SOUTH ISLAND, NZ, 2015

my husband and i had planned this trip, if i am not mistaken, in 2014. i honestly cannot remember how this idea of going to new zealand actually came to existence. i dont remember how i actually agreed to going to new zealand with a baby.. but that’s how shiham is. he’s got a way of getting me to agree with him- despite my reluctance :/

i can only imagine the worse because i simply cannot fathom the idea of bringing a one year plus boy on an 11 hour flight. but yes, like everything else, we survived.

Thanks to booking the night flight and many many thanks to my boobies.. 🙂  with that combination, your baby should sleep mostly throughout the flight. but i suffered back pain and shoulder aches and stiff calves because i was unable to position myself comfortably as it would make seth uncomfortable. okay la tu.. not a win win but at least no evil stares from other passengers.

long, boring story short, this trip to the south island is a stepping stone for us because it was our first time going on an RV..or a motor home or a caravan or a campervan!..  whatever you may call it..

shiham was stuck on this idea of road tripping in new zealand ever since we first step foot in NZ, back in 2010. takdela sangka akan menjadi kenyataan, but that is shiham for you. he’s very determined and unlike me, his determination usually comes to fruition.

PLEASE DO CLICK ON PICTURES FOR BETTER VIEWING EXPERIENCE. ive divided the picture gallery according to

  1. food we had
  2. our motorhome
  3. places we visited
  4. scenic views
  5. holiday parks we stayed

THIS IS OUR MOTOR HOME / RV !

after all the research, we went with the wilderness company . they’ve gotten good reviews and indeed they are! shiham being the nerd he is, insisted we go with this company. shiham did not want to take any chances with other companies lest anything crazy were to happen to us- the motorhome newbies.

we were happy and comfortable in our rumahbergerak for a darn two weeks! 🙂 me, my hubby and our baby. cool tak? hehe. BIG THANK YOU TO MY HUSBAND FOR ALL HIS HARDWORK TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN 🙂

FOOD WE HAD

PLACES WE VISITED- not in order of dates

OUR RATINGS! PLEASE ALSO CLICK ON WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION 🙂

west coast tree top cafe   3.5/5 (the view up on the tree tops are amazing.. but if you are not so much of a nature/ what a glorious view kindafa person, then maybe you can pass this spot  30-40 minutes)

lanarch castle 2/5 (if you are bothered to know about this family, then its probably worth the visit. 30 minutes )

cadbury world 3/5 (chocolates here are a bit pricey.. the chocolate exhibits are like the ones here in malaysia.. best you visit this place instead 🙂 but if you insist on having the cadbury experience, then why not? 🙂 30 minutes )

puzzling world wanaka 4/5 (a fun and pretty educational place for kids and adults. good to have some extra cash here so you can buy some puzzles for your kids or yourself 🙂 should visit lah 30-45 minutes)

toy and transportation museum  3/5 (the property is run by a family. i think all the property in it belongs to them. THE PROPERTY IS MASSIVE! theres so many toys and so many automobiles and so many vintage memorabilia. its wonderful to see how things have changed through time.. the place is nicely maintained by them. go also good dont go also can  close to 1 hour)

patagonia choc cafe  4.5/5 (the desserts, ice cream etc in here are DECADENT! apparently, there are other choc cafes.. so maybe next time, i will pay a visit to the other less raved but equally good choc cafes. patagonia’s pretty hipster cause everyone is raving about it. but the deco IS NOT HIPSTER AT ALL OK. theres always a queue and sometimes you have to fight for seats in the cafe. luckily they have a few outlets in NZ. so anyone rich enough to bring patagonia to malaysia? GO HERE LAH, if you wanna taste YUMMY CHOC STUFF, ICE CREAM… )

milford sound – jucy cruise  3.5/5 (like the west coast treetop cafe, if you’re into nature and all that, then this would be worth it. but if you’re like “mehh” then its okay if you dont go.. dont feel so bad lah if you dont go.. hehe. but its an NZ thing la this place..  about 2 hours)

tandem flying fox here  4/5 (there are other stuff to do here, but we went only for the sake of wanting to try the tandem flyingfox.. so we walked on a bridge and then we were attached to some swing of sorts and whooshhh we went sliding down over the river, not forgetting our screams and laughter on the way. clearly, my babyboy was not impressed.. cause he was just quiet and totally clueless to what was happening… hehe. 30 minutes je!)

moeraki boulders – 3/5 (this is shiham’s fave visit.. its by the beach and its actually very beautiful and haunting in some way. but if you dont care about stones that have stood the test of time and will attest to Allah when kingdom comes, then its okay if you dont stop here.. 🙂 . 30 minutes)

gondola at queenstown – 3/5 (well going up high on a gondola is well… going up high saje lah 🙂 the view is nice.. but at the same time i felt a bit takut going up higher and higher.. this fear is just my age creeping up on me.. basically, it really is not so different from going up the cable car at genting highlands.. when we got up there, shiham went on the luge while i just lepak with seth at the waiting area 40 minutes)

BEAUTIFUL SOUTH NEW ZEALAND LANDSCAPE – in random order

SOME PICTURES OF THE HOLIDAY PARKS WE STAYED

  • public toilets and showers available
  • coin laundry available- so theres no need to bring so many clothes!
  • public kitchen area- but i was too shy to cook there.. we mostly washed our plates and stuff there
  • we borrowed some dvds to watch at night cause our RV’s tv couldnt get any tv reception.. boo..
  • no grocery shops inside, so you must stock up whenever the need arises
  • do buy your own clothes and washing detergent- no one is kind enough to share.
  • the fee for the holiday parks are based on the number of heads utilizing the facilities, but seth was less than 2 years so i think it was half price.

sot that’s pretty much it.  curated to ensure that no one falls asleep while looking at the pictures. hope there was some useful information too.

A ROUND UP..

FANTASY

  • stop at many scenic spots
  • eat good food
  • buy lots of chocolates
  • good cycling weather
  • see whales
  • shopping

REALITY

  • not too many stops at scenic spots. we did not want to waste time on the road because we had to worry about prayer time and cooking dinner and mandi and laundry and basically getting enough sleep
  • good food is expensive and also not halal. so you cook- which sucks sometimes when you dont have what you want
  • weather was cold and windy.. so sad.. cycling wudve been fun
  • ticket for whales were about rm600 and above. plus, we had a baby.. he wont be able to appreciate the whales right? so next time then..
  • how much chocolate nak bawa balik malaysia pun? willing to buy another bag for the excess? or are you willing to pay for the extra kgs?
  • what does malaysia not have that we have to get it overseas? besides, with the ringgit not doing too well, i didnt think buying baju and stuff overseas was feasible. dont feel like a loser just cause you didnt shop till you dropped like those people we see on instagram.

updated some tips for an RV trip on the TIPS page. do check!

thanks for your time!