Driving on the other side of the road...

My drive from Queenstown to Te Anau was tougher than usual because I had to learn how to drive on the other side of the road. I’m still opening the passenger door when I’m getting into the car. Every time I use my turn signals I end up turning on the wipers. I look left before looking right.

Today was day two of driving and it’s finally starting to feel normal. I didn’t go on a long drive today. After returning from Milford Sound I drove from my hostel to the Te Anau Lake. And I’m glad I didn’t drive to Milford Sound!

Milford Sound happens to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen in my life. In a way it makes me think of a mash up between Yosemite, Hawaii’s sea cliffs, and well Lord of the Rings Landscape…oh yeah, I was told horse riding scenes for Lord of the Rings were shot in the farmlands before the Fiordland National Park.

I didn’t download all the pictures from the drive there, but I have some from the sea kayaking tour and something special happened on that tour. We kayaked next to seals, we saw a baby seal, a blue penguin, and many birds. We kayaked into a waterfall as well…but the event was different.

This event made me discover something else about me. I was sharing the kayak with the tour guide, there were 4 kayaks on the tour. At some point he decided to call over the company’s taxi boat to bring him sunscreen. They told him they would. I told him I had some and that I could share, but he said it was ok because they were just around the corner and he wanted his own. The taxi boat came around and threw him the sunscreen and sailed off. We were parallel to the wave the boat left. You know what that means…yeah, we capsized! I fell into the sea of glacier fed water 44 degrees south of the equator – yes, pretty close to Antarctica. I remember getting out of the water yelling, “it’s cold” and climbing back onto the kayak. I don’t think I was in the water for more than 10-15s. I surprised myself with the agility I climbed back on into the kayak. The surprising thing is that I didn’t get mad. I was not upset and every few paddles I would laugh at the event. I actually thought was fun…maybe because we were blessed with the perfect sunny day. To me it is extremely surprising that I was not mad. I was not angry. Complaining didn’t even come to mind. He was happy I was happy.

What I realize is that I was not mad because there was nowhere else in the world I would’ve rather been. I was doing what I wanted to do. I was where I needed to be, so getting wet in the cold water didn’t upset me, it actually highlighted the trip. I actually got to “swim” in Milford Sound. This proves to me that this is truly who I am…someone who is more positive than negative. I am the person who laughs at what could appear as a misfortune to my day. I am truly the person who enjoys the little things. But for me to be ME, I need to be doing what I want to be doing. I need to be in control of the destination, not the circumstances because that can change and can be extremely unpredictable. I need to be in the place where I need to be because I want to be there. Right now, I am where I want to be.

Still, If you ever make it to Milford Sound go kayaking with Roscoe's.

#sea #kayaking #seal #fiordland