South Island Trip

28th July (Day 1)
We were so excited that we hardly slept !! Awoke at 4.00 am & got ready.Taxi was delayed by 5 mins ; picked up Ajay first then us & headed to the Domestic airport.Plane was on time & we reached Christchurch (Chch) by 8.00 am.Had brekkie (bacon , eggs etc) , picked up the rental van , shopped for bread , milk etc @ Pak n Save , Chch & by 11.45 am we were on our way to Qtown.We estimated it to be 478 kms (7 hr drive). Our van was good , it had a bbq & place to sleep in it , pillows , duvets. The seats for Zai & Suz were just enough...they could have been a bit more spacious.We stopped at Ashburton & had a rest and a bite.We stopped at Geraldine for a bite & got Havarti cheese (semi-soft cows milk cheese with pepper).Suz was ok but after abt 2 hrs of travel she was nauseous & the travel sickness tablets were no good.Poor girl was puking all the way...the windy roads added to her misery.Finally we reached Qtown around 8 pm. The house was excellent.It had a big lounge with dining table , a nice kitchen with all cutlery , a double bed & another room with 2 single beds. We dined on the table & had the whole roast cken & bread we picked up from Pak n Save. Went to bed after that & slept well. The rooms were all well heated .

29th July (Day 2)
Woke up around 8 am , drew the drapes & were amazed at the stunning views of the mountains capped with snow & the beautiful lake. It was a view to die for & all of were transfixed by it. Ajay & Steve went to the supermarket which was 5 mins walking distance (our house was in the central city) & got bacon , eggs , hashbrowns, mushrooms , sausages etc & had a full on heavy brekkie.Then we drove to Coronet Peak & on our way we discovered a beautiful town , Arrowtown and had a browse at the place , their shops and had a drink in their pub.Then we headed to Coronet Peak & had a play in the snow which was an amzing experience for Suzie and Zai as it is their first time to see snow.While the girls were having fun, Ajay and I had a drink.It was cold but we had all the right clothing.Suz prepared beef mince earlier & we had it with basmati rice. The rest of the day we relaxed.

30th July (Day 3)
We decided not to take long trips as Suz could not cope. Next trip was to Te Anau to see the glowworms in their caves.It was a 3 hr drive from Qtown & from Te Anau we took a ferry to reach the caves.There we we put into a small boat & it was pitch dark.We could see the glowworms lighting up the cave . No pictures were allowed as it would disturb them. It was the best experience of my & everyone's life.After the cave tour we had coffee & went on a 5 minute bush walk. The whole tour was around 2 hrs incl 30 mins each way for the ferry ride.

31st July (Day 4)
We decided to take a respite from the long drives , woke up at liesure & did a gondola ride just a few metres from where we lived. Spectacular views of Qtown & the snow capped peaks greeted us on our way top.We went wild clicking pics & spent nearly 90 mins there.Around 12.30 pm we headed to Gibbston Valley Vineyards which is a 45 min drive.We did a wine tour , sampled 3 wines , bought gouda cheese from the cheesery then headed to their restraunt .Suz & Zai had organic cken roasted which was yumm , Ajay had Moroccan lamb while i settled for pasta with chorizo in a tomato sauce.We finished it off with a Greek orange cake with ice cream.We rested in the van for a while in Lake Hayes (beautiful lake with swans fighting !!) as we were stuffed as then headed home.

1st Aug (Day 5)
Wanaka is a 2 hr 45 min drive from Qtown & this was next on our itinerary.Its a small town with good views & boasts of the well known Lake Wanaka. On our way we stopped at Cardrona which is another ski field & we all had a ball in the snow.We strolled the streets of Wanaka , had a beer in the pub , Suz had a kebab on rice , Zai had a cken burger. It was a relaxed day & we then visited New World supermarket .On our way home to did a brief stopover at Lake Hawea to get sum pics.

2nd Aug (Day 6)
We headed north of Qtown to Glenorchy & Kinloch where Lord of the Rings was shot.Its a beautiful place & we took a bucket of KFC , Malibu & vodka and feasted our tummies as well as our minds to the awesome views.We were back in Qtown by 6 pm . This was our last day in Qtown so i headed off with Ajay to get chocs / tshirts for mates.In the process of helping someone with their supermarket shopping as it was falling down i left my bag of souveneirs...so sad but i reckon it was not destined .That nite we had fried rice & tandoori for dinner.Ajay prepared mussels in green thai sauce. So much rice & cken remained that we packed sum of it to Mt Cook & Suz kept the remainder 4 her stay on Fri

3rd Aug (Day 7)
Suz decided to stay back in the house & fly to Cch on 4th Aug while the 3 of us left Qtown around 9 am for Mt Cook. It took us around 4 hrs to get there.On the way we stopped at a Salmon farm.Mt Cook is very small ....just 100 residents & 10 kids in their school !! No supermarkets , takeways etc.We stayed in YHA & most of the houses are chalets...just like in Switzerland.After lunch at a cafe Ajay & us parted ways....he took his camera & went one way while to took off for a 2 hr walk to Hooker Valley...it was around 4 but the sun started setting and it was getting colder so we had to pack up on all the gloves , beanies , thermals etc.After the walk i had a lie in the sauna while Zai was reading in the lounge.For dinner we heated the fried rice & tandoori and also the leftover booze (Malibu , Vodka).Zai was not keen to come for an after dinner drink at the pub so me & Ajay headed there. There is this beautiful hotel Hermitage & the pub in it is awesum...puts Akl pubs to shame.It was impressive & well heated and very comfy.On the way back we could feel the road getting slippery as ice was on it.We were in bed by 9.45 pm

4th Aug (Last day)
We awoke by 6.30 am , had our shower , cup of tea & toast and were on the road to Chch by 7.45 am. The car screen was full of ice & we had to wait for it ro clear. It was a 4 hr drive & very foggy.Zai slept throughout this journey. Suz's plane was delayed by 30 mins & we were just in time to pick her from the airport.We cleaned the car & then had Souvlaki (kebab in a roll eaten with a spoon) which was yumm , showed Suz a bit of Chch , gave back the rental car & took a taxi to the airport.Our holiday had ended....

We were home by 7 pm & the home was as we had left it...

Steve