We've been in Queenstown for the past two days, staying in this darling refurbished barn on a B&B property. It's been SO nice to have a "home" to return to for multiple nights in a row, and we've taken advantage by cooking family dinners, feeding the sheep, spending some quality time, and clocking lots of hours in the hot tub (man, I'm gonna miss that thing).
Two days ago was bungy day. However, I'll stop you in your tracks: I didn't jump. I got out onto the platform and completely FREAKED OUT. I have never been more terrified in my entire life. No one is more surprised than me that I wasn't able to actually go through with it. But. I actually learned a lot about myself in this whole not jumping process. 1. I like to be in control of my surroundings. Throwing myself off of a bridge only to plummet 141 feet and maybe die was clearly too far out of my control. 2. I can love adrenaline rushes and be fearless without doing every "crazy" thing there is for those types to do. I had kind of built up in my head that I would love this, because I am sort of wild, but it's really not for everyone. And that's okay. I want to be fearless in the things that I choose to do, but that doesn't mean I have to do everything. This may make sense in my head more than in my poor articulation of it, but this is a speed post after all. Anyway, John jumped, and it was great to watch him!
As close as I got to jumping. I went up there to the edge three separate times, but I just couldn't do it. Oh well! Live and learn.
Yesterday was an AMAZING day. We drove to Glenorchy, which is about 45 minutes outside of Queenstown. It's tiny, and easily in the top two most beautiful places I've been in NZ so far. The Routeburn Track ends there, and some of Lord of the Rings was filmed there. The mountains were so beautiful, and the whole drive is right along Lake Wakatipu, which is insanely gorgeous. We just kept pulling over to take photos, because the view kept getting better and better.
It was totally Middle Earth. Definitely the most Lord of the Rings-y New Zealand has felt so far. We hiked through the woods where Boramir is killed by orcs in the first movie, saw the river where Arwen washes away the Raiths while rushing Frodo to Rivendell ("If you want him, COME AND CLAIM HIM!"), and obviously saw all of the Misty Mountains, which are the basis of Isengard. So it was pretty darn cool.
Arwen's River, about a two hour hike along the Routeburn Track. Not the exact spot where it happened or anything, but one can imagine...
Misty Mountains
Amazing light on the drive home!
Elise decided to take a Lord of the Rings horse tour through the area, which was one of her number one things to do in New Zealand. So we got to go to the stables and see the horses and stuff, which was awesome. I realllllllly wanted to do it with her, but I just couldn't justify the money. I'm getting pretty skint here, so I've gotta be smart. Plus the hike we did was really great, so I'm glad I made the choice I did.
Gorgeous stables and horses. This is definitely at the top of my list for my next stint in NZ.
My new soulmate, Chappers (named for Charlie Chaplin). He's only five and was so sweet and affectionate. We bonded.
This morning is a dreary, rainy one, which is perfect because we're heading to the airport. Today marks the last day of our South Island portion of the trip, and we're all getting really excited to spend some time on the North Island! We arrive in Wellington this afternoon, where we'll spend two days. It's the capital city, and there's tons to do there, so I can't wait to explore. This trip is going by so quickly, I can't believe it.
Fun Facts/Updates:
-When I was bonding with Chappers at the stables, I definitely pretended he was my horse in LOTR...and I may or may not have told him to show me the meaning of haste...I am a geek and I don't care.
-Last night I FINALLY had Mexican food! It's not popular in New Zealand like at all, so I've been missing it a lot. We went to the supermarket and got yummy ingredients and had a family dinner in our house. It was a great last night in Queenstown.
-When I was pissing myself on the bungy platform, one of the bros that worked there took the time to compliment my silver fern tattoo, and I was really excited about it. Since he's a Kiwi, I take that seriously. THANKS, RANDOM BUNGY BRO! s
-I really like sheep.
I have no clue when I'll have wifi again, so here's hoping I can post again soon.
Cheers!
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