Each night in the huts, the ranger on duty practices his or her stand-up comedy routine. It seems to work as the audience is pretty tame—most are tired and dirty or focusing on the meal. Nevertheless, things like safety measures have to be mentioned, eco issues as always, of course and other odd items including a little education. Some of the rangers are funny with humor that is often very dry. On the last night, we loved the comments from Ranger Jenny. “In case of fire, rush out onto the helicopter pad. We’ll have a group hug and then figure out what we should do from there.” We liked that.
We find that we have a new zeal in this country. Okay, okay. We just thought if the rangers do it, why not us. Thus far, everything we have experienced has either been a wonderful physical challenge and/or magnificent beauty—usually both simultaneously. However, there is one negative in the Fiordlands. The sandfly. This is a pest smaller and quieter than a mosquito but just as potent with a population in the billions. Get this. They are actually a protected species. Well, we suppose this is New Zealand. It should not come as a surprise that we could be arrested any day soon for multiple murders of these horrible mites. We do have an advantage over them as they move very slowly. As long as a person remains in motion, the pest cannot keep up. Human weaknesses such as stopping to eat, sleep or relieve oneself presents a challenge. We are still working on a solution.
We mentioned the contingent of Israelis we shared time with in the huts. What decent young people. Actually, everyone seems to be young in these environments. Rotem and Lior mentioned that their grandmother nagged them about Chanukah. So when they came across us, learned of Jenni’s well crafted menorah and that we would be lighting candles, their faces lit and they blurted something about divine providence. It was a special time when three sets of strangers came together and appeared to outsiders as old friends, for want of a better term. It reaffirms how critical it is for the people of Jacob to stand together.
Then there's Yves from Switzerland, Geneva of course, with that name. At twenty-nine, he has hiked extensively through Asia recently and is finishing in New Zealand reluctantly. He is a fascinating youngster who is obviously strong, courageous and adventurous. We think Roey and Yves were the only two that could outpace our editor but then both are less than half her age…or we think she might be starting to slack-off a bit. Yves wanted to join us for candle lighting but we appointed him photographer instead. Life is complicated enough as it is.
The length of the day is coincidentally also twenty-four hours long in New Zealand. However, the light remains for nearly the full day. The sun rises before five and Shabbat ends at 10:30pm. That gives one an idea how much can be accomplished during a summer day. Although we had much time to complete the 18 kilometers of the last day, the boat was due to sail at 2pm. Thus, we allowed six hours to reach the pier at, wait for it, Sandfly Point. The pier is just a small loading position in what appears to be the middle of nowhere. We love this informality in the country.
We arrived at Milford Sound port where we had to take a bus to our car some two hours from that point. Sixty km of walking takes a person quite a distance. We had booked for the later bus departure, which meant that we would have to sit for two-and-a-half hours waiting—a waste of time. We approached the bus driver about accommodating us on his earlier schedule. In a neutral tone, he told us the bus was full. Lior, who was already on the bus, shouted through the window: “What now?” We shrugged and pointed to the heavens while positioning ourselves in the sight of the driver. Lior followed our eyes and suddenly, a light 'flashed' through his mind. Meanwhile, we waited impatiently as the departure time approached and then passed. “You’re in luck,” the driver announced. As we boarded the bus, we received a loud cheer from the passengers who had witnessed the little incident. B’H.
Finally, a fellow who had been standing on the side getting some fresh air, greeted us as a fellow South African now living in Christchurch. As we said in an earlier missive, we are small in number but positioned all over the world.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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