Reflections of New Zealand

It's hard to believe we've been here for 6 weeks and about to head off to South America. When we first arrived in Australia we both felt a bit despondent with everything being very familiar and easy, lacking the challenge we'd experienced in South East Asia. After 3 months we've fully adjusted and feeling slightly apprehensive about getting back into the travelling mode in strange surroundings again (language, food, climate, noise etc)! We've really loved New Zealand. Our only regret is that we've not had longer here. Definitely a place to come back to if we get the chance; Simon's got grand plans for us to come back for the maximum time allowed on our visa of 6 months. Here's our reflections of the country from our time here:

• It's a staggeringly beautiful country with so many extremes from volcanos to alpine peaks to fiords. The differing colours and the brightness of them have also taken our breath away
• The weather has been excellent. We've had a few days of rain over the 6 weeks but it has just added to the beauty of the place filling rivers and waterfalls
• There's a real absence of animal wildlife, with the exception of roadkill we saw a few rabbits and nothing else. It's made up for with an abundance of bird and sealife. A plus has to be that there are no snakes (in fact nothing that will kill you)
• It's really easy to get around although we don't know how accessible places are by public transport. The roads are mostly single carriageway, windy and undulating but the quality is good. You just need to allow time when planning your journeys but the driving is not stressful (Kiwis in the main are courteous drivers)
• Everybody we have met has been extremely helpful and friendly. New Zealanders are very proud of their country and it's history and rightly so
• It really is set up to support the outdoors and people appreciate and treat the outdoors with the respect it deserves. From multi day long distance tramps to short strolls around scenic reserves. The investment in the infrastructure from the Department of Conservation must be significant and appears to maintain the balance between human access and preserving the beauty and wilderness of the country
• There are hundreds of campervans! The facilities at the campsites we stayed on were excellent. We didn't get the opportunity to stay in any huts but from what we understand they are well resourced (although you need to remember to take food, sleeping and cooking equipment unlike the huts in Europe)
• Food and drink isn't cheap here, being slightly higher than UK prices. Like with the Aussies' the country has a serious problem with obesity. Whilst pies and chips are definitely on the menu there is an abundance of good healthy food easily available. Petrol is probably a similar price to the UK at the moment
• Don't come here to avoid the midgies, the sandflies are as bad if not worse!