Hello!
First of all, I would like to say thank you for reading and replying to my blog. As much fun as I am having here traveling... I've been gone a month now, and it is nice to get little notes from home. So, Thanks!
Ok... on to the good stuff. Where did I leave off....
On Monday we drove from Kaikoura where we did the dolphin swimming to Christchurch, a bigger city in New Zealand. We arrived the day before a holiday (Waitunngi day sp?- which is similar to our fourth of July). When we arrived at the YMCA (it was fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A) I got to open all of the mail that you all sent me. Thank you for that!!! Then we took off the the park across the street to watch a celebration with music and fireworks! I love fireworks. It was a really nice time... and very cultural as well. You see, here in New Zealand, instead of screwing the Indians, or Maori as there are called here, they signed a treaty with them and actually kept it. So, the Maori culture is very rich and going strong. A Lot of people even speak the Maori language. It is a really neat thing to see.
Tuesday was the day for Rock Climbing. We went to a rock cliff just outside of Christchurch where we all harnessed up and began climbing. I don't know if you have ever been.... but it's pretty hard! I did feel pretty cool when I got to the top of the easier climb... but the harder ones kicked my butt. I guess that's what happens when you have no upper body strength.
Wednesday was a free day for us in Christchurch and Tami and I took that time to explore the city. We went to a museum where we learned more about the history of New Zealand, and art museum where we were able to check out a bunch of different art, and of course.. a little bit of window shopping. They had a nice "town square" where a bunch of street performers were performing, so it was fun to watch them for a bit. Later that evening we went for a run through the park and came across a free play going on, so we stopped and watched that. It was a cool city with some things going on, but personally I think I like the small towns and just being in nature way better than the cities.
On Thursday we drove from Christchurch to the Peel Forest where we stayed at an Eco Lodge. The Eco Lodge was constructed so that it wouldn't hurt the environment at all. All the water was rain water... and if you wanted it hot you had to start a fire. The electricity was solar powered, and the bathroom was a sort of indoor outhouse in which you emptied a bag at the end of the day into a compost pile in the woods. It was a little bit rustic, but really nice at the same time. It kinda reminded me of being at the cabin with my parents- although that outhouse is outside :) Once we got there, we put on our togs (New Zealand term for swimming suits) and headed out to a river where there was a waterfall. Now, something that I've learned is that when you go on a "walk" with Sophie and Craig, our guides, it is never an easy walk. Today's walk to the waterfall included a mile hike upriver... in the river.. against the current... on slippery rocks. It was difficult, and I actually slid down some rapids at one point because the current got the best of me, but the waterfall was worth it. Once at the waterfall, we climbed up to a cliff near it and jumped into its base. So cool.
Friday morning we all went to a high ropes course and walked across some really high wires. It was good confidence boosting, but a bit scary as well. You are all harnessed in, so if you fall its not a big deal... but getting over the mental part of " I'm really, really high off the ground and you want me to walk on 2 wires from one tree to the next!" is a bit more difficult. It is one of those things that you just do and are happy that you did. We also were able to zip line a bit, which was cool too. It was raining that day, so the afternoon consisted of sleeping, reading, and later on a talent show put on by everybody.
Saturday we went Whitewater Kayaking. I've decided that I LOVE kayaking. You are in this little boat, very near the water, and you are going down the river, over rapids and around rocks... I just love it. The water, however, was really cold, and it was raining. I did fall out once because I went into the rapids sideways and I couldn't straighten myself out in time, but it was pretty easy to get back in the boat (because we were only using sit on top kayaks). We did that for about 3 hrs, which was plenty for me.... by time we got out, I couldn't even feel my feet because they were so cold. It was worth it though.
Sunday we drove from the Peel Forest to Mt Cook, the tallest mountain in New Zealand. Our hostel is at the base of it, so you can look out the hostel window and see the giant snow-capped mountain. It is beautiful. Once we arrived, we took off to go near the glacier. Yes, glacier. It is one of the couple of glaciers left in New Zealand and we got to go near it on little boats. We were in a glacial lake that had giant icebergs floating in it. I got to eat a piece of 400 year old ice, which was kinda cool (lol...cool...ice...) and then for the finally, we got to jump into the 34 degree ice water. So, I did... and it was really cold. So cold that your body went numb in about the 45 seconds of being in the water. It was a cool experience though.
Monday we were supposed to go on a big hike, but it was really cloudy out and the views would have sucked... so we just did a couple of day hikes around the lodge instead and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.
Tuesday was the day for the big hike as we hiked up a foothill of Mt. Cook. The hike was amazing. It was challenging because you were going up a very steep mountain, but with enough rest breaks it was enjoyable and the views made it all worth it. There is just something about mountains that I love... they are just so beautiful. And the stars here at night, are amazing. There is no light pollution around, so they are so bright and they just glisten in the sky.
Today is Wednesday, valentines day, so happy Valentines day to all those at home. We will be leaving Mt. Cook soon and heading to Queenstown- the adrenaline capital of the world. More to come next week on the crazy things I do while I'm there. To jump or not to jump... that is the question.
This computer isn't letting me post photos at the moment... so I promise I'll put them up later.
First of all, I would like to say thank you for reading and replying to my blog. As much fun as I am having here traveling... I've been gone a month now, and it is nice to get little notes from home. So, Thanks!
Ok... on to the good stuff. Where did I leave off....
On Monday we drove from Kaikoura where we did the dolphin swimming to Christchurch, a bigger city in New Zealand. We arrived the day before a holiday (Waitunngi day sp?- which is similar to our fourth of July). When we arrived at the YMCA (it was fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A) I got to open all of the mail that you all sent me. Thank you for that!!! Then we took off the the park across the street to watch a celebration with music and fireworks! I love fireworks. It was a really nice time... and very cultural as well. You see, here in New Zealand, instead of screwing the Indians, or Maori as there are called here, they signed a treaty with them and actually kept it. So, the Maori culture is very rich and going strong. A Lot of people even speak the Maori language. It is a really neat thing to see.
Tuesday was the day for Rock Climbing. We went to a rock cliff just outside of Christchurch where we all harnessed up and began climbing. I don't know if you have ever been.... but it's pretty hard! I did feel pretty cool when I got to the top of the easier climb... but the harder ones kicked my butt. I guess that's what happens when you have no upper body strength.
Wednesday was a free day for us in Christchurch and Tami and I took that time to explore the city. We went to a museum where we learned more about the history of New Zealand, and art museum where we were able to check out a bunch of different art, and of course.. a little bit of window shopping. They had a nice "town square" where a bunch of street performers were performing, so it was fun to watch them for a bit. Later that evening we went for a run through the park and came across a free play going on, so we stopped and watched that. It was a cool city with some things going on, but personally I think I like the small towns and just being in nature way better than the cities.
On Thursday we drove from Christchurch to the Peel Forest where we stayed at an Eco Lodge. The Eco Lodge was constructed so that it wouldn't hurt the environment at all. All the water was rain water... and if you wanted it hot you had to start a fire. The electricity was solar powered, and the bathroom was a sort of indoor outhouse in which you emptied a bag at the end of the day into a compost pile in the woods. It was a little bit rustic, but really nice at the same time. It kinda reminded me of being at the cabin with my parents- although that outhouse is outside :) Once we got there, we put on our togs (New Zealand term for swimming suits) and headed out to a river where there was a waterfall. Now, something that I've learned is that when you go on a "walk" with Sophie and Craig, our guides, it is never an easy walk. Today's walk to the waterfall included a mile hike upriver... in the river.. against the current... on slippery rocks. It was difficult, and I actually slid down some rapids at one point because the current got the best of me, but the waterfall was worth it. Once at the waterfall, we climbed up to a cliff near it and jumped into its base. So cool.
Friday morning we all went to a high ropes course and walked across some really high wires. It was good confidence boosting, but a bit scary as well. You are all harnessed in, so if you fall its not a big deal... but getting over the mental part of " I'm really, really high off the ground and you want me to walk on 2 wires from one tree to the next!" is a bit more difficult. It is one of those things that you just do and are happy that you did. We also were able to zip line a bit, which was cool too. It was raining that day, so the afternoon consisted of sleeping, reading, and later on a talent show put on by everybody.
Saturday we went Whitewater Kayaking. I've decided that I LOVE kayaking. You are in this little boat, very near the water, and you are going down the river, over rapids and around rocks... I just love it. The water, however, was really cold, and it was raining. I did fall out once because I went into the rapids sideways and I couldn't straighten myself out in time, but it was pretty easy to get back in the boat (because we were only using sit on top kayaks). We did that for about 3 hrs, which was plenty for me.... by time we got out, I couldn't even feel my feet because they were so cold. It was worth it though.
Sunday we drove from the Peel Forest to Mt Cook, the tallest mountain in New Zealand. Our hostel is at the base of it, so you can look out the hostel window and see the giant snow-capped mountain. It is beautiful. Once we arrived, we took off to go near the glacier. Yes, glacier. It is one of the couple of glaciers left in New Zealand and we got to go near it on little boats. We were in a glacial lake that had giant icebergs floating in it. I got to eat a piece of 400 year old ice, which was kinda cool (lol...cool...ice...) and then for the finally, we got to jump into the 34 degree ice water. So, I did... and it was really cold. So cold that your body went numb in about the 45 seconds of being in the water. It was a cool experience though.
Monday we were supposed to go on a big hike, but it was really cloudy out and the views would have sucked... so we just did a couple of day hikes around the lodge instead and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.
Tuesday was the day for the big hike as we hiked up a foothill of Mt. Cook. The hike was amazing. It was challenging because you were going up a very steep mountain, but with enough rest breaks it was enjoyable and the views made it all worth it. There is just something about mountains that I love... they are just so beautiful. And the stars here at night, are amazing. There is no light pollution around, so they are so bright and they just glisten in the sky.
Today is Wednesday, valentines day, so happy Valentines day to all those at home. We will be leaving Mt. Cook soon and heading to Queenstown- the adrenaline capital of the world. More to come next week on the crazy things I do while I'm there. To jump or not to jump... that is the question.
This computer isn't letting me post photos at the moment... so I promise I'll put them up later.
3 comments:
Happy Valentine's Day, Julie!!!
Thanks for the postcard!! It was great to get mail from you!!! Keep having fun!
Love,
Barb
A talent show? Did you perform? What was your talent?
-peter
Julie,
got your postcard. Thanks. You are indeed a a special quest and one you will NEVER forget!
xxx Aunt Kathi
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