So after a great nice in a super cute place, we did a "Black Water Rafting" trip in the Waitomo Caves.
They get you all suited up in wetsuits, rubber boots and helmets with headlamps. It was so funny the guide giving us instructions on how to get the wetsuits on and how they are supposed to fit - he gave us a little chat on not tee tee-ing in your wetsuit - hahaha, I don't know why that cracks me up - but the fact that 12 adults are being told not to pee in their pants is just hysterical to me - but it reminded me of a similar conversation the TNT triathletes have the day I hand out wetsuits :)
So then you get a tube and you're off! You start off by walking down into the cave and it is SO dark and FREEZING!! I kept bumping my head on the stalagmites (don't know how to spell that??) that hang down from the rock...good thing for helmets. Once we got to deeper water, you get in your tube and float through the cave. At one point, everyone turns off their headlight and you look up to the ceiling of the cave and there are TONS of glow worms!! They just light up the whole ceiling - it was so incredible!! I was just giggling in amazement - it was unreal! We also jumped off a few waterfalls and did all sorts of fun stuff in there. Poor Jessie was completely numb from head to toe so I think she was happy when we saw the light at the end of the tunnel - sunshine has never felt so good!
The glow worm caves are a definite must do!
From Waitomo we drove back to Wakapappa Village - we came here last week to try and do the Tongariro Alpine Crossing but it got snowed out :( So fingers crossed we will be able to go tomorrow!!!! The forecast is looking fine right now - but we are at a pretty high altitude so you never know with the weather!!
So tomorrow we will do the Tongariro Crossing and then we are driving back to Auckland to prepare to come home!!
We are having dinner with Robyn - remember her? She is the Kiwi who invited us in for tea our first day in NZ when we were wondering around like jet lagged zombies in the park! She is SOO sweet and we are really excited to have dinner with her family and tell her all about our travels.
We also have some major cleaning up of Queen Charlotte to do...we have driven her literally to every corner of New Zealand, used her as a suitcase, a dining room - lots of on the road lunches, ole Queenie has been good to us and now we have to give her a good wash and vacuum and turn her in - tear :(
And of course we want to have enough time to do one last day of shopping :) I have become a souvenir junkie and Jessie is the same as always just loves those clothes - so we have to get that done with before we board the plane on Friday night!
I will write again before we go - but I just want to say - that New Zealand exceeded all my expectations - it is an INCREDIBLE place! You all must come - and I will come back with you :)
Love,
Alley
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
We heart driving
Jessie and I are driving maniacs. I doubt that any other tourists are as ridiculous as we are as we continue to drive the length of the Island following the sunshine around the country :)
While we were in the very North of the North Island, we stopped to see 90 mile beach - it's not literally 90 miles - I think it's around 60 ish.. - but anywhoo it's part of the highway system here -so there are cars and buses just whizzing down it. Rental cars are not insured to drive on it, so we parked Queen Charlotte a safe distance from the beach and just walked up to see it :)
We also saw the famous Kauri trees; Kauris are one of the world's largest tree along with California's Sequoias. Kauri can only be found in NZ and nowadays only in a few places on the North Island. We stopped to see the biggest of them all - the "Lord of the Forest" - it was GIGANTIC!! It would take 12 people holding hands to get around the trunk! And they believe it is 2,000 years old. Very sweet as - as the Kiwis would say...
Then we DROVE and drove and drove south to Waitomo. All the hostels were booked when we got there so we had to splurge on a B&B and it was glorious :) The owners were SO sweet!! They live in this great house on a hill that overlooks the valley and you can see the mountains and volcanoes in the distance. They have two little cottages they rent out - so that is where we shacked up last night and it was fantastic! After 11 hours in the car, I crashed as soon as I hit the bed :)
While we were in the very North of the North Island, we stopped to see 90 mile beach - it's not literally 90 miles - I think it's around 60 ish.. - but anywhoo it's part of the highway system here -so there are cars and buses just whizzing down it. Rental cars are not insured to drive on it, so we parked Queen Charlotte a safe distance from the beach and just walked up to see it :)
We also saw the famous Kauri trees; Kauris are one of the world's largest tree along with California's Sequoias. Kauri can only be found in NZ and nowadays only in a few places on the North Island. We stopped to see the biggest of them all - the "Lord of the Forest" - it was GIGANTIC!! It would take 12 people holding hands to get around the trunk! And they believe it is 2,000 years old. Very sweet as - as the Kiwis would say...
Then we DROVE and drove and drove south to Waitomo. All the hostels were booked when we got there so we had to splurge on a B&B and it was glorious :) The owners were SO sweet!! They live in this great house on a hill that overlooks the valley and you can see the mountains and volcanoes in the distance. They have two little cottages they rent out - so that is where we shacked up last night and it was fantastic! After 11 hours in the car, I crashed as soon as I hit the bed :)
Easter
Hello!
We had a fabulous Easter Sunday! Hope the Easter bunny was good to you guys...we went to church in the oldest church in NZ - pretty neat! And then hit the road headed North to Cape Reinga. Like I said in the last post this is spot where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific - there is a whirlpool where they meet. And this is also the place the Maori believe they go to enter the spiritual world - so it is a very sacred spot.
From there, we drove a few kilometers to the "giant sand dunes" of Te Paki. These sand dunes are HUGE!!! You hike up them and then "sand board" down in a sled :) It was SO fun!! I BUSTED and flew out of my toboggan and Jessie got it all on her camera - I has sand in my teeth from having my mouth open from screaming and laughing.
So - not too shabby of an Easter Sunday, I'd say!
We had a fabulous Easter Sunday! Hope the Easter bunny was good to you guys...we went to church in the oldest church in NZ - pretty neat! And then hit the road headed North to Cape Reinga. Like I said in the last post this is spot where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific - there is a whirlpool where they meet. And this is also the place the Maori believe they go to enter the spiritual world - so it is a very sacred spot.
From there, we drove a few kilometers to the "giant sand dunes" of Te Paki. These sand dunes are HUGE!!! You hike up them and then "sand board" down in a sled :) It was SO fun!! I BUSTED and flew out of my toboggan and Jessie got it all on her camera - I has sand in my teeth from having my mouth open from screaming and laughing.
So - not too shabby of an Easter Sunday, I'd say!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
North Island
Howdy!
We are on the North Island and I am in a little depressive funk missing the South Island :) I didn't realize how much I had gotten used to hardly any people and all sheep!! Jessie and I got caught in traffic the other day and were like "where did all these people come from?!" We have been so spoiled! Atlanta is going to be a rude awakening!!
So mom and dad left on a puddle jumper from Picton and we left on the biggest ferry you've ever laid eyes on!! There were literally 18 wheeler trucks with cattle and horses in the car portion of the ferry - oh, yes Queen Charlotte made the trek across Cook Straight with us, we wouldn't dare leave her behind! It was hard to part with the South Island...I am ashamed to say I shed a tear or two :) Yep, I am that big of a nerd.
Wellington was our first stop on the North. It's the capital so all the govt buildings are there and there is a really awesome museum called "Te Papa." It's 5 stories high! You could spend days in there and not see everything! I learned about volcanoes, earthquakes, Maori culture - all kinds of stuff! Oh, and the have the world's largest squid on display and a skeleton of a whale that takes up the entire ceiling of one room - insane!! We visited the Botanic Gardens, rode the cable car, ate out :), and shopped!
The highlight from Wellington came on the morning we left. Jess and I were eating bfast in the NASTY NASTY kitchen area of our hostel...I am surprised we could eat :) and this girl was on the Internet in the sitting/dining area where we were. And she was belting out this song she was playing on repeat on the computer - I wish I knew what it was so I could include a link to it but it was seriously a rap/hip hop song being sung by The Chimpmunks and she was LOVIN it! Just singing with all her might...at 8 am...and each time the song ended, she just played it again! We were dying! She turns around and has a cigarette hangin off her lip and just a few teeth and introduces herself and starts chatting. She tells us she is having a 21st bday party for herself and invited us to come - it was in 2 days so we were going to be long gone from Wellington - but I tell you what, if that party had been in 30 minutes, Jessie and I wouldn't have missed that party for the world. Man. Lyda - where ever you are, you made my day. Julie Anne, Catherine and EColi - you guys would DIE :)
From Wellington we drove north to Wakapapa Village - where there is NOTHING to do other than the Tongariro Alpine Crossing which is a hike on a volcano! So after walking around the supermarket for fun -we went to sleep hoping to do the hike in the AM. We woke to find out that it snowed and the Crossing was closed to the public :( soo no hike. We are going to try again in a few days - the weather is really unpredictable so we have to keep our eyes peeled for the forecast...
We drove through Taupo - NZ's biggest lake is there, then on to Rotorua to see the geothermal craters and geysers. We saw a pool called "Devil's Bath" that was BRIGHT neon green!! And pools of bubbling, boiling mud and lakes that are yellow from the sulfur...it was really cool. It's like hell on Earth, literally!
From there we drove straight up the North Island to Paihia. Everyone else from NZ did the same thing that day too :) Easter is a HUGE traveling holiday for the Kiwis so the drive from Auckland to Paihia - in the Bay of Islands - was like the drive from NYC to the Hamptons! CRAZY crowded! Now that we are here, I can see why! It's beautiful here - lots of beaches and there are islands scattered throughout the bay.
Today, we did the "Cape Brett Track" - a ferry dropped us off at an old lighthouse and we hiked back to the mainland. The hike was lots of hills - up and down again and again - so some of the views from the top were incredible!!
We are pooped tonight so we are hitting the hay early and tomorrow is Easter!! We are going to a church service in the morning in the OLDEST church in NZ! Pretty cool, huh?! Afterwards, we are heading to the northernmost point of NZ - Cape Regina. It's where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. And the Maori's believe it is where their spirits go to leap into the afterlife and return to their homeland - neat, huh?! Will be sure to tell you how it goes!
Hope you all have a VERY Happy Easter!
Love you, alley
We are on the North Island and I am in a little depressive funk missing the South Island :) I didn't realize how much I had gotten used to hardly any people and all sheep!! Jessie and I got caught in traffic the other day and were like "where did all these people come from?!" We have been so spoiled! Atlanta is going to be a rude awakening!!
So mom and dad left on a puddle jumper from Picton and we left on the biggest ferry you've ever laid eyes on!! There were literally 18 wheeler trucks with cattle and horses in the car portion of the ferry - oh, yes Queen Charlotte made the trek across Cook Straight with us, we wouldn't dare leave her behind! It was hard to part with the South Island...I am ashamed to say I shed a tear or two :) Yep, I am that big of a nerd.
Wellington was our first stop on the North. It's the capital so all the govt buildings are there and there is a really awesome museum called "Te Papa." It's 5 stories high! You could spend days in there and not see everything! I learned about volcanoes, earthquakes, Maori culture - all kinds of stuff! Oh, and the have the world's largest squid on display and a skeleton of a whale that takes up the entire ceiling of one room - insane!! We visited the Botanic Gardens, rode the cable car, ate out :), and shopped!
The highlight from Wellington came on the morning we left. Jess and I were eating bfast in the NASTY NASTY kitchen area of our hostel...I am surprised we could eat :) and this girl was on the Internet in the sitting/dining area where we were. And she was belting out this song she was playing on repeat on the computer - I wish I knew what it was so I could include a link to it but it was seriously a rap/hip hop song being sung by The Chimpmunks and she was LOVIN it! Just singing with all her might...at 8 am...and each time the song ended, she just played it again! We were dying! She turns around and has a cigarette hangin off her lip and just a few teeth and introduces herself and starts chatting. She tells us she is having a 21st bday party for herself and invited us to come - it was in 2 days so we were going to be long gone from Wellington - but I tell you what, if that party had been in 30 minutes, Jessie and I wouldn't have missed that party for the world. Man. Lyda - where ever you are, you made my day. Julie Anne, Catherine and EColi - you guys would DIE :)
From Wellington we drove north to Wakapapa Village - where there is NOTHING to do other than the Tongariro Alpine Crossing which is a hike on a volcano! So after walking around the supermarket for fun -we went to sleep hoping to do the hike in the AM. We woke to find out that it snowed and the Crossing was closed to the public :( soo no hike. We are going to try again in a few days - the weather is really unpredictable so we have to keep our eyes peeled for the forecast...
We drove through Taupo - NZ's biggest lake is there, then on to Rotorua to see the geothermal craters and geysers. We saw a pool called "Devil's Bath" that was BRIGHT neon green!! And pools of bubbling, boiling mud and lakes that are yellow from the sulfur...it was really cool. It's like hell on Earth, literally!
From there we drove straight up the North Island to Paihia. Everyone else from NZ did the same thing that day too :) Easter is a HUGE traveling holiday for the Kiwis so the drive from Auckland to Paihia - in the Bay of Islands - was like the drive from NYC to the Hamptons! CRAZY crowded! Now that we are here, I can see why! It's beautiful here - lots of beaches and there are islands scattered throughout the bay.
Today, we did the "Cape Brett Track" - a ferry dropped us off at an old lighthouse and we hiked back to the mainland. The hike was lots of hills - up and down again and again - so some of the views from the top were incredible!!
We are pooped tonight so we are hitting the hay early and tomorrow is Easter!! We are going to a church service in the morning in the OLDEST church in NZ! Pretty cool, huh?! Afterwards, we are heading to the northernmost point of NZ - Cape Regina. It's where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. And the Maori's believe it is where their spirits go to leap into the afterlife and return to their homeland - neat, huh?! Will be sure to tell you how it goes!
Hope you all have a VERY Happy Easter!
Love you, alley
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
winding down :)
Wine
From Abel Tasman, we drove to Blenheim/Renwick in the Marlbrough Wine Region aka Mecca :)
Jessie and I had already biked around this area to all the wineries tasting Sav Blanc but sometimes you just have to take one for the team and do something twice :)
Need I say more about this...tasting wine, riding bikes, the scenery of NZ...life doesn't get much better.
Marlbrough Sounds
After drinking and purchasing 2 CASES of the nectar of the Gods - I mean Sav Blanc we went to Portage Bay in the Marlbrough Sounds (this is where we had done the Queen Charlotte Track 6 weeks ago) - it such a gorgeous section of NZ we had to show mom and dad!
After a hike and kayaking in the Sounds - it was time to take them back to Picton for their flight home :( They literally took the smallest plane known to mankind from Picton over the Cook Straigt to Wellington and then on to Auckland and then to LAX to Atl - LONG day for them!
We had a WONDERFUL time with them and hated to see them go - we miss you mom and dad!!
More to come soon.
We are on the North Island now - little teaser for ya :)
From Abel Tasman, we drove to Blenheim/Renwick in the Marlbrough Wine Region aka Mecca :)
Jessie and I had already biked around this area to all the wineries tasting Sav Blanc but sometimes you just have to take one for the team and do something twice :)
Need I say more about this...tasting wine, riding bikes, the scenery of NZ...life doesn't get much better.
Marlbrough Sounds
After drinking and purchasing 2 CASES of the nectar of the Gods - I mean Sav Blanc we went to Portage Bay in the Marlbrough Sounds (this is where we had done the Queen Charlotte Track 6 weeks ago) - it such a gorgeous section of NZ we had to show mom and dad!
After a hike and kayaking in the Sounds - it was time to take them back to Picton for their flight home :( They literally took the smallest plane known to mankind from Picton over the Cook Straigt to Wellington and then on to Auckland and then to LAX to Atl - LONG day for them!
We had a WONDERFUL time with them and hated to see them go - we miss you mom and dad!!
More to come soon.
We are on the North Island now - little teaser for ya :)
Mom and dad's visit continues...
West Coast
From Wanaka, we headed up the West Coast - which was exciting as Jessie and I hadn't ventured up that way yet. The West Coast is known for having LOTS of rain and kinda crazy weather - as a result, it was very lush and looked more like a rain forest than anything else we had seen so far.
Our first stop on the West Coast was Fox Glacier. We did a guided hike onto the glacier and it was AWESOME! Our guide, Rodger, was a genius and was so interesting to listen to - he knows EVERYTHING there is to know about glaciers! I think Jessie is in love. He is only 40 years older than her - age, smage.
We had to put crampons onto our boots before you get on the glacier and watching dad try to figure out how to put them on was classic and even better was him attempting to walk on the ice. Luckily, he lived to tell about it and I think he and mom really enjoyed it. I mean, how often do you get to walk around on a glacier?! One neat thing about this particular glacier is that it is only one of two glaciers in the world that is surrounded by rain forest. The other one is in Patagonia...guess I am just gonna have to go check that one out to say I have seen both...
After the hike, we drove farther up the coast almost to Westport. We stopped to see the "Pancake Rocks" - the pancake rocks are literally these huge rock formations that look like a bunch of thin rocks stacked on top of one another like a stack of pancakes! And the coolest part is - there are lots of scientific theories as to why that are that way - but for the most part it remains a mystery! There were also some really fabulous views of the beaches and Tasman Sea - soooooo pretty!! NZ is a wonderland.
Abel Tasman
Next stop on the agenda was Abel Tasman Natl Park - which is on the northwest coast of the Island. Abel Tasman is known for it's crystal clear water and golden beaches and it did not disappoint - it looks like a postcard!
We sea kayaked the first day. I thought dad might kill me for getting him to do it...he had the fear of God in his eyes when the lady showed us how to get out of the kayak in case we flipped :) Fortunately, none of us went for a swim that day! It was SO beautiful out on the water!! Mom really enjoyed it - think we need to buy that woman a kayak! Then you just park your kayak on the beach and the kayak company comes to get it and you hike on the track or take a water taxi to your next destination in the park. We took the taxi to Awaroa Beach where we stayed for two nights. It's on the far north of the park - which means it's more secluded than the more southern beaches and it was glorious!!! It was like a paradise!
The 2nd day, we hiked north from Awaroa. The most fun part was crossing Awaroa Inlet. You have to cross 2 hours either side of low tide and we were running a little behind schedule soo we had to ford a few "streams" - dad was an expert at this!! hahaha. Lawyers don't do too much fording of rivers evidently...:) Then we spent the rest of the afternoon - at Jess' request - sitting in the sun reading - it was fantastic!!
The 3rd and final day in Abel Tasman, we hiked south to Bark's Bay. It is such a cool experience to be hiking in the "bush" - in tree cover, in the mountains and look out and see the blue sea and golden sands!! Abel Tasman is one of the prettiest places I have EVER laid eyes on - a definite favorite!!
more....
From Wanaka, we headed up the West Coast - which was exciting as Jessie and I hadn't ventured up that way yet. The West Coast is known for having LOTS of rain and kinda crazy weather - as a result, it was very lush and looked more like a rain forest than anything else we had seen so far.
Our first stop on the West Coast was Fox Glacier. We did a guided hike onto the glacier and it was AWESOME! Our guide, Rodger, was a genius and was so interesting to listen to - he knows EVERYTHING there is to know about glaciers! I think Jessie is in love. He is only 40 years older than her - age, smage.
We had to put crampons onto our boots before you get on the glacier and watching dad try to figure out how to put them on was classic and even better was him attempting to walk on the ice. Luckily, he lived to tell about it and I think he and mom really enjoyed it. I mean, how often do you get to walk around on a glacier?! One neat thing about this particular glacier is that it is only one of two glaciers in the world that is surrounded by rain forest. The other one is in Patagonia...guess I am just gonna have to go check that one out to say I have seen both...
After the hike, we drove farther up the coast almost to Westport. We stopped to see the "Pancake Rocks" - the pancake rocks are literally these huge rock formations that look like a bunch of thin rocks stacked on top of one another like a stack of pancakes! And the coolest part is - there are lots of scientific theories as to why that are that way - but for the most part it remains a mystery! There were also some really fabulous views of the beaches and Tasman Sea - soooooo pretty!! NZ is a wonderland.
Abel Tasman
Next stop on the agenda was Abel Tasman Natl Park - which is on the northwest coast of the Island. Abel Tasman is known for it's crystal clear water and golden beaches and it did not disappoint - it looks like a postcard!
We sea kayaked the first day. I thought dad might kill me for getting him to do it...he had the fear of God in his eyes when the lady showed us how to get out of the kayak in case we flipped :) Fortunately, none of us went for a swim that day! It was SO beautiful out on the water!! Mom really enjoyed it - think we need to buy that woman a kayak! Then you just park your kayak on the beach and the kayak company comes to get it and you hike on the track or take a water taxi to your next destination in the park. We took the taxi to Awaroa Beach where we stayed for two nights. It's on the far north of the park - which means it's more secluded than the more southern beaches and it was glorious!!! It was like a paradise!
The 2nd day, we hiked north from Awaroa. The most fun part was crossing Awaroa Inlet. You have to cross 2 hours either side of low tide and we were running a little behind schedule soo we had to ford a few "streams" - dad was an expert at this!! hahaha. Lawyers don't do too much fording of rivers evidently...:) Then we spent the rest of the afternoon - at Jess' request - sitting in the sun reading - it was fantastic!!
The 3rd and final day in Abel Tasman, we hiked south to Bark's Bay. It is such a cool experience to be hiking in the "bush" - in tree cover, in the mountains and look out and see the blue sea and golden sands!! Abel Tasman is one of the prettiest places I have EVER laid eyes on - a definite favorite!!
more....
Mom and Dad's visit - week one
After the Rail Trail, we drove to Arrowtown - outside of Queenstown - to spend the night and wait for mom and dad's arrival! They flew into Qtown the next day - it was so fun to see them :)
We stayed in Arrowtown for the first few nights...Queenstown is a little too touristy/crowded for my liking and Arrowtown is just 15 minutes away is very quaint and cute. It used to be a gold mining town back in the day. The first day and half - we let mom and dad catch up on sleep, etc and laid low.
Milford Sound
Then we did Milford Sound. Milford is probably the most famous thing to see here in NZ - and it's easy to understand when you see it! It's part of the Fijordland National Park which is on the far western coast of the South Island. We took a bus to get there - 5 hours of car sickness and the driver talking NON STOP about all things NZ :) Informative but not helpful for my nausea hehe. Then you get on a boat and they take you out into the Sounds. The mountains are GIGANTIC! It's a spectacular sight to see such big mountains jutting out of the sea. Hard to describe - you'll have to come see for yourself!!
Wine and Flemings
The next day, it rained so it was the perfect excuse to go to a wine tasting! The region were where in - Central Otago - is known for Pinot Noir so we just couldn't resist checking in on that :) We then headed to Alexandra to visit the Flemings! The poor Flemings probably never want to see us again - we are their stalkers now! We had a wonderful time with them again - they are seriously the greatest people on Earth - so interesting and fun to be around. We did a bike ride with them and I think mom and dad really enjoyed it. It is really nice to have locals to stay with - then you feel like you're getting a more authentic experience, you know?! It was so sweet - Dr Fleming took my family and I for a walk around the neighborhood and nearby orchards. After we picked the most delicious apples I have ever tasted from a tree on the side of the road, he told us being in NZ is like going back in time to the 50s when he and Marilyn first met. He said it was like they were kids dating all over again. Awwww...so sweet :)
Wanaka & Mt Aspiring
From Alex we drove to Wanaka. We stayed at a bed and breakfast called "Mountain Range" and I want to make it my permanent home :) There are incredible views of the mountains, a big fireplaces with comfy chairs all around, FREE wine in the fridge :), local NZ artist's' work on the walls, and get this - heated bathroom floors. Yep. It was heaven!! The couple that manages the property can't be too much older than me - and they were amazing! The man is from England and his lady is American and they met each other here. She makes homemade goodies like muffins, brownies, etc for the guests everyday and he just chats and is so hospitable - it was my favorite place I've ever stayed!!
We did the "Rob Roy Glacier" hike the next day in Mt Aspiring Natl Park and it was FANTASTIC!! To get to the trail head, you have to walk through a pasture filled with dairy cows and I am pretty certain mom took 500 pictures of them. When we finally lured her away from the cows, we had to cross a swingbridge over a river. The look on mom and dad's faces as they inched across the bridge was priceless and yes, mom, I do have a picture of the pure fear radiating from your face. It was a highlight for Jessie and I teehee. At the top, the views of the glacier are incredible! It was the best day hike so far! Oh and Jessie locked me in the toilet on the trail.
continued in next post...
We stayed in Arrowtown for the first few nights...Queenstown is a little too touristy/crowded for my liking and Arrowtown is just 15 minutes away is very quaint and cute. It used to be a gold mining town back in the day. The first day and half - we let mom and dad catch up on sleep, etc and laid low.
Milford Sound
Then we did Milford Sound. Milford is probably the most famous thing to see here in NZ - and it's easy to understand when you see it! It's part of the Fijordland National Park which is on the far western coast of the South Island. We took a bus to get there - 5 hours of car sickness and the driver talking NON STOP about all things NZ :) Informative but not helpful for my nausea hehe. Then you get on a boat and they take you out into the Sounds. The mountains are GIGANTIC! It's a spectacular sight to see such big mountains jutting out of the sea. Hard to describe - you'll have to come see for yourself!!
Wine and Flemings
The next day, it rained so it was the perfect excuse to go to a wine tasting! The region were where in - Central Otago - is known for Pinot Noir so we just couldn't resist checking in on that :) We then headed to Alexandra to visit the Flemings! The poor Flemings probably never want to see us again - we are their stalkers now! We had a wonderful time with them again - they are seriously the greatest people on Earth - so interesting and fun to be around. We did a bike ride with them and I think mom and dad really enjoyed it. It is really nice to have locals to stay with - then you feel like you're getting a more authentic experience, you know?! It was so sweet - Dr Fleming took my family and I for a walk around the neighborhood and nearby orchards. After we picked the most delicious apples I have ever tasted from a tree on the side of the road, he told us being in NZ is like going back in time to the 50s when he and Marilyn first met. He said it was like they were kids dating all over again. Awwww...so sweet :)
Wanaka & Mt Aspiring
From Alex we drove to Wanaka. We stayed at a bed and breakfast called "Mountain Range" and I want to make it my permanent home :) There are incredible views of the mountains, a big fireplaces with comfy chairs all around, FREE wine in the fridge :), local NZ artist's' work on the walls, and get this - heated bathroom floors. Yep. It was heaven!! The couple that manages the property can't be too much older than me - and they were amazing! The man is from England and his lady is American and they met each other here. She makes homemade goodies like muffins, brownies, etc for the guests everyday and he just chats and is so hospitable - it was my favorite place I've ever stayed!!
We did the "Rob Roy Glacier" hike the next day in Mt Aspiring Natl Park and it was FANTASTIC!! To get to the trail head, you have to walk through a pasture filled with dairy cows and I am pretty certain mom took 500 pictures of them. When we finally lured her away from the cows, we had to cross a swingbridge over a river. The look on mom and dad's faces as they inched across the bridge was priceless and yes, mom, I do have a picture of the pure fear radiating from your face. It was a highlight for Jessie and I teehee. At the top, the views of the glacier are incredible! It was the best day hike so far! Oh and Jessie locked me in the toilet on the trail.
continued in next post...
Otago Rail Trail
Ok - last I wrote we were going to rest a bit - and rest days mean eat "lollies" - (well I do that EVERYday but even more on rest days), do laundry, and read - so we rested in Wanaka which is BEAUTIFUL! It's a great town on a gorgeous lake - I could stay there forever.
We left there and did the Otago Rail Trail which is a 150 km trail that you can bike, horse back ride or walk. We decided to bike - no horse :) and no way I was going to walk 90 miles! It's called the rail trail because a railroad used to be there way back in the 1800s; it had been laying there dormant for years and the Dept of Conservation decided to use it for recreation - really great idea!! the best part is that trains can't get up steep hills so it makes for nice, flat riding for us! It was AWESOME!!! It was so fun to do another sport - we had been hiking a ton so it was nice to do something different. And there is just something so fun about riding bikes - makes me feel like a little kid!
The first leg takes you from the little town of Clyde to Lauder. The only things in Lauder are sheep, an old town hall, a hotel, more sheep and an old schoolhouse that is now a B&B. There wasn't a hostel of backpackers as they say here so the lady at the bike rental place told us the hotel has a "bunkhouse" in the back we could stay in. We get there and the hotel owner walks us out to this tool shed that looked like it was about to fall over and there was junk all over the ground around it...and Jessie said - haha watch that be our hostel...and she was RIGHT :) But, it turned out to be SO cute on the inside! It was TEENEY just enough room for a bunk and a space heater. Oh, and the toilet was right outside in a joined shed and it had a lock - unlike our room - so we had to lock up our cameras and money in the potty :)
Our bunkhouse obviously didn't have a kitchen where we could cook dinner so we had to go into the hotel and order food there. Turns out, the entire town comes to the hotel bar to watch rugby! It was packed - we didn't eat until 10 pm bc they were so slammed...and slammed is relative :) they only have one employee so customers would just jump behind the bar and help the bartender when he had a few drink orders to fill! haha - it was cute.
Jessie and I were some reason the hit of the night at the bar :)! Don't ask me why - there were no showers so we smelled like goats and I was wearing my cycle pants...you know, the ones that makes it look like you pooped your pants. Yep - so I am fairly certain they were just bored and people seem to love to chat with Americans :) We had all kinds of Kiwis chatting with us - asking us questions, telling us where to go, etc - it was really fun. One older man, Jessie aptly named the "Silver Fox", bought us a round of drinks and another lady pulled up a stool and sat with us for over an hour telling us all about her life! When we were walking back to our shed for bed - Jessie said it's too bad we're not as big of a hit with people our own age :) Oh well!
The next leg was Lauder to Ranfurly. If you are ever in NZ - do not go to Ranfurly. It is the twilight zone...very weird. For example, our backpackers was in an old post office building that is a hostel, dvd rental store and laundromat. Yep. Weird trio, huh? Well the owners were even weirder..and the interior of the place was awful!! I literally slept with my pants, fleece over all my layers and socks and tried to sleep as lightly as possible on the grody sheets - so when our alarm went off all I had to do was put on my shoes and I was dressed to leave :) We biked the hell out of there first thing in the morn! It was below zero Celsius so it was a chilly few hours in the morning but it was really neat to see all the farmland covered with frost. When we felt we were a safe distance from Creeptown we stopped for a coffee and muffin a teeny town called Hyde. All the towns you pass through all are just small, sleepy little farm towns - it feels like stepping back in time. So neat! One town is home to NZ's oldest general store - I think it opened in 1891 - anyway - they have all kinds of memorabilia in there - it was so cool to see!
We rode on to Middlemarch which is the last town and a shuttle picks you and your bike up and drives you back to Clyde - pretty nice, ey?
The bike ride was one of my very favorite things so far - the scenery is amazing - golden mountains in the far distance,rolling hills, green grass, rivers and streams, and acres and acres of beautiful farmland as far as the eye can see and of course heaps of dairy cows and sheep - which are my favorite :) It's definitely an NZ MUST DO :)!
We left there and did the Otago Rail Trail which is a 150 km trail that you can bike, horse back ride or walk. We decided to bike - no horse :) and no way I was going to walk 90 miles! It's called the rail trail because a railroad used to be there way back in the 1800s; it had been laying there dormant for years and the Dept of Conservation decided to use it for recreation - really great idea!! the best part is that trains can't get up steep hills so it makes for nice, flat riding for us! It was AWESOME!!! It was so fun to do another sport - we had been hiking a ton so it was nice to do something different. And there is just something so fun about riding bikes - makes me feel like a little kid!
The first leg takes you from the little town of Clyde to Lauder. The only things in Lauder are sheep, an old town hall, a hotel, more sheep and an old schoolhouse that is now a B&B. There wasn't a hostel of backpackers as they say here so the lady at the bike rental place told us the hotel has a "bunkhouse" in the back we could stay in. We get there and the hotel owner walks us out to this tool shed that looked like it was about to fall over and there was junk all over the ground around it...and Jessie said - haha watch that be our hostel...and she was RIGHT :) But, it turned out to be SO cute on the inside! It was TEENEY just enough room for a bunk and a space heater. Oh, and the toilet was right outside in a joined shed and it had a lock - unlike our room - so we had to lock up our cameras and money in the potty :)
Our bunkhouse obviously didn't have a kitchen where we could cook dinner so we had to go into the hotel and order food there. Turns out, the entire town comes to the hotel bar to watch rugby! It was packed - we didn't eat until 10 pm bc they were so slammed...and slammed is relative :) they only have one employee so customers would just jump behind the bar and help the bartender when he had a few drink orders to fill! haha - it was cute.
Jessie and I were some reason the hit of the night at the bar :)! Don't ask me why - there were no showers so we smelled like goats and I was wearing my cycle pants...you know, the ones that makes it look like you pooped your pants. Yep - so I am fairly certain they were just bored and people seem to love to chat with Americans :) We had all kinds of Kiwis chatting with us - asking us questions, telling us where to go, etc - it was really fun. One older man, Jessie aptly named the "Silver Fox", bought us a round of drinks and another lady pulled up a stool and sat with us for over an hour telling us all about her life! When we were walking back to our shed for bed - Jessie said it's too bad we're not as big of a hit with people our own age :) Oh well!
The next leg was Lauder to Ranfurly. If you are ever in NZ - do not go to Ranfurly. It is the twilight zone...very weird. For example, our backpackers was in an old post office building that is a hostel, dvd rental store and laundromat. Yep. Weird trio, huh? Well the owners were even weirder..and the interior of the place was awful!! I literally slept with my pants, fleece over all my layers and socks and tried to sleep as lightly as possible on the grody sheets - so when our alarm went off all I had to do was put on my shoes and I was dressed to leave :) We biked the hell out of there first thing in the morn! It was below zero Celsius so it was a chilly few hours in the morning but it was really neat to see all the farmland covered with frost. When we felt we were a safe distance from Creeptown we stopped for a coffee and muffin a teeny town called Hyde. All the towns you pass through all are just small, sleepy little farm towns - it feels like stepping back in time. So neat! One town is home to NZ's oldest general store - I think it opened in 1891 - anyway - they have all kinds of memorabilia in there - it was so cool to see!
We rode on to Middlemarch which is the last town and a shuttle picks you and your bike up and drives you back to Clyde - pretty nice, ey?
The bike ride was one of my very favorite things so far - the scenery is amazing - golden mountains in the far distance,rolling hills, green grass, rivers and streams, and acres and acres of beautiful farmland as far as the eye can see and of course heaps of dairy cows and sheep - which are my favorite :) It's definitely an NZ MUST DO :)!
Yikes!
Hey folks! SORRY about the huge gap there....we have been BUSY :)! I will update all that we have been doing in smaller posts so you guys don't have to read another one of my 50 pagers - I'll break it up for ya :)
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Plum Jam & the Routeburn Track
Hello!
We are in the little town of Te Anau right now as we just got back from hiking the Routeburn Track. It was AMAZING!!!
First, we spent to nights with the Flemings. Dr Tim and Marilyn Fleming are friends of Ned's granddad's and they spend 6 months out of the year here - yep, I have already decided where I am going to retire :) They were the SWEETEST couple EVER!! We rode bikes with them on this path that runs along a crystal clear river. It was shaded by trees and we stopped in little towns aling the way for scones and tea - it was like a movie! So idyllic! Then we had a delicious lunch at a place called The Packing Shed - it's an orchard run by an Irish man and his Kiwi wife. They run a little cafe there and that is where we had lunch. We had a"toastie" which is basically a grilled sandwich - like a pannini or grilled cheese. The Kiwi's add "ie" to the end of everthing - it' s so cute. Examples: sunglasses = sunnies. Running shoes = runnies (my fave); postman = postie, and the electrician is a "sparkie" :) haha, cute huh?!
Miss Marilyn has an amazing garden in her backyard so we ate like kings and queens there - she picks all the veggies from her garden and makes dinner from her own backyard everynight! Jessie and I helped her dig up potatoes, picked chard, corn, celery and squash - it was so fun! (Catherine, I know understand why you liked working in Cupcake's garden so much!!) Marilyn also makes preserves and jams - DELISH! She taught us how to make plum jam - Jessie and I helped her from start to finish and I have decided I want to be a jam maker, professionally :) Everytime Marilyn turned her back, Jessie and I were licking the bowl and the spoons, etc hehehe it was SOO good!! I think I could live off plum jam! The reason it is so good is because they pick the plums from the orchard in their neighborhood so the plums are perfectly ripe! She only uses half the amount of sugar the recipe calls for bc the plums are so naturally sweet. Anywhoo, obviously I am obsessed :)
We left the Flemings on Sunday morning - we were sad to leave, they are like our Kiwi grandparents! - and drove to Te Anau. Early Monday morning, we took a shuttle from Te Anau to the Divide which is the trailhead for the Routeburn. The Routeburn was so incredible! There were so many different kinds of landscapes in just 3 days. The 1st day - you feel like you are in the move "Fern Gully" - with lots of moss, streams, water falls - you feel like a little fairy is going to fly out any second :) That night we spent the night at the "McKenzie Hut" - whch was amazing!! So much nicer than the Mueller Hut we stayed in last week :)! And we had better cooking utensils so we ould actually eat hot food. We met some funny older Kiwi guys who started singing Georgia on My Mind when we told them we are from Atlanta. Day 2 was incredible too - you get above the "bush line" or tree line so you are walking along the ridge line of the moutain and you can see two rivers, the Tasman Sea, and several moutain ranges!! It was breathtaking!! That night we slept in the "Routeburn Falls Hut" which was sweet also!! It was right next to two waterfalls. I slept next to an old Japanese man who woke up at the crack of dawn and preceeded to triple bag his entire contents of his pack bc it was raining. I didn't think there were that many grocery bags in existence. My personal fave was when he would not like how he had wrapped his shoes or something and REDO it. The sound of crunching grocery bags at sunrise for an hour is not very pleasant :) We were so lucky the rain held out til the last day as it's the shortest leg of the walk and it's mostly under tree cover. It looked like a fairy tale too. Any of you out there as obsessed with "Twilight" as I am ( I just finished the 4th book, tear.) I thought Bella and Edward might come flying through the trees :)!
Once you reach the end, you have to take a shuttle back from where you started so we had along day of bus rides...so as you might guess I was about to vomit for like 4 hours. We had a bus driver who was driving the moutain roads like a bat out of Hades. Jessie was like - "what does he think this is? Indy 500?" I was too green to answer :) Foretunatley, the leg from Queenstown to Te Anau was much more pleasant :) So today we are enjoying not having 40 lbs packs on our backs and are just taking it easy! We are going to decide what to do for the next few days and them mom and dad fly into Queenstown next Tuesday! We are so excited to see them!
I miss you guys!!!!!!!!! Love you!
Alley
We are in the little town of Te Anau right now as we just got back from hiking the Routeburn Track. It was AMAZING!!!
First, we spent to nights with the Flemings. Dr Tim and Marilyn Fleming are friends of Ned's granddad's and they spend 6 months out of the year here - yep, I have already decided where I am going to retire :) They were the SWEETEST couple EVER!! We rode bikes with them on this path that runs along a crystal clear river. It was shaded by trees and we stopped in little towns aling the way for scones and tea - it was like a movie! So idyllic! Then we had a delicious lunch at a place called The Packing Shed - it's an orchard run by an Irish man and his Kiwi wife. They run a little cafe there and that is where we had lunch. We had a"toastie" which is basically a grilled sandwich - like a pannini or grilled cheese. The Kiwi's add "ie" to the end of everthing - it' s so cute. Examples: sunglasses = sunnies. Running shoes = runnies (my fave); postman = postie, and the electrician is a "sparkie" :) haha, cute huh?!
Miss Marilyn has an amazing garden in her backyard so we ate like kings and queens there - she picks all the veggies from her garden and makes dinner from her own backyard everynight! Jessie and I helped her dig up potatoes, picked chard, corn, celery and squash - it was so fun! (Catherine, I know understand why you liked working in Cupcake's garden so much!!) Marilyn also makes preserves and jams - DELISH! She taught us how to make plum jam - Jessie and I helped her from start to finish and I have decided I want to be a jam maker, professionally :) Everytime Marilyn turned her back, Jessie and I were licking the bowl and the spoons, etc hehehe it was SOO good!! I think I could live off plum jam! The reason it is so good is because they pick the plums from the orchard in their neighborhood so the plums are perfectly ripe! She only uses half the amount of sugar the recipe calls for bc the plums are so naturally sweet. Anywhoo, obviously I am obsessed :)
We left the Flemings on Sunday morning - we were sad to leave, they are like our Kiwi grandparents! - and drove to Te Anau. Early Monday morning, we took a shuttle from Te Anau to the Divide which is the trailhead for the Routeburn. The Routeburn was so incredible! There were so many different kinds of landscapes in just 3 days. The 1st day - you feel like you are in the move "Fern Gully" - with lots of moss, streams, water falls - you feel like a little fairy is going to fly out any second :) That night we spent the night at the "McKenzie Hut" - whch was amazing!! So much nicer than the Mueller Hut we stayed in last week :)! And we had better cooking utensils so we ould actually eat hot food. We met some funny older Kiwi guys who started singing Georgia on My Mind when we told them we are from Atlanta. Day 2 was incredible too - you get above the "bush line" or tree line so you are walking along the ridge line of the moutain and you can see two rivers, the Tasman Sea, and several moutain ranges!! It was breathtaking!! That night we slept in the "Routeburn Falls Hut" which was sweet also!! It was right next to two waterfalls. I slept next to an old Japanese man who woke up at the crack of dawn and preceeded to triple bag his entire contents of his pack bc it was raining. I didn't think there were that many grocery bags in existence. My personal fave was when he would not like how he had wrapped his shoes or something and REDO it. The sound of crunching grocery bags at sunrise for an hour is not very pleasant :) We were so lucky the rain held out til the last day as it's the shortest leg of the walk and it's mostly under tree cover. It looked like a fairy tale too. Any of you out there as obsessed with "Twilight" as I am ( I just finished the 4th book, tear.) I thought Bella and Edward might come flying through the trees :)!
Once you reach the end, you have to take a shuttle back from where you started so we had along day of bus rides...so as you might guess I was about to vomit for like 4 hours. We had a bus driver who was driving the moutain roads like a bat out of Hades. Jessie was like - "what does he think this is? Indy 500?" I was too green to answer :) Foretunatley, the leg from Queenstown to Te Anau was much more pleasant :) So today we are enjoying not having 40 lbs packs on our backs and are just taking it easy! We are going to decide what to do for the next few days and them mom and dad fly into Queenstown next Tuesday! We are so excited to see them!
I miss you guys!!!!!!!!! Love you!
Alley
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Dunedin, Catlins and Mt Cook
Hi!
OK! So once again I have waited too long to update - sorry!
Last I told you guys we were off to Dunedin - on the way there we stopped at the Moerakai Boulders - they are these sphere shaped boulders on the beach. They are SO cool!!! Perfect dome shaped and they are HUGE! We had an awesome time playing on them taking lots of pics with us jumping off them. We are so cool.
Dunedin is a college town - The University of Otago - is there so there are lots of young folks and cafes, restaurants, etc. The highlight was going to a real live RUGBY GAME!! We saw the Highlanders vs the Crusaders - the Crusaders are from Christchurch and the Highlanders was the home team! It was REALLY fun to see. They sell 4 packs of plastic bottles of beer - so cute :) We took advantage of the good exchange rate that night...After the game, there was a concert that all the students stayed to listen to so we figured we'd check it out! And all the Kiwi's were like Oh my god - you haven't heard them before?? This will be a REAL Kiwi treat for you then! And all these people were going nuts - one guy in front of me who seems to not have heard about deoderant yet and must have had his fair share of 4 packs that night - kept falling all over me everytime the band did anything! So, much to Jessie and my surprise the band was TERRIBLE!! hahah - it was hysterical! I think we should send some American bands over here so they can have an American treat :)
After Dunedin, we drove to a region called the Catlins. It's a pretty remote area - with several things to see like really old, beautful light houses on the coast. And my favorite were the "windswept trees" at Slope Point. It is SO windy there that the trees are almost parallel to the ground - so cool and eerie looking..
We drove on to Invercargill which is a port town. Our plan was to do a 3 day hike on Stewart Island starting Monday but on Sunday night it hailed and sleeted (PS - it's Summer here :)) the wind was howling and blowing so hard it woke us up!! Soo - the lady at the Stewart Island info desk was like - you'll be waist deep in mud if you go...and due to our lack of rainproof clothes we decided to move on :)
So up to Queenstown we went - Qtowm is on a beautiful lake and is surrounded by mountains - no wonder it's a super popular place! We didn;t stay long as we knew we'd be back to Qtown soon. We went up to Mt Cook Village to do a 2 day hike called the "Mueller Hut Hike" - on Wednesday morning we didnt care that the weather wasn't so great , we were getting stir crazy to get outside!! So the lady at that info center was like" The Mueller hut hike is like climbing stairs for 4 hours. The winds are coming pretty swiftly in a southwesterly direction, which is right at you, so it should be pretty unpleasant for you." Awesome, way to get us pumped , lady.
So we were pleasantly surprised - we had OK weather and the winds weren't bad - we just din't really stop bc it was too cold when we stood still!! She wasn't kidding about it being straight up. Kiwis don't seem to be into switch backs as much as we are :)
Once we got to the top you could see all kinds of glaciers!! It was INCREDIBLE!! So the last hour of the hike is in snow with amazing views of Mt Cook and the surrounding glaciers...pretty sweet :) Then we arrived at the hut, which our guides had described as "nice" - remind me to write them a note about that. The Mueller Hut was the coldest place I have ever been in - for real. Pretty sure it would have been warmer sleeping on the glacier. Jessie and I don't have camping cooking untensils - we just pack cold food when we hike. Eating cold noodles in a freezing cold hut when I am wearting every single piece of clothing I brought was pretty miserable. We are buying cookware today - lesson learned :) We played cards with a few guys we met up there which was really fun and we woke up to see the sunrise which was really pretty with the sun shining off the snow!
Oh, I want to mention the toilets. Yes. The warden of the hut gives us the ground rules and part of her speech includes instructions on how to use the toilets complete with a diagram. the diagram has a hiker sitting on the potty and then has pictures of pee going into the front section of the toilet and a PICTURE of "poo and paper" going into the back section of the toilet. Amazing. I really enjoyed that part. Oh, they don't have TP up there. Thank goodness for the route map - best $2 I ever spent :)
After watching the sunrise and enviously starting at all the people melting snow in their pots to make HOT tea, we headed down - we were slip sliding all the way down the snowing part which was pretty funny :) We thought we'd be in the clear once we reached the non snowy portion of the track. Jessie proved that walking on mud is more difficult than snow. She tumbled several times as I tried to hide my laughter. My favorite was when she decided walking in the grass would be easier - and fell in a hole and went rolling through the grass. I was dying but trying to act like I was concerned hehehe I am a mean big sister. Jessie accurately described the hike down as the "stair master from hell " - it was a doozie on our quads! We are walking around like fools today, limping and wimpering when we have to bend down :)
I am totally just being silly about all this - the hike was REALLY awesome and I am so glad we did it!!
Today we are heading to Alexandra a small town outside of Queenstown to visit Ned's granddad's friends who live here for part of the year! I am excited to meet them!
Then we are headed to an even smaller town of Te Anau where we will begin the "Routeburn Track" a 3 day hike that we are SUPER excited about!! More to come on that!
Sorry for such a long update, congrats if you got all the way to this part :)
LOVE, Alley
OK! So once again I have waited too long to update - sorry!
Last I told you guys we were off to Dunedin - on the way there we stopped at the Moerakai Boulders - they are these sphere shaped boulders on the beach. They are SO cool!!! Perfect dome shaped and they are HUGE! We had an awesome time playing on them taking lots of pics with us jumping off them. We are so cool.
Dunedin is a college town - The University of Otago - is there so there are lots of young folks and cafes, restaurants, etc. The highlight was going to a real live RUGBY GAME!! We saw the Highlanders vs the Crusaders - the Crusaders are from Christchurch and the Highlanders was the home team! It was REALLY fun to see. They sell 4 packs of plastic bottles of beer - so cute :) We took advantage of the good exchange rate that night...After the game, there was a concert that all the students stayed to listen to so we figured we'd check it out! And all the Kiwi's were like Oh my god - you haven't heard them before?? This will be a REAL Kiwi treat for you then! And all these people were going nuts - one guy in front of me who seems to not have heard about deoderant yet and must have had his fair share of 4 packs that night - kept falling all over me everytime the band did anything! So, much to Jessie and my surprise the band was TERRIBLE!! hahah - it was hysterical! I think we should send some American bands over here so they can have an American treat :)
After Dunedin, we drove to a region called the Catlins. It's a pretty remote area - with several things to see like really old, beautful light houses on the coast. And my favorite were the "windswept trees" at Slope Point. It is SO windy there that the trees are almost parallel to the ground - so cool and eerie looking..
We drove on to Invercargill which is a port town. Our plan was to do a 3 day hike on Stewart Island starting Monday but on Sunday night it hailed and sleeted (PS - it's Summer here :)) the wind was howling and blowing so hard it woke us up!! Soo - the lady at the Stewart Island info desk was like - you'll be waist deep in mud if you go...and due to our lack of rainproof clothes we decided to move on :)
So up to Queenstown we went - Qtowm is on a beautiful lake and is surrounded by mountains - no wonder it's a super popular place! We didn;t stay long as we knew we'd be back to Qtown soon. We went up to Mt Cook Village to do a 2 day hike called the "Mueller Hut Hike" - on Wednesday morning we didnt care that the weather wasn't so great , we were getting stir crazy to get outside!! So the lady at that info center was like" The Mueller hut hike is like climbing stairs for 4 hours. The winds are coming pretty swiftly in a southwesterly direction, which is right at you, so it should be pretty unpleasant for you." Awesome, way to get us pumped , lady.
So we were pleasantly surprised - we had OK weather and the winds weren't bad - we just din't really stop bc it was too cold when we stood still!! She wasn't kidding about it being straight up. Kiwis don't seem to be into switch backs as much as we are :)
Once we got to the top you could see all kinds of glaciers!! It was INCREDIBLE!! So the last hour of the hike is in snow with amazing views of Mt Cook and the surrounding glaciers...pretty sweet :) Then we arrived at the hut, which our guides had described as "nice" - remind me to write them a note about that. The Mueller Hut was the coldest place I have ever been in - for real. Pretty sure it would have been warmer sleeping on the glacier. Jessie and I don't have camping cooking untensils - we just pack cold food when we hike. Eating cold noodles in a freezing cold hut when I am wearting every single piece of clothing I brought was pretty miserable. We are buying cookware today - lesson learned :) We played cards with a few guys we met up there which was really fun and we woke up to see the sunrise which was really pretty with the sun shining off the snow!
Oh, I want to mention the toilets. Yes. The warden of the hut gives us the ground rules and part of her speech includes instructions on how to use the toilets complete with a diagram. the diagram has a hiker sitting on the potty and then has pictures of pee going into the front section of the toilet and a PICTURE of "poo and paper" going into the back section of the toilet. Amazing. I really enjoyed that part. Oh, they don't have TP up there. Thank goodness for the route map - best $2 I ever spent :)
After watching the sunrise and enviously starting at all the people melting snow in their pots to make HOT tea, we headed down - we were slip sliding all the way down the snowing part which was pretty funny :) We thought we'd be in the clear once we reached the non snowy portion of the track. Jessie proved that walking on mud is more difficult than snow. She tumbled several times as I tried to hide my laughter. My favorite was when she decided walking in the grass would be easier - and fell in a hole and went rolling through the grass. I was dying but trying to act like I was concerned hehehe I am a mean big sister. Jessie accurately described the hike down as the "stair master from hell " - it was a doozie on our quads! We are walking around like fools today, limping and wimpering when we have to bend down :)
I am totally just being silly about all this - the hike was REALLY awesome and I am so glad we did it!!
Today we are heading to Alexandra a small town outside of Queenstown to visit Ned's granddad's friends who live here for part of the year! I am excited to meet them!
Then we are headed to an even smaller town of Te Anau where we will begin the "Routeburn Track" a 3 day hike that we are SUPER excited about!! More to come on that!
Sorry for such a long update, congrats if you got all the way to this part :)
LOVE, Alley
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Pictures
Pics!
http://www2.snapfish.co.nz/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=275505799/a=33717585_33717585/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink
It is taking FOREVER to get these uploaded so there aren't very many :( I will try again at another place in a few days!
And I promise we are actually trying to be better about actually taking pictures with us in them ... Jess has all those on her camera and she didn't bring her cord to plug in her camera!
AP
http://www2.snapfish.co.nz/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=275505799/a=33717585_33717585/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink
It is taking FOREVER to get these uploaded so there aren't very many :( I will try again at another place in a few days!
And I promise we are actually trying to be better about actually taking pictures with us in them ... Jess has all those on her camera and she didn't bring her cord to plug in her camera!
AP
Lots to tell :)!
Howdy!
Sorry for the major delay in updating this!! We have been on the moe quite a bit and today is the 1st day we have been somewhere with decent internet and time to update!
Where did I leave off...oh, we did the Queen Charlotte Track - which is a 3 day hike in the Marlbrough Sounds region. It was INCREDIBLE!!! The 1st day it poured down rain and Jess and I do NOT have rain gear...everyone was like, you don't have proper rain gear? All I could say is uhhh in the States, if it rains, I don't hike. Duh :) but apparently we are idiots! So we are just going to have to say our prayers that it doesn't rain on our other hikes!! But the next 2 days, the weather was PERFECT!! We met a guy named Neils ( he was like it's like Neil but plural :)) from the Netherlands - I think he had the hots for Jessie. He was super nice and interesting - we really enjoyed meeting him! We also spent a good amount of time with a girl named Julie Anne who we accidently were calling Jo Anne for 2 days straight :) from Germany. She was sooo sweet and was fascinating! She does all kinds of work in Germany - she is a therapist and she deals with people who survived the Holocost - so amazing!!
Oh we also met a few interesting men at our hostel along the way...one in particular had a legit handlebar mustache - with the tips curled up and everything - of course this is the person who has the hots for me on the trip. Jess gets the cute, successful Dutch guy and I get the weirdo with horrible breath :) hahah - Jessie couldn't even be within a few feet of him for fear of gagging. Elizabeth and Ned, you two would have been goners with this guy's breath. (They have weak gag reflexes.) C'est la vie!
Then we spent the night in the little town of Renwick that we love. Read: it's in the winery region :) and we are drinking Sauvignon Blanc like it is water :) It is UNREAL, my friends. Do yourselves a favor and make it point to come over here just to taste the wine!!
Then we went on to Christchurch where we stayed with - get this - our 5th cousins in law :) hehe, yeah, pretty distant cousins but they were SO nice and we went to our little cousin, Cameron's (he is 11) touch rugby game - it was so cute! There were also cricket games going on on the other fields...I haven't quite figured that one out - but it looks cool! We had dinner with the Champions and then Cameron put on a juggling show for us! He is an amazing juggler!! You can see him if you go to youtube and type in "youngjuggler" - you should def watch! His little sister is Catherine and she was so precious!! And they have a golden retriever named Murphy...I spent most of my time petting him and thinking of Julep. I have problems. I told Jessie I wished I could call Julep and she looked at me like I had lost my mind. But you other dog owners - you know what I mean :)
In ChCh we traded our little micro machine car "Scottie" in for a bigger car. Tear. It was sad to say goodbye to our litte thing, but our stuff barely fit in there and we were told we could get a bigger one if we thought we needed it....and when you feel like you shouldn't have had that muffin for bfast when your car is huffing and puffing to get up the hills around here, you know it is time to upgrade. We did do a photo shoot with Scottie before turning her in. There is an excellent one of essie on the crawling on the roof like a sex kitten. I was laughing so hard I could barely take the picture. There is now a dent in Scotties roof. Don't tell :)
So we now have "Queen Charlotte" - she is a Nissan Pulsar and is real beauty - a nice plum color complete with confetti interiors and cigarette burns on the seats. She has a real trunk for all our crap. I have been driving more these days. Godbless all the souls that are on the roads with me. My personal speciality is stopping in the middle of roundabouts and asking Jessie in a panic what to do and she is screaming - anything other than STOPPING in the middle of the road...I am working on it :)
We drove from ChCh to Lake Tekapu which is a gorgeous turquoise lake. There really isn't much there other than the lake and a beautiful old church called the "Church of the Good Shepherd" - so there were LOTS of tourists there snapping photos. We did a small hike the next day for some great views of the lake and then headed to Omaru. Omaru is on the coast and is know for its penguin colonies. Last night, we went down to this teeny town called Moraki to see the penguins. You get in this "wee" hut called a penguin hide - it's a tiny wooden fort - with windows you can look out onto this protected beach where penguins will come ashore. You have to be super queit so as to not scare them away - they are really sheepish. We also saw LOTS of fur seals on the beach too! It was really neat to see.
Let's talk about food, my real love in life. We went to a restaurant - our hostel is so cute but it's really remote so we are aways from the closest grocery and we didn't have much to cook for dinner - so we decided it would be a good night to eat out. The restaurnt is called "Fleurs Place" and it's right on the water and all the fish they serve is caught that day, rinsed with sea water and cooked for you that night! It was DELICIOUS! I had "Moki" a white fish and Jess had "Monkfish" - and we split the most incredible seafood chowder I have ever eaten!! It was such a treat!! And I bought the cookbook and Fleur herself signed it for me :)
Today, we are staying in our little farm hostel again for one more night. It's a litte cabin with 3 bedrooms and we are right in the middle of a sheep and llama pasture :) You can walk through the pasture straight down to the beach. The beaches here are not always sandy or safe for swimming and this is both so we were hoping to lay out and go for a swim today and use today and kinda a rest day. Of course, the weather isn't cooperating...that is always the case when you want it to be sunny! - so that gives us a great excuse to catch up on emails and for me to update you guys!
Next on the agenda is the town of Dunedin. It's about 2 hours south- if that - from here. It's a college town - the University of Otago - is there so we have heard it's hoppin' :) We will stay there for one night and then go down the coast to The Catlins. The Catlins are pretty remote so we are hoping to see some pretty scenery. Then - weather permitting - we are planning to take a ferry over to Stewart Island and do a 3 day hike there...fingers crossed for no rain :) Then we will start heading up the middle of the country to Queenstown!
I am going to try and post some pics...so stay tuned!
Sorry this was so long!!! I wanted to catch you up to speed! We love you and miss you!! Write me - alleypic@gmail.com - I love hearing from you!
love,
Alley
Sorry for the major delay in updating this!! We have been on the moe quite a bit and today is the 1st day we have been somewhere with decent internet and time to update!
Where did I leave off...oh, we did the Queen Charlotte Track - which is a 3 day hike in the Marlbrough Sounds region. It was INCREDIBLE!!! The 1st day it poured down rain and Jess and I do NOT have rain gear...everyone was like, you don't have proper rain gear? All I could say is uhhh in the States, if it rains, I don't hike. Duh :) but apparently we are idiots! So we are just going to have to say our prayers that it doesn't rain on our other hikes!! But the next 2 days, the weather was PERFECT!! We met a guy named Neils ( he was like it's like Neil but plural :)) from the Netherlands - I think he had the hots for Jessie. He was super nice and interesting - we really enjoyed meeting him! We also spent a good amount of time with a girl named Julie Anne who we accidently were calling Jo Anne for 2 days straight :) from Germany. She was sooo sweet and was fascinating! She does all kinds of work in Germany - she is a therapist and she deals with people who survived the Holocost - so amazing!!
Oh we also met a few interesting men at our hostel along the way...one in particular had a legit handlebar mustache - with the tips curled up and everything - of course this is the person who has the hots for me on the trip. Jess gets the cute, successful Dutch guy and I get the weirdo with horrible breath :) hahah - Jessie couldn't even be within a few feet of him for fear of gagging. Elizabeth and Ned, you two would have been goners with this guy's breath. (They have weak gag reflexes.) C'est la vie!
Then we spent the night in the little town of Renwick that we love. Read: it's in the winery region :) and we are drinking Sauvignon Blanc like it is water :) It is UNREAL, my friends. Do yourselves a favor and make it point to come over here just to taste the wine!!
Then we went on to Christchurch where we stayed with - get this - our 5th cousins in law :) hehe, yeah, pretty distant cousins but they were SO nice and we went to our little cousin, Cameron's (he is 11) touch rugby game - it was so cute! There were also cricket games going on on the other fields...I haven't quite figured that one out - but it looks cool! We had dinner with the Champions and then Cameron put on a juggling show for us! He is an amazing juggler!! You can see him if you go to youtube and type in "youngjuggler" - you should def watch! His little sister is Catherine and she was so precious!! And they have a golden retriever named Murphy...I spent most of my time petting him and thinking of Julep. I have problems. I told Jessie I wished I could call Julep and she looked at me like I had lost my mind. But you other dog owners - you know what I mean :)
In ChCh we traded our little micro machine car "Scottie" in for a bigger car. Tear. It was sad to say goodbye to our litte thing, but our stuff barely fit in there and we were told we could get a bigger one if we thought we needed it....and when you feel like you shouldn't have had that muffin for bfast when your car is huffing and puffing to get up the hills around here, you know it is time to upgrade. We did do a photo shoot with Scottie before turning her in. There is an excellent one of essie on the crawling on the roof like a sex kitten. I was laughing so hard I could barely take the picture. There is now a dent in Scotties roof. Don't tell :)
So we now have "Queen Charlotte" - she is a Nissan Pulsar and is real beauty - a nice plum color complete with confetti interiors and cigarette burns on the seats. She has a real trunk for all our crap. I have been driving more these days. Godbless all the souls that are on the roads with me. My personal speciality is stopping in the middle of roundabouts and asking Jessie in a panic what to do and she is screaming - anything other than STOPPING in the middle of the road...I am working on it :)
We drove from ChCh to Lake Tekapu which is a gorgeous turquoise lake. There really isn't much there other than the lake and a beautiful old church called the "Church of the Good Shepherd" - so there were LOTS of tourists there snapping photos. We did a small hike the next day for some great views of the lake and then headed to Omaru. Omaru is on the coast and is know for its penguin colonies. Last night, we went down to this teeny town called Moraki to see the penguins. You get in this "wee" hut called a penguin hide - it's a tiny wooden fort - with windows you can look out onto this protected beach where penguins will come ashore. You have to be super queit so as to not scare them away - they are really sheepish. We also saw LOTS of fur seals on the beach too! It was really neat to see.
Let's talk about food, my real love in life. We went to a restaurant - our hostel is so cute but it's really remote so we are aways from the closest grocery and we didn't have much to cook for dinner - so we decided it would be a good night to eat out. The restaurnt is called "Fleurs Place" and it's right on the water and all the fish they serve is caught that day, rinsed with sea water and cooked for you that night! It was DELICIOUS! I had "Moki" a white fish and Jess had "Monkfish" - and we split the most incredible seafood chowder I have ever eaten!! It was such a treat!! And I bought the cookbook and Fleur herself signed it for me :)
Today, we are staying in our little farm hostel again for one more night. It's a litte cabin with 3 bedrooms and we are right in the middle of a sheep and llama pasture :) You can walk through the pasture straight down to the beach. The beaches here are not always sandy or safe for swimming and this is both so we were hoping to lay out and go for a swim today and use today and kinda a rest day. Of course, the weather isn't cooperating...that is always the case when you want it to be sunny! - so that gives us a great excuse to catch up on emails and for me to update you guys!
Next on the agenda is the town of Dunedin. It's about 2 hours south- if that - from here. It's a college town - the University of Otago - is there so we have heard it's hoppin' :) We will stay there for one night and then go down the coast to The Catlins. The Catlins are pretty remote so we are hoping to see some pretty scenery. Then - weather permitting - we are planning to take a ferry over to Stewart Island and do a 3 day hike there...fingers crossed for no rain :) Then we will start heading up the middle of the country to Queenstown!
I am going to try and post some pics...so stay tuned!
Sorry this was so long!!! I wanted to catch you up to speed! We love you and miss you!! Write me - alleypic@gmail.com - I love hearing from you!
love,
Alley
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Swimming with the Dolphins
Hey everyone!
We drove to Kaikoura yesterday and woke up this morning to go on our "Dolphin Encounter" tour...they suited us up in wetsuits and snorkels and flippers and took us WAY out in the ocean. And we would literally just find a pod of Dusky dolphins and they would be like - get out of th boat fast!!! So we would all get in and swim in the middle of 40 - 50 dolphins!!!! It was INSANE!!! It is so hard to descride because it was just the coolest thing EVER :)
The crew tells you to make noise so it's hysterical all 15 ppl we were swimming with are making squealing noises through their snorkels :) The point is to entertain the dolphins so they want to hang around us. They don't use any bait to get them to come close - it is all about seeing them in their natural environment.
Then they dolphins would swim away and we would follow them in the boat and then do it all over again :)!
After about 5 swims, we changed out of our FREEZING wetsuits and started the hunt for Orca or Killer Whales. We saw about 6 of them!!! They usually don't do whale watching on the tour but our guide was awesome so with a little bit of pleading from us, he gave in :)
If you EVER get a chance to swim with the dolphins - DO IT!!! I can't get over how awesome it was!
Next up - Queen Charlotte Track. It's a 3 day hike so I might be out of pocket for a few days but I'll be back with pictures and more adventures to share :)!
Love,
Alley
We drove to Kaikoura yesterday and woke up this morning to go on our "Dolphin Encounter" tour...they suited us up in wetsuits and snorkels and flippers and took us WAY out in the ocean. And we would literally just find a pod of Dusky dolphins and they would be like - get out of th boat fast!!! So we would all get in and swim in the middle of 40 - 50 dolphins!!!! It was INSANE!!! It is so hard to descride because it was just the coolest thing EVER :)
The crew tells you to make noise so it's hysterical all 15 ppl we were swimming with are making squealing noises through their snorkels :) The point is to entertain the dolphins so they want to hang around us. They don't use any bait to get them to come close - it is all about seeing them in their natural environment.
Then they dolphins would swim away and we would follow them in the boat and then do it all over again :)!
After about 5 swims, we changed out of our FREEZING wetsuits and started the hunt for Orca or Killer Whales. We saw about 6 of them!!! They usually don't do whale watching on the tour but our guide was awesome so with a little bit of pleading from us, he gave in :)
If you EVER get a chance to swim with the dolphins - DO IT!!! I can't get over how awesome it was!
Next up - Queen Charlotte Track. It's a 3 day hike so I might be out of pocket for a few days but I'll be back with pictures and more adventures to share :)!
Love,
Alley
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Update
Hi guys! Sorry I have been bad about updating this :) I am vowing to get better...
Well we have our TEENY car named "Scottie" - we love her. I finally drove the other day and was literally going like 20 mph...the roads are steep and narrow and windy!!! I was very terrified. Jess is much better...so she can be my chauffeur :)
From Christchurch we drove to a town called Akaroa on the beach - it was so cute! And we stayed at a "farm hostel" up in the mountains. Our accomdation was a "star gazer" which is a tiny little wooden hut for just enough room for jessie and I and our sleeping bags (see pics) but the roof has a glass panel so you can look up at the starts at night! It was GORGEOUS!! After a day there, we hit Sumner Beach outside of Christchurch ....the beaches are really windy so I think we might come back just as pale as we left :)
We then drove to the town of Renwick in the Marlbrough Wine Country. We rode bikes all day going to all the different wineries tasting wines :) They are known for their Sauvignon Blanc around here which I NEVER drink at home but it is TO DIE FOR here!!! Jessie and I want to buy a case...and we'll see how much of that actually makes it back to the States :) But that was my favorite day so far! We had great weather and the people at the vineyards are super nice and the scenery was unreal!
Next we drove up to Nelson, where we are now. It's a cute artsy town on the beach. It kinda reminds me of Athens. It's apparently the sunniest town in NZ...ironically it is raining today but that is good bc it is forcing me to blog!
We are driving down the coast to Kaikoura today and will swim with the dolphins there tomorrow! I can't wait. Then we are coming back up (poor planning :)) to do the "Queen Charlotte Track" it's a 3 day, 2 night hike or "tramp" through the Marlbrough Sounds which are only accessible by boat! So a boat drops us off and picks us up 3 days later! Sweet, huh?
That is all for now! We love you guys and miss you!
Take care,
Alley
Well we have our TEENY car named "Scottie" - we love her. I finally drove the other day and was literally going like 20 mph...the roads are steep and narrow and windy!!! I was very terrified. Jess is much better...so she can be my chauffeur :)
From Christchurch we drove to a town called Akaroa on the beach - it was so cute! And we stayed at a "farm hostel" up in the mountains. Our accomdation was a "star gazer" which is a tiny little wooden hut for just enough room for jessie and I and our sleeping bags (see pics) but the roof has a glass panel so you can look up at the starts at night! It was GORGEOUS!! After a day there, we hit Sumner Beach outside of Christchurch ....the beaches are really windy so I think we might come back just as pale as we left :)
We then drove to the town of Renwick in the Marlbrough Wine Country. We rode bikes all day going to all the different wineries tasting wines :) They are known for their Sauvignon Blanc around here which I NEVER drink at home but it is TO DIE FOR here!!! Jessie and I want to buy a case...and we'll see how much of that actually makes it back to the States :) But that was my favorite day so far! We had great weather and the people at the vineyards are super nice and the scenery was unreal!
Next we drove up to Nelson, where we are now. It's a cute artsy town on the beach. It kinda reminds me of Athens. It's apparently the sunniest town in NZ...ironically it is raining today but that is good bc it is forcing me to blog!
We are driving down the coast to Kaikoura today and will swim with the dolphins there tomorrow! I can't wait. Then we are coming back up (poor planning :)) to do the "Queen Charlotte Track" it's a 3 day, 2 night hike or "tramp" through the Marlbrough Sounds which are only accessible by boat! So a boat drops us off and picks us up 3 days later! Sweet, huh?
That is all for now! We love you guys and miss you!
Take care,
Alley
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Pictures!
Hello!
Aorry it has been awhile! We are BUSY :)
Here are some pics for you to enjoy....more to come soon!
http://www2.snapfish.co.nz/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=275417926/a=33717585_33717585/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink
Aorry it has been awhile! We are BUSY :)
Here are some pics for you to enjoy....more to come soon!
http://www2.snapfish.co.nz/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=275417926/a=33717585_33717585/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink
Friday, February 20, 2009
Car Adventures
Hello!
Today was rainy and pretty chilly in Christchurch - so it was the perfect day to search for a car :)! We were thinking we would buy a car here and sell it back when we are leaving..but we found out that it was more expensive than we thought and we kept worrying what would happen if we couldn't sell the car back...I say "we" but we all know that was me being the worrywort :) So we rented one or should I say "hired" one - that is what the Kiwi's call it! They also call a trunk a "boot" and a hood a "bonnet" - you learn something new everyday! We get our early 90's Mazda - which I am sure is a beauty - tomorrow around lunchtime and we will be off to explore the South Island! First stop will be Kaikora - a coastal town where we hope to swim with the dolphins if the weather permits.
PLEASE say your prayers about us driving on the left hand side of the road...I am a little scared of that...and so should everyone else who will be on the road with me :)
Other than that - we have just been exploting Christchurch. We went to the BEAUTIFUL botanical gardens yesterday and did a walking tour of the city. There is a river that runs through the city called the Avon and there were people riding down in gondolas - "punting" - like in Venice - very cute :)
Jessie has been sampling all the local wines and I have been tasting all the beers brewed here :)
I will post pictures soon!!
Love,
Alley
Today was rainy and pretty chilly in Christchurch - so it was the perfect day to search for a car :)! We were thinking we would buy a car here and sell it back when we are leaving..but we found out that it was more expensive than we thought and we kept worrying what would happen if we couldn't sell the car back...I say "we" but we all know that was me being the worrywort :) So we rented one or should I say "hired" one - that is what the Kiwi's call it! They also call a trunk a "boot" and a hood a "bonnet" - you learn something new everyday! We get our early 90's Mazda - which I am sure is a beauty - tomorrow around lunchtime and we will be off to explore the South Island! First stop will be Kaikora - a coastal town where we hope to swim with the dolphins if the weather permits.
PLEASE say your prayers about us driving on the left hand side of the road...I am a little scared of that...and so should everyone else who will be on the road with me :)
Other than that - we have just been exploting Christchurch. We went to the BEAUTIFUL botanical gardens yesterday and did a walking tour of the city. There is a river that runs through the city called the Avon and there were people riding down in gondolas - "punting" - like in Venice - very cute :)
Jessie has been sampling all the local wines and I have been tasting all the beers brewed here :)
I will post pictures soon!!
Love,
Alley
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
We are here :)
Yay! We arrived safe and sound in Auckland - on the North Island! We have been doing a lot of wondering around the city exploring and SLEEPING off jet lag :)! It is 9 am on Thursday here in NZ and for you guys it's the late afternoon on Wednesday...so weird!
Our favorite thing so far was not a sight to see or landmark or park or anything it was a lady named Robyn. When Jessie and I arrived at our hostel on Tuesday morning our room was not ready which was not good as all we wanted to do was get in bed!!
So we walked down to a park near the harbour to kill time and saw the cutest dog and started petting it - I miss you, Juelp :)! - and the owner came over and started talking to us asking us where we are from, etc and she invited us over for tea at her house! Robyn was SO sweet! She made us tea and told us all about places we need to see here in NZ. And she invited us back for a "barbeque" at her house when we come back to Auckland to fly out! Isn't that so sweet?! It made ou day and was an AMAZING first impression of NZ!
Gotta run - we are cathing a shuttle to the airport to fly down to the South Island -Christchurch, here we come :)!
We love you guys and miss you!
Alley and Jessie
Our favorite thing so far was not a sight to see or landmark or park or anything it was a lady named Robyn. When Jessie and I arrived at our hostel on Tuesday morning our room was not ready which was not good as all we wanted to do was get in bed!!
So we walked down to a park near the harbour to kill time and saw the cutest dog and started petting it - I miss you, Juelp :)! - and the owner came over and started talking to us asking us where we are from, etc and she invited us over for tea at her house! Robyn was SO sweet! She made us tea and told us all about places we need to see here in NZ. And she invited us back for a "barbeque" at her house when we come back to Auckland to fly out! Isn't that so sweet?! It made ou day and was an AMAZING first impression of NZ!
Gotta run - we are cathing a shuttle to the airport to fly down to the South Island -Christchurch, here we come :)!
We love you guys and miss you!
Alley and Jessie
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
The Countdown begins..
Hello friends and family!
Welcome to our blog :)! I have no idea how to work this thing...I figured I do a practice post before we go to try and get the hang of this...
Jessie and I are off to New Zealand this Sunday (2/15) - I cannot believe it is almost here! Jessie is in NYC today interviewing for a Summer internship in fashion. I am still at work with Team In Training - my last day is tomorrow. I am VERY sad to leave my job and my co workers :( ... Jessie and I will probably be living under an underpass in a cardboard box when we get back the way the economy is looking these days...we will keep you posted on that :)
Not much to say at this point other than we are packing like maniacs and REALLY excited to go! I had a nightmare last night about the super long flight...I am not sure if I can handle it - but once we are there I know it will be worth it!
Please check our blog as we will do our best to post pictures and tales of our adventures as often as possibe! We will miss you ALL so much! Please write us to tell us how you are doing - we want to know what you're up to!
Love,
Alley and Jessie
Welcome to our blog :)! I have no idea how to work this thing...I figured I do a practice post before we go to try and get the hang of this...
Jessie and I are off to New Zealand this Sunday (2/15) - I cannot believe it is almost here! Jessie is in NYC today interviewing for a Summer internship in fashion. I am still at work with Team In Training - my last day is tomorrow. I am VERY sad to leave my job and my co workers :( ... Jessie and I will probably be living under an underpass in a cardboard box when we get back the way the economy is looking these days...we will keep you posted on that :)
Not much to say at this point other than we are packing like maniacs and REALLY excited to go! I had a nightmare last night about the super long flight...I am not sure if I can handle it - but once we are there I know it will be worth it!
Please check our blog as we will do our best to post pictures and tales of our adventures as often as possibe! We will miss you ALL so much! Please write us to tell us how you are doing - we want to know what you're up to!
Love,
Alley and Jessie
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)