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Happy New Year 2013 from New Zealand! |
Monday, December 31, 2012
Slice of Paradise
One of my favorite parts of this trip so far has been talking with New Zealanders about their country and their lives. It's a very different world down here at the bottom of the globe. And it takes a lot of money and effort to leave this island. We've met two different types of people so far - ones who have done an extraordinary amount of travel and those who have spent their entire lives on the island. Last night we had dinner with a native of Dunedin and his 7-year-old son. He was a fisherman and had taken his son on a camping vacation in Queenstown for New Year's. The furthest he had ever been from home is Sydney. What we learned is that he is fiercely patriotic - not just to New Zealand but to the South Island in particular. And also, for a small island, New Zealanders are still facing struggles with government, immigration and economics - and they have a heightened state of everything since life is slower and neighbors are up close and personal. We also learned that there is no place they'd rather be than here.
After yesterday's long trip, it was rough getting up this morning. We fought the alarm, but still managed to make it down to breakfast by 8. A note for future me, please remember that pesto goes really well with scrambled eggs.
Today's plan was to drive out to Glenorchy - a place that even New Zealanders call paradise. The road leading there is called NZ's most scenic road, and considering yesterdays' drive that says a lot. The sky was full of clouds but there was enough space for the sun to shine through, at least in the morning. The drive out of Queenstown was incredible. The road reminded us of Route 1 in California or the road north out of Vancouver to Whistler, B.C. It was smooth and serpentine along the shore of Lake Wakatipu. Everywhere you looked there was wide expanse of deep gem tone blue water and monstrous, towering mountains with snow capped peaks. And just to throw us off, the view was filled with plenty of palm trees.
It took only about 45 mins to get to Glenorchy. The trail we wanted to hike was down a long, gravel road which was limited to 4WD. We decided to give it a shot to see how far we could get into the canyon. The views were impressive. Big, towering, expansive, majestic, are all words that come to mind. We got about 3/4 of the way to the trail head until we were foiled by a large stream that took over the road, so we turned around and went back. Then we tried heading down another gravel road to hike the Mt. Ernslaw Burn Track. Unfortunately we were foiled again, this time, we couldn't locate the trailhead. But that was okay, driving down these canyon roads were worth every second. We stopped and took lots of pictures, with sheep and all.
Then we decided to head to the well-known and well-traveled Routeburn Track. It was the start of a 4-5 day hike with huts along the way (NZ has half a dozen or so of these multi-day tracks). When we got deep into the canyon to the trailhead, it was misting and raining, so we bundled up and headed out for our hike. It was a well-maintained trail, complete with three suspension bridges to cross. The trail meandered through wet forests and ferns, alongside a turquoise blue stream that started way up in the mountains from large waterfalls. Every break in the canopy above revealed towering peaks all around us. We hiked a roundtrip of a little more than 5 miles. We wished we could have traveled further, but we had to get on the road to get back into town for our New Year's Eve dinner.
By the time we got back into Queenstown, the place was alive with people. Cars were parked down every road leading into town. Families, young people were streaming in for the New Year's Eve festival. Music was blaring from houses, hotels, cars, bars. It was almost as if the city had it's own heartbeat.
We got dressed for our dinner. Meanwhile, the rain and wind that we encountered in Glenorchy was arriving into town. Our plan had been to take a water taxi to our dinner, but the lake was angry with white caps and so all water taxis were cancelled for the evening. We cabbed a few inlets over to the Wakatipu Grill at the Hilton for our fabulous New Year's Eve dinner. When we arrived, we were greeted with champagne, and escorted to our table in the open terrace on the lake, overlooking the mountains. Dinner may have been in our top five of all time. We started with fresh bread and goat cheese. Then we both had perfectly cooked sea scallops on a red pepper relish. The main course was melt-in-your-mouth New Zealand lamb with a yogurt sauce and roasted garlic. And to finish, Dave had Bavarian vanilla cream with strawberries and I had creme brulee with raspberries, a soft ginger cookie and cinnamon ice cream. Thank goodness the water taxis still weren't operating when we were finished, I'm not sure if they could have handled both of us with our full stomachs.
We were finished by 8:30 and it was still perfectly light out, however, the rain and wind had officially arrived. The cab brought us right to the door of our hotel - and instead of heading out into town, we changed into comfy clothes and opened up our balcony doors to let in the sounds of the crazy city, alive with music and parties. We're sitting here now, watching the sun go down and listening to the thumping of DJs and early fireworks echoing off buildings and mountainsides. The rain isn't stopping anyone tonight (except us, maybe). This city is rocking and swaying with people. Every few minutes screams and cheers erupt from somewhere in the hills, only slightly muffled by the steady rain. It's about an hour and a half before fireworks over the lake will ring in the new year. What a perfect way to close out a long and emotional 2012. Far away from life's worries, caught up in the wind, rain and music and enjoying each other's company. Happy New Year everyone. I wish you all a little slice of paradise, wherever that may be. We're off to enjoy ours. Cheers!
After yesterday's long trip, it was rough getting up this morning. We fought the alarm, but still managed to make it down to breakfast by 8. A note for future me, please remember that pesto goes really well with scrambled eggs.
Today's plan was to drive out to Glenorchy - a place that even New Zealanders call paradise. The road leading there is called NZ's most scenic road, and considering yesterdays' drive that says a lot. The sky was full of clouds but there was enough space for the sun to shine through, at least in the morning. The drive out of Queenstown was incredible. The road reminded us of Route 1 in California or the road north out of Vancouver to Whistler, B.C. It was smooth and serpentine along the shore of Lake Wakatipu. Everywhere you looked there was wide expanse of deep gem tone blue water and monstrous, towering mountains with snow capped peaks. And just to throw us off, the view was filled with plenty of palm trees.
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| The incredible drive to Glenorchy. |
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| Snow capped mountains on the way to Glenorchy. |
It took only about 45 mins to get to Glenorchy. The trail we wanted to hike was down a long, gravel road which was limited to 4WD. We decided to give it a shot to see how far we could get into the canyon. The views were impressive. Big, towering, expansive, majestic, are all words that come to mind. We got about 3/4 of the way to the trail head until we were foiled by a large stream that took over the road, so we turned around and went back. Then we tried heading down another gravel road to hike the Mt. Ernslaw Burn Track. Unfortunately we were foiled again, this time, we couldn't locate the trailhead. But that was okay, driving down these canyon roads were worth every second. We stopped and took lots of pictures, with sheep and all.
 |
| Foiled by a stream across the road. |
By the time we got back into Queenstown, the place was alive with people. Cars were parked down every road leading into town. Families, young people were streaming in for the New Year's Eve festival. Music was blaring from houses, hotels, cars, bars. It was almost as if the city had it's own heartbeat.
We got dressed for our dinner. Meanwhile, the rain and wind that we encountered in Glenorchy was arriving into town. Our plan had been to take a water taxi to our dinner, but the lake was angry with white caps and so all water taxis were cancelled for the evening. We cabbed a few inlets over to the Wakatipu Grill at the Hilton for our fabulous New Year's Eve dinner. When we arrived, we were greeted with champagne, and escorted to our table in the open terrace on the lake, overlooking the mountains. Dinner may have been in our top five of all time. We started with fresh bread and goat cheese. Then we both had perfectly cooked sea scallops on a red pepper relish. The main course was melt-in-your-mouth New Zealand lamb with a yogurt sauce and roasted garlic. And to finish, Dave had Bavarian vanilla cream with strawberries and I had creme brulee with raspberries, a soft ginger cookie and cinnamon ice cream. Thank goodness the water taxis still weren't operating when we were finished, I'm not sure if they could have handled both of us with our full stomachs.
We were finished by 8:30 and it was still perfectly light out, however, the rain and wind had officially arrived. The cab brought us right to the door of our hotel - and instead of heading out into town, we changed into comfy clothes and opened up our balcony doors to let in the sounds of the crazy city, alive with music and parties. We're sitting here now, watching the sun go down and listening to the thumping of DJs and early fireworks echoing off buildings and mountainsides. The rain isn't stopping anyone tonight (except us, maybe). This city is rocking and swaying with people. Every few minutes screams and cheers erupt from somewhere in the hills, only slightly muffled by the steady rain. It's about an hour and a half before fireworks over the lake will ring in the new year. What a perfect way to close out a long and emotional 2012. Far away from life's worries, caught up in the wind, rain and music and enjoying each other's company. Happy New Year everyone. I wish you all a little slice of paradise, wherever that may be. We're off to enjoy ours. Cheers!
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| Happy New Year from Dave and Nicole! |
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Rainbows After Rain
Today I was thankful that I was gifted a new rain jacket for
Christmas. Instead of a beautiful sunrise, this morning we were awoken at 6
a.m. by torrential rain and thick, soaking clouds in Queenstown. When the alarm
actually went off an hour later, the rain had passed and the clouds lifted, but
we managed to chase the weather all day.
The plan was a 6-hour road trip to Aoraki Mt Cook National Park to check out the eastern slopes of the Southern Alps and the glacial blue Pukaki Lake. It was an area of the country that wasn’t on our original itinerary. New Zealand, despite being small, is actually difficult to navigate. North to South is easy but East to West is foiled by the Southern Alps that run down the spine of the island. There are only two or three places that you can cut across from one side to the other. We had made the decision to drive up the West coast of the country on this trip, which cut out Mt. Cook, Central Otago and the famous glacial lakes. I thought it was a choice that we would have to make, but I agonized over it. Dave and I studied maps and went back and forth on our plan. We finally decided that this may be our one chance to see this place, so we opted to make a big out and back trip from Queenstown one day. It would be a lot of driving, but from everything we’ve read, it was beautiful country. Dave was game, so I was game.
We finished breakfast, stopped at a grocery store to grab some sandwiches for lunch and hit the road by 8:30 a.m. The nice thing about New Zealand in the summertime is that it stays light until well after 10 p.m, so the days are long and we can pack them full of activity. I’m typing this blog at 8:30 p.m. as we are on our way back to Queenstown and the sun is still high in the sky.
On the three-hour drive to Mt. Cook, we felt like we were chasing the morning clouds and rain all the way. But we were hopeful. Clouds kept breaking up in our rear view mirror and we were leaving blue skies behind us. Maybe we’d have a clear day by the time we got to the park. In the meantime, we were pretty socked in the entire drive. We could tell that the landscape around us was beautiful, but we couldn’t quite see all of it. The clouds did make it dramatic, but we weren’t able to appreciate the whole scale of what surrounded us. What we did see were rolling hills of gold and green with clouds slinking in and out of the valleys. And along the side of the road, thousands of pink, purple, white and yellow lupines traced through the seams in the hills like creek beds. We drove through without lingering and carried hope that the return trip would be bathed in light.
The trail was still worth it. As the clouds drifted by we caught glimpses of the deeps blues of the glaciers in the peaks above and every once in awhile sun would peak out way off in the valley, illuminating the turquoise lake in the distance. If you listened closely, every once in awhile you could hear the low rumble of the glacial ice moving, even above the roar of the river. It was a magical place.
The plan was a 6-hour road trip to Aoraki Mt Cook National Park to check out the eastern slopes of the Southern Alps and the glacial blue Pukaki Lake. It was an area of the country that wasn’t on our original itinerary. New Zealand, despite being small, is actually difficult to navigate. North to South is easy but East to West is foiled by the Southern Alps that run down the spine of the island. There are only two or three places that you can cut across from one side to the other. We had made the decision to drive up the West coast of the country on this trip, which cut out Mt. Cook, Central Otago and the famous glacial lakes. I thought it was a choice that we would have to make, but I agonized over it. Dave and I studied maps and went back and forth on our plan. We finally decided that this may be our one chance to see this place, so we opted to make a big out and back trip from Queenstown one day. It would be a lot of driving, but from everything we’ve read, it was beautiful country. Dave was game, so I was game.
We finished breakfast, stopped at a grocery store to grab some sandwiches for lunch and hit the road by 8:30 a.m. The nice thing about New Zealand in the summertime is that it stays light until well after 10 p.m, so the days are long and we can pack them full of activity. I’m typing this blog at 8:30 p.m. as we are on our way back to Queenstown and the sun is still high in the sky.
On the three-hour drive to Mt. Cook, we felt like we were chasing the morning clouds and rain all the way. But we were hopeful. Clouds kept breaking up in our rear view mirror and we were leaving blue skies behind us. Maybe we’d have a clear day by the time we got to the park. In the meantime, we were pretty socked in the entire drive. We could tell that the landscape around us was beautiful, but we couldn’t quite see all of it. The clouds did make it dramatic, but we weren’t able to appreciate the whole scale of what surrounded us. What we did see were rolling hills of gold and green with clouds slinking in and out of the valleys. And along the side of the road, thousands of pink, purple, white and yellow lupines traced through the seams in the hills like creek beds. We drove through without lingering and carried hope that the return trip would be bathed in light.
The closer we got to the park and the lakes, the worse the
weather turned. Clouds lowered, rain poured and wind blew. Off in the in
distance, blue skies began to open over far away mountain peaks, but the
direction we were headed was drowning in pea soup.
The landscape was dramatic. Despite the clouds, we could
tell that the almost 30-mile long lake was turquoise blue and that the peaks
towered up on either side with snow capped tops. And the valley opened up
toward the glaciers with pale blue rivers roaring down the slopes. It was all
there, but it was blanketed in fog and chilling rain. We pulled into the
parking lot for our planned hike – the Hooker Valley Track and decided to sit
in the car for an hour. Maybe the clear skies would finally catch up. It was
only Noon.  |
| The final drive into the pea soup in the park. |
At one o’clock the clouds obscured even more of the
mountains and the rain was steady and sometimes torrential. The mountains were
not going to let the weather get away. And we weren’t about to make the whole
trip for nothing. So we bundled up in rain gear, covered the camera and lenses
in plastic and headed off down the trail in the rain. We got a 15-min break
from the weather, but otherwise, we trudged forward in the wet.
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| The wet hike into the Hooker Valley Track. |
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| Our 15 mins of clearing skies, looking down the valley toward Lake Pukaki. |
The trail was still worth it. As the clouds drifted by we caught glimpses of the deeps blues of the glaciers in the peaks above and every once in awhile sun would peak out way off in the valley, illuminating the turquoise lake in the distance. If you listened closely, every once in awhile you could hear the low rumble of the glacial ice moving, even above the roar of the river. It was a magical place.
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| Dave with the glacial snow fields in the peaks behind him. |
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| A magical place. |
The trail included a suspension bridge over the quickly
moving, and very full river. I thought I was okay with it, until I reached the
middle, felt the power of the river moving quickly about 70 feet below me and a
gust of wind gently pushed the bridge side to side. Deep breaths, look straight
ahead, and I kept walking to the other shore.
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| The suspension bridge on the Hooker Valley Track. |
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| I'm still smiling, but holding on. |
The further back we got toward Hooker Valley and the
completely hidden Mt. Cook, the worse the weather got. Wind was ripping down
the valley carrying sheets of rain. We turned our back to the wind and let it
beat against our coats. We kept plowing forward, and turned a corner and came
across two more, much larger, suspension bridges. Longer, higher up and right
in the thick of the wind. I told Dave that was it for me. So we turned around
and headed back to the car. It was worth the two hours of exploring, but we were
shivering and wet and ready to warm up. Luckily there was a lodge down the road
and hot chocolates and chili nachos did the trick.
We started to head back around 5 p.m., and the further we
got away from the mountains, the more the blue skies that had been hiding all
day began to show up. The valleys that were cloaked in mist on the drive up
were wide open and shimmering in light and shadow on the way back. We stopped
many times along the way and took too many pictures. Around every corner, the
landscape and sunlight and clouds revealed a completely different story than
just a few hours before.
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| Lake Pukaki slices the landscape in a turquoise blue. |
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| The hills shrowded in clouds on the way to the park were now visible and dramatic in the afternoon sun. |
The sun started to drop in the sky and cast beautiful
shadows over a lake that had once seemed nondescript – showing off the snowy
peaks high above that we hadn’t even realized were there. We pulled over to
capture the image. And just as we were climbing back into the car, two giant
rainbows appeared at the North end of the lake. The clouds gave us one last
gift as they departed.
Despite the rain, the road trip was worth it. We should be
arriving back into Queenstown around 9 p.m., still light out, and we will look
for something to eat. And as much as I love rainbows, here’s hoping for a sunny
day tomorrow.
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| Lupines in the late-day sun. |
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| A lake with snow capped peaks behind it. |
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| A gift after the rain. |
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Jumping Right In
Today we quite literally jumped right into our New Zealand vacation. Thanks to our internal clocks being completely off, we both rolled over and opened our eyes right around 5 a.m., just in time to see the mountains glowing pink with the sunrise. It was a great catch. But 5 a.m. was too early to get up, so we went back to sleep until the alarm went off at 7:30 a.m. - both feeling much better after our exhaustion from the day before.
Breakfast downstairs at 8 a.m. was picture perfect. I had lovely loose leaf English Breakfast tea (and thought to myself that my mother-in-law Carole would love this place). And granola, vanilla porridge with bananas in honey. Dave was very content with bacon, avocado and tomato on toasted ciabatta bread.
After breakfast, I decided it was time to run off yesterday's Ferg Burger. I went for a 5.5 mile run along the lake on the Frankton Track. It was my first time back running since my half marathon a few days ago, and it felt great to be out. Being surrounded by mountains always helps too. I also learned very quickly that running in NZ follows the same rules as driving, stay to the left. Pass on the right. It's all very easy to forget, unless you keep repeating it to yourself.
While I was out running, Dave went exploring up the Shotover River. He hiked for about 30 mins along the gorge, taking photos and taking in the beautiful ice blue glacial water.
We reconvened at the hotel and got ready to head out for our real adventure of the day.
A few months ago, I told Dave to jump off a bridge. He said okay. And I went ahead and booked him a bungy jump at the very place where bungy jumping was invented. The bill was paid in advance. So, when today arrived and it was time for him to take the plunge, we took a collective deep breath and drove out to the Kawarau Bridge outside of Queenstown.
The bridge, 47 meters (154ft) above the beautiful Kawarau river, was a marvel to behold. The entire set up was quite an operation. You could see the bridge from the road, hovering above the blue water gorge. And there was a beautiful visitors center built into the side of the mountain. Dave was excited, I could tell. There were definitely some nerves. But more than that, I know that he was excited to finally feel what the sensation of falling was really like. My husband, who always loves to climb up to the highest point, was finally going to be able to jump off.
Dave checked in and I positioned myself on the viewing deck with camera ready to roll. It seemed like forever waiting for his turn. I can only imagine what it felt like for him. From what he says, there wasn't much time to process it all. I saw him smiling at me from over on the bridge, then his number was called and he climbed into a glass booth hovering over the water where he was strapped into to his jumping gear and cord. Then all of a sudden Dave appeared on the edge of the jump platform. I could see he was nervous and excited at the same time but there wasn't much time to feel anything at all. He gave the thumbs up to the cameras - and then my husband took a step over the edge and hurled himself into the river gorge. What an amazing moment. He free-fell down to the water and then the cord recoiled and he went gracefully flying through the air. I caught his face in a few photos and he was laughing and smiling. I was so proud of him.
Then they lowered him down into a raft in the river below, unstrapped him and set him free with only his exhilaration and a DVD of photos to remember them by. I went running down the hill to hug my glowing husband. First words out of his mouth? I want to do that again!
I was starving from all of the anticipation. From bungy headquarters, Dave and I headed to the small town of Arrowtown to have some lunch and explore the shops. The town was quaint. Just one main street left over from the days of the New Zealand gold rush. We had a nice lunch at Cafe Monde and Dave enjoyed a much needed beer, and recounted the step by step emotions of jumping off a bridge.
After exploring Arrowtown, we were feeling restless and wanted to do something active. We drove over to Lake Hayes right outside of town and decided to hike the trail around the lake. At first we were just going to go out and back for a bit, but like always, we keep saying "I wonder what's around that corner?" and so we ended up fast walking around the lake - a little more than 5 miles total. The surrounding views were incredible, the lake was peaceful and the wetlands in the lower areas were fascinating. We saw lots of bunnies and ducks and the occasional kayaker. We chatted, strolled and hoofed up some steep inclines. It was a perfect, relaxing afternoon.
We got back into Queenstown around six p.m. and headed out on an errand to buy Dave some new shorts (apparently he was in denial that it really would be summer here, and didn't pack any). Then back to the hotel room to get ready for dinner.
Dinner was at Gantley's - the self-proclaimed most romantic restaurant in Queenstown. So much so, that they pay for a taxi to come pick you up and take you home - which was perfect because it was pouring down rain and we wanted to drink wine! Gantley's was phenomenal. I started with a beetroot, fig tart on pasty with goat cheese and Dave had the crayfish bisque. Then for the main course, I had duck with figs and a mushroom tart and Dave had the beef fillet with rosemary potatoes. For dessert I had some incredible sticky toffee puddingwith vanilla ice cream and Dave had a citrus, saffron crepe with strawberry sauce. It was one of the better meals we've had in a long time. Not to mention the bottle of Gibbston Valley Riesling 2011. Perfect pairing.
Now we're back at the hotel and about to get some sleep for our big day tomorrow. I wonder if it will be possible to top jumping off a bridge? Don't worry family and friends, tomorrow's activities all take place firmly on the ground. But I can tell you, that I keep looking at Dave's eyes, and I know that he is reliving that bridge over and over again. I'm glad we bought the video so when we get home, we can show you all the evidence of his incredible jump. Nothing like jumping right into your vacation on day one, right?
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| We were lucky to catch the morning sunrise over the mountains. |
Breakfast downstairs at 8 a.m. was picture perfect. I had lovely loose leaf English Breakfast tea (and thought to myself that my mother-in-law Carole would love this place). And granola, vanilla porridge with bananas in honey. Dave was very content with bacon, avocado and tomato on toasted ciabatta bread.
After breakfast, I decided it was time to run off yesterday's Ferg Burger. I went for a 5.5 mile run along the lake on the Frankton Track. It was my first time back running since my half marathon a few days ago, and it felt great to be out. Being surrounded by mountains always helps too. I also learned very quickly that running in NZ follows the same rules as driving, stay to the left. Pass on the right. It's all very easy to forget, unless you keep repeating it to yourself.
While I was out running, Dave went exploring up the Shotover River. He hiked for about 30 mins along the gorge, taking photos and taking in the beautiful ice blue glacial water.
 |
| Shotover River gorge. |
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| Shotover River gorge. |
We reconvened at the hotel and got ready to head out for our real adventure of the day.
A few months ago, I told Dave to jump off a bridge. He said okay. And I went ahead and booked him a bungy jump at the very place where bungy jumping was invented. The bill was paid in advance. So, when today arrived and it was time for him to take the plunge, we took a collective deep breath and drove out to the Kawarau Bridge outside of Queenstown.
The bridge, 47 meters (154ft) above the beautiful Kawarau river, was a marvel to behold. The entire set up was quite an operation. You could see the bridge from the road, hovering above the blue water gorge. And there was a beautiful visitors center built into the side of the mountain. Dave was excited, I could tell. There were definitely some nerves. But more than that, I know that he was excited to finally feel what the sensation of falling was really like. My husband, who always loves to climb up to the highest point, was finally going to be able to jump off.
Dave checked in and I positioned myself on the viewing deck with camera ready to roll. It seemed like forever waiting for his turn. I can only imagine what it felt like for him. From what he says, there wasn't much time to process it all. I saw him smiling at me from over on the bridge, then his number was called and he climbed into a glass booth hovering over the water where he was strapped into to his jumping gear and cord. Then all of a sudden Dave appeared on the edge of the jump platform. I could see he was nervous and excited at the same time but there wasn't much time to feel anything at all. He gave the thumbs up to the cameras - and then my husband took a step over the edge and hurled himself into the river gorge. What an amazing moment. He free-fell down to the water and then the cord recoiled and he went gracefully flying through the air. I caught his face in a few photos and he was laughing and smiling. I was so proud of him.
Then they lowered him down into a raft in the river below, unstrapped him and set him free with only his exhilaration and a DVD of photos to remember them by. I went running down the hill to hug my glowing husband. First words out of his mouth? I want to do that again!
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| Arrowtown mainstreet. |
After exploring Arrowtown, we were feeling restless and wanted to do something active. We drove over to Lake Hayes right outside of town and decided to hike the trail around the lake. At first we were just going to go out and back for a bit, but like always, we keep saying "I wonder what's around that corner?" and so we ended up fast walking around the lake - a little more than 5 miles total. The surrounding views were incredible, the lake was peaceful and the wetlands in the lower areas were fascinating. We saw lots of bunnies and ducks and the occasional kayaker. We chatted, strolled and hoofed up some steep inclines. It was a perfect, relaxing afternoon.
 |
| Lake Hayes hike. |
We got back into Queenstown around six p.m. and headed out on an errand to buy Dave some new shorts (apparently he was in denial that it really would be summer here, and didn't pack any). Then back to the hotel room to get ready for dinner.
Dinner was at Gantley's - the self-proclaimed most romantic restaurant in Queenstown. So much so, that they pay for a taxi to come pick you up and take you home - which was perfect because it was pouring down rain and we wanted to drink wine! Gantley's was phenomenal. I started with a beetroot, fig tart on pasty with goat cheese and Dave had the crayfish bisque. Then for the main course, I had duck with figs and a mushroom tart and Dave had the beef fillet with rosemary potatoes. For dessert I had some incredible sticky toffee puddingwith vanilla ice cream and Dave had a citrus, saffron crepe with strawberry sauce. It was one of the better meals we've had in a long time. Not to mention the bottle of Gibbston Valley Riesling 2011. Perfect pairing.
Now we're back at the hotel and about to get some sleep for our big day tomorrow. I wonder if it will be possible to top jumping off a bridge? Don't worry family and friends, tomorrow's activities all take place firmly on the ground. But I can tell you, that I keep looking at Dave's eyes, and I know that he is reliving that bridge over and over again. I'm glad we bought the video so when we get home, we can show you all the evidence of his incredible jump. Nothing like jumping right into your vacation on day one, right?
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Halfway Around the World
Twenty eight hours for a cheeseburger and a nap - we've arrived in New Zealand! I think we've lost all sense of distance and time, but the trip here actually wasn't that bad at all. And it's already pretty obvious that the investment was worth it.
We awoke "this morning" (Wednesday) to freezing rain, sleet and snow in D.C. Nothing worrisome, but just the right amount of disgusting weather to help mentally propel us out of town on vacation. We finished up last minute packing, still exhausted from a fun Christmas celebration, and got on the road to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Dulles was easy. We had an hour delay, thanks to the mess outside, but we had a four-hour layover in Los Angeles, so we had no reason to stress. We just sat back with our books and watched the plane get de-iced out the window. About six hours later we arrived at LAX, had dinner and successfully worked with the gate agent to get seats next to each other on the long flight to Auckland.
I think we were both a little nervous about the 13-hour flight across the ocean. Neither Dave nor I had ever been on a flight that long. Was it going to last forever? Would we get bored? Could we sleep? It turned out not to be as bad as we had anticipated. Yes it was long, but we watched a three-hour movie, both fell asleep before it ended and for the next seven hours proceeded to fall into a state of deep, but broken naps. Then for the last three hours we got a little restless, but breakfast helped break things up. By the end of it all, we were certainly stiff, swollen and anxious to get up and off the plane.
Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand, but the airport is still tiny relatively speaking. We found our bags and got through customs and rechecked our bags with no problem. We were immediately struck by the island-feel of the air and the reminder that we were now somewhere deep in the South Pacific. From the tiny glimpses of the outside, we saw rolling landscapes, water and wetland, temperate vegetation. It was very clear that we were far from home. And in our half awake, confused state, we sluggishly boarded our last flight of the day - a two-hour jump from Auckland to Queenstown.
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| The clouds break for a view of the mountains. |
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| Dropping quickly down into Queenstown |
The airport was tiny, like three garages glued together in a deep valley. Within minutes we had our bags and our rental car that we will call home for the next three weeks. We left the airport and felt free, ecstatic and hot. The sky was blue and the sun was warm. Oh yes, it is summer here in New Zealand and our D.C. winter clothes needed to be shed fast.
Dave acclimated himself to left hand driving on the other side of the road, with a stick shift car. Stay to the left, stay to the left. It was hard to focus because we just wanted to look up and around to the towering peaks and blue skies. We were in Queenstown in 10 mins and pulling up to our hotel.
I'll probably say this a lot over the next few weeks but the people here are friendly. Other than the accents, New Zealanders' good natures may be their most defining feature. We met the owners of the gorgeous little Brown's Boutique Hotel who gave us the lay of the land and showed us the shortcut through the back hedge right down into town (the gate is next to the giant chess board on the back patio). Now is the time to leave the car behind for a few days, he said. You can get everywhere on foot. And get ready, because in a few days, this town will triple in size for New Year's fun. But not to worry, "if you want to beat the crowds, you have a front row seat to the fireworks over the lake from your second floor balcony." Perfect.
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| Brown's Boutique Hotel. Our room is second from the right on the top floor. |
While our room was getting finishing touches, we walked down into town to get some much needed lunch. The trick was to not sit still, or we'd fall asleep. We had been planning for months that our first meal in New Zealand would be a famous Ferg Burger. I hadn't had a cheeseburger of any kind for at least six months. And I was ready. It was a 45-min wait. We got a table right out front in the sunshine. And yes, maybe it was the jet lag, the squeals of the adventurers in the parasails way overhead, the excitement of vacation or the quick return of summer, but that enormous burger was worth the 28 hour trip to eat it.
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| Delicious Ferg Burgers |
So now we are in our little room, with our balcony door open to the hills and the town and the mountains. Listening to birds sing and feeling the summer breezes, while drifting in and out of naps, our bodies are telling us that we have a lot to catch up on. Shortly we're headed into town to find more food and watch the sun close out our first day in New Zealand. We're happy, we're here and we're ready to start this adventure.
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| Our hotel room. |
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| Napping, breathing, relaxing with the summer breezes. |
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| The view over Queenstown from our balcony. |
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Dreams in the Making
It's pretty obvious that my husband and I like to travel. It's also well known that we've had an emotionally and physically demanding year. So it may appear to all of you that we looked at a map and tried to figure out how to get as far as away from our lives as possible. While, subconsciously there may be some truth to that -- the reality is that traveling to New Zealand has been a dream of ours for a long time. And one week from now, that dream will become our next big adventure.
I have decided to blog about our trip like I did for our Tour de France journey in 2010 (I can't believe that was two years ago already!). For full disclosure, I blog these trips mostly for myself. How else am I going to remember every delicious meal, every curve of the trail or the stories behind the smiles in the photographs? Blogging my trips is the perfect way to encourage the memories to last forever. Plus, it's a fun way to stay in touch with friends and family back home so everyone can share in our discoveries of new places. I'll try to update every day - or every other (I have to chill out now and then). I'll also publish photos as we share our stories. And shortly after we return, we'll publish our full Flickr album. I can already say with confidence that you won't want to miss these photos...because, speaking of another dream, Dave finally purchased the camera he has wanted for a very long time. Be prepared for some awesome views.
We leave for New Zealand the day after Christmas. I suspect that the coming week will be a blur of shopping, cooking, wrapping and enjoying, so I may not have another chance to launch this blog before we leave. Now would be a good time to follow Tiki Touring, so you can be sure not to miss a step.
Dave and I will be traveling for 20 days. We'll kick it off with our longest plane ride ever and 24 hours later we'll arrive in Queenstown on the South Island of New Zealand. Over the next almost three weeks, we will be exploring the most beautiful sites around the South Island - and perhaps some of the most beautiful sites in the world. After a few days in Queenstown, we'll head to Fjordlands National Parks, then north along the West Coast to the Southern Alps and glaciers. Then further north and east to Nelson Lakes National Park for a few days. From there we'll head north, hop on a water taxi and spend three days in Abel Tasman National Park. Finally we drive South along the East Coast to Christchurch where we'll catch our plane back home.
Here is our agenda:
Dec 28-Jan 1: Queenstown
Jan 1-3: Te Anau
Jan 3-4: Overnight on a ship in Milford Sound
Jan 4-8: Fox Glacier and Westland National Park
Jan 8-10: Nelson Lakes National Park
Jan 10-13: Abel Tasman National Park
Jan 13-14: Kaikoura
Jan 14: Christchurch and flight home
Please join us on this adventure. Send suggestions, ask questions and say hello. Let us know that you are following along. We hope to surprise, enthrall and entertain you. Perhaps, we'll even inspire you to take a leap and make your own dreams come true!
Happy holidays. One week until liftoff.
I have decided to blog about our trip like I did for our Tour de France journey in 2010 (I can't believe that was two years ago already!). For full disclosure, I blog these trips mostly for myself. How else am I going to remember every delicious meal, every curve of the trail or the stories behind the smiles in the photographs? Blogging my trips is the perfect way to encourage the memories to last forever. Plus, it's a fun way to stay in touch with friends and family back home so everyone can share in our discoveries of new places. I'll try to update every day - or every other (I have to chill out now and then). I'll also publish photos as we share our stories. And shortly after we return, we'll publish our full Flickr album. I can already say with confidence that you won't want to miss these photos...because, speaking of another dream, Dave finally purchased the camera he has wanted for a very long time. Be prepared for some awesome views. We leave for New Zealand the day after Christmas. I suspect that the coming week will be a blur of shopping, cooking, wrapping and enjoying, so I may not have another chance to launch this blog before we leave. Now would be a good time to follow Tiki Touring, so you can be sure not to miss a step.
Dave and I will be traveling for 20 days. We'll kick it off with our longest plane ride ever and 24 hours later we'll arrive in Queenstown on the South Island of New Zealand. Over the next almost three weeks, we will be exploring the most beautiful sites around the South Island - and perhaps some of the most beautiful sites in the world. After a few days in Queenstown, we'll head to Fjordlands National Parks, then north along the West Coast to the Southern Alps and glaciers. Then further north and east to Nelson Lakes National Park for a few days. From there we'll head north, hop on a water taxi and spend three days in Abel Tasman National Park. Finally we drive South along the East Coast to Christchurch where we'll catch our plane back home.
Here is our agenda:
Dec 28-Jan 1: Queenstown
Jan 1-3: Te Anau
Jan 3-4: Overnight on a ship in Milford Sound
Jan 4-8: Fox Glacier and Westland National Park
Jan 8-10: Nelson Lakes National Park
Jan 10-13: Abel Tasman National Park
Jan 13-14: Kaikoura
Jan 14: Christchurch and flight home
Please join us on this adventure. Send suggestions, ask questions and say hello. Let us know that you are following along. We hope to surprise, enthrall and entertain you. Perhaps, we'll even inspire you to take a leap and make your own dreams come true!
Happy holidays. One week until liftoff.
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