Saturday 17th February: Finally set-off on our trip to New Zealand. It's a destination I've always wanted to visit & I was literally counting down the hours & minutes in the office. Finding the long-stay car park in Sydney is tricky enough but from then on it's plain sailing. Arrive in Christchurch early afternoon and spend a few hours wandering around - amazing how 'English' the place is (hardly surprising given it's origins) - and then have a lovely meal in our hotel 'The George'. An early night as we have our first early start the next day.
Sunday 18th February: Up at 4am for our first trip on a hot air balloon. Fortunately, the weather is good enough for us to take off (we later realize how fortunate we are with this as some of the other people on the trip have taken 5 previous attempts to get in the air). We are accompanied by a lovely Jack Russell - called Jack - and he pretty much steals the show. The scenery is truly spectacular & it feels fantastic floating through the air.
After the 'interesting' landing in a farmer's field we head back to Christchurch & hit the long-straight road to Dunedin. Stop off at Oamaru on the way, end up staying a fair bit longer than expected as we have dinner at The Last Post & then watch the 2 resident penguin colonies (blue / fairy penguins & yellow eyed penguins both nest there) come ashore before continuing on with the journey. The early start takes it's toll on me & for the first time I fall asleep at the wheel....wake up just in time to avoid a nasty crash at 100kmh. Get to Dunedin after midnight.
Monday 19th February: Have breakfast in Dunedin (Tangente Cafe) and am amazed at how Scottish both the City & it's surrounds look - Dunedin is Celtic for Edinburgh (& even the Octagon is reproduced). The Victorian style train station is impressive & there is live music in the main square. Would have liked to have spent a little more time in this oft-derided city but we head for Queenstown - via the interestingly spherical Moeraki Boulders, the white clock-face in the hill at Alexandra & the giant fruit at Cromwell.
Arrive in Queenstown around 7.30pm & to be honest my initial reaction was one of disappointment. The scenery was stunning, but the drive in the X-Trail was not the best, the service in the hotel (Oaks Shores) was poor & the draught beer tasted awful (don't bother drinking anything not out of a bottle if you're ever in Queenstown).
Tuesday 20th February: An early start to get north to Makarora for the 'Siberian Experience'... we're delayed slightly by a herd of cows on the road but still make it in good time. Met by our 'travelling partners' who are of Polish origin & ask Lucy & I if we can speak German....the conversation doesn't really progress much further than "No". We fly in a small plane, up and into the Siberian range - truly spectacular & flying so close to the mountains really made it a special experience. We then have a 2 hour hike which passes through the valley beneath the mountains - offering some stunning views - before arriving at the jet boat which takes us back to the start point. The fact that the water levels are so low make for an even bumpier ride. If you have the time would definitely recommend doing this if you're in NZ.
After we get back to the Lodge we have a bite to eat & head for Queenstown once more. This time we're staying in Azur - and the experience there brilliant. The people, the rooms, the facilities, the free beer, the spa bath with a view & the whole set up could not have been better. Awesome.
Wednesday 21st February: Wake up to a glorious dawn. Could sit and watch the scenery all day - the colours & light change so much - but have another couple of things planned. First off, it's rafting down the Shotover river...grades 3 & 4 made a little trickier to navigate by the lack of water (it's been the driest summer in years here) but our guide Mark (aka Dugald McDugald) proves entertaining & we have plenty of goes at tipping over the raft until I'm literally thrown out!
Then we head to Kawarau Bridge to do a bungy.... I've always wanted to do the one where you leap off a bridge & dunk your head into the water. I was fine as my legs were trussed together & attached to the bungy cord....in fact I was fine until I was asked to stand and shuffle forward towards the ledge. It was only at this stage that I thought "Bloody Hell it's a long way down" (50m in fact) and my body started to tell me not to go through with it. However, with Lucy coming just behind me & the viewing gallery (yes they had a viewing gallery) full I didn't want to pull out now and so as the countdown began 5-4-3- I jumped! Talk about stomach churning....an amazing experience diving down and heading for the water... although the stomach churning only increased on the 1st bounce! Fortunately, I made it out of the water in one piece & in time to see Lucy make her jump (much more gracious than me!). Not sure if I'd do it again, but there is a 150m+ ledge to leap off in Queenstown.
After a quick change into dry clothes we headed back to the hotel for canapies & dinner served in our room. The food was provided by a local restaurant, but the view was provided by a greater being & was certainly the best in town.
Thursday 22nd February: Sadly we had to say goodbye to the luxury of Azur, but were sent on our way with a hearty breakfast. Before going to Te Anau we headed to Glenorchy & Wyuna Station for a spot of horse-riding. Basically, straight on a horse and up a mountain trail - passing above yet more glorious scenery - our guide spoke in glowing terms of the area & we also found out a fair bit about the workings of a farm in such country. Unfortunately, at times both of our horses (Lucy had Rio, I had Patches) seemed to enjoy munching the grass more than heading up the track...downhill & homeward bound was somewhat different! By now, the beauty of Queenstown & it's surrounding area have more than won me over.
We reached the Te Anau holiday park and checked into our room (with lake views providing you stood outside and tilted your head) before heading into town. A strange little place which basically looked like a large Butlins resort.... a few shops, bars etc but most things closed at 4pm.... and whilst the cinema served wine, the one screen was showing Casino Royale which we'd watched some-time ago. We headed to a little restaurant called Red-Cliff (recommended by the Rough Guide) & treated ourselves to Venison & Lamb - which was tasty, but a little rich. Lucy was wasted after just two sips of the local 'wild cider'.
Friday 23rd February: Another early start as we are on the road by 6am - headed for Milford Sound. Yet another spectacular drive through twisty country roads - I could get used to driving here! Although would be tempted to ban camper vans. Through the tunnel which we later find holds the annual Nude run (1st April if you're heading there) & into the most spectacular backdrop to a road of the whole trip. Today we're kayaking on Milford Sound (named for Milford Haven but a LOT prettier) & then walking the last part of the famous Milford Track. The scale of the Sound is staggering - a 150m waterfall (3x Niagra Falls) looks puny.... distances of 9km look nothing....Wow. And we pass a few seals basking in the sun during the day.
The only downer on the day is the rather large number of sandflies....and the little blighters LOVE to bite. Standing still is the signal for a swarm of flies to cover you in little bites...I manage to escape with 10-15 on my hands and arm but some German trekkers have not been so lucky and I see legs covered in bites. Somehow Lucy hasn't got a single one. Our guides Rosie (from Swaledale in North Yorkshire) & Tex (after Chuck Norris' Texas Ranger) both give good insights into the history of the area and the local flora & fauna. It's such a shame that the only land mammals not brought by the Europeans are 2 species of bats & the rest have been introduced to the detriment of native birds.
It's a long day as we are kayaking for 4-5 hours & then walking for 3-4, but we realize that we're not going to make it back to Te Anau before closing so stay around for some dinner....pizza and wedges in the only local bar. The drive back is a little like a video game at times, attempting to dodge rabbits and the more abundant possums (introduced from Australia for the fur trade, their numbers have rocketed to 80million plus in recent years).... despite swerving to avoid many of the critters I'm sure I take out 2-3 on the way.
Saturday 24th February: Wake up to a scene reminiscent of when my Mum's house didn't have central heating - 2 duvets on the bed & having to walk around in woolly hat & thermals when not undercover! A long drive ahead of us & decide to have breakfast in Queenstown in order to break up the drive. Eat in "William's Cottage" overlooking Lake Wakatipu, then 6 hours through Twizel (a strange little town) & the 'Inland Scenic Route' (which isn't that scenic when compared to the Southern Alps & Fiordland. However, Mt Cook & the glacial lake it forms are impressive - a wonderful shade of blue.
Make it to Christchurch in order to rid ourselves of the X-Trail which has admittedly done it's job well, then have a few beers & a bite to eat (a cracking kebab) with one of Lucy's friends - Bryan - before hitting the sack. Have a feeling that Christchurch could be a lively place given half the chance.
Sunday 25th February: Our final early start - and the earliest to boot. 4am, would have been earlier if the hotel receptionist had her way, and a total of 3 hours sleep. Slept the whole way back - an appropriate end to what had been an action packed week.
So what do I think of New Zealand? A little bit English (Christchurch & around), a little bit Scottish (Dunedin) & a little bit Welsh (valleys & sheep) but more dramatic, more awe inspiring. The people are a lot more laid back than the Aussies (& also the Kiwis I've met abroad) and friendly. A truly awesome country with the most dramatic scenery.
Would I recommend you going? Yes...just remember the fly spray!
Would I go back? Absolutely.... I would take more time about it this time & allow time to potter about rather than dashing from activity to activity. And would love to check out the North Island too. I also think it would be a great place to live....time to check out the immigration forms?
Went to watch 'Puppet Up!' at the strangely opulent State Theatre in Sydney last night. Using the puppets created by Jim Henson (man behind the Muppets & Fraggle Rock), we were treated to an excellent show of improvisation. It's the most I've laughed at a comedy event since I got here (& in Lucy's words...it was MUCH better than Little Britain). It's amazing what actors can get away with saying when holding a puppet, and if you ever got bored by looking at the screens (puppets projected onto them) then you can always look at the mayhem beneath. Not sure the show will be back in the UK as they were at the Edinburgh Festival...but if it is I would recommend going along.
