Days 46-50: New Friends And Some Foot Healing

We've spent the last five days in Te Kuiti, staying with Donna and Brett, and making some great new friends! Liz has also had the first real improvement in her foot after some reflexology and visiting the "physio" (NZ for physical therapist).


Leaving Hamilton was a production. We had a couple of misfires finding somewhere to stay, including one AirBnB host that told us she "could have" hosted us but was afraid "it would cramp our [Liz & my] style too much." We never figured out for sure what she meant, but we think she just didn't want a couple of dirty hikers messing up her kitchen every night.

It was all for the best though, because we ended up at Donna and Brett's. Brett builds bus coaches in Auckland, and stays up there Monday-Thursday every week. Donna is a musician and reflexologist. She's actually quite accomplished - she won the NZ equivalent of a Grammy for one of her albums a few years ago! We discovered this after reading an article about her in the local paper. They just moved to Te Kuiti a few months ago, and are really wonderful people.

On our first night here, Donna worked her reflexology magic on Liz's feet. Liz said it made a noticeable difference - hooray! We met up with Ben again a few days later, and he also had a session. When Donna was finished, he was so relaxed that he looked like he had taken some serious drugs. TA hikers take note - Donna's house is right on the trail, just as you come into Te Kuiti. She is not scared of nasty hiker feet, and charges a reasonable fee... your body will thank you!

We visited a doctor again here in Te Kuiti, since Liz's foot had only marginally improved. We figured that, if she needed crutches or a boot, sooner was better. Long story short, it became clear over the course of the exam that, at this point, we probably knew more about foot problems than she did - she looked up a few things on Wikipedia while we talked, and gave us some contradictory advice. We left knowing nothing new, and were really bummed out.

However, the doctor did one thing right - she recommended that Liz go to see the physiotherapist. Donna gave us a ride into town, and we popped in to the physio office at 4:30 on a Friday, just to see when the next available appointment was. Turns out they had a cancellation, and had an appointment right then! The physiotherapist ended up knowing much more about foot injuries than the doctor did.

He showed Liz how to massage and tape up her foot, used an ultrasound to promote blood flow to speed up the healing process, and gave her lots of helpful advice. His opinion was also that it is a bone bruise, and would probably be healed in about 2 or 3 weeks. Liz reported that her foot felt noticeably better the next day - probably a combination of the taping and massage. She's planning on going back next week for another session or two. Socialized medicine to the rescue again - each physio appointment only costs $15. We're finally seeing a little light at the end of the foot tunnel!

Meanwhile, we've had a great time here with Donna and Brett, cooking with them, having tea in their backyard, and visiting a nearby town over the weekend. During our stay, they've fed me awesome mussels, and took us out for ice cream at a local farm, where they blend fresh ice cream and berries right in front of you, for the "best strawberry frozen yogurt" that Liz has ever had. We were even invited to lunch by one of their friends - Jocelyn - and spent an afternoon chatting and meeting her dog, Gizmo, as well as her chickens and ducks. We're happy to have made another pair of new friends on our travels!


Beautiful view from Jocelyn's backyard


NZ mussels!


NZ has Charlie Brown Christmas trees too!


Fresh berry ice cream made to order


Teeny tiny praying mantis in the backyard
I've also given in to Liz's pressure, and have decided to head out and hike the 4 day forest section that is after Te Kuiti while she rests here. It's a little easier knowing that she has some great people to stay with, and that it's only for a few days.

When I finish the forest, we'll catch a bus down to Wellington, where we'll spend Christmas. Wellington sounds like a fun city with lots to do, and is easy to navigate without a car. It's a bit of a hike (ha - I mean it's a 6 hour bus ride), but hopefully will be worth it.

After that, the plan is to meet up with the Brits to canoe the Whanganui River. We're hoping, fingers crossed, that Liz's foot will be in walking shape by the end of the canoe trip. We are still pretty sad that we probably won't walk every kilometer of the trail, but we're doing much better now that we have a plan and are seeing slow, but real improvement in her foot. Hopefully things are starting to turn around, and soon we'll have exciting trail updates instead of mopey town updates!