Being on the road in New Zealand (Pt. 2)

I think we don't experience it enough in life when everything just clicks and falls into place, a positive spiral where you feel like you're exactly where you're supposed to be. When things simply work out beautifully one after another in your favour. When life flows.

For me, some days in New Zealand felt exactly like that. Even when I faced some problems with my car, help arrived from unexpected places, and life offered me a rewarding alternative to my initial plans.

One of the highlights of my trip was a sudden decision to have my travel buddy Sam from England for a week or so and try to make our way back to the South from the Northland on a very low budget in the shortest possible time. I am genuinely grateful for our time together with him. We had deep conversations, so many funny moments, and great teamwork that I'll always cherish whenever I think about it.

The night before we met was the night when I think I felt the most alone ever in my life. I ended up sleeping in my car next to a cave, in a parking lot where no one else stayed. The weather had turned into a thunderstorm, there was no running water, nor reception, and it took me half an hour to get there on a gravel road. (Don't ask me why I chose to go there in the first place; I have no clue, it seemed like a good spot to stay overnight.)

In the morning, everything was much nicer in the daylight after this extremely scary night. I headed to Raglan to pick up Sam. We had a long walk at the beach to get to know each other a bit, then I was packing my car to get ready for our trip together, making some space for his stuff. A black cat from the neighborhood sneaked into my car every single time I left the side door open.

We had a nice dinner with his friends, and then I slept in my car on the driveway as usual. (My Kiwi friend started to call me the Driveway Queen for this habit I picked up.)

We were so lucky with the weather that Sam could sleep in my tent every night, no matter if it was in the middle of the city of Wellington or in a random parking lot; we managed somehow. We had a great time together, listening to our favorite songs and having endless conversations about life. We woke up with the sun, at harbours, next to a lake, or at the sea, in meadows, it was just a very natural way of being. Living on the road means you are totally dependent on the weather; you just connect on another level to nature and all the surroundings. Things like cooking and washing take much longer than usual, and having a hot shower, running water, and a roof above your head becomes a privilege. I would do it all over again anytime.

We made it to Kaikoura. That town has a special place in my heart with its mountains, the sea, and the seals. I stayed there for a couple of nights, then joined Sam in Christchurch again to continue our way down to Wanaka. It was a long way, and the weather started to turn colder and colder as we moved South.

At some point, it was so foggy I could barely see anything. The music was on, Sam was asleep, the whining road was covered by snow, and I was really trying to stay awake and make our way to Wanake safely. I took him to his hostel, and it just felt unreal that our journey together had come to an end.

We both stayed in Wanaka for a while, though. I was living in my car, but it was super cold ( -3 °C during the night) to do that without a heater. What I can tell is that times like that definitely change you in a way. Living in a car during winter is already pretty challenging, looking for a job and a room at the same time - in the most popular area of the island -adds an extra layer to the situation. (That was just a cherry on the top when I realized my car broke down.) I was lucky enough to have friends around me, and sometimes we just laughed at ourselves instead of crying. We had fun even in these hard times. So many surreal things happened during those days in the cold, I can't even list them here.

It was harsh, but I found a way out, and it became an important time and lesson to me when I look back. I wouldn't change a thing about it, since it made me believe that if I could manage that, I can pretty much manage anything.

I could meet Sam for the last time before I headed back North. We were riding my bike together uphill like it would be a tandem bike, except it wasn't. (I have no clue how we could even get a meter ahead tbh.) We were talking about meeting in another life, me as a cat obviously, and finding a secret word to remember; we laughed a lot. I truly enjoyed every bit of those few hours.

Then I left Wanaka and got back to Tekapo, where it was even colder, around -6 °C outside. Lots of snow and frozen windshields in the morning. I haven't stayed too long; I needed to head back to Christchurch, where the weather was a bit kinder and sunny.

Things got a bit rushed and crazy there. On a Wednesday, I bought a flight ticket to Iceland for the same week, on Sunday. I flew from the most southern capital of the world to the most northern one. The trip took me around 50 hours. Please don't do it after me; it was insane. So I left New Zealand suddenly, in a strange way, but at the time, this felt like the right thing to do. Since then, I miss its nature and people, the slow life, the kindness.