Rainy Days

Rain and wind today cancelled the scuba diving, but after more than a month of daily activities it wasn’t the worst thing to lounge and catch up on errands. I got antsy towards the end of the day and went for a short hike in the mud, but otherwise there isn’t much to recap, so here are a few random observations about New Zealand:

• In Akaroa the B&B left the key in the lock so that it wouldn’t get lost, and in Mt Cook I asked the hotel owner if it was safe to have luggage in my car while parked at the trailhead and he quite simply didn’t understand the question. At least outside of the big cities, New Zealanders don’t seem to worry at all about crime.
• They have deer farms here. You’ll be driving along, and a herd of what look like elk will be roaming in a field. I have pulled over numerous times to get a better look, much to the confusion of other passing motorists.
• A lot of the bridges are one-lane, with signs indicating which direction of traffic has priority. After at least a hundred of these crossings, I’ve yet to see people fail to wave in gratitude when someone is stopped to allow traffic going in the other direction to pass.
• I’ve mentioned this before, but aside from two species of bats, there are no native mammals in New Zealand.
• Tipping is generally not a thing. After scuba diving in Milford Sound I asked if there was a tip jar anywhere, and Cody told me not to worry about it. When I insisted he awkwardly pulled a jar out of a back shelf. People seem to take pride in doing their job and get a bit embarrassed if you offer them extra.
• National parks have no entrance fees. They want you to be able to see their beautiful places.
• There’s a strong culture of allowing “freedom camping” throughout the country. Even in popular tourist towns, there’s always an area with signs up denoting that you can park your camper there for the night, as long as you’re respectful.
• They are all-in on protecting their environment. 33% of the land in New Zealand is protected for conservation, and everywhere you go you will see traps and notes about poison baits being used to control rats, possums, and weasels that are killing off the native birds and vegetation. Similarly, they have massive projects to cut down invasive pine trees and to remove other non-native plants that choke out the native vegetation.