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Sunday 15th May 2011
Today I spent the day organising everything for New Zealand and stocking up on jumpers and warm clothes! I went in to Bondi-its about 3 stops away on the train and its so so eays-the shops are grrrrreat there! and once your there-its another 10 minute walk to the beach if you want to do that too! :-)
Monday 16th May 2011
Today I met another friend called Clare Thurgood that I know from my job back at home-we met up at Central train station-which is also so easy to get to-its about 3 stops on the train but the other direction to Bondi! We walked around before finding a lovely place to sit in the sun to enjoy cocktails and chocolate cake! It was amazing! We then moved on and I introduced her to the shop called Darrell Lea--they sell Rocky Road chocolate here- its out of this world!! They call it 'Rocklea Road' -and you can get all different flavours of chocolate, it has marshmallows, chocolate, caramel, you can get nuts and cherries..its amazing!!!!
So-we bought this lol..and then chilled out over a glass of wine in a really good bar by the harbour. When I got back to the hostel I was messing around with my room mate as she was winding up our other room mates, fibbing bout where she was from haha - then we thought it was best we just face facts and buy a huge pizza haha.
Tuesday 17th May 2011
I had to get up at 3.45am today!! I went to the train station which was like a 2 minute walk if that-I caught the train to the international airport in Sydney and checked in for my flight to Auckland, New Zealand.
As soon as I entered Auckland, I had another flight taking me into Christchurch. This was because as I only had two weeks to travel New Zealand, everyone told me to focus on the South Island, and because I had already booked to go into the North Island of Auckland-i just later booked my other flight taking me to Christchurch. i Flew with Emirates to Auckland and it was amazing service and I would definitely recommend this Airline.
I then waited in the departure lounge for my flight to Christchurch with Jetstar. This was a good flight too - I was staying at the hostel in Christchurch called Kiwi Base Camp. They provide a free airport shuttle-and when you arrive and collect your bags-there is an airport phone which you can use free and dial the hostel to tell them that you have arrived! Its brilliant. I got my transport and made it to the hostel. It was such a shame to see the devastation of the City due to the Earthquakes, the homes that had been destroyed and the churches that literally had one face still standing. it was so so upsetting to feel the pain of the City-however it was still gorgeous.
The hostel-Kiwi Base Camp was brilliant-the staff were amazing and so friendly. It is basically inside a house which they have converted-the garden is a chill out area, they have a big lounge, a reading and internet room, they have rooms upstairs, down stairs, showers and toilets on both levels-and also cabins outside with rooms. On this occasion I got a cabin outside which was lovely. It was freezing but the heating in here was brilliant!!
I only stayed the one night as the next day I was getting picked up by Kiwi Experience to start my tour.
Wednesday 18th May 2011
Today I got up nice and early for my bus at 8am I checked out and literally had to walk 5minutes to the end of the road where it would pull up for me. So convinient as Kiwi have two pick up locations-one here and the other at the airport so you cant go wrong!
I got on and the driver told me I was his only passenger for the morning until I met the rest of the group later that afternoon as they had all done the North Island and they travelled down just before me this morning and they hadnt stopped in Christchurch.
We got on our way-my driver was a lovely guy, really friendly and full of knowledge and enthusiasm about his country which was so lovely to see. We went along St James Walkway and saw snow capped mountains-these were actually outstanding. I know that i have seen amazing sights in Australia-but these were just picturesque. You cannot compare this country to anywhere you have been before!! Stunning! From here we walked to a small waterfall which was absolutely gorgeous, i was lucky to see this as they dont usually include it in their tour but we were running so ahead of time that I got the chance.
We then went to Maruia Waterfalls which was a huge waterfall, it was so powerful!
After this it was time to meet the rest of my group! I met everyone that jumped of a big coach-seriously there was about 40 people on here-and i was used to doing tours with a maximum of 20 --this was crazy lol. One thing I will say about Kiwi Experience-is that it is the complete opposite to Adventure Tours Australia or even Oz Experience...even though Oz Experience can be focused on the younger generation and they take you on bar crawls sometimes when you get to the end of the leg of that particular tour...(you dont have to go on these but its just a nice touch) --well-No offence to anyone on the bus-but I felt like I was part of a school trip the whole time. I think maybe it depends how fussy you are, if your mentality really doesnt care how you are spoken to then its fine-but I see myself to be quite mature sometimes and I prefer talking to people slightly older - this bus I felt I didnt get the best information about the country and the culture as it was all about alcohol the whole 8days. This was a shame as this is what interests me-but I suppose suited the main target group on the bus.
I met some amazing friends on this bus-Natalie, Ellie, Kyle, Mike, Izzy, Eliza, Analea, Rob and James.
We got en route for Wanaka!
There isnt too much here as the tourism isnt too developed in this area as most people that live here work for the mining industry. There is a cinema here that is famous for being in a casual lounge-they even have a car that you can sit in to watch the movie-they generally play older films, and they have an interval where you can purchase tea/coffee and warm cookies!
We stayed in accommodation that was provided which was again like another house and it had cabins outside, some of the guys got one with a lovely fire, a television!-this is a real bonus-I couldnt remember the last time my eyes saw a television!! and we all got cosey this evening snuggled infront of Pananormal Activity 2 lol.
Thursday 19th May 2011
Today was the day that Kiwi Experience had planned for us to do Fancy Dress! The theme was starting with the letter P-so my obvious choice, being my favourite animal-I dressed as a penguin! We went to a pub called 'The Poo-Pub' This is famous here, it was a cute little pub which has arranged a huge buffet dinner for us which was amazing. We then went and got very drunk in the pub and enjoyed walking round like idiots haha was so much fun.
Friday 20th May 2011
Today we got up and started making our way towards Frans Josef-We went to the Bushmans centre which I must admitt was a hell-hole for me-as im vegetarian it was absolutely awful!! They informed us how they caught deer from helicopters-which would have been fine if they informed us-showed us an example by video for those that needed more detail-rather than making us sit and watch dead deer hanging from helicopters and blood spurting out of the poor animals for roughly 20 minutes! It was excrutiating and I must say-I dont think anyone enjoyed the video-not even the boys!!
The hostel we were staying at had an outdoor hot tub-which we all enjoyed-we got in and chilled out for the evening before heading to bed.
Saturday 21st May 2011
Today was the day of the Frans Josef Glacier Hike!! You could decide if you wanted to do a half day hike-which costs $100 dollars or the full day hike which is only $150!! I would say from everyone elses opinion and also my own, that as the half day hike literally walks up the gravel to get closer and as soon as they stand on the Glacier thats it and its time to turn around and go back. When we realised where the half day turn round and go back- we were so shocked as they really dont even get to see anything-its as soon as they stand on ice.
I obviously did the Full-Day Tour and had so much fun, the views were breath-taking!!! You could see the glaciers for miles in the distance, the glimmering white ice with baby blue sparkling crystals..it was stunning. There was one section of the walk right at the beginning that is slightly steep up hill before you make it onto the ice, its about 20 minutes-but once you have passed this-the rest is okay, and its actually fun walking on it as they give you metal shoe covers called Crampons with big spikes in them so you can grip into the ice.
You can also choose which group you want to go in-slow, medium or fast-the only thing with the fast group is that you dont get as much time to stop and take photos.
Elly, Natalie and I were pretty much together the whole day in our group and we took so many photos, we were walking along singing and dancing all day-the leader goes first with a pick axe, axing steps and a neat pathway for the group so its made so easy -even for clumsy people like me!!
We walked through ice -caves..there were ice-steps taking you down beneath a big roof of ice above your head, this was totally safe and such an amazing experience! the gaps can be quite small- but my friend that suffered from clostrophobia still gave it a go and did it slow and she was fine, you just shimmy slowly down -the colours are just amazing, when you pop your head back up into the light-its just surreal that you realise you have just been through a cave made from ice!
After today we all wanted to celebrate that we hiked the Frans Josef Glacier-so we treated ourselves to wine at the bar! Great finish to the day :-)
Sunday 22nd May 2011
Today we went and saw the 'Mirror Lakes'-These were so pretty and the way that the trees reflected in the lakes was so pretty-they say that if you look in the lakes and take a photo you cant actually tell whats the reflection and what isnt as the waters so clear. This was very true! So pretty.
We then went to Mount Cook on Lake Matheson and saw the Fox Glaciers..home of the Glacier Mints! We grabbed some breakfast here after doing a lovely walk to see the Glaciers which were amazing, and then we went to the hostel for the night and watched a movie together.
Monday 23rd May 2011 (My God-daughters Birthday)
Today was our drive to Queenstown! We went to a place called 'Puzzling World'-this was actually such a cool place-we paid $12 entry free but it was worth it as we had a right laugh in here. They had a maze that you had to find your way to the top of the four different coloured towers..we were trying for so long but the girls paid $1.50 on entry for a bacon sarnie lol (obviously I didnt as I dont eat meat lol) so we kinda cheated shhh and climbed under the fences to get back out haha.
It also had a room that had everything leaning at an angle but it messed with your mind because objects were falling the other way in the air! There was another room that had a low ceiling one end and a high one the other and it made people in the same room look like giants and midgets in comparison to eachother lol it was a good laugh-very clever.
This was our last nightof the Kiwi-bus tour-even though most of us were staying a similar amounts of time, so we all went out and celebrated and checked out the night life in Queenstown, we went to a bar called 'The World Bar' and we got the famous tea pot shots! You choose whatever shot you would like to drink and then they fill up a tea-pot with it and you have to drink it through shot glasses..it really does get you smashed lol. This pub is so much fun its such a great atmosphere and everyone looks so funny walking round with their little fingers in the air with a tea pot clenching shot glasses in the other hand! suited me down to the ground lol.
Tuesday 24th May 2011
Today was the day of the Nevis Arc or the Nevis Bungee!!
As you probably know-New Zealand is home of the bungee! it was created here so its famous for tourists travelling here to do it, the Nevis Arc bungee is the highest bungee in the world, and the Nevis Arc swing is the highest Swing in the world!! We were all quite delicate today which was a shame but I think we all tried to numb the pain and nerves for today last night lol.
We arrived at the sight and me being mad had signed myself up with Ellie to do the tandum swing...as there was no way I would do my first Bungee from this site!! We were so nervous and had to be there at 8am lol-we got all strapped in..but what didnt help us was the free internet that we got before heading down there-so obviously we googled it one last time and terrified the s***e out of ourselves!
This swing is 75m freefall and a 300m actual swing!! It looked like something I would love as I love adrenaline rides and stuff...but I can tell you that I have never been so terrified in all my life, I was sat with Ellie saying how scared I was and that I didnt think I could do it-but obviously it was way too late for that lol. The guys could see just how scared we were so they were messing with us. We were pushed out on the swing to dangle over the edge-they took some last minute cat in the headlamp photos of us lol and we had no idea when they were going to send us flying (which was probably a good thing!)
The next minute we dropped, at such a force our bums came up and we almost summer-saulted!! This was crazy, I have never gripped on so tight in my life. I think what made it scarier is that even though you are strapped in-theres nothing to support your upper body-its literally round your bum so you can swing upside down and if you lean to far back you could actually do the whole swing upside down. After the terrifying free-fall the actual swing wasnt as bad but it was still so high!
It was definitely an experience but lets just say-if your as mad as me you will love it..but the thing I enjoyed most about this was the free hat lol.
There is a place in Queenstown which is a MUST- its called ....'FERG BURGER'
OMG you have to visit this place! it is famous for its legendary burgers, they are massive, they have about 20 different options..and myself being vegetarian..well I dont usually get excited about lettuce in a bun-but wow these were immense. They were so cheap aswell-you will notice if you travel Oz first that the Kiwi Dollar is so much better, these burgers are so huge and they are the best thing, I think we ae there at least 3 times in four days, they are that good. Please make this one of the Top 3 things you do in Queenstown!!
Tonight we then went for a nice quiet drink in a small Irish pub whilst everyone else was chilling out at the hostel or sleeping again after their early mornings --trying to still sleep off the night before-we decided (Mike, Ellie and I) to go and look around the town. This Irish pub as very cosey and the drinks were cheap. There are plenty of bars in Queenstown-the town is quite small but you cant get bored.
Wednesday 25th May 2011
Today we had all booked ourselves onto a day trip to visit Milford Sound! This is known as the Eighth Wonder of the World!
We paid $90 dollars for the day which included lunch too which was good value for money. The day started at 7.30am, and we drove to see more mirror lakes called Lake Waktapu which was a narrow lake 400m deep- gorgeous. We then stopped for photos of some gorgeous mountain ranges, the views were stunning, we then went to Panorki and then down to Kingston. We saw valleys, sheepland, cows and we were now on our way to Townow where we saw a National Park which was very pretty.
The next stop was an under water observatory, we saw lots of different fish and sea life, the colours were amazing, we were here for about half an hour before getting onboard a Katamaran, this was such a rocky journey lol but so much fun. The views of the sun glimmering on the trees, the waters and the rainbows were stunning, we saw baby seals on the rocks, and we kept going on the deck to take great photos and messing around as it was so rocky! We had our buffet lunch on here which was nice and we prepared for the drive back.
The weather wasnt too great for us but I can imagine it being absolutely stunning on a nicer day, it was still well worth it. This was our friend Ann-lea's last night tonight so we all got ready for a night out.
Thursday 26th May 2011
Today we all got up to walk around and see if we wanted any last minute purchases, I got some great photos and then we went back to the hostel for lunch.
We went to the cinema today...we had a nice pizza for lunch and then we had some drinks..we decided to go and see Hangover2! To our surprise..we saw that you could purchase alcohol and drink in the cinema!! This was amazing!! We all got some drinks and annoyed everyone else in the cinema by laughing over-hysterically at the film lol. Brilliant. And the cinema was really good here!! We got drunk after and celebrated my last night!
Friday 27th May 2011
Today I had to get up nice and early to catch my bus taking me back to Christchurch! We stopped off for a lunch break before making it back -I stayed in a hostel called 'At The Right Place' for the night as the 'Kiwi Base Camp' was fully booked. This hostel was nice, it was a bit random as the reception was in a shed lol but the actual rooms themselves were good.
Saturday 28th May 2011
Today I checked out as I had one more night in Christchurch and I managed to get a bed in 'Kiwi Base Camp'. Today I decided I wanted to do something rather than chill in the hostel-so due to the earthquakes everything was pretty much closed-all coffee shops and everything-there was nothing to do. I saw that next to the Airport there is somewhere called the Antarctic Centre, its a place that they have made to show just how cold it can be here in Christchurch. I went on a truck called a High-lander which they use in bad weather as transportation, it can climb the story of a house, travel over a two metre gap in the road and even float on water, this was great fun on the assault course. They had a room that got as cold as -40degrees! It was basically a mock storm room. We then watched a 4D film of Antarctica, we saw the animals, they were spraying things at us, the ice caps were melting and getting us wet..it was great fun. I then paid for a backstage pass with the penguins! This was amazing as they are my favourite animal, I went backstage with a little yellow penguin and learnt more about the way it lives, we got to take photos and i bent down, as I couldnt touch it because of the natural oils on my skin ruining its feathers...I just let it peck at my knee! So cool! Best experience ever! I then went to watch the feeding of the penguins before heading back to the hostel.
Sunday 29th May 2011
Today was my flight back to Auckland, I just relaxed in the hostel today with a friend from my room and waited for my shuttle to the Airport.
I caught the transfer bus when I got back to Auckland and it took me into town and right outside my hostel which was great. I stayed at Queen Street Backpackers-the staff were amazing, the hostel was huge, the kitchens were brilliant and the bathrooms were perfect-i highly recommend this-even though better named hostels are right next door-this one is slightly cheaper and I much preferred the feel of the place.
Monday 30th May 2011
There is a library in the City that you can use for free internet-as I left my laptop in Cairns with friends-this was very handy! I was with my room mate from the hostel called Tiina, she was a lovely lady and we went to explore Auckland together today. We went on a lovely walk called 'Lovers Walk'-it takes you through a windy nature area which is gorgeous, mini waterfalls and lots of greenery! We then went to the Auckland War Museum where you can learn more about the Mauri people.
We then took a look round the shops and I was over the moon when I came across the Mini4x4's that came out when I left England and now they are all over the world! We passed the Auckland Bridge Bungee Centre on the way back to the hostel...and i decided to just pop i and have a look......
I said to the kady I wasnt really sure if I wanted to bungee but I thought Id pop in to see costs and stuff-she was very clever as she said one line. 'New Zealand is home of the bungee so if your gonna do it-you have to do it here'
She followed it by telling me that if I decided to do it-and I was flying back to Sydney the next evening...that I should book on the first one in the morning as its the last day of the month and I get another jump free...I left saying Id think about it. She didnt think Id be back!
We went and got some coffee..and I called the Bungee Centre and booked for 9am tomorrow!
We went for some drinks tonight with an Irish girl in our room and met some of her work friends, it was a good evening...shame I couldnt sleep though haha.
Tuesday 31st May 2011
Bright and early start-7.30am
down two energy drinks-check
bribe Tiina to come with me to Bungee-check
think im ready for Bungee....half check
So we left and I got on the free transport to the Bungee Centre which i think was brilliant-as if I had the choice to make my own way there I think I may have found some sort of smart excuse lol.
We arrived- I signed a declaration and paid..s*** now Ive paid..I have to do it!! I got on the harness...wait...I need a nervous wee...I took off the harness....nervous wee.....I put back on the harness and then my helmet and started the dreaded walk to the Auckland Bridge. We walked up the steps...walked..walked and carried on walking..when I though we were up the top-there stood another 10 steps taking me even higher just to add to the nerves! PRESSURE!
I actually paid $20 for Tiina to come and watch me as I thought if she was there I couldnt chicken out!! lol..and as I had a free bungee...(whether or not Id go through with two)-i figured I didnt mind paying $20 for moral support! (and personal photos on my camera ;-) )
So I was strapped in, my bungee cord round my ankles and I waddled to the edge..i didnt realise until after when I watched my video back -just how much I faffed around lol-it was so funny -I eventually jumped and wow-
one of the best things ive ever done!! All I could do was 'wooo' and wave my arms in the air in excitement and then start doing punching signals in the air as I was so happy i did it, I LOVED THE FEELING!!
I got hoisted back up and then they asked if I wanted my next go- I replied HELL YEA!
and did it all over again. I loved it and I advise it FOR SURE!!!
After this excitement it was time to get the transfer bus back to the Airport and fly back to Sydney...I arrived late in the evening so I decided to be a real Backpacker and camp with the rest of the homeless bag people over night in the Terminal lol as I was catching my next flight in the morning back to Cairns!!
One thing i will say-is that if you have an early flight like I did requiring you to check in at 4am-dont rely on Sydney Airport or its staff to help you-the trains were supposed to start running at 4am-two didnt turn up, the shuttle terminal bus wasnt going yet and the taxi drivers refused to take me as they said 'I will get in trouble, its too early'-this didnt quite make sense but hey-I made it with about 5 minutes to spare when I bribed a taxi driver with $20 as I was about to miss my flight! Awful!!
Wednesday 1st June 2011
I got my next flight to Cairns and arrived with sleep deprivation but managed to last the whole day as I caught up with friends!! Sean, Olivia, Laura, Tahani, Maggie and everyone else I had missed the last few weeks! I spent the next few weeks catching up with friends and getting drunk and working pretty much every day which was amazing as my managers got me my job back!!! This was brilliant and helped me so so much. I have met so many lovely people here that will always stay in my mind, i love you all!!!
The only thing I did in my third day back pretty much-was the Minjin Swing again with my friend Laura as she had never done it so we did it again together and loved it, was so much fun doing it the second time with a friend rather than on my own with the guy that worked there lol. This was great and the video will come on here soon as Laura recorded it on her camera.
Apart from that I wont bore you with details of lunches, drinks and work nights during the next few weeks!!
The only event i will mention is:
Wednesday 15th June 2011
OLIVIAS BIRTHDAY!! :-)
I got Olivia a birthday cake with candles today, a badge a great card haha and a little prezzie to celebrate her special day. Olivia is also joining myself and Holly who I met on the East Coast for the next leg of my travels...South East Asia-Starting in Thailand....join me soon :-)
This is written up until the 2nd of July 2011 as my flight to Sydney-Singapore-Bangkok starts from the 3rd July 2011
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