Blogs from Otago, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 34

Entry by Gemma We have just had a lovely two weeks with my mum and dad. They arrived on monday 24th October and we met them at Auckland airport. It was an emotional reunion in the arrivals lounge! Dad was limping as he came through as he had fallen down a great big hole on his last night in Fiji. They are on an 8 week trip to Fiji, New Zealand and Australia. After lots of big hugs Dave drove us up to the Bay of Islands at the top of the North Island. We stayed in a nice motel in Paihia, with a swimming pool and a hot tub which dad soaked in to try and help his leg! We spent a day sailing around the Bay of Islands, we were the only ones on ... read more

New Zealand - What a Beauty! We've just about finished an incredibly nice week in Queenstown, on the South Island. We're both amazed at just how incredibly gorgeous the area is - breathtaking!! The two of us have been to some very amazing locations before but; we both agree that this must be one of, if not THE, most beautiful place. The mountains, lakes, fiords; the weather; the food; and the people - simply put, an A-plus experience! We arrived on Sunday, 10/09, and have been up to something new everday. We have: taken the gondola to the top of a local hilltop to view Queenstown from above and take a hike; sat by the lake in the town gardens, relaxing and reading; Hiked to the top of Queenstown Hill - a 3 hour trip straight ... read more

Good day from Dunedin (pronounced "DONE-ee-din"), the most Scottish city in NZ. It's our second to last stop before coming home. We woke up this morning, and the air of excitement and anticipation was all around. Today we would visit Brian's mecca. His dream come true. His most heartfelt wish. The Cadbury Chocolate Factory. Cadbury makes 80% of the chocolate consumed in NZ, and it's far better than the candy-store chocolate we can get at home. (Hershey and Nestle have a corner on the market in the US, so we only get a couple of kinds of Cadbury's. The selection here is mind-boggling in comparison.) Before we even entered the building, we could smell the chocolate. Upon entering we walked through a small interpretive center and learned about the history of chocolate and the company. (The ... read more

28.9.2005 Na ceste do Glenorchy presun z Te Anau do Glenorchy. Po ceste sme zazili zvlastnu nahodu. Na benzinke nas oslovil chlapik z vedlajsieho auta, ze ako nam slape auto. O jeho prvotnej otazke sme si pomysleli vselico (najme ked on vystupil z krasneho nablyskaneho offroadu), ale v hned v zapati nam vysvetlil, ze on bol prvym majitelom nasho auta a ze to spoznal podla poznavacej zancky, co su jeho inicialy a datum narodenia (nasa SPZ je "AGM910") a dozvedeli sme sa aj ako sa dalej tvoril rodokmen nasho auta. No, proste.... Zeland je mala krajina. :) 29.9.2005 Glenorchy Pobaleni a psychicky pripraveni na dalsi 5-dnovy track (okruh Routeburn track a spat po Caples track) sme dorazili do Glenorchy, kde sme vsak vzhladom k pocasiu zmenili plany. Namiesto 5-dnoveho tracku sme si spravili vylet na najblizsi ... read more

14-15.9.2005 - Unwin Lodge v Mt. Cook village Stravili sme dva prijemne oddychove dni na Unwin chate. Postretavali sme zopar skialpinistov a horolezcov; co clovek to riadny pribeh.. Najviac sme sa bavili s Jakubom, co bol svajciarsky zidovsky zlatnik v dochodku, kedysi horlivy horolezec, teraz nadseny skialpinista. Spravili sme si aj jednu peknu vychadzku do Hooker Valley a ladovcove jazero, v ktorom plavali ladove kryhy ako v Antarktide.. Podvecer sme skocili do blizkeho mesta Twizel kde sme spravili nakupy a vecer upiekli paradnu bublaninu, ktora sa vcelku stala hitom celej chaty :) 16.9.2005 - z Mt. Cook village do Elephant Rocks Rano v Mt. Cook prsalo a predpoved pocasia tiez nebola velmo ruzova, tak sme sadli do auta a vyrazili za lepsim pocasim. Lepsie pocasie bolo hned za rohom, naozaj je neskutocne ako sa meni pocasie ... read more