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Published: April 15th 2008
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Gibbston Valley Vineyards
Just one of the many wineries in the area Josh planned a great scenic loop of the lower South Island in a sporty little rental car. I spent about a week "researching" our options, and he pulled it together in about 30 minutes.
Our first stop was Gibbston Valley Winery. We took a short tour through the vineyards and the guide gave a brief explanation of the grapes and harvesting process. The second half of the tour was in their cave- literally, a cave dug into the the side of the mountain. They use this to store hundreds of barrels of wine- the cave remains a constant temperature and saves them in heating/cooling costs. The tour included 3 sample glasses. Josh took it easy since he was driving, but I did my best to get our money's worth.
We carried on with our journey, filled with oos and ahhs. Blue-green rivers, massive mountains and deep gorges, and a feeling of awe as we traveled this road alone.
We stopped in Twizzle for a reluctant photo opp. I cracked myself up the whole ride, but Josh wasn't as amused. That's all I can say about that.
Next we came upon Mt. Cook- it's the highest peak in
Entering the Cave
This cave was blasted out with dynamite, then the walls coated with a cement/plaster spray. Quite cozy in there with all that wine! all of the Australasia region (3755m), so it was pretty easy to spot. We didn't have time to explore it, but the panoramic view as we passed was still quite impressive.
We reached Lake Tekapo right as the sun was setting. It's a small town in the center of the south island. The lake isn't that big, but it's turquoise waters and the mountain backdrop really set the stage. There is a small stone chapel, Church of the Good Shepard, set right on the lake. As you look at the alter, there's a large window looking out onto the lake and mountains. It is simply the cutest thing I've ever seen.
Josh booked an evening star gazing tour at Mt. John. There's an observatory at the peak of a mountain with all sorts of international space research taking place. The guides were very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. With hardly any light pollution, the stars were so sparkly. The milky way covered the center of the sky like glitter. They pointed out several constellations that are visable to the naked eye- most we'd never heard of because the southern hemisphere has different patterns than what we're
Road to Mt Cook
It kept getting bigger, the closer we got used to in the northern hemisphere. We got there just in time to see Mars before it dropped below the horizon as earth rotates. Yes- MARS!!!! At first I thought I was looking at a satellite with red lights, but it was infact MARS!!!
The first image through the telescope blew my mind- it was SATURN. I couldn't believe how perfectly round it was with the most perfect ring. I swear they could have put a glow in the dark ceiling sticker at the end of the viewing lens. The image was like looking at an x-ray- you know, that yellowey-off white color on a black background. Still can't believe it. Besides the large industrial telescope inside the dome, they also had 2 telescopes on tripods set up on the peak. We looked at a few different clusters of stars- one was more sparkley than any diamond I've ever seen, and the other was actually 2 stars rotating around each other!
The night sky continued to impress with about 4 shooting stars. I guess this was pretty good for a typical night with no meteor showers forecasted. It was all just so breathtaking. No cameras were allowed because
Mt Cook National Park
You need a wide angle lens to properly catch this site some of the instruments were scanning for non-solar planets and the flash would through them off.
We headed back for the hostel- it was hard to fall asleep while thinking about all of the amazing things we'd seen that day.
The next morning we headed south along the coast towards Dunedin. We caught a glimpse of the beach- the waves were a bit too small for surfing, but it still felt good to have the sand between my toes.
Dunedin is a very artsy/eclectic city thanks in part to the university students. We wandered around the town for a bit and admired the architecture.
The Cadbury chocolate factory has called Dunedin home since the 1900s, so we did the little tour (it was all for the free goodies).
That night we watched our first live rugby game. It didn't take too long to figure out the rules and the point of the game. Sometimes it looked like a big free for all, but I guess they have legitimate plays and everything. The sold beer in 6-pack containers, so we didn't have to miss any of the game while waiting in line at concessions. These people
Church of the Good Shepard
Isn't this the cutest thing?!?!?! are brilliant! Carissbrook is supposed to be one of THE stadiums in all of rugby (slightly biased, but the NFL definately knows how to entertain). The game was complete with scantily clad dancers (potentially on their night off from the st**p club).
The next morning we got an early start in search of the penguins. There are several beaches in the area known for the penguin colonies, but apparently the tour companies have private rights and we weren't able to see them in person. Josh took pictures of the pictures on the signs- figure that's just as good!
The road back was again quite scenic with lots of fruit orchirds along the way. We stopped for a fresh juice at the little market, and again for the photo of the day- Josh spotted the sign for Ord Road and happily turned around for a quick photo.
After that it was back on the road so I could get to work in time, but Josh continued his explorations in search of some prime fly-fishing ground. He didn't come back with any fish, but his smile showed that he still had a good time.
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-d
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oh boyfriend
As a disclaimer, Josh absolutely hates the name Bizzle- he thinks it sounds gay. I'm just trying to expand my vocabulary with another language- snoopian. for schizzle