These are a few of my favorite things

Glow worms, puppy dog, Mount Doom... The list of my favorite things in New Zealand is constantly expanding. I saw beautiful blue glow worms in the Waitomo caves on the North Island. While still up north I did the Tongariro Crossing, an eight hour hike around the infamous "Mt. Doom" from Lord of the Rings. It was a really spectacular volcanic area. I have "heaps" (Kiwis saw that word a lot:) of pictures to post, but I'm currently at a place with dial-up, so I'll have to wait until I'm somewhere with a faster connection. I'll tell you about the puppy dog in a minute...

I'm sorry that these blog posts have been few and far between. The good news is that the reason that I haven't been posting is because, generally, I've been out exploring. I have been on the South Island for the past two weeks and have been doing quite a bit a hiking and sitting in the sun. This is the sunniest region of New Zealand and the color of the ocean here is amazing (I will post pictures soon!). I am now WWOOFing at a family's farm in the Motueka valley, near Nelson. It's been really nice to spend time with a family, especially over the holidays (as well as save some cash!). They are a really great family, complete with a lively two year old and adorable 10 week old puppy. I've been helping them out with general yard work and house chores in exchange for a place to sleep and some really delicious meal. I have moved way beyond my usual hostel fare of instant noodles! We had an amazing lamb roast for Christmas. Nice treat for us, though a sad day for Thunder, the sheep that is no longer.

I have many, many stories to tell at this point, but do think that pictures will be worth more than thousands of words. I will post them soon so you can see some of the views from my hikes in the Abel Tasman park and the Kahurangi National Park.

I miss you all and am thinking of my wonderful friends and family as this new year approaches.