Blogs from Otago, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 39

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Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 24th 2005

Yesterday after I spent 2 hours in the Internet place, we went to see what's going on here. It's the first town here that is not asleep at 10PM. We went to a bar, I had 2 beers, we danced, everything was very happy. I hope it's not the only place in NZ like that... Today I did the jet boat ride. That was FUN!!!!! It's a boat that goes really fats on the river, and it's unique in the ability to turn very quickly, on the spot, even 360 degrees. So the driver gets close to the rocks and gets away at the last second, and he does 360 degrees spins, and we all cry "WOW" and it's a good laugh :-) They call it group teraphy... After that we drove to the town of ... read more
More jet boat

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 23rd 2005

I was waiting impatiently to get to Queenstown and do the luge, remembering the great "luge d'ete" in France and the huge one in Austria. Well here it's different and I didn't like it. What a shame... I am so disappointed! So, yes, we are finally in Queenstown, the city of high Adrenalin activities. We took the cable car (Gondola they call it) to the mountain next to town, where you see signs that are "so Qtown": Luge right, Bungy left, Paragliding here... We only did the luge but enjoyed watching the rest of the adrenalin stuff. Tomorrow I do one of these things too: a jet boat! If I survive, I can tell you what is it :-) ... read more
That's NOT me

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 23rd 2005

Dearest Friends and Family, I would like to talk about one thing today -- FEAR. Yesterday I experienced this powerful sensation in its truest, rawest form. Nothing compared to this. Not public speaking or thinking a dark thief is breaking into my apartment or finals come close. Not even the dreaded piano recitals of my youth hope to touch this sort of fear. I went for a canyon swing. The "Shotover Canyon Swing" in Queenstown, adventure capital of the world, perhaps. A swing? you think. That's kid's stuff! That's what they do at the Hilton on the "Ultimate Rush." Weeee! No. no, no, no. People say this beat the fear factor of skydiving and bungee jumping combined. The victims jump from a cliff mountain platform 109m/360ft above the Shotover River, then freefall 60m/200ft into the ... read more
Help!
Help!
Clutching to the rope.

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin February 9th 2005

We arrived in Dunedin around 3pm, we must have floored it as it's supposed to be a 7 hour journey. No one we have met has come to or has any plans to go to Dunedin. It's a pretty big city and as far as I can tell it's famous for rugby and beer. The 'Otago Highlanders' play here at the infamous 'House of Pain' which is meant to be brutal on match days. The Speights brewery here is the oldest in the land, and as I've become quite partial to a pint of Speights during our trip here I suggested to Fiona that we go to a brewery tour later, she agrees tentatively! We found our hostel fairly easily, actually by mistake. It's fair to say it has seen many better days and could do ... read more
The Brewfloor
Beer holder things

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 8th 2005

Couldn't sleep past 7:30 and i'm really tired, Fiona slept with ease as usual, her blisters are still pretty brutal so as she can hardly walk we are taking it pretty easy today. First things first we had to check we still had clothes, we hung up loads of washing last night when we got in then we got drunk and forgot about it till morning. I was relieved to see it still there when I wandered up to the laundry this morning. It's a nice day here, nowhere near as hot as we've had but it's really sunny, I've got my shorts on anyway, mind you I've been known to wear shorts in February in Edinburgh so the fact that everyone else is in trousers will not sway me. We went on a gongola ride ... read more
A gondola
A long way to fall
A view from the gondola

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 7th 2005

Another long drive, another 8 hours and it was pissing down even more than yesterday. We arrived in Queenstown around 4pm and it was stunning, the place is beautiful, surrounded by mountains and pine tree covered hills, it's picture postcard material, the town itself is a wee bit over comercialized and plays it's adrenalin hardcore tag a bit heavy, this is where the bugy was born and these days you can pretty much jump of anything with the help of a wee bit elastic, we'll leave that to the English and wander through town. We check into our lodge, kind of like a holiday park thing, and we're sharing a 3 bedroom house with a young English couple and a German family, mum, dad and a son that looks about 23, very bizarre, things seem to ... read more
The Remarkables
Stunning Queenstown

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin January 21st 2005

Hi Everyone, Well I am finally going to finish the journal of my trip before it is so far away that I will forget everything. Of course the time I choose to do this I really should be studying, but I've had enough for the day. So I think I pretty much finished spain..... We had an interesting time getting to the Barcelona airport. We left our lovely fancy (but cheap amazingly enough) hotel with great instructions from the receptionist to get a taxi (note to self....travel LIGHTLY next time :p) to the train station and get a bus (which supposedly left every 20mins) from there to the airport. Upon arrival at the train station we got lost, got sent from counter to counter only to be told when we were finally able to ask for ... read more
Canal In Venice
Venice
Firenze

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown December 15th 2004

Ahah back to New Zealand then. I thought i'd seen the best scenery i will ever see once i'd returned ffom Fiji but i was dead wrong. The South Island especially Fiordland and Otago is stunning!!. I met up with my friend Clarke (from Berri)up in christchurch and we caught the bus down to Queenstown. Our jaws were scraping the bus floor for most of the journey. We literally could'nt believe some of the sights that we passed by the that bus. Towering snow capped mountains that went on over the horizon with large mint coloured lakes at the base, the colours were staggering and contrasting, amazing stuff. Queenstown is awesome, a little town surrounded by mountains quite fittingly named the remarkables. With people jumping off the peak of the gondola all day it makes for ... read more
The Remarkables
qt
The scenery was like this all the way to Queenstown from Christchurch!!

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown November 12th 2004

Hello all Comtinuing to have a great time. Weather remains good with lots of sun and very little rain. It's been quite a busy 3 days since the last entry. We moved on from Dunedin and headed south towards Te Anau. Took a detour of about 100km from Balclutha when we went to see the wildlife around Nugget Point and Surat Bay. Not much at the former except seals swimming below the cliffs but at Surat we met up - almost literally - with the sealions. We went for a walk on the grassy track behind the beach and could see a female sealion on the sand about 10m away. Whilst quietly watching it flick sand over itself to keep cool in the sun Joan saw a bull sealion heading for the beach. It came out ... read more
Doubtful Sound
Cruising the Sound
Kayaking

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin November 8th 2004

Hello all Had a good journey down from C'church to Dunedin vie Oamaru. Set off late from C'church due to delays with campervan so stopped a night in Oamaru. went to see the yellow eye penguins on the way but could only see them from about 100m away on the beach. Stopped for lunch on the beach and saw these boulders - amazing geological phenomenon. Called in at Shag Point and spotted several fur seals on the rocks. Arrived Dunedin Sunday and went out to Otago peninsula ( went along the Highcliffe Rd to get there - sheer drops and tight bends but great views if you could bear to look - the driver couldn't and the passenger wouldn't and wanted to get out and walk - not fot the fainthearted!! ) to see the yellow ... read more
Yellow eyed penguin
Moeraki boulders
Seals at Shag Point




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