hello everyone!
Okay here it goes!
For our last week in Queenstown our friend Mike (a flatmate that lived where I lived in england before I did but then I met, does that make sense?)anyway, he now lives in Aukland and came down for a week with his sister and friend!
so we hung out with them all week which was a lot of fun! His friend Steph didnt know how to ski so I spent some time teaching her! Yup, I am that good! LOL not...anyway one day we were up at the ski fields and she started to go really fast on a green run so I grabbed her and managed to impale my chest on one of her ski poles! I was winded and it hurt quite a bit so I went to first aid to get it checked...turns out i just really bruised it which was good! We spent one night playing bingo and we did a quiz at the casino! On Friday before we left Queenstown on Saturday we decided to have our last official day of skiing in New Zealand so we got up early and went to the coronet ski field. We were skiing all morning and about to come down for lunch when Mike decided to hit a huge jump on his snowboard only to land on his hip and shoulder...we were sure he had broken at least something so ski patrol came and put him on a stretcher to ski down the mountain. When he got to first aid they had given him laughing gas to numb the pain so he was really out of it. They suggested we take him to the hospital in town for x rays. In the end he badly bruised it and didnt break anyting so that was lucky!!! Two times in one week!
The next day, august 9th, we woke up and packed our things from our nice little house in Frankton and unloaded again. We were back to living in the camper van! The first day we had a long drive and made it all the way to fox township on the west coast where the Fox glacier is. We booked a trip for the next day and stayed in a nice little holiday park. The next morning we met up at the glcier center for our half day tour. They fitted us with clampons for the ice and some good walking boots and we headed up in an old fashined bus to the glacier! It was beautiful! A lot different than the one sI remeber from Canada when we went out west. We did a hike into the woods up hill which was not fun but then we had the opprotunity to walk on the ice. We put on our clampons and headed out! The company we were with had carved steps and paths through the snow and we went in and out of crevasses and through little caves in the ice! It was amazing and we learned about how it was created and how the valley was formed! the water everywhere was so clear because of the way ot came off the glacier...it was neat.
After our trip we got back in the van and headed north where we stayed in a small holiday park south of greymouth which had a hot tub!!! A nice touch after a day of ice!!!
The next day we decided to go to Shanytown...a little pioneer town that told the story of New zealands early gold rush days. they had a steam train that took us on a ride through the forest and a little town much like pioneer village. We got to pan for gold and when you find the tiny bit of gold at the end they put it in a little vile of water asa souvenir, it was neat! Following Shantytown we did one of the nicest drives in NZ according to our books and it was along the west coast and the southern alps. It was from Greymouth to Westport on the west coast. We stopped at the 'pancake' rocks...a natural wonder where the limestone in formed by the sea to look like stacks of pancakes. Then we stopped at a small cave for a look around before having lunch and heading up the road. We stopped a few times to take pictures and then again when we arrived at the longest swing bridge in New Zealand...110 meters! It was raining but we crossed it anyway and did a short nature walk on the other side. That night we stayed in Murchison...a nothing town on the road to Picton where we would catch the ferry to the horth island the next day. The next day was a lot of driving...we stopped in a few towns for a walk along the way before getting to Picton to catch the 6:00 vehicle ferry to Wellington. The ferry was a bit late but we caught it okay and reached Wellington at about 9:30 and headed to a holiday park outside the city. the next morning we looked around Wellington and went to the museum of Newzealand that explored new zealands history and maori legends. We drove the rest of the day to Taupo where we stayed over night. The next day was the best one yet! The thermal hot springs!!!! We started our day by going for a walk in the Craters of the Moon park...a walk that takes you past thermal hot springs steaming from beneath the earth...kind of creepy actually. Then we continued our drive up and stopped at Orakai park...where there were more hot springs but these ones were more picturesque. There were boiling springs and mud pools and a few geysers but they were not going off. Then next part of our day was the best...we headed to Waikite thermal pools where we swam in the hot water! It was freezing outside but the outdoor pools are naturally heated by the hot springs and full of heatly minerals and you can swim in them! It was amazing! Like natural hot tubs! that night we stayed in Rotorua. It was pouring the next day but we had a looooong drive...7 hours up to Pahia north of Auckland where the bay of islands were. We got there about 5:00pm and walked around before finding a campsite...where we managed to get our campervan stuck in the mud!!! The lady at the site said she would get someone in the morning to pull us out but luckily our electric reached far enough so we could plug in for the night. It had rained to much that the ground was a swamp!!! The next morning a guy came along with a 4 x 4 and pulled our poor little campervan out no problem!!!
It was a beautiful day despite weather reports so we went into town and booked a jet boat ride on the bay of islands to the famous hole in the rock!!!
It was so much fun! an hour and a half of speeding through waves and heavy swells while the play adrenalin music in the background! We got so wet but luckily they give you raincoats!!! It was fun! the pictures tell it all! I will add them when I can..
Then we went to the Waitangi treaty grounds...the place where in 1840 the treaty was signed between Britain and the maori people of New zealand to live under the soverenty of the Queen...basically ther birth of modern New Zealand. It was a nice walk through gardens and buildings where the signing took place.
Then we headed back down south and stayed at a big campground on the coast where it RAINED ALL NIGHT yet again.
Anyway this morning we finished the drive and are now back in Auckland...We fly out to Los Angeles tomorrow night!!! YAY! We are so excited for warm weather again!
Hope this all made sense...i typed it really fast so it might not!
Miss you all!
See you soon!
Next, on to LA!!!!!
Jenn
xoxox
|
