Don't blame it on the weatherman

Dear Mr Weatherman/Santa, all I want for one day or possibly a few hours is a bright, orange, warm ball that sits in the sky, some Vitamin D for my skin, less of the hurricane force winds and driving rain and a few less green soggy, marshland fields as my little tent is not a boat. Thank you very much. Oh and I've been a good girl too.

New Zealand -what can I say?  The place is very familiar to Ireland and parts of the UK, like the Lake District, parts of Scotland and the SW of England.  Sometimes it feels like I have been magically transported back home (so mum, keep me some Sunday lunch). Could swear I was camping at the Quoile sometimes.

At present I'm in the South Island, with stunning views (when the cloud cover lifts) of mountainous areas and sparse population - this is Lord of the Rings country afterall. The North Island is full of green fields and more cows than sheep.  Been cycling a bit of it (when the weather eases) and is a great way to see the country.  Would I ever emigrate over here?...my answer would be no, well not to camp anyway. Why do people leave Ireland to come back to Ireland again!

On a tour of both islands - in fact, I'm half way through and getting used to the smell of wet canvas against my face in the mornings, really cold temperatures at night and frostbitten hands from trying to pull out tent pegs from the ground. I've had two tents for use in the North and South islands. My first tent was called 'Sharon Stone' and my tent now is called 'Britney Spears'. Britney has been giving me ball ache and has not been behaving herself at all. In fact, I've lost the bap with her at least twice as she wouldn't go back into the tent bag as she was too wet and must have expanded. Needless to say, I've mistreated her badly, kicked her around the field with a few expletives added in for good measure.  Have had to upgrade quite a few nights as it's impossible to pitch a tent in a marshland. Maybe it would be better if I anchor my tent in the Tasman Sea.

One particular night, most of my group decided to upgrade, whilst myself and a few cyclists decided we were hard and wanted to stay outdoors.  Well, we nearly got blown away from gale force winds that came from nowhere. One girl's tent collapsed with her in it and everything got soaked...so off we went (with Junior in my arms) to the nearest living room in the adjacent hostel for a night's sleep. Have slept in the most random of places, in the middle of nowhere, had a dress up night in a country pub with the barman/owner (Paddy)being more drunk than his patrons. It was one drink for you, five for him and kept going like that all night. I kept asking him for a barcardi and coke and everytime he filled it up with vodka.  Each time I kept saying, "Now Paddy, you gave me vodka the last time, can I PLEASE have bacardi this time round?"...still he got it wrong! The craic has been great though and the fellow travellers I've met have been a good laugh.

The weather hasn't been kind at all with 7 of the activities that I'd planned to do being cancelled - an Alpine trek was off (due to heavy snow/ice), Mount Cook (a bridge was being reconstructed), Routeburn Trek of 3 days..(off, due to high winds and snow), kayaking (too windy), white-water rafting (off as the water levels had swollen to dangerous levels), dolphin swimming (off, the dolphins were probably cold).  Did however, get to go to the Milford Sound yesterday (the road normally closes on bad weather days), but luckily nice mother nature only rained loads, so it stayed open...that was amazing.

Skydive...done - wow, what an amazing experince jumping out of a plane 15,000 feet above the clouds. The freefall was out of this world..all I was shouting was Wow - plummeting to earth at over 200 kph.  Would I do it again?..hell yes, for the buzz and the fact I was strapped to a very handsome tandem master!

In Queenstown at the minute, which is the capital of adrenaline here in NZ. 10 of us have left our tour for a few days and made our own way here and found a nice hostel. To us it's like the Burj al Arab or whatever that fancy hotel is called in Dubai! Anything, instead of a campsite in the middle of nowhere and there are great spots to go out to. So Britney is without her owner for a few days - maybe we'll make up again when we re-unite(?). The weather forecast for the next 5 days?  Yep, you guessed it, rain, rain and a bit more rain to add to the other rain...camping...you gotta love it!



Freefalling skydive





Paddy who kept serving me the wrong drink all night!



Camping life in NZ with Britney my tent



Snow on the South Island



"Thank you for flying LanChile, we hope you had a good flight.."

Eh, no is the answer to that - could slap the people who came up with those stupid lines. Think by the time I arrived in Auckland I was mentally deranged and completely exhausted from lack of sleep.  Had I stayed another hour longer in Santiago airport, I think I would have set the place on fire.  After waiting 8 hours in Lima for my flight to Santiago, I had another 22 hours to wait for my flight to Auckland. 

My saviour in lots of my travels has been the 'Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Forum' - basically a forum where travellers can ask others questions from the sane to insane and get answers to any weird questions asked.  So I used it to type in 'Places to sleep in Santiago airport' (as there was no way I was paying $200 for a bed in an adjacent airport hotel). Some bright spark came up with the idea of a peaceful night's sleep on the 2nd floor, by all the offices (with maybe some carpet to keep me warm!).

Great, off I set with 'Junior' (my sleeping bag) and my small rucksack and headed for the 2nd floor at 4am in the morning - found a nice wee spot on 4 chairs next to a rather large window & not a soul in sight.  Opened my sleeping bag, hopped in, used my rucksack as a pillow...smug and smile on face off I went to sleep thinking I'd be fresh as a daisy for my long day/travel the next morning...

...Talk about the worst night's sleep ever - about 45 minutes later, I awoke to the sound of trolleys crashing along the floor; a woman sitting at my feet and then a large group of people with some sort of flags waving and screaming at the large window.  Little did I realise that the nice area I'd found on the 2nd floor was a viewing/waiting area for people waiting for passengers coming from arrivals.  So no sleep and waiting for 20 hours for my (delayed) flight to Auckland. 

Finally boarded the plane with 2 free seats beside me with a fella on the other end - was great, as I was going to sprawl out and lie down.  Well, not quite..some stupid French woman with her ADHD kid thought it would be a good idea to ask the man to swap places so her wee boy could lie down and sleep.  Not impressed!

So here I am in Auckland - a city similar to Ireland and the UK. The place is absolutely buzzing with the excitement of Rugby World Cup Fever. Today is the match between Wales (should have been Ireland) and France and there's so much going on. The people here are absolutely lovely and so friendly.  There are 'Fanzones' located all over the city and I'll be heading there tonight to go and join in the atmosphere near the wharf with all the fans from everywhere watching the match on huge screens - the crowds are everywhere. Reminds me a bit of All-Ireland Final Day in Dublin, except on a much bigger scale.

Staying in a YMCA hostel..should be called Y Weird CA hostel...some strange individuals roaming the corridors (but was the only bed I could get cos of the World Cup) Not sure who the hostel houses..disadvantaged from the community, inmates/whatever!! They do have a brilliant gym next door, with machines that actually work, so have been in my element. Have befriended a Brazilian guy who's here studying English until February and when he found out I was in NZ for 3 months, he gave me his number within half an hour of chatting.  So will meet up with him when my tour finishes back in Auckland again...think he's desperate for meeting new friends/people who stay longer than 2 days in the hostel.

Start my tour of the North and South island tomorrow morning for the next 29 days. Hiking/cycling and other adrenaline fuelled activities await. Oh and back to sleeping in a tent again. I think my love relationship with Junior will come to a final end tomorrow night - watch this space!



Finally getting my flight from Santiago Airport



Adios Sud America

Well my time here in this fantastic continent has unfortunately come to an end.  Have absolutely loved it here and Peru has to be my favourite country so far.  Think this is possibly because I've stayed here for 5 weeks in Cusco and it's like my home from home. The people, country, lifestyle...everything is fantastic. Was going to write a long list of what I'd miss but I'd be here until Christmas.  I'll definitely be back again. Ideally I would love to stay here and learn Spanish and become just that wee bit more fluent than I already am (?!) and who knows, I'm sure there are teachers needed over here.

Spent last night out in Cusco with my friends.  Even though I don't want to go, most of the people who I've met are now leaving or have left, so our wee group is dwindling down, so maybe it's a good time to go.  New friendships have been formed and I'll be keeping in contact with a good few of them.

Just have my bag to pack. Back to living out of a rucksack for the next while then. Have stocked up on all the essentials I need for New Zealand in the form of toiletries etc.  Things are so cheap over here, I'll get some shock when I arrive in NZ and Oz.  The wig has been dyed, eyebrows waxed, (for the same price as my haircut..which tells you how shite my haircut was if it was that cheap!) laundry washed..even 'junior', my sleeping bag (who Liza has so affectionately named) has been washed and ready for a month sleeping in a tent in NZ.  Haven't actually checked 'junior' but knowing my luck, the laundrette has probably shrunk it even more than it already is and no doubt I'll be freezing in my little tent!

I leave on Monday flying from Cusco to Lima, where I wait for 7 hours for my connecting flight to Santiago, Chile. I arrive at stupid o'clock in the morning and then have to wait another 20 hours for my flight to New Zealand.  Looks like I'll be sharing a floor somewhere in Santiago airport with the down and outs - no changes there then. Then it's a 14 hour flight to Auckland..I arrive on Thursday at 4am local time.  No doubt I'll be knackered, talking jibberish and completely exhausted from all the travelling..but hey, it has to be done!  The next month in NZ will be spent hiking and cycling the north and south islands with optional excursions added in.  Was hoping Ireland would have beaten Wales, so I could have been around for the semi-finals..but since they lost that aint gonna happen now. Can't wear my Irish jersey with pride now!

Ok, that's it from me...sad to leave here but looking forward to my next adventure in New Zealand..I wonder what awaits me there!!

Oh and the blog comments seem to be disappearing for people..no worries. It's a bit tempremental (like myself). Hoping my phone will have reception too by the time I hit NZ.

Beautiful Sacred Valley outside Cusco

View walking down from Cristo Blanco - Cusco city

A friendly llama near Cusco

Volunteering

Ok, so my hair has grown a bit, but my fringe is still a mess and takes quite a bit of styling with my new hair gel (called vaseline..so handy for any of life's mishaps).  So, I graduated from my Spanish school on 'Feliz Dia del Estudiante' which is the annual 'Students Day' over here. It was perfect for those finishing on this particular day as we all felt a bit special than the ones who graduate on a 'normal' Friday. We got cake, some weird Peruvian drinks and music after our speeches. Oh and we returned later to class which was also a bonus!  Was sad to finish it and it was great feeling like a big kid again in lessons. Think I tortured the life out of my poor teachers as I did carry on a bit, but they enjoyed the banter - glad to see the back of me I'm sure.

The next week was time for volunteering.  Well, it was a bit of an eye opener all right. I was posted to a small school in Ccorrea, which is about 45 minutes drive squashed on a tiny bus through the mountains. The scenery getting there is just breathtaking, as is the smell of BO on the bus.  The journey home is a right laugh too - talk about being 'close' to people..no such thing as having your own personal space here as there's always someones ass, leg, knee, arm or head squashed against yours.  The bus is full to bursting - if arms, legs and bodies were allowed to hang out the window, then that would be what our bus looks like; just about breathing space (of all the BO and smells!).

I am in a class of about 25 children, with another volunteer called Gordon from Scotland, with ages ranging from 3-5 year olds - similar to a Primary One class at home. The other volunteer, Wendy, from Wales is in the other classroom. The school has two classrooms, the other being 6 - 8 year olds. Arriving at the school each morning, the volunteers are nearly always there before the teachers. The vast majority of the children come to school by themselves (yes, 3 year olds walk themselves to school), some children travel for over an hour down the mountains to get there.  A few parents take their children to school, which, here is not the norm.  Lessons begin at 9am, but for the last week, we've been in the classroom for at least 70 minutes by ourselves with these children playing the same games (making a chain out of beads, placing coloured blocks on a few cards or playing jig-saws). The teachers here like to go and have a wee chat to each other frequently, and on other occasions they have disappeared out of the school grounds (probably away for a wee cuppa just to get them ready to actually try and teach something) for over 45 minutes, leaving the rest of us to deal with the normal school day.

The children come from poor backgrounds and any money etc donated to the school helps with the purchase of essential items for them.  The classroom is actually well resourced, thanks to all the donations from volunteers and governments from other countries.  First day was lovely; the children all sang me a favourite song of theirs and they learnt about animals and had a music session. As the week went on, the learning got less and less and the break times got longer and longer - one break actually lasted until lunchtime.

Being a child protection officer at my own school nearly wished I wasn't here. There were times when I couldn't believe what I was witnessing, but being in a different culture and environment, I had to just get on with it.  Their 'bano' (bathroom) time had me whincing.  They have 2 toilets for both classes (of around 56 children in total) which is right beside the bigger staff toilet (yes, all in the same room).  Since I've been there, the toilets haven't flushed and there is no running water to the school as the community outside of the school always turn it off to save water; this is even after the 'Director' or 'Principal' has begged them to keep it on.

As there is no water in the toilets, the children go outside on the grass to do their business (very close to the classrooms). As a volunteer, I must go and keep an eye on the kids - no toilet roll here or washing of hands, so you can just imagine what the smell is like after they have finish and return to class!  One day, after 'bano' time, the teacher brought us all outside to sing and dance (yes, she brought us to the exact place of the outside communal toilets).  We all made a circle and danced around singing to Pachamama (the god of Mother Earth here). I was trying desperately to avoid all the wee and whatever else was surrounded around my feet. One child stood in anothers poo, so the song to Pachamama had to be stopped whilst it was covered over with stones (but not wiped off his feet!). He was told off for stepping in it... no telling the person off for actually taking a dump there then?!

The children are so adroable, but there are a few rogues as well - just like any other school. One particular child in my class threw another girl off the top of a slide onto the ground below. The punishment for him? Well, the teacher took the girl that he threw off by the hand and made her hit him several times in the arm/chest so that he didn't do it again. Obviously, he cried.  One little boy in my class has a deformity in his brain - he is 8 years old, in with 3-4 year old children, and it would break your heart just watching him. He can't talk, but has come on a lot since being in this class for a few years. He built a lovely 'casa' or house the other day out of lego and his wee face lit up.  Little moments like that make you realise how lucky you are. Some mothers have a rota system and are meant to come into school and cook lunch for the children. If they don't turn up, the children don't get fed (which has been 3 days last week). The children here may be poor and climb all over you with their dirty hands etc one thing is for sure, they are all happy.  I'd love to take a few of them home.

They all come to school with a decent break, mostly of fruit, which is obviously from subsistence farming at home.  9am punctuality isn't important here as children wander in at whatever times they arrive from walking from home.  If it is a particularly rainy day, some children don't come into school and are maybe not sent by their parents.  One little girl was sick during the week and two other children had to take her home; they arrived back after an hour, still with the sick girl, as her mother was not at home.  Most children at this partcular school have to fend for themselves, and I suppose, grow up pretty quickly.

Have had a few embarrassing moments at the school; one being made to sing a song. God, I wished I was a P1 teacher at that moment...my song..'Twinkle, Twinkle"...myself and another voluteer, Wendy, were mortified, but the kids were so quiet - I think they thought we weren't wise!  Myself and Gordon were asked to cover boxes with coloured crepe paper (the boxes were falling apart and if they were in my class they would have been binned years ago). Those colleagues of mine reading this know how useless I am at art...well, I'm still trying to cover the damn things, but I suppose as each box is finished, the better I get at them (if that is possible).  I'm like a classroom assistant in the school. Like all classroom assistants: overworked and underpaid (well ok, not paid at all). Leona, if you're reading this, I know what you mean, when you say you go off into a wee world of your own when you're busy with your artwork - Me too (except the 'art' bit is not quite your art!).

Ok this blog has taken ages, but I hadn't written one in a while and I've been getting a few emails asking me to update.  Keep the emails/facebook messages coming...it's always nice to hear your craic from home or wherever (even if you think it's uninteresting and boring) and I'll always try my best to reply as soon as I can. Well, I've got one week left here in Cusco before I leave for New Zealand, so I'll try and fit one more blog in from South America...maybe someone can come over and drag me onto the plane kicking and screaming, as I don't want to leave here.  Hasta luego for now...ciao!

Ccorrea - place of my volunteering

Marching to a song to Pachamama

The children at breaktime

'Graduating' from Spanish school,with Caroline, my Belgian friend

Eating Peruvian cakes on 'Feliz Dia del Estudiante'