreciate the beauty of the sound. And we all snapped pictures like mad. We passed by the sheer cliffs, got wet from waterfalls 3 times the height of Niagra Falls, saw sea lions, and saw the Tasman sea.

Now back at the lodge (campground), the sky is grey and it has begun raining. It looks like we made it here just in time. Tomorrow we will drive back to Te Anau and check out the rest of the views along the road.

Good Night,

-Hemi