The story goes a little something like this......... Tired of working & the cold miserable winter, looking for a break from the monotonous routine. The plan was that Saurabh was going to come and visit at the end of July. So I had booked my leave at work. Leave booked from 27th July - 10th Aug. Last week of work and Saurabh still procrastinating, no plans of coming, no visas applied for - nothing! Two options left for me really - either cancel my leave and continue working waiting for Christmas or book a ticket and go see him. If Mohammed [View Full Entry]

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We're heading back to the starting place of our journey - Queenstown. But first we start the day with a shower and pack up our things. Have some breakfast and decide to have a quick stop along Lake Wanaka's shoreline just to take in the peaceful sunrise before starting our day. Wanaka is really beautiful and I imagine it just gets better in winter. The sunrise is beautiful as it splashes reddish & bluish paint over the mountain tops in the horizon. The route today is short but the views promise to be amazing as we drive on the Crown Range [View Full Entry]

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Today is a cruisey day, no hectic days crammed with plans - we are driving to Wanaka today. We are travelling on the same road that we used to get to Haast so we seen most the sights. Wanna make a few stops and then enjoy relaxin & exploring Wanaka (top ski destination in NZ) known for its winter beauty, surrounded by snow covered peaks. From Haast to Wanaka is 148kms (roughly 3:20hrs driving time). We are definately in no hurry so eat our breakfast in leisure & after a shower load up the car again with our bags & food. [View Full Entry]

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No dont need to pack up today as we are spending another night in Haast. Today we wake up and only pack the essentials for our day trip to Fox Glacier. The distance is only about 120kms and driving time is supposed to be 1hr 45mins but we have to get there and register for the hike etc. With our car packed with the essentials we are of - quite excited in fact having never seen a glacier. We make no stop as time is of the essence but as its early in the morning the scenery to Fox Glacier was [View Full Entry]

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Right so today is going to be one of those long driving days. We are booked into accomodation in Haast. The distance from Omarama to Wanaka is 113km (roughly 1:55hrs). From Wanaka to Haast is another 148kms (roughly 3:20hrs driving time). The second bit takes longer as the area is mainly mountainous. The night sleep was lousy - woke up feeling miserable. The single bed was the smallest single bed I have ever had the bad fortune to sleep in. My poor arm kept falling off the bed and the night kinda went tossing and turning. The showers werent too bad [View Full Entry]

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We wake up early eager to explore Dunedin before hitting the road this morning. Dunedin is so beautiful with its historic buildings and churches. I enjoy watching the sun rise from my window, its first rays casting a magical spell on the church across the street. We shower again in the morning - the showers were just too good, eat breakfast & pack up car. The land lady was taking too long so we thought we'd go explore Dunedin on foot and come back to check ourselves out (in first). First Stop - Dunedin. Home of Speights (pride of the South) [View Full Entry]

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Yes we managed to wake up on time for the free freshly baked bread - there is nothing quite like the smell of freshly baked bread. The beautiful aroma of the bread woke me and I got out of bed in a hurry and into the kitchen to quickly brew a good cup of tea while the bread was baking. No one was in the kitchen yet. My tea is ready and the bread still isnt ready. Other backpackers start stirring and waking up with the smell of the bread now steady spreading throughout the entire building. Two people join me [View Full Entry]

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We wake up in Te Anau and quickly have some breakfast and decide to head of to make the most of the day. We want to spend some exploring the town as we did none of that yesterday. Still feeling bit tired. Anshu wants to do some shopping for presents, I dont feel like spending any money buying presents for family that are in NZ. Anshu insists that they have not been to the South ISland and would love something. I quickly peruse through the shops and like nothing (didnt want to spend any money anyway =)). Leave Anshu to do [View Full Entry]

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In the morning we wake up to the sound of the Kea birds - noisy bunch. I go into the kitchen for my morning cup of tea and meet a guy who is has been cycling around nz for months (crazy!) and he tells me that his banana has already been stolen by a kea bird (I think these birds are as sneeky as monkeys). Anyway we pack up and load the car after breakfast and head off to Te Anau. Decide to give Milford Sound another look before heading off. Everything is so quite early in the morning, the clouds [View Full Entry]

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Queenstown to Milford Sound - 307kms (expected driving time 5hrs without any stops). It was going to take us forever as there is a lot to see on that road. The aim is to get to Milford and book a cruise when we get there and hopefully they arent fully booked coz that would really suck big time. So we checked out of our hostel and set off at 8am towards Milford Sounds. First stop - just outside Queenstown to take in the splendid view of the Remarkable mountains, their tops covered in clouds. The are indeed quite remarkable hence the [View Full Entry]

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