Exploring in Our New Cozy Mini Van

We arrived in New Zealand yesterday and spent almost all of today sleeping.  I turned over in my cozy minivan bunk and looked down on my parents sleeping below.  They were just waking up and they wanted to see the time.  They invited me down and we checked the cell phone.  It was 3:20 in the afternoon!  We had slept seventeen hours!  We quickly got out of bed to make breakfast and be on our way before dark. 

Our minivan is cozy and snug.  At the front end there are the driver and passenger seats.  Behind them is the kitchen area, including a small sink, a stove, and several cabinets.  The kitchen area is small, probably only a square meter or a square yard.  Behind the kitchen, there is a large bed about two meters by one and a half meters.  This is where my parents sleep.  I sleep above on a long bed, folding out at night and stored away in the day.  I love the small inclosed space and I am excited for the upcoming month we will spend inside. 

After a good breakfast of eggs and potatoes cooked on the small stove, we were ready to start exploring.  The drive today was long and rainy.  My parents sat in the front seats while I did math on the their bed.  Occasionally, I would ask them to stop so I could get out to take photos of the farm animals and the landscape.  The road lead through small mountains and along rolling hills and vast, green, lush, farm fields.  In the fields, were llamas, cows, deer, and a whole lot of sheep.  I was surprised by the lack of crops.  All along the road were trees and long grass.  The scenery was beautiful even in the rain. 

After a few hours of driving, we drove into a small town for dinner.  Because of our late start, It was dark and all the restaurants were closed except one.  We were all sick of Thai food having spent five months in Asia.  We then walked into the only open restaurant in town, Thai Siam!  After dinner, we jumped back in the car and drove for another half an hour where we set up camp in the dark.  Tonight, we will set an alarm for nine AM to prevent “over sleeping”.

Thank you for reading Rohan Geographic!