Helllooooo!

God, i have no idea where to start...i have done loads since Wellington (a couple of times i have seriously thought i was gonna die!) and i still have a week left in New Zealand, so i thought i'd better update now...i'm currently in Queenstown.

Well Wellington (North Island) was bloody great until i realised what piss heads i had in my dorm!!! I was sharing with 4 German guys and an English girl called Sophie. Realising that i wasn't going to get any sleep i thought i'd join in with drinking the nasty white wine they had! It was Saturday night so we all headed out...which was harder than expected as i got refused entry in most places for wearing flip flops!! And this place totally changed in the evening: it was like being in Bexleyheath/Dartford - i was shocked and disappointed!

I didn't get much sleep (due to German's) while i was there, but i did get out and see the Te Papa museum, got the cable car to see the views (which bloody broke down at the top!) and got into the coffee and jazz culture of the place. Cool.

Up early on a Monday morning to catch the ferry to the South Island with Sophie, i spent most of the 3 1/2 hrs knocked out by sea sickness tablets and missed the approaching views of the South Island! I said bye to Sophie as she was getting the bus and i was catching the train to do the scenic train route...stoppping off at a place called Kaikoura. Great fish!! And i hate fish at home!! It's soooo good in NZ.

I got up early in the morning to do whale watching, which was great...saw 2 sperm whales and a pod of 200 dolphins. Amazing! Back on the train to go to Christchurch for the night so i could get the next train of my journey....the trans alpine. This was cool as it passed through the Alps which are awesome. I got off in the middle of the Alps at a place called Arthur's Pass. Tiny, but beautiful. Usually this time of year there is a lot more snow on the mountains, but a mild May has meant there's not much. But still i couldn't complain!

And this is where i had my first near death experience! I decided to take a little walk to get some pictures of the mountains...the tourist office suggested doing just the start of a trek called 'Avalanche Peak' to take pictures and then come back down. Ok, i thought, i'd give it a go. An hour's walk in i was loving it, amazing breathtaking views getting some pictures...when i bump into a German coming down the mountain. He said that i had to carry on as the views at the top were amazing - 360degree panoramic views of the Alps. Ok, i thought again, i'll give it ago. He said i wasn't far away.

An hour and a half LATER i was literally rock climbing up the side of the mountain, hanging on for dear life almost in tears, thinking what the f*** have i done, i haven't got a map, i haven't filled in an intention card (so the tourist office know what walk you're doing in case you don't come back and they can send out rescue) i couldn't got back as it was too steep and i couldn't go forward as the last bit was too steep...i thought if i get out of this alive i will call mum and tell her how much i loved her!

I'd got so high i'd reached the snow on the mountains!!!!! (I've taken a picture to prove it!). I was just about to breakdown in floods of tears, when i spot a man with a gun (no lie!!!). Instead of thinking 's*** there's a man with a gun' i just thought 'there's another person, i'm saved!!!!!!!' He turned out to be a local called Hamish who had been sent into the mountains by his wife to shoot deer for dinner (this is how primitive this place was!!). After explaining my situation, he unloaded his gun and took me off the trek and through an easier route...2 hrs later i was back on the road all thanks to Hamish. I have his wife to thank, although she got no dinner that night!!!

I promised myself i would never be so stupid again....and i didn't call my mum! Sorry mum!!

Looking at the map when i got back to the hostel they had described it as 'a trek for well equipped and experienced walkers'!!!

Next day i caught the train to Greymouth and recovered in a hostel with a hot bubble bath and tv for an evening!

Back on the Magic bus i bumped into Sophie (and made friends with 2 guys called Matt and Dave) and headed to Franz Josef, where we all booked onto a full day hike on the glacier. Near death experience 2!!!

The morning started off glorious, with us all kitted in special gear and our guide going away from the crowds and axing into the ice to create pathways through crevasses and the ice. It was beautiful. Midday and halfway up the glacier the weather changed to hard rain and wind and us getting battered. I was bloody miserable. One guy in the group got really ill and had 6/7 layers of clothes on from the guide, but still turned a deathly white colour and was shivering like mad and lost all energy. They had to send in a helicopter in to rescue him! I admitted to the guide i wanted to go back, but he said he made that decision and thought i could make it to the end. Damn. I fell over and sliped so many times that i cried and laughed through my pain and frustration! Matt and DAve made it bearable though as they kept taking the piss, saying i looked like an old woman - i had my backpack underneath my waterproofs which looked like a hunchback and i kept getting stuck in a crouching position, which they had to get me out of!!!

We got back to the hostel at 5.30ish...5 and a half hours after i wanted to go home!!! I have to say it was hell!!!

Next stop on the Magic bus was Wanaka. This place is beautiful and looked like a little European Ski Resort. And this is where i did my skydive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 15,000 ft and a 60 second freefall overlooking lakes, a river, the mountains...it was absoluetly amazing. I got the pictures, dvd and tshirt!! Bloody expensive, but i will so do it again. You can see how petrified i am on the dvd, but to be honest, at the time i didn't think of it because you don't get a chance to! I will try and put the video and pictures on the website if i can (the dvd is not flattering!!).

You could call that near death experience 3, but this was one i really enjoyed! : )

Now i'm in Queenstown, enjoying Fergburgers (mmm!) cocktails out of a teapot (mmm!) and i went on the luge today (it's like go karting). I don't think i will do any extreme sports here even though it's the capital of it all...i've think i've done enough!

Well, another long update!! Hope you're still reading...i will do pictures when i can. Good news too...i have been offered a job on a farm in the middle of the Outback (Wolfe Creek keeps springing to mind...) which i can start as soon as i get to Oz next week. It's gonna be strange as it's male dominated and they've never employed a woman before!!!!! If it doesn't work out at least i've tried, but i was definitely up for not working in an office, and this is totally opposite to that!!!

Hope you're all well! Keep me updated on things at home.....might be best asap as in thr Outback you probably won't hear from me for about 4/5 months!!

Love ya. Me xxxx