Monday, July 31, 2006
WEEKLY VISIT TO THE P.O.N.
the name of the resort is Whakapapa (pronounced: phuk-ah-pah-pah), the other half and second resort which combined make up Mt Ruapehu - which translated from the Maori language means 'pit of noise' - our local winter stomping ground of choice. sunday we rode whakapapa despite the cloudy conditions which hampered our visibility. saturday on the other hand was spent riding the other side of this beautiful mountain in the tongariro national park - the turoa resort, which, since my previous visit 2 weeks prior had opened up a great deal more of the terrain.
this weekend i headed up with paul where we met with a few other friends, bex, james and leeann. we stayed at the Matai Backpackers Hostel which was interesting. it's not often that i stay at the hostels so i always find it a new and refreshing experience even if it is prone to less privacy, quiet, and freedom that i'd prefer on my weekend away.
one of my roommates was katarina, 19, from Germany - here for about a year enjoying a working holiday where she's improving her english. it seemed wrong to leave her behind while the rest of our group went to dinner so i invited her along so she could have an interesting story to tell her family and friends back in Germany. she powered through a whole spanish style pizza and an order of crème brû·lée which she'd never had the opportunity to try. she enjoyed the evening out and mentioned that it was the best meal of her entire 4 months that she's been in NZ. oddly enough, the thing she mentioned she missed the most about Germany was the bread. Someday i'll get there and try this amazing bread.
taking this next weekend off from riding as it's the mardi gras in ohakune. the crowds will be insane and i can do without that slice of chaos.
the name of the resort is Whakapapa (pronounced: phuk-ah-pah-pah), the other half and second resort which combined make up Mt Ruapehu - which translated from the Maori language means 'pit of noise' - our local winter stomping ground of choice. sunday we rode whakapapa despite the cloudy conditions which hampered our visibility. saturday on the other hand was spent riding the other side of this beautiful mountain in the tongariro national park - the turoa resort, which, since my previous visit 2 weeks prior had opened up a great deal more of the terrain.
this weekend i headed up with paul where we met with a few other friends, bex, james and leeann. we stayed at the Matai Backpackers Hostel which was interesting. it's not often that i stay at the hostels so i always find it a new and refreshing experience even if it is prone to less privacy, quiet, and freedom that i'd prefer on my weekend away.
one of my roommates was katarina, 19, from Germany - here for about a year enjoying a working holiday where she's improving her english. it seemed wrong to leave her behind while the rest of our group went to dinner so i invited her along so she could have an interesting story to tell her family and friends back in Germany. she powered through a whole spanish style pizza and an order of crème brû·lée which she'd never had the opportunity to try. she enjoyed the evening out and mentioned that it was the best meal of her entire 4 months that she's been in NZ. oddly enough, the thing she mentioned she missed the most about Germany was the bread. Someday i'll get there and try this amazing bread.
taking this next weekend off from riding as it's the mardi gras in ohakune. the crowds will be insane and i can do without that slice of chaos.