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10/3/2011
After a ridiculously early start to catch the ferry, we spent the majority of our day travelling on the ferry and the bus. We finally made it to Nelson in the afternoon and after a short trip to the supermarket we heard that Dan Carter was going to be in the town later that day, so Kirsty and I went round and met him. It was very cool and Kirsty got her scotland flag signed and I got my scotland shirt signed. At first Kirsty didn't know who he was but after I explained who he was and she got to meet him she was not disappointed as he is not the most unattractive person in the world. Just before sun set we all walked up to the centre of New Zealand to watch the sunset. It was very pretty and the scenary was gorgeous. After that we chilled out for the night.
11/3/2011
Today we travelled to Westport, we stopped at a very scenic spot to take some photo's of us all jumping into lake Rototi that was surrounded by snow capped mountains. We had a nice picnic here but the ducks were being very cheeky trying to steal everybody's food. It was a beautiful spot and we went for a short walk in the surrounding forest to explore and find out some fun facts. Before we reached the town of Westport we stopped to let some people off to do some Jet boating and whilst we were there the cutest little dog jumped on the bus to meet everybody. It only had three legs so all the girls were giving it loads of attention, which he was loving. That night our bus driver organised a three legged pub crawl but as there were more girls than guys it turned into a four legged race becuase he wanted a man to be with a woman. It was a really good night and very funny to watch people trying move whilst being tied together.
12/3/2011
We were back on the bus again today. We stopped at a place called pancake rocks, they were called this because they looked like a stack of pancakes due to erosion. We also got to see the colony of seals that live near the rocks and bask in the sun on the rocks. We visited a few more spots of interest on the way to Lake Mahinapua and the Pua pub/hotel where we would be staying the night. Our main stop was in a small town to pick up a fancy dress costume for the party at night. The theme of the fancy dress was anything begining with a P, so there were many suggestions thrown around but Kirsty finally settled on the Pink Panther and I went as the Pope. It was a really fun night with lots of people making a huge effort to dress up. We had Punks, Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson, a Puppet and Puppet master, a plant, and many other things that start with P.
13/3/2011
After the excitement of the fancy dress party everybody was in good spirits on the bus and looking forward to getting to Franz Joseph. When we arrived our driver took us for a short trip up to view the glacier that the majority of us would be hiking the following day. It looked spectacular and everybody was looking forward to getting on the ice. That night we had the prize giving for the best fancy dress from the previous night. The punks swooped first prize, the puppet and puppet master got second, with Paris Hilton coming a close third. I think I must add that Paris Hilton was a man, which makes it very funny.
14/3/2011
After an early rise we were in the hiking centre signing our lives away to say we wont sue if we die on the glacier hike. Once we were kitted out with our boots, crampons, water proof trousers and jacket plus a hat and gloves, it was time to start our eight hour adventure. The first part of the climb was not on the ice and it was pretty much straight up the side of a rock, it was a quick introduction to hiking. Once we had split into our groups and walked alittle further it was time to put on our crampons and get on the glacier itself. Our tour guide was very good and was carving paths for us with his pick axe, into the ice. He was informing us all about how the glacier was formed and how it moves and grows every year. About two thirds of the way up we stopped for lunch and whilst we were eating our guide and the guide from another group were off exploring the glacier to see if the could find anything interesting for us. Which they did in the form of a break in the ice called an 'Iris' that had only formed that day. So after they did some safety checks we got to walk through it. It was amazing because the ice was so clear it looked like green glass. After this, some of the smaller girls slid through a hole in the ice, so after Kirsty went through I asked the guide if I was ok to give it a go. On his instruction I went for it but unfortunately got stuck and I mean stuck. The guide tried to pull my out the bottom but there was no movement, therefore he had to help pull me out from the top. It was very funny indeed and the whole group certainly thought so aswell. After this minor mishap we continued up the glacier to another point the guide had only newly discover the previous day. This time it was a horizontal crack in the ice that we had to lie on our backs and slide through. It was very cool to see and the guides both said that this was the highest point any tour group had gotten to. After this it was time to head down the glacier and the views from the top and on the way down were stunning. After our long day of hiking it was time to relax and where better but the hot tub in the hostel. It was fantastic and huge it could fit twenty people comfortably but there was only four of us in it. It was complete bliss and definately what we needed. That night was very chilled out just playing in the killer pool competition.
15/3/2011
We had an very pleasent but quiet journey to Wanaka today. Mainly because everybody was still so tired from the hike the day before. We did stop off for a couple of photo opportunities at some beautiful spots including a lovely little waterfall for a picnic lunch. Although the only thing enjoying lunch were the hundreds of sand flies eating us. It was crazy and everybody ran for the safety of the bus once they had got pictures of the waterfall. Before we reached our destination we stopped at Lake Matheson near the town of Fox Glacier. We took at walk round reflection lake which gave brilliant photo opportunities of Mount Cook and the surrounding area. When we arrived in Wanaka, myself and one of the guys we were travelling with took the opportunity to play a quick round of golf. It was great fun but since neither of us are good it was funny to watch a couple of the shots go alittle wayward. That night we relaxed by playing pool and chatting with our new friends from the Kiwi bus.
16/3/2011
We travelled down to Queenstown today which was very exciting as Queenstown is the home of extreme sports in New Zealand. Although before we got to Queenstown we stopped in at Puzzling World, which was very cool and so much fun. It had a huge 3D maze that both Kirsty and I continually got lost in, well me more than her :). Once we had finally found our way out of the maze we went into the illusions room. It had many 3D pictures and they were very good and looked as if they were actually sticking out from the wall. Then it was onto the room of faces, this room was filled with faces that when you walked round the room they followed you. It was very freaky. After this it was into the sloping room that made it look as if pool balls could roll up tables and water ran uphill, it completely messed with my head. Finally we went into a room that was desinged to make one person look huge and the other very small. It was so funny to see this in action as it really did work. After all the fun and hilarity of Puzzling World we were off on the road with only a short stop at a very nice fruit and veg shop. We left the fruit and veg shop behind and headed for Queenstown. Our first stop was called the Kawarau Bridge. This is a 43m high bridge and is very famous for bungy jumping. We watched a video about AJ Hackett who is a Kiwi that commercialised bungy jumping. The guy is a legend in New Zealand as he has jumped off so many famous buildings and towers around the world, and been arrested in his attempts. One of the most famous of these is when he jumped off the Eiffell Tower. The K Bridge is famous in NZ as its the oldest bungy jump site. When we arrived, Kirsty decieded that she was going to be bungying off this bridge. It had a very beautiful river flowing beneath it so she decided she was going to get 'dunked' head first into the river!! :) After the saftey talk and getting the bungy strapped to her legs it was time to edge out onto the bungy platform. Kirsty had the added pressure of the whole bus standing at the viewing deck watching her, rather her then me. However like a pro she stepped up and jumped with no problems and got dunked well up past her waist, it looked brilliant. Once she came off she was absolutely delighted to have done it and on a total high from all the excitement.
Then after a quick photo stop at the lake with all the people from the Kiwi Experience bus it was time for me to get picked up and taken for my bungy. I decided to go for the highest bungy in New Zealand, I dont know why!!! Once we had driven up to the sight and I saw the bungy I was very nervous. After getting harnessed up and the saftey talk it was time to take the trip out in the gondola to the bungy platform. I was first to go out of our group, which looking back was pretty good. After getting the bungy attached and walked to the edge it was 3.2.1 BUNGY!!!! and off I went. It was an amazingly awesome feeling to be free falling for so far. I have never experienced anything like it being both terrified and excited at the same time. We will both definately do it again in the future as we were both on a high for the rest of the night.
17/3/2011
Happy St Patricks Day! For us that meant we were Canyon Swinging today woo hoo. After the Bungy's yesterday we were looking forward to this very much. As there are over seventy ways to go off the platform Kirsty and I had a decision to make. I went for going off backwards, whilst Kirsty opted for going off backwards stapped to a chair. Once we were harnessed up we were very much looking forward to it. However when it came to Kirsty's go, because everybody before her had done the chair the guys said nobody else was allowed to do it. This did not impress Kirsty at all and after much debate they came to a compromise that she could do it facing forwards. After she was strapped into the car the guys who are running the swing messed with her so much hanging her over the edge and pulling her back several times, before finally letting her go. The look of fear on her face was so funny and the scream was even funnier, but she had a fantastic experience. However the funniest bit was when Kirsty got back onto the platform. The chair she was harnessed to was on the edge and as she stood up it fell back and off the platform pulling Kirsty with it. Although she was stapped onto the platform it still gave her a fright and the man operating it got a swift slap for messing with her. Then it was my turn and I chose to go off backwards as the chair wasn't an option anymore. It was really fun to go off backwards and watch the platform getting further and further away from me. It was a very cool experience and one that we both loved. That night before we joined everybody from our bus and people from previous buses in celebrating St Paddy's day we went for a 'Ferg Burger'. These are famous burgers in Queenstown not only for the size but also the taste. It was a taste sensation for both Kirsty and I, but it was a mission to eat a whole one but we managed it. We were very full after this but we all went back to the hostel and got dressed up in green and some even put on some face paint and we went out in Queenstown. The place was absolutely mobbed but we had a great night.
18/3/2011
It was such a good St Paddy's day that Kirsty and I missed the Kiwi Bus in the morning which ment we needed to stay an extra day in Queenstown. It may have been my fault as I set the alarm for the morning and duely woke up and switched it off!! oops. This day was spent watching movies and eating junk food but it was nice to spend one last day with our friends from the bus before we left the next day.
19/3/2001
Today was a very business like bus trip as we had a lot of miles to cover to get to Kaikouri. We made a short stop at Christchurch airport to drop some people off, but whilst travelling through we got to see a little bit of the damage caused by the earthquake which happened a few weeks ago. We avoided the center which was good because that is where most of the devastation happened. After this short stop it was time to hit the road again. In total we were on the bus for thirteen hours that day. That night we were advised to got to the local pub for their stake dinner meal deal and it didn't disappoint. After that it was an early bed as we were up at five the next morning to go swimming with dolphins.
20/3/2011
As the alarm rang at 5am it was a struggle to lift our heads from our pillows but the thought of swimming with wild dolphins made it almost bearable. Once we got our wetsuits on and the safety talk it was time to get on the boat and head out into the Pacific Ocean in search of the dolphins. As they are wild dolphins we weren't sure whether we would see any but we were both hopeful. After thirty minutes we started spotting some dolphins on their own but the captain of the ship was looking to find a whole pod. Then we spotted a Hump Back Whale. It was amazing !!! Not only because of it size or even that its totally out of season for it to be there but it brought a whole load of dolphins with it, who were all trying to play with it. We watched it for several minutes then it was time for us to get our snorkles on and get in the water with all the dolphins. The water was very cold but the wetsuits helped keep us warm. Once in the water we had been instructed to make lots of noice to attract the dolphins close to us. So we did sound like the oddest choir in the world, however it worked and the dolphins were very interested in us. They swam so close to us it was unbelievable and amazing at the same time. There must have been three hundred dolphins swimming around us. They would swim right towards us then dive away at the last minute, it was so cool. Kirsty got some fantastic photo's and videos of the dolphins playing with us. After an hour we had to get out but the experience was brilliant and we couldn't believe how many dolphins there were. After we got dried off we went up on deck to get a better view of the dolphins and the Hump Back whale. The guide was even getting excited at the fact the whale was there and he told us lots of interesting facts about the dolphins and the whale. On our way back to the harbour we saw a couple of Albatrosses just to complete the morning of wildlife off. It was incredable to see it in flight and how huge its wing span was. It was a brilliant morning and we couldn't believe we had seen so much wildlife on the trip, in fact our guide couldn't believe how much we had seen. After this we spent the rest of the day travelling on the bus to the ferry terminal, then on the ferry to Wellington.
21/3/2011
Again today was another business like bus trip to Taupo. As we are short of time we need to be in Auckland as fast as we could to get the final part of the trip done before our flight out of New Zealand.
22/3/2011
We got back on the bus for the final part of this trip to Auckland. It was a reasonable trip with a couple of stops on route for photo's, but as like the other days we spent most of the day on the bus. When we arrived in Auckland we went for a walk round the city center and Kirsty dragged me into every souviener shop there was in search of a fluffy Kiwi bird. However today we were unsuccessful in our efforts.
23/3/2011
As we were not getting on the bus today we got a well deserved lie in, which was amazing!!!! We spent the afternoon walking along the water front and again going into all the souviener shops. Unfortunately the search was to no avail. It was a nice walk and it gave us a chance to stretch our legs since we had been on the bus for so long in the previous days. That night all the domestic duties were done and we tried to sort out some plans for when we got to Asia.
24/3/2011
After an early rise we got on the bus to finish the final part of our trip in New Zealand, The Bay of Islands. On the journey up we stopped at a nice little honey shop/cafe. We got to look in the Bee Hives and see the bees at work. The lady in the shop was very informative about the bees and the different types of honey. We then travelled onto Paihia, which is a small tourist village. It was a nice little village and Kirsty and I had fantastic fish and chips for lunch. That night we had a great BBQ at the hostel with some of the people from our bus.
25/3/2011
As the weather was so bad today we just watched movies until the bus came to pick us up for Auckland. Once we arrived in Auckland we went out to visit our friend Luci again as she was letting us stay with her. We had a nice relaxed night chatting with some of her friends and flatmates.
26/3/2011
Kirsty went for a nice brunch with another one of our New Zealand friends to catch up on some gossip and general girly stuff, whilst I watch lots of rugby on the t.v. It was brilliant. We just relaxed most of the day as Luci was working and we wanted some time to chill since we had been on the Kiwi bus for the last three weeks. That night we had a movie night which was a great way to spend our last night in New Zealand.
27/3/2011
This was our last day in New Zealand and after watching yet more rugby we went to meet one of Luci's friends who was having a birthday party for her 40th. It was in a Karaoke place and the singers were pretty good, so Kirsty and I didn't go up for a shot. After this we packed up and went for a last dinner with all the friends we had made in Auckland. It was really nice to have dinner with them and get some good laughs before we left. As Luci dropped us of there was a bit of hugging and some goodbyes then it was time to check in and board the plane to Hong Kong.
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