A quick post before we check out of our Christchurch Hotel and head home.
Yesterday we left Greymouth in the morning. The weather was still awful but we journeyed through Arthur's Pass, seeing some amazing mountain scenery, despite the weather. After getting over the east side of the Alps, the weather got better within about 1/2 hour. The contrast is amazing. By the time we got to Springfield, the sun was shining and we were in tshirts. We stopped there for a home-made pie for lunch and continued driving to Christchurch.
We checked into our hotel and rested for an hour or two. I went to the local supermarket to get a few NZ goodies, while Neil browsed the net here.
Went to a great little Chinese Restaurant in Riccarton which had fabulous service, cheap prices and delicious food.
Early night for me, although Neil stayed up late and watched the Matrix on TV.
Anyway, gotta go, see you all in Melbourne.
Lots of Love
Nomi and Neil
xxxxx
26 November 2006
25 November 2006
Fox Glacier - Greymouth
After breakfast, we started our drive to Greymouth. The weather was still very overcast and consistent rain meant the travelling was a bit slower.
We stopped at Hokitika, a medium sized town,about 30 minutes south of Greymouth.
There are loads of jade shops in NZ and there was a huge one here, so we decided to go and have a look as they had carvers at work. We did some videoing of it and chatted to the guys who were making the jewellery. Very interesting.
We continued on to Greymouth and checked into the Coleraine Motel. Nice and modern room. We stopped for a rest and made a cuppa.
After that we had a little drive around town, looking for some wireless network so we could log in to check our email, as the room did not have net access. We found one only 50 metres from our hotel, which we used for a short while before heading off to Punakaiki.
Punakaiki is about 42km north of Greymouth and quite a nice coastal drive.
The coast was looking particularly rough and there were some interesting cloud formations, so we stopped a few times on the way for some photos. We got to Punakaiki and went on the loop walk which has been created for people to view the rock formations - Pancake Rocks. The rain was on and off, so we had to shelter a few times. The rocks there are amazing, literally like stacks of pancakes, with huge waves crashing below them. The 2nd half of the track was a bit more difficult, with steep stairs, which I managed to traverse with Neil's help.
We got back to the car soaked but invigorated.
The drive back to Greymouth was nice as the sun was starting to break through the clouds and the sea was still rough, so it made for some nice stormy photography.
We felt like Chinese for tea, and after looking inside the only chinese takeaway place in town, we decided against it - it looked feral. So we drove around looking for something else, but couldn't see much. Neil decided to get KFC and I spotted an Indian restaurant a few doors down, so I got that. Greymouth, and most of New Zealand we have noticed does not have many 'cuisine' type restaurants. Mostly they are steak houses and general type cuisine, so we are missing just being able to say - 'let's get greek'.
We took the take away back to our room and had an early night.
A few other NZ observations:
- One lane bridges! About 95% of them are only one lane - don't know why
- Their sour cream is different to ours - more yellow and buttery
- Most service stations are serviced, which is nice
We stopped at Hokitika, a medium sized town,about 30 minutes south of Greymouth.
There are loads of jade shops in NZ and there was a huge one here, so we decided to go and have a look as they had carvers at work. We did some videoing of it and chatted to the guys who were making the jewellery. Very interesting.
We continued on to Greymouth and checked into the Coleraine Motel. Nice and modern room. We stopped for a rest and made a cuppa.
After that we had a little drive around town, looking for some wireless network so we could log in to check our email, as the room did not have net access. We found one only 50 metres from our hotel, which we used for a short while before heading off to Punakaiki.
Punakaiki is about 42km north of Greymouth and quite a nice coastal drive.
The coast was looking particularly rough and there were some interesting cloud formations, so we stopped a few times on the way for some photos. We got to Punakaiki and went on the loop walk which has been created for people to view the rock formations - Pancake Rocks. The rain was on and off, so we had to shelter a few times. The rocks there are amazing, literally like stacks of pancakes, with huge waves crashing below them. The 2nd half of the track was a bit more difficult, with steep stairs, which I managed to traverse with Neil's help.
We got back to the car soaked but invigorated.
The drive back to Greymouth was nice as the sun was starting to break through the clouds and the sea was still rough, so it made for some nice stormy photography.
We felt like Chinese for tea, and after looking inside the only chinese takeaway place in town, we decided against it - it looked feral. So we drove around looking for something else, but couldn't see much. Neil decided to get KFC and I spotted an Indian restaurant a few doors down, so I got that. Greymouth, and most of New Zealand we have noticed does not have many 'cuisine' type restaurants. Mostly they are steak houses and general type cuisine, so we are missing just being able to say - 'let's get greek'.
We took the take away back to our room and had an early night.
A few other NZ observations:
- One lane bridges! About 95% of them are only one lane - don't know why
- Their sour cream is different to ours - more yellow and buttery
- Most service stations are serviced, which is nice
24 November 2006
More photos online!
Hi everyone, Neil Here! I'm sitting in the car out the front of a catholic church, stealing bandwidth from their unsecured wireless connection. I had no idea the catholic church was so generous! :)
Just thought I'd let you know that I've added a whole bunch of new photos to the gallery. You can see them all here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Just thought I'd let you know that I've added a whole bunch of new photos to the gallery. You can see them all here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Fox Glacier
Fox Glacier
Well weather today was just awful. Continuous rain and poor visibility - only about 400 metres, so we could not see all the beautiful mountains around us.
Even so, we decided we couldn't be locked up all day, so went for a drive up the Glacier View Rd. There are walks you can do to get closer to the glacier, but conditions weren't good. We caught a glimpse of the glacier and then decided we would drive to Franz Josef. It's about 23km from Fox.
At Franz Josef we went and had a light lunch of soup and bread in a cafe and I browsed through a few shops. We also found a wireless hotspot, so connected up and did some emails etc for an hour. Franz Josef seems a slightly larger town than Fox, but they both have very limited facilities. There is no chemist or resident doctor. Nor is there a bank or ATM in Fox. Things I would have to have close by if I ever lived in a place like this.
We drove back to Fox Glacier and while Neil processed some images, I went down to the local supermarket to get some cough lollies and calamine lotion - these sandfly bites are just awful, I have them all over my feet.
Later we went out to dinner to the 'Cook and Saddle'- one of the better places to eat here. The staff were very friendly and the surrounds had lots of character.
There was even a huge chunk of glacial ice on the bar (around 50cm diameter) that they had collected that day. Neil and I touched it (the closest we will get to a glacier this trip!) They were also chipping bits off and putting it into people's drinks.
After dinner we went for a very short walk into the glowworm rainforest. It is only a $2 honesty donation to enter and it is a short loop where the little worms glow all along a rainforest wall. It was raining still, but we didnt get too wet as the trees sheltered us a bit. Neil took a few long exposure shots and managed to get one that he is quite happy with.
Well it's now the next morning as I am writing this, whilst listening to the rain tumbling down on the roof and Neil snoring! Better go and wake him up so we can get ready to go to Greymouth.
Well weather today was just awful. Continuous rain and poor visibility - only about 400 metres, so we could not see all the beautiful mountains around us.
Even so, we decided we couldn't be locked up all day, so went for a drive up the Glacier View Rd. There are walks you can do to get closer to the glacier, but conditions weren't good. We caught a glimpse of the glacier and then decided we would drive to Franz Josef. It's about 23km from Fox.
At Franz Josef we went and had a light lunch of soup and bread in a cafe and I browsed through a few shops. We also found a wireless hotspot, so connected up and did some emails etc for an hour. Franz Josef seems a slightly larger town than Fox, but they both have very limited facilities. There is no chemist or resident doctor. Nor is there a bank or ATM in Fox. Things I would have to have close by if I ever lived in a place like this.
We drove back to Fox Glacier and while Neil processed some images, I went down to the local supermarket to get some cough lollies and calamine lotion - these sandfly bites are just awful, I have them all over my feet.
Later we went out to dinner to the 'Cook and Saddle'- one of the better places to eat here. The staff were very friendly and the surrounds had lots of character.
There was even a huge chunk of glacial ice on the bar (around 50cm diameter) that they had collected that day. Neil and I touched it (the closest we will get to a glacier this trip!) They were also chipping bits off and putting it into people's drinks.
After dinner we went for a very short walk into the glowworm rainforest. It is only a $2 honesty donation to enter and it is a short loop where the little worms glow all along a rainforest wall. It was raining still, but we didnt get too wet as the trees sheltered us a bit. Neil took a few long exposure shots and managed to get one that he is quite happy with.
Well it's now the next morning as I am writing this, whilst listening to the rain tumbling down on the roof and Neil snoring! Better go and wake him up so we can get ready to go to Greymouth.
23 November 2006
Guest blog by Grug!
Hi it's Grug here writing a guest blog. We coincidentally happened to be touring New Zealand the same time as Neil and Naomi and after meeting up in Te Anau N&N asked if we could write a little of our experiences for the blog. The first incident started with our flight times being changed and our arriving at Christchurch airport at 11pm. The weather was drizzling and cold but our accommodation was good enough to arrange a late check-in for us. In the cosy kitchen a generous guest gave us some pomegranate and grape tea.
Day 2 and we picked up the rental car - a Nissan Sunny. We drove out to the Christchurch Gondola and saw spectacular views of the bay and Lyttleton Harbour from the top. A hike around the top was fun. In the afternoon we drove to a place called Willowbank which is a bit of a nature park, cultural experience and buffet dinner rolled into one. We fed their eels and saw the Kiwi's run around in the dark.
Day 3 we drove to Mt Cook YHA, stopping at a very windy Lake Tekapo on the way. Amazing scenery and mountains, but not long after Tekapo the rain came and began to obscure the view.
Day 4 rain didn't stop but lower parts of mountains were visible from our room. The mountains were really immense. YHA has a good video library for entertainment.
Day 5 still raining all the way to Dunedin. We went to the Otago museum and saw a lot of historical and cultural displays. Unfortunately after they closed we locked our keys in the car and had to wait in the rain for the AA man. Dinner at a warm Korean BBQ restaurant with bottomless tea was extremely good after that.
Day 6 saw us arriving in Te Anau where the accommodation really made us want to get out and enjoy things away from the place. Luckily the weather was now very nice and we went into town for a tandem bike ride. It wasn't as difficult as we thought it would be. During the cycling we got a call from N&N inviting us along to the jet boat ride that afternoon. It was a fantastic tour of the Waiau river and some Lord of the Rings scenery. We skimmed stones at sunset on Lake Te Anau.
Day 7 was a trip to Milford Sound. The mountains, rivers and lakes were spectacular. The Sound cruise was fantastic with a pod of bottlenose dolphins, a leopard seal, some emperor penguins and a sea lion being some of the natural hightlights. We saw the Underwater Observatory in Harrison Cove and their white looking Black Coral. Chrissie got a fantastic photo of some Kea coming to visit our car. Along the return journey we met up with N&N and did some photography and a geocache hunt.
Day 8 started with a geocache find and a farewell to N&N as they headed off to Wanaka. We went south to Manapouri, took a water taxi over the river and hiked the Circle Track up a small mountain. With weary bones we went back and enjoyed our accommodation's redeeming feature - a nice warm indoor spa.
Day 9 we came to Queenstown and went up their Gondola to the Luge. This is a really awesome billy cart track. There were loads of paragliders and also a few bungee jumpers.
Day 2 and we picked up the rental car - a Nissan Sunny. We drove out to the Christchurch Gondola and saw spectacular views of the bay and Lyttleton Harbour from the top. A hike around the top was fun. In the afternoon we drove to a place called Willowbank which is a bit of a nature park, cultural experience and buffet dinner rolled into one. We fed their eels and saw the Kiwi's run around in the dark.
Day 3 we drove to Mt Cook YHA, stopping at a very windy Lake Tekapo on the way. Amazing scenery and mountains, but not long after Tekapo the rain came and began to obscure the view.
Day 4 rain didn't stop but lower parts of mountains were visible from our room. The mountains were really immense. YHA has a good video library for entertainment.
Day 5 still raining all the way to Dunedin. We went to the Otago museum and saw a lot of historical and cultural displays. Unfortunately after they closed we locked our keys in the car and had to wait in the rain for the AA man. Dinner at a warm Korean BBQ restaurant with bottomless tea was extremely good after that.
Day 6 saw us arriving in Te Anau where the accommodation really made us want to get out and enjoy things away from the place. Luckily the weather was now very nice and we went into town for a tandem bike ride. It wasn't as difficult as we thought it would be. During the cycling we got a call from N&N inviting us along to the jet boat ride that afternoon. It was a fantastic tour of the Waiau river and some Lord of the Rings scenery. We skimmed stones at sunset on Lake Te Anau.
Day 7 was a trip to Milford Sound. The mountains, rivers and lakes were spectacular. The Sound cruise was fantastic with a pod of bottlenose dolphins, a leopard seal, some emperor penguins and a sea lion being some of the natural hightlights. We saw the Underwater Observatory in Harrison Cove and their white looking Black Coral. Chrissie got a fantastic photo of some Kea coming to visit our car. Along the return journey we met up with N&N and did some photography and a geocache hunt.
Day 8 started with a geocache find and a farewell to N&N as they headed off to Wanaka. We went south to Manapouri, took a water taxi over the river and hiked the Circle Track up a small mountain. With weary bones we went back and enjoyed our accommodation's redeeming feature - a nice warm indoor spa.
Day 9 we came to Queenstown and went up their Gondola to the Luge. This is a really awesome billy cart track. There were loads of paragliders and also a few bungee jumpers.
Catching up
Te Anau
Finally getting around to writing some more blogs. The days are full with travelling and sightseeing, so it's hard to find the time to write.
This morning we drove to Lake Manapouri. It's about 20km from Te Anau. Very pretty with backdrop snow-capped mountains. We had a bite to eat before we went off to find 3 geocaches. We found 2 out of the three; one of which was at a lovely location called Pearl Harbour which had a delightful view looking down the river. Certainly somewhere we would not have found if not looking for a cache!
In the afternoon, our friends Andrew (Grug) and Chrissie arrived in Te Anau. We had booked ourselves on a jet boat ride and they decided to join us too. The company was Luxmore Jets. Lovely people running the show - so friendly and informative. We got picked up from our accommodation and taken in a small bus to the launching area. We were all fitted with beanies and life jackets and we all boarded the boat. The lady who drove us there took our photo with our own cameras and handed them back to us before we took off. Nice to see one company not ripping you off by selling you a $20 print of an "action shot", which they take.
The boat took us along parts of Lake Manapouri and Waiau River. The views were just amazing, and because the area is only accessible by boat, it is very untouched. The water is so clear that you can see trout swimming around in 3 metres of water. During the journey we stopped a few times to view scene locations from Lord of the Rings (Fellowship of the Ring). That was great.
We also did "spins" in the boat which were so much fun - a little tamer than the Shotover Jet, but that was fine as we could still film and video and virtually not get wet.
We returned back to Te Anau and had dinner together at the Ranch Hotel.
Te Anau/Milford Sound
Went down to the Laundromat this morning (exciting!). It was called 'Wash and Surf'. While your clothes were washing and drying, you could browse the net on one of the many computers they had there!
After that, we started our drive to Milford Sound. The scenery on the way there was just spectacular, you really are surrounded by monstrous sized mountains with snow on them. The weather was nice too, so it made the drive very pleasant. Because we had a 3pm boat to catch, we could not stop for too many photo opps, and decided to take our time home and stop then.
Before arriving at Milford, you go through the 'Homer Tunnel' - It's virtually a one way tunnel with signal lights at each end that change every 15 minutes. The tunnel took about 20 years to build as they were carving through 1.2km of solid rock.
We arrived at Milford Sound just in time for our cruise. We boarded the Real Journeys boat - 'Milford Monarch' - a massive boat and only one third full, so we had lots of space to roam around. I was told the afternoon cruises are much better as you avoid all the coach tours which do the lunchtime cruises.
We went and collected our 'picnic box lunch', we I had preordered. After gobbling that down, we went on the open top deck for the rest of the journey.
On the cruise, you pass many waterfalls and see numerous animals such as dolphins, seals, penguins and sealions. In one of the waterfalls, they take you in really close to the spray and turn the boat so we see a rainbow. Neil got some great fisheye shots here. During the cruise we spotted Grug and Chrissie on another boat. There is a great photo Neil took with the telephoto of them looking really surprised when they knew it was us!
The cruise went for about 1.5 hours, and we made our way back to the dock.
Because the sun doesn't set until about 9pm, we still had about 4-5 hours of daylight to explore some things on the way home. Grug and Chrissie caught up to us after their cruise, so we drove in convoy and stopped to see things together.
We stopped at a few waterfalls, and also Mirror Lakes, where the mountains are reflected in these still ponds. The sandflies were awful here and I have suffered many bites which are driving me insane! We also stopped at a little river near Lake Gunn, which Neil decided he HAD to paddle in. It was of course freezing and he didn't last too long in there. After seeing amazing cloud formations near the end of the drive, we went for a late dinner (9.30pm) at the Kepler Restaurant. We were all stuffed and tired, so had an early night.
Te Anau - Wanaka
We checked out this morning from our lovely cottage and went to do a local geocache with G+C. This cache was one that our friend Glenn had actually found and signed in 2003, so that was amusing and sucha small world. We said goodbye to G+C and started our drive to Wanaka.
Yet again beautiful scenery along the way, and although we had travelled this route before, we had not seen it in sunlight, so it all looked new to us!
Because the weather was so nice, our warmest day yet at 23 degrees, we decided to detour slightly to Queentown, because our previous stay there was rained out.
We went on the gondola ride up to the top and had magnificent views of the whole of Queenstown and beyond.
After leaving the gondola, we continued our drive to Wanaka. This was a rather steep and windy road and we got to our highest elevation so far - 1080 metres. Arrived in Wanaka and checked into the Edgewater Resort. Absolutely beautiful room and location. It was a shame we were only here for 1 night. This town was somewhere I would definitely like to come back to and explore. We had some ducks outside our room who were tapping on the sliding door with their beaks, wanting to be fed - so cute! Neil started to get a cold.
Wanaka - Fox Glacier
Made the most of the 11am checkout and started our drive to Fox Glacier. Some gorgeous scenery along the way and it was nice to see some of the lakes looking calm and still. We found 3 caches along the way, one under a bridge at a place called 'Cache Creek'! Once we were past Haast, the scenery dramtically changed. We caught a few glimpses of the Tasman Sea and drove through quite dense forest.
We arrived at Fox Glacier, which is a tiny town with not much here. Checked into our motel and then went off to find somewhere to eat. The town at the moment is extremely busy, with all restaurants full and no tables available. We ended up choosing a pub where we waited for a table. This was to be a bad choice, as once seated in the restaurant, we ended up waiting nearly 50 minutes for our food. They had 2 new waitresses on who were just hopeless and we reckon there was a one armed chef trying to cook all the meals. This poor other couple had been waiting 50 minutes also for their food, only to be told that one of their choices was not available! They stormed out in anger, which I dont blame them for. Our food finally arrived, and luckily it was very tasty. We paid our bill and got out of there quick!
Had an early night. Neil processed some more pics. No internet connection here, so can't upload this until we go to the net cafe down the road.
Finally getting around to writing some more blogs. The days are full with travelling and sightseeing, so it's hard to find the time to write.
This morning we drove to Lake Manapouri. It's about 20km from Te Anau. Very pretty with backdrop snow-capped mountains. We had a bite to eat before we went off to find 3 geocaches. We found 2 out of the three; one of which was at a lovely location called Pearl Harbour which had a delightful view looking down the river. Certainly somewhere we would not have found if not looking for a cache!
In the afternoon, our friends Andrew (Grug) and Chrissie arrived in Te Anau. We had booked ourselves on a jet boat ride and they decided to join us too. The company was Luxmore Jets. Lovely people running the show - so friendly and informative. We got picked up from our accommodation and taken in a small bus to the launching area. We were all fitted with beanies and life jackets and we all boarded the boat. The lady who drove us there took our photo with our own cameras and handed them back to us before we took off. Nice to see one company not ripping you off by selling you a $20 print of an "action shot", which they take.
The boat took us along parts of Lake Manapouri and Waiau River. The views were just amazing, and because the area is only accessible by boat, it is very untouched. The water is so clear that you can see trout swimming around in 3 metres of water. During the journey we stopped a few times to view scene locations from Lord of the Rings (Fellowship of the Ring). That was great.
We also did "spins" in the boat which were so much fun - a little tamer than the Shotover Jet, but that was fine as we could still film and video and virtually not get wet.
We returned back to Te Anau and had dinner together at the Ranch Hotel.
Te Anau/Milford Sound
Went down to the Laundromat this morning (exciting!). It was called 'Wash and Surf'. While your clothes were washing and drying, you could browse the net on one of the many computers they had there!
After that, we started our drive to Milford Sound. The scenery on the way there was just spectacular, you really are surrounded by monstrous sized mountains with snow on them. The weather was nice too, so it made the drive very pleasant. Because we had a 3pm boat to catch, we could not stop for too many photo opps, and decided to take our time home and stop then.
Before arriving at Milford, you go through the 'Homer Tunnel' - It's virtually a one way tunnel with signal lights at each end that change every 15 minutes. The tunnel took about 20 years to build as they were carving through 1.2km of solid rock.
We arrived at Milford Sound just in time for our cruise. We boarded the Real Journeys boat - 'Milford Monarch' - a massive boat and only one third full, so we had lots of space to roam around. I was told the afternoon cruises are much better as you avoid all the coach tours which do the lunchtime cruises.
We went and collected our 'picnic box lunch', we I had preordered. After gobbling that down, we went on the open top deck for the rest of the journey.
On the cruise, you pass many waterfalls and see numerous animals such as dolphins, seals, penguins and sealions. In one of the waterfalls, they take you in really close to the spray and turn the boat so we see a rainbow. Neil got some great fisheye shots here. During the cruise we spotted Grug and Chrissie on another boat. There is a great photo Neil took with the telephoto of them looking really surprised when they knew it was us!
The cruise went for about 1.5 hours, and we made our way back to the dock.
Because the sun doesn't set until about 9pm, we still had about 4-5 hours of daylight to explore some things on the way home. Grug and Chrissie caught up to us after their cruise, so we drove in convoy and stopped to see things together.
We stopped at a few waterfalls, and also Mirror Lakes, where the mountains are reflected in these still ponds. The sandflies were awful here and I have suffered many bites which are driving me insane! We also stopped at a little river near Lake Gunn, which Neil decided he HAD to paddle in. It was of course freezing and he didn't last too long in there. After seeing amazing cloud formations near the end of the drive, we went for a late dinner (9.30pm) at the Kepler Restaurant. We were all stuffed and tired, so had an early night.
Te Anau - Wanaka
We checked out this morning from our lovely cottage and went to do a local geocache with G+C. This cache was one that our friend Glenn had actually found and signed in 2003, so that was amusing and sucha small world. We said goodbye to G+C and started our drive to Wanaka.
Yet again beautiful scenery along the way, and although we had travelled this route before, we had not seen it in sunlight, so it all looked new to us!
Because the weather was so nice, our warmest day yet at 23 degrees, we decided to detour slightly to Queentown, because our previous stay there was rained out.
We went on the gondola ride up to the top and had magnificent views of the whole of Queenstown and beyond.
After leaving the gondola, we continued our drive to Wanaka. This was a rather steep and windy road and we got to our highest elevation so far - 1080 metres. Arrived in Wanaka and checked into the Edgewater Resort. Absolutely beautiful room and location. It was a shame we were only here for 1 night. This town was somewhere I would definitely like to come back to and explore. We had some ducks outside our room who were tapping on the sliding door with their beaks, wanting to be fed - so cute! Neil started to get a cold.
Wanaka - Fox Glacier
Made the most of the 11am checkout and started our drive to Fox Glacier. Some gorgeous scenery along the way and it was nice to see some of the lakes looking calm and still. We found 3 caches along the way, one under a bridge at a place called 'Cache Creek'! Once we were past Haast, the scenery dramtically changed. We caught a few glimpses of the Tasman Sea and drove through quite dense forest.
We arrived at Fox Glacier, which is a tiny town with not much here. Checked into our motel and then went off to find somewhere to eat. The town at the moment is extremely busy, with all restaurants full and no tables available. We ended up choosing a pub where we waited for a table. This was to be a bad choice, as once seated in the restaurant, we ended up waiting nearly 50 minutes for our food. They had 2 new waitresses on who were just hopeless and we reckon there was a one armed chef trying to cook all the meals. This poor other couple had been waiting 50 minutes also for their food, only to be told that one of their choices was not available! They stormed out in anger, which I dont blame them for. Our food finally arrived, and luckily it was very tasty. We paid our bill and got out of there quick!
Had an early night. Neil processed some more pics. No internet connection here, so can't upload this until we go to the net cafe down the road.
19 November 2006
Queenstown and Te Anau
Hey folks, Nomi here with a delayed blog entry.
Queenstown was a very interesting place and we wish we could have seen more
in better weather. The rain prevented us from doing much there and the clouds blocked a good view of The Remarkables mountain range.
However, the first morning we were there, we did manage to get a few hours of no rain, so we headed out to do a "Lord of the Rings" self drive tour. As geeky as it sounds, it was actually really worth it.
You pay $20/car at an automatic gate, get a map and drive around the area, right up to the top of the hill. We were there for 1.5 hours or so. For $2 you fill a tin of food and along the way, you encounter different tame animals, such as alpaca, llama, goats, deer, byson and tibetan yak, which you can feed. As cute as goats and deer are, when they come running towards you when they hear the tin shake, it can be rather frightening. I had about 4 goats head butting each other and me as each tried to get the food first!
There was a very cute moment when we saw a little black goat bleeting at the top of the hill. It was calling for its mother who was gorging herself on the food I had in my hand. After she had enough, she made her way back to the baby, who was trying so desperately to get to her mum. There was another car behind us which had an american couple in it. The guy was videoing this event, and the woman was sitting in the car yelling out of the window "that's so gosh darn cute hon' " - quite amusing.
We got to see quite a few areas where different scenes from LOTR was filmed. Some involved a bit of a difficult walk up a slippery hill, so we did not do those. But the whole area just looked so LOTR and it was very pretty as you had nice views of Queenstown in the background. Near the exit were some tibetan yak which were amazing. They are enormous! They look quite scary too, but are very placid.
We checked out the next morning and made our way to Lake Te Anau. It was our shortest day of travel yet, only about 2.5 hours. There was not much to stop and photograph, as the weather was still bleak.
We arrived at Lake Te Anau and checked into our accommodation at Birchwood Cottages, which are little self-contained cottages sitting in the front of someone's front garden. They are very private and have everything you could want.
It will be nice to have a few lazy breakfasts inside and spread out for a few days. In Queenstown, Neil bought a GPS, so he looked up some geocaches and we went for a drive around town looking for some. He found his first one, which he was very excited about. Those who do not know what geocaching is can have a look at www.geocaching.com
We had a nice dinner at an italian restaurant and had a relaxing evening in.
Tomorrow if the weather is nice, we might do a jet boat cruise. Monday, we are going to Milford Sound, which I am really looking forward to.
Anyway, time to get dressed.
Love Nomes and Neil xxx
PS: More photos are in the gallery
Queenstown was a very interesting place and we wish we could have seen more
in better weather. The rain prevented us from doing much there and the clouds blocked a good view of The Remarkables mountain range.
However, the first morning we were there, we did manage to get a few hours of no rain, so we headed out to do a "Lord of the Rings" self drive tour. As geeky as it sounds, it was actually really worth it.
You pay $20/car at an automatic gate, get a map and drive around the area, right up to the top of the hill. We were there for 1.5 hours or so. For $2 you fill a tin of food and along the way, you encounter different tame animals, such as alpaca, llama, goats, deer, byson and tibetan yak, which you can feed. As cute as goats and deer are, when they come running towards you when they hear the tin shake, it can be rather frightening. I had about 4 goats head butting each other and me as each tried to get the food first!
There was a very cute moment when we saw a little black goat bleeting at the top of the hill. It was calling for its mother who was gorging herself on the food I had in my hand. After she had enough, she made her way back to the baby, who was trying so desperately to get to her mum. There was another car behind us which had an american couple in it. The guy was videoing this event, and the woman was sitting in the car yelling out of the window "that's so gosh darn cute hon' " - quite amusing.
We got to see quite a few areas where different scenes from LOTR was filmed. Some involved a bit of a difficult walk up a slippery hill, so we did not do those. But the whole area just looked so LOTR and it was very pretty as you had nice views of Queenstown in the background. Near the exit were some tibetan yak which were amazing. They are enormous! They look quite scary too, but are very placid.
We checked out the next morning and made our way to Lake Te Anau. It was our shortest day of travel yet, only about 2.5 hours. There was not much to stop and photograph, as the weather was still bleak.
We arrived at Lake Te Anau and checked into our accommodation at Birchwood Cottages, which are little self-contained cottages sitting in the front of someone's front garden. They are very private and have everything you could want.
It will be nice to have a few lazy breakfasts inside and spread out for a few days. In Queenstown, Neil bought a GPS, so he looked up some geocaches and we went for a drive around town looking for some. He found his first one, which he was very excited about. Those who do not know what geocaching is can have a look at www.geocaching.com
We had a nice dinner at an italian restaurant and had a relaxing evening in.
Tomorrow if the weather is nice, we might do a jet boat cruise. Monday, we are going to Milford Sound, which I am really looking forward to.
Anyway, time to get dressed.
Love Nomes and Neil xxx
PS: More photos are in the gallery
17 November 2006
Tekapo to Queenstown
It's Nomi here again :)
Yesterday we left Lake Tekapo and made our way to Queenstown. Neil got up at 6am to take some sunrise photos before we left. The one of the church with mountains behind is just gorgeous I think. The owners of the resort had a look at our photos and are quite interested in purchasing some, so we will be following that up when we return home.
The weather was quite warm and fairly sunny. We had a short stop at Lake Pukeko,which had amazing views of the alps including Mount Cook, which you could just see amidst the clouds. Neil took a 360 degree panorama down by the shore line. It was so windy there.
About 30km on, just before Omarama, we stopped at a place called Clay Cliffs. It was a 4km gravel road to get there and on private land, but they welcomed visitors and asked for a $5/car donation. We decided it was worth the detour as
we had seen photos on postcards at Tekapo. It was a bit too much of a climb for me, so I relaxed by the car and videoed the area, while Neil went off to take photos of the cathedral-like clay columns.
I have learnt to become extremely patient with Neil's photography. He is in his own little world and sometimes forgets how long he has been gone. This of course makes me worry a bit, but we keep in touch with our little walkie talkies. However, depending on the terrain, they sometimes do not work too well. This was the case here, as there were giant walls of rock between us. During my wait, I felt the need to go to the loo! Without toilets, I had to think of something creative. Boys have it easy, but for girls its a wee bit more difficult! Without going into detail,let's just say a sick bag has more than one use!
On the road again, I took over driving for a short while. We stopped for a bite to eat at Omarama and continued on. We travelled through more little ski towns including Twizel,which was the location where the great battle on Pelenor Fields in Lord of the Rings was shot.
The road to Queenstown was quite windy, but gorgeous scenery all the way. Another hour on, we arrived in Queenstown. Unfortunately the weather had closed in and it was raining. But we were tired and looked forward to relaxing for the rest of the day. We checked into our room at Rydges Hotel (they actually upgraded us for free which was nice), stopped for a cuppa and rest and then went out for dinner at a little place called Fishbone Inn. It was recommended by one of the staff at the hotel and it was excellent food. I had a fish pie on top of mashed potato and mushy peas (mmmmm comfort food). Neil had fish chowder and calamari. The restaurant was actually owned by an Aussie, so we were pleased to hear some Australian music playing in the background.
After a skype webcam chat with our mums and dads, we went to sleep.
A couple more NZ querky things that I thought I'd mention:
The Maori pronunciation for 'Maori', sounds like 'mouldy'.
There does not seem to be any water restrictions here. We have seen fields of grass being watered while it has been raining.
The chests of drawers out near the road with rocks on top are actually bee hives.
We came across lots of cairns (rocks stacked on top of each other) on the roadside. Hundreds of them of different sizes. We have yet to find out what these are. It looks like some sort of hippie ritual thing.
Neil has uploaded another bunch of photos, so be sure to have a look here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Well that's probably enough for now. Time to get breakfast.
Love NnN
xxx
Yesterday we left Lake Tekapo and made our way to Queenstown. Neil got up at 6am to take some sunrise photos before we left. The one of the church with mountains behind is just gorgeous I think. The owners of the resort had a look at our photos and are quite interested in purchasing some, so we will be following that up when we return home.
The weather was quite warm and fairly sunny. We had a short stop at Lake Pukeko,which had amazing views of the alps including Mount Cook, which you could just see amidst the clouds. Neil took a 360 degree panorama down by the shore line. It was so windy there.
About 30km on, just before Omarama, we stopped at a place called Clay Cliffs. It was a 4km gravel road to get there and on private land, but they welcomed visitors and asked for a $5/car donation. We decided it was worth the detour as
we had seen photos on postcards at Tekapo. It was a bit too much of a climb for me, so I relaxed by the car and videoed the area, while Neil went off to take photos of the cathedral-like clay columns.
I have learnt to become extremely patient with Neil's photography. He is in his own little world and sometimes forgets how long he has been gone. This of course makes me worry a bit, but we keep in touch with our little walkie talkies. However, depending on the terrain, they sometimes do not work too well. This was the case here, as there were giant walls of rock between us. During my wait, I felt the need to go to the loo! Without toilets, I had to think of something creative. Boys have it easy, but for girls its a wee bit more difficult! Without going into detail,let's just say a sick bag has more than one use!
On the road again, I took over driving for a short while. We stopped for a bite to eat at Omarama and continued on. We travelled through more little ski towns including Twizel,which was the location where the great battle on Pelenor Fields in Lord of the Rings was shot.
The road to Queenstown was quite windy, but gorgeous scenery all the way. Another hour on, we arrived in Queenstown. Unfortunately the weather had closed in and it was raining. But we were tired and looked forward to relaxing for the rest of the day. We checked into our room at Rydges Hotel (they actually upgraded us for free which was nice), stopped for a cuppa and rest and then went out for dinner at a little place called Fishbone Inn. It was recommended by one of the staff at the hotel and it was excellent food. I had a fish pie on top of mashed potato and mushy peas (mmmmm comfort food). Neil had fish chowder and calamari. The restaurant was actually owned by an Aussie, so we were pleased to hear some Australian music playing in the background.
After a skype webcam chat with our mums and dads, we went to sleep.
A couple more NZ querky things that I thought I'd mention:
The Maori pronunciation for 'Maori', sounds like 'mouldy'.
There does not seem to be any water restrictions here. We have seen fields of grass being watered while it has been raining.
The chests of drawers out near the road with rocks on top are actually bee hives.
We came across lots of cairns (rocks stacked on top of each other) on the roadside. Hundreds of them of different sizes. We have yet to find out what these are. It looks like some sort of hippie ritual thing.
Neil has uploaded another bunch of photos, so be sure to have a look here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Well that's probably enough for now. Time to get breakfast.
Love NnN
xxx
16 November 2006
Photos from Tekapo
I've uploaded a few new photos from Lake Tekapo. Finally New Zealand is living up to its reputation of being a photogenic country! I've been having lots of fun, but I'm soooo tired! :)
http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Most recent photos at the top. Check the above address regularly for new photos!
http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Most recent photos at the top. Check the above address regularly for new photos!
15 November 2006
Lake Tekapo
Hi everyone,
It's Naomi here, writing today's travel diary.
Today we left the windblown town of Hanmer Springs and made our way to Lake Tekapo - we were glad to be on the road again afer being stuck in town for the extra night.
On the way we stopped for breakfast at Pukeko Junction (recommended by a local). It was very nice. One thing we have noticed is that most restaurant/shop owners are extremely friendly. It's a nice change. We've also noticed a lot of irish people here, travellers and workers.
We continued on from breakfast, travelling on the Inland Scenic Route 72, through beautiful countryside and small ski resort towns, many of which were deserted this time of year.The weather was cloudy with some sun, but we were desperate to get some good weather so we could enjoy the rich colours of New Zealand and so Neil could get some great photos. Fortunately, the further we travelled, the better the weather seemed to get. And the further we travelled, the better the scenery seemed to get! Finally we started to see the amazing scenes that you see on calendars. Almost every turn in the road presented us with a stunning panorama. We had to remember to look in the rear and side view mirrors too, as the view was just as amazing.
After many stops on the way and 7 hours from when we left Hanmer Springs, we arrived at Lake Tekapo. It is a brilliant turquoise blue glacial lake with a small town nestled at the end of the lake. The wind was fairly brisk today, so it was actually causing waves on the lake, and as you will see from one of the photos, it almost looks like a beach with mountains behind. There are many beautiful flowers surrounding the lake including the famous pink and purple lupins.
We checked into our hotel room at Lake Tekapo Scenic Resort, which has an amazing open view of the lake and mountains, and then went to explore the area, making the most of the brilliant blue skies and the late sunset. The sun didn't set until about 8.45pm. We drove up to Mt. John Observatory, which has unsurpassed views of the whole lake and mountain ranges, just gorgeous. After that, we drove to the Church of the Good Shepherd to take photos of it in the golden afternoon light. Very cute little building and very popular with photographers. After sunset, we had a late dinner and came back to our room for a rest. Neil has now gone out again at 10.30pm to take some astro photos. It is freezing out there! So I thought I'd write the blog whilst watching crappy tv and my underwear dry in front of the small heater, hoping it will be dry by morning!
A few other observations of NZ that I thought I'd mention.
- Every menu seems to have at least one dish with kumera in it
- They put sunflower seeds in their side salads
- Every hotel we have stayed in uses Dilmah tea
- Pizzas are extremely expensive - average $20 small/$28 large
- Most hotels have heated towel rails - nice!
- There are hardly any 60km zones - its just 50km or 70km
- All the restaurants we've been into only play cover albums! Rod Stewart sings Foreigner.
- More to come.
Time for bed.
Love Nomi and Neil xxxxx
It's Naomi here, writing today's travel diary.
Today we left the windblown town of Hanmer Springs and made our way to Lake Tekapo - we were glad to be on the road again afer being stuck in town for the extra night.
On the way we stopped for breakfast at Pukeko Junction (recommended by a local). It was very nice. One thing we have noticed is that most restaurant/shop owners are extremely friendly. It's a nice change. We've also noticed a lot of irish people here, travellers and workers.
We continued on from breakfast, travelling on the Inland Scenic Route 72, through beautiful countryside and small ski resort towns, many of which were deserted this time of year.The weather was cloudy with some sun, but we were desperate to get some good weather so we could enjoy the rich colours of New Zealand and so Neil could get some great photos. Fortunately, the further we travelled, the better the weather seemed to get. And the further we travelled, the better the scenery seemed to get! Finally we started to see the amazing scenes that you see on calendars. Almost every turn in the road presented us with a stunning panorama. We had to remember to look in the rear and side view mirrors too, as the view was just as amazing.
After many stops on the way and 7 hours from when we left Hanmer Springs, we arrived at Lake Tekapo. It is a brilliant turquoise blue glacial lake with a small town nestled at the end of the lake. The wind was fairly brisk today, so it was actually causing waves on the lake, and as you will see from one of the photos, it almost looks like a beach with mountains behind. There are many beautiful flowers surrounding the lake including the famous pink and purple lupins.
We checked into our hotel room at Lake Tekapo Scenic Resort, which has an amazing open view of the lake and mountains, and then went to explore the area, making the most of the brilliant blue skies and the late sunset. The sun didn't set until about 8.45pm. We drove up to Mt. John Observatory, which has unsurpassed views of the whole lake and mountain ranges, just gorgeous. After that, we drove to the Church of the Good Shepherd to take photos of it in the golden afternoon light. Very cute little building and very popular with photographers. After sunset, we had a late dinner and came back to our room for a rest. Neil has now gone out again at 10.30pm to take some astro photos. It is freezing out there! So I thought I'd write the blog whilst watching crappy tv and my underwear dry in front of the small heater, hoping it will be dry by morning!
A few other observations of NZ that I thought I'd mention.
- Every menu seems to have at least one dish with kumera in it
- They put sunflower seeds in their side salads
- Every hotel we have stayed in uses Dilmah tea
- Pizzas are extremely expensive - average $20 small/$28 large
- Most hotels have heated towel rails - nice!
- There are hardly any 60km zones - its just 50km or 70km
- All the restaurants we've been into only play cover albums! Rod Stewart sings Foreigner.
- More to come.
Time for bed.
Love Nomi and Neil xxxxx
14 November 2006
Stuck in Hanmer
Unfortunately, the roads to our destination are still closed due to storm damage. We tried to make a brek for it, but the emergency workers advised us that the road wouldn't be clear till 7pm or after. So we're back in the same hotel for another night (this time with broadband!).
As I process more photos, I'll be uploading them here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
As I process more photos, I'll be uploading them here: http://neil.creek.name/gallery/v/holidays/nz96/
Some more photos
Since we're stuck here for a while, I thought I'd work on some more of the photos I've taken. I'll try and add some more and link to them from this post. I don't know how long I'll have, so I'll just do what I can.
http://neil.creek.name/panoramas/061112-067-pano.html
This was taken on the spectacular coastline on the road from Christchurch to Kaikoura.
http://neil.creek.name/panoramas/061112-067-pano.html
This was taken on the spectacular coastline on the road from Christchurch to Kaikoura.
We're trapped!
Nomi and I are sitting in the hotel's restaurant, as we watch the strongest winds we've ever seen wreak havoc upon the beautiful gardens of the Hamner Springs Heritage Hotel. All through the night, and even now, powerful winds are tearing off branches, shaking windows and lifting roof tiles. The only bridge out of town has been blocked by a fallen tree, and debris is all over the streets.
Driving around the precarious clifftop roads which will take us to our next destination would be foolish and reckless, so we're stuck here, with dozens of other hotel guests, waiting for the wind to ease, and news of a clear road to come. I suspect we may be waiting for a while. I fear for the survival of the buffet, for when Nomi gets bored, she eats.
Speaking of Nomi, she wanted to fill you in on some more of the details of what we got up to yesterday, so I'll pass you over to her now.
Nomi: Hi everyone. Well yesterday we drove from Kaikoura to Hanmer Springs. It was a pleasant 2.5 hour drive. Lots of beautiful mountain scenery, lots and lots of sheep. Actually the amount of sheep here is just ridiculous. There are also lots of cows - very friendly too! When you pull the car over to take photos, they all come running over to say hi. Neil was having fun scaring them by turning around and yelling "Raaaa" - they all scuttled. I videoed it - could be funniest home video worthy!
The drive coming into Hanmer Springs was beautiful. There is a high bridge where people can bungy jump from and a spectacular view of the gorge and mountains. Probably the prettiest view so far.
After our harrowing morning of sea-sickness, we decided to book in for a massage. We both had a relaxation massage at a small place - actually a local couple who run a beauty centre at the back of their house. Great little business they have and they were so nice. They gave us a good recommendation for dinner too. We felt fabulous and relaxed. After that we went to the hot springs, which is what Hanmer Springs is famous for. So we left the massage smelling like roses and jumped into a pool smelling like rotten eggs. On hind-sight, should have done it the other way around!
They have numerous pools there ranging from 34 degrees to 41 degrees, which are the sulphur pools. They stink but you do feel healthy afterwards, and I particulary felt good. Neil and I were laughing, saying it's one of the few places you can let off and no-one would know!
After a shower to wash off the rotten egg smell, we went for dinner at the Rustic Cafe, which is what the massage centre recommended. We had an awesome tapas dinner, probably the best I've ever had.
After that, Neil went to access the net (surprise:)
and I went to bed. I slept like a log, but was woken once or twice with the storms, which are still causing problems today, hence me writing this whilst waiting for it to clear. Anyway, I'm going to get another cuppa from the buffet, before they clear it away!!!
Driving around the precarious clifftop roads which will take us to our next destination would be foolish and reckless, so we're stuck here, with dozens of other hotel guests, waiting for the wind to ease, and news of a clear road to come. I suspect we may be waiting for a while. I fear for the survival of the buffet, for when Nomi gets bored, she eats.
Speaking of Nomi, she wanted to fill you in on some more of the details of what we got up to yesterday, so I'll pass you over to her now.
Nomi: Hi everyone. Well yesterday we drove from Kaikoura to Hanmer Springs. It was a pleasant 2.5 hour drive. Lots of beautiful mountain scenery, lots and lots of sheep. Actually the amount of sheep here is just ridiculous. There are also lots of cows - very friendly too! When you pull the car over to take photos, they all come running over to say hi. Neil was having fun scaring them by turning around and yelling "Raaaa" - they all scuttled. I videoed it - could be funniest home video worthy!
The drive coming into Hanmer Springs was beautiful. There is a high bridge where people can bungy jump from and a spectacular view of the gorge and mountains. Probably the prettiest view so far.
After our harrowing morning of sea-sickness, we decided to book in for a massage. We both had a relaxation massage at a small place - actually a local couple who run a beauty centre at the back of their house. Great little business they have and they were so nice. They gave us a good recommendation for dinner too. We felt fabulous and relaxed. After that we went to the hot springs, which is what Hanmer Springs is famous for. So we left the massage smelling like roses and jumped into a pool smelling like rotten eggs. On hind-sight, should have done it the other way around!
They have numerous pools there ranging from 34 degrees to 41 degrees, which are the sulphur pools. They stink but you do feel healthy afterwards, and I particulary felt good. Neil and I were laughing, saying it's one of the few places you can let off and no-one would know!
After a shower to wash off the rotten egg smell, we went for dinner at the Rustic Cafe, which is what the massage centre recommended. We had an awesome tapas dinner, probably the best I've ever had.
After that, Neil went to access the net (surprise:)
and I went to bed. I slept like a log, but was woken once or twice with the storms, which are still causing problems today, hence me writing this whilst waiting for it to clear. Anyway, I'm going to get another cuppa from the buffet, before they clear it away!!!
13 November 2006
Hamner
As you heard, today got off to a great start... Well we're both feeling a lot better now, and we just had a really nice dinner. But my net connection problems continue :( The web site for this hotel says there is broadband access in the rooms. They just forgot to say not ALL rooms, and then booked us into one without it... So now I'm sitting in an unoccupied room using the broadband here, at an outrageous price. But I was going thru withdrawal ;)
Anyway here's some pics that I haven't been able to upload till now:
http://neil.creek.name/panoramas/bridge-pano.html
This is an interactive panorama (1.5mb quicktime) taken from one of the many one lane bridges over one of the beautiful wide rivers that flow from the Southern Alps to the East. The distinctive light colour of the water is from the erosion of the mountains and the melting of snow.
http://img140.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061112052vl8.jpg
Nomi video tapes the beautiful and rugged coast on the road from Christchurch to Kaikoura.
http://img297.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061113048lx1.jpg
This is what we faught sea-sickness and 1-2m swells to see. The massive and amazing Sperm Whale, here seen beginning a rapid deep dive in search of food.
http://img295.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061113076nm9.jpg
Here you can get an idea of the size of the whales - about as long as the boats we were in to watch them - and how close we were able to get. The second boat joined us an hour into our nightmare :)
http://img139.imageshack.us/my.php?image=valleypanope0.jpg
Last photo for today, this is a 10 photo panorama looking down into one of the many deep valleys, carved by a mountain runoff river. The full size file is giant, and I may print it up to poster size one day :) These valleys and mountains are an awesome sight as you drive along the NZ highways. Hopefully we'll be seeing more and more like this as we head deeper into the mountains in the coming days.
We're heading off early tomorrow to Lake Tekapo, and we were up very early this morning too, so I need to go get some sleep. I THINK we have net access at the next place, but I thought that about here too, so who knows.
See you when we see you!
Anyway here's some pics that I haven't been able to upload till now:
http://neil.creek.name/panoramas/bridge-pano.html
This is an interactive panorama (1.5mb quicktime) taken from one of the many one lane bridges over one of the beautiful wide rivers that flow from the Southern Alps to the East. The distinctive light colour of the water is from the erosion of the mountains and the melting of snow.
http://img140.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061112052vl8.jpg
Nomi video tapes the beautiful and rugged coast on the road from Christchurch to Kaikoura.
http://img297.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061113048lx1.jpg
This is what we faught sea-sickness and 1-2m swells to see. The massive and amazing Sperm Whale, here seen beginning a rapid deep dive in search of food.
http://img295.imageshack.us/my.php?image=061113076nm9.jpg
Here you can get an idea of the size of the whales - about as long as the boats we were in to watch them - and how close we were able to get. The second boat joined us an hour into our nightmare :)
http://img139.imageshack.us/my.php?image=valleypanope0.jpg
Last photo for today, this is a 10 photo panorama looking down into one of the many deep valleys, carved by a mountain runoff river. The full size file is giant, and I may print it up to poster size one day :) These valleys and mountains are an awesome sight as you drive along the NZ highways. Hopefully we'll be seeing more and more like this as we head deeper into the mountains in the coming days.
We're heading off early tomorrow to Lake Tekapo, and we were up very early this morning too, so I need to go get some sleep. I THINK we have net access at the next place, but I thought that about here too, so who knows.
See you when we see you!
Kaikoura
Just a quick entry, cos im not sure when I'll get net access again. Unfortunately we didn't have any in our room last night. We're in the beautiful peninsula town of Kaikoura, which normally has a huge wall of mountains as a backdrop, but it's, been too cloudy to see them. We caught a brief glimpse of them yesterday. And from what little we could see, they were very impressive. Absolutely enormous and capped with snow.
Things haven't been as good as they could have unfortunately. The weather hasn't been cooperating for the kind of photos I want to get, and Nomi and I both copped a pretty bad case of sea sickness this morning when we went on the whale-watching tour. Neither of us have ever been seasick before, so it took us by surprise. We DID get to see a couple of whales for five mins or so each, which was pretty cool!
Today we're heading inland to Hamner Springs. This town is famous for (you guessed it) geothermal springs, and is known as a relaxation town, so we're planning to get some pampering. I also understand that we will have net access there, so hopefully I'll be able to share some of the best photos we've taken so far.
You may hear from us again today, if not, then maybe tomorrow!
Take care all!
Things haven't been as good as they could have unfortunately. The weather hasn't been cooperating for the kind of photos I want to get, and Nomi and I both copped a pretty bad case of sea sickness this morning when we went on the whale-watching tour. Neither of us have ever been seasick before, so it took us by surprise. We DID get to see a couple of whales for five mins or so each, which was pretty cool!
Today we're heading inland to Hamner Springs. This town is famous for (you guessed it) geothermal springs, and is known as a relaxation town, so we're planning to get some pampering. I also understand that we will have net access there, so hopefully I'll be able to share some of the best photos we've taken so far.
You may hear from us again today, if not, then maybe tomorrow!
Take care all!
11 November 2006
Christchurch
Wow are we both tired... After waking at 5am, waiting in queue after queue, and a flight that seemed a lot longer than the three hours it was supposed to be, we nearly fell asleep at our dinner table.
The flight over was largely uneventful, however flying over the alps was absolutely stunning! Truly an incredible sight to behold. We can't wait to see them uo close. Naomi also had a bit of a scare when we unexpectedly encountered some rather severe turbulance. I thought it was all great fun, but when we experienced a sudden drop that lifted everybody out of their seats simultaneously, Nomi couldn't help but let out a but of a frightened squeal.
We spent our afternoon recovering from the flight, and doing a bit of driving and sightseeing around the city of Christchurch. Tomorrow however, we're heading North to Kaikura, where we have booked a whale watching tour, which by all accounts will be an awesome experience.
Unfortunately we have no net access in our room today, but I have no photos of note to share yet. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to show you all some whales :)
Till then, seeya later!
The flight over was largely uneventful, however flying over the alps was absolutely stunning! Truly an incredible sight to behold. We can't wait to see them uo close. Naomi also had a bit of a scare when we unexpectedly encountered some rather severe turbulance. I thought it was all great fun, but when we experienced a sudden drop that lifted everybody out of their seats simultaneously, Nomi couldn't help but let out a but of a frightened squeal.
We spent our afternoon recovering from the flight, and doing a bit of driving and sightseeing around the city of Christchurch. Tomorrow however, we're heading North to Kaikura, where we have booked a whale watching tour, which by all accounts will be an awesome experience.
Unfortunately we have no net access in our room today, but I have no photos of note to share yet. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to show you all some whales :)
Till then, seeya later!
10 November 2006
New Zealand, here we come!
Tomorrow morning Naomi and I fly to New Zealand for a two week driving tour of the South Island. I am taking my laptop, and we will have 'net access in most of the hotels where we are staying. I am hoping to update this blog whenever I get the chance, especially with the very best of the photos I take on our trip. So if you'd like to see what we're up to, and see some photos from New Zealand, make sure to check this blog regularly!
You can also subscribe to the RSS feed to receive instant notification of a new post! I recommend the Google RSS reader: htp://reader.google.com
See you from the South Island!
You can also subscribe to the RSS feed to receive instant notification of a new post! I recommend the Google RSS reader: htp://reader.google.com
See you from the South Island!
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