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Meet the Yellow TreeHouse:

18 people can be seated in the threehouse together with all the neccesary waiting staff. It has a bar and you can see the open meadow and a stream while enjoying your meal. Kitchend and toilets are at the ground level.
The entrance to the treehouse is via the 60 meters wooden walkway, which blends organically with the environment and “flows” into the treehouse. The architectural concept of this whole project is very interesting and in my opinion is a bood blend of childness, fairytales and green-structures building. The whole restaurant looks if not as a part of nature then as a very close to it.

The yellow treehouse project manager is Tracey Collins, and the whole idea was to source all products and services through Yellow Paes listings. The restaurant is completed and open, but it is all booked for the near future, so if you absolutely must visit it – you will have to wait.

You can visit the yellow trehouse’s project site at:
http://www.yellowtreehouse.co.nz/

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The report is very impressive. Duing 2008 Te Araroa trust has opened 14 tracks for the general public access. The total length of these fourteen tracks reaches 134 kilometers (83.26 miles).

While previously Te Araroa trust had to fund even the tracks across lands that are under DoC (Department of Conservation), 2008 was the first full year in which DoC began funding the Te Araroa tracks going through its estate. DoC also signed up 340 kilometers (211.27 miles) of Te Araroa’s route across existing DoC tracks, which is almost half of the 827 kilometers that needs signage! Wow, this is just great.

The report elaborates on Te Araroa’s activity in many regions including Southland, Otago, Canterbury, Marlborough, Wellington, Manawatu, Whanganui, Waikato, Auckland, and Northland.

Ta Araroa’s deadline for the complete walking trail across New Zealand comes on December 2010, and they seem to advace greatly toward this wonderful goal. I wish them all the best and Good Luck!

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Tips that will make your stay in a tent more pleasant:

• Buy a good tent. Don’t settle for something cheap. Your tent has to be absolutely waterproof, but also has to be ventilated, and have a good insect netting. It also should have enough room for people and gear. It is best to buy a tent that can stand by itself, without being held by pegs because sometimes you’ll have to put up a tent on a hard surface and it will be difficult to hammer in pegs. If you will use pegs – buy a hammer.

• Sleeping mats. Go for self-inflatingcamping sleeping mats. They will provide better comfort together with good isolation from the ground.

• Sleeping bags. Buy a professional sleeping bag for cold conditions (-5 or even -10 degrees Celsius). It is better to sleep on top of your sleeping bag in a warm weather than feeling cold when camping in highlands.

• Flashlight. You want to be able to see thing inside your tent after dark. It is best to buy a headlamp so that your hands will be free.

• Put up your tent while you still have sunlight. It will be much easier and more convenient.

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Using buses as your general transport is mostly reasonable if you come to New Zealand only for a short period of time, lets say a couple of weeks, and you have planned in advance all your destinations, so that you can book all the tickets you need in advance. Even for such a short periods I still recommend hiring a car.

That said there are several companies that perform targeted organized tours. Their advantage is in their good knowledge of the area, therefore such companies will enable you to see and experience more than you could by yourself. It is also a good way to meet new people. So you might consider using their services as part of your trip.

photo by Daniel Kelpe

If you come to New Zealand for about a month you should consider renting a car, and probably book your car in advance on the Internet. Many rental companies will pick you up from the airport, drive you to their office and give you the car, so that you will have it from the very moment you arrive to NZ.

photo by Jams_123

If you intend to be in NZ for a period longer than a month, best choice for you would be to buy a used car. This also you can do on the internet, before beginning your trip in order to save precious vacation time. There are many car yards that have web sites. Here are just a couple examples:

http://www.autotrader.co.nz/

http://www.thecaryard.co.nz/

Remember, that you can also sell your car at the end of your trip on the internet. Just start publishing the selling add (on the same sites) about a week or two in advance.

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Spencer is American guy who lives in Asia. I first met him in Thailand, where I was rock climbing. I came there only for one month, but Spencer was living there for quite a long period. He extensively traveled throughout Asia, and has  magnificent photographs from his travels.

The photos that you can see here are just a small portion of Spencer’s work. Many more you can find on his web site:

http://www.weedmoments.com

He is a very talented and interesting person. I enjoyed meeting him and hope you will get to know him through his photographs.

Keep in touch Spencer !

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