Parking Sign in New Zealand

This kind of sign you can see it everywhere in New Zealand. This is new to a foreigner like us, but it never strange to kiwi. 

And because of this, we got our first summon in New Zealand. *sob sob*. The sign above with the number 40 means that you can only park your car for 40 minutes at that parking lot. No matter you pay 1 hour parking fees or 2 hours fees, you can only park you car for 40 minutes. No exceptional!

Never think that it's not easy for police to trace the time you park there!!!! We underestimate the police, and 

we have to pay for that!

We are forced to donate NZD20 to the NZTA (New Zealand Transport Agency)..... which is equal to our two hours pay!! It's never easy to stand and work for 2 hours.

Therefore, never follow our footstep.....

Food must EAT in New Zealand Part II

Let me continue my food version blog in NZ. The top 10 food must eat in New Zealand. The judge of the yummy food of course none other than -> ME. Wahaha!

To view the previous post, view here.

5) Crayfish
When we talked about Crayfish, most of you must be thinking of Kaikoura. This lovely town which surrounded by snow capped mountain produced fresh crayfish, or some known as rock lobster. The Maori even named this place as 'eat crayfish' ('Kai' stands for eat, 'koura' is crayfish). So, how can you miss crayfish here?

The local used the most simple way is used to cook the crayfish to preserve the most original taste of it. The taste of crayfish is so nice and you should solely have it without any sauce. The additional sauce will just spoil and cover up the freshness taste.

This shop sells fresh crayfish with reasonable price.

Name: Cod & Crayfish
Address: 81, Beach Road, Kaikoura.

6) Fudge
I'm not sure whether fudge is a type of kiwi food or not, but it is definitely a western confectionery. It was my first time to have fudge. *shame shame* I have tried a few fudges from different shops, yet I think this shop sells the best fudge.

The fudge is really smooth in texture. In addition, the taste of the fudge is very rich and creamy. You can taste it before purchase and choose the flavour that you like. You can even mix and match! Get help from the shop assistant to cut the fudge into smalled pieces and you can combine and buy different flavour instead of buying 1 big piece with one flavour.

Don't be surprise when you step in, it is indeed a souvenir shop.

Name: Pot Pourri
Address: 60, Rue Lavaud, Akaroa

7) Cheese
Cheese lover please look here!! This factory produce lots of lovely cheese. They served free samples tasting everyday and if the free tasting couldn't satisfy your evil stomach, request for a platter! It just costs you around $5 (If I'm not remember wrongly) and you are able to taste 5 different types of cheese!!!

I personally like their brie so much. So rich, so creamy and so smooth! Thumbs up!!

Name: White Stone Cheese

Address:3, Torridge Street, Oamaru 

8)  Quiche

This is the kiwi food that I fall in love with at the moment I tasted it. I never heard of this food and never tried it before I stepped in New Zealand. The only reason I ordered this is just because I never see this before. :P OKOK, I know I'm the frog under a coconut shell. 

This is Smoked chicken courgette & sun dried tomato Quiche. So soft and so delicious. Yummy~ I even want to learn how to make this so that I still can have it when I back home! Sadly, SOMEONE promised to teach me but he had forgotten until the day I leave New Zealand I still didn't know how to make it!!

When I searched this cafe online, I found that this cafe won a lot of awards! Yes, awards again, kiwi love awards. That shop won 2010 best cafe award, gold winner entertainment, best family restaurant 3 years running. Awesome!

Name: Circus Circus Cafe

Address: 447, Mt. Eden Road, Auckland, New Zealand. 

9) Grand Angus Burger

Yeah, McDonald's seem like everyone's choice all over the world. This special burger is just sell in Australia and New Zealand (according to wikipedia). Of course, this burger is the BEST burger served in fast food restaurant! No cheating. One of my friend, she never take beef because she doesn't like the taste of beef. But, after she tried this Angus burger,she FALL IN LOVE with it!!

Name: McDonald's

Address: Everywhere

10) Coffee
Coffee in New Zealand always not our (Malaysian) cup of tea. Kiwi loves light coffee but we prefer strong coffee. However, we still trying coffee in those cafe which is highly recommended! And lastly, we finally found  a place served good coffee!

Again, this coffee shop always packed with a lot of customers. If you do not wish to dine in, you may order the coffee through the window and collect there.

Name: The Fix

Address: 87, St David, St North, Dunedin.

Mark down all this MUST EAT food in your to do list! Or else, you will regret!!

Food must EAT in New Zealand Part I

My love post~ Food version of New Zealand.

 Travel without eating good food is never a complete trip. Let me introduce the food must eat in New Zealand!! Of course, I'm the judge for all the delicious food this round. No offence! :P

1) Pie

Pie is the food you can see in every bakery shop. This is the Kiwi Food that must EAT in New Zealand. Kiwi even organise an annual Pie award called 'Bakels Supreme Pie Award' in New Zealand. That is enough to show how much Kiwi love Pie. The shop I would like to introduce is one of the winner in Supreme Pie Award. I've tried pies everywhere in New Zealand, of couse, pie with awards. Yet, I personally love the pie from this shop.

Vegetable and Steak Pie. 

Whole chunk of steak is available in the pie, vegetable is soft enough to match the pie, the gravy in the pie is so unique and you can even taste the different from the first bite of the pie until last bite. Wao~ Yummy

Name: Beaut Bakery Ltd

Address: 179, Spa Road, Taupo Town Centre, Taupo, Waikato. (Just opposite to Taupo Bungy)

2) Fish & Chip

Another type of Kiwi lover. When I was in North Island, some of people told me snapper was the best fish for fish & chip. But when I was in South Island, I was told that Blue Cod was the best. Sadly, I do not have a chance to try snapper fish & chip until the day I leave. *sob sob*. So, I can't tell you which is one is the best. Here, let me introduce the Best Fish & Chip that I had in South Island! 

The Fish & Chip. Of course it was Blue Cod. It was not oily and you can taste the freshness of the fish even though it was fried. Their beer batter chip with crunchy coating also a MUST EAT fries there.

Name: Lockies Takeaway

Address: 30, London Street, Hampden (Just five minutes away from Moeraki Boulder, Oamaru)

3) Burger

This is the famous burger in Queenstown and of course the best burger I had ever tried. The food that highly recommended by local and also the tourist guide.

The Southern Swine. 

The burger served is huge and it is as big as big face. No Cheating!! Beef and lamb in New Zealand is undoubtly good. It's really hard to describe how nice the burger is. Try it, You'll fall in love with it.

Name: Ferg Burger

Address: 42, Showover Street, Queenstown

4) L& P

Soft drink is my favourite drinks when I was small. Coca-cola, Sarsi, Sprite are common to us. After I grow up, I rarely have those soft drinks because they are simply too sweet for me. But when I reached here, I found a type of soft drinks which is refreshing! The taste is not too sweet and the lemonade make you want to drink and drink again.

L&P basically stands for Lemonade and Paeroa. Originally, Paeroa is the place manufacture this soft drink.

Name: L&P

Address: Can get it in all supermarket like Pak n Save, Count Down, New World and even in fast food restaurant.

Stay tune for Part II

What to do when you meet an accident in NZ?

I think I should share my own experience on what happened after I met the car accident in New Zealand. I just hope that my information can help anyone of you if you met the same problem in NZ. Most of my friends asked how much was the medical fees in New Zealand since I was admitted to hospital. I even went for my first round follow up check up over there. Please don't be shocked towards the amount.
The answer is ......

..................................
...........................
....................
..........
....
..
.




$0. 


Huh? $0???
You must be cheating me. You are not a resident in New Zealand!! Why you doesn't need to pay??

Thanks to the New Zealand government. They set up a body called ACC (Accident Compensation Cooperation).

This body really acts like an angel for me. Basically, this body is to support those who injured to get back to work and everyday life as soon as possible. The best  part of the body is they will help not only New Zealand residents but also VISITORS to New Zealand. What????? Visitors also?? Yes, this means that you will be covered by ACC once you stepped in the land of New Zealand (of course with the condition ->legally).

What ACC will actually do for you??
1) They help to pay for treatment and medical costs.

• No doubt, I was admitted to hospital, went for x ray,citi scan, follow up check up and I do not need to pay even a single cent. I don't even know how much it cost.

2) They pay weekly compensation to you.

• If doctor diagnosed that you are unfit to work, ACC will pay you weekly compensation until you are able to work again!!! (With the condition you work in NZ, working holiday is included).  Wao~ New Zealand government really provides good benefits!!!

3) They even provides services to assist the patients in their daily life. What are those services?? They can arrange someone helped to clean your house and even cook for you!!!

• This is true, because after I met the accident, angel from ACC contacted me and asked whether I need this service!! This was really warmhearted. 

Of course, what I listed above just part of the services they provide. If you wish to know more, click here. Undeniable, ACC really acts effective and those angels were really friendly and kind. My angel kept on follow up with me when I was in NZ, called me every few days and checked how am I doing. OMG, how nice they were.

So basically, you do not need to worry too much if you met an accident in New Zealand. The only thing you need to do is when you were admitted to hospital, seek for help from the hospital personnel, let them help you to fill up the ACC claim form and faxed to ACC. After few days, ACC will arrange an particular angel to contact you and let you know the actions you need to do in order to get those benefits. Of course, remember to keep the copy claim form with you.

For the medical follow up, hospital personnel will post an appointment letter to you and informed you the date for your follow up check up. Of course, you can always call to the hospital and check for the date. Every patient will be given a number once they admitted to hospital and that number will be used to check the appointment date and all other details.

Except for the medical part, the  police part is easier to settle. They'll keep in touch with you and telling you what you need to do and of course, remember to request a police report as documentation purpose.

In short, nothing much need to be worry if you met an accident here. The lovely body will send angel to help you.

ACC, thank you.

I've back to Malaysia

To: All my beloved friends

Yes, I've back to Malaysia.  I was back to my hometown around 2 weeks ago. Most of you might not know about it because I didn't tell many people. Sorry for not telling because I do not want to make it into a big issue. However, a lot of friends keep on asking when am I coming back to Malaysia and how was my life in New Zealand.  I keep on thinking what should I answer to those questions? Therefore, I think it's time to tell everyone. Initially I planned to come back in Jan 2012 as I shouted out loudly in Facebook. But, Why am I coming back earlier??? This is because.....

Yup, I met a car accident and my car overturned. Don't ask me why. I couldn't figure out the actual reason until today. No bluffing! That day I was driving on a highway. Suddenly the car shifted to left and I was shocked and turned it to the right. Again, the car shifted to left! And I tried to turn the steering to the right. At that moment, the car lost control and it started turning round and round and at the end, it overturned like what it showed in the photo. That was what I could recalled for the incident.

Some people keep on guessing the reason 'You must be speeding!' 'The road must be wet!' 'It must be something wrong with your tyres', 'You must be...' 'You must be...' and etc.

OK, let me tell you the actual situation. That day was a sunny day, no strong win and I was driving ONLY 90km/hr on a STRAIGHT highway. I didn't hit on something or try to escape from something at that time and the accident just happened like that. Even the police stepped in and investigated the accident, they couldn't get the root cause and the report from the mechanical side showed that no mechanical fault for my car.

The car was stopped turning after it hit on the fencing at the road side. At that time, my left hand was numbed and my forehead was bleeding. I was lucky enough because I was still awake and I was able to climb out from the car. The moment when I was able to get out from the car, there were a few people surrounding me and helped me to lie down as I felt dizzy.

Those who passed by stopped their cars and offered their helping hand. Some called the ambulance and most of them helped to pick up the stuffs that scattered around. The most touching part was some of them trying to push the car awat just because there was a jacket stucked under the car. They wanted to pick up the jacket for us. Huh??? Crazy right?? They were simply too helpful!!!!

We were lucky, we met a lady passed by and she offered to send us back to Blenheim the next day as she was travelling back to Blenheim too. The place of accident was around 1 hour 30 min driving distance away from the town we stayed.

Throughout the whole incident, NOBODY took photograph and NOBODY copied the plate number of the car. Yes,those are typical Malaysia culture when we saw accident happened. And we, as a Malaysian, of course still taking photos of the accident although we were the victim this round. 

We were so lucky because there were 2 local doctors passed by and they also offered their professional help by checking at our injuries. They even joke that all of us will be alright as long as we support ALL BLACK. Haha~ how enthusiasm they were towards their rugby team. Of course, we were sent to hospital by ambulance afterwards.

After we admitted to hospital and some checkup was done, we were requested to return to the hospital again in the next morning. Again, I have to say, we were really lucky. One of the doctor who passed by during our accident was the doctor worked in this hospital. He allowed us to overnight at his house and he even sent us back to hospital the next day. OMG, I can only say Kiwi are too helpful. This invaluable action should be spread all over the world and the world will be more lovely.

OK, back to the main point. During the accident, I hurt my neck and because of that, I've back to Malaysia so that my family can take care of me. I was admitted to hospital for almost 1 week here and I have undergone an operation. So now I am resting at home and I need to rest for another 2-3 months. So friends, I probably can come out yum cha with you only in next year.

Anyhow, I deeply felt that I am so lucky because I am still alive and I am able to write this blog. Sometimes, we will only felt life is invaluable when our life was at the edge of the safety line. Safety belt saved my life in this accident. Friends, remember to wear safety belt whenever you sit in a car, it plays a crucial role during the accident.

Some of you might be wondering, how could I keep on updating my blog since I was in hospital?

Who said I can't?

Day 15 Dunedin

Day 15 was not included in our itinerary. Our plan was to stay in Blenheim after our trip ended and looked for a job over there. Since there was a long journey to travel from Queenstown to Blenheim, let me visit some new cities on the way ^^. Wait, am I doing a mistake for the topic?Why it is Day 15 instead of Day 14??? No The title was right! It was because nothing much can be updated for Day 14. We had a relaxing day in Queenstown on that day after farewell with our beloved travel mate.

Dunedin, again, another surprise for me.It was a big and beautiful city. How big was it, it was comparable to Auckland and Wellington! A lot of great architectures and buildings sitting in this lovely city. Before I came, I never know that Dunedin was the second largest city in South Island.

Sakura~

Photo taken beside the i site. Of course, main character was sakura.

University of Otago. I felt like wanna enter university again at this moment.

Sorry, those sakura was too attractive! Another shot with sakura at Otago University~

The first church of Otago

 Tairei Gorge Railway Station. Not only attractive externally, but inside the station was well decorated.

Larnach Castle, the only castle in New Zealand. which I think less attractive compared to others building

And, a place that you must go in Dunedin...... The steepest street in the world!!!- Baldwin Street

Yes, it is steepest street in the world!! No bluffing! Because it is recorded in the Guinness Book of record!!!!

If you think you are fit enough, join the annual Baldwin Street Gutbuster!!! What you need to do was to run from the base of the street to the top and back again! Certificate will be given to those who participate in this event!

Day 13 Doubtful Sound

Finally, my blog climbed to day 13. Ya, I know I'm a bit slow in updating, but slow better than none right??Basically, day 13 was our last day trip in our itinerary. This is because day 14 was the day to say goodbye to one of our lovely travel mate and it was time to farewell her. Because of her, we organised this 14 days trip as a wrap up for her New Zealand Working Holiday trip.

After my wonderful jump yesterday, I was given a 'JUMPER' t shirt to recognise our bravery~ Woohoo~ Of course I have to wear it when I was still in New Zealand!! Yes, show off time. ^^

We stayed at Te Anau the day before so that the company can pick us up and brought us to the wonderful ' Douthful Sound'! Why we chose Doubtful sound instead of Milford Sound??? This was because some of the local told us Doubtful Sound was not as busy as Milford but the scenery was as great as Milford!! The most important was we able to grab 50% discount for Doubtful sound day cruise at i site~ This was the winter special`~~~it only cost us $150 to get to doubtful sound!!!

A small advice to those who wish to go to Milford/ Douthful Sound, never save the money by driving yourself all the way there. I personally think that it was safer to stay at Te Anau, pay some money to the cruise company and let them pick you up from your hostel!! The road to Milford/ Doubtful Sound was never easy to drive.

In this package, the company even brought us to the Manapouri Underground Power Station. It located deep beneath Fiordland and it used the rushing water to generate the power! This was one of the New Zealand greatest engineering achievement.

Unfortunately, I am not from engineering background, I do not know how to appreciate the greatness of this power station.

Next, we finally reached Doubtful sound. Let's the pictures do their part in the blog below.

Snow capped mountain~

Too bad it was a rainy day. Most of the time, the sky was grey in colour and the view was blur. We can't see the view more than.. 50 meters I guess??We even need to hide inside the cruise so that we won't get wet! What??? We paid so much and most of the time just hide in the cruise??? Ahh... so sad...

The only thing I can comfort myself was there were a lot of water fall around us.

Again, water fall.

And of course the rainbow.

Some people told us they able to see dophine, fur seal, yellow crested penguins, little blue penguin and some other animals during the summer! But sadly, we just able to see one animal -

fur seal. Enough, fur seal, I saw your friends loitering around South Island!! I want see other animal!!! I want to see yellow crested penguin. sob sob...

Now I know why there was a winter special selling. Ok, I learnt a lesson, never go for this kind of cruise during winter time.

Day 12 Queenstown - Food version

After our great bungy jumping,  we must celebrate for our victory ~~ Celebrate we conquered our fear, celebrate we finally did it. Wahaha~ ( I know many people also did bungy jump before, but let me show off a bit ok??) Therefore, we, as a typical chinese, our celebration must be related to food. Yeah, we love good food. Let's go!!!!

For those who had been in Queenstown, you must heard of this famous burger. This shop sells the best burger in New Zealand. No matter you search from tourist guide like Lonely Planet, or you ask a local kiwis, they will strongly recommend you this- The Freg Burger!! Our celebration meal of course must be New Zealand Best~

At the moment I wrote this, I wish I can fly to Queenstown and eat the Freg burger again!!!

This shop was packed with customers when we were there. This scenario was considered normal if the shop served delight food. But, the crazy part of the shop was a bunch of people will always queuing for the food regardless what the time was!! OMG, People in Queenstown were really going insane because of the Freg Burger.

After waiting for some moment, finally we got our burger. Yeah~

Let me show you how big the burger was. The burger was as big as my face!! Crazy right?? For those who have a big stomach, this burger definitely worth for you.

Ok, it's time for me to recommend the burger that I ordered.

Name of the shop: Freg Burger


1) Southern Swine - Prime New Zealand beef, American streaky bacon, lettuce, tomato, red onion, avocado, aioli & tomato relish. Wao, this was yummy~~~~
Cost: $12.00


2) Apart from the beef burger, they served scrumptious lamb burger as well-
 Little Lamby - Prime New Zealand lamb, mint jelly, lettuce, tomato, red onion, aioli & tomato relish
Cost: $11.30

If you come to Queenstown, remember try this burger. This is the MUST EAT food in Queenstown.

OK, after the lengthy promotion of the burger, let me introduce another nice food in Queenstown  - Winnies.

 Another restaurant that recommended by local. This restaurant famous with its own make pizza. The choices of pizza were not much. We were allowed to order 2 flavours in 1 pizza with the condition you ordered the big pizza.

 Of course, we must try more flavours if we can~ The pizza was topped with sour cream when it served. Yeah~ I love sour cream.

Montonara. 

I love this flavour and most customers love this too~ The pizza consisted fillet of chicken, sundried tomatoes, brie & Spring onions, drizzled with sweet chili sauce topped with pistachio sour cream. The taste was unique and the combination of the ingredient was perfect. The only imperfect part was the pizza base was a bit too soft. Anyhow, the pizza was still delicious.

 This side of the pizza was Tri Factor. (Prime steak cuts, bacon, mushrooms, caramelised onions and BBQ sauce) I think the BBQ sauce was too strong and it actually cover the taste of the ingredient.

Name of Restaurant: Winnies
Cost: -
Small     : $18..95 (Pizza for one)
Medium : $27.95 (8 slices)
Large     : $34.95 (10 slices)