Luging in Queenstown

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Having sadly skipped Milford Sound, I arrived in Queenstown and have to say it was disappointing. It is what you expect of any ski town-- overpriced but a fun place to party. As I had no party companions but did have a budget, Queenstown didn't do it for me. I did go to a aviary and learned some great info about keas, kiwis and, the lack of native New Zealand animals. For instance the size egg a kiwi lays in relation to its size would be similar to a human being giving birth to a baby the size of a four-year old. And Kiwis are the only birds that have nostrils at the tips of their beaks instead of near their face. Keas are a native New Zeland parrot and are sorty of faded green. They are called the cheeky kea in New Zealand because they can be pests who steal the rubber off windshield wipers and plastic caps. The birds dig plastic. New Zealand has no native mammals except for two types of small bats so Kiwis developed in way where they sort of fill in as a possum in the animal food chain. Of course mammals like possums and stoats have been imported and are now destroying the kiwi population.

Besides the aviary, Queenstown also had a luge ride/run. It wasn't an ice course and the sled was kinda of like a luge on wheels that drove like a go-cart. It was a fun ride and I would've stayed there for the rest of trip if I was nine.

A much better place than Queenstown is Wannaka; a smaller, prettier, cheaper place with better accomadations. Even the people were great. I did some nice hiking and did a life size maze. It took about an hour to get through. One of the signs posted said there was 1.5 km of path but on average people walk double that to completed the maze. I felt really bad for the guy on crutches who let his seven year old lead the way.

In Wanaka, I also got a day in skiing on a great mountain. It has been years since I last skiied and I was very rusty. After a disasterous first run I didn't think I would be able to go on. After the second run I actually went back to the ski shop to have my bindings loosened. I was wiping out so spectacularly I was afraid of what would happen if my skis didn't fall off. But things improved and I had a great time. The mountain looked down into a valley with a lake and on my last run, I could see a rainbow. Plus I was skiing in July. It was a great day with the added bonus of not hurting myself

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Photos

A Stuffed Kiwi
Kiwis are nocturnal and can only be seen in low-light habitats, so a stuffed will have to do. Notice the size of the egg behind it.

From the parking lot
The view from the slopes was amazing, but I was afraid to take my camera with me while I skiied. So this is a shot of the valley from the ski slope parking lot.