It's been great fun, it's been a blast,
But now our time has come at last.
There's clearly nothing left to do,
But say goodbye to all of you.
We've seen a lot, there is no doubt,
We've borne all weather, rain and drought.
When cloud did threaten to hide our view,
We drove still further to pastures new.
Cars and boats and plane we took,
O'er glacier, lake and mountain brook.
We've seen sheep and gull, cow and deer,
Albatross and whale, some quite near.
We've eaten much, drunk more too,
And now we have to say to you:
We thank you from the heart of our bottom
For all your comments, witty or rotten.
And so it is our firm intention
To organise a blog convention.
To the Salmon Leap we shall go
On Friday night, at six or so,
Where we will buy a round or two
So we can bore the pants off you!
Sunday, 11 March 2007
. . . . and Caves (and Glow Worms)
So, where to spend that last part of the tour? If we discounted the far north (and my knee was very definitely in favour of that) it really boiled down to three nights in Auckland or three nights in Hamilton. We decided on the latter because a) Auckland would very probably involve a lot of drinking and hence be a tad expensive, b) we can go and visit a big city any time, and c) there was one place we wanted to visit in the North Island and hadn't and, if we stayed in Auckland, we wouldn't.
So it was back down the road to Hamilton and the Waitomo Caves. Hamilton itself is nearly a big city though not as big as Christchurch. It actually has three main streets. And lots of bars and restaurants. Hmm, scratch the logic of reason 'a' then. We did the Cave tour yesterday (Sunday). Had a little trouble getting out of an otherwise dead town as the police sealed off all the escape routes (we did see thousands of motor bikes in the distance so it was either a Hells Angels invasion or a planned bikers convention). The caves were as you would expect, full of bleeding rocks. The glow worms were more fun, especially if you believed our tour guide. For all you budding biologists out there, the glow in the tail of the worm is caused by the fact the worms have no anus. They do eat mosquitoes but get rid of the waste by burning it off with some sort of bio-
pyro chemicals. So the glow is shit, then. More disgusting is the fact that they cover themselves in snot. most of which hangs down from the ceiling to catch the mozzies. Yum! Even more interesting is when they pupate they become a sort of pseudo mozzie themselves but they don't live very long because they have no mouths (or anuses - did I mention that?) but they can mate, and do, for about three days. Then they (if they're male) die or, (if they're female) lay hundreds of eggs and then die. But wait, the fun's not over yet! The little worms do have mouths but have nothing to eat but each other. The survivors (about 10 out of all of 'em) presumably mutate into the pretty little lights we paid so much good money to see. Its life, Jim, but not as we know it! I was constantly hoping that the damp drips on my clothes in the dark were water from the stalactites . . .
So here we are on our last day in New Zealand at the end of our travails. Think we'll find a bar and think about this . . .
So it was back down the road to Hamilton and the Waitomo Caves. Hamilton itself is nearly a big city though not as big as Christchurch. It actually has three main streets. And lots of bars and restaurants. Hmm, scratch the logic of reason 'a' then. We did the Cave tour yesterday (Sunday). Had a little trouble getting out of an otherwise dead town as the police sealed off all the escape routes (we did see thousands of motor bikes in the distance so it was either a Hells Angels invasion or a planned bikers convention). The caves were as you would expect, full of bleeding rocks. The glow worms were more fun, especially if you believed our tour guide. For all you budding biologists out there, the glow in the tail of the worm is caused by the fact the worms have no anus. They do eat mosquitoes but get rid of the waste by burning it off with some sort of bio-
pyro chemicals. So the glow is shit, then. More disgusting is the fact that they cover themselves in snot. most of which hangs down from the ceiling to catch the mozzies. Yum! Even more interesting is when they pupate they become a sort of pseudo mozzie themselves but they don't live very long because they have no mouths (or anuses - did I mention that?) but they can mate, and do, for about three days. Then they (if they're male) die or, (if they're female) lay hundreds of eggs and then die. But wait, the fun's not over yet! The little worms do have mouths but have nothing to eat but each other. The survivors (about 10 out of all of 'em) presumably mutate into the pretty little lights we paid so much good money to see. Its life, Jim, but not as we know it! I was constantly hoping that the damp drips on my clothes in the dark were water from the stalactites . . .So here we are on our last day in New Zealand at the end of our travails. Think we'll find a bar and think about this . . .
Of Coves . . . .
Time moves on and the end is nigh! We have been getting to the point where we weren't sure how to finish this tour off. The last few days were supposed to be in Auckland and visiting Sandy and Rich but we missed them by the last week. So,what to do? I wasn't keen on driving to a different motel each day right up to the time of the flight so it was a case of choosing two locations to bed down at and explore from there. We reluctantly gave up on the far north and the Bay of Islands (and the mythical Morepork owl) in favour of three nights in the Coromandel peninsular.
We stayed at Whitianga (pronounced, it would seem, as "Fitianga" by the locals), another one-
street town center with a smattering of bars and restaurants. Our favourite was the Fire Place, a restaurant that looked a bit "noveau cuisine" but produced a mean Red Thai Curry and probably the best fillet steak I had on holiday. From there we toured the surrounding countryside in search of the Perfect Bay. The first day we attacked Hot Water Beach (the tide was in so we didn't dig a hole in the sand but Linda nearly stepped on a dead seagull -- I think she's working down the food chain). Then, we visited the surfers beach (the light on the waves was brilliant -- bright silver turning into black walls of water) Next, a drive round to Hahei (a sedate sandy beach with a panoramic view of green water, fleets of kayaks and dotted with islands). Following that, views of Cathedral Cove 
(a choice of a 45 minute walk down a steep dirt track-- and presumably back up so we declined that particular adventure). Finally, Cooks Bay, which took us to a mere 300 feet from Whitianga but we were stopped by a river with the only means of crossing a tiny passenger (not car) ferry. So we had to follow our footsteps all the 50 klicks way back the long way.
We stayed at Whitianga (pronounced, it would seem, as "Fitianga" by the locals), another one-
street town center with a smattering of bars and restaurants. Our favourite was the Fire Place, a restaurant that looked a bit "noveau cuisine" but produced a mean Red Thai Curry and probably the best fillet steak I had on holiday. From there we toured the surrounding countryside in search of the Perfect Bay. The first day we attacked Hot Water Beach (the tide was in so we didn't dig a hole in the sand but Linda nearly stepped on a dead seagull -- I think she's working down the food chain). Then, we visited the surfers beach (the light on the waves was brilliant -- bright silver turning into black walls of water) Next, a drive round to Hahei (a sedate sandy beach with a panoramic view of green water, fleets of kayaks and dotted with islands). Following that, views of Cathedral Cove 
(a choice of a 45 minute walk down a steep dirt track-- and presumably back up so we declined that particular adventure). Finally, Cooks Bay, which took us to a mere 300 feet from Whitianga but we were stopped by a river with the only means of crossing a tiny passenger (not car) ferry. So we had to follow our footsteps all the 50 klicks way back the long way.The second day was not so successful. It started off well, breakfast at a charming little place called Kuaotunu that had a fabulous tree by a stream flowing into the deep blue sea (click, click, click). Our search for the Perfect Bay took us on a loop road north of Whitianga but there the roads ended. Should have looked at the map a bit more before planning that one. Cue five hours on a gravelly, twisty, vertical loop that saw precious little but gave me RSI of the right arm and a swollen right knee. I suppose that, after 4,000 kms/2,500 miles, the driving was going to take its toll sooner or later. (Linda wants it made known that she kept offering to drive so there's no sympathy there.)
Friday, 9 March 2007
Volcanos
As prophesied by Margaret, the environment was about to get a lot smellier. We had a little taster just outside Taupo at a little walkway park called "Craters of the Moon". Silly name really as the moon proper is geologically inert whereas this region of planet Earth most definitely isn't. Between the ever-present steam from the the eponymous craters, the sun and a ground temperature that was suspiciously higher than normal, this was a warm and uncomfortable 45 minute walk.
As we left Taupo we stayed with the theme. First stop was a "Thermal Wonderland" called Wai-O-Tapu, a volcanic disneyland some 18 sq. km. in area covered in collapsed craters, cold and boiling pools of mud, water and steaming fumaroles. The streams from here flow into the previously mentioned Waikato River which is fine until one examines the amount of Sulphur, Iron Oxide, Silica, Manganese, Chlorine and Antimony that is also introduced by way of the still bubbling volcanic activity. The official brochure rather understates it somewhat by saying "which account for no fish life in the stream". There were further clues as we walked round: one of the pools at the bottom of a crater was a bright lime green (and probably glowed in the dark). Other clues included bright yellows, oranges and reds and the most devilish of smells.Onward, then, to Rotorua, having satisfied our geological urges (tell you the truth, I was feeling a bit queasy -- probably a bout of antimony poisoning). This is probably heresy, but we found the famed Rotorua rather unattractive. The approach boulevard was a wall-to-wall dual carriageway of motels with nary a bar to break the monotony. The town centre itself was huge and sprawling but strangely soulless. Maybe you had to stay there for a 24 hour bender to fully appreciate the amenities. We decided to travel onward.
North, then, to stop at Papamoa Beach (another excellent example of a 4 or a 5 or a 6 kilometer sandy beach with only 6 people on it) and thence to Tauranga where we had pre-booked that night's accommodation. We liked that place; a charming, precinct shopping centre next to a plethora of bars and cafes on the waterside. The evening's entertainment was a short pub crawl in the setting sun and a very French-styled cook(burn)-your-own meat event on hot stones at your table.Wednesday, 7 March 2007
Yet More Thoughts .....
By popular request another instalment .....
Gardens in the middle of nowhere
This is a totally amazing phenomenon ! You are driving along literally in the middle of nowhere - there is no sign of civilisation - and suddenly there is a house, just on its own, with a garden that puts Chelsea Flower Show to shame. It's incredible. Beautifully manicured green lawns (cut with nail scissors, I suspect !), masses of flowers, shrubs, etc.
Winding up Thoughts on South Island
Really sorry to leave SI. It's laidback, charming, scenically stunning, the people are friendly ...... Sorry that we couldn't do more, but that would have needed months. Only did one winery - can you believe that !! Not that it matters - really happy with the Lindauer Brut !!
Differences between the North and South
Where to start !!
Gardens in the middle of nowhere
This is a totally amazing phenomenon ! You are driving along literally in the middle of nowhere - there is no sign of civilisation - and suddenly there is a house, just on its own, with a garden that puts Chelsea Flower Show to shame. It's incredible. Beautifully manicured green lawns (cut with nail scissors, I suspect !), masses of flowers, shrubs, etc.
Winding up Thoughts on South Island
Really sorry to leave SI. It's laidback, charming, scenically stunning, the people are friendly ...... Sorry that we couldn't do more, but that would have needed months. Only did one winery - can you believe that !! Not that it matters - really happy with the Lindauer Brut !!
Differences between the North and South
Where to start !!
- Police Cars - saw more of those driving for two hours in NI than we had seen for the whole of the 2 and a half weeks in SI. Also - wait for it - have seen one unmarked police car !!
- Driving - probably the reason why we see more police cars here in NI : the standard is appalling - it's much more aggressive, less polite and downright dangerous at times (I won't repeat here what Dave has called some of the drivers we've met in North Island !). From this sweeping condemnation, we do have to exempt commercial vehicles - they do seem to be far more thoughtful and careful.
- Traffic cones - don't think we saw one in SI, but there's loads here
- Nutter cyclists - only seen 1 so far and he doesn't really qualify because although he had the obligatory panniers on the bike, it was on the flat
- Fast food outlets - seem to be hundreds here in NI !! I seem to remember one KFC in SI, but they seem to be all over the place in NI and the number of big yellow M's we've see is phenomenal
- Only seen one washing machine so far here in NI, but it certainly is nice and modern and doesn't look as if it should be in a museum
- Seems more crowded in NI, but guess that's because the towns are often bigger and a lot closer together, less empty land than in SI.
- Having much more difficulty in pronouncing the names of towns in NI, they seem to go for the long Maori ones and we've got no idea whether we're actually saying them correctly !!
- Mount Ruapehu - not a difference really, but a real highlight of the whole trip. SI hasn't got that (we never managed to see Mt Cook !)
- Eating out seems much more diversified in NI - Thai, Indian, etc. Not saying that we didn't find the odd one in SI, but it was just the odd one.
- Why don't the sheep like NI ? Haven't seen nearly as many as SI. In fact, seen more traffic cones than sheep !
Lake Taupo
We bypassed Wellington on the basis that we could go to a big city anytime and ended up at a seaside town called Paraparaumu (for no other reason than you have to stay at a place with a name like that). From there we drove for the best part of five hours and around 350 klicks to the virtual centre of North Island and NZ'z largest lake, Lake Taupo. One memorable stop on the way was to see the stunning Mount Ruapehu which is not only an active volcano but blew up as recently as 1995 and ruined the 1996 ski season.For the budding geologists amongst you, Lake Taupo was created by a Big Bang 26,000 years 
ago the size of which is purported to compare Mt St Helens as a minor firecracker. The lake itself has a single outlet which also happens to be NZ's longest river, the Waikato. Cue a series of rapids and spills of which the most impressive is probably the Huka Falls. We spent much of the first and second days touring up and down the river stopping at the various lookouts and wearing out the batteries on our cameras.
ago the size of which is purported to compare Mt St Helens as a minor firecracker. The lake itself has a single outlet which also happens to be NZ's longest river, the Waikato. Cue a series of rapids and spills of which the most impressive is probably the Huka Falls. We spent much of the first and second days touring up and down the river stopping at the various lookouts and wearing out the batteries on our cameras. 
The third day was more of a chill out, the morning taken up with recovering from a huge Thai 
meal the night before and planning where the hell we were going to go next. Tempus very much now appears to be fugiting as far as our remaining days are concerned. For the afternoon, a peaceful cruise around the lake in the "Barbary", an ocean-going racing yacht once owned (it says here) by Errol Flynn.
meal the night before and planning where the hell we were going to go next. Tempus very much now appears to be fugiting as far as our remaining days are concerned. For the afternoon, a peaceful cruise around the lake in the "Barbary", an ocean-going racing yacht once owned (it says here) by Errol Flynn. 
Our last evening was supposed to be a pub crawl along the riverside looking for the best place to see the sun set (you have to try them all out, you know!). This actually turned out to be a bit of a surprise. Those of you who know me know I tend to escape from the horrors of reality (and that four letter word ending in "k") with a cold beer and and large Sci-fi book at my local, the famous Salmon Leap. Once upon a time, my favourite barmaid in said establishment was Mandy but she left. As it turned out, she went further than I thought but, as it also turns out, not quite far enough. So, who should grab hold of Linda as I was again making my way to another bar but said Mandy, and her husband John, and her parents Michael and Pauline. C'mon guys, you can't get any further away from the Salmon Leap and stay on the same planet! So there we are, in yet another bar, some 11,500 miles away from where we started. Do you think that anyone else in that bar has even heard of Totton?
Sunday, 4 March 2007
Across The Great Divide
We arrived at Picton the day after our encounters with the sperm whales, a town much underrated in the guide books, presumably because it is the home of the monolithic Interislander car ferry terminal. Actually, the high street and port area are rather charming. The bay is surrounded by sweeping mountains and fronted by a well-kept grassy parkland and a tidy little pleasure craft marina containing a variety of tour barges, water taxis, speed boats, flying boats and the usual panopoly of personal yachts. We spent the first night here so I have to recount yet another Kiwi Timeslip moment that most of you will appreciate. We found out where all the old bikers go (if you accept Andy's conjecture that all the young bikers are doing foolish things in other countries at this time in their lives). They are all at a certain bar in Picton easily identifiable by the long hair, leather waistcoats, tattoos, bigger-than-life personalities and expansive gestures. The Timeslip that Ginge especially will love is the juke box: no Britpop, Hip-Hop, Rap, Boy Bands; just good 'ol 30-year-
old Rock. We had a few sundowners over a wealth of Floyd, Zeppelin, AC/DC, Purple, Skynyrd, . . . (you get the idea) tracks. You can imagine how we elderly British types fitted into the local tattooed clientele, sat in a corner of the beer garden reading our sci-fi books, heads nodding to the background noise. After far too many sundowners Linda suggested we get some food (presumably because I was developing some expansive gestures of my own) . . . Yeah Man!
The next day we said goodbye to South Island and our faithful car as they will not allow hired cars to cross the Islands (mostly for insurance and logistical reasons). But they made the whole operation simple and painless; the Avis station was alongside the ferry check in both sides of the channel. We merely took the bags out of the car and booked them on the boat, retrieving them and an identical car at the other end with a minimum of fuss and paperwork. The journey was three hours long, the first hour travelling past the various inlets and bays of Picton before hitting open sea and the last hour giving us a view of the approach to Wellington. All very civilised.
old Rock. We had a few sundowners over a wealth of Floyd, Zeppelin, AC/DC, Purple, Skynyrd, . . . (you get the idea) tracks. You can imagine how we elderly British types fitted into the local tattooed clientele, sat in a corner of the beer garden reading our sci-fi books, heads nodding to the background noise. After far too many sundowners Linda suggested we get some food (presumably because I was developing some expansive gestures of my own) . . . Yeah Man!The next day we said goodbye to South Island and our faithful car as they will not allow hired cars to cross the Islands (mostly for insurance and logistical reasons). But they made the whole operation simple and painless; the Avis station was alongside the ferry check in both sides of the channel. We merely took the bags out of the car and booked them on the boat, retrieving them and an identical car at the other end with a minimum of fuss and paperwork. The journey was three hours long, the first hour travelling past the various inlets and bays of Picton before hitting open sea and the last hour giving us a view of the approach to Wellington. All very civilised.
Friday, 2 March 2007
Of Cetaceans, pelagic avians, and sea-going mammals
The reason why Kaikoura is such an interesting place as far as maritime flora and fauna is concerned is that, after a few klicks out to sea, the Continental shelf drops off into an almighty Trench (about 5 kilometres wide and 1600 metres deep). Down there, the Antarctic currents collide with the Pacific pushing all manner of life forms (but not as we know it, Jim!) up to the surface attracting, in turn, all manner of life forms (more familiar) on the surface to feed on 'em. These currents also create some impressive swells, even in clear weather, keeping the Kaikoura paper sick bag and the homeopathic sea-sickness prevention industry in business (the latter obviously not out-doing the former as you may have guessed).
Our first trip was on a tiny boat (as you can see) courtesy of Albatross Encounters for the sole
reason of making Andy jealous. As every other tourist jumped on the dolphin watching boats, we thought we'd try something different: just as well as we were the only two passengers so we could run frantically backwards and forwards across the deck with a panoply of audio-visual equipment to our hearts' content. We've never seen an albatross before; they have truly huge and majestic wingspans the tips of which look as if they are millimetres above the swell of the ocean. Come feeding time (an unashamed touristy trick, I know) we were swamped with (wait for it Andy) Great Albatrosses, Mollyhawk Albatrosses, Petrels (Giant, Westland and White-chinned), Shearwaters (Huttons, Bullers and Sooty), Shags (Pied and Spotted) Terns (25 Black fronted but only 1 White fronted) Gulls (obviously) and Gannets. How about that for an ornithology round up? (OK, we asked Alastair to keep a log so we could show off). An amazing day, and we have hours of footage to threaten anyone who dares pop round for a cup of sugar this year.
reason of making Andy jealous. As every other tourist jumped on the dolphin watching boats, we thought we'd try something different: just as well as we were the only two passengers so we could run frantically backwards and forwards across the deck with a panoply of audio-visual equipment to our hearts' content. We've never seen an albatross before; they have truly huge and majestic wingspans the tips of which look as if they are millimetres above the swell of the ocean. Come feeding time (an unashamed touristy trick, I know) we were swamped with (wait for it Andy) Great Albatrosses, Mollyhawk Albatrosses, Petrels (Giant, Westland and White-chinned), Shearwaters (Huttons, Bullers and Sooty), Shags (Pied and Spotted) Terns (25 Black fronted but only 1 White fronted) Gulls (obviously) and Gannets. How about that for an ornithology round up? (OK, we asked Alastair to keep a log so we could show off). An amazing day, and we have hours of footage to threaten anyone who dares pop round for a cup of sugar this year.
Our second trip was the obligatory whale watching safari. Less frenetic that the bird life, we did track down three sperm whales using a high speed people carrier and the captain's hydrophones. Although we have watched humpbacks before, this is the first time we've seen sperms and the classic raising of the tail as the whale starts its next deep dive. Got two on video and even one on camera. As a bonus, on the way back to port, the boat caught up with a large pod of dusky dolphins. They were all over the bloody place, we didn't know where to focus the cameras next! Good fun, that trip, especially watching all those people who brought the "natural" sea-sickness preventatives in the gift shop only to be seen clutching the good old fashioned paper bags at the back of the boat. Tuesday, 27 February 2007
Onward to Kaikoura
Leaving yet another place we grew quite fond of, we set off for our second-biggest stop of this part of the holiday - Kaikoura (which, if you believe this, means "crayfish" in Maori - which, in turn, probably explains why they sell so much of it here at such high rates). As the seagull flies, it is s short trip, the main bulk of the road is 110 kilcks. Having said that, this piece of road winds and turns more than anything the west coast can offer. I swear I've changed gear more times on this stretch than all the others put together. Add to this my recent experiences with corners on the quad bikes and a rousing Bat Out Of Hell soundtrack on the car CD and its a wonder we even made it here without coming off the road. One more oddity: this is the only road we have encountered motorcyclists. Why is that? You would have thought that biking around KiwiLand would be irresistible.
We turned up at Kaikoura in the early afternoon, just having completed 2,000 kilometres while
arriving at merely 200 klicks north of where we started. We arrived on a bright sunny day having pre-booked at the Panorama Hotel, a place set at the foot of a miniature White Cliffs of Dover but overlooking the whole bay. The main street of fun (bars, restaurants and backpacker lodges, etc.) is on the other side of the bay, about 2 klicks walk. The hotel is a stone's throw from the water which looks and smells exactly like my boyhood experiences at the beaches in Cornwall. When the tide goes out, it reveals an expanse of flat cracked stone, complete with rock pools and seaweed. Especially seaweed! Walk to the 
water's edge as the tide returns and it is the Invasion of The Kelp Monsters all over again. I took quite a few pictures and videos (prepared to be amazed and awed . . .) of the kelp, especially the toytown-yellow coloured suckers they extrude to grip the sides of the rocks -- they ain't going away in a hurry. As the tide swirls the kelp around it looks spookily alive (and quite creepy). And, if you get bored with that, there are plenty of seals to look out for and a plethora of bird species to identify.
We turned up at Kaikoura in the early afternoon, just having completed 2,000 kilometres while
arriving at merely 200 klicks north of where we started. We arrived on a bright sunny day having pre-booked at the Panorama Hotel, a place set at the foot of a miniature White Cliffs of Dover but overlooking the whole bay. The main street of fun (bars, restaurants and backpacker lodges, etc.) is on the other side of the bay, about 2 klicks walk. The hotel is a stone's throw from the water which looks and smells exactly like my boyhood experiences at the beaches in Cornwall. When the tide goes out, it reveals an expanse of flat cracked stone, complete with rock pools and seaweed. Especially seaweed! Walk to the 
water's edge as the tide returns and it is the Invasion of The Kelp Monsters all over again. I took quite a few pictures and videos (prepared to be amazed and awed . . .) of the kelp, especially the toytown-yellow coloured suckers they extrude to grip the sides of the rocks -- they ain't going away in a hurry. As the tide swirls the kelp around it looks spookily alive (and quite creepy). And, if you get bored with that, there are plenty of seals to look out for and a plethora of bird species to identify. Just after the sun set the colours on the waters and rock pools changed to light blues and faint oranges. We walked a hundred meters to a nearby pub. It got darker, geese flew overhead and the moon and stars came out. It was at that point we could see that the moon was upside down and all the stars in the Orion constellation were not at their normally assigned places and we realised that we weren't in Kansas anymore, Toto. Certainly not Cornwall.
Monday, 26 February 2007
To Graymouth and Hanmer Springs
Our hotel of choice (i.e. it was the only one with vacancies) was just 8 klicks south of Graymouth in a little suburb called Paroa. The drive there was punctuated, as all the days this side of the island were, by thousands of creeks and one lane bridges. Each creek was named (e.g. Rough Creek, Black Creek, Crikey Creek, etc.) but for the most part were dry of water or rainfall. The bridges, however, were numbered (Bridge 1641 being one of my particular favourites). One could almost imagine a civil servant somewhere in NZ with a giant cardbox full of bridge numeric designations and locations around the country ("its Friday 22nd November: Bridge 274 needs checking on; subsistence at the usual rates").
Our Paroa hotel was on the western shore so our porch was facing the setting sun. Cue a couple of tinnies and a good book on the decking. Supper was a t-bone steak after which we trotted the 3 minutes past the grassy dunes to the beach proper to watch the sunset. The beach went on for kilometers in either direction, the spray from the surf making the extremities hazy. At low tide, the beach was covered in bleached, dry flotsam - trees presumably having made their way to the Kiwi shores from Australia's Queensland rain forests. The sunset was a perfect crimson orb sinking into the horizon painting all the dessicated branches and roots on the beach pink. Plenty of NABS pictures I'm afraid (that's Andy for "Not Another Bloody Sunset" picture).
Our Paroa hotel was on the western shore so our porch was facing the setting sun. Cue a couple of tinnies and a good book on the decking. Supper was a t-bone steak after which we trotted the 3 minutes past the grassy dunes to the beach proper to watch the sunset. The beach went on for kilometers in either direction, the spray from the surf making the extremities hazy. At low tide, the beach was covered in bleached, dry flotsam - trees presumably having made their way to the Kiwi shores from Australia's Queensland rain forests. The sunset was a perfect crimson orb sinking into the horizon painting all the dessicated branches and roots on the beach pink. Plenty of NABS pictures I'm afraid (that's Andy for "Not Another Bloody Sunset" picture).Onward to Hanmer Springs and back over the Alps via Lewis Pass to the Eastern side. We 
weren't too sure what to expect, just that we had to fill two nights before our pre-booked accommodation in Kaikora. As it turned out, Hanmer is quite a famous place as a "thermal reserve", catering for coach parties to the spas and spring pools. Even the motel room had a whirly bath. Of more interest to me was the quad bike adventures which I duly booked for the next day. Okay, those that know me know I've never ridden a motorbike before but I figured that four wheels should put the balance in my favour. To say that I was the only one who lost control at a bend and put both rider and bike into a very large bramble bush would be a scurrilous lie. We had a 10 year old in our party who did the very same thing (although his was just a normal hedge). It took a couple of my co-explorers to pull my bike out while I tried to stop the bleeding before our guide returned to see where we had gotten to. I did have the distinction of being the only one to get lost and ended up following the river on my own for a quarter of an hour. The guide was very laid back about it all, though.
weren't too sure what to expect, just that we had to fill two nights before our pre-booked accommodation in Kaikora. As it turned out, Hanmer is quite a famous place as a "thermal reserve", catering for coach parties to the spas and spring pools. Even the motel room had a whirly bath. Of more interest to me was the quad bike adventures which I duly booked for the next day. Okay, those that know me know I've never ridden a motorbike before but I figured that four wheels should put the balance in my favour. To say that I was the only one who lost control at a bend and put both rider and bike into a very large bramble bush would be a scurrilous lie. We had a 10 year old in our party who did the very same thing (although his was just a normal hedge). It took a couple of my co-explorers to pull my bike out while I tried to stop the bleeding before our guide returned to see where we had gotten to. I did have the distinction of being the only one to get lost and ended up following the river on my own for a quarter of an hour. The guide was very laid back about it all, though.
As Linda has already alluded to, the food was brilliant. Although there's a restaurant in the Rocks in Sidney that has the reputation for having the most outrageous pizza toppings in the world, New Zealand is probably the only place that one could expect to get a lamb and mint pizza, complete with lamb gravy and sweet potatoes floating on the surface. Seventh heaven! Our meal of the second night was just as good: Linda had prime cut of lamb and I had a three pork platter - pork fillet, pork ribs in sauce and a spicy pork faggot. Yum! Life just doesn't get any better than this.
Sunday, 25 February 2007
More Thoughts on .....
Weather
Been really lucky so far, only one un-sunny day - the day we drove from Haast to the Glaciers. Otherwise, it's been hot and sunny, although a bit windy at times. However, have discovered that sun and wind seems to be the best combination for keeping the flies at bay. They're a complete nuisance at times, although just for once it seems to be Dave they prefer to me ! We had the sea fog at Milford, which was a bit of a shame, but other things made up for it (see wildlife).
Accommodation
Have had the best shower room in the world ever ! It was our room in Haast. The floor was laid with a textured (if that's the right way to describe it) matt, non-slip large size tile and the floor sloped to the back LH corner. There was a shower curtain hung from a rail about 3 ft square (so lots of elbow room without the curtain clinging to you !) and a drain hole in middle of the dip. The shower itself was really powerful too. Absolute heaven ! The room itself was really nice too, with a queen size and two single beds, plus seating area, kitchen, etc - and of course the telly. We also had a balcony with seats looking towards the sea. All the accommodation - perhaps with the exception of the room in Fran Josef Glacier, has been really nice. The motel in Paroa had a lovely deck with table and chairs to sit in the sun - bit too hot really that day ! - and a short walk to the beach (huge and deserted) for a beautiful sunset.
Food and Drink
Still brilliant. Additions include a minted lamb pizza - sounds weird, but tasted delicious. There's also the bed of potatoes of some description - instead of a bed of salad or maybe rice, it's a bed of garlic mash or fries, etc. !
Roads
Now you might think there's nothing much to say about the roads - but you'd be VERY WRONG!
Firstly, the motels/hotels, etc, might be full, but the roads are empty - so where do all the people go ?
Secondly, they have this disconcerting tendency to disappear - literally. You're quite happily driving along towards the horizon that appears to be the end of the road when all of a sudden you're at the end of it because all of a sudden it's going downhill and you just can't see it. Add one of those wonderful yellow signs with 15 on it (reduce your speed to 16 kph - and I do mean kilometres !) and you have one very hairy moment. Scrap disconcerting for terrifying !
Thirdly, you have the nutter cyclists. Well, what else can you call someone who has just cycled up a road that you've driven up unable to get beyond 2nd gear because the gradient is so steep - I think nutter is the only appropriate description. And they haven't just cycled up on a bike - it's got panniers and rucksacks galore strapped to it (and sometimes the rider).
Fourthly, you're in the middle of nowhere and all of a sudden there's a big white arrow painted on the road in the direction you're going - WHY ?
Language
Doesn't seem so very different generally, but discovered one real oddment. "Good as gold"which always back home seems to refer to a person is used here in stead of "cool". Sounds weird to hear someone say "Good as gold" when you've said something like "OK, that's fine, we'll take the room " !!
Wildlife
Lots of dead wildlife on the roads, unfortunately. Not enough dead flies, unfortunately !! The trip to Milford was absolutely great for seeing bottlenose dolphins. I was on the upper deck of the boat and could see lots of them. A couple seemed to enjoy swimming round the boat and breaking the surface every now and again, really slowly and gracefully. One was at least 7-8 ft long. Also, saw a very tiny one too. Absolute heaven !! Seen lots of birds of prey whilst driving along too.
Timeslip
Some of this has been mentioned elsewhere, but the washing machine in Queenstown deserves its own mention, although it may only mean something to the ladies reading the blog. Used to all the programs on machines at home (the one in the Heritage at Christchurch was like those back home), the one in the Queenstown hotel should have been in a museum. There was a choice of two programs - Hot or Permapress (cool wash, I remembered that from my days in Canada, 30-odd years ago !). End of story. No time setting, that was it !!!!!
Been really lucky so far, only one un-sunny day - the day we drove from Haast to the Glaciers. Otherwise, it's been hot and sunny, although a bit windy at times. However, have discovered that sun and wind seems to be the best combination for keeping the flies at bay. They're a complete nuisance at times, although just for once it seems to be Dave they prefer to me ! We had the sea fog at Milford, which was a bit of a shame, but other things made up for it (see wildlife).
Accommodation
Have had the best shower room in the world ever ! It was our room in Haast. The floor was laid with a textured (if that's the right way to describe it) matt, non-slip large size tile and the floor sloped to the back LH corner. There was a shower curtain hung from a rail about 3 ft square (so lots of elbow room without the curtain clinging to you !) and a drain hole in middle of the dip. The shower itself was really powerful too. Absolute heaven ! The room itself was really nice too, with a queen size and two single beds, plus seating area, kitchen, etc - and of course the telly. We also had a balcony with seats looking towards the sea. All the accommodation - perhaps with the exception of the room in Fran Josef Glacier, has been really nice. The motel in Paroa had a lovely deck with table and chairs to sit in the sun - bit too hot really that day ! - and a short walk to the beach (huge and deserted) for a beautiful sunset.
Food and Drink
Still brilliant. Additions include a minted lamb pizza - sounds weird, but tasted delicious. There's also the bed of potatoes of some description - instead of a bed of salad or maybe rice, it's a bed of garlic mash or fries, etc. !
Roads
Now you might think there's nothing much to say about the roads - but you'd be VERY WRONG!
Firstly, the motels/hotels, etc, might be full, but the roads are empty - so where do all the people go ?
Secondly, they have this disconcerting tendency to disappear - literally. You're quite happily driving along towards the horizon that appears to be the end of the road when all of a sudden you're at the end of it because all of a sudden it's going downhill and you just can't see it. Add one of those wonderful yellow signs with 15 on it (reduce your speed to 16 kph - and I do mean kilometres !) and you have one very hairy moment. Scrap disconcerting for terrifying !
Thirdly, you have the nutter cyclists. Well, what else can you call someone who has just cycled up a road that you've driven up unable to get beyond 2nd gear because the gradient is so steep - I think nutter is the only appropriate description. And they haven't just cycled up on a bike - it's got panniers and rucksacks galore strapped to it (and sometimes the rider).
Fourthly, you're in the middle of nowhere and all of a sudden there's a big white arrow painted on the road in the direction you're going - WHY ?
Language
Doesn't seem so very different generally, but discovered one real oddment. "Good as gold"which always back home seems to refer to a person is used here in stead of "cool". Sounds weird to hear someone say "Good as gold" when you've said something like "OK, that's fine, we'll take the room " !!
Wildlife
Lots of dead wildlife on the roads, unfortunately. Not enough dead flies, unfortunately !! The trip to Milford was absolutely great for seeing bottlenose dolphins. I was on the upper deck of the boat and could see lots of them. A couple seemed to enjoy swimming round the boat and breaking the surface every now and again, really slowly and gracefully. One was at least 7-8 ft long. Also, saw a very tiny one too. Absolute heaven !! Seen lots of birds of prey whilst driving along too.
Timeslip
Some of this has been mentioned elsewhere, but the washing machine in Queenstown deserves its own mention, although it may only mean something to the ladies reading the blog. Used to all the programs on machines at home (the one in the Heritage at Christchurch was like those back home), the one in the Queenstown hotel should have been in a museum. There was a choice of two programs - Hot or Permapress (cool wash, I remembered that from my days in Canada, 30-odd years ago !). End of story. No time setting, that was it !!!!!
The Glaciers
Looking out from our bedroom window in the morning the clouds had completely surrounded the mountains behind us in Haast although it still was not raining (three weeks without rain - some sort of record for this part of the country). The landlady predicted rain for the next day or two, however. We set off for our pre-booked accommodation at Franz Joseph Glacier Township, dropping in on Fox's Glacier on the way for some brunch and a cost check on flights and helicopter rides. Fox's Glacier was a bit of a disappointment as not only were there no polar bears but no free mints either. We decided to wait and see what Franz was like.
It did start to drizzle by the end of the journey but that was the worst of it for our entire trip this side of South Island so I guess we were lucky. What was more limiting as far as the glaciers were concerned was the omnipresent cloud cover. We decided to wait until the morning before investing in any aerobatics but Franz Town itself was a lot of fun to stay in. Plenty of happy hours, bars and restaurants and a really neat Internet cafe made out of a converted school bus - straight out of a cyberpunk novel (for any of you who read that stuff).
As the weather improved the next day we drove up to the Franz glacier. Although this was one of Linda's "must do" visits to NZ the overall experience was, dare I say it, a little disappointing. It probably had a lot to do with:
a) the fact that, in the middle of the dry summer months, the glaciers are a little bit grubby; no pristine snowfall to coat the dirty 'ol rocks and mud dragged down by the slow moving ice and the tops were frequently covered in cloud,
b) we saw far more spectacular glaciers in Alaska when they were covered with loads of fresh snow that glinted in the indigo and ultra-violet in the low-slung Arctic sun (shows what spoiled brats we are!),
c) unlike most glaciers in the world, these are actually retreating. Three centuries ago, they were at least 4 klicks closer to the sea than they are now. You can see from the picture that the interface wall is now at the foot of the slope to the valley. In front of that is 4 or 5 klicks of rubble-strewn valley where the glacier used to be. Since it was still a nice day we risked life and limb to walk across the rocky valley to the interface wall.
Having just said that the glaciers were a tad disappointing you really have to see the sheer mass of ice looming down at you from this vantage to have your mind changed. We could see that local guides had cut steps into the wall to enable local tours to the interior (despite roped-off cordons warning of unstable ice moving at toward you at 1 metre a day). As this was already a two hour walk (something I didn't warn Linda about when I set off so I was in trubbs again), we declined not to go that extra mile. Also, because the clouds had settled over the top of the glacier again, we decided against investing in our planned helicopter trip to the summit, something our respective bank balances breathed a sigh of relief over.
A bit foot-weary, we set off to our next destination, Graymouth. As before, the roads were in good condition but extremely snaky. The one thing I am impressed with over here is the culture of Letting Vehicles Pass. Mobile homes, caravans, coaches, tractors, you name it, all pull over on straight roads and let the faster cars pass. Everyone is so damned civilised! As the journey was only about three hours, we punctuated it with scenic stops and allowed the local sandflies to attack me en masse. Three days on and the bites still itch.
It did start to drizzle by the end of the journey but that was the worst of it for our entire trip this side of South Island so I guess we were lucky. What was more limiting as far as the glaciers were concerned was the omnipresent cloud cover. We decided to wait until the morning before investing in any aerobatics but Franz Town itself was a lot of fun to stay in. Plenty of happy hours, bars and restaurants and a really neat Internet cafe made out of a converted school bus - straight out of a cyberpunk novel (for any of you who read that stuff).
As the weather improved the next day we drove up to the Franz glacier. Although this was one of Linda's "must do" visits to NZ the overall experience was, dare I say it, a little disappointing. It probably had a lot to do with:a) the fact that, in the middle of the dry summer months, the glaciers are a little bit grubby; no pristine snowfall to coat the dirty 'ol rocks and mud dragged down by the slow moving ice and the tops were frequently covered in cloud,
b) we saw far more spectacular glaciers in Alaska when they were covered with loads of fresh snow that glinted in the indigo and ultra-violet in the low-slung Arctic sun (shows what spoiled brats we are!),
c) unlike most glaciers in the world, these are actually retreating. Three centuries ago, they were at least 4 klicks closer to the sea than they are now. You can see from the picture that the interface wall is now at the foot of the slope to the valley. In front of that is 4 or 5 klicks of rubble-strewn valley where the glacier used to be. Since it was still a nice day we risked life and limb to walk across the rocky valley to the interface wall.
Having just said that the glaciers were a tad disappointing you really have to see the sheer mass of ice looming down at you from this vantage to have your mind changed. We could see that local guides had cut steps into the wall to enable local tours to the interior (despite roped-off cordons warning of unstable ice moving at toward you at 1 metre a day). As this was already a two hour walk (something I didn't warn Linda about when I set off so I was in trubbs again), we declined not to go that extra mile. Also, because the clouds had settled over the top of the glacier again, we decided against investing in our planned helicopter trip to the summit, something our respective bank balances breathed a sigh of relief over.
A bit foot-weary, we set off to our next destination, Graymouth. As before, the roads were in good condition but extremely snaky. The one thing I am impressed with over here is the culture of Letting Vehicles Pass. Mobile homes, caravans, coaches, tractors, you name it, all pull over on straight roads and let the faster cars pass. Everyone is so damned civilised! As the journey was only about three hours, we punctuated it with scenic stops and allowed the local sandflies to attack me en masse. Three days on and the bites still itch.
Saturday, 24 February 2007
On the road: North annd westwards
Reluctantly, we leave Queenstown and head up and across the Southern Alps to the Other Side. As we left, the weather man said that yesterday was the hottest day in the last two years and the second hottest since 1999 (33 degrees-ish). We drove north through Wanaka, weaving in and out of the roads beside Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea. I could ramble on about the scenery but you probably get the idea . . .As we cut through the Haast Pass (named after Julius Haast, a famous European geologist - I bet you didn't know that!) and made our way down to some serious greenery we saw our first clouds. Hmm, a change in climate perhaps . . . Not knowing how long this leg of the journey was to take, we pre-booked a motel in Haast Junction rather than try to drive straight to the glaciers in one hop. As it turned out, we got to Haast Junction by 2 in the afternoon and, as it looked as if our latest place of rest was more of a loose collection of settlements rather than a normal town, we decided to throw the cases in the room and drive on. Turn left at the Tasman Sea and straight on for 50 kms to Jacksons Bay. And I do mean straight on, and on, and on. To the right of us was supposed to be the ocean but we were surrounded by trees; it was like driving down a
never-ending veridian tunnel. Probably one of the most tedious journeys yet, if you don't count the eagle-like creature that flapped out in front of us from a roadside bush. There wasn't much to see at the end of the drive (some explorers arrived there in the 18th century, failed to build a jetty and left three years later). We took a 40 minute walk through a trail in the rain forest to a cove where there weren't any breeding penguins. I let Linda drive back.
Thursday, 22 February 2007
Queenstown, Day 3
Damn, we love this place! Having had a couple of intense days already we decided to chill out a bit today. Linda caught up with some washing in the hotel's antiquated washing machines (she says there were only two settings - as there were in such models 30 years ago; I nodded sagely as if I knew what she was talking about) and I went into town to catch up on the last load of blog posts. At 
Margaret's suggestion we drove over to Arrowtown in the afternoon: a quaint one-street town in the Colorado frontier vein selling a variety of nick-knacks for the tourists. I'll cough to this now: I fell in love with a set of wind chimes so there went another $100 on an impulse buy. I shall be demonstrating my newly acquired tubular bells at forthcoming BBQs. While I'm on the subject of shops, this is a good opportunity to mention the Kiwi Timeslip, a phenomena oft repeated on our journeys but not mentioned in the blog 'till now. The trigger was a sweet shop in Arrowtown. In the window were all the giant kilner jars of boiled sweets that so relived me of my pocket money when I was a wee lad ("2 oz of pear drops, please, guv'nor") together with those sticks of banana rock and flying saucer sherbets (anyone remember those?). Other examples of the Kiwi Timeslip occur whilst driving; endless replays of 60's and 70's rock tracks (I even heard an old Split Enz track the other day - I used to own the vinyl album). All the jokes we used to hear about Kiwi hot news still exists (" today we have a report of a lost kitten", etc.). Anyway, I digress; from Arrowtown Main Street we did a Cultural Thing and had a tour of the old Chinese village where the immigrants arrived to search for gold.
I suppose we should have gone into town and painted it red (or, since we are still living in the 60s, a technicolour rainbow). However, the Coronet Alpine hotel has a very nice outside bar and an extremely pleasant and hard working bar maid. It was far easier to watch the constantly changing shadows on the face of the nearest mountain while the sun set behind it. By then it was too late to stir ourselves . . .
Margaret's suggestion we drove over to Arrowtown in the afternoon: a quaint one-street town in the Colorado frontier vein selling a variety of nick-knacks for the tourists. I'll cough to this now: I fell in love with a set of wind chimes so there went another $100 on an impulse buy. I shall be demonstrating my newly acquired tubular bells at forthcoming BBQs. While I'm on the subject of shops, this is a good opportunity to mention the Kiwi Timeslip, a phenomena oft repeated on our journeys but not mentioned in the blog 'till now. The trigger was a sweet shop in Arrowtown. In the window were all the giant kilner jars of boiled sweets that so relived me of my pocket money when I was a wee lad ("2 oz of pear drops, please, guv'nor") together with those sticks of banana rock and flying saucer sherbets (anyone remember those?). Other examples of the Kiwi Timeslip occur whilst driving; endless replays of 60's and 70's rock tracks (I even heard an old Split Enz track the other day - I used to own the vinyl album). All the jokes we used to hear about Kiwi hot news still exists (" today we have a report of a lost kitten", etc.). Anyway, I digress; from Arrowtown Main Street we did a Cultural Thing and had a tour of the old Chinese village where the immigrants arrived to search for gold.I suppose we should have gone into town and painted it red (or, since we are still living in the 60s, a technicolour rainbow). However, the Coronet Alpine hotel has a very nice outside bar and an extremely pleasant and hard working bar maid. It was far easier to watch the constantly changing shadows on the face of the nearest mountain while the sun set behind it. By then it was too late to stir ourselves . . .
Tuesday, 20 February 2007
Thoughts about .......
Royal Thai Airways
Legroom excellent - even for Dave !
Cabin Crew - bit disappointing on both legs except for 1 steward. They just weren't friendly or charming - could have been BA !!
Food - Thai options excellent, non-Thai mediocre (should expect that I suppose !)
Entertainment system - we had the old fashioned version on leg 1 to Bangkok, which I didn't use but which Dave moaned about until it started and he then confessed that the sound and picture (large screen on the bulkhead) were both excellent. Unfortunately the choice of films wasn't stunning ! I didn't use it, but if I'd wanted to watch, my vision was impaired as I was in the middle of the LH three. Dave was in the aisle seat and was OK. Second leg to Auckland we were in a 2-4-2 formation with the updated entertainment system, ie screen in the back of the seat, with access to all sorts of things - I found the games section and the trivial pursuit kept me happy for hours !!
Kiwis
Really friendly and helpful - can't think of one bad example. Happy to answer questions, provide advice, suggest things to do, places to visit, etc. One of the nicest aspects of this holiday - to be dealing with people who seem to find life enjoyable. Do sometimes find the accents a bit difficult to understand, though.
Food and Drink
Cheap, cheap, cheap; superb, superb, superb !! Just like their cousins over the Tasman, they believe in glasses of bubbles - what bliss ! And even if they don't do glasses, they have 200ml bottles of Lindauer sparkling, which give a couple of glasses - fine by me. We've worked out that the cost of it is about half of what we would pay at home - that's where we could get "it" at home. One of the things I particularly like is that even the garnishings you get with the meal (lettuce, toms, cucumber, onions, etc) are all fresh and don't look as if they've been sat around all week, like back home. Had some brilliant fish and salads.
Scenery
As already stated elsewhere in the blog, you could go on forever about it and it would still be an inadequate description. Miles of empty beaches around the Catlins (real chill-out and R&R land), mountains, lakes - it's got it all. I can understand why Peter Jackson filmed LOTR's here. Had a few Tolkien moments - even seen some of the places where filming took place.
Accommodation
Apart from the problem of finding somewhere (see elsewhere !!), we've had quite a variety so far. The Heritage was luxurious and worth it for the first couple of nights, just to get over the flight and sort ourselves out. The rest has ranged between $80 and $130 - our current lodging in Queenstown. That translates into roughly GBP43 and for that princely sum we have a very large room with two double beds, the usual cupboards, etc, mini bar, tv, ensuite. The hotel also has a pool, pool terrace, bar, restaurant, ten-pin bowling alley, gaming room, internet cafe (but lot more expensive that where we are now !) - tell me where you'd get that in England for GBP43, together with friendly service !!
Stressful Moments
1. First couple of hours in the car - if you've ever been in the car with Dave and I when we don't know what we're doing you'll know what I mean !
2. Realising that we couldn't just drive as we like and easily find somewhere for the night.
3. Driving round and round Dunedin, trying to find Otago Peninsular - it was unbelievable.
4. Landing and take-off in Milford Sound - it was so windy, take-off was sideways !! Having said that, the flights there and back were absolutely brilliant and wouldn't have missed it for the world.
5. Nearly falling over a dying seal on Morekai Boulder Beach - not at all funny and very upsetting.
Legroom excellent - even for Dave !
Cabin Crew - bit disappointing on both legs except for 1 steward. They just weren't friendly or charming - could have been BA !!
Food - Thai options excellent, non-Thai mediocre (should expect that I suppose !)
Entertainment system - we had the old fashioned version on leg 1 to Bangkok, which I didn't use but which Dave moaned about until it started and he then confessed that the sound and picture (large screen on the bulkhead) were both excellent. Unfortunately the choice of films wasn't stunning ! I didn't use it, but if I'd wanted to watch, my vision was impaired as I was in the middle of the LH three. Dave was in the aisle seat and was OK. Second leg to Auckland we were in a 2-4-2 formation with the updated entertainment system, ie screen in the back of the seat, with access to all sorts of things - I found the games section and the trivial pursuit kept me happy for hours !!
Kiwis
Really friendly and helpful - can't think of one bad example. Happy to answer questions, provide advice, suggest things to do, places to visit, etc. One of the nicest aspects of this holiday - to be dealing with people who seem to find life enjoyable. Do sometimes find the accents a bit difficult to understand, though.
Food and Drink
Cheap, cheap, cheap; superb, superb, superb !! Just like their cousins over the Tasman, they believe in glasses of bubbles - what bliss ! And even if they don't do glasses, they have 200ml bottles of Lindauer sparkling, which give a couple of glasses - fine by me. We've worked out that the cost of it is about half of what we would pay at home - that's where we could get "it" at home. One of the things I particularly like is that even the garnishings you get with the meal (lettuce, toms, cucumber, onions, etc) are all fresh and don't look as if they've been sat around all week, like back home. Had some brilliant fish and salads.
Scenery
As already stated elsewhere in the blog, you could go on forever about it and it would still be an inadequate description. Miles of empty beaches around the Catlins (real chill-out and R&R land), mountains, lakes - it's got it all. I can understand why Peter Jackson filmed LOTR's here. Had a few Tolkien moments - even seen some of the places where filming took place.
Accommodation
Apart from the problem of finding somewhere (see elsewhere !!), we've had quite a variety so far. The Heritage was luxurious and worth it for the first couple of nights, just to get over the flight and sort ourselves out. The rest has ranged between $80 and $130 - our current lodging in Queenstown. That translates into roughly GBP43 and for that princely sum we have a very large room with two double beds, the usual cupboards, etc, mini bar, tv, ensuite. The hotel also has a pool, pool terrace, bar, restaurant, ten-pin bowling alley, gaming room, internet cafe (but lot more expensive that where we are now !) - tell me where you'd get that in England for GBP43, together with friendly service !!
Stressful Moments
1. First couple of hours in the car - if you've ever been in the car with Dave and I when we don't know what we're doing you'll know what I mean !
2. Realising that we couldn't just drive as we like and easily find somewhere for the night.
3. Driving round and round Dunedin, trying to find Otago Peninsular - it was unbelievable.
4. Landing and take-off in Milford Sound - it was so windy, take-off was sideways !! Having said that, the flights there and back were absolutely brilliant and wouldn't have missed it for the world.
5. Nearly falling over a dying seal on Morekai Boulder Beach - not at all funny and very upsetting.
Milford Sound
Second day in Queenstown. We decided that this demands a special trip. Okay, for "special" read: "bloody stupidly expensive". Our reasoning is thus: at Invercargill (further west of the mythical Dunedin) you have a two-forked choice. Take the left hand, north-western fork and it takes you to the famous Milford Sound. The northern, right hand fork takes you to Queensland. Since we a) didn't make it to Invercargill and b) going to Milford Sound would mean doubling back on yourself to eventually get to Queenstown, we decided to forgo the wonders of Milford Sound. (There is a reason "c" that states that, in all probability, it will be pissing down with rain anyway.)
Enter the idea of a "special" trip. Why not just fly over to Milford? So we did in one of these 
things depicted to the right. Okay, let's not dwell too much on the cost. If it makes anyone feel any better, going by helicopter is twice the price but we really couldn't afford a second mortgage on the house at our age. Combine a noisy 8-seater tin can with rugged mountain peaks and an itsy bitsy bit of turbulence and you come up with more than enough adventure for a boy of my age. A tight spiral down in between the mountains brought us next door to the harbour and a nice stable, feet on the ground (but far windier) tour of the fjord by boat. Unlike most people's experience of Milford, the whole trip was conducted in bright sunshine, although we 
were surrounded by an unusual bout of sea fog once we reached open sea. At least, I assume it was open sea; I really couldn't see much apart from the school of bottle nosed dolphins who, presumably, were employed by the New Zealand coastguard to prevent us from crashing at the foot of the 1,600-odd metres of Mt. Mitre which tended to loom out at us whenever the fog lifted. The boat's captain rounded off the tour by encouraging everyone to come out on deck to see the basking sea lions (I don't think they were real although they twitched a bit on the rocks - Disney animatronics I suspect) and then manoeuvring his boat under a waterfall. How we laughed as we dried off.
things depicted to the right. Okay, let's not dwell too much on the cost. If it makes anyone feel any better, going by helicopter is twice the price but we really couldn't afford a second mortgage on the house at our age. Combine a noisy 8-seater tin can with rugged mountain peaks and an itsy bitsy bit of turbulence and you come up with more than enough adventure for a boy of my age. A tight spiral down in between the mountains brought us next door to the harbour and a nice stable, feet on the ground (but far windier) tour of the fjord by boat. Unlike most people's experience of Milford, the whole trip was conducted in bright sunshine, although we 
were surrounded by an unusual bout of sea fog once we reached open sea. At least, I assume it was open sea; I really couldn't see much apart from the school of bottle nosed dolphins who, presumably, were employed by the New Zealand coastguard to prevent us from crashing at the foot of the 1,600-odd metres of Mt. Mitre which tended to loom out at us whenever the fog lifted. The boat's captain rounded off the tour by encouraging everyone to come out on deck to see the basking sea lions (I don't think they were real although they twitched a bit on the rocks - Disney animatronics I suspect) and then manoeuvring his boat under a waterfall. How we laughed as we dried off.
The airplane trip back was via a different route over different mountains and glaciers but still had its moments. I did try videoing snapshots but the playback is a bit jerky to say the least. Predictably, having been returned to Queenstown main square at around 6 o'clock in the evening, we celebrated a great "special" trip and our new-found poverty over a few cold ones as the sun set over the Southern Alps. Ahhh!
Monday, 19 February 2007
Queenstown
This place is a Nutter's Paradise! There are people falling off, dropping from, gliding away, jogging along, flying above, hovering over, diving under any and all surfaces available in this 3-dimensional landscape every time you turn your head. The place is a vista of lakes, mountains and fiords and I fear our pictures and videos will not do it justice. We pre-booked three nights here but both agree that a week would be better.
The drive up was a sedate affair (Linda drove) passing fields of ubiksheep, orchards of plums, apricots, nectarines, apples, peaches, and you name it, rivers and streams and, higher up, lakes and bridges and rolling hills. We passed Alexandra and Cromwell, both friendly looking towns in the morning sun (but I bet every motel had a "no vacancy" sign). We arrived at Queenstown in good time in the afternoon and booked into our motel, about 6 kliks from the town centre. Adjacent to that is the Shotover River and, very conveniently, a power boat ride station.
Couldn't resist it. I left Linda on the bank holding the camcorder and, with around a dozen others, donned my lifejacket and went for a half hour tumble-and-spin up and down the Shotover (the name says more than I can put into words). I have to admit, while I was not holding on to the seat bar for grim life, the view of the canyon in the afternoon light was awesome but, at 70 miles an hour and sometimes inches away from the cliff, my attention was distracted somewhat. No pictures, I'm afraid, but Linda got some video of our triumphant return.
A more sedate ride up the gondola later that afternoon gave us a
view of Lake Wakatipu and Queenstown town. Breathtaking, really (I could wax lyrical for pages but it wouldn't add anything to the description of the experience so I'll spare you that - here's a picture instead). Done enough for one day; time for a beer on the hotel patio and a quick plate of ribs for supper. Think we're going to like this place . . .
The drive up was a sedate affair (Linda drove) passing fields of ubiksheep, orchards of plums, apricots, nectarines, apples, peaches, and you name it, rivers and streams and, higher up, lakes and bridges and rolling hills. We passed Alexandra and Cromwell, both friendly looking towns in the morning sun (but I bet every motel had a "no vacancy" sign). We arrived at Queenstown in good time in the afternoon and booked into our motel, about 6 kliks from the town centre. Adjacent to that is the Shotover River and, very conveniently, a power boat ride station.
Couldn't resist it. I left Linda on the bank holding the camcorder and, with around a dozen others, donned my lifejacket and went for a half hour tumble-and-spin up and down the Shotover (the name says more than I can put into words). I have to admit, while I was not holding on to the seat bar for grim life, the view of the canyon in the afternoon light was awesome but, at 70 miles an hour and sometimes inches away from the cliff, my attention was distracted somewhat. No pictures, I'm afraid, but Linda got some video of our triumphant return.A more sedate ride up the gondola later that afternoon gave us a
view of Lake Wakatipu and Queenstown town. Breathtaking, really (I could wax lyrical for pages but it wouldn't add anything to the description of the experience so I'll spare you that - here's a picture instead). Done enough for one day; time for a beer on the hotel patio and a quick plate of ribs for supper. Think we're going to like this place . . .
Sunday, 18 February 2007
Milton and the Catlins
After a serious talk last night about our holiday plans, we decided it was time to heed advice and phone ahead. Unfortunately, the mobile that Linda rented in Christchurch (we post it back to them when we finish with it in case you were wondering) couldn't get a signal in Waihola. So, off we drove again . . . until we reached Milton, about 10 minutes down the road. We booked into the first motel that had a vacancy (not the best of ideas as it turned out as it was the town's only Sports Bar, too, and it was a Saturday and the local boyos whoop it up until 4 in the Sunday morning - entertaining but noisy). At least Linda could get a signal there so, after quite a few phone calls, we were able to book hotels at Queenstown and Kaikoura for the two major parts of our tour of the South island.
Since we had the rest of the day to play with, we took off for the Catlins. There's only so much I can say about the ubiquitous New Zealand sheep - there's lots of fields containing lots of 'em. Mostly they stand still; sometimes they get it into their heads to form a line all all trot off to the next field (spooky that: either the farmer's dog is heavily cloaked or disguised as another sheep). Sometimes, just passing a field full of cows or (gasp) even deer is enough to wake the driver from catatonic slumber.
Seriously, the drive around the Catlin coast was beautiful. Since we'd had enough of long hauls yesterday we limited ourselves to a tour of Molyneux Bay and Nugget Point. On the way we passed through Balclutha. As it was a Sunday and there seemed to be a lot of activity on the bridge we stopped for a look. The locals were holding a waterside fair the highlight being a raft race down the Clutha River. The rafts had water cannons and having a good go at one another while being swamped by motor boats and pelted by eggs thrown from the bridge by their loved ones. Great fun!
Molyneax Bay was a stretch of empty sandy beaches reminiscent of South Cornwall back home. Especially because of the colonies of bladder-wrack kelp that appeared to be continually invading the shore. It was all so very Doctor Who-ish that I half expected the Silurians to rise up out of the water at any minute. The hike to the Nugget Point lighthouse was punctuated by the sounds of seals cavorting on the rocks below the causway amongst the swirling of the aforementioned ever-present seaweed in the tidal currents. Andy would love this place as there was also an abundance of birdlife and hides dotted about the cliffs.
Since we had the rest of the day to play with, we took off for the Catlins. There's only so much I can say about the ubiquitous New Zealand sheep - there's lots of fields containing lots of 'em. Mostly they stand still; sometimes they get it into their heads to form a line all all trot off to the next field (spooky that: either the farmer's dog is heavily cloaked or disguised as another sheep). Sometimes, just passing a field full of cows or (gasp) even deer is enough to wake the driver from catatonic slumber.
Seriously, the drive around the Catlin coast was beautiful. Since we'd had enough of long hauls yesterday we limited ourselves to a tour of Molyneux Bay and Nugget Point. On the way we passed through Balclutha. As it was a Sunday and there seemed to be a lot of activity on the bridge we stopped for a look. The locals were holding a waterside fair the highlight being a raft race down the Clutha River. The rafts had water cannons and having a good go at one another while being swamped by motor boats and pelted by eggs thrown from the bridge by their loved ones. Great fun!
Molyneax Bay was a stretch of empty sandy beaches reminiscent of South Cornwall back home. Especially because of the colonies of bladder-wrack kelp that appeared to be continually invading the shore. It was all so very Doctor Who-ish that I half expected the Silurians to rise up out of the water at any minute. The hike to the Nugget Point lighthouse was punctuated by the sounds of seals cavorting on the rocks below the causway amongst the swirling of the aforementioned ever-present seaweed in the tidal currents. Andy would love this place as there was also an abundance of birdlife and hides dotted about the cliffs.
Dunedin, NZ (well, very nearly)
Things didn't go quite according to plan on our first day on the road. Ignoring all popular advice, and ignoring the fact that it is New Zealand's busiest month of the year, we decided to hit the road and take our chances with accommodation as we turned up at various places. We headed South to Dunedin, a journey that promised around 350 kliks of travel. 600 kliks of travel later and still with nowhere to sleep that night, we realised that maybe we should have listened to that advice. Finally, we ended up at a one-shop, one-pub, one-gas station town (with an empty tank to boot) called Waihola, some distance past the mythical Dunedin. Luckily, a very friendly gas station owner and his wife had a rather luxurious ground floor B&B flat going free so we gratefully gave up the road at that point. Too late to buy dinner at the local pub, though . . . Early breakfast tomorrow, methinks.Still, the day wasn't all bad. Marvelously sunny drive down the Route 1 motorway, stopping at Oamaru for a late lunch (good job I pigged out on a large mixed grill, then) and a wander around the marvellously wide main streets of these Colorado-like towns. Before we got to Dunedin (or, rather, through it, around it, over it, and past it twice) we did stop off at one of the many sandy bays, this time to see the famous (no, really) boulders of Moeraki.
The boulders themselves look like the sacs of some fabled underwater beast that had congregated for a party down one end of the beach. Dunno what they were doing there but lots of people parked up to take the walk to photograph them. Linda nearly walked over a dead (or very nearly) seal thinking it was a boulder. That upset her somewhat and we very nearly spent the rest of the day looking for a vet . . .Arriving at Dunedin, we passed a University which, we found out later, was why all the motels and hotels were full. The biggest loss was our inability (despite all that driving) to find the Otaga peninsular which was the purpose of our trip in the first place (penguin sanctuary, harbour cruises and the like). No looking back; we go further west tomorrow.
PS: thanks for the comments guys.
Chrischurch, NZ
Well, we're here but after various chronological tricks we seem to have lost a day and a night's sleep. Mr C dropped us off at Bangkok airport at 1600 and we took off at 2000 hrs. Eleven hours, three films, a Thai fish curry and no sleep later we arrived at Auckland. Three hours and interminable queues at Immigration and the Ministry of Organic Bits and Pieces later (no Customs - must be a drying department across the world) and we're bound for Christchurch on an internal flight. Two hours later and we're in Christchurch. Subjectively, it should be midday - but its 6 o'clock in the evening. Just in time for evening drinkies, then. Three hours, three bars and a plate of ribs later we are like the walking dead. Time for bed, at last.
The next day, after an early start (or am I still six hours out?) we take stock over a plate of Eggs Benedict at a cafe right next to the quaint old tram lines. We appear to be in a big old hotel called the Heritage smack in the centre of Christchurch on Cathedral Square. It really has a cathedral in it, too. We paid $18 to see a Festival of Exotica later that morning. I was a bit disappointed as the church was full of flowers. I'd obviously misread the word "exotica" in my post-Bangkok, jet-lagged state but I suppose the church should have been a clue. The Heritage deserves a few words if only for what we paid for two nights there. The building is an old listed government building, the downstairs public toilets had six inch steel doors so I'm assuming they were once a Queens Warehouse or the like. Our room was upgraded: two bedrooms (chocolates on the pillows) and two floors, the lower floor with a fully equipped kitchen area and a washing machine in the lower bathroom for Linda to play with. Very nice indeed but probably not the cheapest accommodation we'll pay for this holiday.
Our middle day was mostly a scenic walk around Christchurch. Weather cloudy but warm. The town itself reminds me of Colorado more than Australia, as do the food portions. Lots of freshly painted restaurants with picket fences. We picked the car up in the afternoon and took it for a spin to the coast (Littleton and Cave Rock). Cue more beer in the evening and another early night. We're ready to roll . . .
The next day, after an early start (or am I still six hours out?) we take stock over a plate of Eggs Benedict at a cafe right next to the quaint old tram lines. We appear to be in a big old hotel called the Heritage smack in the centre of Christchurch on Cathedral Square. It really has a cathedral in it, too. We paid $18 to see a Festival of Exotica later that morning. I was a bit disappointed as the church was full of flowers. I'd obviously misread the word "exotica" in my post-Bangkok, jet-lagged state but I suppose the church should have been a clue. The Heritage deserves a few words if only for what we paid for two nights there. The building is an old listed government building, the downstairs public toilets had six inch steel doors so I'm assuming they were once a Queens Warehouse or the like. Our room was upgraded: two bedrooms (chocolates on the pillows) and two floors, the lower floor with a fully equipped kitchen area and a washing machine in the lower bathroom for Linda to play with. Very nice indeed but probably not the cheapest accommodation we'll pay for this holiday.Our middle day was mostly a scenic walk around Christchurch. Weather cloudy but warm. The town itself reminds me of Colorado more than Australia, as do the food portions. Lots of freshly painted restaurants with picket fences. We picked the car up in the afternoon and took it for a spin to the coast (Littleton and Cave Rock). Cue more beer in the evening and another early night. We're ready to roll . . .
Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Bangkok
I don't know if anyone will ever read this but, if you are and you intend to fly out from Heathrow Terminal 3 in the near future, be warned: the security queues are somewhat surreal. After an hour packed in like sardines to check in with Thai Airways we then joined an even more bizarre queue for airport security stretching all the way around the terminal as far as car park 3 before winding back on itself like a demented conga in slo-mo; a queue of confused people trying to join the proper security queue, weaving in and out of each other, up stairs and down corridors, all thinking, "why are we doing this?". We timed 60 minutes to do what we've always done; put our coats, bags and keys through the x-ray and step through the portal. Plenty of Blitz humour and mock-outrage in evidence during that hour as you might imagine.
Needless to say we made it to Bangkok 11 hours later, not too worse for wear, followed by a succession of sleep, food & drink routines for the next three days. Bangkok was as I remember it, hot and busy; every street a panopoly of food stalls, cafes, stairs, walkways, frenetic traffic, massage palours, high-rise shopping centres, incomprehensible advertising and perfectly-formed local inhabitants. The bars were as culturally interesting as expected as a few late nights ensued for me and Mr C. The Thai food was, to use Linda's oft-employed expression "to die for"; red curries, green curries, sweet and sour fish, hot and spicy soups, tempura prawns. etc. In short, all the spicy exotica you can imagine. In one food court you could even get English pie and chips or Greek kebabs alongside the Japanese, Vietnamese and Chinese stalls (no I didn't but the Chinese food was nothing like that dished up in Blighty).
Needless to say we made it to Bangkok 11 hours later, not too worse for wear, followed by a succession of sleep, food & drink routines for the next three days. Bangkok was as I remember it, hot and busy; every street a panopoly of food stalls, cafes, stairs, walkways, frenetic traffic, massage palours, high-rise shopping centres, incomprehensible advertising and perfectly-formed local inhabitants. The bars were as culturally interesting as expected as a few late nights ensued for me and Mr C. The Thai food was, to use Linda's oft-employed expression "to die for"; red curries, green curries, sweet and sour fish, hot and spicy soups, tempura prawns. etc. In short, all the spicy exotica you can imagine. In one food court you could even get English pie and chips or Greek kebabs alongside the Japanese, Vietnamese and Chinese stalls (no I didn't but the Chinese food was nothing like that dished up in Blighty).All in all, three days is not enough. You're just getting over the jet lag and getting your bearings when it's time to leave. I know it was only supposed to break up the 24 direct flight to NZ but the city sorts of sucks you in. In terms of sight seeing, we didn't even get as far as the Chao Praya river which was only a mile or so away (I suppose that's what comes to staying out to 2 and getting out of bed at 12!). Never mind. Auckland next. Perhaps we'll be more sensible . . .
Tuesday, 6 February 2007
Relief and Anicipation
Aaahh. Finally finished work. The weight has lifted. It can't be my problem as I will not be here. I can't deal with it; somebody else will have to. This must be what retirement feels like.
We fly Friday, leaving midday and arriving at 0600 hrs at Bangkok. The plan is to spend three nights in Thailand with our hosts M&C, thence to Auckland and a quick internal flight to Christchurch. Sounds good. Got even better when Mr C phoned me this morning from BKK to enquire whether the boys should leave the girls with a bottle of champers and have make a tour of the more "interesting" places. I haven't a clue what he means but I'm sure it will be very cultural.
Time to pack. Hmm. Weather. Let's see - 5 dgrees in Southampton, 24 degrees in Auckland and 34 in Bangkok. Shorts and T-shirts then. Book for the plane - Neal Stephenson "System of the World" - 1,000 pages. Should do for the 12 hour first leg. Sorted.
We fly Friday, leaving midday and arriving at 0600 hrs at Bangkok. The plan is to spend three nights in Thailand with our hosts M&C, thence to Auckland and a quick internal flight to Christchurch. Sounds good. Got even better when Mr C phoned me this morning from BKK to enquire whether the boys should leave the girls with a bottle of champers and have make a tour of the more "interesting" places. I haven't a clue what he means but I'm sure it will be very cultural.
Time to pack. Hmm. Weather. Let's see - 5 dgrees in Southampton, 24 degrees in Auckland and 34 in Bangkok. Shorts and T-shirts then. Book for the plane - Neal Stephenson "System of the World" - 1,000 pages. Should do for the 12 hour first leg. Sorted.
Monday, 29 January 2007
Introduction: Departure date minus 10 days
Okay guys, bear with me here; this is my first shot at blogging. Welcome to the 21st century - tomorrow I might even buy a mobile phone.The plan so far: stop working; fly to Bangkok, fly to Auckland; fly to Christchurch; drive to Auckland; fly to Singapore; fly to London; go back to work.
Oh yes, and we'll probably do some interesting stuff in between.
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