On our own in Christchurch

This is Saturday, March 29, 2014, 5 p.m.

We're still in Christchurch.  As I said yesterday, the bus tour is now over.  We think only seven of us from our group are still here in New Zealand.  John and I had no plans for today, but we did manage to both relax and have fun.  This morning, we walked a few blocks to a mall, and wandered around there for awhile--getting our "mall walk" in.  This afternoon, we found a bus that would take us to the central business district.  As Christchurch recovers from its 2011 earthquake, an entire area has developed in which businesses have opened their shops using shipping containers, instead of actual buildings.  That's where we went today.  There were lots of shoppers and diners there, wandering around the coffee shops, gift shops, and clothing shops, some of them two stories tall.  This is such a clever way to reopen a business quickly.

Near our motel, we had seen a Chinese restaurant.  That sounded very good to us, so we went there for an early dinner.  It was delicious, and a nice change from 19 days of mostly buffet meals.

We've spent lots of this pretty New Zealand money on this great trip.

Aotearoa (meaning Land of the Long, White Cloud) is the Maori word for New Zealand.

Last day of our bus tour. :-o

(I'm writing this on Friday, 3/28/14, at about 9:00 p.m.)

The weather was perfectly beautiful again today--warm and sunny and calm.  We spent the day making our way across the South Island, from Mount Cook near the west coast, to Christchurch on the east coast.  We had more lovely scenery--snowy mountain peaks; turquoise lakes; rolling, green hills.  What a perfect way to end our time of traveling together.

Saying goodbye to Riki

Beautiful Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo, with Mount Cook and Mount Tasman in the background

Our tour group  :-)

We've met 38 interesting, fun, funny people from New Zealand, Australia, England, Scotland, and the Netherlands.  This evening, we had our last dinner together as a group.  Tomorrow, some of the travelers begin flying to their homes; more will leave on Sunday; just a few of us are staying until Monday.  We're looking forward to going home; we'll arrive there just before midnight on Monday.

John and I realized something today.  On this trip, we've seen New Zealand's longest river, highest mountain, biggest city, only castle, biggest and oldest tree, largest lake, wettest region, most photographed building, the salmon capital, longest one- and two-lane bridges, only hanging staircase in the Southern Hemisphere, largest Scottish city in the world, tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere, third windiest city in the world, oldest Twin Screw Steamship in the Southern Hemisphere, most of NZ's 40 million sheep, and most of its one million farm-raised deer.

I was fairly prepared for the gorgeous scenery we'd be seeing in New Zealand.  But, I was surprised by how much I loved the Hobbit houses.  I was also surprised by how much we like Queenstown.  I loved learning about the Maori culture, and the wonderful Maori language and great Maori names for almost everything here.  We've been in New Zealand since March 9th; by the time we leave, we will have been here for 23 days.  We have travelled approximately 2765 miles; 1,084 miles on the North Island, and 1,680 miles on the South Island.

Interesting and beautiful drives from Te Anau to Dunedin; then, from Dunedin to Mt. Cook

(I'm writing and posting this on Thursday, 3/27, at about 8:30 p.m.)

I didn't have time to write a post yesterday, about our drive from Te Anau to Dunedin.  I'll just add a couple of notes now.

This is a blurry photo of an interesting thing.  In NZ, we saw hundreds of these perfectly manicured hedges.  They're sometimes 30 feet tall, and they've been pruned on all sides, and on the tops!

Pretty green field, pretty blue sky

Dunedin is known as the "Edinburgh of the South," meaning, of course, that it was founded by Scottish settlers.  We had some time to wander around the downtown area.  John and I chose not to join a tour of either the Danbury Chocolate factory or the Speights Brewery.  Shocking, I know.

This is the Dunedin train station, the most photographed building in New Zealand.

That's John, sitting on a bench in downtown Dunedin.

 In the evening, our diner began with a special bagpipe ceremony.

Today was purely sunny and warm, with clear, blue skies.  We had several interesting stops on our drive from Dunedin to Mt. Cook.  The first was New Zealand's only castle, Larnach Castle, built in 1871.  The owner called it "The Camp;" the rest of the country called it a castle.  It has a typical history--built by a rich man who had various kinds of bad things happen to him and his family; it went into disrepair; it was used as a school and by a religious order; someone finally rescued it; now it's repaired and refurnished.  Here's one very interesting thing about the castle.  In it is a hanging, spiral staircase.  The tour guide said it was the only one in the Southern Hemisphere.  She said she had heard that there was one in the Northern Hemisphere.  I said, "I've seen that one!  It's in the United States, in Santa Fe, New Mexico!"  I told her the mysterious story of the NM one.  (The nuns had no way to get to the choir loft; they prayed to St. Joseph; a stranger arrived, a carpenter, who built the amazing stairway, using no nails, and no wood from that area; he then disappeared.)

John, in front of Larnach Castle

Mossy stone wall at Larnach Castle

The second stop was Glenfalloch Restaurant, surrounded by lovely gardens and walking paths, where we had morning tea--which is something Americans should begin to have, by the way.  We spent an hour in a the city of Oamaru, which, for a time, was a very bustling, wealthy place.  Google it, if you have time.  When it was first settled, back in the late 1800's, it was ideal for farming because there were no trees there.  The problem was, because there were no trees, the settlers had to use something else to build all their homes and commercial buildings.  Fortunately for them, the area was loaded with limestone.  They used it for all their construction.  And, because there was lots of money in the city, the buildings have a stately, Roman style.  It's quite impressive, and is one-of-a-kind.

On we went, riding northwest, following the Waitaki River, and passing by some gorgeous, turquoise lakes--Lake Waitaki, Lake Aviemore, and Lake Benmore.  Along with the beautiful water, the terrain became mountainous, so we had some great scenery.

Beautiful Lake Benmore

John and I, with Lake Pukaki and Mount Cook in the background

 Our destination tonight was Mt. Cook, the tallest mountain in New Zealand, at 12,218 feet high.  It, and the peaks nearby, have glaciers on them,  which makes them even more impressive, of course.  We're staying at a hotel that overlooks the beautiful peaks.

Mount Cook, from our hotel

I mentioned earlier that our tour director for the South Island (that is, for the past nine days) is Riki.  He's Maori, and has told us many interesting stories from the Maori traditions.  He's also a wealth of information about New Zealand's history, geography, and culture.  He's efficient, kind, and funny.  Also, as it turns out, he's a great singer.  Last night and tonight, during dinner, he sang us a traditional Maori song.  What a treat for us!

Riki, our tour guide for the South Island.  (Nicolaas is on the right.)

Famous and beautiful Milford Sound

Today is Tuesday, March 25.  We rode two hours north of Te Anau to Milford Sound.  This area of many fiords is the one absolute must-see for any visitor to New Zealand.  During our drive, we had rain and more rain, and low clouds and wind.  Not a great day for a boat ride.  We had heard that seeing the fiords in the rain can be beautiful, because the rain creates more waterfalls.  Well, maybe, but I could sense the disappointment in everyone on our bus.  However--ta-da!--as good luck would have it, by the time we reached the boat docks, the blue sky and sunshine appeared.  That's what we really wanted, of course.  We boarded a big boat, and headed out into the fiords.  Holy cow, how beautiful our ride was!  The morning rain did, indeed, create extra waterfalls--we saw many of them, big and small.  Plus, we had the sun to light up the hills and mountain peaks and water.  John and I spent the hour and a half out on the top deck, so we could see everything around us on all sides, including dolphins and seals.  A picture is worth a thousand words, so here are a few to enjoy.

We loved the beautiful, breezy boat ride.

See the waterfalls?  The boat?  The rainbow?

 

Queenstown; then, drive to Te Anau

I'm posting this on Monday, 3/24, at about 4:30 p.m.  I'll combine Sunday and Monday in this one post, because my day was too full of fun yesterday to write anything.  Also, we are blessed with free and good internet at our motel, so I'll be able to write a little more than I have been.

Sunday:  Queenstown--wow!  What a beautiful and fun city it is, right on the edge of the gorgeous and very, very long Lake Wakatipu.  Initially, we had signed up for an optional excursion, which would have been a lot of fun--scenic drive, jetboat ride on a great river, and a nature walk.  But that would have taken six hours--the entire day, really--so we decided to cancel that, and, instead, spent this beautiful day in the city.  That was a very good decision.  First, we walked around the downtown area.  Queenstown is known as a big extreme sport and adventure activity destination.  Any activity you can imagine having to do with the sky, the water, or the land, is available in Queenstown.  Shop after shop after shop offers bungy jumping, jetboat rides, off-road canyon drives, kayaks, water skiing, etc., etc.  Naturally, it's a mecca for the young 'uns who are more daring than I am, and there were many young adults wandering around town.  We rode a long and steep gondola up to a high overlook, where there were amazing views over the city and the lake.  Also at the top of the hill, more activities were happening--paragliding, off-road bicycling, riding a luge, bungy jumping. I was fairly mesmerized by the views, and we spent a couple of hours up there, just looking around.

This is the breathtaking view from the Skyline, above Queenstown.

See the paraglider? 

John and I, from the Skyline, overlooking Lake Wakatipu

From our gondola, on the way down, I accidentally took this picture of a man beginning his bungy jump!

When we finally tore ourselves away from the hilltop, we rode the gondola back downhill.  Someone had told us about an interesting restaurant, so we went there for lunch.  The building is on Cow Lane, which, of course, used to be just that.  At the end of the lane (or, alley, actually), is a little stone building that was a cow milking barn in 1860.  It's now called The Cow, and that's where we ate.  It was a charming pub, and we ate a delicious pizza.  Even better, they had free wi-fi, so we had some Facetime with Joe while we were there.  :-)

John, enjoying his beer and lunch at The Cow

Back at the motel (overlooking the lake) we relaxed by the pool for awhile.  In the evening, our whole group had a really fun activity.  We boarded the T.S.S. Earnslaw, a 100-year old steamship, that has been on that lake for all that time.  In fact, it was launched the same year as the Titanic.  T.S.S. stands for Twin Screw Steamship.  Onboard, we could see down into the workings of the ship, where a couple of guys continuously stoked the fire with coal.  It was hot down there; what a hard job they have!  The ship uses one ton of coal per hour when it's at full speed.  It moved 150 of us across the lake to a cool, beautiful old farm called Walter Peak Station.  A wonderful buffet dinner was set up for us, and some men were on the front porch grilling pork, beef, chicken, lamb, and two kinds of fish.  It was a great meal in a lovely place.  Afterwards, we all gathered in a barn where we watched a demonstration of a sheepdog herding sheep, and then watched a young farmer shear a sheep.  Back across the lake we went, joining in with a sing-a-long as someone played a piano on the ship.

This is the 100-year-old TSS Earnslaw, which we rode across Lake Wakatipu this evening.

This is Walter Peak Station, where we had dinner this evening.

Altogether, sunny Sunday was a great day from start to finish.

Now, today is Monday, and we've been on the road for a few hours.  Our first stop this morning was in Arrowtown, an old gold-mining town.  It's a really attractive, small town, and there's a great museum there.  We then went to a popular bungy-jumping bridge.  One after another, young 'uns were diving off that bridge, straight down toward the rocky, turquoise Shotover River.  Yikes!  On we rode, south, past the Remarkable Mountains (great name, huh?), and then west to Te Anau.  That's where we're spending the night.  This is one of the gateways to Fiordland National Park, which we'll see tomorrow.  This evening, we attended an unusual activity.  New Zealand has several areas that have glowworm caves, and Te Anau is one of those places.  We traveled to the caves by boat, across huge Lake Te Anau.  The brochure says this: "Deep inside the caves,...you will be taken by a small boat, into a silent hidden grotto inhabited by thousands of glowworms, unique to New Zealand. In the subterranean darkness, they produce a glittering display that is nothing short of extraordinary." For some reason, this is always mentioned as a must-see activity in NZ, so we joined in.  Honestly, we were not that impressed. The cave was loud with rushing water, then silent, as we drifted along further into the complete darkness.  The glowworms do glow, but I think a picture or two of it would have satisfied us just as much as being there.

We couldn't take pictures, so I got this photo online.  I think our worms weren't glowing quite this much.  This photo is from travel.aol.co.uk.  Check out images on Google, for more photos.

More rugged and beautiful scenery

I mentioned yesterday that eleven members of our group were hoping to go on a glacier helicopter ride.  In fact, this morning's weather was perfectly beautiful, and they were able to fly.  They flew from Franz Josef glacier, near our hotel, to the nearby Fox Glacier, where they landed on the ice.  They all had a fabulous time.  The rest of us hopped on the bus and picked up the helicopter group at Fox Glacier, and then continued our tour.  We rode through more of the Southern Alps, saw some waterfalls, crossed many rivers, and saw three amazing, turquoise lake.  The first two were Lake  Waneka and Lake Hawea.  Holy cow, they are breathtaking.  For one thing, the color is astonishing.  For another thing, they are huge.  Lastly, there is nothing around them.  They're basically in the middle of nowhere, and have no homes around them.  The third beautiful lake we saw was Lake Wakatipu.  That's the lake that Queenstown sits on the edge of.  We're staying in a motel that looks out on the lake, and it is just as gorgeous and huge and turquoise as the other two lakes.  Queenstown is a pretty and popular city.  On this perfect Saturday, there were lots and lots of people wandering around the shops and at the edge of the lake.  I hope the pictures I took today capture the beauty of what we saw.

Crossing the Southern Alps

Our whole group boarded a train this morning in Christchurch.  The train, or, more correctly, the journey, is called the TranzAlpine, "renowned as one of the great train journeys of the world."  The route is through the Southern Alps that run nearly the entirely length of the South Island.  The views all around were of beautiful mountains and gorges.  Luckily, we were blessed by another sunny day. The track runs the width of the South Island, between Christchurch on the east and Greymouth on the west.  In the center is Arthur's Pass, and that's as far as we went by train.

Boarding the TranzAlpine

Views from the train window

The Southern Alps

Our bus was waiting for us there, to continue on to the west coast and south along the Tasman Sea, through towns with great Maori names--Otira, Kumara, Hokitika, and Whataroa.

We had a beautiful drive through the Southern Alps.

Our final destination today was a town called Franz Josef, which is famous for the glacier of the same name.  We caught a glimpse of it from a nature trail.  Eleven people in our group (but, not us) are going on a helicopter ride in the morning that will take them from this glacier to the nearby one called Fox Glacier.  Hopefully, the weather will be perfect, and they'll be able to see the ice close up.  Many of these people are from parts of the world where they see very little or no snow, so they're pretty excited.  This part of the west coast of the South Island is a rain forest, which gets lots and lots of rain every year, so we're keeping our fingers crossed.  It's pretty cool, by the way, to look out our hotel window and see fern trees and other tropical plants in the foreground, and a snow-capped mountain in the background.