Who knew Jesus came from Holland?

About a week ago while in Westport a young 20 something bloke from Holland struck up a conversation with me in the information center in Westport...little did I know this random encounter would be quite literally a biblical experience for me. Now Remko, who can only be described as that foreign exchange student from the movie 'can't hardly wait' who is so insanely happy that his mouth is permanently fixed in a smile and if you didn't know better you could quite easily be convinced he had just won the lottery...he was that happy of a guy. Anyways over the course of our discussion I learned that Remko was not only supposed to work at Tararu Valley, but he was also supposed to arrive on the same day that I was...our chance meeting in a random little city...coincidence?...I think not..but fate. What I got from Remko, besides a lot of 'yaw's" was a renewed spirit...not that I had forgotten, but he reminded me of the thrill of the adventure of traveling...of being able to go anywhere at the drop of a hat...to make your own fun...and that when else in my life will I have this much freedom and that maybe the weather might be shit one day...but really what did a little rain hurt anyone...I am in the midst of a once in a lifetime opportunity which should be lived out to it's fullest rain or shine.
So, this past week I went up north to karamea and oparara and as far south as Franz Josef glacier...which is where I am currently. The drive to karamea was like the ascent on a rickety old rollercoaster...the roads were all unsealed and the higher you climbed up the mountain, the more you felt yourself being pushed back into your seat and josselled from side to side. Now, I hadn't planned on visiting Oparara and Karamea but thanks to Remko I made the detour to this beautiful remote, rugged area of land--and it was definitely worth the drive.




Although the weather was a bit cloudy, as you can see from the pictures the area is beyond beautiful. The rugged untouched feel of Scott's beach for some reason conjured up images of wild horses straight out of 'misty of chinqatinc?' running along the beach wild and free...I have no idea why that came to mind considering it was like in 3rd grade I read that book...but that's what flashed before my eyes as I strolled the beautiful baren beach. The waves were so fierce and the winds strong...driving along the coast I really can feel the edges of this country like a jigsaw puzzle piece in a way that I can't say I've ever really been aware of when along the coast in the U.S....
Things I don't want to forget...the feeling of tracing my hand in the pink sands along the coast near Punakiki...
walking along the bach and listening to the rain beat down on the crashing waves creating a piercing cracking noise...
the foam collecting on the beach from the force of the waves like the foam atop a beer or the bubbles in a bubblebath...the feeling of collecting the sudsy ocean froth in your hands and watching it slowly evaporate...sand formations chiseled away by the ocean mimicing the rocks behind them, the swirl patterns formed by the mixing of the pink and white sands along the beach...the juxtaposition of dead and alive---driftwod, seaweed, uprooted trees next to raging fiercy alive ocean waves...teasing the tides to see just how close I can get before they try and catch me in their powerful surge....

In this past week I have hiked through caves to make my way to limestone arches, frolicked along beaches, ascended muddy hills for picturesque views of Lake Brunner, perused jade shops and little antique stores in Hoktika, found myself late at night exploring a cave that was illuminated by the light of actual glow worms....as I entered the cave the shear darkness of everything left me blind using only the feel fo the banister to guide me through the grotto...where I was surrounded by a wall of glowing light...much like the feeling of turning off the lights in your room and seeing glow in the dark stickers come alive...I went to punakiki and saw rocks that looked like stacks of pancakes that surrounded a blowhole...that every 10-15 minutes would cause a surge of water to powerfully explode shooting straight up...the moments leading up to the explosions felt like when you overloaded a dryer and the dryer starts to shake as it's on it's last cycle and ready to near explode because of being so jam-packed...
I visited cape foulwind and got to see hundreds of kekeno seals nesting along the rocks...basking in the sun while others danced in the waters waddling along like pregnant women in their final trimesters....


Now the number one question I get asked is 'aren't you lonely traveling by yourself?' ...the truth is yes at times it can be lonely, but for the most part I have truely come to own and believe that loneliness is in fact just a state of mind. I mean I'm sure we can all remember a time when we were amongst a group of people and couldn't have felt more alone...in these past weeks I have had the opportunity to meet fellow travelers along the way...but more importantly I have learned to savor the connections I make no matter how small...I mean call me crazy, but I have come to a point in my life where the 5 minute conversation I have with the local townie while getting my coffee can feel just as intimate and real to me as the 5 hour talk I have with the random traveler...in other words life on the road has humbled me and made me that much more appreciative of my fellow man. What more why are people so scared to be alone with themselves? I mean I full heartedly believe that no experience is worth doing if I couldn't feel completely comfortable doing it by myself...in other words it's that comfort with yourself that I think is most important and is something I am slowly but surely learning. I mean also...there are some benefits like hello repeat outfit offender and nobody has to know...or what about all those times of awkwardness or clumsily falling that nobody has to bare witness to...anyways I am completely comfortable and happy with the amount of alone time and time with my fellow traveler I have...so no more 'are you lonely' questions folks!
Well, it's raining like cats and dogs outside...so I'm going to go find some illegal place to park my car for the night...beats paying for a campground...and hopefully tomorrow it will be nice enough out that I can get some viewings of the glacier...and even if it's raining I'm still going to seize the day because that's what Remko would want me to do!