New Zealand Solo Backpacking Trip - December 2019

It all started with a dream. In this dream, I woke up in my very own farm. As I walk over to breakfast, I stop on the front porch to gaze at the amazing scenery of snowy mountains and endless fields of green. The peace and quietness filled my life to fullness. The slight wind blew so ever cooling and the air was so fresh that I never wanted anything else in my life.

And so I find myself looking for such a place. Definitely in Singapore there wouldn't be life like that. I truly desire a quiet place to retire in the future. New Zealand was the first place that came to mind because of their unique ecosystem! With sheep vastly greater in numbers than humans in New Zealand, I knew I had to explore that country.

I was actually forced to clear my leave back in July 2019 so I knew my chance arrived. Blocked out the entire 2nd half of December, ready to face my life's greatest dream and challenge! After years of dreaming and 6 months of planning, I am finally ready.

I have planned my 16-day trip into visiting 7 different areas of New Zealand. Below are the web links to the few different segments. You may click on any day you like, but I really recommend starting from Day 0 due to the chronological order of life!

Click on Day 0 for Singapore > Chengdu
Click on Day 1 for Chengdu > Auckland
Click on Day 2 for just Auckland
Click on Day 3 for Auckland > Hamilton
Click on Day 4 for just Hamilton
Click on Day 5 for Hamilton > Rotorua
Click on Day 6 for just Rotorua
Click on Day 7 for Rotorua > Taupo
Click on Day 8 for just Taupo
Click on Day 9 for Taupo > Napier
Click on Day 10 for just Napier
Click on Day 11 for Napier > Palmerston North
Click on Day 12 for just Palmerston North
Click on Day 13 for Palmerston North > Wellington
Click on Day 14 for just Wellington
Click on Day 15 for Wellington > Sydney > Singapore

This trip has been my longest overseas trip in life yet! This trip is full of first times. My first time on a plane alone, first time overseas alone, first time in another continent, first time visiting New Zealand, and much more! Definitely a wholesome experience that you just have to find out by clicking those links above.

I have been through so much over a period of 2 weeks! Walked a lot and saw even more! From crazy selfies beside Waikato River, to braving the cold at Lake Rotorua, to being intoxicated by smelly sulphur in Taupo, to crazily buying a guitar in Napier, to enjoying local life in Palmy, to retardedly spamming pizza in every town, to hiking 11.5km in Redwood Forest, to buying bread just to feed ducks and to having a weird Christmas, I truly dare to say this is my craziest trip yet!

This post will serve as the summary page for my trip. I highly recommend you to text me directly or even ask me out if you want to know more in detail my entire experience. I can't wait to share what I've been though and I certainly can't wait for my next trip already!

Things to learn and take note for my future NZ trips:
- Book InterCity buses early because the checkout timing is usually standardised at 10am and it would be good to travel to the next destination ASAP
- Double-check booking details because wrong dates is a common mistake!
- Definitely rent a car if possible because much of New Zealand's top picks are out of the way for most buses
- Book AirBNB whenever possible to interact with the locals more!
- Never transit in China ever again
- eTA is now a thing, different from VISA
- Rotorua Downtown Backpackers and Taupo Urban Retreat are worth staying at again

With that, I officially declare that I have experienced North Island of New Zealand. Next up, South Island of New Zealand!

NZ 2019 - Home Sweet Home (Day 15 of 15)

***The following is the account of the first-person-view from Edwin Ang.***

This day is dedicated to my very first time in Australia, even though it's just a transit. Shall start with how I managed to endure a 13-hour wait till my first flight.

And this was how. Pulled 3 chairs together to form a bed that I can slide right in. I was the only one sleeping in the entire airport apparently, as mentioned because New Zealand has such important work-life balance that even Wellington airport shuts down for a few hours everyday. Thank God I didn't get chased out (Google reviews mentioned people getting chased out of the airport!).

I slept in high alert mode like how I do during guard duty because my guitar and bag are out in the open. Any slight movement behind me will wake me up, and mind you, there was a lot. I woke up and fell right back asleep so many times. This vicious cycle ended at 4am, when I was allowed to check-in. Ended up checking both guitar and bag in because guitar was too big. Dang.

The departure area for Wellington Airport is a snugly one, just as I had to spend my remaining coins on more Subway cookies. Stupid Subway outside gave me five one dollar coins instead of a five dollar note. Pure nonsense. Plane was on time, which is awesome! Food was great on Qantas compared to those China airlines.

Had scrambled eggs and coffee, two things to start my final day of 2019 right. After a short 3-hour flight, I landed in Sydney, and immediately felt the heat. The forest fires really made the entire Sydney hazy. Thankfully I didn't have to step out of the airport!

It's a pretty big Terminal, comparable to just half of Singapore's T1! Walked a 15-minute walk to my next gate and just camped there all the way. Had no Australian Dollar to spend anyway. Dumb me actually wanted to change back to SG SIM card but realised it's not in my bag. Probably placed it inside my guitar case for "added protection". Now I have no way of using my data until check-out from Changi Airport.

Welp! Upon reaching Singapore, worst still, it's not even in my guitar case. Searched high and low for it to no avail. Declared my SIM card lost. Also, my sleeping bag magically disappeared too. That's two items lost on the way back. I knew trips definitely will have hiccups, but I didn't expect it to be at the last day of my trip (and on Christmas Day for that matter).

Dad came to pick me up from the airport and drove me to Grace Assembly of God for the countdown service of 2019. After a few months of not going church, it was nice seeing many of my friends, especially my bro and cousin. Feels so weird being back in the heat of Singapore. Definitely felt overwhelmed by all the noise tonight and I really wanna go back to New Zealand!! :(

As one wise man said, all good things have to come to an end so better things can begin. With that, I thank you for reading through everything that I have typed. With so many wonderful memories to share, I urge you to ask me out so I can share more in detail with you! Have a great 2020 ahead!

Click here to go back to the summary page!

NZ 2019 - Exploring Wellington (Day 14 of 15)

***The following is the account of the first-person-view from Edwin Ang.***

My official last day roaming the streets of New Zealand is finally here. Like, I'm really really sad that my 2 weeks here flown past so freaking fast. It has really been an awesome journey and I won't hesitate to do it again!

Woke up at 6am because I couldn't really sleep knowing my journey is about to end. Checked out at 8am and decided to put NZD8 into a locker that I can store my baggage while I explore Wellington proper. First stop would be the Wellington Te Papa Museum.

Yeap, this is part of the museum's exhibit, captured with my very own phone's camera. Walked through a detailed military history of New Zealand. Quite amazing that they kept records from a few centuries ago intact! I seldom visit museums but since this is Wellington's top few attractions and was free, why not?

This book has a special story to it. It apparently saved a life of a soldier by stopping a bullet. And just so happened that the bullet stopped right below a verse that says "It is I. Do not be afraid." Like really super scary but cool!

Then there's this cat that have been modelled super duper close to a real one. The exhibitions are literally full of life-like statues. Each one have been so finely detailed that I can only wonder how long it took for one statue to be created!

Cool stuff! After about an hour inside, I could read no more and went to the gift shop. Spent about NZD55 buying small gifts and accessories for my family members. Crazy expensive but someone has to buy them! For me personally, I didn't want to buy anything for anyone because I'm really here just to see New Zealand for myself and enjoy myself. If you want gifts, I can bring you here next time (at your own expenses unless you are my girlfriend LOL) and you can buy one for yourself!

Googled and found a few more gift shops around the city and started visiting each one of them. Passed by a few monumental buildings and the city sights are pretty awesome! Spent another NZD25 to buy a few more similar items at the other gift shops. Souvenirs include coasters and fridge magnets (mum wants them) and NZ edition playing cards (siblings). I don't really know what else to buy so probably these are all. I'd rather bring them here another time to buy it themselves.

Couldn't find a Pizza Hut to settle my final pizza of the year so I went to McDonald's again instead. Have a little over 80 bucks to spend for the rest of my trip so I ordered the largest burger I can find on the menu. The NZD15 Big Cheese Angus Beef burger meal made me so full. After that, I took a walk over around Wellington Railway Station. Walked down both sides of the station and explored further up the tracks. It was a cold walk as the winds near the port is super strong.

Scurried back to the hostel lobby when my phone battery blinked red. Stayed there to charge my phone while I use up my remaining data. Phone reached 100% at 4pm, and that was when I decided to take the NZD12 airport express out of Wellington. Goodbye little city! I'll be back next year end for work!

Reached Airport at 4:30pm and the slow 13-hour wait begins. There was nothing much I could do at Wellington Airport because most shops closes after 5pm. Yeah, even the freaking airport closes for a good few hours everyday. What a perfect work-life balance indeed!

Found a good spot to chill and then went to get a footlong and a bottle of plain water from Subway because my stomach was calling out for dinner. Went back to this same spot to finish my dinner and then wait till next morning. T'was a rather nice day overall.

I definitely will miss New Zealand over the next few weeks because I have really thoroughly enjoyed living in my own world for 2 weeks. My real dream is to live over here for a good amount of time so that is still something I can look forward to. I cannot simply describe my entire experience in words because much of New Zealand cannot be seen, but felt.

If life permits, I would really love to visit New Zealand every single year. There is still so much to explore that I haven't set foot in. Till next time!

Click here for Day 15!

NZ 2019 - Palmerston North to Wellington (Day 13 of 15)

***The following is the account of the first-person-view from Edwin Ang.***

Today was a rather interesting day. It features me finally arriving in my dream city, Wellington. This is one of the cities in the entire world that I really wanna visit because of it's amazing location and periodically vintage buildings. But first, let me get through my morning.

Woke up to a hearty breakfast made by Alice (learnt her name from this note). Seriously I cannot thank her enough because this past 2 weeks I've been eating out so much that I miss home cooked food a lot. It was a delicious toasted bread with NZ beef patty inside!

Unfortunately she went to work so there goes my free ride to Palmerston North city centre. At 12pm, I left the house. What a really really nice place! From there, it was a treacherous half an hour walk with my heavy backpack and guitar towards The Square. This could have been me two days ago if Alice hadn't volunteered to pick me up.

Made it eventually and just slacked at the InterCity Bus stop for 3 hours. Surprisingly, the bus that came was an upgraded Gold class one. Sat on the first level and had a super large seat to myself. It was an awesome ride! This lady that sat beside me is a school teacher returning home for the summer holidays. She shared with me a lot about Wellington, much of it I already knew from my obsessive research.

Reached Wellington, finally. This city is so beautiful! The air is so fresh and the city just looks so much better than Auckland! Alighted at the Railway Station and promptly walked over to my hostel. Originally booked at Normads Capital near Wellington's centre, I quickly cancelled and booked with Hotel Waterloo instead, which was just opposite the Railway Station. Due to my heavy guitar and the airport express bus being also at the Railway Station, I didn't wanna make 2 unnecessary trips with my baggage.

This hostel is a truly old classic building. Even the lifts are retrofitted old school style. Vintage, in fact. I wouldn't hesitate to stay here again in the future if I visit Wellington, but definitely would choose a private bedroom. The shared bedroom is in comparable condition to Hamilton's. Truly a joke. Alas, I'm only here for one night so who cares? And since the Railway Station is just opposite, that's where I headed to right after I dropped my stuff on my bed.

This Railway Station is really classy! I've read online that this station is untouched since the 1800s. The exterior is just as it has always been. Wow! Unfortunately, today was the start of their maintenance week, which means no trains will be running for a week. Bummer, can't even get to see trains move in one of the most awesome train stations ever!

Headed back out onto the streets to hunt for dinner. Based on Google Reviews, I went to this super high class restaurant called Charley Noble. Ordered a NZD47 scotch fillet steak and NZD9 fries as the sides. This is the finest meat I've ever tasted in my life, and by no means did I say that because of the price.

Absolute juiciness from the meat, mixed with sweet peppercorn sauce and chewy fries, was one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth (food I mean). I wouldn't hesitate to spend this much again if meat were to be this kind of standard. Added another great review to them on Google!

Took a walk around the port and the city after that. Just like Auckland, after 8pm, the streets are literally dead. No cars, no humans, just wind blowing non-stop. Classic zombie town theme! I do enjoy walking down streets like these every once in a while. Feels like I'm the last man on earth and that is a pretty peaceful feeling!

Feels truly awesome having this much of peace and quietness in one of North Island's two biggest cities. I would gladly migrate to Wellington in the future if I have the money! Really love the dynamics of this city!

With my last night here in New Zealand's streets, I almost dropped a tear of happiness. I can never imagine if I hadn't been on this trip because my eyes would never have been opened to what this world can show me if I step out of my comfort zone. With that, my trip here has come to a finale, well, almost.

Click here for Day 14!

NZ 2019 - Exploring Palmerston North (Day 12 of 15)

***The following is the account of the first-person-view from Edwin Ang.***

So today I woke up thinking I was back home because it all feels so surreal to be sleeping inside one whole room myself. This AirBNB has been the greatest place of living thus far for my trip. The host even made me breakfast which was super awesome! Unfortunately didn't take any pictures of the breakfast as the host was there and it would have been inappropriate. She made me porridge and dumplings!!!

Walked out at 10am to explore the region. Walked to The Square and it was actually not a 15-minute walk as I had underestimated. It took me almost half an hour! Now I really appreciate her for picking me up yesterday. Turned left towards Victoria Esplanade and the first thing I went to check out is their Miniature Railway.

So cute!!! The entire project is ran by volunteers and it only costs $3 for one whole round. I didn't wanna spend money for rides because I'm more of a walking person, as you might have already guessed. So I walked along the track instead, hoping to see views that only passengers could see. It's nice to do explorations like this once in a while.

Yeah ducks everywhere, even on rocky railway tracks. I could never get tired of them though! Their cute quacks and wiggly movements really brightens up my day!

Went to see the Manawatu Gorge and although it was a nice view and seems to be an interesting down-stream walk, I felt a bit lazy and decided to just take a few photos and scram. Walked back to the city centre right after. Guess I'm really slowing down my pace finally!

It was around 1pm and I was walking around looking for good food. This particular restaurant caught my eye, the Navajo Steak House. Okay, disclaimer! This is mostly a night restaurant but it does open in the afternoon to absolutely zero customers. Except me. I was the only one. The only crazy one.

Medium rare rib eye steak it is! It has been so long since I last had steak so this is a fresh experience for me. The service was great (maybe because I'm the only customer) and it was fast! The meat was so tender and fresh, and juicy. REALLY JUICY. It was a near perfect meal, with the salad being really retarded. The salad is probably just grass.

It was truly medium rare as I wanted. Many restaurants these days can't even tell the difference about how well the meat is supposed to be done. I had a great time dining at this restaurant for NZD25. From this point on, let me be more willing to spend money. I have to remind myself I'm not in Singapore right now. I cannot be saving money wherever I go and shortchange my own enjoyment during this trip.

Next up, I walked into The Plaza and bought a McDonald's milkshake for NZD3. It's been a long time since I had milkshake too! Literally everyone in queue ordered milkshake because "summer" to them is really hot. Meanwhile, I'm still shaking whenever the wind blows. Brrrrr...

After finishing the drink, I got a pack of chewing gum (steak bits stuck on my teeth LOL) from Countdown for 4 bucks and left the place. Along the way back to the house, I wanted to get Subway cookies for later. But there wasn't any cookies left so I spent the money getting apples instead.

Yeah you heard me right. From freaking almost eating junk food again, to downright fruits. What a weird brain I have. These apples are one of the freshest and juiciest apples I've ever eaten. Amazing! Spent the rest of my day back in the AirBNB reviewing my whole journey and taking notes! 

Palmerston North is really an underrated town. There are so many unique little shops that are kind of like the hidden gems of New Zealand. I spent so much time wandering around the local shops today just because there is so much to explore! If I have one word of advice for travellers alike, never skip these smaller towns. There is so much to see if you know where to look!

Click here for Day 13!