What I Learned // New Zealand Edition + A Giveaway
One of my favorite journaling tricks while travelling is to keep a list of what I learn, observe, muse and think. These are also the most fun and prominent things that strike me while travelling and recording them takes me right back to where I was, even years later. This is my list from our recent trip to New Zealand and at the bottom is a really cool giveaway for those of you who also like to travel and explore, so read all the way down!This is a list of musings, of observations, of hard and fast facts, of opinions, of completely made up fairy tales. Things about myself, things about New Zealand and things about things. Believe them or not, I believe them to be true.
- 1 New Zealand Dollar = 6 minutes of liquid gold AKA a hot shower
- My greatest fears in life: Terrell driving on the left side, Terrell eating and driving, Terrell at a round about while driving on the left side of the road, birds
- Our roadkill count: III
- Did we see the elusive Kiwi Bird: NO
- They have seperate hot and cold faucets on the sinks. HOW DO THEY MIX THE WATER?!
- Police cars are red and have racing flags on them. So bad a**
- Everything is closer together than you think when driving
- Except gas stations. Those are very far apart.
- When we plan trips together things go much smoother. Fact.
- The deer here are terrifying. The remember your fear....
- Milford Sound is really a fjord??!
- #glacialfacial
- Why don't New Zealanders wear shoes? No seriously.
- The gas stations sell an ice cream that is raspberry covered in white chocolate and it is heaven on a stick
- Sand flies are soul sucking devils
- Cell service is so spotty
- Internet is an endangered species here, much like the elusive Kiwi Bird
- The country has been overrun with foreigners bringing in wildlife and changing New Zealand, so the whole country is committed to changing that by getting rid of/controlling animals and the trees to get national parks back to their original floral and fauna.
- Which btw is short and stumpy
- Pine trees are taking over the country
- New Zealand has some hilarious/terrifying/fascinating history of how the foreigners came in and how the Maori (the original Polynesian tribes) were not happy with this...
- You don't even really need a GPS, you can just follow the signs, a paper map and just drive in a big loop around the south island. So freeing.
- Wildlife we saw just out and about: seals, penguins, starfish
- 3 days is too long to go without showering
- #vanlife #notetoself #getabiggervan
- Most unexpected and greatest discovery: The Invacargill Museum
- Most delicious food: pineapple fritters
- Glacial water is really, really cold. Fact.
- Traveling in a country where you speak the language is the greatest gift you can give yourself sometimes
- New Zealand is completely set up for tourists and campervans, everything is so easy
- Fact. Best trip we've ever taken. Fact.
Giveaway Time!
GPS My City is giving away free apps to Lauren-Likes readers! Woo hoo! So if you are planning a trip soon or would just like to explore more of your own city, you will love this app. The app gives you the highlights of the city from historical landmarks to food and it gives you step by step directions without needing any kind of data or internet. #travellersdreamGiveaway closed. Winners please email me with your country of choice and what type of phone you have (android or iphone). email me at mrslaurenhooper (at) gmail (dot) com. Thanks!Winners: Diane, Tracey, Caylee, Kaisa, Julia and Phaydra
Planning for a trip? Check out my Travel Planner Printable Bundle to help you get there.Want more of This is What I’ve Learned but the Korean Editions?! Check out Vol 1, Vol 2 , Vol 3,Vol 4, and The America Edition