A quick catch-up

Hello one and all

Sorry for it being a while since we last posted something, we've been doing a lot and finding it hard to get decent internet access that's not a complete rip-off!

So when Sue last posted we were in Franz Joseph having climbed the glacier and were about to set off to head to Wanaka and check out if there was any snowboarding afoot. We woke in the morning to find that overnight it had snowed and our journey through the winding roads of the west coast were both picturesque and a little bit scarey at times. On the road to Wanaka you enter Mt Aspiring National Park which is just beautiful, with huge mountains and dense forest all bathed in lovely blue sky and sunshine. Arriving in Wanaka we found that there had been little snow so no snowbaording, just a lovely small town filled with skiers and boaders enjoying some apres-ski (or apres-sitting around waiting for snow). We only stayed a night and instead decided to push on to Queenstown where we would stay a few nights and see what was to be had.

Quuenstown is a great place. It's a small-ish city that seems to serve the needs of the snow and adrenaline seeking masses quite well. Again there was little snow but there was a lot more to do during the day then Wanaka. It was here that Sue and I decided we should embark on the leisurely pusuit of a bunjy jump We chose the one in town called 'The Ledge'. It's a 47m high jump from a platform that overlooks Queenstown. The view is stunning, once you've got over looking down! We both managed it first time (and without a friendly push from the guys running it). We have a video of it too which shows the before, during, and after. Most entertaining

After all this excitement we headed further south to a place called Te Anau which is essentially the gateway to Milford Sound. We took in a tour of the glow worm caves while we waited for the road to Milford Sound to open. We drove the 120km up to Milford on this most amazing road, taking photo after photo as we went along, each corner turning up something even more spectacular then the last. We had arranged a cruise around Milford Sound which takes you out into the Tasman Sea to look back at the entrance and then back in to take a close up look at many of the waterfalls and rock formations. While out at sea we were lucky enough to spot dolphins and unlike in the Bay of Islands they came right up to the bow of the boat and swam with us for a while. They were far more friendly then the other ones, jumping and playing around until we had to turn back.

Back at Te Anau we headed across to the east coast to Dunedin where we would take in a train trip, a tour of the Cadbury Chocolate Factory, and the Otago Peninsula to see an Albatross colony. The following day it was up to Oamaru for a spot of penguin watching (they have two types there. The rare Yellow Eyed penguin and the most common Blue penguins). Very cute and even more entertaining to watch as they waddle up the beach and then into their nests

Next on the list was a place called Methven which is an hour outside of Christchurch. This place is the base for the Mt Hutt ski resort and where Sue and I would hopefully take in some boarding. We decided to upgrade to a B&B while we were here, and good job too as the second day we were there we had a blizzard that covered the whole area! Good for the mountain and for boarding, but we couldn't get up there as the road was closed due to high winds. We finally got on the slopes and weren't dissapointed at all Both of us picked it up well again (to our surprise) and after a couple of lessons were happily sliding down the slopes on our boards rather then backsides! However all good things must come to an end and eventually we had to say goodbye and got back in the van to head to Christchurch; our final destination and where I write this post from We handed the van back and are now enjoying the space and creature comforts a hotel room offers.

Next stop is Sydney and then onto Singapore where hopefully we'll get some warmer weather (although the last forecast we saw was 33 degrees and thunder...nice!).

Hope you are all well and we'll post again soon.

Sharm