Kiw Experience Part 3-Frans Josef Glacier, Lake Wanaka, Queenstown& back to Christchurch & Kiakoura!!!!!!!!!

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So we started our time in Frans Josef doing our sky diving which was prob the most awesome thing ive ever done was sweet as!!!!!!!!

In frans josef we're staying at the Rainforest hostel, its really nice like little villas feels like we're at a ski resort!!! its really nice, new modern, cheap about 10pounds a night, good bar, spa, good big modern rooms, massive good kitchen, good global gossip internet and tv room so all good!!!!

we did our sky dive on the first day and then stayed in that night and got an early night ready for our frans josef flacier full day hike!!!!!

Tuesday 30th Oct 2007, cor ive been away ages now it feels so normal and like im not even away as with so many english people and made good friends that im spending my time with so doesnt even feel like im by myself, stayed in the same room as my 3 good friends for about 5 nights now so its cool spending time with the same people although they're beginning to grate on me already lol!!!!! thats the resaon why i am here by myself people can be so annoying it is good to just be able to do what you want to do when you want to do it and not worry about someone else n wot they want to do etc. so travelling is still all good just having so much fun here in NZ and doing so many activities its unreal, would recommend kiwi exp to anyone but you need a load of money and unfortunately i havent got enough to do everything but trying as much new stuff as i can so all good!!!! not feeling so tired and knackered now as not doing everything myself, as kiwi exp organise everything you can more sit back and just enjoy it!!!!

we did our glacier walk on the tuesday, about 24 of us doing the full day one, unfortunately we woke up and it was raining!!!!! it had been good weather on the mondaty luckily we got our sky dives done while it was, apparently it rains loads down the weat coast of NZ due to the heat coming over from oz turning into moisture over the ocean and then hitting the mountians here on the west coast as rain!!!! ha ha check me out!!!! so yer im so pleased i got to do my sky dive while it was good weather as it is now chucking it down today wednesday and it rained all day tues for our hike.

we set off to the companies shop about 9am, got all geared up, boots, clamp ons, hat, gloves, rain coat and over trousers, got the coach to the national park which is at the bottom of the glacier and walked through to the valley!!!! welll you arrive at the valley where the river from the glacier flows and it is amazing!!!! it looks absoloutely massive and huge, due to the size of the moutnains and the valley and the glacier you feel tiny and the glacier looks quite close but actually when you start walking it takes ages to get to it!!!! bit like an optical illusion!!!! well the glacier is so cool, ive never seen anything like it obviosuly, i loved it so much, i love mountians and snow they're so pretty and cool i really want to live or work or do a ski season on the mountains as its just so nice and different. The glacier is amazing, it forms due to all the snow falling down from the mountains into the valley where the river used to be and compacting and forming into ice!!!! its fucking amazing!!!! you've never seen this much ice in your life!!! there are over 1000 glaciers in NZ but this is the 3rd biggest one, tasman being the biggest and fox second biggest but shit man they're amazing i love it so much!!!! so metres and metres high, wide and long of awesome ice!!!! bloody lush!!!!! dunno how high it is but massive, we got to the foot of the glacier and it just looks massive, shame it was raining as made it so cold n bit more miserable but cant have everything perfect it still was an amazing sight and amazing day on the ice.

So we headed up the glacier hiking up it, we split into 3 smaller groups, we were with josh who was very nice!!!! so we had to climb up the glacier, they spend ages making steps and tracks with axes its so cool!!!! so first up loads of steps then you get to the more intersting points like the cracks and big drops where the glacier has moved and formed differently etc its soooooo coool!!! so we walked and hiked etc through all these amazing cracks and gaps its sooo cool!!!! got very wet and very cold, was on the ice and in the rain for about 6 hours in total was awesome such a good different experience prob wont do much else like it in my life so very good glad i did it, we stopped once for lunch (no tables or chairs or shelter tho obviously!!!!) and once when we got to the highest point we were going to which is not half as high as the glacier is and not covering about 1/10th of it even so its mahooosive!!! they do heli hikes up and over it which would be cool to see more but very expensive and you'd need to go in good weather!!!! Oh yer plus alos no loos the whole day lol!!!!!

so yes the glacier was very very cool, frans josef is small and nice, the hostel is good and we had another night out again at the rainforest monsoon bar....where when it rains....they pour!!!! so yer all went out that night, the whole group pretty much so very good about 40 of us now, smiley the driver out as well etc!!!! lots of alcohol and AJ Hackett bungy people did a horizontal bungy in the bar and the glacier hike guides came up and damo who did our sky dive pick up so all cool wicked night!!!!

A few of us decided to stay in frans for an extra night as we are too tired and dont wanna keep moving on so fast as we have enough time not to, so today is a lye in, chill out, internet, washing, healthy dinner, reading, early night day!!!!! catch up on stuff before move onto lake wanaka and then the famous party town Queenstown for the weekend, maybe a bungy of some sort and firework night on monday!!!! oh wow firewrok ngiht in a different country that must be a first for me, weird not being at the pubs massive event cor bet they're busy preparing for that and everyone going :-( im missing out but hey cant complain think its gonna be pretty good in queenstown!!!!!!

Frans Josef to Lake Wanaka was a lovely drive, the weather was pretty perfect and sunny and not too cold, firstly we stopped at Lake Matheson not far from Fox Glacier, i had seen it when we went up for our sky dive and we stopped here and walked right round the lake and saw the amazing reflections in it not quite the mountains today but still good. Then we continued on where we stopped at a few amazing sights of mountains and lakes and a cool waterfall. Then we got to Wanaka which is a lovely pretty small town, the lake and mountains are beautiful and the town is quite chilled, looked round the shops and got some food shopping and then had a chilled evening at the nice hostel/hotel!!!!!

So Friday 2nd November arrived in Queenstown about 3pm!!!!!! yayyyyyyyyy partayyyyyyyy town!!!!! basically checked into base a cool big hostel and sorted ourselves out, met up with everyone else that had been on our previous bus which is cool, prob about 50 of us in the hostel that all know each other so well good, looked round the shops etc and got some dinner then we all got drinking!!!!!! yayyyy friday night in queenstown the partay town how good!!!!! so yer basically my time in queenstown has been two nights out friday night and sat night and most of the day in bed lol!!!!! two really good nights out with everyone so really coool good group of people nice spenidng a week or so with the same people was wot i needed after constantly moving in australia. The nights out were cool but my alcohol intake bit too high lol!!!!! I saw Laurence from uni as well, i knew pete & laurence were here so phoned pete and he said laurence worked in the bar where i was going so saw him again which was funny!!!! This weekend in the hostel with everyone going out has been kind of like uni but without any work so all good!!!!

Oh yer nearly forgot a cool thing that on the way into Queenstown we went to the AJ Hackett bungy centre, the first place where they officially did and sold bungees!!!! this was cool we got a free introduction into bungys and how it all strated etc, got to look at all the equipment and a few people off our bus even did a bungy!!!! so yer personally id love to think i could do one and as i did the sky dive i want to but watching people so high up jumping made me feel way too nervous and dont think id like to pay money to do it!!!! loads of people off our bus were all going to do the nevis 134m bungy on saturday i wanted to go and do it as the banter would be great but just dont think id be able to jump or like it, so thinking now i might do the auckland bridge bungy with elise!!! It's only 42m & only $90 so way smaller and way cheaper!!!!! so no bungy for me yet but loads of people did do the niggest one!!!

So queenstown basically good nights out, bungys and long walks!!!!!!

On Sunday 4th November got up again with a bit of a hang over and me and osnat my israely friend decided to go for a big long walk, we walked all the way from Queenstown to Frankton the next town round lake wakitupua ( not sure on how u spell that lol i make most o fthe spellings up lol!!!!!) so yer we walked about 3 miles there and 3 miles back, saw some more amazing views and had pub lunch and a drink in frankton and then headed back, so that was a good bit of sightseeing and walked my hang over off well!!!!

Today is Monday 5th November!!!!! yayyyyy firweork night!!!! well i thought theyd have a big firework display here in QT but apparently they dont really :-( so im missing out, well miss the pubs big firweorks display and seeing everyone :-( oh well have to wait for xmas to see veryone all cold and wintery, funny cos it doenst feel wintery here at all well it is spring time so it wouldnt, its not that codl at all and it doesnt get drak early not until at least 8pm so i dont really have much clue on the time of year!!! Been away 7 weeks now and only another 5 weeks of this trip to go, unbelievable how fast it goes and how quick, 7 weeks have flown by have done so much as well tho!!!! so 5 left, fiji i cant wait and LA & NY!!!!! AWESOME!!!!!

So tomorrow im leaving QT to go back up to christchurch then back up to kiakorua and then up to picton where we get the ferry across to the North Island!!!! So south island will be finished in a few days, has been very good, gone a bit too fast really, think you could do with more time and def more money, if you spend just one night in a place it never feels like uve even been there really so bit poo but oh well cant complain!!!!

So NZ is very lush and cool again would like to spend more time here so i feel like ive lived here or know the country more as this trip is too short but has been a good taster to what there is here!!!!!! If i was to come again or recommend it to anyone else id suggest they did the full monty kiwi exp pass so go everywhere and bring about 5000 pounds so they can do all the cool activities!!!!! its lush!!!!!!

Travelled from Queesntown back to Christchurch today which is a bit of an anticlimax!!!! from the party town back to where i started where its way more boring and chillier i think. Went up the gondola this afternoon to see the views but wasn't a very clear day so not the best but could see quite a bit and see Lylleton harbour so cool. Staying in Base hostel this time in Christchurch and a girl called Lou who i met in Byron Bay and went out to Cheeky Monkeys with is also staying here so we bumped into each other earlier on the internet!!!! small world hey especially when ur travelling!!!!! I'm staying in Christchurch again tomorrow night as no kiwi bus tomorrow morn and then leaving here on thurs going to kiakorua where ive already been and then up to Picton ready to get the ferry to the North Island!!!! yer man sweet as!!!!!!

Spent the day today in christchurch, had a massive lye in until 12pm yeeee haaa!!!! needed that to catch up on some sleep and ready for getting up early everyday now for a while again and doing lots of new stuff with new people, got up had breakfast and a good shower and washed a few bits in the shower with me to save some pennies. Then when i felt all clean and sorted i headed out into the town to go and see the woman i booked my kiwi pass with and talk to her about the feejee exp pass as there is 20% off it at the mo same as there was on the kiwi pass bonus!!!! then i went to the supermarket and im really missing home comforts today like my own room, house, living room,. kitchecn and especially a fridge and freezer to store lots of nice ffod in!!!! i wanted to buy lots of nice different food but cant cos everything i buy i have to carry and cant afford lots anyway so missing nice food and a good fridge etc how funny!!!! Then even more i decided to treat myself, i need some trainers cos i only have flip flops n sandlas i shud have bought some when i first started travellign the south island but i got them now anyway so i can go running and then i went bit lavish and bought some gym clothes n t-shirts as well cos they were fairly cheap and im gettign bored of my clothes and want to go runnign so need the right clothes lol!!! so yer basically today think i was bored as have already been tochristchurch so instead i ended up missing home comforts a bit and treated myself to new clothes he heeeeeee!!!! So been an okay day here mainly chilling.

Tomorrow have to be on the bus at 7.25am!!!!! how early!!!!! to go up to kiakorua where ive already been and done the whale watching so this time im going to do a nice big long walk, hopefully meet someone who wants to do it as well, the national park goes all around the coast so hope the weather is nice as well, so that will be a cheap day and then finally friday morn i will be going up to picton to get the ferry across to the north island, looking forward to it now cos feel ive seen everythign im gonna see in the south now so want to get to the north to see stuff there plus alos prob nadia and james againa and elise!!!! so yer just wanna be in wellington now really but have to wait until about 4pm friday oh well can chill n do exercise with my new trainers and gym clothes now lol!!!!!!

So finally got from Christchurch back to Kiakorua for the second time round!!!!! met a nice girl called ruth on the bus and me and her went on a 3.5 hour walk around the national park which had soem lovely sights so that was cool, when we got back i lyed down for a min about 5pm and woke up again at 10pm!!!!! then went back to bed at 11 and slept thru til 8am so all the exercise must be making me tired along wiht my cold i think so slept amazingly!!!!

Friday morning we set off at 9am from kiakorua headed to picton to get the ferry at 1.15pm which took 3 hours over the cook strait to get to the north island of NZ!!!!!!!!!! seemed like a very long day on the coach and ferry but all ocol now we're in the capital gonna have a good night out with soem lovely english gals ive met cara and stella!!!!! cara is from kent how cool!!!!!!

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