Spring Break, 2700km around NZ in a Van

Well, Here's my attempt at trying to recap my 2 week spring break in New Zealand.

I thinned out a few photos out of the enormous collection the four of us adventures took (there's over 1000 photos) on my facebook album located here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2057674&id=1090560130&l=2a8d31d30e

So as an introduction I'll give the ol' Who/What/When/Where/Why shpeel:

Who:

Me: Pretty self-explanatory




















Julianna:Raised in Brooklyn, Julianna goes to Binghamton university and if there's an adventure, Julianna's down for it. Which is the reason why we go on so many adventures, like the upcoming aussie trip! Look at the enthusiasm! This girl has it 24/7, needed for a long trip like what we had

Sophie:

Raised in Michigan, Sophie believe it or not goes to school at Marist, a stone throw away from back home. Shame she's graduating this year. because this girl is legit, studying abroad from freshmen year she's been all over europe, africa, lived in Alaska and a bunch of other locations, she's now conquering New Zealand








Mark: My Kiwi homeboy, marks slowly teaching me Kiwi culture and slang, and always knows the way to the nearest party. Mark was our savior on the trip with his hook-ups in Queenstown halfway through the trip. Being able to use the showers at his mom's motel and the guidance was awesome. Wasn't able to go with us on the trip because he had to work, but we would meet up with him from time to time throughout the time






Ivanna:
From Slovakia, goes to school in Prague. I can always rely on Ivka as a dancing partner. She seems to always be wearing one shade of purple. The language barrier (mainly my poor hearing) can lead to either frustrating ,or hilarious conversations.













What:
The van was rented from Escape rentals out of Christchurch, and we got a sweet deal for the 13 days we had it for. Within this van we slept(tightly),cooked, ate, swapped stories, marveled at the scenery, and cringed watching me trying this beast to drive all over New Zealand



During the day the rear of the van could be transformed into a table and two benches. At night it turned into a double bed.

The trunk sported a kitchen, with some camping supplies, a sink, and a propane cooker on which our meals consisted of rice and beans, spaghetti, pb&j, and Oatmeal. Boy did I miss eating meat.


When:
13 days, leaving on Sunday morning the 22nd of August and even though we had the van til the 3rd of September, we caved in to the thought of our very own beds and drove straight back to Christchurch the Wednesday night before.








Where:
Basically, we drove 2700km along the coast of the southern island minus the very north of the island. Heres a vague sketch of our route

Why:
Splitting the van rental which had off-season prices between 4 ppl, which took care of transportation and lodging gave us the cheapest way to see new zealand in our alloted time. Having the freedom to pull over at any site and the ability to change our plans made the trip amazing.



Man, this is gonna take a while. Hold on while I recollect my thoughts.