http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp Enlisting the help of others as we embark on the adventure of a lifetime Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:46:44 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en You may have noticed that I'm looking a little tired these days. In fact, the deep, purple bags under my eyes have taken up permanent residence. Simply put, I am tired. Given this compounding factor, nothing seemed to be going my way today, from debating whether to ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/18/photos-finally-uploaded/ As you have probably surmised by now, we only managed to upload a fraction of the Milford Track photos.  When we have a better wireless connection we will finish the job -- stay tuned! http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/16/milford-track-photos-to-come/ Sunday, November 16, 2008 Many people rent camper vans to make their way around New Zealand. The distances are large and towns small, so having a van to live out of for a few weeks makes sense. Our favorite are the Wicked vans, a company that has somehow managed ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/16/ie-you/ For those of you who are keeping track, today is the halfway point of our trip.  Hard to believe that it's downhill from here (especially after completing the Milford Track, which somehow seems fitting).  We are going to try and upload photos tonight while we sleep, and will apologize in ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/14/half-way/ Friday, November 14, 2008 The start of the Milford Track feels as if you're beginning an epic journey. Instead of driving to a trail head and unceremoniously beginning a 33.5 mile walk into the woods of New Zealand for four days, we loaded a bus, then embarked a boat which would ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/14/a-walk-in-the-woods/ Monday, November 10, 2008 In less than two hours I will begin a four-day, 30-mile hike into the wilds of New Zealand. Despite how ridiculous this sounds, it seemed like a sane - even fun - idea from the comforts of my living room last year. Rudyard Kipling made ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/09/into-the-wild/ The Victoria and South Australia album is completed.  There were not many new additions from Melbourne; we were too busy eating to take any photos.  But in any event, that concludes our time in Australia.  Now it is on to New Zealand, a country I know very little about other ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/06/finished/ Thursday, November 6, 2008 I'm not sure who's going to do the honors, but somebody is going to have to roll me out of Australia when we leave tomorrow. Seriously. I think I've gained at least five pounds on our culinary tour through the country...maybe more. Today we ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/06/gluttony-its-a-sin/ Wednesday, November 5, 2008 Until now, we've been out of touch with the presidential election. For those of you back home who have been inundated with election news for months, this must seem impossible. We didn't learn until recently that Sarah Palin's name is pronounced Pay-lin, not Paw-lin, and ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/05/a-global-election/ Tuesday, November 4, 2008 When I was a kid, I spent every weekend with my father. My parents have been divorced since I was two, and their joint custody agreement dictated that I spend non-school days with him. As it was, spending time with my father was like entering ... http://www.kindnessofstrangerstravel.com/wp/2008/11/04/camp-claremont/