Well Done Wanaka

Another beautiful day here by the lake. Easily 30 degrees. We sauntered down to the lake and dipped our tootsies in the water. It was cold, but very refreshing and really really lovely. There were loads of little boys swimming in the crystal water and diving off the pier (all shouting as they dived into the cold water). We fed the ducks and gulls again today, one bread roll each. The ducks nibbled by jeans and caught the bread in their bills like dogs, while the gulls flew right in front of me, hovering in the air, and took the bread from my hands. They nipped the Monster's fingers, but they only took the bread from me. It was a lovely experience. Wandered around the town and had drinks in a shore side cafe. Moving on to Auckland tomorrow. First leg of the journey is a seven hour drive to Kaikoura, then over night there and head on to Picton the next day, cross to the north island and spend the night in Wellington. Then another 7 plus hour drive to Auckland, where we spend our last two days. The Monster has pledged to do the jump from the sky tower in the city and you know, I might do it with her! So, probably won't be blogging til we reach Auckland. See you then!

Food in New Zealand

Wanaka is lovely, it is so nice in fact that it does tempt us to laziness unfortunately. We walked down to the lake today. It is about 28 degrees, a dry heat with a clear blue sky. Heaven. There were loads of people swimming in the lake and boating, I was tempted to jump in, it looked so lovely. If I had my cossie and my boardies with me, I might have given it ago. I had some bread and fed the ducks and gulls while the Monster took some photos. The gulls were amazing, they caught the bread in the air and the ducks would have taken it from my hand, if I had given it to them! They were fickle creates however, and left me for someone else with bread when my supply ran dry. There were loads of people with dogs as well, having fun splashing in and out of the water. It is a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

A lot of people have asked about food over here, so I thought I would write something about it. There is a lot of meat, as can be expected. Mostly lamb and venison and some beef (not great quality in my experience) as well as lots of fish and lobster (they call them crayfish over here) and not great vegetarian selection. There are a lot of Asian restaurants, a couple of Italian and then the rest of NZ cuisine, which is a bit like Irish/English food. The quality varies. In the smaller towns you get helpings fit for an army of sheep farmers, and even in the cities the helpings are large. We have found a few very nice places and the rest have been average. Another good thing about Wanaka is that we have our own kitchen and the monster is very good at cooking!

I don't like Milford Sound

Woke up this morning to the sound of someone running through the lodge banging on the doors - at 7.05am! Did not appreciate it. Had to vacate by 8.30am. Booked a place on the nature cruise for 10.30am and had breakfast. Muesli and yogurt, not as nice as the porridge yesterday. No sign of the keas. The ship was massive, with rooms for overnight stay and everything. Blair, our guide, gave very informative and amusing commentary. There were loads of waterfalls cascading off the rocks because of the rain and there not being any top soil. It was very very cold outside of the cabin. We saw some fur seals, some dolphins (a pod of 4, I think they were common or bottle nosed) and a couple of foirdland crested penguins. I liked it when we went out into the Tasmin sea, the rocking of the boat was very soothing. We played brain train. I felt totally miserable. We decided to go back to Wanaka and spend the remaining days of our holiday in luxury. When we got off the boat we saw that I had parked in a bus only parking space and we were blocked in. My only thoughts were of how much trouble I was in! Thank God we managed to get out ok and no one gave out to us. The Monster drove the first leg of the journey, the slippery slidy mountain roads from Milford Sound to Te Anu. The countryside was totally covered in mist. We saw 10 Harriers on the drive down yesterday. We saw 21 today, mostly in the Wanaka area. I drove from Te Anu to Queesntown. We stopped to pick up my meds, which I had left in the motel, then the Monster drove the last leg to Wanaka. It was about 6 hours driving altogether. It is really warm and sunny in Wanaka. Judith, the apartment manager welcomed us home and was really friendly. It is good to be back. I'm a bit disappointed (in myself) that we didn't press on to Stewart Island, but it is nice to be somewhere warm and comfy where we can chill out.

Puzzling World

The Monster was really brave this morning and jumped out a plane at 15000ft with a man strapped to her back. I think she found it a harrowing experience. I was half tempted to join her, but after watching the dvd or her experience, I am glad I didn't (although they push you out of the plane, which was something I was worried about). I think I would have pulled out at the last minute and found it even more nerve wracking than she did.

It was a beautiful day here in Wanaka with a very high fire warning, because it was so hot. I'd say the temperature was as high as 30 degrees. It was a bit too hot for me. In the afternoon we went to Puzzling World, a few hundred metres outside of the town. It is a place full of puzzles, optical illusions and a maze. They had some cool 3d pictures, faces that seemed to follow you and a some amazing puzzles. My favourite room was one that messed with your balance. it was tilted and it looked like water was flowing up hill, a ball on a snooker table was rolling up hill and you could sit in this chair and roll up hill, but of course it was all an illusion. There was another room that if you entered at one door you looked like a giant and if you entered at the other you looked like a hobbit. It was most fun if two people stood at each doorway and then crossed the room and you could see them growing or shrinking at they went.

I was really looking forward to the maze, because I have never been in one and I have always wanted to do one. The fates were against me though, because a) it was VERY hot b) they didn't provide a map c) they had scary stairs. After a while running up and down the scary stairs, the Monster and I decided to call it quits. We found two of the four towers. I think if it had been cooler we might have continued. I think I am a better armchair puzzler. I am more at home in virtual reality.

Fox's Glacier Mints

left Franz Josef today. The staff in the hotel we were staying in laughed at our complaints about the room they gave us (gaps in the bathroom door, funny smell in the room, damp marks on the ceiling) which wasn't very good. it rained today, the first time that it has been really wet, but I suppose we are in the middle of a rain forest. Stopped in Fox Glacier. It is very different to Franz Josef. You can see it stretching down from the misty peaks of the snow clad mountains to the barren valley below. They were doing some construction work to widen the causeway to the car park and the diggers kept on making this booming noise, like a rock slide, it was eerie. The glaciers are awesome sights. They seem to belong to middle earth or another age. The Monster and i forgo walking to the ice front of Fox glacier because neither of us were wearing our tramping clothing, and it was very wet, but we did get to wear our rain jackets for the first time! Had a 4/5 hour drive to Lake Wanaka, across more mountains and one lane bridges and endless bending roads. I have got much better at cornering now, and know how to plan my trajectory to swing the car fast around the switchback curves coming down the mountain! Wanaka is lovely, on a very large lake with the snowy mountains in the background and hills in the foreground. We made a real find with the accommodation. It is a apartment block owned as holiday homes and rented out when the owners aren't using them. We have a proper living, dining and kitchen area, a nice bathroom and a bed room each. We also have a balcony with views of the mountains and lake. It is only about 5 mins walk from the centre of town. We have our own parking space and the building manager provides a wide selection of DVDs to borrow. i think we will stay here a couple of days. It will be nice to spread out. We also have our own washing machine and dryer!