My Life in Words

Ok, so after Picton, I got back on the bus and headed to Abel Tasman National park, where I spent two nights. After that it was down to Franz Josef for a few nights (via one night in a town called Blackball), and then to Wanaka for one night before my final stop in Queenstown. Now, I should start this by saying that I dont camp. I dont like sleeping on the ground, I dont like getting dirty, I dont like being cold and I don't like bugs. But in Abel Tasman, I camped (sort of)!! We stayed at a "hotel" called the barn. There were two options of accommodation type - cabin or tent. Since it was "luxury" camping, with big walk in tents and proper beds, I decided to give it a go. The cabins were pretty much identical, only with walls and for more money, so I roughed it for two nights. It wasn't so bad and I actually really liked the accommodation. While there, I did a full day sailing trip in the park. Abel Tasman is a large national part on the northwestern corne

Right. So after Queenstown, the pace of my holiday has really slowed down. New Zealand is not a very busy place.   I have spent the last 4 days in mt. Cook, Rangitata, Kaikoura and Picton (where I am now).  Since not a lot has been going on, I figured I would just share this highlights  - In Rangitata we stayed at a sheep farm. it was really in the middle of no where. They did, however offer white water rafting, as the near by river has class 4 and 5 rapids, but I decided not to go since I have been before.  Instead, one of the owners drove me down to the river and I spent about an hour walking back. I'm not usually one who enjoys quiet time, but I was surprised how much I enjoyed my walk and my stay on the farm. Dont get me wrong, I hve no intentions of becoming a farmer, but its nice walking around with no one else around within miles. I scenery on the walk was beautiful and on the way I chatted at some cows (who then scared me, as there were hundreds of them looking at

October and November were tough months. After a surprisingly busy October at work (which is supposed to be my quiet time), I spent nearly the entire month of November on the road for work. I don't mind traveling for work, but by the end of the four weeks away, I was really looking forward to some time to myself. That's not to say I won't be busy during my time in New Zealand; I will be. But I'll be busy doing things I want to go and seeing places I want to go (unlike my most recent work trip, which involved using a first aid room at a mine site as an office, while our of town for the week in a place called Gunnedah). Stop 1 on my 2 weeks here is Queenstown; Adventure capital of the world (or something). I can understand why - every other store in this (surprisingly) small town, is a booking agency. Bungy jumping, sky diving, white water rafting, parasailing, hang gliding, and about 50 other adventure sports I never even knew existed. Case and point - extreme jet b