But besides that things have been going well. Hollie ended up starting off the trip pulling us out of Auckland, while I navigated us towards Roturura. A bit of a school boy error on my part prohibited me from driving at the start. It turns out my drivers license had expired in August without my knowing, so I had to ask my folks for a bit of an international favor so that I could be put on the rental insurance. But anyway, that is all resolved and I have been let loose on the highways of New Zealand.
And damn this place is hilly. It isnt exactly the best spot to be practicing throwing a caravan into first on a hill. I never knew you could make a caravan jump. . . . But since those first frustrating days, I think I am getting the hang of it. Im not stalling as much or making the car lurch forward nearly as often, which is a good start. And Hollie no longer sighs when I offer to drive.
I am getting better. I think I have the highways down, it is the cities that are the problems: having to downshift quickly and pull out into traffic banking on your not stalling when you try and throw it into gear. But Im almost there.
. . . .
The caravan is great. We have been taking advantage of the full kitchen facilities in the back. There is little to no maintenance involved, you just need to make sure that the propane is filled for the stove, the water is filled for the sink, and the second battery is charged for the lights and refrigerator. The water and propane are easy fixes. The electricity is a bit tricky, because to get that you need to check into a caravan park overnight to recharge. And that costs money, so we are trying to free camp as much as possible without the fridge failing to save cash for sky diving.
The car company recommended we charge up every second night but we are trying to expand it to the every third or fourth without spoiling our bologne.
Free camping has been pretty easy and eventless. We have done it once in a car pull off, once on a desolate farm a local told us about, and then again last night on a residential street in Wellington. It is simple with the caravan, you just park it, pull out the bed, a bottle of wine, and noone is the wiser.
It was funny though our first night in the car pull off, our proximity to the road and our being unsure of whether or not what we were doing was safe and legal made us both a little bit jumpy. Hollie actually ended up having a nightmare about someone approaching the van and attacking us. So that night when we had to pee in the middle of the night, to avoid the cold and her imaginary assailant, we ended up just peeing the in the caravan sink. The same sink we used the next morning to clean our dishes.
. . . .
Right now, we are just roaming the city, trying to avoid the rain cold, and waiting to get on our 2:15 am ferry tonight down to the South island so we can continue the trip.
First sight of our home for the next 45 days
Hollie in front of the Waikato River
Lake Taupo
Me in my brand-new second-hand winter jacket.
This photo I took for my Dad, and I really took a page out of his book when I was taking it. I was driving and upon seeing a tank on the side of the road, I slammed on the brakes and stopped the car to get a closer look. And much as my Dad would have, without asking whos it was or whether or not I was allowed to, I just started to climb on it and fittle with any part of it that I could reach. Why? Because it was there and there was noone with a gun telling me not to.
