We started South Island with a full day hike up the Franz Joseph Glacier all geared up for the snowy ascent. There were icy caves in that unreal vivid blue, snow cut steps, and narrow crevices to squeeeeeze through. I got so carried away I gouged my metal spiked boot into my leg! We also had the chance to kayak on the glassy lake beneath the mountain range, paddling around in the solitude of a creek and trying some of the edible plants (they tasted like plants).
We'd have made Neil Buchanan proud getting cutting and sticking to make costumes for a Bin Liner Party, spent many an hour on the summits of mountains we'd conquered and found some solid contenders for the 'That's The Best Beach I've EVER Seen' trophy. We went on a boat trip around the beautiful Milford Sound Fjords which was as New Zealandy as you can get, and finally reached the Emerald City - Queenstown.
It is hands down the most supercalifragilistic place in the world and the moment I arrived I was panic stricken at the thought of leaving. We played frisbee golf by the glistening lake and trekked up the mountains beneath the gondolas before tucking into fit-for-a-giant 'Fergburgers'. We decked ourselves out in green alongside the rest of a very enthusiastic Queenstown to celebrate St Patrick's Day, and full to the brim with the magic of the place I decided I could fly...well Skydive! I jumped out of a plane at 12,000ft with a pretty fluffy stomach and a terrified grin on my face, and even landed gracefully on my feet at the bottom!
Because we'd been having way too much fun in New Zealand we decided to do a hike up a vertical incline in the blazing sun for 7 hours the day before leaving. It was a horrific and epic quest with lots of 'go-on-without-me's and 'we'll-never-make-it's. I live to tell the tale.
The thesaurus in my brain is constantly trying to find the words to do justice to New Zealand and always seems to come up short. It is the bees knees :)
No comments:
Post a Comment