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Published: August 27th 2009
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Hamner Hot Springs
a great place to be on a day that started out snowing!! This is the end of our trip, may as well show it at the beginning of the story! In June, my daughter Becky and her boyfriend Phil came to visit for 3 weeks . Lydia Lamb was our constant companion, and her photo story will give you a glimpse into our adventures. Due to technical difficulties in loading the pictures I have been unable to post this entry until now-sorry!!
It was quite cold during their visit; it is winter here! Phil could make a great Kiwi; he was in short sleeves while Becky and I had multiple layers in place!! I kept waiting for him to turn up in shorts and jandals (flip flops). However, the cold did not really get in our way, other than the day that Becky and Phil climbed the glacier in the freezing rain!! Probably the most exciting thing we did was our flight from Queenstown to Milford on a small plane. We then had a short boat trip around Milford Sound before flying back. Of course, Phil went skydiving, so he might say that was his most exciting activity!!
The first few days, all of us, including Randy, went south of Timaru to some of our favorite places. We visited Gwen’s wallabees in Waimate, the Moeraki Boulders,
Lydia ready for adventure
Here she is perched on the wheel of our trusty Nissan Pulsar that has been "around" New Zealand a few times already!! and the yellow eyed penguins and seals at Katiki Point. We stayed one night in a “bach”( a rented holiday house) in Moeraki, ate dinner at the renowned fish restaurant, Fleur’s Place, and collected paua shells on the beach. Of course we stocked up on the wonderful cheeses at Whitestone Cheese factory in Oamaru and had a picnic lunch in the Public Gardens on one of the warmer afternoons!
Becky wanted to experience ER medicine in NZ, so she and I worked 4 shifts while Phil and Randy had a 3 day trip to Mt Cook and Tekapo.
Then I travelled with Becky and Phil as we did “the loop” south to Dunedin (for the Cadbury Chocolate Factory tour!) and across the Southern Alps to Queenstown, where we had to wait a few days for the weather to clear so we could fly to Milford. Meanwhile we had a side trip to the lovely town of Glenorchy, where much of the Lord of the Rings movies were filmed, watched the bungy jumpers, and spent time around Queenstown.
Next, we continued on to Wanaka where Phil jumped out of a plane. We did a hike
Phil and I at Caroline Bay
This is the main plaza in Timaru above Caroline Bay up a mountain, and all of us visited “Puzzling World” where we completed a 2 story maze, and we attended a unique movie theater in town where homemade ice cream and cookies are served at intermission!! From there, we headed north to the glaciers, and then went on to Punakaiki to see the pancake rocks and spend the night in the rainforest. We also visited a cave there to see the glow-worms (spooky at nighttime!).
We crossed over Arthur’s Pass, stopping so Phil could climb the rock formations at Castle Rocks, and then had a few days in Christchurch. Becky’s friend Courtney, a US ER doc who is working in Auckland, flew down to join us for a weekend in Akaroa, where we again rented a holiday house with a lovely wood fireplace, and then we spent our last few days in Kaikoura and Hamner Springs, which required a drive through a snowstorm to reach the naturally heated hot springs!!!One of our favorite places in Kaikoura was the Ohau Falls waterfall, where a bevy of baby seals were playing in the waterfall. I had to drag them away from that entertainment!
Becky and Phil are devoted
Lydia in Dunedin
Dunedin is a very hilly place, as you can see!! chocophiles, and they made it a mission to check out all the different types of candy and fudge available in NZ. Did I say fudge? LOTS of fudge. Diet time, now!! They are also vegetarian, and were delighted to find many choices here, particularly the wonderful vegetable "pies" available in almost any bakery. This is a modern upgrade to "mince pies" which are actually ground beef with or without cheese. Before I came to NZ I didn't know that "mince" means ground meat!! We cooked in some of the time, and ate out others. Hell’s Pizza in Queenstown turned out to be one of our favorites. We also sampled several types of passionfruit ice cream, and enjoyed them all. Another taste test focused on the ubiquitous "fish and chips" found in every town. Becky was on a mission to discover the best chips (she was less interested in the fish!!) The winner, according to Becky: the small town of Haast on the west coast!!
Becky spent the rest of the summer at Hole in the Wall camp, where Phil joined her for a few weeks before he started nursing school and she has now begun her second year
Lydia in chocolate bliss
The main reason for visiting Dunedin was to visit the Cadbury Chocolate Factory and take their tour. Lydia is pretty happy here..... of medical school. It was great having them visit, and I think it was a good break for them before starting their studies this year!!
Some of you may have seen these pictures on facebook already…..for those who have not, please note that you have to click on the next page to see all the pictures.
Rand and I are now living in Whangarei, on the northern part of the North Island. Hopefully a new blog will be out soon to show you our new home!!(Preview: we have a water view from our home!!)
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Nancy Harris
non-member comment
Dentures for Lydia Lamb????
I hope Lydia has a good dentist after consuming all that chocolate!! Please remind her to floss daily! Love, Nancy