Island Mentality

I really need to re-adopt the pen&paper method of writing. My blog's somewhat become my journal over the past few years and any time I want to jot down an observation, I find myself looking for an internet cafe. But at NZ$3 an hour, that would tally up to a rather expensive travel journal. Bring on the writing cramps...

The ski-slopes here in Queenstown have been shut for two days straight now due to gale-force winds and high avalanche risk up in the mountains. People in town are becoming a bit restless over it, but it means good business for all the other activity centres here. I've decided to book myself a guided trip to Milford Sound (Fjordland) tomorrow and an 8-hour hike in what Lord of The Ring (LOTR) fans will know as "Rohan" on Wednesday. That should kill some time and save me from breaking a leg till the slopes re-open ;-)

- Queenstown, view from the harbour -

Queenstown seems very much like the "IT" place to be around here, with an average inhabitant age of around 25-years old. Half the people in town are either European or Asian. The funny thing is that the island mentality seems to get to the Europeans rather quickly, and the internet cafes are littered with Germans, French, Spanish and Brits all checking the news websites, rather than their e-mails. National newspapers or TV bulletins here generally only assign a mere page or a meager few minutes to international reporting. The international headlines that do make the news tend to cover the British Royal family's antics, such as the latest Prince Harry debacles or which wine the Queen deemed fit for consumption at dinner.

It seems us Europeans are a tad needy for global affairs info and we tend to go into withdrawal mode once too long removed from current affairs access. While a certain ignorant bliss comes along with the local way, it does wear off quickly. The general complaint of European backpackers here is then that the natural beauty would in the long run fail to outweigh the isolation and "lack" of cultural heritage. I always wonder exactly what people were expecting to find coming out here. It's an island, miles removed from anywhere, with a history barely a few hundred years old. So New Zealand is bound to be few things more than untouched natural beauty and wonderfully uncomplicated inhabitants. Five days into my trip, I personally am still simply awed by the stunning views.

- Queenstown, view from my dorm window -

On another note, my roommate Suffolk Boy crashed into the dormroom yesterday hurtling himself at the toilet to throw up. He emerged a few minutes later looking gaunt and ensuring that he wasn't drunk, but had merely received bad news from the home front. Turns out his ex of two years has in his absence decided to start sleeping with his best friend. Which makes me wonder about the "best" friend and the deadbeat who deemed it wise to inform him of such a thing while he's suposed to be enjoying himself on his Big Trek. People are so oblivious to the potential consequences of their actions. It seems all that matters to some people is the spreading of gossip and the temporary buzz of drama.

Right, I would now like to introduce a new item: "Facts of the day", which is to replace the "Fisheye of the day" and the "Mp3-repeat of the day" for the duration of my Big Trek. So before I head out for my first fix of caffeine for the day... here are the very first

Facts of the Day:

(1) "Whakatane" (a small town on the North Island) is properly pronounced in Maori as "Fack-a-Townie"
(2) "Trundle" is a shopping trolley and not, as I thought, a "tart" or a "slag" (embarassingly blonde moment there, I can assure you)
(3) "Heinz Ketchup" is known as "Watties Ketchup" and has the added ingredient of Clove (kruidnagel), which is erm... an interesting taste. Allright no... it's downright foul.

(4) The first two items to be thrown out of the backpack and into the bin are:
(A) my hairdryer, which decided to die on me this morning and I have come to the conclusion that my hair is as uselessly uncoordinated without it as it is with it, so I shall not replace it and
(B)my trainers, which have been banned to the bathroom by my fellow roommates an account of them being too "odour-full". In my defense, I HAVE worn them EVERY day for three years and they have holes in the bottom which suck up water on a daily basis, so ANY clean, nice-smelling individual would stink them up. I am now in pursuit of skate-shops to replace them.