New Zealand Destroyed Me

I have to be honest. What initially enticed me to go to New Zealand was not the Lord of the Rings movie, nor the fact that it was only a 3.5 hour flight from my city, Melbourne. It’s because…Jetstar offered a round trip ticket to Christchurch for only $250 early last year! I know, what a bargain, right? So my friend and I had to grab that opportunity to explore the photogenic South Island of New Zealand.

So we hired a car to tour the island for a week, and we were so glad that we did! We drove from Christchurch to Milford Sound, and got to stop at amazing lookouts like this (which we couldn’t have done if we joined a tour):

Our first major stop was at Lake Tekapo and wow, what a treat for our tired eyes!

It was a very windy day though, even my own hair slapped me across the face as I took this pic of the Church of the Good Shepherds (or maybe it was God’s way of telling me to repent, sinner!).

Although they banned taking photos inside the church, my friend did the sneaky and took this beautiful image of the cross with Lake Tekapo as the backdrop (credits to Sam):

Wild flowers in purple, white and pink complement the crystal clear glacial waters of the lake. It was beautiful, and although a cliche, the pictures don’t really justify the beauty of the surroundings.

Another picturesque stop was the Mirror Lake, on the way to Fjordland aka Milford Sound. It is called Mirror Lake because on clear days, you get a clear mirror reflection of the surrounding mountains and vegetation on the lake (sometimes the colours are even more vivid in the water).

Another stopover on the way to Milford Sound. Exhilarating!

And here is what the Milford Sound fjord looks like. It felt like a scene out of a fairy tale movie, something like Peter Pan or Avatar. Yep, pretty cool!

We hopped into a cruise and saw all these:

Majestic waterfalls everywhere

We were lucky to spot a double rainbow too!

Fur seals sunbaking…lol they looked so lazy but so cute.

It was spectacular. Everywhere you look, it was postcard perfect so you can’t go wrong with the pictures.

The day ended with big smiles on our faces. Here’s one last look at our big boat:

It was then time to drive back up north to Queenstown. I have to say, this is my favourite town in the Southern Hemisphere. It was absolutely gorgeous and the people were pretty awesome too.

Kayaking in Queenstown

Arthur’s Point:

We literally put our feet up to savor and take in the moment and thank our lucky stars for the privilege of seeing this beautiful, friendly country. New Zealand has such amazing landscape that I have once thought was only possible through Photoshop. All pics here are unedited, by the way 🙂

I will never forget New Zealand and its amazing fjords, rivers, valleys, rolling hills, wild flowers, golden fields and coastal roads. It was the best drive of my life so far.

And also the most picturesque.

New Zealand destroyed me. Because I will always dream of its beauty, and now my city will never feel the same again.

The Most Beautiful Place that No One has Ever Heard Of…

I have been to a few places in the world and as what other frequent travelers would say, each place truly has its own character and beauty. Some places may not be as visually stunning as others, but they can be beautiful and memorable because of the people and the uniqueness of the experiences made there. Some places hold unspeakable beauty – truly stunning  but may lack the adrenaline rush and rustic charm that other places can boast of. So for those reasons, I really do believe that no two places in the world have the exact same offerings.

This is what I found in El Nido, Philippines. It is a group of limestone-laden islands with hidden beaches, secret lagoons and scary open sea small boat rides that will leave you hanging off the edge of your seat, as big waves crash into your humble vessel and madly rock it back and forth, back and forth.

Sure, there is Thailand’s Koh Samui and Vietnam’s Halong Bay that are comparable to El Nido…

However, there was something in those islands that made me look into the horizon wondering how this place could have kept its beauty all to itself – and for how long now.

Not that I want it to be in the traveling world’s spotlight because tourists like me will eventually destroy the place. But it’s quite unfortunate that not everyone in the world have seen this sort of beauty – it’s just mesmerizing. Just have a look at the raw, unedited pictures from my Nikon point and shoot camera and tell me if I am blind.

However, if you agree with me, I wish that one day, you would see this beauty with your very own eyes just like how I did last week. It was amazing, truly unforgettable.

Note:

I did the trip on a budget. El Nido is not that easy to get to, as it is still relatively underdeveloped as a tourist spot (I think that’s a good thing!). I got there by booking a flight from Cebu to Puerto Princesa, Palawan via Cebu Pacific and hiring a van from Puerto Princesa to El Nido. This is roughly a 6 to 7 hour ride, depending on how fast your driver is.

Once you get to El Nido, you’ll see signs everywhere of the tour offerings, or you can book through your hotel (more expensive). Most operators have the same route for each tour package and the only difference is that some operators have bigger boats and better food compared to others.

 

Lessons

Someone extraordinary taught me a very important lesson today. But no, not a word was said between us, that’s irrelevant. I learnt that you do not really meet people randomly. You meet them because they have something to contribute to your life, and you, to theirs. But the moment you cease contributing to each other’s growth is when you stop the journey together. It doesn’t mean that it’s a bad thing; it’s just that you have exhausted each other’s wealth of knowledge and love that have been vital elements to moulding the person that you are now.

It’s amazing how someone can have so much impact to your life if only you let them. Relationships can be retarded and society has rules on how they all work. But sometimes, when you take a step back and look at the events from a distance, you will realise that it all happened for a reason. It’s not really as fucked up as it seemed.

As the years go by, you’ll know that you’ll always be grateful to that extraordinary soul that held your hand when no one else did. That one person who motivated and inspired you, and always seemed to know the right thing to say when you are staring at a blank wall with tears in your eyes not knowing what to do with your life. I believe it’s a privilege to meet someone like that. And when you do, learn as much as you could from that person.

The world is such an unpredictable place to be in, and at the sunset of our lives the one thing that we will remember is who touched our lives the most, and how, after meeting them, the world has become such a better place than when we first found it.

The Next Train

In the morning, train stations quickly get packed with people who only have one goal in mind: catch that next damn train at any cost!

It’s amazing to see people of all shapes and sizes weaving through the crowd, sometimes in a snake-like manner and sometimes, rough and tough, tackling everyone in their path like an overly determined rugby player!

No one looks happy, and everyone looks the same! So I wonder, are we all thinking the same thing every morning? Dreading another day in prison..err work, dreading another day in school, dreading this short journey to some place they really wouldn’t wanna be in…

So ironically, public transport has the most antisocial people in one of the most socially conducive environment. Hundreds of people packed together, standing or sitting right next to each other but not talking or, at the very least, smiling at anyone. Some even get annoyed when strangers sit right next to them. And some bags just take up premium space for free at peak hour services.

It’s a mysterious environment. Everyone’s thinking about something, looking at something, listening to something. There’s always something going on in public transport. But each person is in a bubble, contained within his or her own little interesting world that no one knows about but themselves.

I just find it quite fascinating. Or maybe I’m just weird.

Distance

Bursts of vivid memories played inside my head
With my eyes wide open and my weary feet taking me to a familiar path
I feel like I am here but my soul is traveling far, far away
In search of you…

In this sea of madness before me, the only way to truly remember you by
Is to shut my eyes and listen to the same rustling of trees,
Gusts of wind and the annoyances of city traffic
That I have learnt to associate with you
They were in the background whilst listening to you talk a thousand miles away
Now when I listen to them,
It’s the same scenario a few months back
Only that this time, they are here, and you are not…

I am longing for you
I want to know how it feels like to press my lips against yours
Hold you so tightly and then look you in the eyes and say how much you mean to me

We have always said that life is short,
That we should chase our dreams and find true happiness
So if life is short, then I’m not sure if I would live long enough to see this battle end

If the battle that I fight is against my heart,
If the battle that I fight is against fear,
If the battle that I fight is against myself…

But when I lay my sword down, my weary heart escapes
And blissfully runs back to you without any care in the world
And when it does, I take in the moment
I savour the inexplicable sensations that happen every single moment that your soul touches mine

But just like how the tides ebb, those stolen moments do not last long
I get pulled away over and over again
By the sound of the blowhorn
To tell me that the battle has once again resumed

But those short, golden moments are worth the fight
If they prove that there is something beyond the physical life that we are living,
If there really is something greater than ourselves that we don’t have the capacity to comprehend just yet,
If there is hope that one day I would be able to explain why I still feel connected to you…

Despite the distance,
Despite the silence,
Despite the resistance,
Despite the confusion,
Despite the tears…

For that glimmer of hope,
I will fight this constant battle
If victory means having to walk away into the sunset with your heart in my hands til the end…