Christmas in June?

Christmas is in full swing in Australia and New Zealand. There is Christmas music, trees, wreaths, Santa is in the mall… the only thing is, for me, it didn’t feel like Christmas at all. I attribute that to the fact that it was about 80 degrees. It is hard for it to begin to look a lot like Christmas when you are wearing tank tops and flip flops. To me Christmas is chestnuts roasting on an open fire and Jack Frost nipping at your nose. In New Zealand the blossoms of the Pohutukaw blooms signal ’tis the season to be jolly.

Top of the World

Today Bill and I did the Sydney Bridge Climb. Mike and Mom decided that they might now be able to make it so they opted out. Whoo hoo! I know, I know, very touristy but still very cool. We decided on the twilight climb. It took about an hour to get ready. We put on special jump suits and rain pants and then hooked on a safety harness, headsets, a special jacket and fleece that folded into a pouch that stayed hooked on to your jacket, and a few other items that hooked on to the jumpsuit like a glasses strap and hat. Phew! It was a lot of stuff. The bridge has an amazing view of the opera house and it was lovely to see Sydney at night from on high. It honestly wasn’t scary. You are hooked in the whole way and for most of the climb you are on a wide section of the bridge. I would definitely recommend it.

Lord Nelson

M&I spent the wandering. We went to Bondi beach in the morning. We aren’t really beach people to we watched surfers for a while and the walked a path along the coast where we saw a picture in the sandstone. Later at the Rocks Discovery Museum we found out that it was an aboriginal rock carving. I have to say that one of my favorite things was running across the Lord Nelson Brewery. I had read about it before leaving on vacation, but by the time we got to Sydney I had forgotten so it was a nice surprise to run into it. It is Sydney’s only microbrewery. I am pretty sure we were the only non-Sydney patrons at the bar which was a nice change from the touristy joints we were seeing a lot of. We got a Three Sheets and an Old Admiral. The best part was it is $5 meat pie Monday! We weren’t sure what we were going to get with it being a brewery and only $5, but I have to say that if you are in Sydney on a Monday head over the Lord Nelson. You won’t be sorry. The meat pie with mushy peas on top. This was my first experience with mushy peas and it was a good one. They peas were fresh and bright green and the pie was obviously made that day.

G’day!

We are in Sydney! It was a long day. We got up early and hit the road from Fox Glacier to Queenstown for our flight yesterday. Oy. We were all really glad to get here. The best part is we don’t have to up pack and re pack for 5 whole days. This vacation has been great, don’t get me wrong, but it is nice to be able to settle down in the same place for a few days. Today we get ourselves oriented and figured out the transportation system. You would think that a New Yorker would be able to figure out the public transportation system in any city, but it is crazy here. They have ferries, subways (double deckers!), light rail trains, a monorail and buses. To make it extra complicated, you have to have two separate cards to use all the different types of transportation. The ferry this evening was fabulous. We went right past the Opera House and the Harbor Bridge, unfortunately another ferry was in the way for all the good pictures of the Opera House. Luckily we can take as many ferries as we want for the next 4 days.

G’day!

We are in Sydney! It was a long day. We got up early and hit the road from Fox Glacier to Queenstown for our flight yesterday. Oy. We were all really glad to get here. The best part is we don’t have to up pack and re pack for 5 whole days. This vacation has been great, don’t get me wrong, but it is nice to be able to settle down in the same place for a few days. Today we get ourselves oriented and figured out the transportation system. You would think that a New Yorker would be able to figure out the public transportation system in any city, but it is crazy here. They have ferries, subways (double deckers!), light rail trains, a monorail and buses. To make it extra complicated, you have to have two separate cards to use all the different types of transportation. The ferry this evening was fabulous. We went right past the Opera House and the Harbor Bridge, unfortunately another ferry was in the way for all the good pictures of the Opera House. Luckily we can take as many ferries as we want for the next 4 days.

Crampon My Style

I made the glacier walk! With my ankle taped to within an inch of its life and the help of an ankle brace I was able to make it to the glacier and back without a problem. No one mentioned I was going to have to walk up 550 steps to get there, but I guess that is for the best because I am not sure I would have agreed to it. It was worth it once we got to the glacier. We spent a good amount of time hiking up and down though ice canyons and along the top of the glacier. I learned a lot about glaciers and the eco system of NZ. Our half day hike was at Fox Glacier which is on the south island. Apparently the glacier is constantly moving up and down the same valley constantly growing and shrinking. In the process it wipes out all the greenery in its way leaving bare rock. An orange algae forms on the rock which makes it possible for other plants to get a hold and before you know it (ok, it takes years) you have greenery all over. Oh! And I got to wear crampons!

Rolling Ankles

I had a setback yesterday. I re-twist my weak ankle. This ankle has been hurt for what seems like forever at this point. Although I am able to walk, I am not sure I am going to be able to participate in the glacier hike. I am really really bummed. This ankle is a real pain in the ass. When we went to China it kept me from hiking as far I would like have liked on the Great Wall. I don’t know about you, but the Great Wall is not some place I get to go every day. I am going to try and tough it out with a brace, but if I am not feeling a whole lot better in two days I think I am going to have to sit it out. 

A Sound by Any Other Name

We are staying in a little town called Te Anau. Last night we took a trip to see glowworms. Trust me, there are not the cute cuddly glowworms of our childhood. They glow, but they also eat bugs and sometimes eat other, which doesn’t make them seem to cuddly. The main reason we are here is our trip to Doubtful Sound. Don’t worry, I hadn’t heard of it either. It seems to be the less well known sound of the area (Milford is the biggie here.) This morning we drove to the boat which took us to the bus which took us to the boat (with a side trip to the Manipouri power station) which took us around the sound. Yes, there was a lot of travel involved. 8 hours total. And sand flies. Ugh. If I never see another sand fly it will be too soon! Even with the travel and bug bites, it was fantastic. The weather was very good which means there was lots of fog and only some rain. Although less rain does mean less waterfalls. I spent a lot of time on deck taking pictures against the wind and rain and spray from the boat. M took this one of me “flying” in the wind. We saw some seals, some penguins and even a few dolphins. There were some amazing views and I would say it is definitely a highlight of the trip so far.

Flat White

I am a coffee drinker. I generally start my normal day at home with a cup of ice coffee with half and half. Here I have to adjust that a bit. An ice coffee here is coffee with ice cream. Now I don’t have anything against ice cream, but I would rather not come back from this trip having gained 300 pounds. OK, I can be flexible. The hotels seem to be well stocked in coffee crystals. I am not sure I am ready to lower my standards quite that much. What are the other options? Coffee houses here brew expresso drinks, which I happen to like so no problem there. Looking at the list I can order a short black, a long black or a flat white in addition to the more familiar looking lattes and cappuccinos. Huh? The kiwi to english translation of these unfamiliar drinks is as follows:
short black = expresso
long black = cafe americano = expresso + water
flat white = expresso + milk
I am still not entirely sure what the difference is between a flat white and a latte. Some mysteries may not be solved on this trip.

Party Time, Excellent.

(Check back for Sheep World photo)
On our way to Kerikeri Mom and I were quite excited by a sign for Sheep World. We were promised a stop on the way back. As I mentioned NZ has a lot of sheep. I was mistaken when I said it was 2 sheep per person, it is 11! That is a lot of wool. We were hoping that maybe Sheep World would be some kind of wool emporium. A knitter and weavers dream. They have an adorable logo which is basically a puffy cloud like blob with stick legs and two eyes. Sadly there was almost no wool to be found and since it was raining we didn’t end up spending much time there. I am still on a mission to find my 11 sheep load of wool…