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rockfsh 
"Laugh, Love, Cheer"
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 Posted - 06/14/2007 : 04:47:18
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| Visited the leper colony, did you? |
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thefoxboy 
"Four your eyes only."
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Posted - 06/14/2007 : 05:51:32
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benj clews 
"...."
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Posted - 06/14/2007 : 13:36:32
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quote:
Originally posted by Se�n
Flying into Wellington is a most unusual way to begin a NZ trip. Any particular reason? 
I have relatives who can meet us at Wellington, so that's the reason for that 
quote:
What are your main interests in NZ? Let me know and I could give you some advice. Unless you're not interested in mother nature at it's most spectacular, then skipping South Westland, Wanaka, Central Otago, Mt Cook and Milford in favour of some sheep farms and pine plantations after coming 20,000km would be a monumental error.  How long are you staying here? And could you change your flight into Wellington and fly into Christchurch instead? Etc etc. I know NZ like the back of my hand and give free advice to fwfrers. 
We're unlikely to change the arrival point (for the above mentioned reason), but I've no problem heading south if there's something there that interests us. I guess some fantastic scenery would be nice (ideally on the cheap and not requiring car rental (neither of us can drive)). I should probably have a read up on southern NZ or something- see what stands out to me. Also what's the cheapest (i.e. time isn't a big issue for us) way of getting to the south?
We aren't planning on staying for more than a fortnight at most- this holiday was basically about dossing about in Thailand and seeing some relatives whilst out here really.
quote:
BTW, if you'd asked me about Thailand I would have recommended one day in Bangkok, then get the hell out of there and head south to a beach, although I'd have picked Koh Phangan over Samui as it's a little less developed and has bigger parties.
We might pop over there, but we came on holiday to get away from pissed-up British lager louts if at all possible, so I'm not sure the full moon party (or similar ilk) would be too high on our agenda  |
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Chris C
"Four words, never backwards."
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Posted - 06/14/2007 : 20:17:04
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| Benj - Am I right in remembering that Boydegg is somewhere in Thailand? |
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Cheese_Ed
"The Provolone Ranger"
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Posted - 06/14/2007 : 21:08:24
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quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
I guess some fantastic scenery would be nice (ideally on the cheap and not requiring car rental (neither of us can drive)). I should probably have a read up on southern NZ or something- see what stands out to me. Also what's the cheapest (i.e. time isn't a big issue for us) way of getting to the south?
That seals it - benj, I believe you are officially the anti-Cheese! I'm six months away from the trip and I read about NZ every day for several hours, it seems.
Easy solution - take the ferry from Wellington to the South Island, have Sean meet you at the dock and give you a 10-14 day personally guided tour of the South. It's the least he could do for all the hours of entertainment you've provided! |
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thefoxboy
"Four your eyes only."
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Posted - 06/14/2007 : 21:44:16
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quote:
Originally posted by Cheese_Ed
quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
I guess some fantastic scenery would be nice (ideally on the cheap and not requiring car rental (neither of us can drive)). I should probably have a read up on southern NZ or something- see what stands out to me. Also what's the cheapest (i.e. time isn't a big issue for us) way of getting to the south?
That seals it - benj, I believe you are officially the anti-Cheese! I'm six months away from the trip and I read about NZ every day for several hours, it seems.
Easy solution - take the ferry from Wellington to the South Island, have Sean meet you at the dock and give you a 10-14 day personally guided tour of the South. It's the least he could do for all the hours of entertainment you've provided!
Get him to cook for you aswell. |
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Sean 
"Necrosphenisciform anthropophagist."
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Posted - 06/15/2007 : 02:04:23
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quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
We're unlikely to change the arrival point (for the above mentioned reason), but I've no problem heading south if there's something there that interests us. I guess some fantastic scenery would be nice (ideally on the cheap and not requiring car rental (neither of us can drive)). I should probably have a read up on southern NZ or something- see what stands out to me. Also what's the cheapest (i.e. time isn't a big issue for us) way of getting to the south?
OK, I'd have suggested the following as a basic itinerary for a quick look around NZ with essential stop in Wellington based on use of public transport...
a) Arrive in Christchurch.
b) Bus to Tekapo then Mt Cook.
c) Then to Queenstown for scenery, bungy, ski, jetboat, whitewater rafting etc. Day trip to Milford.
d) Wanaka.
e) Bus to Fox Glacier, walk on glacier.
f) Bus up the West Coast.
g) Nelson and Abel Tasman if time allows, otherwise bus directly from West Coast to Picton.
h) Ferry from Picton to Wellington (a couple of hours).
i) Bus through Tongariro NP to Rotorua.
j) Bus to Auckland and fly out.
So, arrival in Wellington complicates the matter, you'd essentially have to take the ferry to Picton, then bus down to Mt Cook (quite a long way). Wellington to Mt Cook is gonna take you 2 days. One option you could look at is flying from Wellington to Queenstown, then take the above itinerary from c) above (i.e., forget Mt Cook), it would save 2 days sitting on a bus.
80% of the stuff that people come to NZ for is in the south and west of the South Island, so even once you've taken the ferry from Wellington to Picton you're still at the wrong corner of the South Island. There's not much point coming to the South Island unless you're heading for Queenstown/Wanaka/West Coast which are NZ's primary attractions. Its LOTR country down there.  |
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Cheese_Ed
"The Provolone Ranger"
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Posted - 07/17/2007 : 18:16:53
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| Benj, are you in or out of NZ yet? What's the scoop on the trip? |
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Pope George Ringo
"the Pope on stage"
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Posted - 07/17/2007 : 23:05:03
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I'd go along with most of Sean's NZ itinerary, however I'd say sea kayaking along Able Tasman is a must and I'd take the train from Wellington to Auckland instead of the bus, the view is a little better than the one you get just riding up the road.
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Sean
"Necrosphenisciform anthropophagist."
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Posted - 07/17/2007 : 23:17:52
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quote:
Originally posted by Cheese_Ed
Benj, are you in or out of NZ yet? What's the scoop on the trip?
He hasn't come knocking at my door yet. |
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benj clews
"...."
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Posted - 07/22/2007 : 14:56:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Cheese_Ed
Benj, are you in or out of NZ yet? What's the scoop on the trip?
I'm still in Thailand- Chiang Mai, but will be flying out to NZ at the end of this month. I'm hoping to plan out a rough idea of what, where and when in NZ before then and will let you know once I have some kind of idea. Sorry to be so vague, but it's been hard to sit down and plan anything yet since Internet Cafes are few and far between here (well, ones that aren't crammed full of Thai teens playing online games anyway)  |
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benj clews
"...."
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Posted - 07/27/2007 : 18:39:02
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Okay, small status update... we're now flying into Christchurch on the 1st of August. We've yet to figure out the rest mind  |
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Sean
"Necrosphenisciform anthropophagist."
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Posted - 07/28/2007 : 00:15:42
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quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
Okay, small status update... we're now flying into Christchurch on the 1st of August. We've yet to figure out the rest mind
Wow! So you might be passing through Nelson then for the first NZ confourence? If you do, that would be great, but if it doesn't suit your plans/timeframe then no worries, it'll be disappointing but I'll still write fwfrs.
Keep me posted. |
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benj clews
"...."
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Posted - 07/30/2007 : 09:33:16
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quote:
Originally posted by Se�n
quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
Okay, small status update... we're now flying into Christchurch on the 1st of August. We've yet to figure out the rest mind
Wow! So you might be passing through Nelson then for the first NZ confourence? If you do, that would be great, but if it doesn't suit your plans/timeframe then no worries, it'll be disappointing but I'll still write fwfrs.
Keep me posted.
Um... when's the NZ confourence planned? (Sorry- couldn't find any other info about it ) |
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Sean
"Necrosphenisciform anthropophagist."
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Posted - 07/30/2007 : 09:57:10
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quote:
Originally posted by benj clews
Um... when's the NZ confourence planned? (Sorry- couldn't find any other info about it )
Ermmm.... whenever you want it. Cheese_Ed is here in November, so that one will either be the first or the second NZ confourence depending on whether you pass through Nelson or not on in the next couple of weeks. So the first NZ confourence will be sometime in the next couple of weeks I'd guess, that's up to you mostly. Invited to that confourence are:-
benj
Sean
and any other fwfrers who'll be in the vicinity at the time, i.e, probably none. So, let me know if/when you'll be anywhere in the Nelson region and I'd be real keen to catch up. That's assuming you want to meet the fwfrer who's furthest away from the fwfr server. |
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Announcement #3: See the fwfr corners of the Earth
