I'm Here

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After a 13 hour plane ride I arrived in Queenstown at 9:10am on Saturday March 7th. My flight was uneventful with only minor turbulences over the pacific until the last 10 minutes before we landed in Queenstown. That was like a rollercoaster rolling right, rolling left sudden dips and lifts. Its a really small airport so we were the only plane there.

Matt, the winemaker of Akarua, picked me up and gave me a guided tour of the road to Bannockburn. He pointed out which rivers were good for rafting, which rivers still had gold in them (all of them), the original commercial bungie jumping bridge, his favorite wineries, and the names of the various mountains. Much of the road is carved out of the hillside above a river. There are massive steep mountains on both sides of the river. The landscape is very dramatic and there aren't many trees in this area. All of the trees look like they have been planted because they are along the roads or in a grid pattern.

I am living with a German girl, Alina, at the Vineyard House at Akarua. Alina is 20 and she has been in NZ since August. She traveled all over the North Island and much of the South Island. Right now we both have our own rooms, but in April we will have a guy from Canada come and then I will have to share my room with him.

Last night we went into Queenstown for a going away party for someone. It was pretty touristy and overpriced, but we had heaps of fun.

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Photos

Double Rainbow
This is a view from the front patio

Akarua
You can see the roof of the house we are staying in on the lower right.