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Away in Wairapapa

Someone told me not to bother coming to New Zealand if I didn’t like hiking. Well, I never liked hiking before but I came here anyway, and now I am planning weekend getaways that include walking some long trails. I am really thankful.

I have to be honest, this likely wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t met people who were keen to go on hikes and walks themselves and invite me on them. I imagine I would’ve done all the touristy things around Wellington that involved little exertion and then fill up the rest of my week with drinks, the gym, and Netflix. Now, I have to admit already happened to some extent, especially while my more active and hiking friends were out of the area. But guess what? They’re back! And that means, I’ve gone on a few new adventures already, I just haven’t written about them up until this point. To start, I want to focus on our trip to Wairarapa, Greytown and Cape Palliser.

The view from the Cape Palliser Lighthouse

To give you a bit of an idea where this adventure took place, it was a 2-hour drive from Wellington to the cape, which is the Southern-most point of New Zealand’s North Island. That drive through the Rimutaka hills is long and winding, but it is also absolutely breathtaking. (For all of my Pennsylvania friends, it’s a similar look and feel as the Pine Creek Gorge area, which is better known as the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. If you haven’t been I would recommend it.) There are hikes through this area as well, but we just stopped at the lookout and kept driving. This is because it was a windy and chilly day, but also because the drive was quite long and we had a lot we wanted to do.

The view from the entrance to the Rimutaka Crossing, a trek made by 60,000 New Zealand Soldiers during WWI.

On our way to the lighthouse in Cape Palliser, we stopped in one of the hidden gems in the area: a small village called Greytown. The picturesque town is actually the oldest in the region and is full of architecture and cute, funky shops. My friend Anca says it reminds her of the town Stars Hollow from “Gilmore Girls,” and I would have to say this is accurate. (And now you know exactly how the village feels, don’t you?)

In Greytown, we stopped at an adorable coffee shop called “Cahoots.” It has your standard coffee-shop fare which was tasty but what I really liked about it was the atmosphere. It’s a little nerdy and a lot of fun; for instance the table numbers they give out so you know where the food goes all feature pop culture figures. (We were “G” for Gandolf, and someone next to us was “E” for Elvis.)

The ladies at Cahoots. That was my first of several coffees for the day. (Also, do you see Gandolf!?)

The rest of the village was a bit artistic and fun as well. There was a bicycle shop where you could buy a tandem bike if you wanted, a community theatre and a lot of locals who didn’t seem used to “so many” tourists.

The black sand beaches in Wairarapa were surreal

Our beautiful drive through the mountains continued, before taking us out to the coast. Here, there were black sand beaches to explore and a rocky area that held some of my favorite New Zealand residents: fur seals and seal pups. There were so many in this area you had to be careful where you stepped because some of them were so still you didn’t realize they were there right away.

These are just a few of the seals that were hanging out in Cape Palliser. They didn’t seem to keen to have us around
This is one of the guys I almost stepped on, because he was so chill

After the seals, we continued on our way to the Cape Palliser lighthouse. The lighthouse has sat atop the cliff here since 1897 and is still in use today. Me, being a fan of lighthouses, almost didn’t mind the 253 stair climb to the top of the cliff to see it up close! (However, I would’ve loved to climb more steps to get to the top of the lighthouse itself, but alas, this was not an option.)

All of the steps to the lighthouse
The view is always worth the climb

Now, with all that adventure in one day, you’d think we would be done, but no, not us! Afterwards, we had one more stop yet to take, and this one was the tastiest. Close to Cape Palliser Lighthouse, there is a tiny fishing town known for its crayfish called Ngawi. It is so small, only about 20 people live in the area year-round. As it was the off-season, the only business we passed that was open was the “Captain Table Food Truck,” which sits along the coast. I bet you can guess where we stopped and how tasty the fresh-caught fish and chips were.

Don’t look at me, look at the food and that view!

Also in the town, we stopped to check out some adorable lambs. They were adorable, albeit a little dirty to pet. Still, totally worth it.

Lamb butts are cute too, aren’t they?

It was a really good day, and aside from the food and coffee, it was 100% free.

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Ankle-Deep in Something

Right now, I am supposed to be hiking. Specifically, I am supposed to be hiking this trek, which fans of the “Lord of the Rings” movie series will recognize. But instead, I am in a coffee shop. This isn’t because the trip was canceled; the rest of the hiking party is out there right now and the weather is beautiful. No, I’m not hiking because it seems New Zealand continues to want to laugh at me and my plans.

You see, the joy I’ve been getting from working out at the gym resulted in me spraining my ankle. And this wasn’t just any little ankle twist; I tore 2 of the 3 main ligaments in the joint, and that means I won’t be doing any potentially high-impact activity for one to two weeks.

And guys, this really had me down. As I mentioned in my last post, I was finally finding ways to combat my homesickness by getting out and doing things, things I now can’t do. I was so excited for this nerdy and exciting trip and had a blog post planned about it. I was going to join the gym after my two-week trial and lose the extra weight I put on. In other words, I was going to take back my life starting this week. And then I fell the wrong way on my foot in an aerobics class I wasn’t particularly enjoying and all of my plans had been put on hold. (Not to mention I spent $120 NZD on a doctor’s visit and prescriptions even though I’m told it should’ve been covered by ACC.)

I spent most of yesterday in bed down in the dumps. I mean, this is obviously not the spot I wanted to be in at this point of my trip. Not when the weather is finally warm-ish, and not as I was finally getting back to being myself and finally feeling like I am ready to take on New Zealand. I spent much of yesterday in bed moping and on the verge of tears; being injured made me realize just how alone I am on this side of the world. It made me once again, really miss a lot of the luxuries I gave up in the States for this adventure. (Health insurance, a car, and especially my own warm apartment.)

Well, the doctor said I could still walk on my foot, so I decided to take the 40-minute round-trip yesterday evening to the super market to buy ingredients for my weekly meal prep. I did this basically to feel like I hadn’t wasted the entire day, but it felt good to realize I was still mobile (even though I could feel my injury on the walk back,) and it was nice to get out of the house if only briefly. But then, a really great thing happened when I returned to my flat. You see, when I arrived, my neighbor’s cat bolted out of nowhere and ran up to my door, demanding pets and cuddles.

Alby, the neighbor’s cat who likes to cheat on his owners with a lot of people in the area, including me. (This is an old photo, but the best one I have of him.)

Now, before I go further I want to let you know that cats cheating on their owners is a bit of a thing in New Zealand. Unlike in the States, cat owners here are encouraged, if not required, to allow their cats outside on a regular basis. (Seriously, it was a question my friend was asked by the SPCA when she adopted her pet, but more on Elliot the Adventure Cat later.) I say this, not so we can debate the merits of letting cats roam your neighborhood, but because I want to let you know that when I let Alby into my flat this wasn’t unusual or weird culturally. It’s just a normal thing here, and our neighbor is fine with it as long as we don’t feed him.

In any case, Alby’s visit to my doorstep and my flat was exactly what I needed to cheer me up. He stayed just long enough to remind me I was not alone, and that it was all going to be okay. Seriously, a purring cat really is the best medicine. And since then things have been looking up. Sure, I’m not on my hike today, but maybe I can go on one in a few weeks. And, I mean, at least I sprained my ankle before I signed up for the gym because now I’m not paying for a week where I can’t really use it. I also got another gift today from a friend who messaged me this morning about going to a really great restaurant for lunch today as part of the “Wellington On a Plate” event, something I’ve been dying to do all month.

My “Wellington On a Plate” meal at The Arborist: Blackberry and sloe gin-cured salmon and the “Beetlejuice” cocktail

So I apologize for the lack of gorgeous New Zealand scenery photos; I really did intend to bring you a bunch of them this weekend but alas, my foot had different ideas. But, as I said in my last post, I didn’t spend a bunch of money on hiking boots not to use them though, so I’m sure there’s at least a trail or two in my future.

I’m still on an uphill trek at the moment, but at least it is a pretty one. (A previously unpublished photo from my hike at Mt Victoria.)
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Celebrating Matariki: The Maori New Year

The beginning of July is just around the corner, a time that for many, marks the start of the second half of the Gregorian calendar year. (That’s the 12-month system we all know and love worldwide.) However, that’s not the case for the native Maori people here in New Zealand.

A shot of the Matariki fireworks from Te Papa

Just like we “ring in the New Year” during the winter months in the Northern Hemisphere, so is the tradition with the Maori. If you didn’t know about this, don’t worry, I didn’t either before I arrived in New Zealand. In fact, I may have completely missed Matariki altogether if it wasn’t for a calendar of events put together by Te Papa, the Museum of New Zealand. For the first time ever, the museum is marking this passage of time with a number of special events here in Wellington, including a traditional Matariki ritual, which I had the pleasure of taking part in earlier this month.

Just to give you some background: Matariki actually refers to the cluster of stars more commonly known as the Pleiades. Because Aotearoa (the Maori name for New Zealand) is located in the Southern Hemisphere, these stars rise on the cusp of winter, usually around late May or early June. For the Maori, the sight of this star cluster marks the start of the new year.

A look at the set-up for the Matariki Ritual, which also featured traditional Maori music

The museum’s traditional ritual did a really good job summarizing what this time of year is all about for the Maori. It centered around a giant fire pit and started with the host telling us the story of the Matariki. He also opened up the floor for people to speak and talk a bit about themselves, something I am told happens during a majority of Maori rituals. For me, it was especially interesting to hear from people all over the world. I was amazed at just how international the small city of Wellington really is; I think we heard from someone who originated from just about every continent. I also enjoyed hearing people speak in the native Maori tongue.

Next, we moved on to the actual Matariki ritual and taking the time to appreciate the past year.  For the Maori, Matariki is a time to say goodbye to the loved ones lost during the year. During the ritual at Te Papa, we symbolized this by lighting a candle and sending it adrift on a nearby pond. I personally didn’t know anyone who passed in the past year, so I actually said goodbye to my career in television news. This was a job that defined who I was for almost a decade. As I let go of my candle, I said farewell to that person and allowing myself to embrace this uncertainty in a new country.

Each candle represents a personal farewell to the last year

Matariki is not just a time to say goodbye though, it is also a time of celebration. Like Thanksgiving in the States, the celebration happens around the time crops are harvested, which means there is a lot of food to be had. This is why the ritual centered around the fire, as traditional Maori food is typically cooked in “hangi” ovens, or underground pits. And yes, it does take around three to four hours to cook. (But if you don’t have that much time you can buy it made for you here in New Zealand for around $10 NZD.)

The ritual’s “traditional” fire pit (It was gas fed)

In addition to the feast, Matariki is also a time to think about what you want to see happen in the coming year, and really look forward to all of the new possibilities ahead. For the museum’s ritual, we did this by writing down our wishes and dreams for the next year. At the end of the night, we then put those messages in baskets. I assume part of the ritual next year will involve reading some of these, but I guess I have to wait to find out! Either way here’s hoping some of mine come true.

My personal wishes for the next year

In all, I really enjoyed taking part in something uniquely New Zealand, as well as taking the time to pause and reflect on where I’ve been and where I’m headed. I’ve always been a fan of New Year celebration, so I find it quite amazing I managed to find a place that will allow me.to celebrate my favorite holiday twice a year.

The Matariki fireworks from Oriental Bay