Hello All From New Zealand!!

I am this day in Queenstown about two thirds of the way down the south island in the Otago district. QT is SO much of a tourist and retirement town now. Very much like Cape Cod: expensive real estate, beautiful location, many, many condos and second homes,
lots of cafes and boutiques.... But, the surrounding mountains and sheep stations are gorgeous!
I will be leaving for some remote trout streams shortly. So far I have fished for only 20 minutes or so. I am anxious to get into the water with the wily trout !

I bought an old Mazda station wagon with a mattress in the back, and have acquired a fair stock of used camping equipment and cookware. Over here you can find cheap used cars on the YHA (Youth Hostel Assoc.) bulletin boards, as many budget travelers do the same thing I am doing: travel for a few months and resell the car and HOPE to regain some of the travel expenses.
So I have spent three nights so far in my little turtle shell car and have been very comfortable. It saves about $20 a night in lodging fees. Almost all of my meals will be made with infinite care by the highly talented "Chef Stephan" (hehehehe) and mostly consist of breads, cheeses, salad greens with olive oil and soy sauce, sliced meats, coffee, and pasteries. Evening meals are accompanied by some very nice, and inexpensive, New Zealand wines. Life can be good on $30 a day !!

I spent a few days WOOFing (work exchange) with Valmai Becker who is the founder of the Canterbury College of Natural Medicine. We had lots of great discussions about herbs and the herbal community and the state of herbal medicine today. And we talked about the possibility of bringing a small group of interested Americans down to her farm where she still teaches the CCNM students the basics of western herbalism and medicinal herb growing. SO-- if you had ever thought of visiting one of the MOST beautiful countries in the world, stay tuned !! Most likely month to go is January when it is winter up there in the frozen North, and summer in the "lands down under".

OK, bye for now. Thanks for listening. And, as always--
"Eat well. Be conscious. Recycle/reuse/rebuild. Help one another. Know who your plant friends are-- get to know them. Love health and one another-- Stephan

<-- Previous            Next -->