Our Mission

2Rapitenques Around The World is the project through which we want to acomplish our dream of traveling around the world. Our purpose is to discover other cultures and bring them closer to our town. Our philosophy is to learn from everything that we will find and at the same time share our idiosyncrasy. We strongly believe that we need to be open minded, tolerant and supportive to reach our objective. (Vane i Eva)



jueves, 18 de diciembre de 2008

Wanaka and the proof of the glaciar

Nota: From Queenstown we went to visit the fiords of Milford Sound. After it we continued travelling until Wanaka. We used this beautiful town as a base and we went to visit its wonderful surroundings. We did a couple of treks: Diamond lake valley and Rob Roy glaciar. This last one is the main character of the first proof of the tale. We also visited Puzzling world museum. We hope you enjoy our story.

Following the instrucions of Paddy, the two nymphs and Frodo continued their mission.
Their first goal was to find snow from a glaciar. A glaciar from the South Island of New Zealand where the snow was the purest and whitest of the whole country.
But, which one is this glaciar- they wondered.
Wizard Paddy: - " This country is full of surprises. You will find beautiful valleys, huge lakes, deep and dark forests, amazing mountains, big glaciars, fiords, rivers... Keep an eye! Make sure you don't lose your course!
The two nymphs were eagerly trying to memorise every word that the wizard was reciting.

Paddy: -" I'll give you a clue: the glaciar that you need to find is located close to the enchanted town of Wanaka and the purity of its snow shines in the valley. Tomorrow morning a boat will bring us to the fiords of Milford Sound and from there we will leave towards Wanaka. Now go to rest. Tomorrow will be a long day."
And so they did. The next morning, the 4 little characters left to Fiorland, Milford Sound.

The beauty of Milford Sound and its surroundings made that Frodo and the nymphs, for a few hours, forgot the tough task that they came to execute and they let themselves go through that marvelous landscape.



From there they continued towards Wanaka. This little enchanted town is surrounded by mountains and by a huge lake, the lake of Wanaka.

This region is the gateway to access to Mount Aspiring National park.



Paddy the wizard stared at them and said: " Around this region you will find the snow that you are looking for. I have to leave now. I have to fulfill another important job. I wish you all the best."

And as soon as he pronounced these words he rised his arm and he evaporated...

The precious wizard disappeared in a few seconds without leaving any track...
The two nymphs and Frodo started to walk unsure of where to go. Paddy's absence let them empty.... now... how will they know where to go? Who will protect them?
Hours and hours walking without any course. Suddenly, a happy and smily gnome came out from behind a tree...



Gnome:- " I heard that you are coming from a remote land to save your land from the dryness."
Frodo and the nymphs, happily amazed by the knowledge of the gnome exclaimed:
Yes!!! That's us!!! And we are looking for a glaciar where the snow is pure and white, the purest and whitest of the country!
Gnome: - "Ah!!! Don't worry! I can help you."
There and then the gnome drew a map to the glaciar in the backside of the silver fern.
Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you very much!!- exclaimed the 3 creatures very excited.
And so they did... they continued walking following the itinerary that the gnome drew for them.

They walked and walked until reaching the Diamond lake.

They continued through green fields that covered the elevated sorrounding mountains until reaching the peak.

But they couldn't find any glaciar... where is the snow here?- they ask each other. There is no glaciar here!
They realised straight away... the gnome played a dirty trick on them!!! That wasn't the right way! He cheated on them!
The nymphs fall down dejected....

They couldn't believe what was happening... Who is this evil gnome?- they were wondering.
Suddenly, a white and dense cloud catched them...

From the peak of that mountain they were shipped to the Puzzling World...

The departure of the nymphs from their land reached Margallo warlock and this one, very angry with the news, sent his assistant. This, the little gnome, was sent to hold up their mission. The astuteness of the gnome and the concern of the nymphs to find that snow made them easily fall into the trap.
But... what's that??- the nymphs exclaimed. Why am I becoming a giant and you a gnom? What's going on here? Where are we?


Frodo was loosing stability while he was trying to run to help the nymphs...

Frodo: -" Run little fairies!!! Let's get out of here! If we stay any longer we will lose the concious of the reality! This is a deed of Margallo the warlock!!
And running very fast they left that world... that world of hallucinations that consumed their mind temporarily. In fact, they weren't in the real world until a few hours later. When they opened their eyes, they were back in Wanaka.
They were again at the beginning of the proof...
Frodo: -" Do not become discouraged. This is part of the mission too. Tomorrow morning we will get up early and we will start again!".

Those words cheered the nymphs up. The next morning, they started to walk again... walking and walking... they walked for days around the enchanted town. One morning, walking around one of the forests of Rob Roy valley, Frodo saw some lights among the green trees ... What's that light? Can you see it?- Frodo exclaimed.
The nymphs got closer to it to check it out... They are white fairies!!!!!!!! - they both shouted very cheerful. They are our salvation!!

Nymphs: - " Good morning white fairies. WE don't want to scare you. We are white fairis too.. from very far away. We came to fulfill an important mission. We are looking for a glaciar around here where the snow is pure and white."

White fairies: -" You are actually very close to it. The glaciar that you are looking for is the Rob Roy glaciar. If you follow that path you will soon arrive to its valley. Follow us, we will show you the way!".

And like this Frodo , the nymphs and the two fairies arrived to this magnificent corner of the world where the reflection of the sun is unique.




Nymphs: - " We made it!!!!"
The happiness of finding that glaciar made them forget about the long days of walking...


They went quickly to get a handful of its snow and they kept it in their magic bag to avoid it melting
We have it now! - they happily shouted.

And with happy songs and smiles they left the glaciar. The farewell with the white fairies was short and sweet... as two angels, the little fairies flew to disappear into the wilderness .... never to be seen again.


It will continue...

miércoles, 17 de diciembre de 2008

Photos of New Zealand

Hi guys!!

Here you have more photos from our trip around NZ:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26652485@N06/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29210326@N07/?saved=1

We will be downloading photos during this tale... we hope you enjoy it!

Take care

Vane and Eva

sábado, 6 de diciembre de 2008

Queenstown and the dice's proof



Note: This story makes reference to our stay in Queenstown. We were a few days in this little and charming city located in the Otago region. We did a couple of treks and we went to the highest point where you can have amazing views of the Wakatipu lake. A wonderful landscape where the nature is the main character and the dices of the wizard Paddy will reveal the secret....



A foggy morning woke up in Queenstown.... the proff wasn't gonna be easy... the two nymphs were excited to meet Paddy...



Their appointment with the wise wizard was set in one of the highest mountains of the area.

The walk was long and plenty of steep slopes...




The nymphs were walking... and walking... they could just see the snow capped mountains in the horizon...



Frodo was going with them, making sure that they were ready for the situation that was waiting for them.



During the long and steep way up to reach the peak the two nymphs were listening at Frodo's advices. The wizard had a pair of dices that they will need to throw in order to discover the secret...but what exactly they had to do?

The intrigue was overcoming their minds...





...and.. eventually... the reached the final slope... and then the peak where the wizard was waiting for them.

The two nymphs, very happy and excited for that moment, couldn't wait to know the instruction to follow.



Queenstown's mountains were witnesses of that meeting...





Paddy and the nymphs were getting ready for the big moment...



Firstly, Paddy had to common the Gods of the Mother nature. To do so, the funny wizard started to perform a magic and very strange spell...



The nymphs, petrified, were looking at the strange acts of the wise wizard... what is he doing? Are you sure this is going to work?- they wondered.



And after the performance he shouted:

Paddy - " The moment has arrived!!! The powers of the Mother Earth has asked me to gather the souls of the nature!!! You, nymphs of the river need to help me. Miaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa Miaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (1- 2)

And they all gather in a circle and start to shout with all their strenght..Mia!! Mia!!!


Paddy made a thank gesture looking at the sky... the mother earth had listened them.

It was time now to throw the dices. This magic dices were own by the wizard.. he was carrying them everywhere he went... but how do they work?


In order to get the secret direction they had to get an even number... that would mean that the nymphs were ready for the next task.



The nymphs, very nervious about the pressure, throwed the dices....ummmmmmmmmmm ... Six!!! They got it!!! The doors of the forces of the nature were now open and the secret directions could then be revealed.

The wizard headed to the nymphs and said:



Paddy- " These are the directions that you would have to follow. Listen carefully. Your shrewdness will save your kingdom from the biggest dryness ever.Make sure you fully understand them. "

And he continue ....

- "You will have to gather a few elements from the Maori land to combine them in a sacred place.
The first thing is to catch some snow from a NZ's glaciar. Once you have that you will need to submerge this snow in the deep water of a magic lake... the lake Pukaki.
And the third and last proof is to call the Prince and the Princess of your land. They will have to travel to New Zealand and accord their honors to the Maori's Gods to thank them for saving their kingdom."

The nymphs looked at each other with excitement and confusion.

The task wasn't easy and they didn't have much time.

Will they achieve the difficult proofs?

It will continue....

Queenstown and Paddy the wizard



Note: Paddys are how the Irish are known worldwide. It comes from its patron saint, Saint Patrick. Dublin was our house for a while and we made lots of good friends there. Some of them have been travelling with us... James, Frodo the hobbit and Brian, the Wizard Paddy. We wanted to symbolize the wizard Paddy as a leprechaun as he will be the one who wil give us the secret of the eternal water. We want to thank Brian for his visit and for all the nice moments that we shared.

And the tale continues....

Along the bank of the lake Wakatipu the city of Queenstown rests. Its mountains and green valleys make that its people live with full fresh air and serenity... this is a perfect hideout...



Frodo and the 2 nymphs continued their travel... now, they had to find the hideout of the powerful wizard Paddy. They knew Queenstown was the region that they could find him.. but where?





The two nymphs listened carefully to Frodo's words:





-" In this land surrounded by water lives Paddy the wizard. He is a Celtic spirit who lives in the gardens around the lake of Queenstown. He was choosen by the Maoris to be the guardian of the sacred waters of this land. For more than 2 million years he has been fighting against the powers of the evil and he has preserved New Zealand from the curses of the diabolic warlocks that wished to destroy it. Paddy will be the one who will help us to guess the path to follow and to break the curse of the dryness which affects your land."



The two nymphs looked around contemplating the amazing landscape and they shivered... they were actually very close to the proof that will bring them to discover the secret of the eternal water.... their target was to find Paddy.



Like if it was a miracle.... reflected in the water of the lake.. there he was...
Paddy!!!! his reflection was watching them! But how to find him?



The sunset was coming and the three little creatures, tired from the trip, decided to go to rest.



A new day in the city of Queenstown... the two nymphs of the river opened their eyes with the magic perfume of the white roses around.... a hard task was coming.. finding Paddy!





They heard that in the town there was a place with magic carriages, flying bicycles. They could take them and go to explore the surroundings of Wakatipu lake and therefore, find Paddy's hideout.



Frodo decided to go with them... he would act as a middle man between the nymphs and the wise wizard.
So, they all took the flying bycicles... and flyyyyyyyyyyyy!!



...flying above the area was an easier method to find the hideout...



They start to fly and fly with the magic carriage.... with a mere wink they were controlling its course. one wink... and the bike was going to the right... Twice if they wanted to go left... rubbing their noses if they wanted to land and rubbing their eairs to take off again...

Following those instructions they flew over all Queenstown...



It was a hard task... the wind was strong and if the two nymphs fell in the deep and blue water of the lake their wings could get wet and stop flying forever!
They were flying around the Remarkables (mountains around the lake Wakatipu)... they were flying and flying but wondering where Paddy's hideout could be.



... suddenly, one of the nymphs noticed a strange presence... a funny animal was calling them ...



Animal: - Shuuuuuuuu... shuuuuu.. nymphs of the river!! Here, here... come here, I have a message for you, from Paddy the wizard. He told me to bring you to him!

The two nymphs were looking at each other with a surprising look... what's this animal? What does he want? Is he telling us the truth?- they wondered.



Nymphs: - One second... who are you? Why should we trust you?

... he replied:



- Animal: I am a Kiwi. I am the mascot of New Zealand. I am small and not very common.I have wings but I can't fly. I don't like living in the trees. I am different to the rest of the birds. I am the messenger of the magic forces of the forests. That is where I came from and now I need to bring you there. You need to follow my instructions and you will find Paddy the wizard.

-Nymphs:...aaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!! Then you know where Paddy is!!

So excited about the good news they looked at Frodo...



Frodo asserted with his head... he knew that the little animal was trustable.

The two nymphs felt confident then and followed the Kiwi until Paddy's hideout.



What a surprise!!!!! Frodo the Hobbit and Paddy the wizard knew each other 152 years ago!! They were together in a war to save the Maori culture from evil colonizers centuries ago...



The two nymphs, astounded, looked at them... it was obvious that they were testing them... all the effort to find Paddy's hideout was just a warm up. Frodo and Paddy wanted to check if the nymphs had the strenght and tenacity to complete this task.

A wizard, a hobbit and two nymphs... a magic combo ... with lots of energy!








Paddy and Frodo hadn't seen each other for more than 100 years... lots of things happened since last time.. and they talked and talked...



The two nymphs were fascinated about the amazing stories that they were telling each other....



... the two little nymphs let their wings rest in the green mountains... the adventure had to continue soon.... next morning Paddy was meeting them again... he would tell them how to get the secret of the eternal water....



What did the nymphs have to do to protect their land from the dryness??

It will continue....

and here there are de Pictures!!!Have a look guys!!!Enjooooooooooooooooooooy!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29210326@N07/page10/

Vane and Eva