Okarito Trig Walk - or - One Hell Of A Good Spot For Lunch

When I first got to Fox a departing staff member told me that the view from the Okarito Trig Walk was one of the best easily accessible views that she had seen in all of New Zealand. I'd already been gobsmacked by the view from Gillespies Beach so of course this meant I couldn't wait to go and check out how it was possible to get an even better view.

 It helped that the day I decided to go was another West Coast special, a superb bluebird sky day. The Trig walk is only an hour and a half return with a steady rise up a hill to get to the viewpoint. Of course I had to stop several times to catch my breath haha but apart from that it was still reasonably easy track, and so worth it!

Photo Stop at Lake Mapourika

My new home town

A few pictures of Fox Glacier township

A collection of photos of my work place in Fox Glacier

 In case you were interested...

Perks of the job – just your everyday helicopter ride onto a glacier

In my first week of training for my job at Fox Glacier Guiding there came the sentence 'so we'll get you up on the glacier this week on a heli hike.' Just casually, like it wasn't a big deal. Of course it's not a big deal when your very busy and popular business relies on seasonal staff to know and sell your products well; but I'm just sitting there going, 'I'm sorry, what now? Seriously?!' I don't think it had sunk in throughout the interview process that not only do I get to go in a helicopter, onto a glacier, for a guided tour, as a matter of course; but I also get PAID to do it! Woohoo!!

Gillespies Beach and the View of Views

One of my first days off in Fox Glacier was an absolute stunner of a day - deep blue sky, not a cloud to be seen, or the smallest puff of wind; it was made for exploring. It'd been a pretty rainy week so I was super keen to get out and check out some gorgeous scenery. The local beach, Gillespies,' is only a half hour drive away over a hill on a small, twisty gravel road, and damn is it worth it!

Introducing Fox Glacier

My new home is in a tiny little town on the south west coast of the South Island, famous for the massive glacier next to it. It's very similar to the town half an hour's drive north called Franz Josef, which is also right next to a glacier. These two glaciers are very special and unique as they are both among the only glaciers in the world to end among rainforest, at only 300m above sea level. This also makes them among the most accessible and are major tourist attractions.

I'm home, it's good, but I'm away travelling again already

I've been back in New Zealand for over three months now, and it was completely bizarre how easily I fit straight back in as if I hadn't just been living on the other side of the world for nearly three years. Living back at my parents' place, catching rides in and out of the city, trawling through the job ads on Trademe, and going out to dinner with my friends. 

It's good to be back; good to spend a decent amount of time with everyone again; good to not have to worry about visas; good to be able to have access to a car and drive anywhere again. It's good to be able to say things like 'tiki tour,' 'jandals,' 'kumara,' 'ten' and 'pen'* again; and good to eat Whittakers chocolate and Tip Top boysenberry ice cream any time I want.

Hanging with these cuties while at home was a pretty good bonus

Cliffs of Moher Daytrip

 With the move home to New Zealand from Ireland coming up fast, I went on a trip to the famous Cliffs of Moher as they were one of the sights I really didn't want to miss out on.

The End of the Adventure Looms

"If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces, never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again."

~Flavia Weedn

Why I could never be a marketing guru

Today I went to a job interview. Nothing unusual about that, except that it was for a door-to-door fund raising sales job. I thought I'd at least go along to an interview, maybe give it a go for a month - harassing people for money in their own home can't be that hard right? 

Dublin, finally

I got to have a pretty good look around Dublin through staying a night there either side of my trip home. It's a 3 hour bus trip between Cork and Dublin so it was a lot easier to get to and from Dublin airport from closer by.

Surviving Long Haul Flights

Long haul flights are not exactly the most fun ever, no matter how many new movies are on the in-seat console or how cute the meals look in their multiple tiny plastic containers (or how cute the guy across the aisle from you is either). So I thought I might share a few of the flight and airport related tips I've picked up so far with it being fresh in my mind after my recent Ireland - New Zealand and back trip.

Plans after Ireland

My first post of a new year! Thought I'd do a run down of my plans (or dreams?) for when I leave Ireland. All too soon my one year visa for Ireland will be coming to an end - June 3rd 2015 - after which I will be let loose on the rest of Europe. So much to do! So much to see! Where to go first? Where to go next? How long can I stay? What if I miss something? How will I afford it?