Auckland - Queenstown (5)

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ENGLISH VERSION - CYMRAEG ISOD

It was warm in Fiji, but upon arriving in New Zealand we discovered that things were going to be slightly colder for our next leg of the trip! 

We had already decided that we were going to buy a van, so we went to the Backpackers Car Market where we had mixed fortunes, which resulted in us losing a bit of money and learning a valuable lesson (which is that i don't know much about cars)!  After a lot of looking we finally got a van - it's a heap, but its still going, and its very comfortable so we're happy (reliable vans are no fun anyway!)

Luckily our old Mate Jane Anderson was on hand in Auckland to take us out on the town. For those of you who know her she hasn't changed at all, she still can't drink, but she didn't fall over that night.  However, we are going to spend Christmas and New Year with her, so its still early days on the 'tripping up drunk Jane' front!!.

So we set off from Auckland and stopped at various places down the east coast of the North Island.  The highlight for me was Rotorua which has loads of geysers and stinking sulphur pools bubbling smeely mud 24hours a day.  The whole town smells of rotting eggs due to the sulphur, but once you get past this -it was a great place.  We visited a traditional Maori village, i had a Hungi with the Guide(see pics) and we were treated to the Hake and other war dances.  After that we went looking for a hot spring to sink into for a dip, and we drove out to a place called Kerosene Creek and sat in the hot stream with about 6 other people.  It was too hot to stay in for more than half an hour, and the sand on the bottom of the river bed was boiling hot, but it's the first bath we've had in ages!

We then headed through the countryside to the volcanic area that was used in  the filming of Lord of the Rings.  We decided to do the Tongariro Crossing which is a 7-8hour 17km hike over the mountains (via 'Mount Doom) - the pictures looked stunning.  Apparently weather conditions were a bit dodgy that day, but thankfully (or so we thought) we were told it would be safe to cross, although we would definately need our waterprooofs and warm clothes.  Well, the next 7 hours weren't the worst of my life, but they definately weren't fun!  The sleet was so hard at the top of the highest peak that it was stinging my face, I thought at one moment we were all gonna get blown off the top of the mountain - Fiji felt a long way away!  The worst thing was that we couldn't see anything due to the cloud and missed most of the scenery! Forget Everest or any ideas of going to the South Pole.  Ffion didn't seem to mind it too much at the time and kept on making stupid comments throughout -but I got my own back as she didn't shut up about her stiff knees for the rest of the week!

We headed south and it started to rain - a lot!  This contributes to the fact that New zealand looks a lot like home - we could swear we've been here before. Sheep, fields, rugby and rain! 

We crossed over to the South Island and  went to Mount Cook, the highest mountain in the Southern Hemisphere(13000ft) and went Kayaking on one of the glacier lakes which was pretty amazing as we could watch avalanches happening on the mountain and also get a good look at the glacier up close. 

We are now in Queenstown; 'Adrenaline Central'.  I did my first ever bungee jump the other day off the Kawarau bridge, which was amazing, and went white water rafting yesterday and got absolutely soaked, unfortunately Ffi didn't fall out of our boat!

I hope your all well and looking forward to Christmas - keep our presents until we get back!

FERSIWN CYMRAEG YN DECHRAU YMA:

Roedd cyrreadd Zeland Newydd yn sioc anferthol i'r system!  Ein bwriad ni wrth drefnu'r daith fawr yma oedd dilyn yr haf o amgylch y byd - byw mewn bicini!  Dim gobaith caneri yma yng ngwlad y cyrasau duon!  Bu rhaid i ni brynnu thermals yn syth, yna het, scarff a dillad dal dwr!

Ar ol dod dros y sioc, dyma ni'n prynnu fan mawr melyn i'n tywys ni o amgylch yr ynysoedd.  Ry'n ni wrth ein bod gyda'r fan, er ei fod yn gwneud synau rhyfedd dros ben ar adegau, a phan mae'n oer - mae fwy o wlith tu mewn na sy' tu allan!!

Ta weath, dyma ni'n dechrau ar ein teithiau lan i'r Corumandell Peninsula, lle roedden ni wedi clywed fod modd cloddio twll yn y tywod pan oedd y llanw allan, ac yn ein aros ni fyddai dwr twym. Gan fod naill ai ohonym ni wedi cael bath ers sbel, roedd hwn yn swni'n gret.  Ond yn anffodus, roedd y llanw allan am 4 y bore - doedd dim un ohonym ni moyn cloddio ar draeth oer tywyll amser yna o'r bore, felly, dim bath i ni, byddai rhiad i ni ddewi am ychydig rhagor!

Yna i Rotorua - a sylweddoli fod ROT yn amlwg yn enw da i'r dref gan fod yna byllau mwd a sylffur ym mhob man a'r aer yn arogli o wyau wedi pydru! Ych a fi!  Fuon ni i weld geyser, a phentref Mauri traddodiadol.  Yn anffodus, roedd hwn yr un diwrnod a gafodd Cymru crasfa gan Zeland Newydd, a fe gethon nhw lot o sbort yn tynnu coes!  Ond fe gethon ni weld yr Haka y diwrnod hwnw - yn fwy na gafoch chi, dwi'n clywed!

Ar ol hyny, ffeindio afon o'r enw 'Kerosene Creek' allan mewn rhyw goedwig, ac or diwedd, cael bath - bron fod y dwr yn rhy boeth i ni eistedd ynddo!

Wedi clywed am y daith undydd mwya poblogaedd ZN, yn pasio Mt Doom (Lord of the Rings), llynoedd anhygoel a craters folcanig, dyma ni'n anelu yn syth am y Tongariro Crossing - taith 7-8 awr, 17km o hyd awr dros mynydd.  Roedd y rhagolygon yn ei addo hi'n ffein, ond ar ol dwy awr o gerdded i fyny ochr y mynydd, dyma glaw, eira, cesair, corwynt (bron) niwr a phob peth cas arall yn ein bwrw ni.  Roedd hi mor wael fel roedden ni ar ein ffordd i lawr y mynydd cyn i ni sylweddoli ein bod ni wedi bod i'r top!  Doedd John ddim yn hapus y diwrnod 'ny!

Stopio yn Napier a edmygu yr adeuladau 'Art Deco' cyn sylweddoli ei'n bod ni wedi colli diwrnod yn rhywle (ar ben y mynydd siwr) a bod ein cwch yn hwylio i Ynys y De ben bore FORY, a bod 6 awr o deithio genym ni i gyrraedd Wellington - panic (a ffeindio mas fod y fan yn mynd yn well pan mae'n mynd dros 100k yr awr!)

Lot o dywydd gwlyb oedd yn ein croesawi ni yn y De, gyda sawl diwrnod yn edrych allan drwy ffenest llaethog.  Daliodd John rhyw fyg ofnadw a braf oedd cael esgus i fynd i westy clud am ddiwrnod.

Ers hyny, mae'r tywydd wedi gwella ychydig a ry'n ni teithio drwy'r wlad anhygoel yma yn teimlo'n eitha hiraethus.  Mae'n debyg iawn i Gymru (mynddoedd, defaid, niwl), a mae pob cornel yn edrych yn adnabyddus.

Ry'n ni ar hyn o bryd yn Queenstown, lle mae modd gwneud pob math o weithgareddau antur.  Roedd John yn mynu taflu ei hun oddi ar bont - ac ar ol 7 mis o'i gwmni - doeddwn i ddim am ei rhwystro! (er fy mod yn falch i weld y rhaff byngee yn gweithio).  Ddoe fuon i'n rafftio ar afon raddfa 5 a cael llwyth o ddwr oer yn ein colau - fe sobron i'n eitha cyflym!

Milford Sound a Fox Glacier wythnos yma - llond lle o gerdded a gwlychu dwi'n siwr, ac os fyddai'n ddigon dewr, neidio o awyren, ond gewn ni weld!

Diolch am eich dymuniadu gore - mae'n braf iawn darllen Cymraeg!

John + Ffionxx