Hi All,
It's been a few days of mostly cloudy/showery with short breaks of sun for us in Queenstown. Our first day here, we hiked up to the top of the gondola - Bob's Peak - and were treated to mostly sunny glimpses of Queenstown and the surrounding areas. We also did the "luge" activity while up there. It was like an alpine slide, but, not a slide. It was like a sled with wheels and tricycle handlebars that motored down a wideish sidewalk. It was fun and not too adrenaline draining. Speaking of adrenaline, it turns out that skydiving is mucho expensive, i.e. $400.00 per person! And then if you want a photo of the momentous occasion, it is an additional $150.00. OUCH! So, I think we'll put that aside for now and concentrate on other adventures.
Yesterday, we checked out the views from Coronet Peak and the tiny and cute town of Arrowtown. It also had an interesting heritage walk that taught us about the Chinese Immigrants that contributed to the gold mining boom of the area. We booked our Great Walk along the Glenorchy/Caples Track and went to the Dux du Lux Brewery for a beer. It was raining again, so, that seemed like a viable indoor activity that didn't involve the four walls of our gorgeous van! Anyway, we found that it was "Pub Quiz" night - we could have used a lot of help! - as our team (Peter and I) that we called "Oregone" - came in dead last. We wouldn't have but the team that was losing worse than we were left after round 5. Dangit! Oh well, it was free humiliation and they even had a "Best Joke" round at the end and we heard some good ones! Additionally, the World Netball Championships are being held in Auckland now and we got complete coverage on a big screen at the pub. It is interesting to watch a game that kind of looks like something you are familiar with (basketball) but then unfamiliar things occur within that familiarity. For example, there's no dribbling allowed and as soon as you get within shooting distance of the basket (with no backboard) you just get to shoot and no one can block your shots. If you miss the shot, you get to try again. Very interesting...
Today, we picked up our tickets for the Great Walk Excursion. It is basically a 5 day/4 night backpacking trip that crosses some mountainous land and some land near the fjordland areas of this region. It should be fantastic and I am saying little prayers for clearer weather every second! So the Great Walk System was set up by New Zealand's Department of Conservation. It allows you to hike on these spectacular trails and then bunk in these huts that are managed by the Department. So, we'll hike about 11 km tomorrow and bunk down for the night in a heated, dry building with bunk beds and a cook stove with about 25 of our closest friends. I hope no one is a big snorer! We will stay in huts like this for the first 3 nights. On the fourth night, we're completing the circuit of the trail on a part that isn't considered "Great" so there are just simple huts to use. We're looking forward to it and we'll be sure to take lots of pictures.
Speaking of pictures, we've posted quite a few (mostly from Bali and Western Australia) on our Flickr account. I invited you all to view our photos on Flickr. If you didn't get an invitation or if it doesn't work properly, let us know and we'll try to remedy things. We've put all of our photos to this point on CD, so, after we get back from the trekking I'll try to get them uploaded to the Flickr account also. I think it will make things a bit more interesting when you can see the places that I've been babbling about all this time!
Hope all is well.
Love,
K & P
P.S. I got my nose pierced. My Mom says it's just the small stuff, right?! :) Love you, MOM! Remember, it's not permanent!
It's been a few days of mostly cloudy/showery with short breaks of sun for us in Queenstown. Our first day here, we hiked up to the top of the gondola - Bob's Peak - and were treated to mostly sunny glimpses of Queenstown and the surrounding areas. We also did the "luge" activity while up there. It was like an alpine slide, but, not a slide. It was like a sled with wheels and tricycle handlebars that motored down a wideish sidewalk. It was fun and not too adrenaline draining. Speaking of adrenaline, it turns out that skydiving is mucho expensive, i.e. $400.00 per person! And then if you want a photo of the momentous occasion, it is an additional $150.00. OUCH! So, I think we'll put that aside for now and concentrate on other adventures.
Yesterday, we checked out the views from Coronet Peak and the tiny and cute town of Arrowtown. It also had an interesting heritage walk that taught us about the Chinese Immigrants that contributed to the gold mining boom of the area. We booked our Great Walk along the Glenorchy/Caples Track and went to the Dux du Lux Brewery for a beer. It was raining again, so, that seemed like a viable indoor activity that didn't involve the four walls of our gorgeous van! Anyway, we found that it was "Pub Quiz" night - we could have used a lot of help! - as our team (Peter and I) that we called "Oregone" - came in dead last. We wouldn't have but the team that was losing worse than we were left after round 5. Dangit! Oh well, it was free humiliation and they even had a "Best Joke" round at the end and we heard some good ones! Additionally, the World Netball Championships are being held in Auckland now and we got complete coverage on a big screen at the pub. It is interesting to watch a game that kind of looks like something you are familiar with (basketball) but then unfamiliar things occur within that familiarity. For example, there's no dribbling allowed and as soon as you get within shooting distance of the basket (with no backboard) you just get to shoot and no one can block your shots. If you miss the shot, you get to try again. Very interesting...
Today, we picked up our tickets for the Great Walk Excursion. It is basically a 5 day/4 night backpacking trip that crosses some mountainous land and some land near the fjordland areas of this region. It should be fantastic and I am saying little prayers for clearer weather every second! So the Great Walk System was set up by New Zealand's Department of Conservation. It allows you to hike on these spectacular trails and then bunk in these huts that are managed by the Department. So, we'll hike about 11 km tomorrow and bunk down for the night in a heated, dry building with bunk beds and a cook stove with about 25 of our closest friends. I hope no one is a big snorer! We will stay in huts like this for the first 3 nights. On the fourth night, we're completing the circuit of the trail on a part that isn't considered "Great" so there are just simple huts to use. We're looking forward to it and we'll be sure to take lots of pictures.
Speaking of pictures, we've posted quite a few (mostly from Bali and Western Australia) on our Flickr account. I invited you all to view our photos on Flickr. If you didn't get an invitation or if it doesn't work properly, let us know and we'll try to remedy things. We've put all of our photos to this point on CD, so, after we get back from the trekking I'll try to get them uploaded to the Flickr account also. I think it will make things a bit more interesting when you can see the places that I've been babbling about all this time!
Hope all is well.
Love,
K & P
P.S. I got my nose pierced. My Mom says it's just the small stuff, right?! :) Love you, MOM! Remember, it's not permanent!
4 comments:
Hey kerry, you're nose ring is fake right?
let me borrow it so i can freak out dad.
hahaha oh the memories our family shares.
love you and pedro....have fun on your walk/hike
a couple of things:
- last in pub quiz? green eggs and ham is here to back you up! bring it on Australia, see you how do when you're on Oregone's turf!
- nose ring? pics please? nice wedding vow quote!
keep the bloggin' comin!
xo
tracy
Kerry..So the nose thing is for real....Katie and I were sure that it was one of those magnet ones...but then she thought that might be dangerous! I'm not too sad the sky diving was so expensive...good thing Petie is pretty cheap (at least some of the time!)
Luv, S
Nose ring, eh? You are someone who I am pretty sure can pull it off. Thanks for sharing all of your adventures w/ the homebound. Happy Almost-Thanksgiving. --Liz
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