My big annual adventure trip was to New Zealand with my two high school friends. Below are the notes taken by Gloria, the magnificent scribe. Re-reading these moments are hilarious and also make me miss my BROTHERS. See my Spielberg video moment at the end!
Fri Sept 23 Air New Zealand is the most superior airline there is Pretty airport cafe “Bission” bay cafe by Uber because our place we picked was sketchy Wendy described sheep to the Uber driver as “baaaa sheep” Wendy travelled to New Zealand and journaled for 1.5 hours in Starbucks Natasha dropped some COOL FACTS at Starbucks Ate at Mediterranean restaurant Wendy has a special talent of being able to tell the relationship between stray dogs and the homeless Wendy lost her banana bread on the plane and her hat somewhere else Luggage took 10 hours to come to the baggage claim The rental care place was closed so couldn’t pick up the car and had to take an Uber…was sad if there was gonna be a $2000 car instead Glad we took the Uber because the roads were SCARY Got to the Airbnb, Wendy didn’t notice the birthday decorations Sat Sept 24 aka Wendy’s bday Breakfast - we all shared one slice of banana bread and chickpeas Airbnb owner brought us flowers she picked from her garden Picked up car rental …..guy was really cool and gave us recommendations of restaurants We drove on the OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD for the first time Drove to boat shed cafe….really nice views but had to rush…we all had jalapeño scone with butter and coffee Brothers (*tm Wendy) BUNGY JUMPING!!! Natasha lost her shoe in the water A guy came in to bungy in a bright green mankini Went back to Airbnb to get Natasha another pair of shoes Went grocery shopping for breakfast and snacks Drove to restaurant with views of the mountain and Wendy played Jurassic park theme song for the mood Reservations to Fogo Brazilian bbq for Wendy’s bday…meat was alright but PINEAPPLE was soooooo good Walked by the water at night….really good views Went back to Airbnb….no hot water left for Natasha :( Sun Sept 25 Wendy made us garlic avocado toast with a fried egg and chorizo bacon for breakfast (thought for a second we didn’t have a cook top) Gloria and Natasha tried halloumi cheese for the first time….super good Did laundry….Natasha left a tissue in her pocket so lint was EVERYWHERE Gondola ride and 6 luge rides!! Wendy’s phone tried to call “dad” when we were at the top of the mountain Employee of the month was riding 5 luge car at the same time A kid fell face first into the luge car….had a delayed reaction People were paragliding beside the luge (Xtreme sports) Had to run to get the ski lift Natasha attempted to murder us on the luge track by bumping into us…but made it super fun Natasha drove so fast that her helmet couldn’t catch up to her and almost fell off After 3 round, had lunch at the cafe….Wendy thought she bought squid and fries…turns out it was chicken fingers A lady returned wendys lost phone Last round…NO BRAKES!! Wendy Tokyo drifted into the corner (3 wheels off the ground) because Natasha hit the weakest brother among the bunch But Gloria and Wendy got revenge on Natasha because we formed a chain and hit her in the back of her car Wendy dropped her phone out of her pocket Cute photos from the luge place Bought jelly belly’s for some reason at the luge place Went to Queenstown gardens….amazing views Saw human slingshot slide that kids were casually going on Drinks at Pig and whistle (after getting rejected from the place beside it because we didn’t have our passports for ID (low key complement because he thought we looked under 25) Mon Sept 26 Woke up at the crack of dawn Wendy made roasted tomato pesto toast with a red pepper and green onion omelette with chorizo and apples for breakfast Met the other dog at the Airbnb Left the nicest Airbnb Drove a nice scenic way Natasha got pulled over for going 113 in a 100 zone….got a breathalyzer test Drove almost 4 hrs to Milford Sound….all curvy roads Stopped to pee at the grossest bathroom Parking lot at Milford Sound has soooooooooooooooo many sandflys Wendy took a casual stroll to the cruise even though we were in a rush Milford Sound cruise!!! So pretty… waterfalls were the highlight Ate lunch on the boat….pizza and chicken fingers Drove to Airbnb in Te Anau Airbnb had a cool (but creaky) swing and amazing views Lots of deer and 3 angry dogs Tues Sept 27 Went to Sandfly cafe for brownie with yogurt sauce and Lolly cake….brownie was good, Lolly cake was sweet Boat to Te Anau glow worm cave…..turbo mode, really windy Glow worm tour….interesting tour guide…really funny He pushed the boat with his own hands Second tour guide’s catchphrase was “right-e-o” He taught us about the glow worm marketing scheme….actually maggots Wendy matched with someone that worked at the glow worm cave and looked like the second tour guide Drove to Melbourne lodge in Queenstown The guy at the desk was very casual and eventually left the keys for all of the guest who hadn’t checked in on the counter for them to take (very trusting) Late night real talks Wed Sept 28 Wendy made us tuna toast for breakfast Tried to get a second night booked at Melbourne Lodge…was too expensive so checked out Went for coffee and Boat house cafe in Queenstown Wendy/Natasha had a turmeric latte…mediocre Saw a homeless person who Wendy claimed was talking shit about a guy who wouldn’t give him money…by saying “I saw you yesterday with a different Brazilian woman”…no one can corroborate this story We almost forgot to tell pay….started to walk out before we realized that we didn’t pay Had to walk back to the car on the steepest hill Road trip to Glenorchy Had to stop at Hotel Glenorchy to pee…but had to buy something in order to use the washroom Sat outside….but started to rain so we went inside There was a dog under the table!! Drove on gravel for the Lord of the Rings tour Drove through fords with the Beast!! Wendy saw and scared the sheep roaming on the roads Then we got to a ford that was too deep so had to turn back….the park employee asked us if we were ok On the way back, we encountered a loose cow Wendy chased the cow and photographed it….cow posed for her At the last ford, an Asian family were shocked that our little car made it through the water. We inspired them to continue their journey…we hope they made it home Drove back to Queenstown, looked for souvenirs….everything was ugly Stopped for dinner at Pier….we all had seafood linguine…scallops were 🔥🔥🔥….Gloria’s first time eating mussels!! Grocery shopping at Pak ‘n’ Save like the locals Drove to the Airbnb….really modern and clean….did laundry and had a good sleep (All had to sleep separately because germs were next level) Thurs Sept 29 Wendy made poached pesto eggs, roasted tomatoes, and crumpets for breakfast (first time eating crumpets for Natasha and Gloria) Gloria had to drive to grocery store to get plastic bags Road trip to Lake Tekapo!! Stopped in Omarama for drinks A lady stopped us in the gift shop where we stopped to pee to inform us that we dropped a hat outside the car Continued the road trip and stopped at lakes with the bluest water for photos Took a nap at the Airbnb in Fairlie Drove to stargazing in the darkest, coldest, rainest of nights…no streetlights because Lake Tekapo is a dark sky reserve Went stargazing at the hot springs…was raining so we stayed inside and watched a virtual reality star movie and then went to hot springs…still couldn’t see any stars The guide was spitting star facts at us while we were in the hot spring…more trees than stars in our galaxy, but more stars in the universe than grains of sand Got back to the Airbnb really late Fri Sept 30 Got up late Drove to Lake Tekapo, saw 7 police cars on the way (Natasha didn’t get pulled over…yay! 🥳) Got a drink at the stargazing cafe, saw people doing extreme sports there (tubing) Went for a hike at Mount John Summit Track Drove to the bridge area, saw Church of the Good Shepard and a dog statue Wendy and Natasha tried to make a video holding hands but got interrupted by a dog Beach was freezing cold and some crazy people were wearing shorts Walked to the bridge which was supperrrr clean and had no spider webs Went to gift shop, saw a Jelly Belly statue (They’re obsessed with Jelly Belly for some reason) and searched for a cafe Everything was pretty much closed and everywhere we went served really meals and we just wanted to get scones Stopped at this one place with really good hot chocolate The lady at the restaurant offered to throw out Natasha’s rubbish Went grocery shopping Sat Oct 1 Left Airbnb Stopped for coffee beside the grocery store Drove to Christchurch…around 2 hrs Natasha took a sharp turn and Wendy almost got ejected from the car Stopped for coffee again Checked in early at the motel Guy appeared instantly when Wendy rang the bell The guy asked for Wendy to write down license plate. She took the pen and instantly dropped it, so the guy had to write it for us Motel had free SIM cards!!! Guy gave us a room that the lady wasn’t done cleaning. She was pissed and yelled at the guy Guy gave us another room that also wasn’t ready Walked into town and stopped at the public library Bought tram tickets from this really cute old guy who explained to us the route of the tram and how it worked Rode the tram around downtown Christchurch The conductor (who was old) helped an even older lady get up the steps of the tram and encouraged her on the way Went to Riverside market for dinner (box of bites and prawn roll) Did some shopping….glassons (lady told us that the store closed in 2 mins, even though after 2 mins people were still coming in) crystal store, multiple souvenir shops Had to leave because every shop closed around 5:30pm (even though it was Saturday) Tried to ride an e-scooter back to motel, wifi was real slow so couldn’t download the app, was freezing outside so we decided to just walk back Couldn’t get any bakery foods for breakfast in the morning so we were sad Condensed all the food into two bags Tried to go to sleep early as we had an early train in the morning….Wendy was panicking about how much sleep she was going to get We all still went to sleep at midnight even though we were getting up at 3am Sun Oct 2 Woke up at 3am to get ready Left the motel at 5am Got gas for the beast, had amazing food at the gas station (sausage rolls, mince and cheese pie and hot drinks) Dropped the beast off at the car rental place Took an Uber to the train station Checked in at the train station…guy told us that because we were taking the ferry he would load our bags onto the ferry and we would get them in Wellington Almost 6hr train from Christchurch to Picton Got hot drinks and scone on the train (scone wasn’t that great) Train had an open air carriage in the back Train was delayed for 5-10mins so offered us complimentary hot drinks during the delay Got off train and walked a few mins to the ferry Ferry from Picton to Wellington Ferry was hella bumpy and Natasha and Gloria started to get sea sick Had to call car company because car rental place would be closed by the time we got off the ferry Had to collect bags from ferry baggage claim (which was a tent lol) Was cold and rainy in Wellington Uber to airport car rental Uber driver mistook us for South Island Kiwis and then for Australians Got a new blue Kia Wendy drove and almost killed us Drove for dinner….pho place was fully booked, then went to a white asian place that only had dumplings on the menu…left to go to a Malaysian place Watched the Malaysian chefs cook the food Food was realllyyyy good but took forever Drove to the cemetery by accident, had to make a 10 point turn to get out of it Airbnb in Wellington was a tiny house that was cute….Natasha and Gloria’s first time in a tiny house Mon Oct 3 Wendy cooked fresh eggs provided by the Airbnb host…super thin shell, Wendy spilled them EVERYWHERE (Wendy said they were the best eggs she ever ate) Wendy claims she can tell a fresh egg from a regular egg Left Airbnb Drove for almost 5 hrs to Taupo Along the way had to stop for wifi at Subway because Wendy’s NZ data ran out Sangita was helping Wendy with her phone but she left her on read Kid made a really loud noise with the chair The door got stuck and we couldn’t get out Subway guy had to try to get us out, was unsuccessful (DID SANGITA CAUSE THIS!?!) Lady eating at subway opened a window and told us to jump out Had to exit from the back room Finally made it to Taupo Airbnb host’s kids were outside without pants, led us to the Airbnb Drove to Huka Falls…saw Lake Waikato (longest river in NZ), raining Went grocery shopping at Countdown (Pak ‘N’ Save is wayyyy better) Cutest smiliest cashier helped us Had dinner at Craft Trout Brewery Co Wendy heard her dad’s favourite song playing Only had two servings of fish….Wendy had to change her order Watched bike crashes at the restaurant Left restaurant and was pouring rain Tues Oct 4 Road trip to Rotorua Gloria and Natasha saw hot springs on the way, turns out it was just steam from factories/nuclear power plant Listened to Arash's podcast on the way Noticed Volcanic Valley on the way Went to Kuirau Park for free geothermal springs Drove back to Volcanic Valley Wendy Played Jurassic Park Theme song when we were looking at the trees had to buy tickets at the cafe Power walked through the route as we only had one hour before we had to leave Saw the largest geothermal spring in the world (called the frying pan) Wendy and Natasha went on the longest route, up the steepest set of stairs Gloria started on the same path as Wendy and Natasha and then got tired, gave up and walked back down the shorter path (except only Natasha had the map) Brothers reunited at bus stop 2 Wendy and Natasha claimed they saw a "black crater" which was "on the top" (photos provided as proof) also claimed they saw "aliens" (no photo proof) Took bus back to cafe, Natasha told Wendy that she smells Wendy bought ginger beer Drove back to the city to go to Te Puia Amazing Cultureal experience Tour guide greeted us in a traditional Maori greeting Went on tour of the land, aw bone and wood carvers and weavers Tour guide asked if there was anyone with a birthday close to Oct 4 then announced that it was his bday. We thought he was asking because he wanted a sacrifice, but actually just needed bday attention Saw the three cutest kiwi birds, the best was Ketekete. Male kiwis take 3 months to mature. Females take 3 years. They got the kiwis off the endangered list. Ketekete eats too much and has to rest after. Tour guide asked us to guess his age - winner gets $5. Said he thought we were in our early 20's. Saw geothermal springs and geysers Tour guide went through the crowd and asked everyone how old he was. Only one person guessed right...he was only 18 Tour guide said goodbye in a traditional Maori goodbye Had a buffet dinner that was soooooo good (highlights: corn, stuffing and chicken) Had to screenshot directions because we ran out of data Tour guide picked a chief of the group: Ray!! Huddled at a really long canoe Mentioned the ceremony we were gonna watch was to honour our loved ones who had passed away Ray had to lead the group into the house but first had to accept a gift (a leaf) from one of the Maori Maori guy was screaming at Ray. Ray and his wife were seated first at the front once we were allowed to enter their "house" Watched a cultural performance in the house (highlights: the chubby guy's singing) got on a bus and drove around the whole land Gave us complimentary hot chocolate Drank the hot chocolate in front of the geysers and hot springs which now had different colour lights Listened to Justin's stories while sitting by lit up geyser Drive back to the entrance Drove to hotel using google directions screenshot Got to hotel, office was closed, had to call number on door. Guy from office bikes in 2 min to the door to help us. We have to pay for wifi...didn't do it. Guy asked us if we wanted him to put our bedding down or if we could do it ourselves...we did it ourselves Carried our bedsheets like hobos to the room Room was ugly, shower was gross, small ass sink Wed Oct 5 Wendy cooked breakfast except couldn’t figure out how to turn on the stove top Finally figured it out, but then couldn’t turn it off Dish soap was in a squeeze bottle, almost used it as olive oil Drove back to Te Puia to get souvenirs No parking so had to go to golf club across the street Went hiking Wairere Falls for a hike Gloria had enough and didn’t want to continue A NZ dad and son dissed Gloria by saying that the kids continued hiking so she should too Gloria left and went back on her own Wendy and Natasha continued on Brothers reunited in the parking lot Road trip to Hobbiton Was raining, so got complimentary umbrellas Natasha couldn’t open her umbrella and then it closed on her lol Got to pub in Hobbiton for complimentary beers, Wendy dissed the tour guide and he ended up right beside her (and probably heard her) Drove to Aukland hotel Guy at desk was really enthusiastic to carry our bags (gave us Christchurch front desk vibes) Had no kitchen in the room so had to get water from the bathroom Made noodles (Wendy cooked an egg with the boiled water and microwave) Thurs Oct 6 Slept in Started watching Dahmer in the morning Drove to Piha Black Sand beach (we were trying to go to Waitekere Ranges but missed it) Was freeeeeeezing cold and hella windy Lots of jellyfish on the beach Wendy’s hat blew away but Natasha got it back When taking photos of Wendy, a wave came in and Gloria’s shoes got wet Left the beach and tried to go to a cafe but they were all closed Drove back to hotel to get Gloria another pair of shoes Googled restaurants for a long time Finally decided on Dr. Rudi’s Drove downtown to Dr. Rudi’s Food was good, had salt and pepper squid, Brie and jalapeño bites and prosciutto pizza Reminisced about the trip memories Went for a walk in downtown Aukland Wendy found an Asian convenience store and was happyyyyy Drove back to hotel Everyone quickly showered so we could watch Dahmer again Fri Oct 7 Natasha’s last day Drove to downtown Aukland Wendy stopped to get bubble tea Visited the free art gallery/installation Wendy had to check in her bubble tea because she couldn’t have a drink near the art There were 3 people doing an interpretive dance on the ground We didn’t appreciate the art Went to a bookstore Wanted to go to Karen’s diner but was closed Looked for another lunch spot The place we went to was only serving a few items because it was 3:30pm Left without ordering anything (even though we paid for an hour parking) and dropped brother Natasha at the airport 2 brothers left: Drove to Karen’s diner Guy at the front threw our menus on the floor and told Wendy to pick it up Waitress threw our water cups on the table Wouldn’t leave us until we decided what we wanted Random trivia in the middle of dinner We saw behind the waitress’ ruse All of the waiters kept tripping over the baby’s high chair at the next table A waitress told the baby that she hates him Waitress was super happy when Wendy tipped her Both the waitress and the front guy asked us how we liked the experience Walked around the town, stopped in a bookstore, had PTSD whenever anyone was being nice to us Went back to the hotel Needed toothpaste so decided to walk to Countdown Bought toothpaste On the way back noticed a night market sign Followed some people into a car park Found the greatest night market in the car park So much food, clothes and other things to buy Saw a nail salon down there Got bubble tea from this vendor with the cutest cashier Went back to hotel and watched Dahmer and planned next day’s activities Sat Oct 8 Left hotel Drove to farmer’s market 6 mins away Lots of food, clothing and fresh produce vendors Wendy was sad she couldn’t buy any fresh produce Bought an iced chocolate Wendy got shumai and Gloria got shrimp and chive dumplings from the same vendor (didn’t finish them) Dumplings took forever to cook!! Ended up getting only shrimp dumplings (no chive ☹️) Wendy didn’t like her food Took a walk around the farmer’s market, people were doing karaoke in the middle Drove to Ambury Regional Farm Park Open field where we could run with the sheep Soooo much 💩 Wendy kept making sheep noises at the sheep Wendy ran with the sheep (looked crazy while doing it) Wendy stepped in 💩 Got back to car and started driving Gloria’s leftover dumplings fell off the dashboard onto her pants Went to the Cozy Cafe to clean up (Wendy was blessed with optimal parking this whole day -flea market and now near the YMCA…no parallel parking 🥳) Wendy got corn fritters (which were huge!!) Gloria got a blueberry friand Walked around the town, went to another bookstore Got back to car, filled up gas Had to find the car rental place to return car Got lost looking for the international terminal (car rental was in the domestic terminal) Took shuttle to international terminal Plane back home!!