Nomads Hostel Queenstown

OK, so maybe I've been a little harsh on the Hostel.  Really, the concept is pretty cool.  The other night I slept in the same room with two Israeli guys, and just last night I was having beers on the balcony with a German girl and a Chilean girl, now living in Easter Island.  The German girl has been surfing for the last 6 months in Raglan, on the North Island of New Zealand.  The Chilean girl has a 15 and a 17 year-old back home, but is on a 7 week holiday working her way through the Islands of Oceana.  The common language spoken in a Hostel is English, thankfully, and so I can communicate.  Everybody's got an interesting story.  I met a couple, he from Canada and she from Germany, who met in Laos three years ago and have been travelling together ever since.  They get illegal work on boats to fund their travels. 

Another thing tht has been good about Hostels so far is that I haven't had anything stolen.  I leave my netbook laptop, my iPod, my passport and camera laying out and they're there when I get back.  Of course I'm nervous about it, and the other night when I stayed in the Hostel with no locks on the doors I was worried.  But I'm finding there's really nothing to worry about.  Everybody's got an iPod, and they don't want yours.  There's a nice sense of community, and you'll often find people making huge meals to share in the communal kitchens. 

A couple nights ago, I noticed that my towel, a blue and yellow beach towel that says 'Australia' on it, was laying on the floor by another bunk.  I had hung it on my bunk to dry.  "Gross!  Who would use my towel?!"  My head snapped over to my bunk, where I had left my towel.  And there it was.  My towel.  Somehow this strange girl and I had the exact same 'Australia' towel.  I panicked as I realized that she might think that I had stolen HER towel, and that stressed me out for the rest of the day, in much the same way that my sister Kasey keeps her hands visible at all times whilst grocery shopping, so that the employees won't accuse her of stealing.  Something she would never do.