The stories on the map
All the stories
New Zealand road tripJanuary – February 2018
Stage 1 · January 12, 2018The adventure continues: discovering New Zealand
New Zealand! Land of myths, legends and fantasies. A country we'd imagined from France, invented in our minds. It was literally the farthest point possible on the map. When someone…
Stage 2 · January 18, 2018A volcanic adventure in New Zealand: Frying Pan Lake, Wonderland and geysers
Māori culture was really promoted by the government and by New Zealanders, and you could feel it in everyday life. We regularly saw mixed groups of white people and Māori,…
Stage 3 · January 21, 2018Encounters and discoveries in New Zealand: from Wellington to Cape Palliser
Wellington was also known as the base camp of The Lord of the Rings, and it was easy to find filming locations there. We were surprised to find a very…
Stage 4 · January 22, 2018Visiting the Hamilton Gardens: a cultural and playful immersion
This park was the very first created in New Zealand and the fourth in the world, so it had naturally become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its most famous hiking…
Stage 5 · January 25, 2018Meeting Hector's dolphins in Akaroa: an unforgettable New Zealand experience
We got up around 7:30 to be ready to leave at 8 so we'd be sure to return the rental car by 9. There was a lot of traffic in…
Stage 6 · January 27, 2018Hikes and unique experiences in the heart of New Zealand: Lake Tekapo and Mount Cook
You had to live it to understand it, but constant movement wore out bodies and minds. Settling somewhere for two days had become a luxury for us. For sedentary Westerners,…
Stage 7 · January 28, 2018An unforgettable experience in the fjords of Milford Sound – Te Anau, New Zealand
Waking up, over breakfast, we reckoned there wasn't much point going back to France. We'd be just as powerless by her side, and by the time we got to Marseille…
Stage 8 · February 1, 2018Discovering Dunedin: a fire, mishaps and laughs on a slope
After the long, hard day before, we'd planned to rest a little. We lingered in bed before a leisurely breakfast and then lunch. I was cooking our steaks when a…
Stage 9 · February 3, 2018An epic hike on the Routeburn Track in New Zealand
We started the next day fairly early with a good hike in Arrowtown. After 45 minutes of steep climbing, the path took us to the top of the Tobins Track.…
Stage 10 · February 7, 2018From Hokitika to Christchurch
The next day we set off further north to get closer to Christchurch and the end of our trip. Hokitika beckoned and we strolled along its promenade. We should have…