New Zealand

If there is one place in the world that presents itself with an overwhelming sense of majesty, New Zealand would be a prime candidate. The country consists of two islands one north of the other with the southern one being mountainous and holding about twenty percent of the total population. This is the island we visited. We started in Christchurch and proceeded in a counterclockwise direction around the middle and southern portion of the island. This route took us through Fox Glacier, Queenstown, Milford Sound, Twizel and Akaroa. At each destination we spent at least one night and engaged in at least one activity and sometimes more.

Christchurch

We arrived in Christchurch around 11:30 PM on a Friday night, cleared customs easily and made our way on foot to the hotel we booked on the Internet. It was the only hotel within walking distance of the airport, so it was easy to find. The next morning we collected our rental car and drove to the center of the city to explore.
     It was a beautifully bright and sunny day and we found ourselves on the central plaza where the original church was located. The square was filled with some sort of market which we later learned was part of a celebration commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the city.

Central Church Steeple

Center of Christchurch

Millenium Commeration

Downtown Trolly

Old fashioned biking (background)

Festival street singer

Town hall

Chess in the City

Mother-Daughter Quality Time

The pictures above were taken in the town square right in the center of the city. The fair attracted a small crowd and a host of street performers. The performances were quite exceptional and surprising for such a small population.

After we sought out a bit of lunch, we hired a tour out of the city center and let the guide give us some information about the city and its history. This particular tour was focused on the region rather than just the city. We made a wide circle around the city taking in the surrounding hills and towns. The picture above is of Lyttelton Harbor where there is a certain amount of industry as well as recreation. There was a military base here as well that at one time was occupied by the Americans just after the war.

	Coal fields of Lyttelton Harbor		Area where coal is shifted for loading
	Loading depot for coal		Ship ready for coal cargo
	Lyttelton Harbor from a distance		Christchurch from above

Coal is an important product for the harbor. It provides a source of revenue and jobs for local residents. The operaton is seen in the above photos. Coal stored in the open area is shifted via conveyor belts to the ship loading area. This same vantage point affords a nice view of Christchurch even though the clouds started to roll in.

Fox Glacier

After spending Saturday in Christchurch we booked a hotel in the city and prepared to depart early the next morning. Upon awakening we discovered that rain does exist in New Zealand. We climbed in the car while it was still dark and drove out of town heading west toward the Arthur Pass. With the weather obscuring our view, it seemed that the land was rather flat. However, after about an hour of driving, the foot hills began to appear and it was a very short time before we were winding our way around steeper and steeper hills. Soon we were in the mountains.
     Once through the pass and down the other side, we came upon the west coast that looks out on the Tasman Sea. The sun was shining and the traffic was heavy in the opposite direction. We proceeded down the west coast through a number of small towns until we came to Franz Josef Glacier. This is both a glacier and the name of a town. We stopped at the visitors center to gather information and were somewhat annoyed by the helicopters that were creating a great deal of noise as they took off and landed. They apparently do a landmark business flying passengers over the glacier and back on sightseeing tours. We decided that Fox glacier just up the road would be a better choice as it did not have the volume of visitors and many fewer helicopters.
     As soon as we arrived in Fox Glacier (the town) we booked a tour up the glacier with a guide. They issued us hiking boots, socks and ice cramp-ons. We climbed onto a bus that ferried us to the base of the glacier. The pictures immediately below were taken at the base of the glacier which we reached after a very short walk.

	The Fox Glacier		The foot of the glacier with tunnel

We walked up past the end of the glacier on the wooded hill to the left. This was a restricted area because of the danger of falling or getting into a spot of bother with the shifting ice. In reality, it was a way to keep most people off the ice and paying for guides. There was a nice ice cave at the base of the glacier where the river runs out from under neath the ice. Over the course of the afternoon the shape of that cave altered as melting took its toll.

	River tunnel at the bottom of the glacier		Water flow at the edge of the glacier
	The family on the glaicer		Our picky guide at work
	Edite at the end of an ice slide		The intrepid explorers

Once up on the ice we climbed on steps made by the guide with his pick ax. He spent a lot of time maintaining the stairs and the channels along their side to keep the water flowing. This way when night brought colder temperatures, the steps would still be in some semblance of shape.

	An ice cave		These boots are made for stomping
	I am cool		Broadway has nothing on us

At some arbitrary point we stopped and deicded to go no further. We then made a detour to a new point on the ice where someone had made an ice feature called an ice slide. It was fun to slide down it, but it was wet as well. No matter, we all dried out over time and the slide thrill more than made up for the discomfort.
     We started the long trek back down to the bus and to the town. We checked into our motel, went for some dinner and planned our next day's trip to Queenstown.

Queenstown

This is the view we had from our hotel window in Queenstown. The town is billed as the adventure capital of the world and I believe it is so. One can do such a variety of activities that range from hiking to parachuting. Of course, one must pay for these activities. A local resident declared that the best thing Queenstown did was separate people from their money.
     We arrived in mid-afternoon and immediately went looking for our hotel. We found it easily and checked in. It was a bit campy for my taste, but it was adequate and clean. After a search for some lunch (a Subway restaurant) we began to plan the next day's activities. We decided to hire a bus tour to Milford Sound for the day (12 hours), and we also booked a bungee jump for Fi, who insisted she had to do it. I left the option open for me to do it as well, but I had my doubts. We considered horseback riding and paragliding as well, but did not take any action to ensure that we would.

Milford Sound

	A view down the Milford Sound		On the back of the boat

Milford Sound is a fiord like region on the southwestern coast of the south island. It is very popular and also very spectacular. Normally we might have been disappointed due to the rainy day, but we were pleasantly surprised to learn that rain in this region brings a multitude of waterfalls enhancing its beauty. Given that it rains nearly 250 days out of the year in fiordland, this condition may be thought of as the norm.
     We were to be picked up in front of our hotel at 6:50 AM, so we mustered ourselves for the date and stood in the dark and cool weather waiting for the bus. We watched it drive right by us and continue without stopping. After some further indecision on all of our parts, we knocked on the hotel manager's door (she booked our tour) and asked what we should do. She kindly placed a telephone call to the tour company, and a taxi was dispatched to pick us up and deliver us to a competing bus company doing the same tour. In the end all went well, and we had a bit of a spicy adventure along the way.
     Once in the Milford Sound visitor center our boat ride took us to the entrance of the fiord and back past steep walls, 500 foot waterfalls and seals lying on rocks trying to avoid the wind. The ride lasted an hour and a half and brought us back to the visitor center where we met up with our other bus and headed on a two and a half hour ride back to Queenstown.

	Seals staying out of the wind		What is a rainy day without a rainbow?
	Hanging on		Beauty beauty everywhere!
	A 500 foot waterfall		Yet another majestic waterfall

Bungee Jumping

The next morning, the moment of truth arrived. Edite stayed in bed while Fi and I walked down to the booking center to check-in for the jump. There are essentially three jumps possible. Two are around 50 meters and one of these involves jumping off a bridge and getting your head wet in the river below. This was not racey enough for Fi. She wanted the best, so she opted for the 143 meter head-first dive (that's 465 feet) in the Nevis canyon. So we were weighed and marked up with magic marker so the staff could identify who was who.
     We were bused to the site (25 minute ride) and then strapped in harnesses and ferried over to the jump site which was suspended from cables across the canyon. Once there, she was fitted with ankle attachments for the main bungee cord and made to wait her turn. The pictures below tell the story.

	A view from the jump car		Strapping the leggings on
	The Drop!		The Realization!!
	The Contemplation		The Fear
	The Event		The aftermath

Horseback Riding in Glenorchy

While Fi and I were doing the bungee thing, Edite was charged with getting us a better hotel. She found one which gave us the view you saw at the beginning of the Queenstown section. It was the same price and much more comfortable albeit with just slightly less room. When we arrived back from the tour, we went to the old place to get the car and then drove to the new place. Our afternoon activity was a nice session of horseback riding in the valley at Glenorchy.
      This was one of the sites where "Lord of the Rings" was filmed. The horses used in some of the battle scenes were taken from the lot we rode. I was assigned a mare named "Chrissy" as she was born on Christmas. The early part of the ride was the usual getting to know your horse and some trotting. We then split up into groups based on skill, and three of us, two other guys and myself, decided to opt into the gallop group. Unfortunately, the staff neglected to tell me that Chrissy was a pace horse. Pace horses gallop in a completely different way, one that is similar to a horse that is about to stumble and fall on top of you. The first few gallops were fine, but I was not particularly comfortable with the horse. The final gallop did me in. The horse went into a very queer gait and I started to move a bit from side to side. I was convinced that I was going to fall off sideways and that the horse was going to fall on top of me. So, I did what I was taught: let the horse have its head. I let the reigns go and held on. It didn't help at all (as I now know it should not have helped as there was nothing wrong with the horse's balance.) This type of gallop has excessive side to side motion, and I ultimately ended up on the ground, falling off at a full gallop. Fortunately, I rolled and sustained only minor damage. I was back up on the horse in a bit and finished the ride in a quiet and peaceful manner.
     It was the aftermath of the ride that really slowed me down. I managed to pull all of the muscles on the inside of my legs during the adrenaline rush of the fall, which made it nearly impossible to walk normally. Now, a week later, I am still in slight pain, but much better than before.

	Joyful anticipation		Doleful annoyance
	Ah, but it's not so bad after all		The beauty of it all

Kiwi Haka

We finished off the night with Edite and I hobbling (I hobbled, she walked) to the gondola located a the base of the mountain at the edge of the town and going up to a lodge at the top where there is a restaurant and theatre. We were attending a Kiwi Haka, the welcome greeting of the Mauri, the local indigenous peoples of New Zealand. The presentation included a buffet dinner in the restaurant.
      It was rather unique. The men had to get up on stage and dance the Haka trying to look strong, mean and ugly. For me, the first two were the difficult part. You can see Edite posing with the actors in the bottom picture. The meal was good, too.

	The Welcome Haka		Posing on stage
	They are supposed to look like that.

Paragliding

The next morning we decided we just had to try the paragliding. One of the venues for this was from the mountain-top we visited the night before for the Haka. All day of each day we were in Queenstown, we would see graceful tandem paragliders (pilot and passenger) making their way through the air and landing in a park at the base of the mountain in the town. It looked too good to pass up.
       We booked our excursion in a slightly different place, one that was more open and promising a longer ride. Once on the hilltop, we each donned a backpack-like rig which extended to the backs of our knees. The parachute attached to this rig and to the rig on the pilot's back. Together, pilot and passenger ran off the edge of the mountain and we found ourselves floating in air, moving about 16 mph. We sailed over forests and pastures, steep slopes with mountain goats grazing below us and majestic mountain peaks and clear blue lakes in the distance.
     It was grand fun and my pilot was especially informative and easy going. The ride lasted about fifteen minutes, but it seemed to go much faster. We even did some acrobatics toward the end of the ride: tight turns with plenty of extra G force.

	The preparation		Airborne
	She did it!		Grand fun

Shotover River Jet Boating

The afternoon of our last day in Queenstown, the same day as the paragliding episode, Fi and I decided to do a jet boat ride on the Shotover River. This is a famous ride that takes place on a rather narrow river running through the region. You can see the vessel over on the dock. It is red and has a roll bar on the back and front. We were not allowed to use cameras on board as the ride is bumpy and one can lose such items into the heads of other passengers.
      So we hopped on board and coverd seven kilometers of river in seemingly no time at all. The boat moves at 80 kph (50 mph) and the Hamilton Drive makes it possible for the boat to operate at full speed in only 2 inches of water. It can also execute a 360 degree turn at full speed, which is the big thrill of the ride.

Mount Cook

The next morning we packed up our gear and advanced to our next destination: Mount Cook, New Zealand's highest peak. Edite had wanted to hike this area based on the literature she had on the region. I was reluctant due to my injury and Fi was bored after her exhilarating jump. Nevertheless, we did do the walk (Fi stayed in the car.)
      The track we took was part of a guided tour, but we were not interested in paying someone to tell us the minutia of the region, so we just did the walk ourselves. Apparently, we were not alone. There were many folks who were doing without supervision. The path was well marked, full of boulders to manuveur around and plenty of scenery distractions to help you trip over the boulders. The path took us to a glacial lake about two hours from the starting point. It was a good four hours spent.
     After the walk, we headed back to the town of Twisel where we had booked a hotel room. This room turned out to be a house, the "Wee Little House" as they called it. It was very comfortable and after a find dinner at a local restaurant, we retired for the night in preparation for our next venue.

	The River Valley and Mount Cook		Edite on one of the foot bridges over the river
	One of the bridges over the river		Board walks installed to protect the vegetation

Akaroa

The next day we make our way toward our final destination. We needed to be back in Christchurch for our Monday afternoon flight back to Melbourne. We decided to visit the little French settlement called Akaroa on the peninsula at Christchurch. This little coastal town is on Akaroa Harbor, a long fiord-like harbor facing out to the Pacific Ocean.
       We could not find lodgings in the town on a Saturday night due to four weddings taking place there. We finally found a B&B in Duvauchelle, about 5 km outside the town. It was a lovely little house, and the owners also owned (until very recently) a 50 foot sailing vessel called the Fox II, which takes passengers on eco-tours of the harbor. Our host was the skipper of the vessel, so we decided to take the tour. It was one of our better ideas. We got to see dolphins and seals, bird life and even feel some good wind push us around the harbor. The ride lasted over two hours and we throughly enjoyed ourselves.
      That night we stayed in the town and in the morning after eleven, we departed for the airport and home.

	Stern of the Fox II		Wheel house
	Under way		Dolphins in the water around the boat
	Another dolphin shot		A racing class boat in the harbor as well