Back to
the land where Vici was born for ten days of scenery spotting. Ten
hours direct flight from Singapore gets you to Christchurch
International Airport. A short drive from the airport and we were in
Christchurch city centre at our first hotel.
Christchurch
After
a quick snooze, we woke to find the weather being very kind to us.
We stayed at the Grand Chancellor Hotel, which was one of the
tallest buildings in Christchurch. We got a great high floor corner
room which was our home for three nights.
The
view from our hotel bedroom window
Christchurch Catherdral
Modern Art in Cathedral Square
Christchurch also
boasted a tramway system, including one special tram restaurant
which slowly trundled around the town centre at night while you
scoffed the five course meal that was served to you. Sadly we
couldn't get on it, as it was fully booked. Better luck next time !
You
could also go punting along the River Avon, which winds its way
around the city centre. Very like Cambridge if you ask me !
Christchurch to Akaroa
The
road to Akaroa looks quite straight and short on the map, but it
took us most of the day to do the 70km journey both ways. As it is
May time, New Zealand is just taking a breath between the end of its
summer tourist season and the beginning of its winter tourist
season. We found mostly locals in Akaroa enjoying the afternoon sun
when we got there. This is a small town, as you can see from the
pictures below of the Public Library and the Court House. Not much
work for Vici here !
The travellers in
suitable winter gear
Akaroa Public Library
The tea shop
Akaroa Court House
The view across Akaroa Bay, catching the last of the afternoon sun
Christchurch to Kaikoura
A
long drive North from Christchurch brought us to Kaikoura. A
sleepy little fishing town, which is also a tourist destination
during the summer months. We went along the coast to the seal
colony, hoping to be able to get close to the seals. We only saw
one, which was sitting on its own on a rock, just beside the
carpark. However, there was lots to see in the rockpools along the
beach.
Vici searching for creepy crawly fishy things
Limpets !
On our way back towards Christchurch we just happened to be
looking out on the side of the road and saw these two seals
lazing around in the sun. That made up for not seeing them at
the seal colony !
The coast road wound its way through some pretty impressive
mountains. At times though, you couldn't "wind" any more, so you
just had to go straight through. The three tunnels were for road
and rail. Strangely there was a road sign saying "No overtaking
inside tunnels" I'd have to agree that is a good piece of advice
in this situation !
Christchurch to
Queenstown
This
was the biggest journey we did during the holiday at just over
400km. The weather wasn't great, with some light rain during the day
so we didn't get a chance to take too many pictures. The highlight
was Lake Tekapo, where the rain stopped to let us get this shot.
As we
neared Queenstown we passed through the Kawarau Gorge. The Kawarau
River is crossed by the Kawarau Bridge, which was made famous by A.J.
Hackett for bungy jumping. The official bungy website is
here
Kawarau Gorge
Queenstown
Queenstown was a very cool little place. Lots of bars, good
restaurants, and lots to see and do. We stayed at the Heritage
Hotel, which was your real hunting/skiing lodge type of place. Our
home for four nights.
Queenstown by night
Hotel Hospitality
Hotel guests
Queenstown to Arrowtown
Arrowtown was around 30 minutes drive from Queenstown. Originally a
mining settlement, it is one of the best kept traditional towns
which has not been spoiled by development or tourism influences.
Still, there were plenty of shops ready to help you spend some cash
on gold or jade jewellery!
High Noon in Tombstone !
At
least you could post your postcards !
Queenstown Kiwi &
Birdlife Park
Thursday didn't start off too well. We were scheduled to fly to
Milford Sound at 10.00am, however, one look from the hotel room
window told us this wasn't likely due to the amount of cloud cover
that morning. This was confirmed an hour or so later by the airport.
So, we went to the Kiwi & Birdlife Park and up the gondola instead.
At
the bird park we saw the famous New Zealand Kiwi, but sadly, as it's
enclosure was very dark, we couldn't get pictures. I you can imagine
a big hen with a long beak, you're getting the idea ! We also met
some cheeky Keas, also a favourite in New Zealand. As you can see,
these guys didn't hide in the dark. They came out, said hello, and
ate your rucksack!
Cheeky Keas
Queenstown Skyline
Gondola
One on the best ways to
get a good view of Queenstown is to ride the gondola to the top of
Bobs Peak. This was also on the cloudy Thursday. The Skyline website
is here
Some rare "outside the
car" pictures
The
Ledge bungy
The
view of Queenstown from Bobs Peak
Queenstown to Kingston
If
you travel South from Queenstown around Lake Wakatipu you arrive at
Kingston. At this time of year their main attraction, the
Kingston Flyer steam
train wasn't running, but luckily it was stationed outside, so we
got a picture anyway. The weather remained cloudy all day, as you
can see from the shot of Lake Wakatipu, taken looking back towards
Queenstown. Would the weather break ? Would we ever get to Milford
Sound ? Read on to find out !
The
Kingston Flyer
Lake Wakatipu
Queenstown to Milford
Sound
Friday, our last day in Queenstown. Weather report ? Looking good !
We got to fly out to Milford Sound at noon. Transport for the trip ?
A six seater Cessna light aircraft. As usual, cut down pictures for
the internet cannot do a place like Milford Sound justice, but I can
assure you, it really was spectacular from the air.
Many
thanks to our pilot Henrietta, who not only got us there and back
safely, but also gave us an excellent running commentary on where we
were, and what we were seeing.
Just
after takeoff, looking South down Lake Wakatipu towards Kingston.
River
estuary joining the lake.
Another
lake just visible through the clouds
Glacier on the mountainside. Everyone be quiet, no shouting!
No
clouds here !
We
flew along Milford Sound, went briefly out to the Tasman Sea, then
turned back and landed. Affording us these views.
The
Tasman Sea.
Onto
the cruise boat now, heading away from the dock along the sound.
Mitre
Peak, in the background. Taken from the boat.
Note the
shades. Told you the weather was good !
The
Tasman Sea again, this time from the boat.
Up close
and personal to a waterfall on the sound.
Back in
the air again, heading back to Queenstown. More height please!.
That's
better !
Spectacular.
A
fantastic day. Made all the more special by the flight experience.
The only other ways into Milford Sound are either to drive it
yourself (4~5 hours each way) or take a coach (6~7 hours each way).
In summary, fly it!
Queenstown to Fox
Glacier
Happy that we finally
got to to fly to Milford Sound, we left Queenstown and headed North
along the West Coast towards our next stop, Fox Glacier.
On the
shores of Lake Hawea
The
good thing about hiring a 4x4 was that you could get off-road to
take pictures without getting out !.
The
road North runs along the coast for a spell. This was the view out
across the Tasman Sea from Knights Point.
Further
along the road we stopped at Bruce Bay in the late afternoon.
We
finally arrived in the sleepy town of Fox Glacier. This was the view
of the glacier from the edge of town.
Fox Glacier to
Christchurch
Sadly
all good things must come to an end, so we found ourselves on
Arthurs Pass the next day, heading back to Queenstown for our final
night before flying back to Singapore.
A brief
stop almost at the top of the Pass to admire the engineering that
makes it possible to put a road where there really shouldn't be one.
Driving
in New Zealand was a great experience. Open roads, no traffic, no
speed cameras (I hope !) but occasionally you did have to slow down
for the local residents !
